[randomax]

I have had the DA 50-200mm kit lens for 2 years now and I thought of upgrading to 55-300mm lens. I got my lens last week and excitedly started using it on my next trip. But unfortunately, I had a miserable outing. The AF would not work - so I switched to Manual without much difference. I constantly shot at F8 or F11 to see if the issue is only with wide aperture shots at relatively long zooms. I was taking photos handheld and hence kept 1/250, 1/300 and sometimes even 1/1000. But alas, ANY photo I took was always very soft (blurry) even in bright sunlight. I have no issues at all handheld with the 50-200mm kit lens for the same scenarios!

I exchanged it for a new piece and with the new one, the AF is much better. But again, handheld shots are mostly soft. Have anybody faced similar issues shooting handheld?
My primary photography use is outdoors during hikes/camping and I hate to have to carry and use a tripod even at 100mm. I am not sure whether to try and exchange it again or just return it.

Any thoughts/suggestions?

[jatrax]

I used the 55-300 for many years and consider it a very good lens, especially for the price.

Just a couple thoughts:
- There is a big difference between 200mm and 300mm, your technique needs to be up to the task, not saying yours is not, just one thing to check
- You might want to test the lens for front / back focus issues. If it is locking focus but the image is soft that could be the problem. A well conducted focus test on a focusing target with tripod will eliminate that possiblity
- If the lens is still soft on a tripod after the AF is tuned it is possible you have another bad copy.
- Post some example images with the EXIF intact, maybe someone will spot something

[esrandall]

I would mount it on a tripod, and test for front/back focus. I've owned a DA L 55-300, and the DA version. Both were really good at f/8+, even a little beyond 250mm, and completely usable at f/6.3.

[randomax]

Thank you both for the suggestions. I will try that and post some pictures.
If there's back focus/front focus problem, can I retune them myself or do I need to get it serviced?

Thanks for your help.

[esrandall]

You can tune it yourself, so long as it doesn't fall outside of fine AF tuning. Anything that's too extreme -- I'd be looking to get it serviced. Not sure how much that would cost, but that lens can be found pretty cheap -- especially the DA L version (identical optics across all three), so might be cheaper to sell that one off, and try again.

[paulh]

- There is a big difference between 200mm and 300mm, your technique needs to be up to the task, not saying yours is not, just one thing to check

I'm betting this could be the problem. As Jatrax noted, there's a big difference between 200 & 300mm. The in-body SR can only do so much, good technique is a must with the longer lenses. Is anything at all in focus, or is it just a blurry/soft mess? Posted examples with the exif intact would be helpful. Try some tests with the camera on a tripod, or stable surface and see if sharpness improves.

[marcusBMG]

This was a recent thread on same subject...

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/10-pentax-slr-lens-discussion/304321-shar...00mm-lens.html

[Scorpio71GR]

I have the HD 55-300 and I can say that when I first got it I had some trial and error to work through. First the 55-300 hunts like crazy at times. in low light locking focus can be an issue, having a K3 helps. On my K50 this lens really hunts in low light. I use quick shift sometimes to focus quicker then let the camera finish. It would have nice to have seen this lens released with a DC motor like the 18-135. For very distant objects I find my copy has issues with resolving sharp images. Personally I have found even with SR I need to keep my shutter speed on the higher end. My hand holding ability is just not that great, especially at 300mm. If your 50-200 shots are fine I would suggest taking some shots in the same setting with both lenses. Take some with 50-200 then the 55-300 at the same focal lengths and settings. If the results are very different than either you have another bad copy or front/back focus issues.
300mm f9 1/400 ISO1600 hand held, it can give nice results and I did not get results like these right away. I had to practice for a bit to find the best technique.

[jatrax]

If there's back focus/front focus problem, can I retune them myself or do I need to get it serviced?

As paulh noted you can tune it yourself, unless it falls outside the range of tuning available. In which case I would send it back and try again. There are a number of different methods to do the testing but they all revolve around using a focusing target to test the lens / camera with and making small adjustments until you have the focus dialed in.
Here are some articles that might help.
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/53-pentax-dslr-camera-articles/167547-how...ack-focus.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/53-pentax-dslr-camera-articles/61385-auto...ent-hints.html

Before you jump into AF fine tuning:

• Not all problems are with the cameras auto focus. It could be your technique, or it could simply be a bad lens
• Test using Liveview and compare that to the viewfinder focus. If they are identical then tuning is not going to help. Liveview focus is considered to be accurate and there is no adjustment
• Testing must be precise, if it is done in a sloppy manner the margin of error in the test often exceeds the actual AF error. Meaning you are just randomly making changes and hoping
• Tests must be done on a tripod, and the lens must be precisely aligned with the target in both horizontal and vertical directions. Use a remote and mirror lock up or 2 second delay

Bottom line, this is a good lens that is capable of delivering good images. It does have some compromises and faults but over all when tuned in it delivers.

[csa]

I agree the 55-300 is a great lens! I almost always use it handheld @300, and have gotten very good results, requiring next to none sharpening in PP. Handholding a long lens requires extra measures. I push my elbows against my body, take a breath, and take the photo; works well for me.

Perhaps you can post some of your image here straight out of the camera??

[Mistlefoot]

I have had the DA 50-200mm kit lens for 2 years now and I thought of upgrading to 55-300mm lens. I got my lens last week and excitedly started using it on my next trip. But unfortunately, I had a miserable outing. The AF would not work - so I switched to Manual without much difference. I constantly shot at F8 or F11 to see if the issue is only with wide aperture shots at relatively long zooms. I was taking photos handheld and hence kept 1/250, 1/300 and sometimes even 1/1000. But alas, ANY photo I took was always very soft (blurry) even in bright sunlight. I have no issues at all handheld with the 50-200mm kit lens for the same scenarios!

I exchanged it for a new piece and with the new one, the AF is much better. But again, handheld shots are mostly soft. Have anybody faced similar issues shooting handheld?
My primary photography use is outdoors during hikes/camping and I hate to have to carry and use a tripod even at 100mm. I am not sure whether to try and exchange it again or just return it.

Any thoughts/suggestions?

Per the The Reciprocal Rule in photography, for hand held photos your shutter speed should = or better the focal length. At 300mm 1/300 should be the bare minimum. For every stop you gain with shake reduction you can lose the same with bad technique, etc. I third the suggestion that you use a tripod to see how focus is (and refine it if need be).

[randomax]

Here are some photos that I took today morning. All similar settings: 1/250, f5.6, zoom at 200mm and handheld. (The zoom on 55-300 was 210 although I intended to keep it at 200 - hopefully, that makes no difference in the comparison here). The focus point was the ring outside of the solar panel. The first photo is from the kit lens and the 2nd one is from 55-300.
What I notice in the 55-300 lens is that the dust at the bottom of the light post is completely soft/blur while the same with the kit lens is much more crisp.

Thank you in advance for your comments and feedback.

---------- Post added 12-06-15 at 12:02 PM ----------

I agree the 55-300 is a great lens! I almost always use it handheld @300, and have gotten very good results, requiring next to none sharpening in PP. Handholding a long lens requires extra measures. I push my elbows against my body, take a breath, and take the photo; works well for me.

Perhaps you can post some of your image here straight out of the camera??

Thanks csa! This is a fantastic tip that I saw somewhere when I first started and I have been following this.. Fill your lungs with air and click the photo holding the breath..

---------- Post added 12-06-15 at 12:07 PM ----------

Here are some photos that I took today morning. All similar settings: 1/250, f5.6, zoom at 200mm and handheld. (The zoom on 55-300 was 210 although I intended to keep it at 200 - hopefully, that makes no difference in the comparison here). The focus point was the ring outside of the solar panel. The first photo is from the kit lens and the 2nd one is from 55-300.
What I notice in the 55-300 lens is that the dust at the bottom of the light post is completely soft/blur while the same with the kit lens is much more crisp.

Thank you in advance for your comments and feedback.

---------- Post added 12-06-15 at 12:02 PM ----------



Thanks csa! This is a fantastic tip that I saw somewhere when I first started and I have been following this.. Fill your lungs with air and click the photo holding the breath..

Thank you all for your comments. However, please note that the concerns I have are all at 100mm and 200mm focal lengths with which I have been taking photos for some time now. At these focal lengths, the kit lens does pretty well at 1/250.

Like most of you have mentioned, I understand that shooting at 300mm handheld will need some learning curve for me and I understand that. It'll be great if you guys can share any tips for shooting handheld at long zoom.

[Des]

Something wrong there. The 55-300 should be better than that.

I would start by trying to work out whether the problem is with the autofocus. Try manual focusing with the aid of focus peaking and live view magnification. If that does the trick, at least you have narrowed down the issue. Then you can try fine-tuning the AF.

Just a thought. Have you got "AF Fine Adjustment" set for "all lenses"? On my K-30 it's in the Custom menu, C4, item 22; it's probably the same or similar on the K-50. Default setting is 1. If it's set to 2, then AF Fine adjustment is on. If so (with the 50-200 attached), press the right button on the controller and check whether it says "Apply all". Reset it to Apply one - that means the AF adjustment setting will only apply to the particular lens attached. The camera can store different settings for a number of lenses (15, from memory).

If it's not the AF, maybe repeat a comparison at different focal lengths and apertures (with a tripod or fast shutter to eliminate camera shake as a factor). If the 55-300 is consistently behind, there is something wrong with it.

Just one other thought. Did you turn off the camera when changing lenses? The shake reduction setting might not work correctly if you don't.

Incidentally, if the images posted are not cropped, there is an explanation for the different magnification (field of view) and DOF apart from the slight difference in focal length. The 50-200 is an internal focus lens and the 55-300 isn't, so the 55-300 will always have a narrower field of view at the same focal length (except when focused to infinity) - the difference is due to "focus breathing". It's actually an advantage for the 55-300 when shooting wildlife, although the flipside is a longer minimum focus distance.

[K-Three]

The 55-300 should be better than that, Check out Carol's thread to see what this lens is capable of.
Agree you should try some testing from a tripod, to eliminate motion issues as a cause.

Your test shots are wide open (5.6 @200mm on both lenses), which means no depth of field at a long lens setting, even a slight movement by you from the time you lock focus to the time the shutter fires will change things. I don't use my 55-300 wide open, usually at ƒ/8, to give myself a little margin.

If the point of focus was the top rim (assume edge closest to you) then the 55-300 might be front focused, but I would not make that call on a single, hand-held, shot. Try taking a several and thinking about what you're doing between each shot that may be affecting things.

Spend some time to read and practice Heie's article on hand holding, I don't use all his techniques, but it's an interesting overview and rational on what you need to do.

I try to gently exhale as I trip the shutter, holding it in creates tension you don't need.

Assuming you have a window of time to return this if there is a problem, you should spend some time practicing and testing before trying to return it again. There are lemon lenses out there, but the odds of getting two in a row are pretty low, I would practice technique more before chalking it up to equipment.

[randomax]

Something wrong there. The 55-300 should be better than that.

I would start by trying to work out whether the problem is with the autofocus. Try manual focusing with the aid of focus peaking and live view magnification. If that does the trick, at least you have narrowed down the issue. Then you can try fine-tuning the AF.

Just a thought. Have you got "AF Fine Adjustment" set for "all lenses"? On my K-30 it's in the Custom menu, C4, item 22; it's probably the same or similar on the K-50. Default setting is 1. If it's set to 2, then AF Fine adjustment is on. If so (with the 50-200 attached), press the right button on the controller and check whether it says "Apply all". Reset it to Apply one - that means the AF adjustment setting will only apply to the particular lens attached. The camera can store different settings for a number of lenses (15, from memory).

If it's not the AF, maybe repeat a comparison at different focal lengths and apertures (with a tripod or fast shutter to eliminate camera shake as a factor). If the 55-300 is consistently behind, there is something wrong with it.

Just one other thought. Did you turn off the camera when changing lenses? The shake reduction setting might not work correctly if you don't.
Yes, I do turn off the camera every time to change lens or sd card.

Incidentally, if the images posted are not cropped, there is an explanation for the different magnification (field of view) and DOF apart from the slight difference in focal length. The 50-200 is an internal focus lens and the 55-300 isn't, so the 55-300 will always have a narrower field of view at the same focal length (except when focused to infinity) - the difference is due to "focus breathing". It's actually an advantage for the 55-300 when shooting wildlife, although the flipside is a longer minimum focus distance.
Thank you! I did not know that. Yes, the snaps are all uncropped (no PP).

Hi Des, thanks a lot!! The AF adjustment was the problem! I was trying AF tune when I was using the old lens (the one that I returned). However, I had forgotten to reset it. It was set to 2.
Now, I set back to 1 and retook a few shots. (The light is low now but the images are much much better!!) Both the snapshots below are handheld. Of course, I can shoot with much better ISO with the tripod.

---------- Post added 12-06-15 at 04:15 PM ----------

The 55-300 should be better than that, Check out Carol's thread to see what this lens is capable of.
Agree you should try some testing from a tripod, to eliminate motion issues as a cause.

Your test shots are wide open (5.6 @200mm on both lenses), which means no depth of field at a long lens setting, even a slight movement by you from the time you lock focus to the time the shutter fires will change things. I don't use my 55-300 wide open, usually at ƒ/8, to give myself a little margin.

If the point of focus was the top rim (assume edge closest to you) then the 55-300 might be front focused, but I would not make that call on a single, hand-held, shot. Try taking a several and thinking about what you're doing between each shot that may be affecting things.

Spend some time to read and practice Heie's article on hand holding, I don't use all his techniques, but it's an interesting overview and rational on what you need to do.
This is a great reference. Thank you very much for this!
I try to gently exhale as I trip the shutter, holding it in creates tension you don't need.
Thanks! I never thought of it that way. I just read about this in the link you have recommended here.

Assuming you have a window of time to return this if there is a problem, you should spend some time practicing and testing before trying to return it again. There are lemon lenses out there, but the odds of getting two in a row are pretty low, I would practice technique more before chalking it up to equipment.

Yes, thank you. I think the AF setting was the problem. I will definitely spend more time and practice before returning/exchanging it. This is a great forum and with help pouring in from everywhere, hopefully, I can improve.