Wanted - selection of lenses (along with some help choosing!)

Hello,

I've had my K-x for a few months now, starting to get the hang of it and taking some nice shots with the kit lens, however I'm starting to find its limitations.

With that in mind, I'm after a couple of lenses, but I'll need help choosing as I've got literally no idea what to look for! I want...

A multi purpose zoom lens
A macro lens
A quick low light lens for taking gig photos

The cheaper the better! If you have a lens to offer or just some advice, I'd be really grateful!

Thanks for looking,
Ben.

Hi Ben, welcome to the forum.

The multi-purpose zoom will depend rather on the sort of photography you plan to do. The kit lens you've already got is fairly multi-purpose. If you want to move into wildlife and light sports use a longer focal length would be an advantage to bring things nearer. (I use an F series 100-300 that cost ~£50-100) If you can manage with manual focus your budget options for moderate telephoto (typically 80-200mm) zooms are numerous.
If landscapes are more your thing then a wider zoom would probably be better - but you'll be lucky to find anything cheap.

The Cosina 100mm Macro is remarkably good quality for it's price (If you can find one) but there are other options for macro instead of a dedicated lens (or to use with it increasing its usefulness). If the zoom you get has macro in the name it should focus closer than a standard model but DON'T expect it to be a macro lens!

The budget low light lens will usually be a Pentax 50mm f1.7 manual focus lenses can be had for very little (M series will probably be cheapest, A series will add automated aperture and be easier to use) faster versions are available but go up rapidly in price. If money is really tight an M42 lens & adapter can be used - with care/luck you can get both for under £10 (warning adapters with a flange will not focus on infinity!)

The other options for macro I mentioned include:
A reversing ring for the low light lens. (

In general so long as you try to stick to SMC Pentax lenses you won't go wrong - there are a lot of cheap and nasty old manual zooms about from the '80s which are best avoided!

Hi Ben - welcome - I agree with Mike ( petrochemist )but I would also add my own favourite - Pentax 75-300 AL FAJ - f4.5-f5.8 - cost me less than £60 BNIB - lightweight and very useful.
I`ve got a nice Sigma 28-300 Hyperzoom - which is faster at f3.5-f6.3 but much heavier.
On the low light I use SMC Tak 55mm f2 and a 50mm f1.4 or an M 50mm f1.7 all lovely to handle and great shots - all M42 screw.
For true macro I have a S-M-C Macro Tak 100 f4 and use reversing rings or step-down rings and or bellows.
As Matt says keep away from cheapos although have a look at the "lenses for under a tenner" thread on the forum site.

Good luck

Tony

The manual lenses I've had the most use from on digital:

SMC Pentax 28mm f3.5 (also the Pentax-M 28mm f3.5, which is slightly smaller and later)

SMC Pentax 120mm f2.8 (very tricky to find - I've never seen another in the year or so since I bought mine. The Pentax-M 135mm f3.5 could take its place despite being a little slower).

Going on to cheap-but-decent AF glass, the Pentax-F 80-200mm f4.7-5.6 is a pretty handy performer. It feels a bit plastic but takes sharp enough photos and doesn't take up much space in the bag. The matching 35-80mm is terrible IMO, if you want a small walkabout lens then try the Pentax-F 35-70mm or save a bit more and look at the new DA 35mm f2.4.

The obvious addition to your existing kit would be the DA or DA-L 55-300mm zoom. This has excellent reviews and would compliment the kit lens well for extra range, the DA-L version has a plastic lens mount, no quick shift focusing, and no lens hood but is optically identical to the DA version.

I 've just noticed the second half of my essay yesterday got deleted (probably a clumsy edit on my part). If I remember it went something like this...

The other options for macro I mentioned include :
A reversing ring for the low light lens. (from ~£5 from the far east)
A stacking ring for a wide angle (the low light) on a longer lens (from £10)
Close up filters (personally I don't bother with these anymore cheap ones give severe chromattic abberation, good ones are £££)
Extension tubes - most disconnect lens-camera links (from £5)
Bellows - very flexible but clumsy in use. (from ~£30)
other forms of variable extension are available but are difficult to locate.

Basically suplementry lens(es) &/or extension.
Getting reasonable results from Macro requires good light (often a good flash) & usually a solid tripod.

These approaches can all be nearly all be used to increase the power of a dedicated macro lens should you get one.

Mike

You don't give your budget so although you mention 'cheap' that could have many interpretations. So I'm going to assume you have a little more for lenses than has been assumed so far.

1. Pentax DA 55-300 : wonderfully sharp and useful zoom for the price. Alternative Tamron 70-300, not as sharp, more CA but still very good and offers a real 1:2 macro too. ca. $100 (GBP60).

2. FA 50/1.4 cracking lens for the price. Alternative - if you don't mind going manual then the SMC Takumar 50/1.4 is an excellent lens for very little money.

3. Reversing ring - as has been mentioned ! True macro for a fiver.

Good luck !

Be a bit careful about M42 lenses (Takumar/Super-Takumar, etc). My K-m won't work at all well with them (underexposes horribly all the time) but is quite happy with anything K mount. I've no idea whether the K-x shares the metering circuitry and might therefore have similar problems.