latest aquisition

I now have a 135mm prime (Takumar/Pentax) lens @ f/2.5 to go with my Pentax ME Super. This is the perfect focal length for doing portraits. "why?" you may ask? Well, first, setting the lens @ f/2.5 means there is no depth of field, and second, at 135mm there is no distortion. Ahhh, you didn't know this did you?

Depending on what focal length you are using, when you photograph someone their face will distort (eg. more thin or more fat). At 135mm there is no distortion, while still giving you some sort of zoom lens.

The reason why 50mm has always been the default lens, is because it is a 1:1 ratio of the human vision. However, you would have to get awfully damn close to shoot portaits. And forget about enlarging a tiny image; the bigger the initial image, the better detailed the final image. (Why don't people understand this?...)