FA 31mm F1.8

I played with a 31mm F1.8 (Limited Edition) yesterday and it was mind boggling. Has anyone got one? Give me your feedback on it's performance

jakom koop een by my dan kan jy baie speel

Konrads, ik wou eerst zeggen dat je Nederlands wel heel slecht was, maar het is zuid Afrikaans

I never had the privilege to play with one, but they are very good the FA limiteds.

btw there is no limited edition, it's just limited, meaning there production rate is low because of the high build quality, not that there are 10,000 or so made.

nathanever82 has one, I believe.

p.s. what are you all saying :

Not only Nathan I believe, I'm sure they will write something when they see this.

Nothing special.
Konrads say that Steve must buy one for him so that Steve can play at his place with it.
I wrote that I wanted to say his Dutch is very bad but that I just see it's South-Africans.

I love that lens. Bokeh is outstanding, and it is so sharp you can cut yourself with it. It is the equivalent of a 47mm on full frame, so it can be used as a standard lens.

Did I mention it is sharp?

When going out with nothing particular in mind, it's the lens I use. It is good for street photography.

I hope I didn't forget to tell you how sharp it is.

I think if God was into photography, He'd be using that lens.

It is very sharp, yes even wide open, but has a quality about it that goes far beyond sharpness.

Here is a shot from last year with mine:

It's a stunning lens. Possibly one of the finest examples of any lens maker's art. Read this article:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/columns/sm-02-05-02.shtml

Yes, it's a beautifully made lens, and stunning quality. Had the chance to borrow the 31 and 77 for a day.

However... it does depend what you're taking! Comparing the 31 against the 24-90 I was amazed at the small difference between the two when stopped down to f/8 or so. The experience of trying the 31 gave me a new found appreciation for the other Pentax glass. Sharpness, colour and contrast were favourably similar. It saved the angst of longing for the 31

Check out these two images - Number 1 is the 31mm, and Number 2 is the 24-90. Even 1000 pixels doesn't do them justice - but at full res there's not much between them.

That said, when you use the 31 as demonstrated above (shallow DoF) it really does shine - certainly has a wonderful 3D quality about it

Matt

Thanx guys and Konrad. I think from now on Konrad, we must communicate in English.

This is one lens I want, I have no Limited lenses as yet but the Web prices quoted here in SA vary between UKP 750 and 980,which seem very high. I must do some comparison pricing.
I was thinking of getting a FA 50mm f1.4 but this would be a better all-round AF lens for my needs.

Greg

sorry about the afrikaans guys, bad habbit when you post to a south african sorry i'll stick to english

I have all 3 FA limiteds.. each is very special.

The FA 31 is sharp as a tack corner to corner wide open.

It is brilliant in low light situations and gives wonderful results, cannot fault it at any focal length.

Of the 3 Limiteds it seems to have the best build, it really looks the part and feels the part.. opposition users look in envy when I have it mounted

Of the 3 limiteds my FA 77 gets the most usage and its for potraits, nothing out there like it, its skin tones are just magic and its bokeh suits portraits to the ground

Cheers