Hi folks,

I'm wondering if anyone has this lens and looking for feedback:

Pentax DA 55-300 F4-5.8 ED lens

PENTAX DA 55-300MM F4-5.8 ED LENS

I currently have this lens by Sigma:

70-300mm F4-5.6 APO DG MACRO

Sigma - Lenses

It's a good lens - macro shots are great, but I find the results weaker at near to full zoom. It's just not as sharp as I think it could be.

I had the Pentax 50-200 lens which came as a kit, but I traded that in for the macro feature of the Sigma, plus the small jump in extra zoom. The 200 lens was sharper. My rookie mistake I guess you could say.

Anyhoo, I might just trade in or sell the Sigma to get the 50-300, but looking for user feedback so I don't make another mistake

Cheers,
keebler

[ivoire]

reviews here: Pentax Lens Review Database - 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED

[alohadave]

I just got my 55-300 for christmas, and I like it so far. It has some heft to it, but it has quite a bit smaller barrel diameter than the Sigma.

I had the same Sigma for about a week last year, and it was just too big and bulky for me (I got the 50-200 for vacation travel). If you are used to the weight of the Sigma, handling the 55-300 will be similar, if not lighter.

The 55-300 does not have macro focusing, and it's about 4.5 feet for the closest focusing.

reviews here: Pentax Lens Review Database - 55-300mm F4-5.8 ED

thanks. i'm such a dolt - i had searched for 50-300 instead of 55.

I just got my 55-300 for christmas, and I like it so far. It has some heft to it, but it has quite a bit smaller barrel diameter than the Sigma.

I had the same Sigma for about a week last year, and it was just too big and bulky for me (I got the 50-200 for vacation travel). If you are used to the weight of the Sigma, handling the 55-300 will be similar, if not lighter.

The 55-300 does not have macro focusing, and it's about 4.5 feet for the closest focusing.

thanks Aloha.

I almost brought my sigma back last year, but didn't due to a lack of lens at the time.
it's still taken some great shots, but i'm going to talk with the staff where i bought it about a trade in price and what the 300 will cost

[Fl_Gulfer]

It's probably the best lens in it's range. I've had quit a few different lenses in this range or close and it is the clearest.
I had or have:
Tamron 18-250
Tamron 70-300 LD Di II
Ricoh 70-210 3.9 manual

Hi folks,

I'm wondering if anyone has this lens and looking for feedback:

Pentax DA 55-300 F4-5.8 ED lens

PENTAX DA 55-300MM F4-5.8 ED LENS

I currently have this lens by Sigma:

70-300mm F4-5.6 APO DG MACRO

Sigma - Lenses

It's a good lens - macro shots are great, but I find the results weaker at near to full zoom. It's just not as sharp as I think it could be.

I had the Pentax 50-200 lens which came as a kit, but I traded that in for the macro feature of the Sigma, plus the small jump in extra zoom. The 200 lens was sharper. My rookie mistake I guess you could say.

Anyhoo, I might just trade in or sell the Sigma to get the 50-300, but looking for user feedback so I don't make another mistake

Cheers,
keebler

I haven't had the sigma offering but I have owned two copies of the Tamron 70-300. I understand that the PF is not quite as bad in the Sigma as in the Tamron.

But, I can tell you this, it exists in the DA 55-300 but it've very minimal and correctable.

I'd highly recommend the DA 55-300

[ivoire]

its $300 here: Amazon.com: Pentax DA 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo

[k100d]

search google using siteentaxforums.com as a parameter for 55-300mm theere are plenty of articles

i have one and it does a pretty decent job. according to photozone.de it isn't the sharpest but the vividness of the colours makes the results still quite pleasant

[Marc Sabatella]

The "macro" feature of the 70-300 zooms is nothing to write home about - 1:2 only. You can do far better with the 50-200 or 55-300 by simply clipping on a $40 Raynox 150.