It's a big step in my continuing evolving interest in photography --
the biggest surprise is, I can't believe the manual focus feel of
this lens is significantly superior than the SMC-A 50mm f1.4 lens I
have, but it is. I no longer fear the future, and I know my manual
focus stuff can happily coexist with a more modern outfit. For too
long, I had been trying for a compromise.
I long resisted autofocus, both because of the blobbish plastic
bodies of current cameras and because of the seemingly terrible
manual focus feel of autofocus lenses (but this was based on the
only autofocus lenses I ever handled, which were on horrible C****
Rebels and the like at the Wal-Mart electronics counter).
I had been nurturing my love for old manual-focus equipment, building
a Pentax screwmount collection and "upgrading" my original
high-school-era K-1000 with a KX and then an MX, and building a
collection of mostly M-series primes.
Then I bought an ME on an impulse a few years ago, and discovered
autoexposure! How nifty! Set the aperture and the camera selects a
stepless shutter speed! How modern and convenient! I could live with
that!
I thought I could bring myself to embrace early '80s technology and
create the ultimate (budget-priced) Pentax manual focus kit, so I
tried a Super Program and got a few A-series lenses like the 50 1.4.
With program exposure, it was pretty much the most advanced Pentax
equipment before the advent of autofocus SLRs.
However, I never liked the Super Program as much as the sleek and
stylish ME, perhaps because of the very plasticky rear grip,
plasticky wind lever, and the fiddly mode dial. Also, I was quite
underwhelmed by the sloppy and imprecise focus feel of the A lenses.
The M lenses were worlds better, as were my K 50 1.4 and all my Super
Takumars.
I only bought a PZ-1 because I came across a great deal at my local
camera shop. I had thought all modern Pentaxes of the '90s were
flimsy and plasticky -- the PZ-1, while plasticky, is far heavier and
more solid-feeling than the ZX-M. The PZ-1 came with an SMC-F 50
f1.7, which did have the fairly loose and whirry manual focus action
I expected (but still produced great Pentax quality images).
I spent nearly a year using my manual-focus lenses on the PZ-1 and
using it as my "main" camera -- mostly photos of my two young
daughters and family trips and events. I only occasionally put on the
50 1.7 F for fun -- almost as a novelty. But my sister ran in the NYC
marathon earlier this month, and I was inspired to pick up the
original 28-105 power zoom lens for this camera and get photos of her
in action using equipment that would likely give me better results.
Predictive autofocus and autowind, circa 1992! It was the most
"modern" camera outfit I ever used, and it was fun, and still had the
Pentax feel, albeit with a completely different interface!
The 28-105 zoom, with its long throw and narrow focus ring, is
certainly not meant to be manually focused at all with any ease of
use, but I can accept that. I also picked up the constant-aperture
SMC-FA 28-70 f4 lens, which has a very good reputation but is also
light and plasticky.
But I finally got the SMC-FA 50mm f1.4 (via KEH, EX+ condition),
something I felt the camera "deserved" as a present. (Ha --
enablement at its worst! The lens isn't a toy for me, it's for the
camera! Has anyone else ever felt this way?)
What a beautiful lens! The focus feel is definitely better than the A
lenses I've tried. Who woulda thunk it? And I've never even seen a
Limited lens in the flesh or tried one, which would probably bolster
my confidence in Pentax even more (and tempt me terribly ...).
I don't fear the continued wave of evolving autofocus cameras, at
least ones that are well designed, well built and created with pride.
(I would probably really like an MZ-S). I don't fear digital, either,
since a Pentax digital will likely be able to use many (if not all)
of my lenses.
In ditching the Super Program, I made a conscious effort to split the
thrust of my photo collection -- on the one hand, backwards to the
'70s and '60s: a fine set of manual focus, mostly manual cameras (MX,
ME Super, ESII, Spotmatic) that I use for my own pleasure (all my
prowling around the Finger Lakes area, my scenic shots, my
black-and-white); and on the other hand, forward to the '90s at
least: a fairly modern, well designed camera, also Pentax, that can
use the latest autofocus lenses -- but that can also take any of the
lenses I have!
Maybe this is all a rationalization for the continued enablement this
list has provided me for the past two years -- or I just use too many
words to say that I REALLY like Pentax equipment. The photos I take
with it all are quite nice, too!
Joe
