...and there's now a PK AD2 mount there:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250254436242

Dan

The Tamron is now listed on Ebay, starting tonight at 7.30pm.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250254431482

Ta,
Dan

So have you.

Dan

Just to let you know the 300mm and the 1.7x AF Converter will be going on ebay Sunday evening unless I sell them here first.

Will let you know the item numbers in due course.

Dan

First, may I congratualte you on the identification. This was at Pensthorpe, where this year's Springwatch is coming from, and they have several aviaries with various birds, there were Bearded Reedlings in the same one as this Teal, and Curlews, Lapwings and Terns in another.

With regard to the weight, there are strap lugs on the lens, and with a decent strap it really helps minimise the effort of carrying the lens.

Thanks Chirpy for the sales pitch!

Dan

Well I wasn't planning on it, but you never know. I'll pop it on ebay with a £10 starting price, you may get lucky.

Cheers,
Dan

Hi Stevo,

PM received, will deal with that in a bit...

Yes, I am ditching this lens now I have the DA*300. Some comparisons, and I'll not beat about the bush :

1. Weight. The Tamron is a heavy lens. Total kit, including lens, teleconverters, hood, case, is about 4.4kg. Not sure what the lens is on its own, but I was quite happy to carry it around for shooting out and about. However, handholding is not too practical, but do-able. Also, carrying other kit wasn't really an option for me if I had this lens. The DA*300 definitely scores here, it's much lighter, but three times the price.

2. Image quality. The Tamron is comparable for sharpness I think when stopped down a bit, but longitudinal CA can be evident, ie. green and magenta tones to out of focus areas behind and in front of the focal plane respectively. The Pentax seems much better with this, but at three times the price.

3. Autofocus. Obviously the DA*300 has it, the Tamron doesn't, but the Tamron is a third of the price. I've had a higher hit rate with the Pentax.

4. Aperture. The Tamron is a full stop faster than the Pentax, and although that doesn't make a whole lot of difference when the autofocus can get the subject, in lower light that extra stop does make a difference. As well as that, the Tamron is a third of the price.

5. Price. Er, think I've covered that one.

6. Teleconverter. With the 2x converter, the Tamron still has an aperture of f/5.6, whereas the Pentax is down to f/8. The converter is matched to the Tamron, there aren't any matched converters for the Pentax yet, but it does work with my Tamron 1.4x AF.

Samle Pics:



K10D, Tamron 300mm @ f/6.7



100% crop of the above image






100% crop of the above image










Sorry I don't have the exposure details to hand for most of these, but trying to do this in a rush before I go out. Also don't have any with the 2x converter, can't say I ever really used it.

The Tamron is a lovely lens, which can give superb results, but it takes practice, and the acceptance that there are going to be mis-focused shots (unless you're a lot better at MF than me, which is quite possible). You need to want to carry it with you, unlike the DA*300 which is in my bag all the time now.

The PKA adaptor is reserved for another member now, but I do have a plain PK one.

Hope that helps, ask away if you need to know more. I can send a full res version of any of these shots to you if you wish.

Cheers,
Dan

Doubtful that I have anything you might want John. Let's see... An 18-35mm FAJ lens (which would work as a nice super wide on your MZ-5N, now I think about it), a Sigma 24mm MF, erm, think that's it at the mo.

Dan

Hi All,

As promised, I've finally got round to sorting out some tasty bits for sale.

Tamron 300mm f/2.8 Manual Focus AD2 lens

This is a big, beautiful lens. It uses the AD2 (adaptall) mount to enable it to be used on pretty much any camera system, even your spotmatics! Included in the sale is the lens, 2x matched converter, original fitted case (albeit quite tatty and taped up ), original lens hood and original lens cap. I also have a 1.4x matched converter, but this is cloudy internally, but will be thrown in for free in case you want to have a go at cleaning it up.

The lens is well used, paintwork worn, and with some small scratches on the front element, there since I got it. However, with such a big piece of glass, these scratches are insignificant, especially when you're using the 'bucket' of a lens hood. I've certainly never seen any evidence of image degradation due to them. Some small pieces of dust internally, but again, doesn't affect images as far as I can tell.

I purchased the lens secondhand three years ago, and had it professionally cleaned and serviced. Iris is nice and snappy.



















On Ebay: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250254431482 (Starts 7.30pm Sunday 1st June)


Tamron AD2 PKA Mount - SOLD

In excellent working condition, this adaptor allows you to use the above Tamron lens (or any Tamron AD2 lens) with full metering capability with your Pentax AF camera, albeit still with manual focus. These adaptors do not come up very often, most are the PK version mount, which will not work as well with your DSLR.




Asking price: £65 incl. postage (Special Delivery) SOLD



Pentax SMC 1.7x AF Converter - SOLD

Again, a highly sought after accessory, this teleconverter not only multiplies the focal length of the fitted lens by 1.7x, but also converts manual focus lenses to autofocus. I used it with the Tamron lens above, giving a 510mm f/4.8 AF combination.

It's in good condition, with a couple of small marks on the barrel, but the optics are clear and clean, no scratches. Comes with caps.







Asking price: £200 incl. postage (Special Delivery) SOLD



These, and other lenses, will be going on ebay in the next few days, let me know as soon as possible if you would like to buy them at these prices. I will offer them with a Buy It Now option, as well as open auction.

Any questions, just ask.

Thanks for looking,
Dan

I just happened to be passing...

Perish the thought! If I'd photoshopped it, I'd have told you. You just see these things when you look out for the small stuff.

Dan