Hello Peter, The 31mm is on the wide side of normal, and if that's what you're looking for, it's a fine choice. I had one for a while and didn't care that much for the size, although it seemed to bother me less than it did Godders and some others, but I do prefer somewhat smaller lenses. The built-in lens hood was an annoyance, too. Optically, the lens is quite good, but I'm not convinced it's worth lusting after, especially at the price.
That said, I have (and love) the K30/2.8, but as time goes by, I like it more for it's historical value and unique focal length for its time. It's a fine lens, but I've not used it much on the DSLR for some reason - I should work with it a bit more to really see how well it does. I'd suggest, as others have, the A35/2.0 or the FA35/2.0, both of which come close to the 31mm in terms of optical quality and, depending on your POV, are a much better value. The 35mm focal length is much closer to a typical 50mm lens on 35mm film bodies, but only you can decide whether you want to go a bit wider or a bit longer than a "standard" 50mm. As some may have suggested, the FA28/2.8 may also be a good choice, but I'm not as familiar with that lens as I am with the others. Shel > Peter Smekal wrote: > > Hi folks, > I am thinking about buying a 'normal' prime lens for my istD. One > obvious choice might be the much praised FA 31/1.8. It's quite > expensive however. I have the chance to one of those old > K 30/2.8-lenses for a good price, but > ... Is the FA 31 worth saving and waiting for? -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
