Prime lens for Pentax K-x

[Silv3ricez]

Hi everyone!

I'm kinda new here, as well to the world of cameras and photography...:bsmilie:

I just bought a Pentax K-x (dual lens kit 18-55mm & 50-200mm) a few months back, didn't have the time to explore further until now... Manage to take a couple of decent pictures with manual focus under good lighting but i'm having some difficulty taking clear pictures indoors (e.g day time with no lights on or at restaurants with orange lighting etc) I adjusted the ISO up and try to lower my f-number.... what ever combination i did which was supposed to allow enough light to enter the camera.. did not give me satisfactory results.

One of my friends actually got a prime lens , and instantaneous took crisp and clear pictures in the same restaurant as i struggled to snap a decent one. She's using 35mm f2.8 prime lens i think. She got a 35mm one to suit her usage of the camera - she owns a food blog and her camera's mainly used to snap pictures of food, rather than sceneries or people.

For me, though I do take pictures of food too, I'm more into taking portrait and outdoor scenery pictures.... Would like to ask the pros here... which are the suitable prime lens which I can consider buying?

I'm thinking of a 50mm f1.4 prime lens..... i saw one selling at the marketplace here and it said M42 mount , from what i gather online "The M42 lens mount is a screw thread mounting standard for attaching lenses to 35 mm cameras, primarily single-lens reflex models"... how would I know if it fits my camera?

Sorry for asking such a noob question! :sweat:But i gotta do so to start learning!

Thanks so much!

 

[gummy73]

U can try to find k mount one in B&S or ebay..quite a number of them are selling from 1.4,1.7 to 2.0

 

[Supersimon27]

M42 is a old mount of Pentax . U need a special adapter to convert it to K mount b4 mount into K-x

 

[wazzupku]

Can I add some of my opinion?

Indoor, I love my M50 1.7. I think M50 1.4 is a great lens too.
For food, I wouldn't wait to grap M28 3.5. Save you the difficulties of out of focus because lens too close to the dishes.

Hope this can help in ur decision process

 

[night86mare]

I just bought a Pentax K-x (dual lens kit 18-55mm & 50-200mm) a few months back, didn't have the time to explore further until now... Manage to take a couple of decent pictures with manual focus under good lighting but i'm having some difficulty taking clear pictures indoors (e.g day time with no lights on or at restaurants with orange lighting etc) I adjusted the ISO up and try to lower my f-number.... what ever combination i did which was supposed to allow enough light to enter the camera.. did not give me satisfactory results.

you need to learn proper handholding technique.

i could show you a number of pictures taken with a pns that hold up *fine*, under poor lighting conditions indoors at night, no flash.

getting a prime lens will help, to be fair, but if you don't understand your equipment and the proper technique, then you will find it harder

 

[wazzupku]

you need to learn proper handholding technique.

i could show you a number of pictures taken with a pns that hold up *fine*, under poor lighting conditions indoors at night, no flash.

getting a prime lens will help, to be fair, but if you don't understand your equipment and the proper technique, then you will find it harder

totally agree, couldn't add anything more. This is also my case... need to go to do weight lifting more for steady hands lol

 

[pinholecam]

Like what the others have mentioned.

1. Technique - learn how the hold the camera steady and use any support when available, S'poreans got an advantage here
Remember your SAF rifle shooting fundamentals and they apply very well. Shoot from standing, shoot from support, kneeling, etc

2. Lens wise - Get a cheap 50/1.7 or 50/2 in K-mount. A M42 mount needs an adapter and the aperture needs to be closed up before taking the picture (ie. harder to use). Takumars are great lenses for the money, but more for collectors and 'hardcores' imho (ha..ha.. I have 1 set )

 

[Silv3ricez]

Thanks for your useful advise! will do that!

 

[CorneliusK]

Generally you need something a bit longer for portraits and something wider for landscapes. Not to say you cannot get great results with a wide lens for portraits or vice versa, but its usually easier with certain focal lengths. Go out and shoot your favourite subjects with your kit lenses, then see which focal lengths are the one you tend to use the most, then you will have a better idea of which prime lens will suit you better.

If you are into manual lenses you can also explore changing your focusing screen or maybe even getting a magnifying eyepiece. Both are modifications to your camera which can help a lot in manual focusing.

 

[night86mare]

totally agree, couldn't add anything more. This is also my case... need to go to do weight lifting more for steady hands lol

also, if your subject is not a still subject, then that is something you need to keep in mind as well.

 

[evolutioner]

weight-lifting doesnt help u to become steady.. it's all in the concentration and breathing technique...

i used to be an air pistol shooter and thought that the coach was redundant when he told about breathing techniques etc..
instead i went ahead with building my muscles and stuff.. and lost the competition..

and another girl which followed him, albeit having much less experience as she joined later, won the competition with mad results..

sorry OT a bit..

 

[flowerpot]

get a A50mm f1.4/f1.7/f2, and you can go from there and see what u crave for :bsmilie:, its cheap so u dun lose much if u dun need it in the future...

 

[KSW00]

Hi everyone!

I'm kinda new here, as well to the world of cameras and photography...:bsmilie:

I just bought a Pentax K-x (dual lens kit 18-55mm & 50-200mm) a few months back, didn't have the time to explore further until now... Manage to take a couple of decent pictures with manual focus under good lighting but i'm having some difficulty taking clear pictures indoors (e.g day time with no lights on or at restaurants with orange lighting etc) I adjusted the ISO up and try to lower my f-number.... what ever combination i did which was supposed to allow enough light to enter the camera.. did not give me satisfactory results.

One of my friends actually got a prime lens , and instantaneous took crisp and clear pictures in the same restaurant as i struggled to snap a decent one. She's using 35mm f2.8 prime lens i think. She got a 35mm one to suit her usage of the camera - she owns a food blog and her camera's mainly used to snap pictures of food, rather than sceneries or people.

For me, though I do take pictures of food too, I'm more into taking portrait and outdoor scenery pictures.... Would like to ask the pros here... which are the suitable prime lens which I can consider buying?

I'm thinking of a 50mm f1.4 prime lens..... i saw one selling at the marketplace here and it said M42 mount , from what i gather online "The M42 lens mount is a screw thread mounting standard for attaching lenses to 35 mm cameras, primarily single-lens reflex models"... how would I know if it fits my camera?

Sorry for asking such a noob question! :sweat:But i gotta do so to start learning!

Thanks so much!

Totally agree with CorneliusK. Prime lens with different focal lengths are suitable for different type of photography. For example, 50mm fixed lens in K-x are suitable for portrait or food but definitely not suitable for scenery. You can try using your kit lens.
Like what CorneliusK said, you should try to find out which focal lens you use most of the time from the kit lens.

 

[detritus]

if got the budget, don't stop at one :bsmilie:

- DA 15mm F4 for landscape,
- FA 50mm F1.4 for portraits,
- D-FA 100mm F2.8 for macro!

alternatively, get the DA*16-50 f2.8. versatile enough for both landscape and portraits, very sharp and very quiet to focus cos of SDM.

 

[kengoh]

if got the budget, don't stop at one :bsmilie:

- DA 15mm F4 for landscape,
- FA 50mm F1.4 for portraits,
- D-FA 100mm F2.8 for macro!

alternatively, get the DA*16-50 f2.8. versatile enough for both landscape and portraits, very sharp and very quiet to focus cos of SDM.

Wow bro, give so many poisons. :sweat:

 

[KSW00]

Yeah.... that's how we can buy cheap used lens at the end...

 

[gibss]

Yep cheap used lens is poison to the MAX.
28,35,50,135,200... the possibilities are endless XD

Regards,
gibss

 

[detritus]

Wow bro, give so many poisons. :sweat:

Poison meh I only pointed out the most obvious and useful options

 

[normanho23]

get a A50mm f1.4/f1.7/f2, and you can go from there and see what u crave for :bsmilie:, its cheap so u dun lose much if u dun need it in the future...

Bro,

how much is cheap?

 

[flowerpot]

Bro,

how much is cheap?

er.. how much is cheap ? depends lor... if you are very rich... 10K can be cheap... :bsmilie:

but im not rich...:bsmilie:

joke aside....generally the lens i mentioned are all +/- $100 depending on condition... i think A50f2 can get below 100 easily...