Newbie Help!

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  • 04-26-2009, 01:36 PM
    mitchatwrk
    Newbie Help!
    Hello, I am hoping for some advice. I need a hobby and photography has always been an interest. I am looking for a DSLR and leaning towards a Pentax for the reason, my father has a bunch of lenses that I believe he used on his. I know Pentax is backwards compatible for lenses if I am correct. Should I go with a Pentax? This is what I have in front of me:

    Ashahi 1:1.4/50 3753501
    Kalimar 80-200mm auto zoom No. K85102300
    Fortron 1:3.5 f=200mm No. 252727E
    Vivitar Auto 3x Custom Tele-converter Model 3X-1

    I know I will probably need to do many things manual with these lenses since the technology is probably very old but I figured it may be worth it to stick to Pentax and not having to buy all new lenses.
  • 04-26-2009, 02:34 PM
    straightarm
    Re: Newbie Help!
    To be brutally frank, only the 50mm lens might be any good, the rest are probably as much use as a chocolate tea pot.

    I would handle a Pentax and other makes to found out which feels best for you. Make your decison on that and not on some 30 year old lenses you've acquired.
  • 04-26-2009, 08:27 PM
    Dougjgreen
    Re: Newbie Help!
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by straightarm
    To be brutally frank, only the 50mm lens might be any good, the rest are probably as much use as a chocolate tea pot.

    I would handle a Pentax and other makes to found out which feels best for you. Make your decison on that and not on some 30 year old lenses you've acquired.
    I wouldn't bet against the 200mm f3.5 being useable, as these were pretty simple, straightforward designs, but the only way to know is to try it on a digital camera.

    And the 50mm f1.4 SMC Takumar is a VERY good lens, but to use it on a modern camera, (as well as using the other lenses) you need to be able to deal with metering at the shooting aperture, and focusing manually, which is not easy on modern DSLRs.

    In any case, if I were the original poster, I wouldn't let the existence of these lenses drive your decision - you could easily sell the 50mm f1.4 on ebay for around $50 in any case. I think you'd be much happier using modern, autofocus, lenses on any modern camera system no matter which brand you bought.