Senior Member Registered: May, 2013 Posts: 100 | Review Date: March 7, 2024 | Recommended | Price: $170.00
| Rating: 7 |
Pros: | Good AF screw tolerance, hood can be reversed. | Cons: | Zoom creep PLUS it gets backfocus when being turned down. | Sharpness: 6
Aberrations: 6
Bokeh: 7
Handling: 8
Value: 8
Camera Used: K-1
Autofocus: 8
New Or Used: Used
| | This is not a bad lens but AF tuning is a must. Mine is at -9 (strong front focus). Plus it does not maintain focus well, you'd better refocus each time you shake it or turn it down.
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Junior Member Registered: November, 2010 Location: Seattle, Posts: 34 | |
Veteran Member Registered: December, 2007 Location: New Zealand Posts: 440 2 users found this helpful | Review Date: November 24, 2010 | Recommended | Price: None indicated
| Rating: 8 |
Pros: | Size, tripod collar, image quality relative to price, fairly compact (reversed hood) | Cons: | softish wide at 400mm, stiff zoom ring | New Or Used: New
| | I've only just received this lens from the marketplace used here, it's the older non DG gold ring version with smooth plastic not crinkle finish. Essentially identical minus the zoom lock & DG rear coating.
First impressions were mixed, I got some good shots stopped down but wide open even at lower zoom levels I had what appeared to be some soft images. Further investigation revealed back focusing big-time Thankfully an easy fix with the K20D and a full +10 on the adjustment menu it sorted.
Before
After
I highly recommend checking this lens for focus issues, especially if you own a camera with adjustment (K10, K20 -> K5/K7 etc possibly others) It wouldn't surprise me if people have been disappointed in this lens when focus issues are the culprit
Even at 400mm the lens is sharp if stopped down, even F6.3 makes a good increase in resolution (my non scientific tests on text @400mm made a clear different from F5.6 -> 6.3 but not a large jump from 6.3 -> F8). It's not super sharp 400mm wide open, but for example is sharper than the 70-300 @ 300mm wide open (easily). Could be used in a pinch.
Zoom ring is stiff, and not super precise but workable enough if you aren't fussy (and at this price it was a good value lens!) Auto-focus is standard noise for screwdrive, fairly snappy speed and rear element based so no annoying front element rotating if you use filters . Interestingly zoom creep hasn't been an issue for me, but as I said i've only just received it so I might notice later.
I intend on getting a monopod for this, and using at motorsports + surfing. Also my K20D meters underexposed by around a half stop with the lens too, but +0.3/0.5 EV shift fixes that. Example F8 @ 400mm 1/640th F5.6 @ 135mm 1/100th Example F11 @ 360mm 1/1000th
Sound for the money, I would recommend if you can live with the few drawbacks it provides. Photozone has a good review too, worth checking
*Update*
I've been frustrated in using this lens for quite a while, I added a UV filter for front element protection a while ago and hadn't noticed any problems (at low zoom levels 135mm etc) but it dawned on me yesterday that the filter was causing a great deal of problems.
Whether this is internal reflection or what i'm not sure, but the design of the lens doesn't appear to like this filter (Marumi UV MC)
F6.3 1/2000th no filter
F6.3 1/2000th with filter
I recommend using without filter. | |
New Member Registered: March, 2010 Location: northeast TN Posts: 14 3 users found this helpful | Review Date: April 20, 2010 | Recommended | Price: $370.00
| Rating: 8 |
Pros: | price, weight, good optical & build quality | Cons: | zoom creep | New Or Used: New
| | I have the older non DG model but i like this lens alot. If not for the zoom creep i would have rated it 9 or 9.5 if that was possible. I only use this lens on my tripod for wildlife shots and i find the image quality very good, is the lens perfect no, but for the price i dont be leave there is any thing out there better imho
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