Need pentax "k' wide-angle lens recommendations please

[acroreef]

Dear Folks:

I have changed my mind about purchasing a Nikon D5100 and probably will be getting a Pentax K5 because of the superior weather sealing and better AEB for taking and processing HDR style photos. Can anyone recommend good quality wide-angle lenses for the Pentax. I don't mind manual focus as I will be using a tripod taking landscape and architecture for most of my shots. Something that might not "break the bank" also. Thanks in advance for your response and assistance.

Dave

[inkista]

Probably the best resource would be to ask the guys on the pentaxforums board. If you really want low cost, probably an old M42-mount Takumar or Zeiss Jena with an adapter would be the way to go. But it's going to depend on your definition of "wide". Because vintage lenses designed for film won't be particularly wide on a 1.5x crop body. Probably the widest you're going to find at reasonable prices will be a 24mm or 28mm, which is more widish than wide on a crop. Most 10-20mm-ish ultrawide zooms for crop are going to be in the US$500-US$600 price range.

My recommendation, if this is your first dSLR, would be to stick with the 18-55 kit lens, and then make lens decisions once you've got experience enough to know which lenses you want and how much you're willing to pay.

Also, with Pentax, just make sure that the lens lineup is going to be sufficient for your needs. Long fast lenses are not part of their lineup, so if sports or wildlife are in your future, make sure you can cover your wants with 3rd party lenses.

[MrB]

My recommendation, if this is your first dSLR, would be to stick with the 18-55 kit lens, and then make lens decisions once you've got experience enough to know which lenses you want and how much you're willing to pay.

I agree with Kathy. The 18-55 Pentax kit lens is well made and quite capable of producing good results. But if you do decide to choose this versatile zoom lens, make sure that you get the WR version - weather resistant, to match the K-5's weather-sealed body.

Philip

[Tringa]

Unfortunately the combination of "good quality", "wide angle" and "not breaking the bank" is quite a difficult thing to achieve and as Kathy has noted old lenses, made for full frame 35mm cameras, may well be too long to be considered wide angle when the 1.5 crop factor is taken into account. I think you will struggle to find an old K mount or M42 lens that will give you a wider field of view than the kit lens.

I agree with the earlier comments. I have a K5 with the 18-55 kit lens and is not at all bad. Have to admit that I do not have another modern wide angle to compare it with, but I don't look at my photos and feel there are problems.

There have been a few times I have fancied the idea of something wider than the 27mm (FF equivalent) the kit lens gives me, but I'd find it hard to justify the cost.

The K5 is an excellent camera. Pentax's own lenses cover the range from 10mm to 300mm so it is more limited than Canon or Nikon, but there are third party lenses that go further. I bought the K5 because I have a certain brand loyalty (I bought (and still have) a 35mm Pentax in the 1980s), the review comments about dynamic range, low light capability and its features were good and I have a few old K mount lens that I can use. The in camera image stabilisation is also bonus; all lenses no matter how old are stabilised lenses.

Dave

[Inkanyezi]

Maybe it's worth pointing out that with Pentax K-5 bracketing is seldom needed for HDR photography. It has an an extraordinary dynamic range of fourteen full stops at lowest ISO, and with careful exposure, that is sufficient DR for most subjects. However, tone mapping may be necessary to get a vivid image that is not too soft, when you want to use the full range from the sensor. But in essence, few HDR images cover more than 14 EV of dynamic range. And with reasonable spacing of the images, you will never need more than two exposures for any HDR. But then you might have to shoot tethered with a script to operate the camera, in order to space the exposures more widely than the in-camera bracketing allows. If you use +3 EV and -3 EV for bracketing, you can set the darkest image to ETTR and use only the two that are six stops apart. That will give a dynamic range of 20 EV. The software runs faster and uses less memory when you process fewer shots.

[geordie01]

I use a K-r and a SIGMA 10-20 non HSM and imho it is a cracking bit of kit and also the 18-55 kit lens is quite good.

[jimd]

The Pentax 16 - 45da is a much better lens than the kit lens. A bit wider and, of course a bit dearer but worth the extra if you can.

[stevelink]

The Pentax 16 - 45da is a much better lens than the kit lens. A bit wider and, of course a bit dearer but worth the extra if you can.

Greetings!
I certainly agree that the Pentax DA 16-45 is much better than the kit lens in most respects (except size, and not WR).
My current dilemma is in deciding which kit listed below is the best option for an upcoming trip to San Francisco. Obviously, I'll want a wide angle for Golden Gate and Redwood shots, which is why the 16-45 is pretty much a given, since it's my "widest" lens.
Pentax K-5 and
Option 1: 16-45, 50-200, 43 Ltd.
Option 2: 16-45, 70 Ltd.
Option 3: 16-45, DA* 55
Dilemma number 2 is whether to travel "light", i.e., a 3-lens kit, without a tripod, and my small camera bag, OR with a tripod and my larger Tamrac Evolution 6 bag.

Anyone with experience in San Francisco photography, please feel free to comment here or at steve@totalqualityphoto.com. Thank you!

[nspanos]

The Pentax 12-24 F4 is a great lens and a huge step up from the 18-55 kit lens (anything in my opinion is a step up from that kit lens in terms of contrast, sharpness & distortion). It's pricey - about $1000 - but you'll immediately see a difference. You can also look at the Pentax 16-50 DA lens - not quite as wide (and has a bit of trouble controlling CA's) but superb as well. If you want something cheaper, Tamron makes a 17-50 2.8 for about $500 that works well.

Just get away from that kit lens...