Pentax-DA 10-17mm F3.5-4.5 Fish-eye

Construction and Handling

Although the Pentax-DA 10-17mm Fish-Eye lens is not weather-proof as the WR or DA* series, its barrel is solidly built with high quality plastic. It's styling is like most of the DA series of zooms.

The following is a brief description of the most notable parts of the lens barrel:

1. Front lens cap. Front element and hood are fully enclosed (see below)

2. Focusing ring and focusing scale

3. Zoom ring and focal length scale

4. KA rear lens cap, rear element and K type lens mount is fully enclosed (see below)

The front element of this lens quite prominent, and petal shaped hood is permanently attached. Note that filters cannot be attached because of the lack of filter threads.

The lens mount is made entirely of metal. As can be seen in the image below, this lens works with screw-drive autofocus and has auto aperture control. This lens does not feature an aperture ring, the aperture is to be controlled from the camera.

While the DA 10-17mm Fish-Eye is internal focusing, it is not internal zooming. The barrel has a extension of about 2-3mm when zooming. The barrel is at its longest when the focal length is at 17mm, and at its shortest at 12mm.

The focusing ring is particularly small and although it features "quick-shift" (enabling the photographer to manually focus even with autofocus enabled), the width of the ring is too narrow to be friendly for manual focusing. With that said, we also know that with a lens of this focal length and aperture, precise manual focusing is not used frequently or even required due to the vast depth of field. The focus throw is about 90-100 degrees, and so is the zoom throw. Both the zoom and focus rings operate smoothly and with ease. Most photographers will be operating the zoom ring extensively. It's size, grip surface, and throw are very appropriate for its intended purpose. At 320g, this lens does not feel heavy or bulky; it does not feel significantly larger or heavier than a typical kit lens. 

The build quality is very good. While the plastic barrel does not look very durable, it is certainly more than enough for casual shooting. Special care needs to be taken because of the very large and prominent front element. Although it's coated with Pentax' proprietary SD coating (which will provide some level of protection), it is still very prone to being in contact with external elements. We recommend the user to use the front lens cap when not shooting or when in storage. 

Verdict

We have no real complaints about the handling, build quality, and construction of the DA 10-17mm Fish-eye. We are very satisfied with the tight tolerances of it's build, as well as the weight and size. In an ideal world, we would have wanted it to have some features such as internal zooming, all metal barrel, and weather resistance, but the DA 10-17mm Fish-eye in its present form is certainly more than adequate built for daily shooting.