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Pentax HD DA 55-300mm PLM f4.5-6.3 | Lens Review
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- Опубликовано: 7 авг 2024
- Here's my review on the Pentax DA 55-300mm PLM after owning the lens for just over a year at the time of making this review video, sorry to disappoint anyone looking for staged tests, technical analysis or some charts & graphs. My review is purely based on real world use.
Pentax DA 55-300mm PLM - amzn.to/3Nf1Xq4
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Video Chapters
0:00 Pentax shooters need this lens!
0:19 The Pentax DA55-300 PLM
0:58 Action sports shots
2:30 What's so good about this lens?
4:35 Who's this lens for?
6:03 Sample shots
7:32 Link to buy the 55-300 PLM
8:17 More Pentax Videos!
#pentax_da55300plm #pentax
The hidden gem BEAST of the Pentax lineup. Love mine on my K70. #plmgang
They should have just called it the BEAST 😂
Great work Lee
Thanks mate 👍
Great video, I have had mine along with the K3iii for about seven months. What a great combo, looking forward to using both of them to photograph the Bald Eagles when they return here in the next month or so.
Thanks much appreciated. Oh I'm jealous of that combo! I bet it's just a joy to use when shooting those Bald Eagles.
I've had this lens since December 2017 and it rarely leaves the mount on my Pentax K3II. I've shot birds, the moon, fish, deer, landscapes, boats, ships, trees, buildings, beavers, waterfalls, and you name it! It seldom disappoints me when I get it right. Such an underrated lense for sure.
Between this & the DA*50-135 they are my favourite lenses for Pentax APSC bodies. The PLM is a game changer for Pentaxians who want to shoot moving subjects!
When you get it right... I find it soft on the long end 300 when shooting small objects. Personal observations
Just Great Pictures well done!!
Many thanks
Thanks for sharing a beautiful and an informative video! I (husband part) am using this lens since September 2020 and have found it impressive. I still have Pentax -DA* 300 mm F4, but it was proving to be heavy for my backpacking trips. I may use it for wildlife expeditions closer to home only. To each their own, to complement Pentax HD DA 55-300mm PLM, I am using Pentax 18-135 mm.
Cheers mate much appreciated! I've never had the chance to use the DA*300, I imagine the image quality & rendering is top notch. But like you say, the PLM has it's advantages too! All depends on the user I suppose.
Love motorbikes & think I'm going to love Pentax DLSR (Just got a new KF + Kit lens for a bargain price). It would be great to see you shoot Speedway (No idea if there's a business case for it from your POV, but the team liveries & stadiums are cool). Enjoying your channel & this looks like the 1st lens I would buy when I want to expand.
Nice! The KF is a good way into the Pentax system, my first camera was the K-70 which I really enjoyed! I'll have to have a look into your suggestion on shooting some speedway it looks pretty crazy from what I've seen!
@@LeeIveson Thanks !
My favourite lens! Received it because the lens I had ordered was out of stock….great stroke of good fortune!
Easily my most used lens shooting Pentax!
Amazing pictures as always. Although I've never used the lens, I agree it looks like an amazing performer, and then the price is just crazy! The optical performance looks as good as the DA* lenses, but because it doesn't have that * distinction it's so much cheaper, haha.
I've never used a lens with PLM either. Interested to see this tech in more lenses.
Cheers mate much appreciated! It really is a gem, If you've never used the PLM version then your in for a treat if you get your hands on one, the AF speed & accuracy are on another level from the previous gen versions of this lens. If Pentax came out with a 70-200 F2.8 or even F4 PLM with enclosed internal focusing to stop dust getting in then that would be my perfect lens, for what I shoot anyway.
Same comment here re PLM. You got me interested, Lee. :-)
@@l.nauwelaerts195 Glad you liked my review of the PLM 👍
The only thing on my X-Mas Shopping list!
I 100% recommend!
Thanks, I'm getting one for myself!!!
Great all round lens 👌
Lee
Great lens I use it for wildlife BIF with my K70 and K3-11. I cannot say enough good things about the lens much quicker to focus than my old Tamron 75-300 screw drive lens I used previously for wildlife photography
Its a beast! I started out with the Tamron 70-300 as well, for the money that lens was canny but not a patch on the 55-300 PLM.
Great shots again Lee. making me want this lens now even though I haven't yet got a Pentax camera!! Have you ever considered shooting Equestrian events? Lots of people, lots of kids, LOTS of money to spend on images!!
Cheers Mark! If you end up picking up a Pentax APSC body then this would be the first lens I'd recommend, it's literally glued to my K3! Although backwards compatibility is a small issue from the K3 onwards it works fine, but any older of a body & it only works at the widest aperture, which is not to much of an issue depending on what you shoot.
Yes I've defiantly thought about shooting Equestrian, I'm just in the process of getting my dog/pet photography off the ground, some virus thing ruined all the momentum I had built up! So yeah I'd love to do Equestrian photography in the future for sure! Cheers
I added this lens to my collection this year. Straight away I could see the difference between it and my old 70 to 300. Way better and so sharp at all through the range. As for my best lens. 50mm macro. Amazing at macro shots. I shot spiders this year and wow the stacked images were great buy the single images are just as good. Also my 17 to 70 lives on my k70. It's my workhorse lens. All lenses have there uses at the right time. But most of us will stick to between 17 and 80mm. So that's the best all-round lens I think.
Nice! Yeah it all comes down to what you shoot the most as to what your favourite lens or even focal length will be. It's funny, I'm just on editing my "Initial first impression" of the 17-70 I picked up at the end of summer. I thought let me try some of those wider angle lenses to see how I get on with them, I'm so use to shooting action with the telephoto, its come as a shock almost using the 17-70.
Just bought ot for my K-50 from mpb. Bought and returned the tamron thanks for the review. Plan to adc the k-70 later in the year. Thanks for the great review.
Congratulations on your new lens! You will unlock the full potential of this lens when you get your hands on a K70, some of my best images came from that combo! Enjoy buddy cheers 🍻
Satisfied? I got one for my k-70 (i also had k-50 but mirror suddenly died )🥲
Interesting review. I have been considering the * 300mm but this looks a worthy alternative. Many thanks!
For sure it's a very versatile lens, granted it does not have the constant f4 but it has the super fast PLM focusing motor and the HD coatings create clean & crisp images. For the money I'd buy another tomorrow. 👍
It was your comments about the AF that got me thinking - if you are photographing action - like your splendid motorcross shots - then the zoom comes into its own.
Yes, it is a good lens and along the same (maybe a bit more) image quality, as the previous generation of Pentax 55-300 lenses, but offers faster focusing. That faster focusing comes at the cost of losing mechanical focusing, and instead, using focus by wire. One of the benefits of DSLR is being able to look through the viewfinder to check and setup a shot without even turning on the camera. With this lens, you are unable to focus until you turn on the camera to power the motor, and even then, it lacks the finess and fine control of mechanical linkage. Since this a great AF lens, I only consider this a negative if you are a manual focus shooter.
Ah that's why I have to turn the camera on to focus! Still that's a small price to pay for the much faster AF this lens has over the previous gen versions.
My three equal-favourite lenses are Sigma 10-20 DC, Pentax 16-85 DC and the 55-300 PLM. The two Pentax lenses are permanent fixtures to my K-3 and K-3 II respectively. All three are blisteringly fast with the 16-85 marginally the fastest although that's up for debate since I've never actually timed them. They all have their own uses as you would expect and I do have three primes for very specific requirements but for outstanding capability as walk-around lenses and for covering such a wide range those two Pentax lenses are unbeatable - for me!
Three sound choices. I have the Sigma 10-20 HSM version & love it! That's one lens I've yet to try (16-85) as I have the 18-135, I'd probably let that go to buy the 16-85 which sound like it has super fast AF! And of course the 55-300 PLM is my favourite lens up to now, it just works! Cheers Ray
@@LeeIveson You won't regret it, Lee and it fits into the range of focal lengths nicely as well.
Thanks for thr video! I have this lens and it's my primary lens))) the only point to change it - temporary use 10-17.
It's my go to lens for sure. I bet that 10-17 is super fun to use too. I've got a Sigma 10-20 which I need to use more than I do at the moment, I love using that lens for close up dog portraits it creates some fantastic images!
@@LeeIveson yes, for fun and some landscaping
Mine has been stuck almost full time on my KP since I got it. I still have to get around to selling my old non-PLM copy someday; there's no looking back on that one. :)
I don't shoot in dusty conditions like you, but if I ever do I'll try to remember to put a bag on it like you have; I think that's a very smart idea. For me, I was surprised to find the thing I like most about this lens is its "Travel Mode" or "Collapsed Mode" or whatever it's called. I don't have any other zooms that can fold up so small. Since I mostly shoot wildlife and landscape with a shoulder strap on hikes, collapsing that lens keeps it from banging into my hips all the time, like my old 55-300 used to. Though that speedy focus is pretty amazing too, of course!
Yeah if you ever end up shooting in dusty conditions or even in the rain I would highly recommend chucking a small bag over your lens! I forgot to mention that feature! 100% its a great feature to have, I don't know why they haven't put the Len's lock feature on more zooms.
Nice to meet you.
I use the lens and speed design CAPTURE and K3.
The lens is very compact and light weight! 55-300 plm and 28-105 These are most popular Pentax zoom lenses in JAPAN. Thank you for the wonderful movie! from JAPAN.
Hey! Yeah I love the 55-300 PLM lens it is fantastic for shooting moving subjects with my K3 & K3ii, even with my Pentax K5 it works really well at wide open apertures! Cheers
Great lens! It definitely punches above its weight!
I think so too!
Excellent showcase! But shhhhh. We both gotta stop saying that the lens should be more money lol
Cheers Kobie! Yeah maybe I should retract that statement 😅 we never said that!
Great pictures, my favorite is probably the DA*50-135mm 2.8 and the DA*55mm 1.4 image quality vise, but I also have the DA Limited lenses and they are really great too, easy for walk around, I am also using the K3 first generation and had planned to buy the new K3, but the price I think is too high and no swivel screen or Astro tracker!! Also at the moment the K1 is cheaper, or going the Nikon Z6, some nice glass there too.
Biggest problem moving to other brand is the quality of the body, no one can touch Pentax in handling and also the better glass has something special in the rendering of the colors.
Tough decision.
Thanks much appreciated! I love the DA*50-135 it is almost perfect apart from the SDM motor being so slow! I've never shot any of the limited lenses to date, but from what I've seen of them they look brilliant. I have to agree that the K-3 iii is priced out for me too, I like the look of the Z6 ii or the Canon R6 looks amazing, BUT like you say switching systems has some big draw backs even if the tech is better the overall feel & user experience may not be as good?
Someone else has beat me to it because its on my Christmas list as well LOL LOL Tam.
Everyone use my link then 😂
Picking one up this week. Can't Still can't bear to part with my K10D and original K3 as they're also still great cameras.
Your going to love it Martin! It literally breathes new life into the old workhorses!
@@LeeIveson Loving it so far. Just picked it up this morning from Wex and first impressions are that it's a really good lens. Already got the older WR for free wihen I bought the K3-iiii so I was able to part exchange it for the PLM .
I just received my 55-300 plm I find it soft at 300 doing near macro work of flowers indoors, shooting raw, tripod f.8 manual, I have not tested it shooting sports yet.
Thanks for the video Lee
My copy is a little soft at the short end 55mm wide open at f4.5. I've found the sweet spot seems to be 180mm - 250mm. I'll admit I've not done much in the way of close up macro stuff with this lens, the main reason I love it is down the the PLM focusing motor, it completely changed my original K3 for fast moving subjects.
@@LeeIveson excited to do the same... Low snow = no snowboarding pics, surfing pics =Travel $, rain = no skate... Spring /summer/fall/ early winter 👍
Deep winter I have to travel to get photos and few people want to buy... Purely hobby for myself Lee.
At least I dont have to justify to spouse 😉👍😅
thanks. this seems like a better choice over the DA SMC 50-200mm f/4-5.6. i was just about to buy it too. The HD DA 55-300mm for about the same aperture seems like a better value.
Yes it's a much better lens in my experience.
I’ve used it with a K70, KP and now the K3iii and it’s performed beautifully with all of them for nature and aviation shots. Now though I got spoilt and got a DFA 150-450 new for an incredible price and for IQ it leaves the 55-300 PLM way behind. That said if I’m going to be out for any length of time the 55-300 is my go to lens due to the weight of the 150-450 plus it works well with the 1.4 rear convertor.
Oooo that 150-450 does look nice! A little out of my price range at the moment but hopefully in the future I'll own it! That's the thing with the 55-300 PLM it's a brilliant compromise between performance & usability. Ive noticed It's a lot of Pentax shooters go too lens recently.
@@LeeIveson The 150-400 is HEAVY. You would not want to hand-hold it for long nor carry it around for long periods.
@@howardtarragon1645 Yeah It does look like a bit of a BEAST!
The lens everyone should have for sure
100%
Hello Lee, a great video and I'm chuffed you were satisfied with your results from this lens. I have a K-50 version 1. Do you think it would be compatible with this lens?
Hey, thanks! Yeah this lens is right up my street it great. I can't say 100% if the 55-300 PLM will be fully compatible with your K50, I have the K5 which can only use the lens at wide open aperture. You might want to do a little research to find out for sure before you go ahead & buy a copy of this lens. Cheers
The K-3 III may still have to wait a bit longer for me, as getting the 55-300 PLM (sometime next year hopefully) will make my original K-3 feel significantly younger again - and will give me some serious telephoto time with what I already have, I should think. Your video strikes me as a well-deserved love letter to the PLM, and capably illustrated too, I must say. Actually, I'm finding the evidence-centered approach much more compelling than any of the usual measurebating-slash-pixel-peeping reviews out there (even if those may have their place too).
That's exactly what the 55-300 PLM did for my K-3 & K-70, it turned them into something very usable for shooting action with! Granted it's not up to the pro standards by any means, but then neither is the price! I would go for that option before the K-3 iii personally, you might be surprised.
@@LeeIveson Yep, agree on all counts. Also about the DA* alternatives you mentioned: Much to admire there optically and build-wise, but what use is all that if you can hardly afford it, and it comes with a first-gen SDM that is arguably slower than even screwdrive, and that will sooner or later die on you. Plus, knowing myself, the size and weight advantage of the PLM will also mean that it will spend more time on my camera out shooting, and less time at home.
@@Needacreate Yep that's true, I'm going to get around to giving my thoughts/reviews on the DA* lenses I own (16-50, 50-135 & 200) great lenses but with some draw backs for me.
Ya great lens.. image quality is excellent for price.. I have more lenses than I need and it's prob one of my most used for speed and focus.. with k3iii the speed is fantastic..
I bet it's an ANIMAL on the K3 iii
Cheers for this. I've being looking for a replacement for my sigma 70-300 great lens when I had it on the K10D but Fungus has gotten into It and its noisier than my washing machine.
That's the lens I came from, I had the Tamron 70-300 LD which for the money was mint! The upgrade was more than worth it though, everything is better. Silent focusing, super fast & accurate AF, weather sealed, compact, image quality . . . the list goes on!
This lens is fantastic. Is the best.
Great value & performance! I would love to see more PLM lenses!
Thank you
Welcome!
Thanks for this review. I take a lot of show jumping (horses) photos and with my current Tamron (AF 70-300 F4-5.6 Di) lens I have a high failure ratio when it comes to focus.
It is getting better with experience of course, and I get some really great photos with it. But I assume this Pentax PLM lens would be significantly faster with focus then?
The price isn't that bad, so I most probably going to pair this lens with my K-70 now after seing this video.
That's also the lens I started with (Tamron 70-300) and then went onto the 55-300 PLM which was a huge step up in terms of how fast the camera was able to grab focus & it upped my keeper rate too! Plus it's weather sealed so you will have a weather sealed setup when using it with your K-70! One thing I would advise is to have some sort of lens bag/cover as even though the lens has WR sealing it is still prone to sucking in dust or moisture when using the zoom, apart from that I think you will be really happy with that combo of the K-70 | 55-300 PLM!
@@LeeIveson Yeah, I noticed that in the video. Something that is probably forgotten by many.
@@LeeIveson got my lens now and took it for a spin today. Man, it really is a game changer. Had som 20 photos of my daughter jumping with her pony, and almost 100% focus on them - not some fancy trees in the backgorund etc :)
Fun times ahead for sure.
I still keep the 55-300PLM lens for my K-1, even though I sold off my Pentax APS-C camera and other lenses. It's that good a lens it might as well get some more playtime on the K-1 in both APS-C and FF modes.
Not sure if it's better to ask here than fb or pentaxforums but I guess comments help YT videos so: To shoot indoor dance in stage lights (so no WR needed) would you still take the 55-300PLM or pick a Fuji instead? To keep this pentax-loyal ;) the PLM would surely do better than Fuji XC 50-230mm - right? how about XF 55-200?
@@wkadruje5469 It's a good question. My experience of the XC 50-230 has not been great, it's AF speed is much MUCH slower than the PLM, but then we're talking about a $250AUD lens (XC) vs a $600 lens (PLM), so its hard to expect much of the XC when it is literally bottom bargain basement stuff. The Fuji is the more capable camera, but the XC attached is... 'meh'. The K3iii is the more 'meh' camera but has a decent lens attached, swings and roundabouts! But both are slowish lenses (aperture wise) for any indoor work. You will notice a lot of Lee's shots with the PLM are outdoors. There's a reason f2.8 zooms exist, that would be the choice zoom if needing zoom (and if not needing zoom a fast prime even better!).
So in truth neither lens would be my choice at all. I do weddings and plenty of indoor shooting with stage light type events, the right lens for the job is neither of those aforementioned glass. The Pentax cameras I have used can definitely do the job but I would favor Fuji for greater AF assistance but better lens choices should be made.
I know this sounds silly but, have you had a go at using the K1 + 55-300 PLM to shoot fast moving subjects? If so how did you find it? The fps doesn't really concern me for how I shoot anyway, the extra image quality from the K1 is the big plus for me looking at that setup. I know you said it handles the vignette pretty well at certain focal lengths & not so much at others when in full frame mode.
@@wkadruje5469 That's what I like to see get the YT algorithm boosting haha. This one is obviously for Eddy to answer, but I must say I like the look of the Fuji 70-300 XF it reminds me of the Pentax 55-300 PLM from watching a few reviews.
@@LeeIveson Yeh I have a little. I tried things like BiF with KP and K-1 (with the PLM attached) and its hit or miss because those things (birds) are unpredictable (much more so than a motorcross or racetrack where you at least get some idea of the 'flight pattern' so to speak. I'm just uploading my summary of my time with the K3iii and I had the PLM on that quite a bit, that combo would be my preferred choice for 'fast thingies' as it has the buffer and fps that really aids in the overall keeper rate for fast thingies. I can understand your genre actually not needing the fps and buffer, its a bit more predictable and I think you are working with a really great budget combination. An X-T4 + 70-300 would be a great combo as well, but my side of the pond we're talking $3k for that kit, what's the price of a K-70 and 55-300PLM? Half that? Certainly a K3III+55-300PLM is getting towards a similar price compared to the X-T4+70-300, me personally I'd go with the Fuji.
IQ wise though the K-1 is hard to top (flic.kr/p/2iKFzLj flic.kr/p/2m7yAYC) it does get a deeper buffer and fps boost in crop mode as well, and if you can handle Jpgs you get actually a very decent buffer, 70 shots or so I think before clogging up.
Ditto about so many things in this video. Pentax needs to make more PLM lenses. If they made the 50-135mm lens with a PLM, it would improve it 100 percent. That lens hunted like a dog.
Regarding f/6.3, it bumps up to that at about 280mm, while my Sony 50-370mm lens goes to f/6.3 at 200mm and costs $900.
The 50-135 would be near perfect lens with that PLM motor inside! Same for a 70-200! Listen up Pentax 😂
Based on some research and your real life use review, I just ordered it with delivery planned for tomorrow. I plan to use it with Pentax KP and K3 iii for some action shoots, mainly skaters as well as a holiday all rounder. One question I have is how do you compare the 55-300 in terms od lens iq to the 55-135?
Nice! Your going to love the AF speed from the PLM! Well for me the DA*50-135 is the best rendering lens I have used to date for my APSC Pentax bodies, the 55-300 PLM is no slouch in that department either especially for super zoom lens, but the rendering is not as good as the DA*50-135 in my opinion. However I use the 55-300 PLM 90% of the time for all the reasons I mentioned in this video, for the style of photography I normally do it fits the bill very well. Let me know how you get on with your new lens! Cheers
I've had my eye on this lens for a while now. I've recently been putting my K-3 mark 1 through z-axis tracking tests using my parents' dog (easy to get that fellow to run straight at the camera, and he's fast!). It can be frustrating trying to get consistent results. I need to practice more. But I've often thought things would go smoother with the PLM. I want the K-3iii something fierce but the PLM is a more reasonable upgrade I think. It's an underpriced item whereas the K3iii is probably overpriced. Should be an easy choice, but it's not!
As for my favorite lens, it's probably the 18-135. It's my go to for hikes and it has proven itself again and again through IQ , versaility, and weathersealing. But I recently acquired a Sigma 17-50 f/2.8 for $180 that has absolutely outstanding IQ throughout the zoom range (as good as my DA 35 and 50mm primes) and focuses with confidence in low light. It has really elevated my indoor photography of my kiddo and for that I love it.
The AF tracking does struggle with fast moving subjects coming directly towards the camera, even with the PLM I've found it still hunts. I've seen videos of the D500 tracking pretty well, but I suppose that camera inherited the same AF system as the D5 so its going to be good. If the K3iii prices come down some more it could be an option. I've heard good things about that Sigma 17-50, I had the Sigma 17-70 f2.8-f4 which was also super IQ. Its a shame they dropped the K mount :(
@@LeeIveson The D500 is definitely a great alternative if you want to switch brands and stay DSLR. If you to mirrorless, it seems like it is almost hard to go wrong. It does seem like the k3iii used price is dropping dramatically, however. I've seen them for $1500 USD already. I think if it had a tilting screen it would be close to perfect. Oh well.
Sounds like I'd probably be happy with the PLM and my k3i to be honest. If it just hunts sometimes that should be good for me as a hobbyist. A keeper rate of 75%+ would be fantastic. I got 91% the other day (dog running at me) with my DA 50mm f/1.8 but the lighting was perfect and I definitely did everything right. Yesterday with my 18-135, much worse results. But worse lighting and I think I wasn't doing my part quite right either (I wasn't keeping the center point right on his face). Seems for me the best upgrade would be more practice. 🤣
@@jbp6759 You know what they say . . . Practice makes perfect . . . Or makes you extremely frustrated 🤣
about that plastic wrapper - is that something you buy or just put together yourself? Tried something similar years ago and zooming was a pain. Would you feel this is necessary for rain as well or just dust?
I've used the 50-200 WR lens in the snow/sleet/rain before, the inside of the front element ended up with some condensation which did evaporate but I'm guessing that's how mould spores start, so I just air on the side of common sense (most the time) when it comes to using my kit in harsh conditions. As for the bag it's just a bag that Motocross gloves come packaged in, no real trouble using the zoom with this thing on there. I wish Pentax would make an internal focusing 50-135 or 70-200 PLM lens though!
Hey there ! I need to ask because I have this lens for few weeks and I am not sure if its broken or I cant shoot hah 😂 It seems okay but when I need to image crop, because I want to have bird in center of pic without border, its not so sharp. How can I test it or what crop it works well please? I have Pentax k-30 but it takes nice pics with macro 100 so it is not camera problem I guess
It depends on how much you are cropping the image to be honest. If your are cropping heavily then the image will not hold up that well, regardless of the lens your using. Try to fill the frame as much as possible when you take the shot then if you need to crop the image will still be very usable.
@@LeeIveson yes it makes sense but if I crop from that macro lens its sharp..thats why I am worried about this one lens and I am not sure how to test it properly. I tried to make focusing lens test and "calibration" but that helped just to my autofocus and logically doesnt make sense to sharpness. do you have cropped photos in any videos?
@@LuciaNovorolnikova-fe9zu Well the DFA 100 macro is one of the sharpest lenses Pentax have so that could be making the 55-300PLM look less sharp? Many of the photos in this video have been cropped to varying degrees. Do you have any other lenses you could test against it to see if they are also not as sharp as you'd like once the image is cropped? Maybe try using the 100 Macro lens in the same scenario as the 55-300 at 100mm and the same apature then crop both the images 🤔
What settings were you using on those motocross shots they look cracking
Thanks Michael. To freeze the action I'm usually anywhere between 1/640 up to 1/2000 depending on the speed of the bike & the lighting conditions. To create motion blur with the panning shots I'll start at around 1/125 then work my way up (faster shutter) or down (slower shutter) to find the slowest shutter speed possible to create motion blur but still keep the rider in focus. Hope that helps out mate.
Yes thanks Lee much appreciated I do ok with my k5iis but really want to see a major difference with my K3iii but need this weather to improve to really test it
just bought a F* 300/4.5 with "stuck" AF (idk yet) over this lens for some 250€ (about the same as the 50-300 used) ...I wonder if I'm gonna regret that 😅 (I needed a 2nd wildlife lens for friends wanting to go shoot with me)
Ahh that's not good news! Have you had any luck "un sticking" the AF? For the price you can pick up the 55-300 PLM for I will always recommend it. Such a versatile lens. For more serious long reach scenarios I'd imagine the DFA 150-450 would be better a better option.
@@LeeIveson well I already have the 150-450 and am not quite rich enough to buy a 2nd one😅...this lens was mainly for a friend who wanted to go with me birding and the 150-450 was too heavy for her.
As to the lens I bought...there is the good and the bad...the seller (or someone who worked for him) haven't realized how the af/mf switch works on the lens and tried to autofocus in mf position...which on this lens connects the focusing mechanism to the focusing ring that is too stiff for the screwdrive motor to operate, and so it seems that it is "stuck"...so the af actually worked...
the bad thing was that someone cleaned the lens but didn't secure threads on 3 screws holding the lens together...so when it got to me it was quite "wobbly" and it had severe coma from misaligned optical elements since it was holding together on just one screw (also manual aperture controls didn't work due to the misalignment) and eventually it fell apart...but its not all bad...I've got refund and I think I can mos likely fix the lens when I find time to figure out how to take it apart :)
In the end I've constructed an unholy abomination of the 18-135 kit lens + DA 1.4xTC and surprisingly it was usable since in the park we went to were the tamest birds I've seen. I like to get away from people while shooting wildlife so I normally wouldn't go there but that day I took some of my best photos (with k1+150-450) :)
Should change it to Ray Donovan photography! 👍 Got review
Funny you say that, your not the first to say I look like him 😅
@@LeeIveson Enjoyed the review combining 2 awesome things. Motocross and photography (Pentax) is rare. Great job hope the channel grows
Thanks 😊
Right!? I'm glad it wasn't just me who saw that resemblance.
Mine occasionally overexposes. Otherwise brilliant
Which camera do you shoot with?
K3 and KP
@@normanpritchard1377 That's interesting 🤔 My K3 underexposes by around 0.7 of a stop regardless of the lens I'm using.
My most used Pentax lens was the lowly DA 55-300, and apart from the slightly slower max aperture values, the PLM version is better in every way, so I think it'd be stuck to my camera if I had it.
I'd love to see more PLM versions of lenses, and as I understand it, the limitation is that the PLM motor can only drive very light focus elements. The DC has the required torque for the lens with heavier focusing elements, but it's slower and still a bit noisy. The SDM is quiet and fast, but has that reputation for being a little unreliable :(
I think I read that the 20-40 limited requires the torquier DC motor, but I'd love to see a PLM version of the 18-135 if that were possible. Nice that there's the 16-50 PLM now too though, but that's an expensive constant f/2.8, so a more affordable PLM kit zoom (with better optical performance than the old 18-55) would be a good addition.
Yep the 55-300 PLM seems to have been welded onto my camera! I've heard a few people say that's the limitations with the PLM motor, it seems it hasn't got enough grunt to work with the lenses that would benefit from it massively (my slow poke DA* 50-135 being at the top of that list).
I agree, hopefully Pentax will put the PLM in some more affordable lenses in the future, at the moment they seem to have gone from the value for money brand to the niche show me the money one :(
@@LeeIveson that seems to be the path they've taken alright!
@@AndrewSowerby Sadly :(