----- Original Message ----- From: "Rob Geraghty" Subject: Re: Getting better lenses for my MZ5?
> "William Robb" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Any Pentax 50mm lens is very good. Some are better than others. > > If your pockets are deep enough, get the 77mm LTD. If you don't > > think you can afford it, try to find a way to afford it anyway. > > Hm. US$650 from B&H. Plus I have to get it back to Australia. > I'll think about it, but I could get both the 28mm f2.8 and the > 50mm f1.7 for less. :-7 (thinks) Do I want to get *really* serious > about modelling photography or portraiture... Hmmm, 50mm + 28mm = 78mm, which is a bit more than the 77!! HAR!! Truthfully, I don't like the 77 as a portrait lens in a lot of situations. It is just too good. Where it really shines is as a general purpose (long) standard lens. It is incredibly sharp and contrasty through it's entire f stop range, and has just about the smoothest bokeh I have seen. This allows for an almost 3 dimensional look to pictures made with the lens, as the in focus subject virtually jumps off the out of focus background. The short telephoto allows for picking details out of the scene better than the 50mm focal length as well. I prefer short telephotos to any other focal range. My typical walk about lens is almost always a short telephoto. For myself, the 77 is not about being serious about modelling or portraiture (I am primarily a large format landscape type) but about the art and craft of photography. I think everyone should have at least one really good lens if they can manage it. Having a really good lens in the focal range you are most comfortable working in is a dream come true. As an aside, my favourite large format lens (and the first one I reach for almost all the time) is the Nikkor W 210mm f/5.6. This has about the same field of view as the 77mm (technically it is slightly wider). William Robb - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
