What lenses should Pentax make?

I think Pentax's lens line up would be perfect if it included the following lenses.




The ones that I'd be particularly interested in would be:




Some of the lenses are on the roadmap but not much is known about them yet. The There is a 35mm Macro and a 35mm which I'd expect to be similar to the FA35F2 (they may even make it F1.4 to be equivalent to the FA50F1.4 but for digital. Everyone knows the DA*55F1.5 fits nicely in place of the FA* 85F1.4

Something equivalent to a 135mm is definitely missing and as such I've added the imaginary 85mm F2.8 as is a 200mm equivalent lens which would be 135mm. Long telephoto primes are sorely missed and I think 500mm and 600mm lenses have their place but would be too expensive for most. A 400mm F5.6 would fit nicely and wouldn't be too big (A400 F5.6 as an example).

300mm equivalent will be catered for with the DA* 200mm F2.8 and a 460mm equivalent DA*300 F4 sits just above. I don't know how useful anything above a 400mm would be seeing as the 1.53x crop factor really makes a sizeable difference and is very attractive.

Lastly a really wide prime is missing, something like a 15mm equivalent rectilinear as well as a fisheye lens of the same focal length.

So what does everyone think?

EDIT: PS. I'd also have a 90mm Tamron Macro lens in my collection.

There's not much more I could add to your list (except to say that would make a nice kit bag!) other than an 18mm (approx 28mm equivalent) tilt/shift lens. Wouldn't have to be spectacularly fast as it would be predominantly used on tripods as an architectural lens. The widest t/s on the market at the moment (in K mount) is the Hartblei 35mm which gives a "normal" FOV on digital sensors. The old Pentax 28mm shift is rare and expensive as I'm sure you know.

Maybe a 200mm macro too for those who like their bug shots?

Hmm, a 28mm equivalent would be useful. I'm not so sure about a 200mm macro though... The old 200mm Macro lenses are still quite popular on DSLRs though so you may well be right.

I do think that Pentax has a couple of rather poinless lenses with the DA Ltd 40mm and 70mm. It is nice that they are pancakes but the focal lengths are just odd.

It's a case of each to their own really; I can't say that I'd want a 200mm macro personally, but I thought I'd add it simply because the old MF version still seems so popular so there must be a lot of people out there who have a need (lust?) for such a lens.

The tilt/shift is something that I would buy, but then I have particular needs/wants when it comes to architecture that I imagine 99% of photographers don't share with me. For this reason I won't be holding my breath...

As for the 40 & 70 being odd lengths, I find that since I've had the FA43 (similar FOV to the 40) it's been used for 70+% of the shots I've taken on my K10D - I absolutely love the focal length and it seems just "right" for my own photography. I've not used the 70 but I would imagine it would suit those for whom a 100mm or 105mm lens was a prefered length on film - again, that's not me but I'm sure Pentax did some research before deciding which models to release.

It'll be interesting to see which of the lenses on the current roadmap actually come to fruition (I think the 35mm macro is close to production from what I've read elsewhere on the 'net) or whether they'll be shelved in favour of do-it-all zooms. I'm hoping all of those on your original list become available in the not-too-distant future but I fear there may be a few casualties along the way...

Being mostly interested in wildlife the 300mm and 400mm sound like a good idea to me, the 500&600mm would be even better but I couldn't afford another mortgage.

I am not sure that this list is realistic. Pentax is not about to break into the "Pro" market and many of them have very limited appeal to the amateur especially when they have to pay for them themselves. There are doing better than expected but I doubt they will through it away on exotic lenses. Many of the lenses you have "asked" for are already covered by full frame versions, many going for large sums of money. If they were selling Pentax would not have discontinued them.

IMHO, the market for primes is limited. Most use zooms these days and there is stiff competition from Sigma, Tamron etc. It would be nice to see something in the med wide area say between 24-28mm but I think that is about the best we can expect.

Kim

I'd settle for a 200-450mm f5.6 mirror....a zoom reflex....

I wouldn't call a 300mm F4 lens exotic. This could be coupled with a 1.5 converter to make a 450mm F5.6 which would suite most nature photographers needs. Canon and Nikon both make a 300mm F4 lens for about £800 which isn't too expensive, Pentax have just released two lenses that are both £500+.
I already have a Sigma 100-300mm F4 lens but use it 99% of the time at 300mm so I wouldn't be tempted by another zoom lens. I would be tempted by the prime which would hopefully give sharper photos and be small and lighter than a F4 zoom, and give better results with a converter.

The 300 F4 is on the roadmap.
I didn't say all the list was exotic but some of them are somewhat more unusual. I don't think the 85/1.4 is that likely. For a start it is too close to the 77/1.8. I also don't think we will see the very long lenses. I am not sure how many 1000/8 they sold for film but the 600/5.6 is a close equivalent. The other very long lenses are perhaps too specialised as well. You may see a moderatly fast 135 but 135/1.4 is really pushing it. There was a 135/1.8A* Even with the crop factor, for a 135/1.4, you would be looking at something like an 82mm filter ring.

I would certainly like to see an ultra wide but again I think this is highly unlikely. The major problem is that to keep the same mount, Pentax have also had to keep the same flange/film plane distance. Once you go wider than 35mm, regarderless of sensor size, you need to start using a retrofocus design. This automatically results in distortions which need to be corrected. The shorter the focal length, the greater the distortion. With the smaller sensor size, these are slightly easier to correct however a properly corrected 10 or even 12mm lens would be difficult to produce. Generally, most are happy to accept a degree of distortion at the wide end of a zoom to gain the benefit of convenience. However, we tend to expect more of a fast wide prime. The 14 is not cheap. Looking at other lens makers, a 12 would be about twice the price and loose nearly a stop in speed. Going from 12 to 10 is likely to again double the cost with a loss in speed. The 14mm is around £500 in the UK, would you pay say £1500 for a 10/4 prime?

Kim

Only a few of the lenses I mention are not on the roadmap, that being the a 10mm, 28mm, 85mm, 135 and the telephoto 400mm+ lenses. It is likely that Pentax will release a 400mm F5.6 lens but very unlikely that they will do anything longer.

I put the 500mm and the 600mm on there for fun more than anything as Pentax have done 500/600mm lenses previously.

I can see a DA85 being made to fill the gap when the FA77 goes (as it is likely to do). I have only really put five extra lenses in there, the rest are already planed by Pentax.

I realise that but I am not sure that Pentax will match the speed of the lenses in your list. The very good 20/2.8FA has effectively been replaced by the 21, the 43Ltd by the 40 and the 77Ltd by the 70. All have more modest apertures. I think it is because most are more prepared to use ISOs of around 400 to 800 on the dSLRs rwhereas with film bodies, the grain penalty was greater and most users of such lenses probaly used the "better" film stock such as Reala/Velvia, Agfa Ultra and the Kodak equivalents. They already have the DA70 and the DA*100 macro. I don't think a very fast 85 which is a 135 equivalent is that important especially with the performance of the 50-135/2.8. In film terms a very fast portrait lens was an advantage to control DOF but the new 55 will cover this.

As to the fast ultra long lenses, Pentax did do these both in A and FA versions. However, as far as I rember most were in the £3000-6000 price bracket. I don't see them doing this again in the near future especially now Hoya is at the helm. If they are thinking of the Pro/Semi-Pro market, I would guess that they would restart development of the 645D. They are not likely to be able to take Canon on in the 35mm format but could have a good market in the larger format where they would be competing against the very expensive Hassy's etc.

Kim

Like Tyr, I think it is reasonable to expect a 400mm lens, but I doubt if we will see anything longer in the near future. The potential market for such lenses really doesn't justify producing them. At any rate, not until Pentax has a significantly larger market share than it does at the moment.

G

Not all would agree, but there are a couple I wish they'd bring back... How about the 1.7AF Tele Converter to start (theyy're getting harder and harder to find...)
I know a lens + TC is never going to be as good as a prime of the TC'd length, but for convenience, it's pretty easy to give up a stop or two for longer reach...

Lenses that are not so expensive