Pentax DA 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 ED AL IF Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras

by Pentax

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3.4 x 3 x 3 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000WJOF1O
• Item model number: 258693
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 1, 2007

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Designed for exclusive use with Pentax and Samsung digital SLR cameras, the DA 18-250mm interchangeable zoom lens gives you just about all the coverage you'll ever need. With an approximate 14x room ratio, this versatile lens handles a great variety of applications, from wide-angle landscapes to close-up sporting events and wildlife photography. Features include ED element and two aspherical elements that compensate for chromatic and spherical aberration; a focal length equivalent to 27.5mm to 383mm in the 35mm format; a close focus range of 18 inches throughout the entire zoom range; and an internal focus mechanism that prevents the front lens element and lens barrels from moving during focusing.

• Angle of view: 76 to 6.5 degrees
• Diaphragm: Fully automatic
• Minimum aperture: f/22-45
• Number of aperture blades: 7
• Metering system: TTL open aperture metering
• Minimum focus distance: 1.48 feet
• Filter diameter: 62mm
• Maximum magnification: 0.28x
• Lens mount: Pentax KAF2
• Hood: PH-RBB 62mm
• Dimensions: 3 inches in diameter and 3.4 inches long
• Weight: 16 ounces (without hood)

Product Description

D1) Pentax 18-250 F/3.5-6.3 ED AL-IF

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

93 of 94 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Sweet Piece of Glass!, January 9, 2008

By 

R. Jones "Coffee Hound" (Houston USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pentax DA 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 ED AL IF Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

I received the 18-250 prior to Christmas and used it throughout the Holidays - taking about 500 snapshots, both with and without flash. What a workhorse this is! All the way from ultra-wide to fully extended, it was a consistently excellent performer. My K10d focused quickly and sharply starting with photo number one. Although I'm no professional, I do have a stable of pretty nice glass including the DA 21mm Limited pancake, the DA 16-45, & the FA 50mm 1.4 prime. (Also owned the DA 18-55mm and the DA 55-200mm zoom which I've already sold). The clarity and sharpness of the 18-250 rivals the 16-45 (beats the 55-200 hands down) and -to my eyes- comes close (but not quite) to the excellent primes, though obviously not as fast. Alas, my 16-45 is now completely redundant and I put it on Ebay today. When you consider the excellent performance of this lens all along the length of its tele range, I believe that it truly could become a do-it-all replacement for most of your medium range zooms while doing a very respecable job at the 18mm wide angle. This lens surpassed all of my expectations and I give Kudos to Pentax for offering this in their digital lineup. Wish it had been there earlier and I could have avoided the expensive migration. I've heard comments that it is a bit pricey - I don't think so. It represents great value in a high quality optic that can cover a wide range of photographic opportunities. My prints and slide shows resulting from the 18-250 mounted to my K10d are vivid, sharp, and colorful and have made my photography hobby more joyful and enjoyable than ever. People are impressed with how consistently beautiful & clear my photos are. And isn't that really why we shutterbugs enjoy making memories with photos? If you can get one, try it. . I think you'll love it. It really deepens my appreciation for the reasons I chucked the point-and-shoot digitals for the flexibility and superiority of the DSLR. Cheers.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice all-around lens, December 16, 2007

By 

Robert Pawlak "rjpawlak" (Montross, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pentax DA 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 ED AL IF Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

This is a good all-around lens: it's relatively fast (all depending on perspective, of course), exhibits good bokeh, and is of reasonable cost. It works well with the K10d. The only thing I object to performance-wise, is the amount of vignetting that is visible on some shots. It's more noticable if you are using a polarizing filter.

This lens is nearly identical to the Tamron 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 AF Di-II LD Aspherical (IF) Macro Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Pictures with this Lens!, March 12, 2008

By 

kc-dreamer "love my Pentax K10D" (Kansas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pentax DA 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 ED AL IF Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras (Electronics)

They've put the "fun" back into photography, for me! In the first week with my Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction (Body Only) and this lens I've taken some of the most beautiful photos I've ever taken in my life! The colors are brilliant, and the detail is great. I love that the wide angle produces brilliant detail with both close and far objects in focus. I take mostly landscape and wild life shots, so wide angle and zoom are important to me. I've had a difficult time finding a camera that could take satisfying pictures of the Kansas Flint Hills. (This is a "VAST" expanse of hilly grassland where you can see a very long distance and in the past, with my Minolta 35mm film camera, it had been very difficult to do it justice with only 2 dimensions.) But, this lens and the K10D can do it time and tima again, with less effort and beautiful results. It also does great out of focus background shots which make the in-focus object "pop" off the printed page. I'm not a professional photographer. I just do it as a hobby. But, in the past couple of weeks I've taken some excellent photos that would not be out of place beside those from a pro, using the K10D and this lens. Yeah, it does have a loose barrel, so you have to either lock it, hold it, or use it at right angles, to keep it from sliding. But, the sharpness and brilliant colors you get are absolutely amazing! So, that's only a small annoyance that you can quickly get used to.