big lenses can be fun too..

Now I've done it.

My brother was trying to offload some old Minolta MC/MD/SRT-era glass a year or two ago, and I said I'd try to help.  The only value such items have any more is for the mirrorless crowd - hey that's me now!  I actually tried them with my micro|43 gear but it wasn't quite for me.  Perhaps with the NX300 I'd reconsider?  So  today I picked up a $12 MD:NX adapter, so at the very least we'll add the Rokkor 50/1.4 for its possibilities in extra-low light.  And of course I'll have to haggle with my brother about the price! :^)

This purchase opened the door to another option: finding a good 200mm lens.  The Pentax smc-M200/4 is a nice lens to own, I've done so at least twice.. but it's fairly heavy (by my low standards!) and not as well liked as slightly smaller classic Pentax primes.  Wandering into Minolta mount I found several bargains at 200mm - but these were heavier still.  One fun option is the MD 250mm f/5.6 mirror lens, but at around $1k it's expensive, rare and therefore out of reach.

from e-bay listing

But hmm, what is this? A no-name, Minolta-mount 200mm f/3.3, $36 shipped.

Curious.  Where can I learn more about it?

Well, very few places in fact.  Many folks make f/2.8, 3.5 and 4.0 versions but f/3.3 is a real oddball.  Searching the web in vain I finally hit this mini-review of a Hanimar 200mm f/3.3 with the cool green stripe, 67mm filter size and all the rest.  Unlike the off-brand f/3.5s I read about this one showed some promise - but it was one massive beast!  I had a line on a Soligor 200/2.8 in Pentax mount a few months back but for $100 and more; this was getting closer to my reach financially if not in other ways.  No tripod mount, sadly - but the Rexatar looks almost new, quite stylish, and frees up the JCPenney 80-200mm f/3.5 for someone else to stick on a shelf and admire.

Sold!  Oops.

tiny part II

On the left we have a Pentax K200d with 18-55wr lens.  Nice camera, decent lens.
On the right, in a bag that would not quite hold the K200d, we have

• Samsung's NX300 with 30mmf/2 lens attached
• their 50-200f/4-5.6 III OIS lens with folding hood
• a side pocket with 16mm f/2.4 pancake lens
• a side pocket with spare battery and flash
• a top pocket with spare SD card and a filter or two

 - and that's why tiny gear can be very nice to have!  Yes it all breaks down if I want to carry PK primes, but the 50 macro and 100/2.8 can swap out for the 50-200 for similar weight but a pinch more bulk.  Oops I'd also need the pk.nx adapter; guess that can go in my pocket!

tiny lenses rule!

Whether on a Pentax dSLR or the small Samsung NX bodies, small and light lenses are great to have on hand.  The 16 and 30mm NX are 'prime' examples %( but Pentax also makes small ones - and they even work on full-frame film bodies!

Shown here are the Samsung 30mm f/2 plus Pentax 50/2.8 (1:2 macro!), 100/2.8 and 135/3.5.  The K:nx adapter is similar in size to the 30mm.

These four lenses, along with the nx300 and 16/2.4 lens that took this image, can fit into a mighty small space.. And some day soon the NX 20mm f2.8 will join in.  The other small-carry option is 16, 30 and 50-200 Samsung lenses, the latter with in-lens stabilization (but somewhat slow at f/4-5.6). Nice choices to have!

another small step for wireless

I finally set up and demonstrated that the NX300 and my telephone can play together.With a few quick button presses the phone becomes a viewfinder and can take pictures through the NX300!  Not many settings come up for adjustment this way, and it's odd to tilt the phone without changing the view - but practice would approximate perfect if it were done more often.  It's a potentially handy feature for animal or bird shots, maybe at the right sort of party.. but this isn't something I would use on a daily or weekly basis.  Still, it's good to know that it can be done and works properly.  Technically speaking, this is NFC at work.

Hmmm, maybe I'll try the tablet next!

Yup that works too! :^) but don't look too long you might fall in...

a different way to look at things

If I cast my lens set in Roman numerals, my kit looks pretty cool!
LVI, XX, XXX, L, C, CXXXV and CD in Samsung or Pentax mount.

• My XXX lens is excellent
• the L macro is not a loser by any means
• My big CD lens is handy at times
• LVI does not roll off the tongue, but what a fun lens!
• XX and C not available for photo, but will arrive soon..

When seen this way, clearly the XXLVIII simply doesn't fit in :√/ but we're keeping the CXXXV (until a CL comes along?).

As to zooms - well, let's not be Romanesque with those.  Same with f/ratios - I'm not quite that crazy about it.

The Roman Kit - XX and C to follow

item at far left is the hood for LVI and XX/XXX lenses, nearly as large as the lenses themselves!

Update!  The CL 'came along' ¦√)

the ins and outs of gear-swapping

A few new arrivals over the recent weekend = other departures.  

What's now in, and what's free to travel:

IN: Samsung 20mm f/2.8 pancake, this will compete with its 16mm sibling!

OUT: Samsung 20-50, tiny talented but slower than the primes.

IN: Samsung's 16mm pancake, f/2.4 and tiny.  Very convenient!

OUT: Pentax 17mm fisheye, a great lens that is less vital for wide shots.

IN: Pentax smc-A 50mm f/2.8 Macro, my 2nd copy and I've missed it.

OUT: Pentax smc 55mm f/1.8, excellent but I like at least 1:2 capability.

IN: Vivitar 35-105mm f/3.2-4, a fun PK one-touch zoom that's fairly small.

OUT: ProSpec 28mm f/2.8, because the NX 30mm pancake is really that good!

One offer pending.. *UPDATE* smc-M 100mm f/2.8 coming soon!

So the kits as they stand.. at the moment!
4 Samsung = 16, 20, 30, 50-200
6  7 Pentax = DA 18-55 and 50-200 WRs, A50/2.8 macro, M100/2.8, M135/3.5
plus Vivitar 35-105/3.2-4, Quantaray 100-300/4.5-6.7
2 random mounts: JCPenney 80-200/3.5 M42, Hanimar 400/6.3 T-mount

---
13 total, plus several in the sell/donate bag..

Note that all Pentax lenses can be adapted to Samsung but the two DA zooms would have no aperture control.

Ricoh puts Pentax in high gear

Geek talk alert! :-D

After a ~2-year acquisition & transition period, Pentax is pushing hard this year with Ricoh driver's seat.  Two lenses for 36×24 and a camera to match, the k-s2 upcoming, and now pixel-shifting resolution boost for those who feel then need .. more.  That boost may even be back-compatible with K3 and maybe k-s1?  Time for the serious/silly Big Names to pay attention!

And while Pentax/Ricoh sends this punch to the head, Samsung aim for the kidneys with their baby nx1 -  aka nx500.  Here's your AF 4K video and backlit APS.c sensor, $800 please and keep the $300+ lens, you'll like it :-)  Sorry Canon, the days of carrying a massive camera for nice 2k video are about over.  Thanks for playing!

unexpected stuff happens

I had forgotten my bid on a Samsung 16/2.4 NX lens.  Last night I was reminded of it via e-mail: ending soon, auction over, Winner!!  I put in a decent bid but nobody bid after me, so it was a fine bargain.  In the end I paid $500 for the flapjack trio, essentially buy two get one free based on typical pricing for new lenses - hooray for slightly used! 

 Now to forget they're in the mail .. good luck with that.

From Samsung.com site

This unexpected event definitely means it's time to sell the 20-50 and a few k-mount lenses more aggressively! I had a sale post languishing in the forum, perhaps a few price cuts will recharge it. :∆)

On the Pentax side, I found an excellent deal on the smc-A 50/2.8 macro.  This means the K55/1.8 will depart, which is sad - but having nothing in the way of closeup lens even 1:2 seems very good, and I really liked this one before.  I paid less than half of what I did last time, an incredible bargain for this lens!

old and .. much less old

I used some recent birthday funds to pick up something for each system.

For the Pentax, a Vivitar / Kobori 35-105mm f/3.2-4.  I really liked the 28-105 with serial #77---- and this is from that same firm.  This one is a bit faster, misses out on the wide end but takes 55mm filters not 72mm.  I own several 55s so that's a bonus.

That was all I planned to get .. until a Samsung 20/2.8 appeared for $100 less than its typical lowest price!  Similar to the 30/2 that I like a lot, but slightly slower and a bit thicker. Still quite small for a 20 plus it has the i-function on the lens, which can be handy for quick changes to settings.  

With this in hand soon, I can sell the 20-50mm; never thought that tiny zoom would be one of the larger lenses in my kit!  Its only real issue is its inability to easily use a polarizing filter as focus will rotate with the filter dial.