Thoughts on Lens for Pentax 67

joburger63

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Hi Guys,

As I mentioned on a previous thread, I have just bought a package to begin shooting 120 rolls with a Pentax 67II. I also got two older 67 bodies in the package as well! Last job the 27II did was a portrait of Clint Eastwood but the previous owner also did portraits of the Rolling Stones, Lord Snowdon and many, many other famous people. A lovely provenance for a beautiful camera which to came to me from a very well known photographer based in London.
But, I digress
This thread is about the lenses which came with the package. There are five and are as follows:
90mm SMC 2.8
105mm SMC 2.4
135mm macro
200mm SMC
55-110mm zoom
I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on these lenses. What are they good for. Which is the sharpest or regarded as the best or most useful. Any thoughts would be greatfully recieved. I am a recent convert from a DSLR. I understand that the 105 2.4 is a pretty fast standard lens similar to a 50mm on a 35mm.
Cheers,
Chris
 

coigach

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Hope you enjoy your new toy.

My 67II has given me years of faithful and reliable service. I use it as my main landscape photography camera.

I use the 55mm, 75mm, 105mm, 135 macro and 300mm. All of mine are the later SMC coated glass. I think the P67 lens quality is top notch. (The 300mm is heavy, and I rarely use it beyond f8 due to vibration however). It's a good habit to use the mirror lock and cable release for all tripod mounted shots anyway, as this minimises the vibration from the huge mirror. I also used the 45mm, razor sharp, just a little wide for my tastes so I sold it.

I think the P67 lens quality is top notch - have fun exploring...!

Cheers,
Gavin
 

BobD

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That's a very nice outfit.

I have the 55,75,90 & 105. The 90mm is nice for hand-held work as it is
small and light (relatively) especially when used with the plain prism or WLF.
 

MFstooges

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I'll work as slave for that 55-110mm zoom. It is rare in secondary market as people hardly want to sell.
 
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joburger63

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Thanks Guys,
Gavin, I assume the 27II uses a standard camera cable release?
Pumalite, thanks for posting this list, I've printed it out. It's a very useful document to have.
Bob - what is a WLF?
M.F. Stooges - I'll give you first option if I choose to get rid of the lens, you can come and clean my house!
 

Joachim_I

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Hi Chris,

Excellent equipment. Although I also have 5 lenses for my Pentax 67II, we only have one lens in common (the 90mm lens) which shows how many options you have with this system. All your lenses should perform very well. Some thoughts: the 90mm and 105mm lenses are kind of substitutes. The 90mm has a better close focus distance while the 105mm is half a stop faster. Quality should be very similar. I would add extension tubes to the 135mm lens in case you don't have them. Without, the lens reaches 1:3 which is nice but often not large enough. I like the helicoid extension tube more than the set of automatic extension tubes which I find a pain to use. Meanwhile I even use two helicoids in series with a specialized macro lens. If your 200mm lens is the latest version, it has a close focus distance of 1.5m which makes it great for relatively tight portraits. The zoom lens has a very good reputation and benefits from a minimum aperture of f/32 which can be useful in landscape photography. Enjoy the great 67II system!

Best, Joachim
 

michael9793

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love my 55-110 zoom it has the weight of a large rock. also have a 90, 120 macro (useless ). Used it a lot till I got a mamaya 67 then found that it was as light as my leica. Problem it doesn't have the TTL meter like the Pentax.
 
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joburger63

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Hi Joachim, Thanks for your advise. I see what you mean with the 90 and 105mm. They are pretty much identical. In regards to the 135mm macro, I have no interest in close up work. Is it good for anything else? If not, I might sell it. I like doing portraits of people in interior spaces and also African wildlife aka Peter Beard. Are there any lenses other in this system you'd recommend?
Thanks for the info Gavin, I just ordered one off Ebay.
I still haven't put any film through this new camera although I had a play around with the 27II body on a tripod lining up compositions with the various lenses at home today in an attempt to get used to handling this beast. I have half a dozen 120 rolls I'll put through over this long weekend in Australia. We'll see how we go, (as they say down here!)
C
 
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joburger63

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Wow Dan - what an amazing website! I think I'm going to be up all night reading this. Thanks Bob for the clarification. Excuse my ignorance.
 

Joachim_I

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Hi Chris,

For tight portraits of people in interior spaces the 135mm is perfect. If you want to include some surroundings, the 2.8/75mm is a great lens. For African wildlife, you probably need a tele lens. I only have experience with the 4.0/300mm ED which is spectacular. The 4.0/400mm also has a good reputation and is much easier to find (and cheaper).

By the way, I see you are from Australia. If you happen to be near Melbourne, you are welcome to have a look at (and through) my lenses in case you are thinking of adding a lens and want to make up your mind. Among others, I have the 75mm and 300m lenses I mentioned.

Best, Joachim
 
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joburger63

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Hi Joachim,

Thanks again. I'm having a go at shooting some portraits with this camera tomorrow, I'll try out all the lenses and see how they compare. I'm actually more concerned with camera shake at this stage. I've got a manfrotto 055. It's quite heavy by 35 mm standards but I think I noticed some movement when I did a few test releases of the shutter, particularly when the camera was in the vertical position with the 55 - 100 zoom. In Africa, I actually use wide angle lenses as I shoot wildllife in the landscape and people rather than animal portraits. I'm amazed at how close I get -sometimes too close for comfort! I see that Nick Brandt used a 200mm on the 27 for his African work. I'm guessing he supports it out of the car window somehow, as his shots are too pin sharp to be hand holding with a 200 lens attached unless he is super human. By the way, his show opened in at Source Photographica Gallery in Brighton last week and I was invited. It was pretty stunning and reminded me of Peter Beard in someways.
Thanks you for your offer of looking at your lenses. I do live in Melbourne and I'll PM you when I've familialized myself with the gear I've bought so far.
Cheers,
Chris
 

Joachim_I

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Thanks a lot for mentioning the Nick Brandt exhibition in Brighton. I was not aware of it. I will definitely visit the exhibition.
 
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