Pentax Pentax HD FA 50mm f/1.4 SDM AW Lens Review

Let's talk about the Pentax HD FA 50mm f/1.4. This is a lens that feels like a statement piece. It's a big, heavy 50mm prime designed for Pentax's full-frame K-mount cameras, and it's built around one thing: delivering classic, beautiful image quality at a very wide f/1.4 aperture. If you're a Pentax shooter who loves portraits or low-light work, this lens is squarely aimed at you.

But here's the interesting part. At $1200, it's playing in a different league than most 50mm lenses. You're not just paying for the f/1.4 aperture here. You're paying for a specific optical formula with 15 elements, including special glass like an 'Anomalous Dispersion Aspherical' element, which is Pentax's way of saying they're chasing perfection in sharpness and color correction.

It scores an 88.2 out of 100 for portraits, which makes perfect sense. Its weakest score is a 34.7 for travel, and honestly, holding this 910g (over two-pound) chunk of glass, you'll instantly understand why. This isn't a walk-around lens. It's a tool for deliberate, quality-focused photography.

The numbers tell a clear story. This lens lands in the 91st percentile for bokeh quality and the 88th percentile for its aperture. In plain English, that means it's among the very best for creating creamy, out-of-focus backgrounds, and having f/1.4 gives you a major advantage in low light. The 84th percentile optical score suggests the image quality, when you nail focus, should be exceptional.

Now, the other side of the coin. Its autofocus performance sits in the 47th percentile, which is basically average. For a $1200 lens in 2024, that's a bit of a letdown. You're not getting the latest whisper-quiet, lightning-fast motors. There's also no image stabilization (39th percentile), so you're relying on your camera body or a steady hand, especially in lower light where you'd want to use this lens. The performance trade-off is pure optical quality for speed and convenience.

The value proposition here is tricky. At $1200, this lens costs two to three times more than excellent f/1.4 50mm lenses from other brands. You're not just buying a fast fifty. You're buying into Pentax's specific, arguably niche, high-end optical philosophy.

For a dedicated Pentax full-frame shooter who prizes ultimate image quality and that f/1.4 look above all else, the price might be justified. But for anyone else, or for someone who also values speed, stabilization, and portability, it's a hard sell. You're paying a premium for the optics alone, and accepting compromises elsewhere.

Look at competitors like the Meike 55mm F1.8 Pro or the Viltrox 35mm f/1.7 for other mounts. These lenses are a fraction of the price, often have faster, quieter autofocus, and are much lighter. What you give up is that last 10% of optical perfection and the f/1.4 aperture. For many photographers, that trade-off is a no-brainer.

Even within the Pentax ecosystem, you have to ask if the older, lighter, and much cheaper Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 is 'good enough' for most work. The new HD version promises better coatings and optics, but for over a thousand dollars more? That's the core question. Compared to the listed competitors, the Pentax HD FA 50mm f/1.4 is the specialist's choice: uncompromising on paper specs for a very specific result, but it comes with real-world compromises in handling and cost.

If you're a Pentax full-frame user who lives for portrait photography and you demand the absolute best possible image quality from a 50mm lens, this is your tool. Save up, deal with the weight, and enjoy the stunning results. It's built for that one job, and it does it exceptionally well.

For everyone else, I'd hesitate. Travel and street photographers should run the other way due to the size and weight. Videographers will miss stabilization and might find the AF noisy. Budget-conscious shooters can get 90% of the performance for 30% of the price with third-party options. This lens is a brilliant, flawed specialist, not a general-purpose workhorse.