Further to the above and to an update I've just posted on another forum, my £28 ebay purchase Pentax-M 28mm f3.5 has just arrived. Granted it's manual focus, but for its intended purpose (landscapes) do you think this bothers me? Not in the slightest. It is one hell of a lens for £28. I think this reinforces what Charlotte and myself said earlier and I will say again that it would take a lot to shift me away from the Pentax brand.

Regards
David

Well, I just received the Pentax-M 28mm f3.5, purchased from ebay for £28. I am happy to report that it is in absolutely mint condition, not a mark on it and complete with original hard case and genuine Pentax Skylight Filter. I've just taken a few test shots with it at f5.6 and wow, this is one sharp and contrasty lens!

It has to be my biggest lens bargain to date, but I'm sure some of you out there have had bigger ones. Might be interesting to see who had the best lens deal ever???

Regards
David

Wow, that Teleconverter works well! Is it specifically designed to work with this lens?

Regards
David

Because I like Pentax and as Charlotte says the ability to use older Pentax K lenses. I slightly disagree with Charlotte in that some of the older lenses are every bit as good and sharp as the newer ones (maybe a little less contrasty, but this can be fixed afterwards). Have a look on ebay and see what absolutely fantastic lenses you can buy for very little money, and still benefit from all the automatic functions on your K-5, apart from autofocus.

It will take a great deal to shift me away from Pentax, I get great results from my kit for a modest outlay and do not think I could do better with any other brand.

Regards
David

I also have the Tokina AT-X 28-85mm and rate it highly, although it doesn't get used as often on my K-X as it did on my old Chinon CP7-M. I find it takes very 'natural' looking pictures and is surprisingly high in resolution. Just lacks a little in contrast compared to the newer lenses.


Regards
David

Chris

Living where you do I bet there's plenty of opportunities for good landscape shots. It is surprising how often I have used the 55-300 for a landscape shot and also how much detail the lens retains in the shot considering it is an 'entry level' zoom. Good luck in your quest to buy this lens; by the way I have found the lens so far to be very easy to use, a bit slow on the AF (a lot slower than my Sigma 70-300mm DG APO), but this is more than outweighed by the results the lens produces. A good example is a shot of a peacock butterfly I took with it (I can't post a link here as the picture is not loaded on any website, but you can take a look at my portfolio). The DA L 55-300 blows the Sigma 70-300 away in terms of image quality (contrast, sharpness and colour are all leagues ahead).

Keep posting (forums and pictures); I look forward to seeing some more of your shots (I liked your first upload).

Best regards
David

Chris

It's easy to set up an ebay account! It is a treasure-trove for lenses (if you are careful and know what you are buying). Got my DA L 55-300mm brand new from ebay for £150. Best lens purchase I have made to date. Fantastic value for money. If you buy on ebay and there's anything wrong you are covered by the law and can return the goods for a full refund. I have to say I've bought around 50 items from ebay (not all camera-related) and have yet to experience any problems.

Regards
David

The listing for the 28mm f3.5 was not anything like as described by Algi, in fact it was probably too far the other way (understated). I get the impression (may be wrong) that it was being sold by an older gentleman who was not well versed in the ways of ebay!

Regards
David

Thanks to you all for your advice and comments. If I can pick one up for a reasonable price I may give it a go, otherwise I think I would be better off saving for a longer lens.

Regards
David

Can I have it for £15?