17-70 v 16-45

Hi all,

Does anyone on here have any experience of both the pentax 16-45 and the Sigma 17-70 please? I am trying to find a straight comparison between the two.

Grateful for any feedback.

Regards, Larry.

Have you looked at these?

http://www.photozone.de/pentax/134-pentax-smc-da-16-45mm-f4-ed-al-review--test-r...

http://www.photozone.de/pentax/147-sigma-af-17-70mm-f28-45-dc-pentax-k-review--t...

I could compare the Pentax 16-45 with the Pentax 17-70 as I have both but not tried the Sigma one.

John

Giving the 17-70 an optical quality if 3 is balderdash IMO. I am continually amazed by the quality of mine and it easily equals the quality of any of my pentax lenses,m any of which were much more expensive.

Highly recommended.

I have the 16-45 and the Sigma 17-70 (HSM,OS,macro) I used the Sigma on my K-7 as my general take anywhere gear- quite a useful range advantage over the 16-45 which I use with my K-5. I have now sold my K-7 and to be honest always reach for the Pentax over the Sigma- although I mostly use my K-5 for studio work. My dogsbody/general use replacement for the K-7 is now a D7000 which came with a couple of very nice Tokina lenses at a bargain price. The Sigma is a good lens, the build quality is excellent but the 16-45 has always delivered great sharp results so my Sigma sits on the shelf in it's box with my other backup gear. Sorry for the lack of technical content.
Cheers,
Gary

I don't have the Sigma Larry, but acquired a 16-45 a few months ago and it now lives permanently on my K-5. I have been very impressed with it - for landscapes and portraits it has never let me down and is very sharp at all apertures.

I would not part with it.

Regards
David

Original comment deleted - not applicable!

I was comparing the Pentax DA 17-70, not the Sigma one so forget that! I cannot comment on it as I haven't tried one!

The DA 16-45 is pretty good and has a good wide angle. Yes, it's a fine lens - its downside to me is that it is so much heavier and larger than the 18-55 kit lens.

John

totally agree with Smeggypants, my Sigi 17-70 lives on the K5 as standard, excellent IQ.

Cheers

Having owned the previous Sigma 17-70 (non-hsm) I certainly agree it's an excellent lens. I do find that the "Pentax effect" on the DA17-70 does produce nicer looking shots with a little better colour/contrast than the Sigma

Simon

Thank you all for taking the trouble to reply. All most helpful.

Like David I don't have the Sigma Larry, but I have the Samsung version of the 16-45 (only £179 new from Park Cameras) and it is superb!

I have the Pentax 17-70 and 16-45; both excellent lenses IMO and not a lot to choose between them in terms of image quality, the 17-70 has a creamier bokeh and is maybe fractionally sharper. I've not used the Sigma. As I've said elsewhere I think both are eclipsed in terms of image quality - though only marginally - by my other standard zoom, the FA24-90.

I had the older sigma 17-70. Only downsides were the lens creep and the weight, it is pretty bulky compared to the 16-45.