Lovely, moody pic.

I f I were to change anything, I might crop a bit off the left hand side, but that's just me. It's gorgeous as is.

George

I second JR's suggestion, but if you lean towards longer focal lengths, then the 24-90 or the power zoom 28-105 are also good choices. The latter is available often on Ebay.

A Pentax camera deserves a Pentax lens.

G

If you are within range of Slough, I would advise you to go in and see them. They're quite friendly, and may stretch a point if they see you in person.

G

This is extraordinary. At £599, it undercuts buying from America.

G

Whilst it is nice to try out new products before you buy them, there are many people in the world who live far from the big cities where this is possible. Mail order is the only option, and nowadays the seller may often be on a different continent.

One advantage of a forum like this is that you can learn from the experience of others. I bought my first *ist D without ever seeing one, based on what others had said, and found that its few shortcomings had in any case been exaggerated.

In fact, I have purchased many camera bodies over the years without seeing them. The last time I bought a new camera body in a shop was 1984, in Manila. My (P)Z1-P was shipped from New York, my first *ist D from Canada, my second from Kent, and my 12-24mm lens from Germany. Several others, second-hand, have come from America, and various bits and pieces from Hong Kong.

So in your case, I would log onto B&H in New York and buy whatever you need from them. The price, including shipping, duty etc., will almost certainly be lower than that charged by the Sigma-pushing CR Kennedy, and the likelihood of anything going wrong is very small.

And in answer to your question, if I had to choose between Canon and Nikon, I would go for Samsung!

Good luck

G

Daniel,

I have the SMCP-F 1:4.5 300mm, and it is truly lovely. Very hand-holdable, and with an excellent built-in tripod mount. It cost me £400 in excellent condition. I certainly couldn't justify the 1:2.8.

Having said there were no lenses I particularly want, I have to say that the FA 200mm macro is allegedly quite wonderful; but I have the 1:2.8 non-macro, and don't do enough macro or telephoto shooting to justify the macro version.

The FA 600mm would be an acceptable Christmas present, of course.

G

Sorry. Going mad.

G

Message deleted

Daniel,

My views are coloured by my bad experiences of (admittedly cheap) Sigma lenses. I've no doubt that the better ones are quite good, but I don't propose to let Sigma off the hook for some very shoddy workmanship.

Apart from the kit zooms, Pentax lenses are usually better than third party lenses, and although there is a temporary interruption to supply of new long lenses, the second-hand market provides ample choice if you can wait for the right lens to come along.

The main reason I haven't bought a lens for a while is not my iron will, nor a shortage of funds (that's never stopped me), but the fact that there is nothing I particularly want, having spent several years building a reasonable collection.

I will, however, be tempted by the 16-50 1:2.8. Successfully tempted.

G
Sorry, Prophet of Doom

And whilst any Sigma lens MIGHT work with a current Pentax body, there is absolutely no guarantee that it will work on a new generation one.

G