Pentax 55-300 photos

Someone was asking about he 55-300 lens. I thought it was better than the Tamron lens I had but the test images didn't really do the lens justice.
I posted a few images (large) on my website if you want to take a gander.
These are all hand held, most at 300mm. (since my hands are not very steady I am very pleased with the results!!!)
I won't say they are macro lens quality, but I do think the resolution is pretty darned good. -- subjectively speaking.
I also like the bokeh, the backgrounds are very smooth and specular highlights do not seem to be overly garish.

Also, any comments or critiques are more than welcome!
I generally do not shoot bugs, so they are probably lacking in aesthetic quality. But let me know what you think.

pentax_55-300/080907_IGP5610.jpg

pentax_55-300/080907_IGP5621.jpg

pentax_55-300/080907_IGP5632.jpg

pentax_55-300/080907_IGP5634.jpg

Not bad at all, especially the last two.

Very useful info, many thanks for posting the links.

I just purchased this lens off McBrian and look forward to putting it through its paces when it arrives.

I wasn't aware of its close up abilites so thats an added bonus. Thanks
Very nice shots I really like the first one

Minimum focusing is about a meter, I believe, so the focusing isn't real close. Well, a lot further than the 1/3 meter of my old 28-300mm "macro" lens. (macro? har, har )

But this lens at 300mm gets you a lot closer than my old 28-300 lens would at 300mm (don't know why that is... 300mm is 300mm right?), yet it is a lot sharper at 300mm...

Thanks for the comments.

1.4m for the 55-300.

The focusing may not be that close, but a 300mm lens (450mm-equivalent) at 1.4m is an enormous degree of magnification. Older lenses might have focused no closer than 15 or even 30 feet....

The magnification is ideal for images of small plants and animals.