Is it really the case though that beyond 300mm the manufacturing costs rise substantially or is that just a convenient excuse ? Pentax sell shed-loads of 55-300s at about £300 or less...these have the HD coating and WR and most people that use them seem to rate them as good performance for the price.

Tamron sell large quantities of 70-300 for about £80-90 exc VAT! Image quality is pretty good overall...exceptional value for money...i've been very happy with mine ( even at the higher cost of £129). Are we really expected to believe that to go to 80-400 or thereabouts will result in a stratospheric leap in cost? The Sigma 120-400 seemed highly regarded yet was 'only' about £650-£700 at normal price.

I personally don't really need 500mm or am not prepared to put up with the increase in bulk and weight but both Sigma and Tamron build zooms up to 500/600 for far less than one might have imagined they would sell for...so a 400mm should be even better for the same price or cost less for the same image quality.

I appreciate that 'Pros' who make their living from selling images might want the absolute highest quality
but i suspect that most people would be happy to settle for 85-90% of their image quality for something costing a fraction of what they would be expected to pay.

Much as I would like the 150-450WR it is just too expensive. I can't see it ever dropping below £1100-£1200 and even this 'floor' might take another 18 months or so to develop and only then if the £ remains strong.

Pentax seem to have been content to lose business to Sigma and Tamron with their 120-400, 150-500 and 50-500...but these lenses appear to be on their way out and will have probably disappeared totally by the summer...what then? Apparently neither marque is bringing any new super telephoto out in Pentax K fit.

I can see real demand for a 80-400 (or thereabouts) f4-f5.6..maybe f6.3 at 400mm, preferably WR for no more than about £700-£750...image quality at 400mm to be about equal to the 55-300 at 300mm.

What do other people think?

Can't see them unfortunately, my browser won't load them...just hangs.

Karlo

It is very unusual Nigel not to use the screen for confirming changes even in manual mode...I use manual mode at least 50% of the time on my K-50 and find the 3" screen very useful for confirming any changes I make to ISO...although to be fair I usually set the ISO I think i'll need first then set aperture and speed. Using TAV mode sometimes when shooting aircraft I set the aperture and speed and of course the camera sets the ISO.

I'm guessing that if the camera had a top LCD display like the K5/K3 then ISO changes could be confirmed on this...but of course there's no space for one given its smaller size. Given that the twisty rear screen is a new feature for Pentax it sounds like it's only really now with minority experiences like yours that this anomaly has come to light. As richandfleur mentions maybe it could be enabled in a subsequent update.

Karlo

My son's K-S2 ordered on the Amazon offer arrived about an hour ago...we're both impressed with it and the 18-135 which I hadn't actually tried out before...only used it indoors under artificial lighting but seems very good.

My son is very impressed that he can use his Apple mobile phone via our WiFi to change camera settings, take the picture and then view images onphone...it is a really useful feature with many potential applications.

I misunderstood what you were trying to replicate Nigelk with the positioning of the screen...but it didn't seem to work for us either so i'm guessing you can't do it...and his battery is now on charge as it only comes with a bit of life in it. Not really a problem for him though I don't think and Philips work-round seems easy enough to do.

Anyway...assuming it stays reliable has to be one of the best photo bargains of the past year.
(I just wish their admin/marketing department was as good...still waiting for my Summer Cashback...6 months now!)

regards

Karlo

I like them too...particularly the last one. The 'red' on the prow of the closest boat is reminiscent of the effect using 'colour pop'.

Karlo

Good those Gareth.

Forgot to say..."Thanks for the heads up"...probably wouldn't have seen it in time otherwise.

Karlo

I have to be honest, despite it being an Amazon offer I showed it to my son who has been looking to upgrade the K-x he bought off me a few months ago...he had his heart set on a Sony A6000 and was waiting until the price dropped when the newer A6100 came out.

He took all of about 1 minute to be persuaded that this offer was too good to turn down...so i've just ordered one for him. Most of his dosh gone now but as I told him, in the unlikely event he doesn't take to it he could sell it in a few months for virtually what he paid for it...in fact i'd probably buy the 18-135 off him...a complete No Brainer really.

I do feel for the Independent camera shops though...how can they compete with offers like this? I don't know how other camera OEMs treat their dealer network but Ricoh seem to be favouring the high volume box shifters like Amazon, Argos and the like. I wouldn't be surprised to see many independent dealers en masse stop selling Pentax stuff..and who could blame them...they risk getting their fingers burnt every time they hold stock.

Usual Photorumors link...Here

£1500 - £1800? Not bad to start with as it will surely drop within a couple of months.