It's been replaced by several zooms that go to 18mm.

Mind you, I always thought that 28mm was not quite wide enough, and would have bought a 24mm had I been able to afford it. 15mm is almost equivalent to a 24mm on 135.

G

It will depend on the focal length, and perhaps also the aperture and distance to the point of focus.

G

Two things are a vital part of his success.

First, he has an apparently home-made but clearly very effective flash set-up. Ample light, as ever, is vital.

Second, he says take LOTS of pictures. I imagine he throws away 99.99% of his shots.

And, of course, he's fanatical. Utterly focussed.

But it's nice to see confirmed the old adage that technique trumps gear, every time.

G

At one time there was no doubt that a decent prime would outperform the best zooms in every way.

Since the advent of computerised lens design and robot production, there are few primes that are clearly better than the best zooms, and many modern zooms are better than many respected older primes.

So it comes down to other things, namely size, weight, and speed.

The only primes I use now are the three FA Ltds, the 50 1:1.2, the 300 1:4.5 and 400 1:5.6. The zooms are the 12-24, 17-70, and F 70-210.

I have loads of other lenses, but they seldom get used, which is crazy.

G

I think the vignetting is real. This is not a lens to use on a film camera, and should not be bought by those who think Pentax is soon going to produce a 135 format DSLR.

G

You've seen British bread in a French supermarket? Good grief.

Whilst I would fight to the death to try and convince a Frenchman that Stilton beats all their 3,000 cheeses into a cocked hat, I wouldn't lift a solitary finger in defence of British bread. Ugh.

Mind you, Waitrose Continental-Style Wholemeal is great. The clue is in the name.

G

Kris,

An excellent summary, though I think you didn't give the Z series their due. The Z1 and its successor the Z1-P were immensely capable cameras, and unlike the MZ-S which replaced them, they cope properly with K and M lenses.

The Z series bodies are very different from the SF series, both in looks and sophistication. However, anybody buying one will need a manual. They were highly complex, and very similar in some ways to modern DSLRs.

They were (I think) the first bodies to include the two-wheel system that the best DSLRs use today.

G

I take your point. Super A prices haven't dropped as much as I would like - I'm hoping to get one for nostalgic reasons.

G

The Super A is superior to the P30 range in every way. Metering sensitivity, shutter speed, construction, looks, TTL flash, viewfinder. And they're lighter.

I agree that the SFX/SFXn/SF7 are all well-made and very easy to use. But they don't provide the control of the Super A.

These cameras are now very cheap indeed, so why not get one of each?

G

If you have time while at Agra, try to visit Fatehpur Sikri, which is close, and wonderful.

G