Pentax-DA 18-270mm F3.5-6.3 Review

Thanks to its seven rounded aperture blades, the 18-270mm has surprisingly good bokeh for a consumer zoom lens.  Even though it lacks a true macro mode, its longer focal lengths will let you get pleasing bokeh even when stopped down. We'll let the images speak for themselves in this section.

105mm @ F5.6: Click image to enlarge

Images of cactus needles can be difficult for zoom lenses to render because zooms generally do not produce a smooth out of focus area. The bokeh isn't quite on par with that of a fast prime, but we've seen much worse and we'd say that the 18-270mm handled this shot fairly well!

270mm @ F9.5: Click image to enlarge | Download full-size image

The next shot was taken at F5.6 at 115mm, so basically with the lens fully open.

115mm @ F5.6 | Click image to enlarge

The Bottom Line

The new Pentax 18-270mm has above-average bokeh which is comparable to that of the 18-135mm WR.  We have no complaints and believe that bokeh is one of the 18-270mm's strongest points when it comes to image quality.