Newly Discontinued Pentax Lenses...

According to photorumors.

60-250
200 f2.8
14 f2.8
100 f2.8 macro WR (very surprised by this one)

Isn't there an HD version of the 100mm macro on the horizon though?

Michael

I thought the 14mm f2.8 was discontinued a very, very long time ago when it was replaced by the 15mm Limited.

And I guess the DA*60-250 was rendered redundant by the D-FA 70-210/4 and D-FA*70-200/2,8. And it wasn't exactly popular even before the K-1 came out, as more people opted for the 50-135 or the Sigma 70-200 or 100-300. Maybe there will be an update just like there was for the 16-50.

Yes there is. Pentax Rumours have been all over it for some days now. It will be AW rather than WR.

I picked up a 100mm 2.8 macro as a freebie with my recent K-1 II purchase. I will be happy to continue using that

Hadn't heard about this new AW version...better quality glass as well apparently but same size as existing lens. Whilst any upgrade is welcome, can't help feeling that scarce resources would have been better spent upgrading another lens or bringing out a completely new one. I've no real complaints with the existing 100 macro which i've used extensively.

Sluggish focusing is a bugbear with the 100mm macro, although I recognise that manual focus gets used a lot. I had a recent shoot with the ring flash attached because the light was poor and it just couldn’t find focus, so I had to work manually. As it was an event I was documenting I was a bit rushed so missed sharpness on several shots.

I always focus manually with the 100mm macro and then switch to auto focus when I know I have got the focus right. Of course, I was brought up" on manual focus lenses so old habits do die hard - to an extent

There is a new version of the 100/2.8 coming. Apparently the old one has horrible purple fringing, though I don't remember anyone ever mentioning it.

I too thought the 14/2.8 was discontinued years ago since it always played second fiddle to the 15/4 and never got great reviews.

Hopefully the 200/2.8 and 60-250 are being replaced by versions with upgraded focus motors that are far more resistant to failure.

The current version of the 100/2.8 macro does have purple fringing in certain lighting, I've experienced it and I've seen it discussed a few times - I've owned a couple of copies but often step back to the A100/2.8 Macro (a hidden gem IMO) - I may buy the new version, as it has the AW designation as well as the improved optics.

The DA 14/2.8 is an excellent lens for APS-C, and had some great reviews - the DA15/4 did get quite a following, and I have to agree that the size, build and look are superb - but I don't think there is much between them in terms of image quality and of course the DA14 is a full stop faster, I wouldn't agree with it being "second fiddle"