Pentax 21870 DA 50-200mm F/4-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens

by Pentax

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 10.9 x 8.8 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B002BSGUZI
• Item model number: 21870
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 22, 2009

Product Description

Pentax 21870 DA 50-200mm F/4-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very nice lens!, December 28, 2009

By 

M. Emerson (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pentax 21870 DA 50-200mm F/4-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens (Electronics)

I bought this lens earlier this month with the K7 kit through Amazon. I have used the lens several times already at my sons football games. The lens coupled with the K7 takes very sharp jpegs with good color. It focuses very fast too. I've got some excellent action shots with this lens. The lens is also very compact and light considering its zoom capability.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great versatility - Pentax DA50-200mm F/4-5.6 ED WR Lens/Pentax K7, July 3, 2010

By 

Rusty Miller "photo bug" (Nederland, TX USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pentax 21870 DA 50-200mm F/4-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens (Electronics)

Folks,

After much research and review reads, purchased the Pentax DA50-200mm F/4-5.6 ED WR Lens for use with Pentax K7 DSLR.

Both items were bought from Amazon, and the service, shipping and quality were excellent, as has always been my experience.

Now to the lens, lens is perfect for use along the Gulf coast in the high humidity, heat, rain environments. The lens is weather resistant, well constructed and sealed against the elements. Displays very high build quality overall and has excellent optics.

The photos uploaded to Amazon demonstrate this lens performance at the extremes - macro and telephoto. The photos were taken with the new K7 Pentax DSLR. Very fast focus and great looking pictures. See for yourself by checking the uploaded sample photos.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not very sharp but weather resistant, June 10, 2011

By 

Joseph L. Kashi (Soldotna, Alaska) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pentax 21870 DA 50-200mm F/4-5.6 AL Weather Resistant Lens (Electronics)

I would have rated this lens at a 3 star level for optical quality. However, the decent build combined with relatively low price and weather resistance probably deserve a four star rating overall.

I've tested a lot of lenses and this Pentax 50-200mm WR zoom appears to be inherently not very sharp, particularly in the 50mm to 90mm range. I tested two copies, on both a Pentax K-5 and also a K20d. The lack of sharpness that I observed mirrors the professional reviews of the 50-200 Pentax at respected sites like DXO Optics.

If you stop down two to three stops from maximum aperture in the 100mm range, then the center is often reasonably sharp at f 11 and the edges are not that bad. However, wide open, or near 50mm or 200mm, this lens is among the less sharp modern lenses that I've used.

I sent my first copy of this lens back because there was left side decentering that resulted in noticeable lack of sharpness on the left 1/3 of the frame at all focal lengths and apertures. The second copy was marginally better and more uniform across the entire frame, so I kept that copy.

Pentax's 18-55mm WR wide to normal zoom seems sharper. In conjunction with a K20d that became "surplus" after I bought my K-5, these two Pentax WR lenses make a decent and reasonably priced all-weather kit.


Amazon was excellent about making a quick and pain-free replacement. I absolutely appreciate their excellent customer service.