Fast-ish zoom lenses

Over the last couple of years I been doing a bit have event and gig photography and some of the venue frown on using flash. I normally go with either my K5II or K3II with the Pentax 50mm F1.8 or Pentax 35mm F2.4. The 50mm is brilliant at low light but I find the 35mm is not quite fast enough.

I have been looking at a fast zoom lenses, the one that stands out on price is Tamron SP 17-50mm F2.8 XR Di II LD, but I fear that F2.8 might not be fast enough.

I also have a very informal wedding coming up, so a fast-ish zoom would be very useful. I would probably use the fast zoom on the K5II and pair it with the Pentax 18-135mm on the K3II (+ Pentax flashes)

Has anyone used the Tamron or have any other options in mind?

thank you,

The light at gigs can be surprisingly bright, especially at large events. I don't have any difficulty with slower lenses, taking advantage instead of the excellent high ISO performance of current cameras.

I'm sure that f/2.8 would be quite fast enough for anything.

I have had the Tamron for a few years and it's a superb lens, very sharp even wide open and fantastic colour, contrast and saturation.

I have only shot one gig and I used this lens mainly and had no problem at f/2.8 using my K3. Check out the album below. A few of those were shot with an A 50/1.7 but most were with the Tamron (check the tags).

https://www.flickr.com/photos/69424694@N06/albums/72157650808709701

I tend to use this lens for weddings and parties too (just as a guest though) as it's a great all-round option.

Sigma also make a 17-50/2.8 which I understand is very good too. Watch out for the older Sigma 18-50/2.8 which is poor wide open.

The 50mm F1.8 as you say is great for this type of work, but is a bit restrictive. I have a Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4 HSM OS which is brilliant, but also got great results when I had a Pentax DA 17-70, despite this only having a max aperture of F4. I find that you have to be careful with your depth of field on gig shots and often it's best to stick around the F4 area so you don't get lots of out of focus shots. Remember also, you need to expose for the highlights, not the general ambient light, otherwise all the bright areas will be burned beyond recovery, especially if LED lights are being used.

I go with John Riley on this one, use your higher ISO settings, up to 3200 is fine with a K-5iis or a K-3. This image is one of my favourite gig shots and is hanging on the wall in my music room at home, it was shot with a K-5 and DA17-70 lens at F5.6, ISO 1600:




Regards
David

Thank you all for your advice, I think I will grab me a Tamron, plus just got a bonus from work to help pay for it

If your interested, below are a couple of my older gig/event shots
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ciderdeluxe/albums/72157634922998157

If my experience is anything to go by, you won't be disappointed with the Tamron.