Locally an ad was posted advertising (among other things) the following (quoted from listing):
Yashica 50mm ML f/1.2 - contax mount----$25
Pentax -M 50mm f/1.2 - K mount--------$40
I googled and couldn't find anything but one passing reference about such a Yashica (though plenty about a 55mm f/1.2) but I figured the price was right no matter how good or bad it was.
I corresponded with the seller, and he had them available - but as luck would have it, I was leaving town as was the seller, so I couldn't meet him to buy it before the end of the weekend. He sold it by the time I got back, but I got curious and started doing more searching, and still couldn't find out anything about the former lens. It's not mentioned on yashica.org's lens database, but I am not sure how definitive that source is.
Did such a lens exist, and was it (or the Pentax) good ? Put another way - should I be crying about the one (or two) that got away ?
Yes, this occurred to me - in fact, while searching for information on a Pentax 50/1.2, I found an extensive thread where a lady repeatedly confused f/1.2 for the 1:2 markings.
If I knew for sure a Yashica 50/1.2 never existed, I'd feel better. But I did find ONE reference to such a lens, hence my further uncertainty.
To answer part of your original question: Yes, the Pentax was/is good. Some folks consider it among the best 50mm f/1.2 lenses out there. I kept the Nikkor, having used both, but it was just a matter of subjective preference. I would buy as many as I could find for eight times that price.
