Last week I received the color prints from the first roll of film for which I used an XR Rikenon P 50/2. This is the giveaway lens that comes with so many Ricoh and Sears bodies sold on EBay and elsewhere.
I had used the 50/2 (52mm filter size), with short metal hood, at f/2.8 and f/4 with ISO 400 film when recording an indoor crowd event. A tripod was used, together with my KX's mirror lockup. Simply put, I am delighted with the results, corner to corner. On my Pentax 50/1.4 PKA, I must stop down to f/5.6 to attain similar sharpness. At first I suspected I had used my SMC 35/2K, my secret weapon for getting sharp results at f/2.8. But a study of the field of view confirmed that these results had been delivered by the humble, lightweight (190 g?) Rikenon. I've been wanting to give away one of my Super Programs to my 24-year-old stepdaughter, but I felt I should give her a decent 50 with it. Well, I'm so happy with the results that I'll give her my PKA 50/1.4! I'd still like to try an XR RIkenon 50/1.4P, which I hear may be even better from f/2 to f/4. When introducing the P versions, Ricoh gave its XR Rikenon 50/1.4 and 50/1.7 a "tweaked" optical design and multicoating. The 50/2, I believe, remained optically unchanged. The Sears versions of the 1/4 and 1.7 are the pre-P versions; I don't know about the Sears 50/2. [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ . - 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 .
