One lens does all

A very old (1st gen, I think!) Sigma17-70 "does it" for me - dirt cheap from a fellow PU member several years ago, and it's very sharp, quick to focus and reliable, and has proven a very capable day-to-day "do it all" tool .

20-40 HD worth a shout. Excellent lens.

I have this lens and is usually my go-to lens. When I didn't want to lug around a bag

Another vote for the Pentax 16 - 85. This is the lens that's always on my K70. Whilst not a full telephoto it is sharp and so will stand cropped shots when I haven't got a telephoto lens with me.

Paul

16-85 for me. Surprising how often the wide end is so useful, particularly for interiors. Can't use the on board flash as a large shadow in the lower part of the image. Sharp at most apertures across the image and nice colours. Mine has been hammered for 3 years yet has been utterly reliable.

+1 for the 16-85 and its wide end.

And the 06 for the Q.

Steve

Another vote for the 16-85. Seldom off my K3. Nice sharp lens with really good colour rendition. Covers a wide range of photographic situations particularly wide angle shots.

And another vote for the 16-85. Great image quality, useful zoom range and it handles very nicely too on my K3II.

Yep, if you have a K-3, the 16-85mm is a really nice match. It's large and weighs a bit, so is a good fit if you're already prepared to be lugging some weight and volume around.

It's APS-C only though, and that sort of combo makes a move to FF quite difficult, as you'd need to get a new lens to cover the similar range in full FF mode.

Isn't that's true for every lens, though, whether APSC or full frame? I wanted 16mm on APS-C because I liked 24mm on 35mm film. Going from film to APS-C meant getting new lenses.

Steve

And another OK from me.
This is the lens that spends most of the time on my K50 or K70.
But I usually switch between the DA 55-300 PLM and my Sigma 18-250 on the other camera for when I want that little extra 'reach'.

Peter

Going Film or FF to APS-C works fine. Comment was about how the 16-85 is APS-C only, vs a FF lens which can be used on both. For many that means as you say a replace if you go to FF, where as a FF capable lens can do both.

There is no such thing as a do-it-all lens due to the trade-offs in design:

Small/light - Big/heavy
Small max aperture - Large max aperture
Small focal range - Large focal range

It's like the "good, cheap and quick" dilemma - you can only have two of the three.

I have the DA 16-85mm and while it's a good lens with plenty of range, nice and sharp with great colours and contrast, it's obviously slow, so no good for low light (except maybe at the wide end) or shallow depth of field. I also have the Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8, which has less range (at both ends) but is much faster, and I'd say with equal optical performance and fewer quirks. Then there's the HD FA 35mm f/2 - fixed focal length but smaller, lighter and faster than the other options.

So it all depends on your priorities.

"Do it all" will certainly depend on our individual tastes, needs and visions. I have 3 or 4 lenses, all primes, and the only time I take my M28 3.5 off my camera is when I add a tube for more abstract work. Recently I've decided to stick the tube onto the rear end of my M35 2.8 so as to make things easier when going from one setup to the other. So my "do it all" lens is the 28, and my specialty lens is the 35+tubes.