[Rondec]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and patience while I learn how work this forum.

I'm an amateur at best. I love to shoot action at my kids sporting events and we do lots of travel and hiking which makes for good wildlife shots. I have the following lenses already:
SMC DA 18-135
SMC DAL 50-200
SMC DA 1:2.4

I'm thinking about the DA 55-300 PLM WR RE

Thank you everyone for your time!

I think that choice is probably best for you. The PLM zoom is a nice lens. It doesn't have the fastest aperture in the world, but it does focus quite quickly and will be longer and a little better quality than anything you currently have.

If you decide down the road that you want something longer than that or with a faster aperture, you can always upgrade then, but I think it is a good place to start.

[DeadJohn]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and patience while I learn how work this forum.

I'm an amateur at best. I love to shoot action at my kids sporting events and we do lots of travel and hiking which makes for good wildlife shots. I have the following lenses already:
SMC DA 18-135
SMC DAL 50-200
SMC DA 1:2.4

I'm thinking about the DA 55-300 PLM WR RE

Thank you everyone for your time!

The 55-300 PLM is a very good step up from the 50-200. You'll get more reach, faster autofocus, and better image quality. However, depending on exactly how the 50-200 comes up short for you, it's possible 55-300 still won't do a satisfactory job in very demanding situations.

If your subjects are just a little too small, 300mm will be good. On the other hand, if distant wildlife is teeny-tiny at 200mm, it will still be small at 300mm.

If subjects are the right size, but low light won't let you get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze motion at a reasonable ISO setting, the 55-300 won't help much. An f2.8 lens like the DFA 70-200 f2.8 could be better for kids sporting events but that's a much larger money commitment. How dark are the sporting events?

[aslyfox]

. . . I'm thinking about the DA 55-300 PLM WR RE

Thank you everyone for your time!

make sure you look at the in depth review:

HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm F4.5-6.3 PLM WR RE Review - Introduction | PentaxForums.com Reviews

as well as the user reviews:

HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm F4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE Reviews - DA Zoom Lenses - Pentax Lens Reviews & Lens Database

good luck and have fun