Ted, The consensus among owners like me is that you the Zenitar fisheye delivers tremendous value for the dollar. Since few of us take enough fisheye shots to justify getting the Pentax, the Zenitar is our ticket to the fisheye world. Not only is it a K mount; it meters at full aperture, just like a Pentax K mount and unlike screwmount lenses that have simply been retrofitted with a K mount flange.
It won't win awards for sharpness, but it's plenty sharp for my needs. Contrast is modest, not snappy. When shooting interiors at f/11 I use 800 film to minimize reciprocity effects. I've been very happy with my results. I use the Zenitar for weddings, parties, cubicle shots, and whole-room shots. It's so small, packing it becomes a no-brainer. My only caveat is that the lens cap falls off easily and is easy to lose. Someone on another discussion list recently convinced me that, just as an impressionist painting can convey a sense of place and mood more effectively than a more realistic painting, a fisheye can convey breadth more effectively than a 15/3.5 rectilinear lens. Placed beside the fisheye shots, shots taken with my well-corrected Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 20/2.8K look downright prosaic. Recently I've seen a couple Ricoh 16/2.8K fisheyes for sale at around $400. I don't know anything about the Ricoh, but for that kind of money you're probably better of jumping at the first used Pentax that comes your way below $550. Paul Franklin Stregevsky 13 Selby Court Poolesville, Maryland 20837-2410 [EMAIL PROTECTED] H (301) 349-5243 - 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 .
