The Pentax SMC-DA 18-250mm Zoom Lens
One surprise Pentax had up its sleeve is a lens that wasn't on the lens road map. Today, Pentax announced the new SMC-DA 18-250 F3.5-6.3 ED AL(IF) lens that will work with all Pentax DSLRs. That's a 28mm to 383mm equivalent in 35mm. It's a small little package with a big 14X zoom range, 16 lens elements, 7 aperture blades, and a 62mm filter diameter. Recommended retail price is $499. (Update: 1001NoisyCameras has clued us in that Pentax Japan says the lens will be shipping in late October and that they're making about 6,000 per month)
The SMC-DA 18-250mm
All-purpose superzooms have been getting smaller and smaller, and the current trend is for IF (internal focus mechanism) lenses that are under 1lb in weight and that have a terrific APS-C zoom range. It's true that the compromise is for softer corners and more distortion, but the small lens extension size means that there's less flash vignetting and the light weight means it's a good tourist lens. Tamron already has its 18mm-250mm lens on the market for about $499 (see the review at PopPhoto), but this new Pentax version boasts the SMC coating Pentax is famous for, and it doesn't need the Tamron's Manual/Autofocus switch (because Pentax has that on the camera body). Among the nice little design touches is the zoom lock clasp that features ribbing (pictured right). It comes with a petal lens hood similar to the DA 18-55.Now you might be asking, what's a better budget zoom solution? Two lenses like the DA 18-55 and the DA 50-200, which have less distortion but collectively weigh more, or the superzoom DA 18-250? Well, it depends. If you want less wide angle distortion in landscape photos, less vignetting, and better flare reduction, you'll definitely want the pair of lenses. If you're planning on traveling super light, you'll just want the one lens, which you'll never have to change and risk getting dust in your camera, and it's that premium of design that you're paying extra for. You can just leave it on all the time. So, it boils down to what you're willing to put up with. Me, I'd take all three.
Specifications:
Lens Mount: PENTAX KAF2
Lens Construction: 16 elements, 13 groups
Angle of View: 76-6.5°
Diaphragm: Fully Automatic
Minimum Aperture: f/22-f/45
Number of Aperture Blades: 7
Metering System: TTL Open Aperture Metering
Minimum Focus Distance: 1.48’ (0.45m), or about 18"
Filter Diameter: 62mm
Maximum Magnification: 0.28x
Maximum Diameter: 3.0” (75mm)
Minimum Length: 3.4” (85.5mm)
Weight (w/o hood): 16.0 oz (455g)
Hood: PH-RBB 62mm
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