Follow up: I got my Pentax K-5!

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sper

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Charging the battery now. The kit 18-55 seems a little 'meh' but I'm glad it's sealed. The 70mm 2.4 seems really nice. But I got it when I got home from work so not the best conditions to test a camera. I basically set it up, and took some snaps for fun...

Oh...totally doused it in the sink. 🙂 Just 'cause I can!

Ok lets talk lenses. Is the 31mm 1.8 worth it? And thoughts on the 15mm f4?

I'm building a wedding kit and I'm a big believer in the 3 lens prime set up, with a backup zoom. I need a fast normal, and good wide. I also have an X100 on the way so the fast semi wide is covered.

Any old manual focus lenses I should look into? I work at B&H so we have a lot of wacky old Pentax primes.
 
Congrats ... that's a DSLR that I would happily own.

I'd love to see some high ISO shots from it when you get a chance. 🙂
 
The 31 is one of those "special" Pentax lenses that you probably won't appreciate till you actually use it. The DA35 macro is also very well regarded and is quite a bit cheaper. Depending on how manual you want to go there are a lot of older lenses--both Pentax and non-Pentax--that can produce some wonderful images. I have a K 30/2.8 that is a real gem and the M 50/1.7 is also a star performer. For M42 or non-Pentax stuff the sky's the limit. I have a Revuenon (Porst, Tomioka, Yashica) 55/1.2 in K-mount that is a bit tough to MF on a DSLR but it makes nice pictures with really shallow DOF. I have an Industar 50-2 50/3.5 in M42 mount that is a really nice B@W lens and one of my favourites is a Cosina (plastic-fantastic) 100/3.5 macro.

Really, there are so many lenses that fit Pentax cameras that the best thing to is just "buy and try". They're usually pretty cheap so you can buy lots and sell the ones you don't like...
 
I'm selling my Pentax gear and have been thinking about what I'll miss the most.

I've really enjoyed the Revuenon 55 f/1.2. It's pretty magical. I've never owned the Porst but I do know it is different than the Revuenon/Tomioka/etc. One less aperture blade, not sure about differences in optical formula.

The K series 200mm f/2.5 makes me really happy on the rare occasion I use it. Give it a whirl if you can find one and like big, heavy, long lenses!
 
Don't be quick to dump the 18-55. It is not that bad. I sold my 35mm macro because my wife bought me the zoom and I couldn't see a vast difference in quality! Unlike her 24-200(?) which is less than spectacular.
 
Be careful dousing lenses in the sink (limiteds, for example) - since only WR lenses are sealed.
 
JayM said:
I've really enjoyed the Revuenon 55 f/1.2. It's pretty magical. I've never owned the Porst but I do know it is different than the Revuenon/Tomioka/etc. One less aperture blade, not sure about differences in optical formulas.
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Yeah, this "family" of lenses can be hard to figure out. Lots of overlap and cross-branding so it's often difficult to say with absolute certainty that a particular lens is made by a specific manufacturer. Still lovely to use, though...
 
Congrats!
I keep using my istD up to now, as i like the ergonomy of pentax dslr. I hope you enjoy yours.
As lens, Manual focus & aperture, I always like SMC (not SMC M), I had/have K17mm f4, 3pcs K50mm f1.2 in the past, K85mm f1.8, K135 f2.5, all give me superb result.
I tried da limited, 21/40/70, but only keep 21 for small street photography package. Doesn't mean that 40/70 ltd is bad, it is just not for me.
All the limiteds wil give you wonderfull result I believe. But for long term investment, I'd rather keep all my FA/FA* as I still use film & really waiting for pentax FF. As for now, pentax FF dslr is just in my dream.
 
The 31 is THE lens. It's why I have a K-5. I recommend it unreservedly.

You might consider an upgrade to the new 18-135, which is also weather sealed, incredibly small, and fast to focus. Images are quite good. That 70 you have is also very fine, as is the 77, which is a bit faster. The 15 is supposedly excellent but I bought the Sigma 8-16 instead and am not disappointed, though it's much larger.

But the 31, you really need to try it.
 
Congratulations on your purchase. 🙂 Be prepared to spend some time learning about the features of the camera and the way these work. Even with several Pentax DSLRs behind me there's a lot to learn in the new model. For example, if you want to use 80 iso setting, you need to turn off the highlight correction option. Similarly, if you have the distortion correction and lateral chromatic aberration correction enabled, this will slow down the process and write time. I find the five custom user presents handy to save the combinations of settings that give me a good basic colour jpg, and a high-iso B&W jpg, etc.

And another alternative to the 31 LTD is the Pentax-F 28/2.8, very good performance, very fast and precise auto-focus, at a fraction of the weight, bulk and price of the LTD lens (review here). I was glad to get mine before they were "discovered" by the crowd. The LTD is a better and faster lens, but sometimes I want a smaller package.

(IMHO) The best way to use the K5 is with just one or two compact primes, like a rangefinder. The 21/3.2 LTD (or the F28/2.8) and your DA 70/2.4 LTD will make a nice kit. The DA 15/4 LTD is outstanding, if that focal length (22mm-equivalent on full frame) works for you.
 
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ChrisN said:
Congratulations on your purchase. 🙂 Be prepared to spend some time learning about the features of the camera and the way these work. Even with several Pentax DSLRs behind me there's a lot to learn in the new model. For example, if you want to use 80 iso setting, you need to turn off the highlight correction option. Similarly, if you have the distortion correction and lateral chromatic aberration correction enabled, this will slow down the process and write time. I find the five custom user presents handy to save the combinations of settings that give me a good basic colour jpg, and a high-iso B&W jpg, etc.

And another alternative to the 31 LTD is the Pentax-F 28/2.8, very good performance, very fast and precise auto-focus, at a fraction of the weight, bulk and price of the LTD lens (review here). I was glad to get mine before they were "discovered" by the crowd. The LTD is a better and faster lens, but sometimes I want a smaller package.

(IMHO) The best way to use the K5 is with just one or two compact primes, like a rangefinder. The 21/3.2 LTD (or the F28/2.8) and your DA 70/2.4 LTD will make a nice kit. The DA 15/4 LTD is outstanding, if that focal length (22mm-equivalent on full frame) works for you.
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Chris,

How about posting a pick of your K-5 with a compact prime on it and sit it next to another camera we're familiar with to give an idea of the actual size.

🙂
 
Keith said:
Chris,

How about posting a pick of your K-5 with a compact prime on it and sit it next to another camera we're familiar with to give an idea of the actual size.

🙂
Click to expand...

I have to say it feels smaller in the hand than it looks in these pics! Probably because the M4 is so solid.

That's the DA 21/3.2 on the camera (my favourite), with the F 28/2.8, DA 15/4 and FA 31/1.8 LTD on the right. The 31 is the big one at the back - quite a hefty lens.

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Just for fun here's a few of the family. 🙂

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15, 21, (DA - for digital crop sensor), F-28, FA 31, FA 43, FA 77 (full-frame 35mm).
 

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I shot a lot of photos with the 31mm on the K10D -- a great combination. Ended up selling it as my SLR use is rare at this point (if you look at the "Gear" section of my blog, linked in the signature, I wrote a post not too long ago about the 31mm).

If I had to do it over again, I'd start with the 43mm. It's got awesome character, is pretty darned small, and is the least expensive of the FA Limiteds. It's a long-normal (roughly 65mm) on the K-5 sensor, which is pretty handy for events & weddings.

As far as older glass -- the 28mm f/3.5 is sharp as a tack and has a nice character to it, and the 85mm f/1.8 is just gorgeous.

I don't have any first-hand experience with it, and it's hard to find, but the FA 24mm f/2 is supposed to be pretty awesome, and would work nicely as a wide-angle complement to the 43mm for events.
 
sper said:
Charging the battery now. The kit 18-55 seems a little 'meh' but I'm glad it's sealed. The 70mm 2.4 seems really nice. But I got it when I got home from work so not the best conditions to test a camera. I basically set it up, and took some snaps for fun...

Oh...totally doused it in the sink. 🙂 Just 'cause I can!

Ok lets talk lenses. Is the 31mm 1.8 worth it? And thoughts on the 15mm f4?

I'm building a wedding kit and I'm a big believer in the 3 lens prime set up, with a backup zoom. I need a fast normal, and good wide. I also have an X100 on the way so the fast semi wide is covered.

Any old manual focus lenses I should look into? I work at B&H so we have a lot of wacky old Pentax primes.
Click to expand...

I don't think any of the old Pentax M42 mount lenses were bad. As long as they haven't been mistreated they should be great to use. Considering where you work, you might want to fit several on and shoot photos in-house to see what you get. Could be good advertisement for the camera as well.

EDIT: BTW, don't mean to forget any of the other lenses out there either. Yashinons are all good. Fujinons are better, but more expensive and harder to get. Hexanons if there are adapters, are usually under-rated as well.
 
You can have a lot of fun with the old Pentax glass. Here is a A100 f4 Macro:



You can pick up those lenses around $150.
 
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