K10D - newbie question regarding lenses.

Hi all
This is my very first post so please be gentle. I have had my Pentax K10D for a number of years now with just the lens it came with. Ive been quite happy experimenting with it, still dont feel as though I know very much at all but Ive had fun so far.

I borrowed a friends (rather expensive) camera over the weekend as he has lots of different lenses so I could try a few things out. I really liked his 50mm 1.8F lens and the effects I could get with it, so Id love to get one for my camera. However....and this is where the newbie question comes in. What on earth would fit my K10D as it what fitment? I want to be able to just click it on, it to focus like the stock lens does and not have to fiddle about too much.

Ive blinded myself with all the different brands and makes, there seem to be all the letters of the alphabet type of mounts when I only need the cheapest lens possible that will do what I want it to and operate like the stock lens. Can someone please give me some links or some idea what Im looking for?

:hangs head in shame that I dont know what I need to get:

Thank you

Welcome to the forum Janice.

Pentax auto-focus lenses will work fine on your camera. smc Pentax-F 50mm 1:1.7 or the newer smc Pentax-FA 50mm 1:1.7. There are also 1:1.4 (f1.4 maximum aperture compared to f1.7) versions of both lenses.

There is also the smc Pentax-DA* SDM 55mm 1:1.4 lens that you might like, but I can't remember if the K10D is SDM compatible. Others here will know and I'm sure they'll comment soon.

All of the lenses I've mentioned are a tad faster than your friends 1:1.8 and produce excellent bokeh when used wide open at max. aperture.

A list of all of the Pentax 50mm (and similar) lenses can be found here. Only the F, FA, D FA, and DA* lenses will give you auto focus though, all the rest are manual focus.

BTW: These lenses are often affectionately referred to as "nifty fifty" and I doubt that there are many semi-serious photographers who don't have one in their bag.

There is an smc Pentax-FA 50mm 1:1.4 available here at a good price.

Thank you so much for your speedy reply, its much appreciated. Ive just spent a while trying to find a smc Pentax-F 50mm 1:1.7 as you suggested but they all seem to be smc Pentax - M rather than F. Im not sure what the M means. I am such a novice when it comes to lenses so really need a shove towards what is the right thing.

Im really on a very very tight budget and thought that this sort of lens probably wouldnt cost more than about £80-90, so the linky that you gave me is sadly way out of my budget. If they are all going to be that much, then I will probably never afford one

The autofocus is an absolute priority for me as I have quite poor vision and cant rely on my own sight to get a sharp photograph.

I dont even know which online shops are reputable. Ive never bought anything for my camera before.

M is a manual focus lens Janice, it will work with the K10D...it just does not have the electrical contacts - doesn't mean it doesn't work.

Check the manual because you can use older lenses - use of aperture....someone will come along and give more details - the 'F' variant is the first autofocus 50 mm lens and it's excellent...between the M and the F was the A (which had electric contacts)....

SDM does work on the K10D - just need the firmware up to date

Wait and save. I don't think there is another option. I can't imagine you getting a wide aperture 50mm with AF for less than £200 unless you get lucky on ebay.

The new 50mm lens is being released in July. I expect it to reduce the demand (maybe naively) for the older FA and F 50mm lenses, neither of which are designed for digital cameras but both still command in the £150+ mark. The new 50mm is slated for £250, but I can't see that lasting. The availability of the new less will (hopefully) lessen the demand for the older lenses and the price will drop correspondingly.

I have a DA35mm with the plastic mount and got it cheap from amazon (lucky). I expect the new 50mm lens will be as good but with the aperture of f1.8 it should be exactly what you are looking for. It is no cheaper than the older lenses, however it is designed for digital and it will have a good warranty.

Pentax should find they sellmore of the new 50mm f1.8 if they drop the price to a suitable level, which I would say is £150 not the £250 slated.

I was going to suggest a zoom, but the 50mm zooms with f2.8 are not cheap either.

Good luck.

You camera has what is known as the Pentax K mount. Other variations exist like KAF, KAF2, & KAF3, the latter being SDM only as it has no screw drive for the auto focus mechanism. Yours is actually the KAF2 mount I believe, but the basis of the design is the bayonet mount.

All K mount lenses from Pentax and other manufacturers like Sigma, Tamron etc. will fit your camera. Some of the older lenses however will have reduced capabilities. These limitations are listed in your camera's manual.

Older Pentax made lenses having suffix's of K, M, or A are manual focus, so no use to you and should therefore be avoided. There is actually no lens having a K suffix because these were the first lenses made for the K mount and were simply named smc Pentax (sometimes SMC Pentax), but they are often sold as such on auction sites.

The only Pentax made lenses that are auto focus have the suffix F, FA, FA-J, DA, DA-L, D FA, and DA*. As yet, there is no smc Pentax-DA or DA-L 50mm lens, but there will be a DA version soon. The D FA 50mm lens is a macro lens and whilst it's a super lens, it may not give you the 'effects' that you are looking for as it has a max. aperture of f2.8.

If the 'effects' that you referred to in your original post are the out of focus highlights at large aperture's (bokeh), then you need to be looking for a lens with a higher number of aperture blades. The more blades, the rounder the bokeh. Some lenses even have rounded aperture blades to enhance bokeh. See the list in the link to Boj's site in my previous post.

Bookmark that site in your browser, it is our Pentax K mount hardware bible and you'll be referring to it a lot.

If you like the narrow Depth of field you got with the 50/1.8 on your mate's camera, then consider that for the K10D which is an APS-C format camera then somethign like the Sigma 30/1.4 would be an excellent choice. 30mm on APS-C give you a similar perspective as you'd get with a 50 on a full frame camera.

Not sure where the OP mentioned the format of the friends camera ?

Not sure?

The OP didn't mention it, it's pretty clear

Hi and welcome
All the advice so far is good...
The new economy version 50mm about to be released might be your best option.
The prices will presumably be flexible as the reality of $200 lenses from other makers sinks in
Personally, I would go for an FA 50/1.4.

Smeggy's (above)suggestion of a wider lens such as the DA-L35 isn't silly at all.
It is a very good modern lens at a bargain price.

Have fun
Pete

Can't see how sorry ?

You will have to bear with me on this, I havent got a clue what you mean when you talk about APS-C or a full frame camera lol. My friend has a Nikon, quite an old digital SLR but lots of lenses so I had a free run at trying things out. Im no good at technical terms I just know what I like to see in the view finder. :dunce:

Transit - is the economy version of the lens you are talking about, the same one as DougF8 gave the link to, at £250?

Thank you Mannesty for your explanations, really appreciate you help and also everyone else's input too.

As for what to do now, Ive no idea really as the cost of this lens is completely prohibitive, I had no idea they were that expensive. I have such a tiny tiny budget (my 41st birthday money lol) and dont have enough income to actually save anything. This type of photography is what Id really love to do, I use photography and painting and drawing as a bit of an escape (like I expect a lot of people do). I feel actually really gutted and perhaps I should consider selling the camera to start again with a brand where I could actually afford to get the odd extra lens to have a go with.

Part of my problem is the reason Im loathed to sell it, is why I have the camera in the first place as although Im not technically minded its a bit more than just my camera or something that sits in the cupboard for me. My children and I had to leave the marital home suddenly to go into a Refuge due to serious threats to our life. We literally had nothing apart from the clothes we stood up in, no job, money or a place to live. My ex defaulted on everything and had also ran up debt and fraudulant accounts so by the time the house was sold and everything was paid I was given the grand total of £700 (yep thats it) with which I bought this camera as having a SLR was something that I had always wanted but never been allowed, it was my new start to document my new life with, so to speak. He found us in the safe house and the only thing I had was the camera which he threw on the floor, so it now has a crushed corner on the outer casing. Its the only thing I have of any value, I dont even own a car. I just wanted to be able to do something more with it.

However it seems that now I cant even afford to do that.
Thank you for all your help everyone has been really lovely.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

One of the beauties with Pentax is that the lens mount hasn't changed over the years. I've got some very old K mount lenses. One cost £11 on Ebay. It's not brilliant, but it's certianly good enough for me. The only down side with these old lenses is they don't have auto focus, or auto iris, but that'll just help you learn more.

I got a manual 50mm F1:1.7 which is a lovely lens, for £50. It's one of my favourite lenses.

I know what you mean about a tight budget. None of my equipment is new and the only reason I could afford a K10d is because it had been dropped and is slightly faulty. Don't give up, though, experiment with what you can get cheaply, it'll be worth your while

If we read the first posts in the thread, Janice does emphasise auto focus is a must, there is a limited budget and she liked the out of focus effects.

Manual lenses don't autofocus.

Hello Janice

As stated above, one of the nice things about Pentax is the backwards compatability with lenses.

Not only can you use the older bayonet mounts but also the m42 lenses with an adapter.

The really nice thing is that the pentax bodies work well with older lenses having focus confirmation with mf lenses to the camera meter working as well - they take a bit of getting used to but are fun

For example I have a number of lenses purchased second hand - most won on ebay by stating a maximum bid then going out until after the auction ends that way I am not tempted to bid again

Some of the lenses I have a Pentax m 200mm f4 which cost around £20, a Tokina 300mm m42 for £16, a Vivitar 28mm for £22 etc - all produce good results and were cheap

Chin up - hopefully will all work out ok

And stick with Pentax would be my advice

Regards


Stu.

ps don't worry about the technical stuff - before long the confusing phrases etc will be second nature.

The bayonet mount is the standard pentax mount - m42 lenses are a screw thread