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Pentax SMC-FA* 80-200mm f/2.8 [IF] ED - Review / Lab Test Report |
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Lens Reviews -
Pentax
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Page 1 of 2
Review by Klaus Schroiff, published July 2007
Special thanks to Oliver Kirchner for providing this lens!
Introduction
The Pentax SMC FA* 80-200mm f/2.8 [IF] ED is part of the classic silver-colored
professional grade lens series made by Pentax. The lens has been discontinued
back in 2004 and eventually it will be replaced by the new Pentax SMC DA* 50-135mm f/2.8.
Typical for lenses of this design era it is a full format lens and when
used on today's APS-C DSLRs its field-of-view is equivalent to about 120-300mm.
Regarding the large max. aperture of f/2.8 the typical applications are portrait
and press photography.
As expected the build quality is excellent thanks to a durable metal lens body
made and tight tolerances. Pentax implemented a focus clutch mechanism so you
can change between AF and manual focusing by pushing/pulling the broad
rubberized focus ring (without needing to switch the AF mode on the camera).
In manual mode the focus ring operates very smooth. The zoom mechanism is
rather unusual - you can choose between a motorized (power-)zoom and a
conventional zooming (also by pushing/pulling the zoom ring). Using the power-zoom
function feels odd and not overly precise but it is a strictly optional
feature anyway. Thanks to a dedicated tripod mount the lens feels well
balanced when used on a tripod. The front element does not rotate so using a
polarizer is no problem.
The FA* 80-200mm f/2.8 has no internal AF motor and relies on a slotted drive
screw operated by the camera. Thanks to an internal focusing system and the
decoupling of focus ring and AF motor the AF speed is very high. The AF accuracy
was Okayish with the tested sample.
| Specifications |
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| Equiv. focal length | 120-300 mm (full format equivalent) |
| Equiv. aperture | f/4.2 (full format equivalent, in terms of depth-of-field) |
| Optical construction | 16 elements in 13 groups inc. 4 ED elements |
| Number of aperture blades | 9 |
| min. focus distance | 1.4 m (max. magnification ratio 1:5) |
| Dimensions | 88 x 195 mm |
| Weight | 1510 g |
| Filter size | 77 mm (non-rotating) |
| Hood | barrel shaped, snap-on type (supplied) |
| Other features | tripod-mount, AF/MF clutch, power zoom |
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