poor af pentax 55-300

At RAF Elvington and Coningsby today and was really disappointed with my 55-300 lens. Even using the quick shift it was still hunting somewhat leading to many lost shots.
Any one have any tips advice to help me. Body is a k10d. Conditions overcast and wet for the mostpart.
Heading to riat on sunday and would like better performance/results.
Would i see much improvement with a k5.

I had the same problem with the K5. Had to pre-focus.

I've had the K5 since my May holiday. Huge improvement with the 55 -300 DA over it on my previous KX and KR models.It had no issus in sunny Greece.

On my KR I found centre focus the best method but on the K5 the 11 point auto settng seems better even at extreme telephoto. I guess this is because its he upgraded version from the 645 model. I read Pentax are to improve things even more on the new K30.

It is true this lens sometimes hunts trough the range. I agree this tends to happen against overcast skies BUT then when can you expect autofocus to lock on grey cloud?

IMHO - the one weak point of the 55-300 is it really does not enjoy focusing in dull conditions at all.

I had exactly the same problem at the Sunderland Air Show last year. I had the Sigma 120-400 and the Pentax 55-300 + Kr and K5 - did not matter which body I put the Sigma on - it was fine - the 55-300 didn't matter which body either - very hard to get a lock on either
Carl

I brought a 55-300 back to Oz to sell but due to the wonderful light here and its IQ, I have held onto it. It may well be a different story in dull weather. However, that’s one reason I use other kit.

I don't really see a difference in AF between the K7 and K5; even the K10 is good with this lens in bright light.

So all in all, it's circumstantial. If the light is good, you’ll get acceptable performance as far as AF goes.

Best regards

Overcast conditions will lead to poor contrast and make focusing difficult. Couple that to the slow focusing of the 55-300 and it will be tough. If you're photographing planes, surely pre-focusing manually will do the trick?

I thought this lens worked best in manual focus. The ideal body would be the K30, IMHO - focus peaking!

Ended up focussing manually. Normally hadnt had any issues but have only used it in good light so was wondering if this was normal.

Thanks for the replies.

Focusing on fast moving planes at 300mm with just liveview

I would rather eat Brussel sprouts

Nowt wrong with sprouts Mike I'd happily eat them every day, nom, nom, nom

I have the 55-300 and found it performs well on good days, but on dull days it struggles - the DA*60-250 and 300 perform much better though.

For ANY fast moving objects, I always recommend disabling the "Focus on Half Press" and pre-focussing using the AF button on the back (see custom settings)

That way the camera will shoot instantly when you press the shutter - it doesn't care if it's in focus.
You learn to focus with the thumb on the AF - kind of like assisted manual focus

Personally, I use centre focus only with this technique. Works exceptionally well in dark conditions too (e.g. stage work)

Works for me...
Matt

+1 Same as Matt here too.

John

K-5 allows you to bypass AF lock so you can shoot instantly using the shutter button should you wish (although I also use the back button on my K-5 and 50D)

I found using the 5 middle points on the K-5 in AF-C worked very well although that was with the 50-500mm, the 55-300mm is too quirky for moving stuff.

I too love brussel sprouts! I wouldn't even attempt to take a picture of something so challenging PERIOD let alone with a DA55-300mm. In general use (inanimate objects) I found the DA55-300mm extremely obstinate in it's focussing, so for me, manual focus was a better option and with focus peaking, and the much improved liveview on the K30, I would have thought the lens would be quite usable for general photography. As for airshow photography, I guess we'll have to wait for someone to actually try it! To be fair through the lens MF is probably better for airshows though...

What's the matter with you people ... next you will be saying you love Marmite as well