[everydaylife]

I just bought another copy of a DA*200. When I was trying it out I was focusing on my daughter walking towards me and tried to take the shot and the shutter didn't fire. The centre point indicator and the green hexagon indicated focus but on pressing the button a number of times the shutter did not fire and the whole time the centre point indicator stayed lit. I suspect it is because she was walking out of focus that the shutter did not fire. The lens could not adjust focus fast enough to keep up. Is this correct?

[Sandy Hancock]

Is it focussing properly with static subjects?
In the bodies I have owned, you can re-prioritise the interaction between the shutter activation and AF lock in the menu system.

[everydaylife]

Is it focussing properly with static subjects?
.

Yes it is. No hesitation.
Maybe I am being over cautious but this is my fourth copy in 6 months and I have 10 days left to exchange it which I would rather do since my experience of Pentax Service over the last 6 months has been ......................... So far image wise it seems ok but I just wanted check this behavior is normal.

[aleonx3]

are you using AF-S or AF-C for focusing mode? It shutter should trip if you are in AF-C mode. I use AF switch to lock focus instead of half-press shutter.

[everydaylife]

are you using AF-S or AF-C for focusing mode? It shutter should trip if you are in AF-C mode. I use AF switch to lock focus instead of half-press shutter.

AF-S. I will explain again.
My daughter walks towards me fromm about 15m and when I press the button I see the indicators in the viewfinder showing the lens has focused but the shutter does not fire and on pressing the button several times it still does not fire. I cannot tell if the lens is trying to refocus as it is so quiet but the center point indicator stays lit.

[MPrince]

AF-S. I will explain again.
My daughter walks towards me fromm about 15m and when I press the button I see the indicators in the viewfinder showing the lens has focused but the shutter does not fire and on pressing the button several times it still does not fire. I cannot tell if the lens is trying to refocus as it is so quiet but the center point indicator stays lit.

When in AF-S the lens should not be trying to refocus on a moving subject. What happens when you use AF-C?

[calsan]

The red dots don't indicate focus, they just show which focus point is being used. The green hexagon indicates that focus is achieved.

[aleonx3]

AF-S. I will explain again.
My daughter walks towards me fromm about 15m and when I press the button I see the indicators in the viewfinder showing the lens has focused but the shutter does not fire and on pressing the button several times it still does not fire. I cannot tell if the lens is trying to refocus as it is so quiet but the center point indicator stays lit.

I think you can try this setting and technique when the subject is moving. I would select AF-C shooting mode with high continuous drive mode; then use center-focus point only, set the camera to TAv mode, use your thumb to press the AF switch to lock the focus and index finger to trip the shutter (this is the reason why I think k-5 has the best ergonomics). When you see the green hexagon lit up in the viewfinder, fire away several shots at a time.

Here is an example of the shots I took during a recent event.
South Asian Canada Day-set 2 - a set on Flickr

Anyway, back to the original question, I have two DA* lenses and they both had problems before, and after they were repaired and replaced with the new SDM motor-assembly, they are now fine and I don't have any problems or sluggishness like that. One more minor point, when I am not using the lens, I usually put them in an upright position instead of lying flat; just my own personal observation and not any scientific proof of avoiding future SDM failure. The symptom before SDM failure on my 50-135 was that when I mount the lens after it was lying flat for weeks, it took a while to "wake-up". After a while, the SDM motor just get stuck.

Good luck, hope your lens does not have the same problem.

[everydaylife]

Thanks for all the replies. User error as usual. I set the camera to AFC and tried again and although not all shots were in focus the camera responded to every press of the button.

And another reason is that I think I am expecting to much for a lens to refocus on an object moving towards me that is with 3 meters of the minimum focus distance and the lens is close to wide open. DOH

Thanks again for the replies