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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-28-2017, 03:46 AM
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It's been mentioned a couple of times in replies already, but it sounds like the Sigma 17-70 'C' f2.8-4 could be a good option for your uses. Reasonably fast, useful zoom range, good 'pseudo-macro' function and available used for around $250. I've had mine for a couple of years and been happy with its IQ and build quality. It's part of my fast zoom kit alongside the 50-135 which I take out when I am wanting better IQ, low light performance and subject isolation than my everyday zoom kit of the 18-135 WR and 55-300 WR can provide (at the expense of more weight and less range and WR).
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Forum: General Photography
01-11-2016, 12:10 PM
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If they are like most zooms they probably perform better in terms of aberrations, CA etc stopped down a bit.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-03-2015, 12:45 PM
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Just to check, because I have mistyped it once too, you are naming the file modset.459, and not modeset.459, right?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-03-2015, 07:55 AM
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K100D Super - Instructions, tested as working this weekend, to enter Debug Mode.
1. Create a file named modset.459 containing the following commands, and put it on the root directory (not in any folder) of an SD card:
[DEBUG_MODE EN]
[OPEN_DEBUG_MODE]
2. With the battery door open, and whilst holding down the AE-L and INFO buttons, turn the camera on.
3. Let go of AE-L and INFO straightaway the camera powers up, and then immediately press MENU, MENU, INFO in quick succession.
If you are successful, you should see a menu consisting of entries in white block capitals on a black background. The first menu item is DEBUG MODE. You have to be pretty quick with the button presses, so if it doesn't work, switch off and try steps 2 and 3 again.
These are pretty much the same instructions as for a K100D non-super, but the non-super does not require a modset.459 file on the SD card.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-03-2015, 04:28 AM
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Based on your criteria, it may be worth looking at the Sigma 24mm 2.8 Super Wide II
I have the MF version, it's compact, sharp, good metal build, has a focus scale. I have successfully used it for street photography, zone focusing. My only dislikes are that it flares somewhat into thesun, although a 3rd party rubber hood improves this, and the colours are maybe not as pleasing as Pentax lenses.
It's fairly common and cheap though, my as-new copy cost me £35 on eBay, so worth trying to see if it fits the bill for your needs.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-14-2015, 04:26 AM
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I have been a little disappointed with the wide performance of this otherwise good lens, so read this post with interest. However, I've gone back through my catalogue and picked out a number of shots mainly at slowish shutter speed and 17mm, and all of them have show the SR focal length as 17mm too. This is on a K30 with v1.0 firmware. I haven't been able to find an image that reproduced the problem at all.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-04-2015, 03:07 AM
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Tamron 18-250 on the K30, it's auditioning to go on my trip to Thailand at the end of the month. Most often the Sigma 17-70 C would be on there. The K100D isn't with me at the moment, but I think it has the DA16-45 mounted.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
12-25-2014, 12:43 PM
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Many thanks to all contributors to this thread. Particular mention for bennyxyz's post on page 23 whose instructions I ended up following. I used a K100D Super, the only difference being that with this model you first have to enable debug mode by creating a MODSET.459 file and copying this to the SD card per the instructions already detailed earlier in the thread.
I took an eBay gamble on a SDM failed 50-135, boxed with all accessories and in otherwise excellent condition for £130 last week. Successfully converted it to screw drive yesterday and took my first shots today while out for a Christmas Day walk. Its a lovely lens that I otherwise could never have afforded, so a real Christmas bonus! :)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
12-22-2014, 03:05 AM
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For a telezoom the DA50-200 is remarkably small and light, less than 80mm long and only 250g.
I have longer and better lenses but if I'm heading out and want to pack a 'just in case' tele it often ends up in the bag because of the negligable size and weight penalty.
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Forum: Pentax Forums Giveaways
12-14-2014, 02:47 AM
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
12-03-2014, 09:17 AM
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Thanks for the replies so far. I don't think my copy of the 70-300 is a bad one, I've certainly got a few keepers out of it and as I shoot in RAW I can always deal with any fringing and boost contrast and colour in Lightroom if the shot is worth spending some time on. The 50-200 also gets some use because it is so small and light - close to only half the weight of the 70-300 and 18-250 - and again produces some usable images.
I'm not a big user of manual focus lenses other than a 24mm Sigma Super Wide II, usually for landscapes where I set a small aperture and the focus to the hyperfocal distance and then shoot away without touching the lens again.
Maybe I should wait until my lens buying fund has grown a little more and then trade in the 18-250 for a D-FA100WR, to have something a bit longer that has really good IQ and is significantly faster, plus gives real 1-1 macro ability, and hang on to the 70-300 and 50-200 to cover anything longer than that?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
12-03-2014, 07:28 AM
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I'm trying to put together a well-balanced, lightweight(no lens weighing much more than 1lb) and relatively inexpensive set of lenses to go with my K-30. My walkaround zoom is a Sigma 17-70 'C' which I'm very happy with and stays on the camera 50% of the time. I have a couple of light, cheap and high quality primes in the DA40XS and DA50 1.8.
The area I'm not content with at the moment is in the longer focal length range. Here through a bit of 2nd hand 'bargain' spotting I have collected a DA50-200, a Tamron 70-300 Di LD and a Tamron 18-250. A session of controlled side-by-side testing of these three lenses at matching focal lengths (where possible) and apertures has shown me what I already thought was the case, that while none of these are terrible, although all have weak spots, none are particularly good either.
As a result, I have been tending to use the 18-250 as the companion zoom with the 17-70, as I get the bonus of it's versatility, being able to take the occasional wider shot with it without changing lenses.
However, I'm now seriously considering trading in the 18-250 (the other two don't have a significant trade-in value), plus a modest cash outlay, for a DA55-300WR. I'd appreciate any thoughts or opinions on whether this would be a good move, if the improvement in IQ and speed would be worth losing some versatility and spending around $150 in the process?
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