| Author: | | Veteran Member Registered: January, 2011 Posts: 327
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 17, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $399.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Size, weight, filter size, usefulness | | Cons: | Sample variation, AF issues, lens wobble: read revision! | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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Well, we tried 2 of these and the first one was extremely soft on the left side of the frame, and that softness changed to other parts of the frame depending if you held the camera horz or vert. Over about 80mm the lens extension allowed the lens to wobble and changed the focus internally(best guess on our part). The second sample also wobbled, but did not seen to have softness issues across the frame. BUT: it required +5 to be sharp above 135mm, and -5 to be sharp below 28mm, esp. at 18mm. It was impossible to come to a fixed point on the AF micro adjust that would work for all(tried on a K5IIs). We have around 16 AF lenses and this is the only one to do this. When dialed in for any particular focal length it is very sharp, better than the 18-250 Pentax on the long end, not as good on the short end. But watch sample variation and the AF. I actually expected more from Sigma after getting the 17-50 OS, 8-16 HSM, and the 50-500 OS that were so good. Gonna wait this one out.
D&K
Edit 2-26-2012: We decided to try a third copy of this lens because everyone else's copy was so much better than our first two copies were. Sure enough the third time WAS the charm: this one focuses perfect, the front of the lens does not wobble nearly as much when extended, and most importantly does not become less sharp over any of the frame from that wobble. Perhaps we got the first batch teething pain from the lenses production, but I like the lens a lot now and will use it a lot. We revised our review accordingly.
D&K
| | | | | | | Junior Member Registered: March, 2011 Location: Netherlands Posts: 26
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 21, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $598.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Small, light, sharp, fast HSM AF | | Cons: | Cushon distortion, a bit slow (3.5-6.3) | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 8
Value: 9
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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This lens is surprisingly sharp for a superzoom, specially when used between aperture 8-11. It's also very compact (smaller than my 18-50 2.8!) It's very nice as a "traveling" lens, and performs very well for that purpose.
I cannot agree with the previous review about bad focussing. The lens I own does a perfect job on focussing on my K-5, very fast, silent and correct. I do not have to adjust the focus point at any focal length. To be sure before I wrote this down, I did an extensive test this afternoon at all focal lenghts. Also the varying softness across the frame and the so called "wobbling" do not occur with my sample.
Depending on your subject and composition you could recognise some cushon distortion, but overall I am very satisfied with its performance and would easily recommend it to others.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: August, 2011 Location: South Florida Posts: 31
6 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: January 25, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $549.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Sharp,great autofocus, good construction | | Cons: | Soft at 250 mm | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 5
Handling: 9
Value: 9
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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I am a semi-pro who owns both Nikon and Pentax equipment. I prefer the Pentax (2 of them) outdoors because they are smaller and lighter. Anyway, I bought this lens for the Pentaxes after reading the reviews of the equivalent Pentax lens (18-270). The Sigma was slightly better rated and it was almost $300 cheaper. As any "super zoom" would go, it is a little soft at both ends, but if you want extreme sharpness all over you get a "prime" lens instead. Super zooms are intended as "walk about" or travel lenses where one wants to carry only one lens or not take the time to change lenses. That said, this lens was sharper than I expected, except at the extremes, and very well built. The outofocus is of the latest most advanced type (silent) and works great. I matched it against the Pentax 18-135 lens I already had and it was close in sharpness but the Pentax lens beat it in contrast and color. These were maximun resolution pictures at 100% enlargement, something you don't normally do. So yes, I am very pleased with the lens and now I can carry two Pentax cameras with different lenses without having to change them. Incidentally, I use a K-5 and a K-10, and occasionally do film in a XZ-L. I do mostly landscapes and fitness models, mosty all outdoors, so the "slowness" of super zooms does not affect me much as I live in South Florida. Hope this helps! This a GREAT forum for Pentax!!!!
| | | | | Senior Member Registered: April, 2012 Location: Sweden Posts: 211
2 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: April 27, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $600.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | AF, Reach, Sharpness | | Cons: | Wish it was faster | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Autofocus: 10
New Or Used: Used
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Cons: CA sometimes especially when against brightness, but then most lenses would give CA for that matter. Also I wish it was a faster lens like a 5.6 or even faster.
Pros: Extremely precise AF and I have focused through a myraid of branches with spot focus, it grabs the subject quickly everytime, and without hunting. Also its a very quiet lens when focusing, hence suitable for taking to quieter rooms. Than there is its reach 18-250!!! The IQ is very sharp handheld though the colours and contrast sometimes need a little PP. Overall, I am really pleased with purchasing this lens and recommend it highly.
| | | | | | | New Member Registered: March, 2011 Location: Newark, Delaware Posts: 8 | | Review Date: May 8, 2013 | Not Recommended | Price: $399.00
| Rating: 7 |
| Pros: | Range, size, auto focus motor | | Cons: | Not sharp,ca, so-so bokeh | | Sharpness: 6
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 5
Handling: 9
Value: 8
Autofocus: 8
New Or Used: New
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I have used this lens on both my K-5 and K-30
I really wanted to love this lens. I was hoping I could use it as travel substitute for my Pentax 18-135. I've shot over 1000 frames with this lens and I am very disappointed with the sharpness. My Pentax 18-135 is much sharper and has better overall image quality. This is my second copy of this lens. The first copy was so fuzzy I returned it for a replacement. I'm going to keep it for now and give it a few more chances.
| | | | | Inactive Account Registered: June, 2013 Posts: 1
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: June 9, 2013 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | It's ideal as a travellens. Very fast and accurate AF. It needs some postprocessing in the long end. Add some contrast and sharpening and it will shine. Better to shoot RAW than using jpeg diirectly from the camera. For daily use - perfect! And not to m | | Cons: | Some vignetting and CA, but postprocessing handle that. | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 10
Value: 9
Autofocus: 10
New Or Used: New
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 I have used this lens with my K5 and have shot about 1000 pictures with the lens up to now. I have found the lens to be ideal as a travellens. Lightweight, sharp and very accurate AF. It's possible of course that I have a very good copy, but anyway, I recommend it highly as a travellens. For more demanding use, I prefere of course my limited lenses.
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: February, 2013 Location: Lometa, TX Posts: 403 | | Review Date: August 30, 2013 | Recommended | Price: $399.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Sharp, fast focus great build zoom lock | | Cons: | minor barrel distortion no prob in PP | | Sharpness: 10
Aberrations: 10
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 10
Value: 10
Autofocus: 10
New Or Used: New
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I have many Sigma lenses in my bags, have only been disappointed with one I bought used which was a 28-300 I could not get good images with, bad copy or one in need of serious calibration. This lens is right up there with my 150-500 OS HSM lens, I love it. It has replaced my shorter zooms 18-55 WR, 55-200 DA and I could not be happier. Great reach and superb AF. I do notice slight barrel distortion but is easily removed with Elements 11. If you are looking for a Nice lens well worth the money I highly recommend this super zoom, for a walk around, you won't have to worry about getting dust on your sensor from lens changes.
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: March, 2013 Location: Aberdeenshire Posts: 33 | | Review Date: January 9, 2014 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Accurate, fast and silent AF. Good minimum focus dist | | Cons: | jerky manual focus | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Autofocus: 10
New Or Used: New
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Pro's
Great zoom range
Brilliant HSM
Really usable close focus distance
No zoom creep
Good center sharpness
Con's
Jerky manual focus
Softer ~200-250
AF/MF can be fiddly
No full time manual focus
Can over expose
I used this on a beach holiday and then of safari and the lens performed admirably. It did not suffer too much from the CA other people have mentioned. The AF was quick and near silent.
As I was able to get close to the animals on our safari I got some really sharp print worthy pictures. The shapness drops off towards the corners but if you don't print them too large then you wont notice.
I sold this lens when I got home and bought the 18-135 WR as (at home in N.E Scotland) I figured the WR would be more useful to me. I also didn't see too much gain between the 150-250 range in the Sigma so I didn't think I was losing anything by getting the Pentax.
I highly recommend this lens and would buy it again to use on holiday.
 | | | | | Veteran Member Registered: June, 2008 Location: Flyover America Posts: 4,469 | | Review Date: April 5, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $350.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Versatile | | Cons: | Some zoom creep | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K5
Autofocus: 8
New Or Used: New
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I won't bore you with all the details - suffice to say it works and it works well.
Compact, light, good AF, silent, close focus, sharp enough, reasonable price etc.
Within the limitations of a super zoom it's a good glass at a good price - buy it.
I'd post a pic but I can't figure out how....
| | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2014 Posts: 1
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 6, 2014 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-5, K-3
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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I bought this lens for my wife to use while traveling with my K-5. My own travel kit is a K-3 with an 18-135 and a 55-300.
But the Siggy's sharpness and overall usefulness is really quite good, and I find myself grabbing it for all-day hikes and the like.
It's a tad heavy, but certainly much lighter than the 18-135 plus 55-300. If I know I'm not going to need the extra reach of the 55-300, I'll take it along.
| | | | | Junior Member Registered: January, 2014 Posts: 48
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: July 29, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Tremendous range, quick AF, built like a tank | | Cons: | A little heavy. f2.8 would have been nice | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 8
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 9
Value: 10
Camera Used: K-5IIs
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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This was the first new lens I bought for my K-5IIs. I used it as my "one lens" recently during a European trip. I was very happy to have this lens and, after four months of ownership, I'm even more pleased with it. If I could own only one lens, this would be it. In 35mm terms, a 27-375mm zoom is mind-boggling.
The lens is extremely rugged. The old Rokkor lenses from my 1970's Minolta SRT were nowhere near as durable. I think it may be due to the thermoplastic Sigma is using; it seems to absorb shock better.
Unlike others, I'm not experiencing much lens creep at all even without using the zoom lock.
If I could order a re-design of this lens, I'd ask for a shift in the range; something like 16-200 (24-300mm in 35mm terms) would make the lens even more useful for me. Maybe Sigma could come up with a front-of-lens add-on that would provide a .85x shift without hurting IQ too much. (And I'd put it right next to my unicorn.)
Anyway, I don't want to give the impression that I feel there's any real downside to this lens. Sigma has done a heck of a job and I think I got every penny's worth of value from it.
| | | | | New Member Registered: June, 2012 Posts: 12
1 user found this helpful
| | Review Date: September 20, 2014 | Not Recommended | Price: $490.00
| Rating: 4 |
| Pros: | fast, quiet autofocus. | | Cons: | IQ, distortion, stiff zoom, exposure | | Sharpness: 4
Aberrations: 7
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 4
Value: 4
Camera Used: Pentax K-m
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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I wanted to like this lens, I really did. It was expected to be a replacement for my Pentax DA 18-55 II, and DA 55-300.
I expected some trade off in quality, being a 'super-zoom', but found the results just too disappointing, and after three days sent it back for a refund. (It pays to buy from an official supplier!)
Problem1- IQ, sharpness - not so much the hard edges of objects, these could be quite well defined, it's more to do with micro contrast I think. Surfaces and textures just lacked detail, somehow didn't look 'real'. At the wide end, not quite as good as my 18-55 II (especially with the distortion factor mentioned below), and at the long end not a patch on my 55-300, which never fails to make me smile.
Problem 2 - pincushion distortion, which sets in at about 30mm, is really severe up to 50mm, then gradually improves again towards 250mm. It renders interiors and architectural shots useless, pretty much anything with rectangles, or parallel lines. I know, I can correct it in PP, but do I really want to have to go through every shot?
Problem 3 - stiff zoom ring - starts easy, stiffens up around 50mm then eases off again towards the long end. This makes it virtually impossible to go quickly from a wide shot to a long shot. What else is a super-zoom supposed to be for?
Finally, exposure - I found it overexposed more and more towards the long end - up to 1.5 stops. Again, how can I go quickly from one end to the other if I have to stop to make exposure compensation adjustments on the way?
On the plus side, the autofocus is fast and quiet, and there was no dreaded zoom creep!
I don't think I got a bad copy of the lens, I'm sure it was performing to its specification, and if all you want is a lens for holiday snaps you'll probably be quite happy. But if, like me, you want shots with a bit of 'wow' factor, you may be disappointed.
| | | | | New Member Registered: November, 2013 Posts: 2 | | Review Date: October 13, 2014 | Recommended | Price: $400.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Fast,quiet autofocus,good range,decent sharpness. | | Cons: | Distortion,a bit slow. | | Sharpness: 9
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 9
Value: 9
Camera Used: K-30
Autofocus: 9
New Or Used: New
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Ideal for travel with one lens,but a bit heavy .
| | | | | Site Supporter Registered: February, 2012 Location: Southeastern Connecticut Posts: 816
3 users found this helpful
| | Review Date: February 1, 2015 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 9 |
| Pros: | Very convenient, great range, good quality, affordable | | Cons: | For what it is, none | |
I should preface this by saying I haven't really spent much time analyzing the performance of this lens. I did, though, research the forum to compare it to the Pentax and Tamron "all in ones."
This is the lens I grab when I can only bring one or when I'd rather not traipse around with more expensive glass. For instance, I grab it for hikes in the woods with the family or maybe for a day at the beach.
I've been very pleased by its image quality and color rendition. While heavier than my old Pentax 50-200, it also has a good deal more range which means I've been able to sneak some great shots of unsuspecting brothers, nieces and nephews and some of our local shorebirds.
This lens is very good for what it is and for the purpose it serves. I would certainly recommend it if you need a good, convenient lens for travel or similar reasons.
| | | | | Forum Member Registered: June, 2014 Location: Somerset, UK Posts: 54 | | Review Date: March 14, 2015 | Recommended | Price: $413.00
| Rating: 8 |
| Pros: | Versatility | | Cons: | | | Sharpness: 8
Aberrations: 5
Bokeh: 8
Handling: 8
Value: 9
Camera Used: K-3
Autofocus: 8
New Or Used: New
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I bought this as my first lens for the K-3. Recently I've wondered whether a different lens might be better?
The DXO results shown at dpreview show the following, which I'll put on a 'boilerplate' to get the best out of this lens (instead of staying at f/8 all the time)
Zoom Aperture MTF centre Sharp over
18 f/3.5 1800 2/3
28 f/5.6 1700 1/2
28 f/8 1500 2/3
35 f/5.6 1650 1/3
35 f/8 1500 2/3
50 f/5.6 1500 1/3
50 f/8 1500 2/3
80 f/8 1500 1/3
135 f/6.3 1400 1/3
250 f/8 1400 1/6
(f/11 is shown to be noticably worse)
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;)
;)
