SMC Pentax AF35-70/2.8 on digital: a pointless lens test

[Steve Jolly]

Yep, this is the lens from Pentax's abortive 1981 attempt to get a jump 
on the autofocus SLR market.  The lens is awful wide open and mediocre 
stopped down, at all focal lengths.  It weighs a ton, the autofocus is 
only compatible with the ME-F, and with Pentax DSLRs it only meters in 
their special automated stop-down mode.  No-one in their right minds 
would ever mount one on a *istD/*istDS other than to perform pointless 
lens tests and then post them to the PDML.  Or possibly if a freak 
hurricane destroyed all their other lenses.

http://www.elvum.net/gallery/35-70_test
These are centre crops from photos taken on my *istDS.  ISO 200, RAW 
converted in Bibble with no additional sharpening.  View and weep.

S