Pentax 645 what is your favorite lens?

[seragram]

Hi gang I have been using the 75mm 2.8 that came with the camera for two years

now and just love it. Have been looking to add a 45mm lens but not gotten

around to it yet. Using just one focal lens has forced me to work harder to get

the results I want like depth of field and I can anticipate in my mind how the

shot is going to look like before I even bring the camera to my eyes.

In short it has helped me to anticipate before pressing the shutter.

Like to hear what is you favorite focal length and why.

Sergio

[trooper]

I only have the 75 and 150 in the 645 series but also run a P67 system with a relatively full set of lenses from 45 to 200. The 55 is a nice match to the 645 and seems quite versatile. I don't need to be quite so cautious about creating unwanted distortion (as with the 45) with this lens and the results are very nice, too. The 200 has been used more than I first expected. My son is a downhill ski racer and also plays soccer. The 200 has seen a lot of time on the camera for that duty and the camera handles quite nicely with it. The 165 makes an ideal portrait lens but the 645 150 is nice, too. The 135 macro functions well on the 645 and makes a good closeup combination. Sorry for rambling and not picking out one favorite but I wanted to mention that an adapter will give you access to an entire group of lenses of the P67 and some these seem to slip through the used market at garage sale prices recently.

[bkpix]

I use the 45 most often, as it's about the same as a 28mm in the 35mm world. I like wide angle for general, walkaround photography -- which can actually be done with the P645, as long as you don't mind a little weight.

 

I also own the 150/3.5, which is good for portraits, and the 300 with both extenders, which is a bit of work to use (unfortunately no tripod mount) but is an excellent lens. Am lusting after the 35....

[xato]

Although I have a rather complete set of lens, the one I use the most outdoors is the Hartblei Superotator 45mm Tilt/Shift. It's very sharp when stopped down to f11 or f16. It seems to be sharper than the Pentax 45mm at those apertures.

 

Warren

[seragram]

Good to see the 4 of us are still shooting the the good old Pentax 645. Xato good wide angel shots on your site what is this Hartblei 45mm/3.5 Tilt-Shift Lens Were did you get it? I can not make my mind between 40mm or 55mm and now I have to know about this Hartblei. LOL

[godfrey]

I had a P645 kit that was loaned to me for a year ... I only ever used the A35mm f/3.5 lens.

Wonderful lens. I later acquired one of the cameras with A75 and A45 lenses. Haven't had

much occasion to shoot with it yet, but I like the FoV of this pairing.

 

Godfrey

[danny_wong2]

If I was to take only one lens just to head out to do some general pleasure shooting without themes or goals I would take the 645N with my FA45-85.

[stp]

I sold all but the two that I use the most: 45-85 and 80-160.

[peter_weimann1]

AF 35, 45-85 and 150-300. All perfect lenses that I use very often. I just love my P645NII with these lenses.

[Ian Taylor]

I have the 45/75/120/200 combo. I used the 45mm and 75 about 98% of the time.

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45mm

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75mm

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120mm

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[teemu_mikkola]

I currently have the 35, 45, 75, 120, 150, 200 and 5.6/300 FA primes and the FA 45-85 zoom.

The zoom is a wonderful lens, its weight doesn't bother me but the barrel distortion occasionally does.

The 120mm macro is also great, but its bokeh can look quite nasty when used at longer distances. That's when I reach for the 150mm, also a superb lens and great for portraits. I prefer its focal length to that of the 200mm, which I believe is an underrated lens.

The light-weight 300mm is also extremely sharp but f/5.6 is a bit slow.

And then there's obviously the 35mm... so many favourites! But if I had to choose one it would be the versatile 45-85 zoom.

[roland_vink]

I have the manual focus 45, 75, 120 macro, 150, and AF 300/5.6. The 75 has a 58-67mm step-up ring so most of my lenses can accept 67mm filters.

 

I use the 45 occasionally for landscape shots. I'd like to use it more but don't often come across scenes which require a wide lens. I haven't used it at wide apertures, but stopped down the performance is good. It has some wavy distortion - barrel in the center which flattens out at the edges so I take care not to put horizon lines too close to the edge. I also wish it focused a bit closer. I'm sometimes tempted to add a 35, but I doubt it would see much use.

 

The 75 is a great lens with no obvious faults, but I rarely use it.

 

The 120 macro is probably my most used lens. I like the slightly longer focal length for general shooting, and it is a superb macro lens. I also have a no.3 extension tube (40mm long) which I sometimes use for magnifications up to about 1.4x life size. If I had to choose one lens, this would be it.

 

I bought the 150 to bridge the large gap between my 120 and 300. I use it occasionally when I need a more reach than the 120 provides, but otherwise it is not used much. I guess I would use it more if I did portraits.

 

The AF 300/5.6 is my second most used lens. It's ideal for picking out details in a landscape, and combined with my T132 closeup filter or extension tube it makes a good macro lens when I need more reach than the 120 provides. I sometimes wish it was a little faster so it has better isolating power - it should be possible to squeeze another half stop (f4.8) inside the 67mm filter. I sometimes wonder if the 300/4 would be better, but the 300/5.6 is smaller, lighter and focuses closer. On the other hand, maybe the 150-300 would be better, the zoom function would be great for landscapes and it would also replace my 150. However the zoom is rare as hens teeth and expensive.

[dougmiles]

I've been pleased with the 33-55 zoom; very sharp with attractive look. The longer half of its range is most commonly used, but when something wider is needed, it can do it. If you consider a fixed 35mm a "niche" lens and hard to justify, this zoom is a logical way to go. And it's very little larger/heavier than the FA 35mm.

 

It's a bit hard to find, though. After months on backorder at B&H I finally gave up and bought the 35. Of course then I found a nice used 33-55! The 35 plus 45-85 is a versatile combination, but I tend to go out with just the camera and one lens, so unless I had a specific intent to use the 35 it was more often left behind. With the 33-55 zoom, the wide end is always there when you need it.