Came back to Pentax

Hello everyone! I am back! Not only back to this forum but also back to Pentax. I purchased a K10d after having gone to Nikon. The D80 is a nice camera, however I had major lens lust and couldnt swing the better lenses. The K10d made sense because of the built-in IS and the fact that I can use legacy lenses w/o worrying that the camera will not meter a manual lens. Generally the lens prices are lower.

Now my question.....I know that I want one of those Pancake lenses. I love those little lenses even tho I have not yet tried one. Just that the size is so appealing. What is the best general purpose walk about lens. The Pentax 16-50 F2.8 is nice but pricey right now. I thought about the Pentax 16-45 F4 or the Sigma 24-40 F2.8. The F2.8 is attractive to me. I plan to get the Sigma 10-20 eventually (soon), therefore my wide angle should be covered. Other than this - I would like a 70-200/80-200 F2.8 range lens and a macro lens.

I use the 16-45mm almost all the time. The f4 aperture doesn't really become an issue as the ISO can be changed as necessary. I'll even do hand held night shots if the need arises. It's a brilliant lens.

Hello-I agree with your comments re the Pancake lens-after years of trying, I finally got one of the old 40 mm manual ones from eBay, and have to say that it was worth the wait-good results with B&W on my ME Super, and am looking forwards to trying it on my *istDL2, which I usually use on apeture priority & manual focussing with the kit lens. Will let you know how it goes.
Best, Gareth.

I agree with John. The Pentax 16-45 is an incredible lens at any price point.

Ben