My most used lens
Recently, I was curious as to which lens I had been using the most. A Quick search of the metadata in my images in Adobe Lightroom yeilded that my SMC Pentax 50mm/f1.4 is hands down my most used lens.
In fact, it leads the number 2 lens by more than double the images. That’s an overwhelming win for this lens, and despite what dpreview recently said, this lens produces some of the most pleasing images, even wide open. I imaging my results are quite a bit different than theirs since I don’t photograph resolution charts 
This post is my attempt at a real world impression, not a review. Reviews photographing test charts, and other scientific measurements do nothing to show weather a lens will be considered good, or useful.
More after the jump…
Since I got the Pentax FA 50mm/1.4 it has been on my camera more than any other lens. I used it a lot when I shot film, and it was the first lens that I mounted on my K100DSuper when I got it home. On a Pentax dSLR, it has an equivelent feild of view of a 75mm lens on a 35mm film body. If I had been asked 5 years ago if I would ever use a 75mm for anything other than portraits the answer would have been no.
I use my 50mm so much it leads the number 2 lens by more than twice the exposures. That’s an overwhelming win for this lens, and despite what dpreview recently said, this lens produces some of the most pleasing images, even wide open. I imaging my results are quite a bit different than theirs since I don’t photograph resolution test charts
Despite the 50mm focal length being duplicated in three of my zoom lenses(DA*16-50/2.8, DA*50-135/2.8, DA18-55/3.8-5.6), there is something about working with a prime lens that seems to force me to think differently with my camera, the extra speed helps too!
I’ve started to organize my photos on flickr into sets based on the lens that took them, you can see more of my shots from the FA50/1.4 here
Whats your most used lens?
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