Should I buy 21mm Ltd

I recently bought a DA 35mm lens and was blown away by the quality of images it produces.
I'm lusting after more Prime lenses and was thinking of buying the 21mm Ltd as a walkabout lens to be used along side the DA35mm and A 50mm F1.7

Has anyone any thoughts about the 21mm Ltd, as I've read some mixed reviews.

I think that it depends on when/where you would use it.

It looks like a very good lens and if you need/would like something compact and you like the 21mm focal length I'd say it's a good choice. The metal body and limited build quality will be nice, too. I'd suggest having a look at some samples and seeing whether you like them.

Personally, I've considered one and I'm not sure what I'd use it for. I generally prefer longer focal lengths and, whilst it's very subjective, I haven't been blown away by samples from the DA21 in quite the same way as, say, those from the DA15 or FA77.

Yes especially if you have a K5 which seems to love my 21.

I am never sure whether you can get a good idea of a lens performance by posting pics here on the forum, but here are a couple nonetheless to show the versatility of the lens... all taken with the DA21 on K7 over the last couple of years

Landscape-type shot...



Closer up shot... this with the lens wider open at f5.6 (but not wide open)



Even closer still...



And one from a walk down the river on a lazy saturday...



Don't know if that helps. Hope so

Regards

Thanks Mat it does help.
I've just been looking back at some of my landscape shots taken with the 16-45mm and found a lot are taken between 19-24mm so I think the 21mm FL will probably suit my style.
Like I said I'm happy with the images I've shot with the DA 35mm they just seem to have more 'punch' than the 16-45mm.
Looks like there could be a 21mm Ltd in my camera bag pretty soon!

I would think twice!
A " limited" comes with a Club-LBA membership card.
You are welcome.(to the club)

Regards,
George

Good idea checking your commonly used focal lengths. My 16-45 seemed to be at its widest setting most of the time, so the DA15 was right for me. I did get the DA21 though, nice lens, but I sold it when I realised it was no 15mm replacement. I also have lenses in a similar range to the DA21 - e.g. the sigma 24mm (which is faster, and has less distortion). The DA21 did have that extra DAltd 'pop' though!

I snapped my DA21 up unexpectedly when it came up too cheap( equivalent of 200 quid) in an auction. Very happy with it, I tend to leave it on the camera atm. Here is a shot of my mates campsite from yesterday. Resized so Flickr could further munt it
Pete

It's a slippery slope
My 21 and 40 are hankering for a 70...

The 70 is also an excellent lens but I find the K5 doesn't love it as much as the K20 did. Weird. Still a good buy at the price. You'd have 3 tiny lenses of excellent quality.

Interesting to hear that mikew. That or the 77. There is a 77 being auctioned that I'm watching, but I have to sell the K50/1.2 and the M85/2 to afford it

The DA 21mm f3.2 is one of my most-used lenses. High centre sharpness at all apertures, imho, but edges and borders are weak at wider settings and need f8 or so to sharpen up. Or so I have found.

Still, using this lens at a wide aperture can bring distinctive effects close-up - a bit of a 3D pop around a central subject - and at medium or longer distances it's a very versatile focal length to have in your bag. Noticeable distortion, easily corrected in PP, but something to note if straight edges are paramount. Lovely colours and great resolving power. In all, a super package imho, but it does depend on whether this is a good focal length for you. Others might go for a 70mm or a 15mm.

@transit - I think the 70 is much smaller and I got a new copy when they were £300 so no contest. Gorgeous lens. Very versatile and so small but still f2.4 which is really pretty good. How often do you really want anything wider at that focal length when the DOF becomes very small?

The 21 is the walkabout lens for APS-C, no question. I used the DA40 for a while on the streets but it was just too long. The 21 is the closest to 'human eye' field of vision.

With this in mind and the fact it is a simple prime it does make you think about shots more, correcting position, framing etc. I basically feel a freedom to concentrate on good photography, urban or countryside.

My copy at least of 21 is the weakest of the primes I own, you might not feel that extra 'zapp' you get, even from an old SMC A 50 1.7.

I had a bit of an issue with colour rendition on the GX10, but the 21 seems to work fine now on the K5.

All in all, having gone through a great phase, and taken some of my best pics with it, the Tamron 17-50 2.8 has taken over.

For freedom, and keeping your pack size down, its super though and I expect it to really come into it's own on a holiday.