[aus123]

hi i have the standard lens kit 50-300 and 18-55 or my k5 but want to update the lens and don't now what way to go my budget is about 1000 au dollars for a new lens what would a good alrounder lens and are the sigma lens any good or stick with a pentax.

[RioRico]

Welcome aboard! And your question will get more exposure (and answers) if you ask it on the SLR LENS forum. But here are my hints: Ask yourself, WHAT DO I WANT TO DO THAT I CAN'T DO WITH WHAT I HAVE NOW? And check what focal lengths you mostly shoot at now. Where those cluster are probably good spots to look for nifty lenses. Have fun!

[aus123]

yea thanks i might look at the pentax 17-135 .

[Ash]

Welcome here mate, and hope you enjoy it.
Superzooms are OK, but they won't be exploiting your camera's full abilities. The 18-135 isn't bad, and is probably one of the best all-rounder for Pentax, but for $1000 you could do better.
Consider getting yourself a Tamron 17-50 to replace your kit lens (unless you're after weather-sealing) and perhaps a fast fifty like a Pentax FA 50/1.4 if you like thin depth of field photography.

[aus123]

so tamron and sigma lens are ok these days

[Ash]

They're all OK in general, it's that sometimes you might get a dud one, or two, or three before you get a good one. Often though, it may only need a minor AF adjustment and it's sorted out - but other times there are issues of decentering and other malfunctions. Just be sure you have a good returns policy for your purchases.

[Arn]

Welcome, aus123. Lots of good advice for you so far - I would just add to check the lens reviewsfor a bunch of good summaries.
Pentax Reviews - Pentax Lens Reviews & Complete Lens Database

[SpecialK]

hi i have the standard lens kit 50-300

It's either the 50-200 or 55-300 :-) The longer one is a pretty good lens that I would keep for a while. If you are looking to upgrade the 18-55, just about any of the 17-50 or 18-50 lenses that are f2.8 will be a noticeable improvement. But, there are many ways to build a kit, including buying used. A Pentax 12-24 and Tamron 28-75 are good complementary lenses, though they might total a bit over $1000 used.

[hcc]

Welcome to the forum.

For lenses, you already have two zoom lenses. If you intend to keep these (and why not, they are not bad for kit lenses) I would encourage you to consider some prime lenses. IMO there are some 'beautiful' prime lenses like the FA31 mm f1.8 Ltd. A prime lens will give you tyically some much better IQ than a zoom lens for the same price. In broad daylight and the best conditions, you might not see much differences, but a god prime will give you excellent results more often. Simply your keeper rate is much higher with a good prime lens IMHO.

Consider what you like to shoot. Look at your own photographs and see what focal length you prefer. Then look at the primes around that focal length. Myabe you need a zoom lens and you could consider the DA* series; maybe a couple of prime lens could cover as well your interests.

I have (only) 6 primes and I could recommend without any reservations the FA31mm f1.8 and Voigtlander Nokton 58mm f1.4. The former is AF and the latter is MF. Both give outstanding IQ although they have some different usage.

Hope that the comment will help...

[RioRico]

I very much dislike the two-zoom kit of 18-55 and 50-200 or 55-300, as I do much shooting in the 35-70mm range, and swapping lenses around 50mm is a royal PITA. (I have such a pair, and don't use them together.) So my basic lens is the DA18-250 (no longer produced but still widely available used); my other ~215 lenses are all specialty tools.

Here are what I consider indispensable:

* FA50/1.4, my gotta-get-the-shot lens, and still a great buy, used
* Tamron 10-24 ultrawide -- some prefer Sigma 8-16 or 10-20; whatever
* Raynox DCR-150 or -250, for good-quality closeup and macro-ish work
* F35-70, very agile and in a very useful range; available used for US$20
* cheap (or not so cheap) fast manual primes at 28-58-85-135mm

Everyone has their own preferences. These are mine. I could rant about these (and others) awhile, but that's enough for now. Have fun!

[KxBlaze]

Welcome! The DA* 16-50 is a very good lens but as others have said, I would try asking your question in the Lens section for a much better response. Good luck and enjoy!