Customer Reviews

Pentax DA 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I got this in the hopes of replacing both a Pentax 50-200 and a Sigma 70-300. Luckily, the image quality seems to be an improvement over both, though they were acceptable on their own. This lens is just a bit smaller than the Sigma, though not close to the small size of the 50-200.

The Pentax 55-300 does not have a quasi "macro" mode as do some other xx-300's including the Sigma, and the closest focusing distance is 4.67ft (1.4m) which is not particularly close, either.

As seems standard with Pentax, the lens hood has a hatch to allow turning a polarizer filter, and the "Quick Focus" ring allows manual focus to fine-tune the auto-focus when the shutter is still half-pressed.

Not particularly a fast focuser, it can hunt in low-contrast situations and when going from very close to very far, or occasionally lock up. The variable f4-5.8 speed is not great for low light but is is OK in most daylight circumstances and helps to keep the cost and size down.

Comes with front and rear caps, a black nylon pouch with no strap or loop, and a manual.

This is a terrific lens for the K20D or any other Pentax. OK, it's not as fast as the DA*50-135, or the Sigma 70-200...But this one is half the weight of either and a lot smaller than most compact 70-300s...makes the Tamron 70-300 look like a tank. And f4 isn't that slow! Stays at f4 till almost 135mm, and then only gets past f4.5 around 215! If you are doing your quick DSLR calculations, you see that this means and f4 85mm, an f4 135mm an f4 180mm...and a 300mm f4.5! Most times this lens gets you within one stop of the heavy expensive glass--and this one goes with you instead of staying at home or in the bag.
Add to this that it is sharp and contrasty, and shows just about zero CA. The evil purple fringe is banished, too. Check out Pop Photo's review!
It's hard to get this lens off the camera, because getting down to 55mm makes it work in tighter quarters than the 70-300 types.
Another great feature is the ease of using manual focus while in auto focus mode. No fuss, just focus! This offsets some hunting at the f5.8 racked-out point; just get it into rough focus and then the auto focus works like a charm (bit loud, though).
Oh, and even with the hood on, it won't block the pop-up flash even at 300! I TOLD you it is compact!

When I replaced my K100d with the K20d I soon realized I needed better glass than my Tamron 18-250. The Tammy is a great do-it-all lens but just isn't as sharp as I would like. And the longer the focal length, the softer it gets. Stopping down helps but that makes an already slow lens even slower.

I decided early on that I had to have the Pentax 16-45mm f/4 and the Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8. Great lenses and what I need most of the time but sometimes a guy (or gal or smizmar) needs more reach. After reading lots of reviews, I decided I would be happy with the Pentax 55-300mm f/4-5.8.

Turns out it's even better than I thought it would be. Comparing shots of a test chart, I can see that it's not quite as sharp as, say, my 50mm f/1.4 but it's closer than I thought it would be. Pictures of the real world look plenty sharp with good color and contrast. Even wide open at 300mm. I might stop down when shooting the moon on a tripod but most of the time I leave it wide open.

Speaking of wide open, f4-5.8 doesn't sound very fast but I've found that it stays at f/4 until somewhere past 107mm and f/4.5 until past 190mm. Compared to my 18-250 it's almost always a full stop faster.

Some people complain about autofocus problems. I've had no problems with it. In EXTREMELY low light conditions I've seen it take as long as 1.5 seconds to lock on. If this is a problem, stop bitching and find a really expensive lens to suit your needs.

Which brings me to my conclusion. If this lens cost me $700 I would be way more critical. At $305.93 and free shipping from Amazon, I consider this lens to be a steal. But that's just my arrogant opinion.

I share the prejudice expressed by several people who write reviews on this site, namely that the best fixed focal length (a.k.a. "prime") lenses will always be better than the best zooms. Although I haven't abandoned that prejudice, this lens, and the Pentax 16-45mm lens, have certainly made me reconsider it. The question that matters, though, is whether the convenience of the zoom outweighs the marginal superiority of prime lenses.

Putting that question aside, this lens is absolutely phenomenal for the price, and is a first-rate lens regardless of price. I think Pentax users have to read a lot of users' reviews to figure out which lenses are the outstanding performers. On that basis, I bought the 16-45 and this 55-300mm. To make them affordable and reasonably lightweight, the manufacturer has made them relatively slow. Speed is where the prime lens wins. Thus, my complete stable comprises these two zooms, a 50mm f/1.4 (superb!) and my old 85mm f/1.8 -- all Pentax.

In conclusion: This lens is a winner. It appears to be better built than the 16-45, very solid with excellent movement of the zooming ring. At first, I thought 300mm was crazy. I never used a lens anywhere near 450mm in the days of 35mm, and I don't carry a tripod as a rule. But now that I have the lens, I find that in conjunction with the K20D's excellent anti-shake control, 300mm hand-held at 1/90th and faster is quite useful. Buy it!

I was worried about this lens because of the confusing reviews on several "pro" websites. I shoot weddings and needed a fairly fast lens for candid distance shots and headshots. I am extremely pleased with the lens upon shooting my first wedding with it in an evening setting.One picture from 60 ft of a guest reclining in the shade was very impressive. It was so sharp that the hairs on the back of his hand were clearly visable in Photoshop when zooming at 200X. I can't afford an F2.8 lens yet but this f4 lens with the internal Image Stabilization of the K10D definitely will do for now. It is lightweight and has no problems focusing sharply. The minimum 55mm range was perfect for shooting across tables in reception hall shots.

I got this lens to replace the Tamron 70-300mm. I would skip the Tamron and just get this one. Just the quick switch focus is worth the money. If your in low light and the auto focus is hunting you can just grab the manual focus and go. The camera is choosing the wrong point for the focus, just grab the manual. No switching to auto focus required. It's also weather sealed and the image quality is great. It also has the focal length range to make this a decent walking around lens. I took some great fireworks images this independence day with this lens. I set the aperture to f11 and then took three to ten second exposures, with tripod of course. Worked great.

If you were ever frustrated by the need to reach out further with your photo imaging equipment but can't afford the mega-bucks required to own one of the big high level prime telephoto lens, this little guy may be your solution. It's 55-300mm reach is not only very respectable and useful, but the quality of the image that you get over the range of it's zoom at all stops is also surprisingly high!. I own the Tamron 70-300 Macro as well, but was never really satsified with the lack of sharpness and contrast - even though I did like its separate macro mode. But the Pentax 55-300 is way ahead in terms of sharpness and contrast and its focusing speed is quite satsifactory. I now feel I have a pro-sumer level product that is well-worth the few extra bucks over the similar products offered by 3rd party lens producers for Pentax. Buy this one in confidence that you'll get everything you pay for plus some very pleasant surprises in the quality of your photos. With it's relatively close focusing distance and it's zoom, you'll be doing "faux" macro shots without ever haveing to switch to the Macro "mode". I know it's not pro-level, but I'm giving it a 5-star for it's undeniable value for the $$.

First of all, no, this is not a bad lens. I love Pentax lenses. However, you can get a better Pentax lens for a lot cheaper. I currently have the FA J 75-300mm (made originally for 35mm cameras, but works great with digital). I bought the DA lens thinking it would be an upgrade. I did a lens comparison test by shooting items using both lenses and the exact same settings and focal lengths on a tripod. I wasn't originally doing this to see which lens was better, as I was sure it would be the DA 55-300mm. I just wanted to see how much better the DA was. Well, it turns out, the FA J 75-300mm had sharper images, across the board. I was blown away! I got that lens a year or so ago on Amazon due to the low price of 125.00, which is less than half the cost of this one. Now, the DA is of sturdier construction, it has a little more focal length (55-74), and it seems it may focus a bit quicker. However, that (to me) does not trump the fact the FA J is a sharper picture and it costs so much less.

I received two bad copies of this lens ordering from Amazon. The first wouldn't focus even in bright light/high contrast; it would sit there seeking forever and decide on a very blurry shot. This wouldn't have been so bad, but the manual focus ring is pretty touchy, especially when at 300mm. Additionally, it appeared that the left half of the image was out of focus and the right half was in focus when taking faraway shots.

I returned the lens to Amazon for another copy - Amazon gets five stars for its awesome exchange policy! - and this new copy didn't have the autofocus problems, but all my pictures were blurry regardless of the aperture. To make sure I wasn't going insane or just being a poor photographer, I tested out a copy at a local photo store and found the images to be sharp and crisp like all the other reviewers here. So, buyer beware, it looks like there's a bad batch out there somewhere.

I take a lot of wildlife photos and need the reach. I bought this lens to replace a Pentax 55 - 200 mm I was using on my Pentax K10D. The extra reach is great and the lens is noticably sharper. The auto focusing is spot on and fast. The lens is heavier than the one I replaced, but it gives the camera/lens combo a quality feel. Great value from Amazon. I see these much higher elsewhere.