About

This project started in 2008 at Pentax Forums.  A discussion developed into a concept.  And a concept developed into a community project.  One very generous photographer donated a lens that was destined to travel the world.  For awhile the project went perfectly until the lens was lost.  It isn’t known what happened  but a 2nd lens was donated and the project continued.  Outstanding photos were taken all over the world and then the 2nd lens went missing.  This blog will cover the adventure of lens #3 which was graciously donated.

What is the traveling nifty fifty about?

The concept is simple.  One lens travels the world recording world through the eyes of many individuals.  You can sign up in this thread at Pentax Forums.  After waiting for awhile you will receive the lens.  It is extremely important that you take your photos quickly and mail it (tracked and insured) to the next assigned photographer.  Typically that photographer will be from your country (or region) to minimize time in transit.  But I will also limit each country to 6-8 consecutive photographers so that each country can be represented.  After mailing the lens to the next photographer you will need to post your photos to the flickr group and email me a short writeup about your connection to photography, Pentax, nifty fifties (any, even CaNikon) or info about your photos.  Then your photos will be blogged.

What lens was selected for the project?  Why is it special?  How old is the lens?

The lens is a Pentax A 50mm f1.7.  This is one of the most common Pentax lenses ever made.  Everybody that bought a film camera had a 50mm lens.  If they were cheap they got one with a smaller aperture (f2) while some chose the more expensive f1.4 version.  However the Pentax 50mm f1.7 was an outstanding combination of cost and quality.  Four versions of the lens were manufactured between 1977 and 2004.  Optically it remained the same while the electronics were updated as camera technology evolved.  The first lens required manually setting the aperture ring on the lens until the A version electronically controlled aperture.  And then came 2 auto focus versions.  The traveling nifty fifty is the A version which allows for electronic aperture control.  Even though the lens is old and lacks auto focus it is very popular with DSLR photographers.  It is also very affordable considering the outstanding quality at $80-100USD’s.  It was the first lens I bought when I upgraded to a Pentax DSLR.  Until I recently bought my DA40/2.8 it was my most used lens.

How do I get involved?

Sign up in this thread at pentaxforums.com and then wait.  It might be a long time but it’s a very popular community project.  Feel free to follow on this website and at pentaxforums.com

Who am I?

I’m just a normal guy that travels the world taking a lot of pictures.  I also have a passion for using excellent Pentax lenses from 20-50 years ago.  Some of my lenses are older than I am (33).  I will only handle a few administrative tasks to speed up the process and hopefully avoid missing lenses.  I will also organize the photos into a blog format.