Pizza Sauce
Pentax F 50mm 1.7 Endorsement
I haven't uploaded a picture in a while...(mostly cause I haven't been shooting)...but I found this one in my "archives" and thought I would share it.
I decided that I wanted an autofocus prime lens...so I did a little research...and decided I wanted the Pentax FA 50mm 1.4. Well...that lens costs a bit more than I was willing to spend. So I decided to get the Pentax F 50mm 1.7. Quite frankly I don't care about the 1/2 stop difference...I just wanted a fairly fast prime lens with AF. I couldn't be happier with this lens. You've gotta ask yourself if a 1/2 stop of light is worth 100+ more dollars to you. If the answer is no...then this is the lens for you.
BONUS ENDORSEMENT (added 03-01-12): If you're a Pentax person...I'm sure you've heard that Pentax will be coming out with a 50mm 1.8 lens to compete with the "nifty fifties" that Canon and Nikon have offered for years. I'm going to tell you why you STILL want a used Pentax F 50mm 1.7 over the NEW 1.8 and the reason IS NOT the inconsequential slightly faster speed. The older F 50mm 1.7 will work on your "full frame" 35mm bodies. This new lens will only work on your cropped digital sensor. So even if the F 50mm 1.7 costs a bit more...pay it...cause you're going to be able to use it on anything you've got. I've used my F 50 1.7 on my ME and that thing isn't even AF. It's a beautiful lens that will serve you well in both mediums.
This picture was taken in damn near the same place as my Takumar 50mm 1.4 endoresment picture. The one difference is she's facing the window in this picture. In the Takumar shot she's got the window behind her. I DID stop the lens down to 2.8 however in this case. I'm impressed with how sharp this lens gets at such a big aperture. That's the trait of a great lens. (and fast lenses.)
If you're thinking about buying this lens...here's what I did:
- Check ebay everyday for listings (auctions and buy it nows)
- Decide how much you're willing to pay.
- Find a listing you want and put your MAX BID in close to the end of the auction. If you win...that's great...if you don't...oh well.
- Do NOT get into a bidding war. Stick to your number.
I bid on 8 lenses before I finally won one. I got this thing fairly cheap in terms of ebay prices. I paid a shade under 150...AND I got a Pentax SFX AF camera with it (I haven't shot with the camera yet cause it takes a battery I don't own). I think this picture is a great endorsement. If you just got into Pentax...I don't think you should hesitate to buy this lens if the price is right. You could get this lens cheaper than the Pentax DA 35mm 2.4...if you don't mind a bit tighter field of view.
This was taken with my one and only digital SLR...the Pentax k100d. I used the Pentax F 50mm 1.7 lens as discussed earlier. Aside from cropping this picture to the dimensions of 5x7...I did nothing to this picture. It's right out of the camera.
Pentax F 50mm 1.7 Endorsement
I haven't uploaded a picture in a while...(mostly cause I haven't been shooting)...but I found this one in my "archives" and thought I would share it.
I decided that I wanted an autofocus prime lens...so I did a little research...and decided I wanted the Pentax FA 50mm 1.4. Well...that lens costs a bit more than I was willing to spend. So I decided to get the Pentax F 50mm 1.7. Quite frankly I don't care about the 1/2 stop difference...I just wanted a fairly fast prime lens with AF. I couldn't be happier with this lens. You've gotta ask yourself if a 1/2 stop of light is worth 100+ more dollars to you. If the answer is no...then this is the lens for you.
BONUS ENDORSEMENT (added 03-01-12): If you're a Pentax person...I'm sure you've heard that Pentax will be coming out with a 50mm 1.8 lens to compete with the "nifty fifties" that Canon and Nikon have offered for years. I'm going to tell you why you STILL want a used Pentax F 50mm 1.7 over the NEW 1.8 and the reason IS NOT the inconsequential slightly faster speed. The older F 50mm 1.7 will work on your "full frame" 35mm bodies. This new lens will only work on your cropped digital sensor. So even if the F 50mm 1.7 costs a bit more...pay it...cause you're going to be able to use it on anything you've got. I've used my F 50 1.7 on my ME and that thing isn't even AF. It's a beautiful lens that will serve you well in both mediums.
This picture was taken in damn near the same place as my Takumar 50mm 1.4 endoresment picture. The one difference is she's facing the window in this picture. In the Takumar shot she's got the window behind her. I DID stop the lens down to 2.8 however in this case. I'm impressed with how sharp this lens gets at such a big aperture. That's the trait of a great lens. (and fast lenses.)
If you're thinking about buying this lens...here's what I did:
- Check ebay everyday for listings (auctions and buy it nows)
- Decide how much you're willing to pay.
- Find a listing you want and put your MAX BID in close to the end of the auction. If you win...that's great...if you don't...oh well.
- Do NOT get into a bidding war. Stick to your number.
I bid on 8 lenses before I finally won one. I got this thing fairly cheap in terms of ebay prices. I paid a shade under 150...AND I got a Pentax SFX AF camera with it (I haven't shot with the camera yet cause it takes a battery I don't own). I think this picture is a great endorsement. If you just got into Pentax...I don't think you should hesitate to buy this lens if the price is right. You could get this lens cheaper than the Pentax DA 35mm 2.4...if you don't mind a bit tighter field of view.
This was taken with my one and only digital SLR...the Pentax k100d. I used the Pentax F 50mm 1.7 lens as discussed earlier. Aside from cropping this picture to the dimensions of 5x7...I did nothing to this picture. It's right out of the camera.