I reckon young Starling as well.

Thanks John

30 degrees plus and sunny at present. 18 degrees and raining here......

Just an update and to thank everyone for their help and advice.

I'd decided on the 8-16mm, but then saw Rich's (maurisimo) post on the classifieds advertising his 10-20mm. I figured that I'd try it and even if I decide ultimately that I'd prefer the 8-16 I'm not going to lose out much if I re-sell it at some point.

I also get to keep the 18-250mm for now as well which would have needed to be sold to get the 8-16mm.

Hopefully it will arrive before I leave for Italy on Thursday so I should be able to take some photos and report back!

Thanks again

Same dilemma as me, Sharon, though we didn't get any Olympic tickets

After lots of research and head scratching I had decided on the 8-16mm too, for the same reasons as you - great reviews and (sort of) affordable.

I also considered the hiring route for an upcoming trip to Italy, but thought the hire costs were quite expensive, relative to the lens cost anyway. Also I worried about damaging it!

The 10-17 fisheye is a great lens, too, and something I'd love if I had the money. It's a bit of a specialist lens, though, and whilst the distortion is fun, it's a bit limited for normal use. I'd personally use a standard wide angle more and for a one-off like the Olympics it would be a safer bet.

The 12-24mm looks great, but very expensive and I dismissed it simply on price.

Personally, in your situation, I'd do what I have settled on and get a good used 10-20mm or 8-16mm (but haven't been able to find one of those yet - says something for the lens). A decent used 10-20mm will cost somewhere between £225 and £245 delivered and you won't lose anything if you decide it's not for you and re-sell it. If you rent you will obviously lose the £35 or so that costs plus presumably you need to post it back RMSD.

Having said all that I suspect that you will be so far back in the stadium that your 18-250mm might be perfectly wide enough at 18mm anyway and you have the option of zooming in! I'd take mine if I was going.

Brilliant as usual, especially number 1

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pentax-Samsung-DSLR-fit-Sigma-135-400mm-APO-lens-exc-w...

Yours looks in better condition, mind & has the box and case.

I was tempted, too, but it's probably too heavy for me.

It's actually only £70 more than the cheaper 10-20mm at SRS and a lot less than the fixed aperture 10-20mm. I was trying to get a feel for whether £399 for the 8-16mm is a good price at the moment as I know the prices go up and down. I'd rather pay a little extra for a new one, unusually for me, given the 3 year warranty and SRS's reputation for good customer service.

The negative points don't really help, especially after the other two photos you posted......

I have really small feet so reckon I'd be o.k.

Pretty much convinced to go for the 8-16mm - just need to check the bank and see if SRS can deliver before Thursday.

The 18-16mm doesn't overlap the 18-250mm, but unfortunately my bank account does. If I get the 18-16mm, I suspect the 18-250mm will have to go Sort of thinking, eventually, 8-16mm, DA 40mm LTD and 55-300mm, plus my older primes.

The older, non-hsm, 10-20mm was the one I was looking at - can't afford the fixed aperture.

The 8-16mm is currently £399 at SRS. Not sure how that compares to recent prices, though they do seem to be a lot cheaper than most others. Mifsuds are around £550

I don't have experience of either, but certainly find that my 18-250mm isn't wide enough at 18mm for cityscapes. I'm trying to decide between the Sigma 10-20mm and 8-16mm. The 8-16mm, in particular, looks like a lot of fun.

Some great images here:

http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/lens-clubs/107938-sigma-8-16mm-club-10.html

(Not sure if I can link to the 'other' site, but can pm you the link if not)

Wish I'd had a super-wide in San Francisco last year.