Looking for recommendations: nice wide zoom

[mr_tibbs2004]

Looking for a wide landscape zoom, manual focus of course. I have a ton of primes, but no MF zoom lenses to play with. Maybe adding a zoom or two to the EDC kit can lighten the load and I can leave some primes at home. I see the Minolta MD 28-85mm and the Pentax-A 35-105 are recommended. If I can get wider than that for landscapes I would like to explore that possibility. I have M42, Pentax K, and Leica R adapters, but am willing to add to the stable.

Thanks!

[hasenbein]

Don't take a vintage zoom for that.

At wide angles (ie 28mm and wider) the corners are simply too bad.

Bite the bullet and buy a decent modern zoom for wide angle.

If you want something starting with 35mm, then there are VERY compelling options:

Contax-Zeiss 35-70 f3.4
Contax-Zeiss 28-85 f3.3-4 (28-35 range not so great, but 35-85 gorgeous)
Minolta 35-70 f3.5 Macro

Pentax 35-105 is somewhat overhyped in certain places, but it's simply mediocre. Impossible to get a well-centered copy, greenish-yellowish color tint. Typical "got it on a flea market, for that it's great" lens.

[Oldhand]

The Tamron SP 24-48mm is quite a good lens and can be had in those mounts.
I have made many happy images with it, and it may well suit your needs.
It was my go-to hiking lens in film days
Tom

[e6filmuser]

[kypfer]

I used (and still own) a Sigma 21-35mm f/3.5-4 in M42 for many years … was also available in PK mount.

[D1N0]

Pentax has a few Pentax-M and Pentax-A 24-50mm F4 ( The A version is better than the M version) or the really dedicated Pentax-M 24-35mm 1:3.5. Just wide and probably the most compact one you'll find with just 48mm length. Together with the Tamron SP 28-48mm F3.8 these are the most compact options you will find. The adaptall-2 website does a comparison (24-35 isn't in it) I suspect the Canon and Nikon were aimed at pro's not holiday makers.



I put the 24-35mm in there as well:



If you want to go more compact than this and want a wider range than a 24-35 you can opt for a less wide 28-50mm most manufacturers had them.

[RokkorDoctor]

The Minolta MD 24-50mm f/4 (in both MD-III and MD ROKKOR versions) also had a very good reputation and is still a good optic (I'm happy enough with it), but it will show its age a bit compared to modern equivalents and its 0.7m MFD is a bit long.

A truly small travel option is the later Minolta MD-III 24-35mm f/3.5. IQ not quite as good as its bigger 24-50mm brother and its softer corners require stopping down, but a remarkably useful optic nevertheless. Very small and lightweight, but still of very solid construction. Useful 0.3m MFD.

I have also used the Tokina ATX 24-40mm f/2.8, which was good but had a bit too much distortion and light fall-off to the corners to justify keeping alongside the Minolta, so I sold it. Still regret selling it though as it had given me some good images...

At some point I also had a copy of the Vivitar Series 1 24-48mm f/3.8 for a short while, but wasn't entirely happy with it although I can't recall what its specific weaknesses were. Definitely well behind the Minolta in therms of IQ, I do remember that.

Most of these era 24-50(~ish)mm zooms (Minolta, Tokina, Tamron, Vivitar etc.) are not too common and (relatively speaking) expensive if you compare them with their modern equivalents. OTOH, they do offer legacy smooth handling and engraved detailed focus scales that are actually fit for purpose.

Even wider legacy options are the various branded 19-35mm manual zooms (mostly Vivitar, but also marketed under different brands and I believe Tamron had their own equiv. one) and then there are the 18-28mm zooms made by SAMYANG and marketed under CENTON, SAMYANG, ROKINON, SIRIUS, EXACTA etc. All of those are OK~ish but not stellar, soft in the corners and flare-prone, and the 18-28mm ones in particular are of very variable quality; pot-luck if you get one which is a lemon or left the factory accidentally centered (no typo).

[blotafton]

I personally like the Minolta 35-70mm 3.5 macro.

Some wider option not mentioned yet.

Sigma 24-60mm 2.8. The Nikon version should be usable manually.
Olympus 28-48mm.
Tokina 20-35mm.

[philslizzy]

For a wide angle zoom, I use a Cosina 19-35mm on full frame and crop. Its AF on my Nikon D50 but will focus manually on my Sonys.

[cooltouch]

Just a -- well, not so quick comment about wides -- to me, the wider, the better. Shortly after I bought my first 35mm SLR, I bought a 28mm lens for it, and I was happy with the increased expanse the lens took in. But after I'd been shooting a while, I found myself wishing for just a bit more of an angle of view. I put up with 28mm and 35mm for a few years, then finally broke down and bought a 24mm, and man, was I stoked! That extra 4mm opened up a huge range of possibilities that I'd been missing with a 28mm. A few years later, I found a 19mm for a reasonable sun and picked one up -- and that put things over the top. Tell ya what, there aren't too many Wide situations that require much more than a 19mm. But just to be on the safe side, I picked up a 17mm about a year later. So, as you can see, within the GAS contagion, the acquisition of Wides -- for me, at least -- became a progressive malady.

Okay, back to zooms. I have both the Tamron and Vivitar 24-48. I prefer the Tamron, not so much because of any image superiority because my Vivitar is very good, but largely because it is quite a bit easier to handle. The Tamron is only slightly harder than a 50mm f/1.4. My Vivitar is also in Canon FD mount, which restricts its usefulness somewhat.