K5 Price?

Hi Stefan - was about to post pretty much exactly what Flossie just said. But I'll say it anyway! I'm sure the 18-135 will prove to be a very good lens but it would seem a waste of your two fantastic (and faster) DA* zooms not to be using them at every opportunity, even if it means carrying an extra lens around. If the 18-135 was a bit more of a bargain then it would be tempting but £599 is quite pricey for a lens which would be inferior to what you already have. Just my humble opinion as a novice who's envious of your DA* zooms!

Funny you say that.
I had a DA 18-250 but sold it because I didn't like the huge range and to fund the DA*50-135.
But still I'm curious to buy the DA 18-135 to try it out...

I actually love the longer focal lengths, give me a DFA 100mm or DA*50-135 and that will do so for me 135format will never be interesting, I rather have a lighter and smaller camera instead.
If I would want more quality I would jump to MF instead to really gain something.

The DA 18-135 in a kit will be £450.. still quite a lot for a lens that does not really add anything to my collection.

Will just have to wait for the reviews to see how good it really is, now you can hardly say anything about the lens.

It's not gonna be any better than your DA* lenses. What's wrong with taking an extra lens out anyway?

I cut two vertical slots in the back of the padded case that came with my DA* 50-135 and threaded by belt through it. I now travel with my K10D holding my Sigma 135-400 and the K20D has the sigma 17-70 on it and 50-135 within reach on the belt. I also wear a bumbag containing my 10-17 fish eye and spare batteries and SDHC cards. No it's not discreet but who cares

Smeggy a few weeks ago I bought myself a Kata Bumblebee-222 UL, it's very nice a bit big though but it feels smalls on your back so that's good.
I'm just trying to find things to fill it with.
I've already thought out how it will fit a 3 pieces storbist kit and 3 of my best lenses

Might do a little review about it the upcoming weekend, i'm sure some here might find it interesting.

I'm now also thinking of getting a Crumpler Turkish Shower for when going urban.
I'm just not so sure it will fit my basic kit; a camera + DA*16-50 + DA*50-135 + flash

True, £450 sounds like a more sensible net price. And we do have to wait for the reviews but we know it won't be as fast as the DA* zooms and if it's not an inferior lens to those then something strange has occurred with Pentax lens development/production! But no doubt it will be a very good lens and clearly it should be an excellent addition to the Pentax range.

Hmmm, and I still have a £10 gift voucher to spend there...

Only thing is, as far as I know, they're not Pro Dealers any more, so only a 1 year warranty.

Dan

I may have to go the backpack route if I get any more stiff - although I did do the 2 vertical slots on my 540 flash case as well so I can do the belt thing.

You only need a distraction and in seconds they've run off with your stuff.

Careful with back packs and pickpockets. I was out shopping with Ms Smeggy a few years ago and she had a back pack on. These kids had unzipped it and were about to steal stuff

thief caught in the act

I understand Stefan's dilemma. I have the range covered too, though with the 17-70 and 50-135, but having handled the lens and seen how fast the focus is on it, I am still mildly tempted by it. It would cover a lot of the range I use in one handy, weatherproof(ish) packet.
But I can't really afford it as well as the camera so I shan't be getting it. I don't want to sell the 17-70 to get it, though the 50-135 could go I suppose.... I don't use it all that much and F4 is generally fast enough for me. Hmmm.

Crumpler bags never hold as much as they claim to. My huge Pretty Bella bag is barely big enough for a camera and two lenses, and is heavy too. I'll stick to my backpack I think. Comfortable to carry and holds loads.

Great story Don! Glad they caught the guy from the photo. A good lesson to us all.

If you already have the DA* zooms then there's probably not much point - you could get a used K10D or K20D for less than what the 18-135 is going to cost and just put a DA* on each body.

That's the big issue with Crumpler bags - they hold much less than you might expect. Crumpler are also particularly 'optimistic' with their estimates of how much gear fits in a given model*, so finding a blog/Flickr photo showing its actual carrying capacity before purchasing one would be a good idea ]

* EDIT: My Muffin Top 4000, for example, claims to be capable of holding a DSLR plus two additional lenses. Whether they measured it against a micro 4/3 camera I don't know!

The K5 + 18-135 kit seems to be rarer than hens teeth having looked around the web. Maybe they won't manage to get that kit out at the same time as the body.
In which case for me at least the problem will be solved.

Bit pointless I would have thought.
The idea of the 18-135mm is as a walkaround travel lens and you certainly can't call 2 bodies with 2 DA* lenses that.

But this is even better!

http://www.mathersoflancashire.co.uk/html/k-5.html

That is indeed a great price. I was going to wait until prices dropped below £1000 but they seem to have started there (always good news!). In fact all of Mathers' stuff seems very reasonably priced!! £149 for the new 35 f2.4 - I haven't really been shopping around for this but I was expecting it be a little more...