> My Hoya HMC 70mm-150mm f3.8 Zoom (Pentax Screw-mount) lens arrived > today. Apart from a small blemish behind the front element, this > is a sweet lens and will be great for portraits. I removed the > front element and cleaned it using a Nikon lens cloth, and the > zoom is now perfect. Has anyone on the list used this lens, I > would appreciate any feedback?
Hi, James. I don't have any experience at all with this lens, but I can see that we are both thinking along the same lines about what makes a good portrait zoom. I've had a really nice Tokina AT-X 60-120/2.8 (K-mount) zoom that I've been using for portraits more and more. It's fast, has good bokeh, has a pretty good range for portraits, and I have been quite pleased with it so far. However, in order to make sure that it is the best portrait zoom for my purposes and tastes, I currently have both a K 45-125/4 and an M 75-150/4 on the way, to compare with it. (However, I also stumbled onto another instance of the Tokina 60-120/2.8, with a light scratch on the front element, that I bought relatively cheap, so I guess you can see that I may be biased toward the fast Tokina over the slower Pentaxes, at least at this moment - <g>.) I still prefer to use a good prime portrait lens (especially an 85) for "more formal" portraits (i.e., when the subject will sit still), but I really like the zoom for "less formal" candid portraits, especially of children. I hope your Hoya (which is Tokina, I suppose) lens works out well for you. Fred - 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 .
