Originally posted by OrenMc I personally would like to see a 300/2.8.
I think the Sigma is going to be my next purchase but I am going to have to sell my 100-300 to help fund it.
I am thinking with a 300/2.8 I will also have a 420/4 and 600/5.6.
I will probably never be able to afford a 600/4 and Pentax knows that is the same with most folks. So a release of a 400/4 or 5.6 is more realistic.
Anyway, any release of a new lens/camera by Pentax only makes me more hopeful of our future.
Announced price for the future Nikkor AF-S 300 mm f/2,8G ED VR II : 6659 euros...
Even if Pentax puts a lower price on an inhouse 300/2.8 (because of no VR), I would not think it would be priced below 5000 euros. That makes quite a budget for 1 stop improvement as compared to the existing 300/4. (at this focal length vigneting / FF compatibility is much less an issue than on the wide end.)
I'd rather see 1.4x and 2x TC, Tilt-shift lenses, or 150-300/4 zoom, but my guess is that Pentax is preparing the new 645D lens lineup (3 or 4 primes + zooms) and have started to design their FF lens lineup to release somewhere in 2011 or after.
Sigma is already big on super-telephoto range, even if Pentax can price significantly higher, their customer base is so much smaller than C&N that it doesn't make any sense. Especially if you think that the customer base for those lenses are mostly sport magazines (that buys photo gears from Canon and Nikon for professional support and homogenieity of their inventory)
I agree that "dream" lenses are important for marketing, but IMHO Pentax has other means to reach this goal like releasing ultra-luminous primes (55/1.2, 35/1.4, 20/1.4, 85/1.2) or providing tilt shift lenses. Nobody is in the head of Pentax and they have shown recently to say little and stick to what they say.
Regards,
Guillaume