Pentax (Takumar) Pentax Takumar 35mm f3.5 Heritage

Overview

The Takumar 35mm f/3.5 is a wide-angle M42 screwmount prime with a remarkable production history: introduced in 1959 as the Auto-Takumar, its optical design remained fundamentally unchanged across five distinct M42 versions (Auto-Takumar, three Super-Takumar variants, and a Super-Multi-Coated version) and even carried through to a later K-mount version. The Super-Takumar variants can be distinguished by their minimum aperture and distance scale details: the first version stops down to f/22, the second to f/16 with no distance-scale 'window,' and the third adds a 'window' to the distance scale. The Super-Multi-Coated (SMC) version arrived around 1971. No established nicknames or community jargon are evidenced in the reviews for this lens. It has a devoted following thanks to its classic Takumar build quality, compact and light form factor, buttery-smooth focus and aperture rings, and its reputation as a versatile all-rounder that renders beautifully on film with that 'yesteryear quality.'

Verdict: The Takumar 35mm f/3.5 is a compact, beautifully built, and affordable vintage wide-angle that rewards film shooters with characterful, sharp-centered images and classic Takumar color. It's ideal for those who want a durable, pocketable all-rounder with vintage soul — best enjoyed on film, where its character and corner vignetting shine, though it remains a clean and capable performer on digital.

Optical Character

Bokeh

Out-of-focus rendering not detailed in reviews; community bokeh score around 7.5.

Color

Classic vintage Takumar color with a warm 'yesteryear quality' on film, varying by film stock.

Sharpness wide open

Sharp in the center; corners are sharp on digital but can show vignetting on film.

Vignetting

Pronounced corner vignetting on film; minimal on digital.

Community Insights

What people love

Excellent, amazing build quality typical of Takumar lenses, with a smooth, buttery focus and aperture ring
Compact, small and lightweight body that is very comfortable to hold and carry
Beautiful vintage rendering with 'yesteryear quality' on film, which reviewers feel the lens was truly made for
Impressive durability — one reviewer dropped it a meter onto asphalt, denting the front area, yet it still operated normally
Versatile all-rounder focal length that lets you keep the subject centered while including more background

What people dislike

Pronounced corner vignetting on film that can be very apparent at times
Digital shooting tends to strip away some of the lens's built-in vintage character
The manual/auto aperture switch is a potential weak point — a problem there could render the aperture ring unusable
35mm is not everyone's preferred focal length, and one reviewer noted it isn't the length they reach for most

Pro Tips

Shoot it on film to get the fullest vintage 'character' and yesteryear color the lens was designed for
Embrace corner vignetting on film as part of the aesthetic, or switch to digital for cleaner, sharper corners
Pair with the M42-to-Pentax-K adapter (or seek the native K-mount version) for use on modern Pentax bodies
Handle the manual/auto aperture switch gently to preserve aperture function

Sources (1)

Web-grounded synthesissecondary

The Takumar 35mm f/3.5 is a wide-angle M42 screwmount prime with a remarkable production history: introduced in 1959 as the Auto-Takumar, its optical design remained fundamentally unchanged across five distinct M42 versions (Auto-Takumar, three Super-Takumar variants, and a Super-Multi-Coated version) and even carried through to a later K-mount version. The Super-Takumar variants can be distinguished by their minimum aperture and distance scale details: the first version stops down to f/22, the second to f/16 with no distance-scale 'window,' and the third adds a 'window' to the distance scale. The Super-Multi-Coated (SMC) version arrived around 1971. No established nicknames or community jargon are evidenced in the reviews for this lens. It has a devoted following thanks to its classic Takumar build quality, compact and light form factor, buttery-smooth focus and aperture rings, and its reputation as a versatile all-rounder that renders beautifully on film with that 'yesteryear quality.'

https://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/S-M-C-Super-Auto-Takumar-35mm-F3.5.htmlhttps://jerfareza.camera/post/lens-review-pentax-takumar-35mm-f35