I will second Ken with the S-M-C Takumar 28mm f/3.5. It is a lovely lens and relatively plentiful/cheap on sleazebay.

K.

Any provided they have a auto-manual switch...

I too have an Optech strap although I transferred it to my Yashicamat 124G on a temporary basis about a year ago... which reminds me, I should put it back before I leave in the morning for the latest exciting adventure. It is highly recommended.

K.

The interesting thing is, though, that you weren't focusing through the lens but using the Leica's rangefinder. It is an interesting twist on the "how to focus an f/1.2 lens" saga...

K.

Personally I try out the Pentax DA 12-24 if your main intended use is digital. It is an excellent lens, very sharp and minimal distortions (by which I mean barrel and pincushion distortions, not the "stretching" effect one gets at very wide angles).

Best, Kris.

Jessops on Oxford Street had 3 Qs, 3 K-01s, a K-5, many K-xes in various colours including pink and a selection of lenses including a DA* 60-250 for a shade over £1000... It was a fairly good display, I was pleasantly surprised. I was hoping to handle a K30 but that they didn't have.

K.

Lucky you!

All this talk makes me wish I had the room to have some darkroom stuff...

Developing the film yourself is fun, but the real pleasure is printing. Nothing quite like watching the image appear in the tray and trying to judge when to transfer the print to the stop bath!

K.

No, it'll rattle away quite happily with no film loaded.

K.

Not wishing to get off topic but my impression of the kit lens is that there is some sample variation. My first series lens is lovely and as a result I have never felt the need to upgrade to a different "standard" zoom (especially considering the distortions the 16-50 suffers, and besides I use my 12-24 for buildings which is when the distortion would bother me). Others have, however, been less happy. Somewhere in the guts of the PUF archive is a thread of images taken with the kit lens.

The K30 looks a great offering. The only thing my K20D has extra is the top LCD. I'm curious to see what the new top-of-the-line model will be. Hopefully it'll be good enough to flood the market with second hand K-5s...

K.