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09-11-2015, 03:07 AM   #1
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Do I need my DA 18-135mm m lens?

I have this lens and frankly I am not sure if I need it.
My main gripe with it is that performs poorly with low light.

I have kept it because it is wide angle.
And more importantly it is the only weather sealed lens I have.

When I am thinking of getting the Tamron 28-75 f2.8 lens I think I will use or need it even less.

What will you do?

Culture

09-11-2015, 03:14 AM - 2 Likes   #2
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Leave it out of your bag for a month. If you don't miss it, get rid of it.
09-11-2015, 03:36 AM   #3
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That will be difficult to measure for me as I dont shoot on a daily basis. Not even on a weakly basis.
And when I go to take pictures, I take lens that I might use. I am going shooting this weekend. And I am not taking it with me.
I went shooting three weeks ago and I did take it with me but never used it.

So that is difficult for me.
I would say that If I had the Tamron with me on that previous shoot I had probably used it.
09-11-2015, 03:40 AM   #4
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Get the Tamron 17-50 and sell the 70-300 and 18-135?

09-11-2015, 03:52 AM   #5
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OK. Get rid of one of your nifty fifties. Lose the 70-300.
Then leave the 18-135 out of your bag for six months....
09-11-2015, 03:53 AM   #6
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I must also add that I leave in Finland where the weather is cold and with snow about half of of the year.

So even if I need to go out in the snow to take a picture twice during the winter, will having a weather sealed lens be worth it?
09-11-2015, 04:09 AM   #7
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Even with what I have I still use mine. I'd say get rid of the 70-300 and M 50 and get a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 or for weather sealing the Pentax 16-50 f/2.8, or for better low light the Sigma 18-35 f/1.8.

09-11-2015, 04:26 AM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by Culture Quote
I must also add that I leave in Finland where the weather is cold and with snow about half of of the year.

So even if I need to go out in the snow to take a picture twice during the winter, will having a weather sealed lens be worth it?
You have answered your own original question. You need the DA18-135WR. You have other lenses for low light and the very wide.
09-11-2015, 04:34 AM - 1 Like   #9
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I have the opposite problem. With the 18-135 in my bag, I find it too easy to leave it on most of the time and not give my primes their rightful share. It's at its best on bright sunny blue-sky days -- I guess you get plenty of those in Finland.
09-11-2015, 04:48 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Paul the Sunman Quote
I have the opposite problem. With the 18-135 in my bag, I find it too easy to leave it on most of the time and not give my primes their rightful share. It's at its best on bright sunny blue-sky days -- I guess you get plenty of those in Finland.
True, the lens is stella when the conditions are good. The problem with having a full time desk job is that I am inside on weekdays.

Even with the little light that we have during winter i spend it inside at work.

---------- Post added 11-09-15 at 14:49 ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by Sandy Hancock Quote
You have answered your own original question. You need the DA18-135WR. You have other lenses for low light and the very wide.
I know, right? But it seems like the solution is so easy a choice.

---------- Post added 11-09-15 at 15:10 ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by VoiceOfReason Quote
Even with what I have I still use mine. I'd say get rid of the 70-300 and M 50 and get a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 or for weather sealing the Pentax 16-50 f/2.8, or for better low light the Sigma 18-35 f/1.8.
The 70-300 i will say has given me a lot of good shots when I have been using it for taking portraits. Better than the 18-135 at low light.

For the extra reach and the fact that I will not get much from it if I get rid of it I think it will be good to keep it.

For the same reason of keeping a cheap but good and fast lens I will like to keep the M50 should the F50 fail.


Is this how LBAs justify their purchases?
09-11-2015, 05:36 AM   #11
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If it's your only WR lens I'd keep it. It's better than the kit lens, perhaps not as good as the newer ones. Keep an eye on those prices and maybe consider that eventually but right now I'd think it's pretty useful, though not frequently used.
09-11-2015, 05:51 AM - 1 Like   #12
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The 18-135mm is the most versatile lens..... and with the WR, I would consider any Pentax kit incomplete without it.
09-11-2015, 06:21 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by Lukinosity Quote
The 18-135mm is the most versatile lens..... and with the WR, I would consider any Pentax kit incomplete without it.
Clearly my kit is incomplete.
09-11-2015, 06:29 AM   #14
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This is a normhead dog whistle thread!

OP, I sold--and subsequently reacquired--the 18-135. It's currently inexpensive enough that I'm glad to have it around for when I need it, which admittedly is not much. If you currently have one I'm not sure it's worth selling.
09-11-2015, 07:09 AM   #15
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When I first got the 18-135 I tended to only use it in bad weather, which often meant poor lighting. The results were rather blah. But I was glad to have it, as going out for a walk without my camera feels incomplete. What's the point of having a WR camera if you can't enjoy using it in situations where others cannot?

I have since begun to use the 18-135 a bit more, especially when I want to travel light and the results are getting better. I also recently picked up the Tamron 28-75 f2.8. It's a great lens. All I need do is force myself not to miss the extra width and length.
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