First play with new toy - 150-450mm

I had to have a play with my new DFA 150-450mm and must say I'm very impressed, fast focussing and sharp wide open at 450mm, just what I needed

All taken with K3 with monopod and SR on.

1.
450mm F8 ISO-250 1/640th sec



100% crop



2.
450mm F6.3 ISO-125 1/500th sec



100% crop



3.
450mm F5.6 ISO-160 1/500th sec



100% crop



4.
380mm F5.6 ISO-160 1/500th sec



100% crop



5.
360mm F5.6 ISO-320 1/640th sec



100% crop



Weather permitting I'll be trying it out at a football match tomorrow night.

That is fairly extraordinary for 100% crops! No wonder you're pleased. Seems to be no doubt that new lens is well paired with the latest high resolution sensors. Beautiful colours in the pigeon ones .... Not sure if that's anything to do with the lens, but in any case its a killer combination by the look of it. Money well spent. ... ?

Very impressed with the crops and cool shots. DFA is a full frame lens isn't it?

Yes it's full frame, released in time for when there FF camera is released later this year

It's looking good - do you have another long lens to compare it to?

I suspect that it will hold up well against others

I've got the DA*300mm DA*60-250mm and have had the Sigma EX100-300mm F4, I'd say, in the short time I've been using it, it is optically on par with all the long lenses I've used and focussing is much faster.
I'm testing it at a footie match tomorrow night to see how it performs. It's seems to be on par with my DA18-135mm at focussing speed and I think the focus limiter will help with sport, I really think this lens is a 'game changer' for Sports/wildlife Pentaxians.

Woo hoo

The only problem I find with it in sports use with my K3II (and my old K3) is if you use the back button focusing option AF1, which I do, and the camera is set to "auto power off" (mine is set to 1 minute) then you cannot resume power by pressing the back button to focus. You have to press the shutter button first to re-awaken the camera before then using the back button focus . Not sure if this is a glitch or is just happening on my combo but it obviously slows up the resume feature and you can miss pictures. Are other users of this lens/camera combo finding the same .... still a great lens though.

Martin

Have you set the menu item to turn off focus on the half press. (shutter button) I only have a K-5 so I'm assuming that the K-3 has a similar menu item.

--

There is an AF1 and an AF2 option on the K3. Both allow the use of the back AF button, but AF1 allows the use of both the shutter button and AF button, AF 2 allows only the back AF button. I had it on AF1, as occasionally I had to press the AF button a couple of times before it focused and found it was as quick to start it focusing with the shutter button then carry on with the AF button after if that happened. I will try the AF2 setting to disable the shutter button for focusing and see if that makes a difference to the re-awakening of the camera after the auto-power off happens.

I'm pretty sure that the AF button does not "wake up" the camera on either K5 or K3 regardless of the setting of AF-1 or AF-2. Personally, I find that as I pick up my K3, my index finger naturally falls onto the shutter button, and the slightest touch wakes up the camera, not even a half press. The camera responds instantly, certainly quicker than a press on the AF button. I also find that the K3 and K5 batteries last for such a long time, that I can leave the auto power off on 5 minutes without unduly running down the battery.

Regardless of AF setting my K5iis and K3 both need a press of shutter button to wake them up and IIRC so to did my ist*D, K10, K7, K5 and K5ii.

Nice pics Steve, they show yet again that in good hands the DA150-450 is a cracking lens so much so that my DA*300 and Sigma 100-300 f4 will be winging their way to SRS on Friday (hopefully) and I'll have a new lens to play with

You won't regret it, it's a brilliant lens, for sport I find the AF buttons on the lens body really useful and think the AF preset button will come in handy to use at my bird feeding station.
I've only had the lens for a couple of days but am really happy with it.

I'll have to start saving for thr FF body now

Amazing. The pigeon ones don't even look like photos, they are so 'alive'. Lense is one thing but it's the photographer that matters most. Just super.