The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW and the Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
The size of a lens is a crucial factor to consider when comparing two lenses. HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW is the longer of the two lenses at 106mm. The Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR with a length of 68mm, is 38mm shorter. Besides being longer, the HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW also has a larger diameter of 80mm compared to the Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR's 69mm diameter.
The weight of a lens is equally significant as its external dimensions, particularly if you intend to handhold your camera and lens combination for extended periods. Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR weighs 230g, 74% (680g) lighter than the HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW's weight of 910g.
Lens Mounts
The HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW has the Pentax KAF3 lens mount whereas the Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR has the Pentax KAF lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with these mounts are Pentax K-3 III Mono, Pentax KF and Pentax K-3 III for the Pentax KAF3 Mount and Pentax K-3 III Mono, Pentax KF and Pentax K-3 III for the Pentax KAF Mount.
Focal Range
HD Pentax-D FA 50mm F1.4 SDM AW is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 50mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides a 35mm (FF) equivalent of
75mm.
On the other hand, the Pentax 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL WR has a focal range of 18-55mm and 3.1X zoom ratio which has an effective (full-frame 35mm equivalent) focal range of 27-82.5mm when used on a APS-C / DX format camera.
