| Author: | | New Member Registered: July, 2022 Posts: 2 | | Review Date: February 17, 2023 | Recommended
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | I have to put this on the magic gem list too.. Its so special and have magic inside it. | | Cons: | Heavy. Other then that i wish i could spend months behind it.. | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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This one has that special look that i cant find in any other lens i have, or have had in the past...the M50mm F1.7 had something similar...that look... a
In the light here in Norway its a monster especially when its not sunny is my experience.
I need to use it more. Unfortunary i tend to have the magic 31mm and all this lenses with me and they steal time from this one...
But everytime i calm down and start to use it a bit. It creates AWSOME results.
| | | | | | | Pentaxian Registered: August, 2016 Location: Appingedam Posts: 3,112
6 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 25, 2019 | Recommended | Price: $250.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Small size, great handling, super image quality | | Cons: | lack of lens collar, some CA | |
First a bit about myself and why I want to review this lens (or consider myself competent to write up this review about this copy of the M300/3 green star lens). I started photography with my father's manual focus canon kit and about three years ago I bought a K-50 with the 18-135 lens. Since then, I've only purchased older lenses (one super takumar, a M50/1.7, M50/1.5, M150/3.5 and a K135/2.5 in addition to this M300/4). I take roughly 70% of my photos with MF lenses.
I was looking for a longer telephoto lens for some wildlife photography and - when I get my equatorial mount up and running again - astrophotography. The M300/4 was available for around 250 in Groningen and some testing revealed this as a very nice copy. My copy is mint, with no wear on the outside and a few very light marks on the lens hood. No fungus and hardly any dust inside. The whole lens still feels completely solid, showing great workmanship.
At f/4 the lens is very sharp but after 5.6 (there are some intermediary stops), the lens is simply stunningly sharp. There is some chromatic abberation, but that is easily dealt with in post processing. The focussing is smooth and very precise, but best done with LV and magnification if you want to have that stunning shapness. After f/16 there is a noticeable drop in sharpness due to diffraction.
Bokeh is nice, but to be honest I have never really been able to describe why I like it in particular.
The handling is great but some form of collar would be excellent. I'm now designing something to support the front part of the lens as that is where much of the weight is, mostly to relieve the K-50 of some of the stress of bearing that weight (so not because the lens feels unstable or anything).
If my copy is anything to go by, this lens is a perfect companion to the 1.4 and 2.0 A rear converters. There is hardly any image degradation penalty for the extra focal length and at the loss of a a bit of light gathering power you get an incredibly compact 420 mm lens (my photos with a 450mm FL are actually taken with this combo). Once I have completed my 'scientific tests' I'll upload a review of these converters.
Why and for what type of usage do I recommend this lens? I recommend it because it is a superb imaging instrument available at an insane price. At the size of this thing, there is simply no reason not to have it in your camera bag when you see a nice bird or other animal. For some examples of what it can do, see this image of a fox at about 15 meters (shot at f5.6)
 IMGP0268.jpg by Hans Vedder, on Flickr
or this one of a Bittern shot at five meters or so
 IMGP7730 by Hans Vedder, on Flickr
and, to see how it copes with some contrasty scenes, this finch (I think a European greenfich).
 IMGP8051 by Hans Vedder, on Flickr
| | | | | New Member Registered: February, 2016 Location: lake constance Posts: 1
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 15, 2018 | Recommended | Price: $300.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | high technical quality, convinient, extreme sharpness | | Cons: | any, any, any | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Pentax MX, Sony A7
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I had to wait for a long time to get this lens to an affordable price. It is not easy to get this lens at all - this is especially in finding a M version in good condition.
At last it can be over 35 years old. But I have experiences in collecting older M lenses, like the M 4/20mm or the M 1.7/50mm, so that I took the risk in buying it online. I didnīt get disapointed in any way. The body of this lens has some scratches, even on the scale, but the figures and marks are engraved and well painted, so that all looks clearly nevertheless. Mechanics are on a level, like on new lens.
The image quality is unbelievable. Instead of this lens, I former bought a Nikkor AF 4/300mm IF-ED lens, wich is 500g heavier than the Pentax. And it is longer, not so handy. The image quality is on top, so that I had great expectations to the Pentax. I thought, that because of the age of the Pentax, there is a lack of sharpness and contrast and the Nikkor had best recommendations on press. Until I saw the first images of The Pentax M 4/300mm green star. I took many pictures in comparison with the Nikkor. There isn`t a different to see, perhaps the Pentax has very light better color transmission. The Nikkor has a less saturation, is a bit cooler. The bokeh is similar to the Nikkor, perhaps not so quiet at all. But in the most cases it is not important, only visible in the direct comparison.
Sharpness is as good as the Nikkor. You have to consider, that the Nikkor is introduced to the market six to seven years later than the Pentax. The 4/300mm green star includes 3!!! lenses of ED - the Nikkor AF4/300mm IF ED includes only 2 of them. You can see the great efford of Asahi Pentax engeneers, to make the best and that in the beginning of the 80's! Chapeau!
Because as a family father I can`t keep both lenses, the Nikkor and the Pentax, I didnīt think for a long while. My expectations in relation of the Pentax where highly topped. So I sold the Nikkor. My Pentax lens collection is almost perfect - I love it more now, than any time before. Look at the picture of an Airbus A380 in a hight of 6-8 kilometers. It is made handheld with f8.The image is pure.
 | | | | | Forum Member Registered: February, 2016 Location: Moab, Utah Posts: 90
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 31, 2017 | Recommended | Price: $780.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Size, Bokeh, Coloring, Contrast | | Cons: | pricey | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: Sony A7ii
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Positive:
A very unique lens. Perfect for use with the Rear Converter-A 1.4X-S for an extremely compact 420mm focal length. With my adapter to Sony this lens weighs 1000 grams or 34 ounces. With my teleconverter and adapter, it is just over 7" in my bag... and.... Incredible. Results with this combination blow away the SMC 400mm f5.6, especially with regard to aberrations and color fringing, not to mention being half the size. Aberrations not perfect, but I don't shoot into the sun often and I use the optional lens hood. This is THE compact long telephoto solution for premium image quality. M* for a reason. The images are phenomenal. Color density and microcontrast to the extreme. This lens has "pop" that none of the other 300's I tried have. I won't even mention how sharp it is but I often crop way in and the images are still clean. The only thing that compares is the autofocus Nikon 300 f4 ($2,000) and 1.4 TC-14E (over $500.) This costs half that and offers superior image rendering, but lacks autofocus. Possibly my favorite lens. Using this little lens with the rear converter and a high megapixel sensor blew my mind. It's nice. It's not quite the quality I got from Nikon 300 2.8 with tc-14, but it's darn close. And not even a quarter of the size/weight.
Negative:
There is a separate metal 77mm lens hood available for use when using a polarizer. When using it, the built in lens hood goes unused. I would prefer if the separate lens hood used the built in lens hood and was an extension rather than a replacement to the built-in lens hood. It's hard to think of anything negative about this lens other than that. When using the rear converter in backlit conditions, aperture shaped bokeh appears. When using without or not in flaring conditions, bokeh is GORGEOUS and unique - preferable to the A* 300mm f2.8 IF in my opinion because of its characteristic swirlish effect toward corners.
This is a masterpiece from Pentax. Here are image samples on Sony a7ii using Pentax Rear Converter A 1.4-S, wide open, handheld in low and extremely backlit lighting conditions with 100% details.
 
Bokeh:
When I die they will have to pry this lens from my cold dead hands.
More example images and talking about it in my video review.
| | | | | | | Pentaxian Registered: April, 2015 Location: USA Posts: 2,874
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 5, 2016 | Recommended | Price: $555.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp, Sharp, Pentax colors, light weight | | Cons: | built in hood too short | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 10
Value: 8
Camera Used: K1
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I spent the day testing this old manual lens on my new Pentax K1 camera body.
Works great on the K1. Super sharp images.
The best aperture setting is F/13 (aka the half stop between 11 and 16).
Just thought you'd like to know that this old MF lens works just great on the full frame K1. If you don't mind MF and using the "green button" you might want to consider this lens for your telephoto needs.
| | | | | Loyal Site Supporter Registered: September, 2009 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 7,594
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: November 8, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $350.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, small, wonderful in the hand | | Cons: | Needs careful use to focus and avoid fringing | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 9
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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I no longer own this lovely old lens but I hope to get another one some day. Once I learned how to use it properly it became one of my favorite lenses. It needs to be stopped down to avoid CA and manual focusing skill. All of this is fine since it just encourages the photographer to improve his or her skills. I have attached an example taken with the K3, focused with live view peaking - about 50 yards away. | | | | | Banned Registered: September, 2006 Location: Millstone,NJ Posts: 6,491
2 users found this helpful
| | | | | New Member Registered: October, 2008 Location: Paris Posts: 1 | | Review Date: November 11, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $500.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | very light, very sharp, few abberation, very well built | | Cons: | None | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Camera Used: K10D
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No other Pentax 300mm lens is so light (825g). I have other telephotos lenses (even 6x7 400mm f:4) but the handling of this lens is very pleasant . Even with a 2X converter with natural loss of light (or loss of speed) it is very easy to shot without monopode. You have equivalent of a 600mm f:8 for less than 1kg. As there are very few defaults on the 300mm , quality is still very good with a converter
It is very well built (*star serie) and sharpness even at f:4 is excellent with very few CA
Bokeh is very good at f:4. Anyway a 300mm f:2,8 cannot be so handy
rather hard to find but it worth it if you find it  | | | | | Inactive Account Registered: April, 2009 Location: Massachusetts, USA Posts: 48 | | Review Date: February 8, 2012 | Recommended | Price: $380.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | short, sharp | | Cons: | mine has a little slop | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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   nice short lens. good build ( mine has a little slop but, didn't seem to affect sharpness UPDATE ! looking closer at the slop it is not in the lens but at the connection mount of my K5 ) . overall a very good lens. This was taken with it , hand held with K5. VERY SHARP ! CLICK ON THUMBNAIL IMAGE TO ENLARGE....these are all winter shots, not much in the way of greenery or colors.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: April, 2010 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 813
5 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 17, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $540.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Compact, great image quality, easy to focus | | Cons: | some CA wide open, but gone by F5.6, large MFD, short lens hood | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 9
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 10
Value: 10
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For me, it is very compact, and image quality is outstanding, much much better than any consumer zoom tele lens.
Best for stationary objects, because its focus is slow-but-sure, great for an older person like me with slow eyes!
Compression of DOF, with outstanding bokeh really makes for great images.
Sharpness is superb, good enough to use with a 1.5x TC.
Contrast and colour rendition is typical for the Pentax "M" series of lenses, and build quality is very good (all metal body).
In very bright conditions, when pointing near the sun, it could do with a longer lens hood (you can buy a rubber one on ebay for under $5).
CA or PF is visible at wide apertures in high contrast scenes, but is virtually gone above F5.6, and easily fixed in imaging software.
A very good lens to use now, it shouldn't lose its value with time.
Highly recommended. I give it a 10 for sharpness!
Cheers from Jack.
Here's some sample shots:
Pentax K-r 1/640 ISO 100 F5.6
Pentax K-r ISO 200 F8.0 1/500s
Pentax K-r ISO 200 F4.0 1/640s - 100% crop
Pentax K-r ISO 200 F5.6 1/500s
K-r ISO 200 F8 1/200
La lune by Jackassp, on Flickr
Jack
| | | | | Veteran Member Registered: June, 2010 Posts: 753
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: December 13, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $540.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | sharpness, compact body | | Cons: | purple fringing | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 10
Handling: 9
Value: 10
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This is my first pentax star lens, purchased only two months ago, so please take my observation with reservation. Great thing about lens is that it is quite compact, great to carry around and even to shoot handheld - but for this you really need a lot of bright light. Centre sharpness seems to be very good already wide open, stopping down boosts the performance a bit. It isn't stellar, but telephotos of this lenght don't tend to be supersharp anyway. Metering with k20d seems to work fine without any drastic compensation - i usually used multiple exposure with plus/minus 0.7 EV compensation. My opinion is that lens is better working on shorter distances with rendering fine details. The best photos i got from it were focused on close distance with shortening the background perspective dramatically. Also for f4 lens it has quite shallow depth of field wide open and bokeh seems to be ok.
Main weakness of the lens seems to be quite heavy purple fringing. Another thing is that it lacks tipod mounting collar, which would be really helpful for better stability. Focusing throw is quite long so taking photos of moving objects is really a challenge.
For taking landscapes photos it requires a vast distances, but photos are quite striking. Overall i think it is very good performer for such an old lens - especially considering the price.
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| | | | | Inactive Account Registered: November, 2006 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 441 | | Review Date: February 10, 2007 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Very sharp, very compact size and well-built | | Cons: | Slow focus, no tripod collar, and hood too short | |
This was the first Pentax "*" lens. It is very compact for this focal length and very easy to handhold. It has some weight to it and all of the weight is in the front. On a tripod (which gives the best results in this focal length) the camera and lens combination is front-heavy. The focus ring is smooth but requires about 270 degrees from infinity to close focus (about 4 meters or 13 feet). There is a built-in lens hood but it is quite short and only extends about an inch past the front element. The lens has all metal construction and is beautifully made. The focus ring turns past infinity to allow for focus variations due to temperature differences.
In use, this lens gives great images. Wide open it is quite usable and the f4 aperture give decent blurring of the background. It is incredibly sharp stopped down to f5.6 or greater. The image quality is much better than any consumer-level zoom in this focal length and the sharpness and great contrast is readily visible in any comparison.
The shortcomings include the slow focusing, lack of a tripod collar, and the short built-in lens hood. Of course, the functionality on new camera bodies is limited by the lack of the "A" electrical contacts. The newer F* and FA* 300mm f4.5 lenses correct some of these issues.
The purchase price listed was for a used lens in mint condition about 15 years ago, and may not reflect the current market price.
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