A luxury problem with a luxury solution (43mm Pentax Special)

sleepyhead

sleepyhead

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In the 1970s I was a "40mm lens guy" using the 40mm f/1.7 lens on my Minolta HiMatic-E (my first camera).

In the 1980s I was a "50mm lens guy" using the Minolta 50mm f/1.4 Rokkor-X on my XD-11.

In the 1990s I was a "35mm lens guy" using the 35mm f/2.8 lens on my Minox 35.

In the 2000s I was a "40mm lens guy" again using the 40mm f/2 M-Rokkor on my Minolta CLE.


Then I became a "Leica guy" and with that luxury I gained a luxury problem: if only taking one lens with me, should it be a 35mm or a 50mm? I have often had a hard time deciding and have wasted mental energy on this.

I thought about buying a 40mm M-Rokkor again (a great lens) or a 40mm Summicron-C, and have tried them, but they seemed too close to my 35mm Summicron pre-ASPH to feel worth it. I continued to use the 35mm Summicron.

Yesterday, I got my luxury solution: a Pentax 43mm L Special in LTM!

43mm seems to be perfectly placed between 35mm and 50mm and will be the lens I reach for when I can only carry one lens and can't decide!

I'm looking forwards to shooting with it!

PS If there are any of you who use this lens on a Leica M9 or M240, what coding (if any) do you use for the lens? and why?
 
hi yaron,
sounds familiar to me. other than going through different lenses in the 35/40/50/55 range, i also had my times where i favoured one oor the otber of these fl.

however, these days i just keep one (or two or three) of them, fortunately small enough to bring them all if im undecided.

while i can't comment on the pentax, my "secret" good-for-everything is the rollei sonnar 40mm LTM.

🙂

cheers,
sebastian
 
sleepyhead said:
... Yesterday, I got my luxury solution: a Pentax 43mm L Special in LTM!

43mm seems to be perfectly placed between 35mm and 50mm and will be the lens I reach for when I can only carry one lens and can't decide! ...
Click to expand...

Good luck with it! I hope you enjoy using it a lot!

When I was shooting with Pentax DSLRs, the Pentax-FA 43mm f/1.9 Limited was, in the end, my absolute favorite lens. I almost kept a Pentax body just be able to use that lens. My understanding is that the Pentax-L 43mm f/1.9 Limited is exactly the same optics in a Leica M-bayonet mount.

I've seen a couple for sale over the years, but because I have the M-Rokkor 40/2 already I haven't pushed the buy button. So I'll be interested to see the results you get with it...

G
 
Godfrey said:
Good luck with it! I hope you enjoy using it a lot!

When I was shooting with Pentax DSLRs, the Pentax-FA 43mm f/1.9 Limited was, in the end, my absolute favorite lens. I almost kept a Pentax body just be able to use that lens. My understanding is that the Pentax-L 43mm f/1.9 Limited is exactly the same optics in a Leica M-bayonet mount.

I've seen a couple for sale over the years, but because I have the M-Rokkor 40/2 already I haven't pushed the buy button. So I'll be interested to see the results you get with it...

G
Click to expand...

THANKS GODFREY, nice to know it. The lens seems to be highly regarded.

It'll be a while until I can post results with the lens as I only paid for it yesterday. I won't actually have it in my hands until the end of October.
 
I have such a lens, and I love it. Its performance (for me) is quite similar to what I get with the Summicron-C 40/2. The Pentax lens is beautifully made. I have only used it with film Leica cameras so far. Your post reminds me to also use it with the M9 or M8. I would start "coding" it as a 50mm Summicron and then 35mm Summicron.
 
I have the SLR version. An beautifully made lens as Raid has said. Would love to see some photos from your new acquisition when you have time to post.
 
Godfrey said:
My understanding is that the Pentax-L 43mm f/1.9 Limited is exactly the same optics in a Leica M-bayonet mount.
Click to expand...

The Pentax-L Special is in Leica screw mount, actually.

It indeed has the same excellent glass as the FA Limited, stuffed into the end of a longer barrel to match the Leica mount register. It is beautifully made and handles well.

One minor nuisance: the rubber surround of the accessory 43/50 finder is prone to leave annoying, slightly greasy marks on eyeglasses. I've recently picked up a Sigma VF-21 to try as an alternative.

To the OP: enjoy! 🙂
 
Ah, thanks! Dumb error on my part!

I'd fit an adapter for 35mm focal length to bring up those frame lines on the M9/M(240), I find them more accurate for the Nokton 40 and M-Rokkor 40 than the default 50mm frame lines.

G
 
Godfrey said:
Ah, thanks! Dumb error on my part!

I'd fit an adapter for 35mm focal length to bring up those frame lines on the M9/M(240), I find them more accurate for the Nokton 40 and M-Rokkor 40 than the default 50mm frame lines.

G
Click to expand...


Yes, I've decided to code the 43mm Pentax as a 35mm Summicron ASPH (because I already have a pre-ASPH 35mm Summicron and want the EXIF data to distinguish the two lenses).

I chose 35mm instead of 50mm because I've noticed that with both 50mm and 35mm lenses on my M9, at around 2 meters (which is a distance I often use), I get quite a bit more in the photo compared to what the framelines show. So I reckon the 43mm lens with 35mm framelines will be about right. At distances closer than 2 meters, I will need to remember to frame a little loosely with the 43mm lens so as to not inadvertently cut off important picture elements near the edges.
 
I finally got delivery of the Pentax 43mm Special in LTM. I'm really liking this focal length on the Leica M9. The 35mm framelines clearly fit better than the 50mm framelines, but I'm using a 50mm LTM to M adapter because that's all I have handy.

Here's a shot from yesterday evening:


med_U2246I1414851504.SEQ.0.jpg
 
aoresteen said:
Sleepyhead,

If you don't mind, what did you pay for the Pentax 43mm lens? I've thought of getting one but the prices seemed high.
Click to expand...

Hello aoresteen, I paid about 950 USD for my lens. It was off of Ebay from a seller in Japan. I'm pretty sure I could have gotten one for around 700 USD if I had been patient and waited for a good deal. But I had the money and I wanted it for a recent trip.
 
Renato Tonelli said:
Has anyone used a 40mm accessory finder (e.g. Voigtlander) in conjunction with the Pentax 43mm lens? Just curious. In my experience Pentax lenses are excellent and 40mm is my favorite 'normal' lens.
Click to expand...

Hello Renato, I would think that a 40mm accessory viewfinder would work fine. Framing with a rangefinder camera is always going to be somewhat of an estimation.

I have just obtained a LTM to M mount adapter for my Pentax 43mm which brings up the 35mm framelines on my M9, and the framing is pretty accurate at the 1-5 meter distances that I usually shoot at. Therefore, I won't be using the 43mm accessory viewfinder that came with the lens.
 
aoresteen said:
Thanks! Great pics! Gas is really getting to me.... 🙂
Click to expand...

I just bought a chrome version with 43/50 VF'er, caps, LTM adapter and box.

Looks like a great lens to use on my 0.85 MP that I had Sherry strip the 75mm frames out. The entire VF'er can be used for framing, and the external VF'er won't be needed.

The added magnification of the 0.85 VF'er helps with focus accuracy and makes for a faster focus.

Cal
 
Renato Tonelli said:
Silly dilemma: I can't decide between the Rollei 40mm and the Pentax 43mm (both in LTM). Silly because the focal lengths being so close, shouldn't be an issue.
Click to expand...

Renato,

Both are good: that's the problem with making a decision.

In the end the Pentax offers speed though at F-1.9. That's what did it for me.

The Rollie is tiny though...


Cal
 
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