Pentax 67 105 2.4

[David Heintz]

Hi. I have a few questions re the Pentax 67 105 2.4 lens.

Last year I acquired a Mamiya 645 Pro TL, with the 45, 80, and 150 lenses. Good price. Like new.

My recent foray into film had all been with Nikon 35mm (F6, F5, F100, FM3A) so this was a learning curve for me. I like the camera, the auto/aperture priority mode, and the bright finder. Don’t like the manual focus that much. (Clarification: most of my photography, digital and analog, is with manual focus lenses. But all of my bodies except one have the focus confirmation light, which I rely upon immensely.)

Recently have been impressed with photos from the Pentax 645n. Many of these feature the Pentax 67 105 2.4 lens, with an adapter to Pentax 645. Wonderful shots.

I am not about to replace my Mamiya system (at least for now.) But perhaps I could purchase that lens and use it on the camera I now have:

- are there good Pentax 67 to Mamiya 645 adapters?

- do they focus to infinity (without crummy glass inserts?

- has anyone tried this?

If this does work, and I like it, down the road I could get a Pentax 645n body...

Any comments appreciated.

 

[mweintraub]

"- are there good Pentax 67 to Mamiya 645 adapters?"
I think so, the more you pay, usually results in a better solid adapter.

"- do they focus to infinity (without crummy glass inserts?"
Yes, since the distance is less than the original format, you don't need corrective lenses. You only need those when the Flange Distance is farther than the original system. Ie. Minolta MD to Nikon requires it because the distance from the lens on the MD to film plane is 43.50mm, where the Nikon distance is 46.50mm. Adapting lenses to Nikon from other 35mm is a friken Nightmare. I hate it.

 

[dynachrome]

A year or two ago I bought 135/4 Takumar macro for the Pentax 6X7. It was my intention to get an adapter and use it with my Mamiya M645/1000S/J cameras. Before I had a chance to do that I bought an 80/4 Mamiya macro instead. Later I bought an adapter for using the 6X7 lenses on Pentax K cameras. It works but it's cumbersome. The 135/3.5 SMC Pentax-M is a lot smaller and easier to handle. Why are there so many Pentax 6X7 lenses floating around at low prices? It seems that as the format size increases, the number of users decreases. Are there people who still shoot 8X10? Yes. Are there many of them? No. When it comes to Pentax 6X7 equipment there are a lot more functioning lenses than there are reasonably priced and working bodies. My 6X7 shooting is done with Bronica GS-1, Mamiya RB/RZ and Koni-Omega cameras. If I find a 6X7MLU or 67 body in good condition and for a reasonable price I will probably get it just so I can take advantage of the Pentax 6X7 lens bargains.

 

[yurihuta]

Hi. I have a few questions re the Pentax 67 105 2.4 lens.

If this does work, and I like it, down the road I could get a Pentax 645n body...

Any comments appreciated.

The Pentax 67 105mm f/2.4 comes in three versions which are worth looking into for their slight (some would say major) differences.

I have not tried this on any of the Mamiya 645 bodies, but use this lens (I have settled on the latest version) to use with my Pentax 645N bodies. The Pentax 645N body works nicely with manual focus as it has focus confirmation in the forms of:
1. in the viewfinder there is a green dot that lights up when the camera determines that focus has been achieved (this is always on);
2. there is also an optional, audible beep, that sounds in conjunction with the green dot, when focus has been achieved.
The 645N body had a few significant upgrades over the older, original Pentax 645, most notably the much brighter viewfinder. A side by side comparison for me was what sold me on selling my Pentax 645 (original - a fine camera) and keeping the Pentax 645N.

 

[NortheastPhotographic]

The Pentax 67 105mm f/2.4 comes in three versions which are worth looking into for their slight (some would say major) differences.

I have not tried this on any of the Mamiya 645 bodies, but use this lens (I have settled on the latest version) to use with my Pentax 645N bodies. The Pentax 645N body works nicely with manual focus as it has focus confirmation in the forms of:
1. in the viewfinder there is a green dot that lights up when the camera determines that focus has been achieved (this is always on);
2. there is also an optional, audible beep, that sounds in conjunction with the green dot, when focus has been achieved.
The 645N body had a few significant upgrades over the older, original Pentax 645, most notably the much brighter viewfinder. A side by side comparison for me was what sold me on selling my Pentax 645 (original - a fine camera) and keeping the Pentax 645N.

This is not exactly true. The diagram design never changed. We believe they stopped using a certain material which tended to 'yellow' in the earlier versions of this lens. Many of the older versions go yellow. This can be cleared with ample sunlight treatment, but it's a consideration. The newest version changed slightly ergonomically, but that's about it. All things being equally, they all create the same image.

 

[yurihuta]

This is not exactly true. The diagram design never changed. We believe they stopped using a certain material which tended to 'yellow' in the earlier versions of this lens. Many of the older versions go yellow. This can be cleared with ample sunlight treatment, but it's a consideration. The newest version changed slightly ergonomically, but that's about it. All things being equally, they all create the same image.

Not to split hairs, but I believe the move away from using thorium glass necessitated a design change (albeit slight by some accounts) from the Super Takumar to the later Super-Multi-Coated Takumar (and the latest SMC Pentax) - same number of elements and groups though.