If I were in the market for a Pentax DSLR and lenses, I would be interested in this:

http://www.pentaxuser.org/classifieds/detail.php?siteid=90&PHPSESSID=65060df...

Some nice stuff there.

G

Don't let that put you off. Import it from America. Even with VAT and shipping it will probably be cheaper than buying here - if you could get it!

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=NavBar&A=search&Q=&...

G

PS: I have twice imported from North America without problems, and at a considerable cost saving over UK prices.

PPS: Note that B&H are selling the D as well. It's a better camera in most respects (though this is reflected in the price!).

Your first post on this subject was in September. Was the gun still within warranty then? If so, you might be able to use your post as evidence that the gun malfunctioned wuthin the warranty period.

This is a Pentax forum, after all.

But I'm glad you have at least diagnosed the problem.

G

The Sigma has certainly had some good reviews.

But......(and I know it's a stop slower), the Pentax 16-45 gets great praise from everybody who has used it (which, sadly, doesn't include me).

Unless I really needed that stop (ISO 800 on a Pentax DSLR is pretty darn good), I personally would plump for the Pentax.

It's somewhat lighter, too.

G

This is one of those questions to which there is no standard answer. Like Steve, I don't use protective filters, but thankfully only for the first of his reasons. Plenty of people, however, do use such filters, and provided they are of high quality, any image degradation is likely to be pretty small.

Most people, however, would probably agree that the use of poor quality filters is a bad idea, and if shooting into the sun I personally would advise even the most ardent filter-user to remove the filter. Unless it is of the highest quality, you are bound to suffer some problems.

I have quite a lot of lenses. The cost of filtering them all would be prohibitive, and, touch wood, I have not yet scratched a lens. I got my first camera some time in the late fifties, so my photographic career probably has more past than future.

I do however, have a small Cokin collection, for those times when an ND or grad is required. I also have a few polarisers.

G

If it works fine on other bodies, it is unlikely that there is a problem with the lens.

Have you tried cleaning the contacts on both the body and the lens?

G

On the Pentax DSLRs, with a K or M lens, in any exposure mode other than manual, the body will meter at full aperture, then take the picture at full aperture - whatever the aperture ring is set to.

So the exposure will be correct, but the aperture will be wrong - unless you wanted full aperture.

With the K 50mm f1.2, I am very happy to shoot at full aperture; indeed there is little point in paying the extra for this lens if you DONT shoot at full aperture. (That's assuming you have more than one 50mm lens. If you have only this one, it will obviously have to perform other duties.)

To use matrix mettering, the body has to know what lens is on the camera. Obviously, with a K or M it has no idea, and defaults to centre-weighted. Spot metering works fine, however.

No need to use the dial, unless you want to. Any exposure mode other than manual will give you correct exposure when you press the shutter button, just like an A lens.

G

Matt,

As I've stated elsewhere, I think the 77mm Ltd is a better bet generally. Better made, just as good optically, and much smaller and lighter. It's also a bit cheaper, and still available new, so second-hand prices are more reasonable.

If you want a very fast portrait lens for digital, I commend the 50mm f1.2, in A or K versions. It's pretty soft wide-open, which is fine for portraits, and the DOF is remarkable. Remarkably shallow, that is.

The K version works (ie: meters properly) in Av mode when wide-open, which is in my view the best way to use this lens.

G

They come up on Ebay every two or three months. As Steve says, they're not cheap, but they are very highly regarded.

Here's your chance:

http://tinyurl.com/98h4d

G

Better and better!

G