Seems you know what I was trying to point out now, the 16-50 is not a bad lens at all. Just no way you can comapre with the 50-135. £600 is alot of money for me. Pentax sometimes do overprice their products quite a bit. On the other hand their kit lens are such a bargain, much better than what canon and nikon are offering.

For me only their Limited lenses really worth what we are paying for. It is very expensive but I just can not resist geting them. They are just wonderful.

Even canon users buy these the FA limted lenses to use on their FF body that says it all.

I read somewhere on a japanese forum saying that tokina signed a deal with pentax that tokina would not offer their own branded lenes to Pentax users in return pentax supply them with the SMC coating for the tonkina lenses.

The Tokina 50-135mm is costing around £380 brand new for both nikon and canon mount. I bought myself one on ebay when calumet was selling its ex-demo for £490. Yes still expensive but I really wanted it that time. No way I will get it for more than £600.

Interesting point John.

Will the price for the 645D come down any soon you reckon?

I would like to get the 15mm as well. But IQ if most important for me. I don;t knwo if I should get the DA14mm or the 15mm ltd. Currently I am using the sigma 10-20 4-5.6 for wide.

If I have not mistaken, I remember the DA*16-50 was about £450 brand new when it first came out in the market. Which I think is a much more reasonable price compare to third party lenses. I really don;t understand why pentax incrased the price for everything around 2 years ago while pentax need to gain more market shares.

Pentax marketing sometimes drive me crazy. But I still Love Pentax for no reason.. lol

John thanks for youe comment.

I would expect a £600+ DA* lens to score more than 9 points in the pentaxforum.com database reviewd by pentax users. But the DA* 16-50 scorced 8.64 which is not bad but we are paying alit more for the same thing, we can argue the pentax has weather seal but I had both my weather seal pentax body and lens failed in the rain. I wouldn;t shoot in heavey rain no more.

P.S. Pentax did fix the DA* 50-135 for me after the weather seal failed but it was still within warrenty period, no idea if they would do the same after warrenty expires. My K10D which failed in the rain recovers itself after 3 days under my hair dryer.

What I tried to point out is that the sigma and tamron are both offering lenses with simalar focal length with better or same IQ, yet being a pentax user we have to pay more than 30% more to get the same Tokina lens.

Yes I support you get the tamron 17-50. My brother has one for his Sony DSLR and that one you can comapre it with you DA*50-135. Save you some money so perhaps you can add another wide lens on your shopping list.

IMO the DA* 16-50 is just well over priced, the lens is designed by tokina and they make Canon and Nikon mount for this lens and it cost only £400 brand new. We as pentax users are being punished not able to use tokina branded lenses.

I stay with pentax is purely becuase the FA limited lenses are unbeatable performers.