Just heard back - my camera-guy says Sigma Canada has (IN STOCK) the 70 - 200 f2.8 EX DG for $1299. DG is full 35mm image size but optimized for Digital (FAJ - no aperture ring, so might not work on older film bodies)... EX lenses are supposed to be their premium line... I have the 28-80 f2.8 EX DG and am very happy with it...

He says they also have (IN STOCK) the 1.4x APO teleconverter for $299.

Both of these prices are in Canadian dollars... and we pay 15% in taxes on top of that... It'd take a week (two at most, they said...) for them to arrive after ordering...

$1500 - hmmmmm I'd have to skip summer vacation this year.....

What a dilemma - do I get it with the warranty (10yr Distributor warranty), or do I wait for the possible savings on eBay...

Also - maybe someone can answer this question - I've read that most zooms are softer at the edges than centre-frame... Would the fact that this is a 35mm form-factor lens mean that that wouldn't be as much of an issue on digital, since you're losing, in effect, the edges of the image anyway?

I've just asked my local independant camera store guy (the only brick&mortar Pentax dealer within 80 miles or so) to try to see if Sigma Canada has any of the older 70-200 2.8 lenses avail (I need to use it on my K10D as well as my MZ body, so I want full frame, not just APS-C if I can get it...) and have asked him to also inquire about the availability of Sigma teleconverters...

I'll post his response when I get it...

Well, they ay they do, and I've seen a couple on eBay lately...

http://www.sigmaphoto.com/lenses/lenses_tele.asp#pentax

No picture on this page, but it's in their catalogue... Pricey though - here in canada it runs about $250 (not sure what that is in Euros or pounds...

here's a pic :
http://www.cameracanada.com/eNet-cart/Product.asp?pid=EX14XDGP&type=

Apparently the new model : http://www.sigmaphoto.com/lenses/lenses_all_details.asp?id=3316&navigator=3 is supposed to be available in July sometime...

I've been quoted about $1200 Canadian here...

I'm not a pro, and ""Semi-Pro" might even be pushing it as I've never made any money doing this, but pretty much all the rest could apply...

How about an "All of the Above" option...

Has that one ended?

I have a few small slave flashes and triggers that I normally use in multi light setups, but I know that the location where I'll be setting up will have a bunch of other photographers, all using flashes, and the whole flash driven slave idea just won't work... So...

Can anyone suggest a brand or source for (hopefully not too expensive) radio triggers so I can run a few flashguns?

I have my 360 that I'll have either handheld or on a stand near me, and want to set another off to my right, and the third from far left (could use a reflector instead, I guess, but I have the flash already...

Since I want to use a couple older Vivitars (283 and 285), I figure I'll need one transmitter and 3 receivers... No more than 50 feet or so range from the camera...

I've seen a few from China on eBay, but was looking for something a little closer to home (preferably not eBay...)

edit : I know they've been mentioned, but I did a search and couldn't see what I thought I remembered...

Thanks, Jamie

I think that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me.

at a 2.18 exchange rate, that's C$654.00.....

The regular price (at a Canadian .com store is C$700.00...)

See here : http://www.cameracanada.com/eNet-cart/product.asp?pid=19018

Assuming the regional distributors pay the same price from Pentax, it doesn't look like Jessop's is taking too much of a loss on this particular "loss leader"

BUT, I don't know a lot about regional pricing... It may be that they're just more expensive normally 'over there'...