| Author: | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2006 Location: Ontario Posts: 744 | | Review Date: July 20, 2009 | Recommended
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Solid, sharp, sealed and useful range | | Cons: | Focus speed | |
Build quality: 9/10
I'm docking a mark because it's not metal, but in spite of that it's a solid lens. And the fact I can use it in the rain makes it that much better.
Handling: 10/10
This is a beautifully sized lens. It's not a monster but it's not petit either. When you're holding on to it, you can have a good, solid grip. The focus and zoom rings are also a good size, making adjustments easy. Also, having an internal zoom & focus makes it a pleasure to use, including using polarizing filters.
Bokeh: 8/10
Generally very smooth. Not quite 'FA limited' smooth, but still very well done.
Optics: 10/10
For the photos I've taken using it so far, it's what I expect from a pro-level lens. It's sharp, shows good contrast and the colours are natural.
AF: 6/10
This lens surprised me with just how slow it plods along to acquire focus. I knew it wouldn't be a rocket, but I thought it would be faster than this.
Having said that, once it acquires a target, it will track reasonably well. It could follow my daughter running towards me, so long as I had a lock on her before she started running and would yield an average of 8/10 keepers. That result dropped if I didn't have her in focus before she started running.
Conclusion: 8/10
For my purposes with this lens, AF speed isn't a major deal as it will be used for landscapes and some event photography, meaning it's a keeper. However, for a lens of this caliber, I expected better and this is where it looses points. In every other category, this lens meets my expectations of a pro-level piece of kit and if focus speed is not required, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this lens.
| | | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: February, 2009 Location: Lithuania Posts: 490 | | Review Date: May 1, 2009 | Recommended | Price: $650.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Sharp, fast, good build quality, weather sealing, great colors, silent AF, bokeh, lens cap is nice. | | Cons: | slow AF, not quite enough zoom at the long end, huge hood. | |
well since it's a DA* it's weather sealed, and the best of pentax. the photographic qualities of this lens concerning Image quality it's perfect.. it's reproduction of colors and contrast is amazing.. build quality is top class.
however: i do not like the speed of the AF, it's silent, but quite slow.
zoom range seems a little to short.. however the quality of the pictures says it all.
great for outdoor portraits.
not great for any action.
great for still photography, landscaping (if the focal range fits),
not so great for dramatic closeups, they are sharp, but not dramatic..  not close enough.
if the zoom range would be 50-150mm and the photographic qualities the same, and a faster AF it would be perfect.. however nothing is perfect... so this lens is also not perfect. but I like it.. i rarely shoot at f/2.8, more at 3.2 or 3.5 to get sharp the desired point.
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: June, 2012 Posts: 47
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 28, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Good for indoor events | | Cons: | Stay away from this lens built prior to 2012 SDM failure | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 5
Handling: 6
Value: 7
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K5
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People are selling off DA* lens because of the release of K1. So price dropped quite a bit. But use caution before you buy an used copy. SDM failure rate was high before 2012 redesign. Check the SN and compare with the forum's database to determine the manufacture date.
Otherwise this is a good lens on APS-C for wedding and alike. Not suit for sports because of the slow AF and reach limits.
Also it's quite heavy at 1.5lbs. You don't want to carry it all day unless you have to use it to make money. | | | | | Junior Member Registered: August, 2012 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 33
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: October 1, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $900.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | One of the best in terms of range and IQ | | Cons: | Overpriced in Recent Years, SDM Reliability | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 9
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-30
| |
The DA* 50-135 is a fantastic lens in ALMOST every way. Until I ran into reliability issues with the silent focus motor on two separate copies forcing me to switch over to the discontinued but very similar Sigma 50-150 as my "go-to", I used the DA* 50-135 almost exclusively for portraits, artistic work, photographing live events and more and never had any major complaints. The 50-135 is well built and handles nicely despite being somewhat "dense" from having so much glass packed into such a small package. Aesthetically, the 50-135 looks and feels like a premium "Pentax" lens should. I rarely use a tripod for the type of shooting I typically do, but have had no issue hand-holding the lens on longer shoots. In low-light AF situations coupled with fast-moving subjects, the 50-135 delivered excellent results both wide open and at distance. Plus, the Weather Resistance (WR) of the Pentax affords much needed peace of mind to an active photographer like me, who lives in a dusty desert and likes to travel. The Sigma, on the other hand, is not weather sealed, which limits the conditions I feel comfortable using it in. Also, compared to the Sigma, I prefer the color rendering of the Pentax by a small margin, as it offered a bit more warmth and depth of contrast, no doubt due to the unique blend of pixie dust Pentax uses in their amazing lens coatings! I have heard of the 50-135 delivering "prime-like" IQ throughout most of its zoom range and feel that this is a fairly reasonable description. The image quality is stellar and certainly among the absolute "best of the best" when it comes to modern zooms. Unfortunately, what ultimately killed the enjoyment of this lens for me was the SDM motor issue. The Sigma has proven to be significantly more reliable in my case. In the end, as my second DA* 50-135, which I purchased brand new at Christmas 2012 from an authorized dealer, began to develop the dreaded SDM noise and intermittent function issues after barely a month of light use (shortly after my first 50-135's SDM from around 2010 completely quit on me and had to be repaired to the tune of $200+), I opted to return the Pentax and keep the Sigma. More than a year later, I'm still shooting the Sigma regularly and have had zero issues with its performance or reliability. I only wish I could have said the same for my DA* 50-135, because it really is an incredible lens deserving of the "Star" heritage in ALMOST every way. If you get a good copy with a reliable motor, it will be the best lens you ever own. However, I still see reports of SDM failures on lenses purchased as recently as late 2103, so the problem obviously hasn't been fixed, despite many claims by Pentax over the past few years. I love the lens enough that I've strongly considered giving it another chance, but prices have been rather steep over the past couple years compared to what these lenses originally sold for. Regardless, if you're in the market for a professional quality zoom in this range, it's hard to do much better than the DA* 50-135 on any platform. Just make sure to buy new from an authorized retailer so you have the peace-of-mind of a factory warranty in case your copy ends up with an unreliable focusing motor like mine and many others.
| | | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: September, 2008 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,448
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 20, 2013 | Recommended
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | IQ is superb | | Cons: | SDM Focusing is horribly slow/Min focusing distance is 3+ feet | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 3
Handling: 4
Value: 7
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: K5iis
| |
This lens will garner a mixed review from me, which is why I eventually sold it in favor of a lens better suited to my shooting needs.
First the positive aspects:
The image quality is amazing. Resolution is great, colors, bokeh, all that stuff is pro quality. I can see why wedding photographers, and others who specialize in portrait type images love this lens. At f2.8 you get really great shallow DOF at 135mm.
The cons:
The focusing is horribly slow, frustratingly slow. I would not recommend this for any kind of action photography unless it's a snail race. I take that back, with it's overly long minimum focusing distance of 3+ feet, (even at 50mm) the snails would be too small in the frame to be meaningful.
Obviously, this lens was not suited for my subject matter of sports, wildlife or anything moving, but even to that end, its image quality was so good I still debated a long time before finally selling it.
For its price, make sure you know this lenses strengths and weaknesses, because the resale market has hit rock bottom. Chances are you won't be able to recoup your investment should you decide it's not right for you.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: November, 2009 Posts: 4,571 | | Review Date: November 9, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $950.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Sharp, great range | | Cons: | Slow AF, SDM prone to failure | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 7
Autofocus: 1
Handling: 7
Value: 5
New or Used: New
| |
Terrific IQ spoiled somewhat by slow AF and somewhat more by SDM failure.
| | | | | | | | Review Date: February 23, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $1,000.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | built quality, weather sealing, image quality (sharpness, bokeh) | | Cons: | slow autofocus | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 3
Handling: 8
Value: 6
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-7
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I bought this lens more than 2 years ago and used it mostly indoors shooting portraits, but made a few times also use of the weather sealing.
From the shootings with this lens I got very pleasing results image quality wise. The sharpness and the bokeh is excellent for a zoom lens. The built quality and the handling is also very good, with the exception of the focus ring, which is a bit too strongly damped in my opinion. The weather sealing is also a great bonus.
The only problem is the autofocus with this otherwise really great lens. It was from the beginning very slow, much slower than the screw drive of my other lenses. In the meantime the SDM decided to work only part time and finally died completely.
Conclusion - this lens has a great build and image quality - but has a flawed AF. Without the flawed SDM the lens would have gotten a straight 10.
| | | | | Inactive Account Registered: August, 2012 Posts: 3 | | Review Date: August 23, 2012 | Not Recommended | Price: $750.00
| Rating: 6 |
| Pros: | Great Build Quality | | Cons: | Slow, inaccurate auto-focus | | Sharpness: 7
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 3
Handling: 8
Value: 6
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: k10d
| |
Very disappointed with the copy of this lens I purchased. The auto-focus doesn't work properly at all unless shooting close up. Beyond 5-6 ft, forget about it. Even closed down to f 6.3, consistently out of focus, no where near the sharpness I've seen in the examples posted on here. Real bummer. Guess I caught hold of a bad piece of glass... Or maybe my cameras out of whack, but this lens has just been a frustration for me, and not even because of the SDM...
| | | | | Loyal Site Supporter Registered: November, 2007 Location: Sparwood, BC, Canada Posts: 12,385 | | Review Date: October 17, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $1,100.00
| Rating: 5 |
| Pros: | Optically Superb | | Cons: | SDM failed for the third time - out of warranty | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 1
Handling: 10
Value: 6
New or Used: New
| |
This lens has had to be converted to an 85-230 mm f/4.8 screw drive AF lens using the AFA 1.7X converter. The SDM failed again, after being repaired twice under warranty by Pentax Canada. I am not prepared to spend something like $300 on a repair that will probably fail again. Using it as a 50-135 relies on Catch-in-Focus and that works well, but II would much prefer to use it as a 50-135/2.8. My manual focus skills are not up to university hockey as I found out last weekend. In situations where manual focus is OK, I will use it, but I am severely disappointed with the SDM failures.
That said, this lens is optically superb. The 1.7x seems built to mate seamlessly with this converter as well. I rated the lens as Good (5) overall because of the failures.
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: April, 2011 Location: Canberra, Australia Posts: 582
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 5, 2014 | Not Recommended | Price: $750.00
| Rating: 4 |
| Pros: | Sharp, small | | Cons: | Horrible, Horrible AF | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Autofocus: 2
Handling: 9
Value: 6
New or Used: Used
Camera Used: Pentax K-3
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I bought this lens to compliment my 16-45. The first time out with it was shooting moving motorcycles.
It is truly tack-sharp, but don't think about using it in any action scenario as the AF speed is just truly woeful. It's like the AF motor is trying to move through sludge; it really is that bad.
It could possibly make a decent portraiture lens, but I do so little of that I just cannot justify spending that much money on it.
I've since replaced it with a Tamron 70-200 2.8 and will be reconsidering the 16-45 with a something-70mm.
It's a shame, because the focal length provided is a wonderful range and it is wonderfully sharp - but it just completely let down by the auto-focus speed.
| | | | | New Member Registered: December, 2010 Posts: 10 | | Review Date: December 25, 2010 | Not Recommended | Price: $819.00
| Rating: 4 |
| Pros: | good at low light | | Cons: | soft focus at the edges | | New or Used: New
| |
First impression of the Pentax 50-135. Have been using it for two days now together with the brand new K-5.
Been a day to the coast and made pictures of the pacific ocean, the driftwood, lighthouse and coastline. The pictures seems to be sharp in the middle but at the edges it is like a soft focus is used. Close ups are not crispy and bright as I had hoped for.
Today I made pictures inside, it is very good with low light, but it is like a soft focus is used.
I have a UV filter B&W haze 1x MRC, could that be the problem !!!
I am somehow disappointed, but will make more pictures the next few days, if it stays the same I am returning the lens.
Look here
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| | | | | Junior Member Registered: June, 2010 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 29
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 15, 2016 | Not Recommended | Price: $800.00
| Rating: 3 |
| Pros: | Beautiful, clear shots of stationary objects, when it doesn't backfocus | | Cons: | Not for use with objects or people in motion, especially in unfavorable lighting | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Autofocus: 1
Handling: 7
Value: 1
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-50, K200D
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When it takes focuses, it frequently takes gorgeous shots and, in some lighting situations, it is the only lens I have that will take nice shots. However, that depends greatly on whether it will focus. People talk about sports shooting, as if that's the only type of action which can befuddle a camera. I tried to shoot a talent show tonight with stage lighting. If people weren't moving, it could be coerced into focusing and taking some nice enough shots. But, if anyone in the frame was moving at all, the AF would not work at all. I missed a lot of shots watching the lens hunt. I should have gone to manual much sooner, although, given the lighting, that wasn't easy either. It was very frustrating. In fact, by the end of the night, I was almost ready to throw over Pentax completely. Awful AF is really the only problem with the lens, but, unfortunately, it has the power to render its strengths useless. If you plan to buy this lens, plan on using manual focus a lot.
Update: the SDM motor never worked well and eventually died completely. I had a Forum member fix it by overriding the silent, non-focus system for just $30. At first, it worked fine. Using it to shoot a church service on Sunday, after less than an hour, the AF quick completely. It did come back later, but I expect much more.
Unless you always manually focus or don't mind a lot of frustration, find something else.
| | | | | New Member Registered: January, 2008 Location: Boerne, TX Posts: 12 | | Review Date: July 25, 2013 | Recommended
| Rating: 3 |
| Pros: | | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 2
Handling: 9
Value: 5
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K-5,K-7
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I have had 2 motors go out and the third is about dead. | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: December, 2008 Location: Highland, MI Posts: 336 | | Review Date: November 21, 2011 | Not Recommended | Price: $1,000.00
| Rating: 3 |
| Pros: | When the camera focuses correctly the picture quality is ok. | | Cons: | The autofocus is way (and I mean wayyyyyy) too slow. | | Sharpness: 6
Aberrations: 5
Bokeh: 5
Autofocus: 2
Handling: 5
Value: 3
New or Used: New
| |
I bought this lens thinking that it would be a great addition. Man I was wrong. It's so slow to focus and being a photographer who shoots swing dancing, models, weddings, and events I can barely use it. Not only that but when it does lock the pictures are so out of focus. Even with the in-camera calibration, the lens is subpar.
When I orginally purchased it, I had a chance to purchase this lens or a Tamron 17-200 2.8. If I had a chance to do it again I would definately go with the Tamron hands down. If you have to shoot with speed and accuracy then don't even concider this lens.
| | | | | Closed Account Registered: March, 2008 Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada Posts: 415 | | Review Date: December 29, 2014 | Not Recommended | Price: $750.00
| Rating: 1 |
| Pros: | Sharp, bokeh, easy to use, WR | | Cons: | SDM, again...! | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 9
Autofocus: 1
Handling: 9
Value: 2
New or Used: New
Camera Used: K5 and K5IIs
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This is a great lens and the only reason I'm posting this is because the AF failed (SDM again?) and it's in the shop for repairs. This is the 3rd time the AF fails on me: twice on my DA*16-50mm which cost $285 in 2011 and $385 last year when the gears (plastic) were replaced. I got this 50-135mm in June 2013 because of the big sale at B&H and have used it maybe 5 times. Bad items, maybe, get on with it, maybe, but that's a lot to say for quality control at Pentax. Too bad its a great lens because I'll have to keep it, for now, since I found out that you can't even get a used one for less than $800, even on eBay...!
March 12, 2016 update: Got the SDM fixed, 12 month ago, for free after knocking hard on the table...! This lense is back at its best - so far - like a piece of magic.
June 2017 update
See my post on the DA 16-50mm review page on my latest problems/comments on SDMs...! I do not recommend this lenses because of the risks on having an SDM incident. Too bad because the quality of the glass is excellent.
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