Hi Malcolm, Nothing beats a dedicated macro lens. I've had a few and here are my comments.
Sigma 105 f2.8 EX macro. Very sharp. Quite well built. Nice wide focusing ring making it nice to use. Very harsh bokeh which really annoyed me. No quick shift focusing. Pentax FA100 f2.8 macro. Very sharp. Built like a tank. Focusing ring a little on the narrow side, but not annoyingly so. Very nice bokeh. No quick shift focusing. Pentax DFA 50 f2.8 macro. Very sharp. Quite well built. Nice focusing ring making it nice to use. Nice bokeh. Quikshift focusing (very useful for macro if you use autofocus). Working distance is a little short - I photograph a lot of marine invertebrates and I've dipped the end of the lens in sea water twice getting close enough. Pentax DFA100f2.8 WR macro Very sharp. Very well built (but not as heavy as the FA). Good focusing feel. Nice bokeh. Quickshift focusing. Weather resistant. This would be my pick. Hope this helps, though I've said they are all good (the Sigma bokeh was annoying though). Leon On 29 April 2010 17:19, Malcolm Smith <[email protected]> wrote: > I'd like to acquire a decent AF macro lens, but as usual, there is a limit > on funds. > > The SMC F 35-80mm f4 seems to be reasonable in cost, but from reviews read > on the net, is a poor performer. The DFA 100mm f2.8 is about six times more > expensive but has very good reviews. > > I'd sooner save up and get a lens I will be happy with, but are there any > alternatives that I should consider - and are there any comments about the > two lenses above? > > Malcolm > > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > [email protected] > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net > to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow > the directions. > -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
