Lens Advice please (Low Light)

Hello

I am looking to get a zoom lens for my K20D. These lenses will be used in low light nightclub/live band situation.

Can someone point me the right direction for a fast lens that I can use when a distance away from the stage but keep the ISO down.

Also can si there anyone out there that has used a K20D in this situation and can suggest any tips or tricks.

At the moment I only have the standard 18-55mm stock lens and a 30-300mm Tamaron.

Jody, welcome to the forum.

The K20D can handle high iso quite good so don't be afraid to push it to iso800 or iso1600, and to behonest you don't have another choice.
If you bring a tripod and use shutterspeeds of a second then your subject will of course move in your photo.
So iso 800/1600 and overexpose your photos a bit, when you bring the brightness down in post processing it comes out a better.
You might even want to shoot iso3200 with your tele-lens or else you photos wil be unusable because of movement by you and the ones on the stage.
When shooting iso3200 it might be a good idea to convert your photo to B&W, sometimes the noise is quite pleasant then.

The best way I think might be to use Av mode and set the iso auto range to full.
Pick the lowest f-number you can and the camera picks the right shutterspeed for the focal length and tries to keep the iso down.
Of course if iso hits the limit it will increase your shutterspeed but you see that in your screen then.

Btw there is no Tamron 30-300, do you mean 70-300?

Any zoom lens with a constant aperture of F2,8 will do the job.
Look for the DA* 16-50 and DA* 50-135 from Pentax. Or the alternatives from either Tamron or Sigma. Living in the UK or abroad and being a forum member: Check out SRS.
Mention your forum name and you get probably the best deal, greatest service and free posting in UK.

Can't give you any tips on lowlight nightclub gigs. But there are some guys here who do.

HTH,
Martin.

I need to read a bit better.
f/2.8 is the way to go for low light zoom lens but they are expensive, Like said by Martin.

The Tamron/Sigma alternative would be the 70-200 depending on how far or close you're to the stage.
There is also a Sigma 50-150 f/2.8 which might be a good offer, I don't really know how it preforms but the 70-200 are both great lenses at least.