SMC Pentax

The 15/3.5 has an amazing angle of view of 111 degrees! I can get most of downtown Vancouver in one shot, without any distortion that you would get with a fish-eye lens. You do have to take time to compose your shot, as you can get a lot of water or cement in the pictures foreground. For land/cityscapes it’s best to shoot down from a slightly higher elevation. For architecture photography of a single building, it’s better to use the 28/3.5 shift, as the 15/3.5 will tilt the building too much and you will get half a picture of the street.

The lenses built in filters are perfect for colour or b&w film photography and f3.5 is fast enough for most shooting situations. I use this lens exclusively on a KX or K2 film camera, so I can’t speak for its usefulness on digital.

The build and look of this lens is a work of art, I would rate it as the best looking lens that Pentax has ever made. On the downside it is heavy and large, so it's not the best lens to carry around for everyday purposes. It’s more of a specialty lens and I find my 18/3.5 & 17/4 fish-eye work better as a traveling combo. (These two lenses take up the same space as the 15/3.5.)

The front lens element of the 15/3.5 sticks out like a sore thumb, so be careful as the built in metal hood doesn’t protect it very much. The metal slip on cap also does not stay on very well.

I would rate this lens as an 8 for usage purposes and a 10 for build & looks. So overall it gets a 9. If you require a super wide angle lens then the 15/3.5 is perfect, as long as you don’t mind that you probably won't use it very much. You can always store it in a display cabinet in your living room when it’s not in use!!

September 2009 Update:
I sold my A15/3.5 and bought a K15/3.5AL in its place. No noticeable difference in optics between the two versions.


Sample shots taken with the A15/3.5. Photos are medium resolution scans from original negatives.

Camera: KX Film: Kodak Portra 160NC ISO: 160

Camera: KX Film: Kodak Portra 160NC ISO: 160