Latest Review Posted | HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm F4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE I'm surprised no-one has reviewed this lens yet, but I guess the question most people will be asking is - "Is this worth upgrading from the original 55-300mm"? From my perspective, coming from the latest version of the old design, it's an unequivocal yes, it's a no-brainer for the following reasons:
1. It's significantly shorter ( Though a bit wider ).
2. It's 10% lighter.
3. Focusing is virtually silent.
4. Focusing is significantly quicker.
5. It has closer focusing, and with an achromatic/close-up lens such as the Canon 500D it makes a decent macro lens.
6. It handles CA better.
7. It's a bit sharper.
8. 9 aperture blades giving better bokeh characteristics.
9. Build quality is essentially the same.
10. It's better for video.
All in all it's a worthwhile upgrade with the advantages listed above. About the only thing I can criticise it for is the unlocking mechanism which is required to shoot with the lens. In essence you push a button to expand the lens to 55mm and carry on shooting. If you switch the camera on without doing it then you will get a message telling you to do it on the LCD. Personally this isn't an issue to me, it makes the lens shorter, but to some it might. The zoom is also quite stiff but I expect that to loosen off over time and I prefer that to it being overly loose. Colour and contrast appear to be the same as it's predecessor, which is to say pretty good, though it fades at the long end as expected. The bokeh is the other thing worth notin... |