Ta both - I saw the one on ebay which is indeed £30 from Japan, I'll order that. There were third party ones in times past that professed to offer easier handholding, but they've disappeared so will go with the OEM part.

Was wondering if better to get UK part, but ultimately it's just a lump of metal so no real problem if it's a grey import.

Hi all

As above, I'm after a replacement tripod mount for the DA* 300, not sure where spares are most easily sourced from (I've checked the Pentax/Ricoh site and it's not clear they offer any) or whether to look for 3rd party ones

All advice gratefully received!

Good thinking, would have been nice to meet some forum members- I'm in Edinburgh and saw some brave soul on a windswept day at North Berwick with a 645, so presumably I'm not alone!

I've sent the lens back for investigation, as it's probably a good idea to get it properly checked over. It might be a while and they might see it as uneconomical (I'd hope not, given price of lens) but I've let them know I'd be happy to hold on in case it can be resolved.

Tried the manual focus, no luck, also tried the screw drive - it certainly winds the focus in and out as I can see the focus dial move (amazed how low-geared it is!) but still no response from the AF.

Thanks for ideas in any case - I'll try again over weekend and if no joy I'll call shop next week. If the lens was one I'd had for a while and the AF died I would convert to screw drive, but it's been advertised as almost new so I'd prefer to return if it's not working.

I wondered about this too, so had a look and they're spotless. I gave them a quick wipe just in case but no difference.

Hi all

After a good few months of penny pinching I saved up enough to land a DA* 300MM at a really good price, thought it was too good to be true as the AF wont work on my K3. It simply does nothing, although switching between AF and MF on the lens mount registers on the body.

I'm currently giving the camera battery a full charge so I can flash the firmware (Current 1.1, latest 1.43) but nothing in the firmware literature to say there's noted issues with/fixes for 300mm so I'm not expecting the issue to be resolved through firmware.

The lens has in now way been abused, it's pretty much mint and boxed - although for some reason the tripod mount clamp is clearly an incorrect part which I've informed the shop about. No idea of vintage I'm afraid.

I've only got my K3 available as a Pentax body so can't try on other cameras but my 8-16 (my only other lens with SDM-type focus) works perfectly so it's not likely to be a problem with the body.

Any ideas for things to try? I've heard about manually focusing in and out but there's been no response from the AF at any point. I've heard stories about SDM issues but though these were for the most part resolved.

I'll call shop tomorrow, but any ideas on what to try beforehand appreciated.

I've been toying with this for a while - I've got some arduino kits tucked away which are in many sense meant for this sort of thing, and we've got an old K30 in the loft in our old house which I can reclaim - it should be a case of adapting a wired trigger to fire off a signal from a sensor. I'm pretty sure there's a PIR sensor in the arduino set, although I would imagine it isn't the best quality. Definitely some thing I'd like to give a go, time permitting.

(Arduino, in case you haven't com across it - link

I had quick go with the camera last night and there were 7 images on the card this morning - five of fresh air and two of my trousers and shoes!

Will practice with siting and settings, I've just gone for default for the moment.

Yep, advice I got was the no-glow is important for certain animals like deer (who might be scared off by the low glow) but there's less light to work with so image quality isn't quite up there - although I could see the more 'natural' light might make shots more interesting than those with flash. Swings and roundabouts, I'll see how this one goes and maybe look at a no-glow once I've some idea of what I'm doing! In meantime, reckon I'll be unlikely to get any deer traipsing through back garden so will focus (pardon pun) on the hedgehogs and maybe the foxes and birds.

I'd be interested in whether any shots - either night or daytime - are good enough for a print or whether they're more 'educational' rather than artistic? I've been toying for ages with a DSLR with a PIR trigger for some garden shots, wondering if this would be a more prudent approach.

(Finally, and apols for all questions, I assume the camera comes with a strap or similar for fixing, or do I need to budget for the strap or a tripod? I've got a few tripods tucked away but wouldn't be that keen to leave them exposed - again, pun unintended - for the night.)

We occasionally get a fox in our garden but think it's a bit scared off by the scent of cats etc that also roam through and by proximity to road. It doesn't linger to do much harm, thankfully, I know others have all sorts of bothers with them. Would be good to get a few shots of it though.