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I like the range and the f4 has good narrow focus range, the lens is not as sharp as the 50-135 Pentax Star lens or the Sigma 18-50mm 2.8 that said it focuses well and better than the 50-135mm. It is not super sharp at wide angle and mine is sharper at 70mm which is where I will use it the most. As my carry around general use lens it will be great, my daughter will get my Sigma 18-50mm 2.8 for her commercial work now. I have shot several lower contrast cloudy snow shots that were quite poor, when adding natural contrast it improves greatly, I shot with a shoe mounted Pentax flash and the results are quite good especially at the 50-70mm range when blowing up the image to extreme size.
Picked up one of these as it has a good range in terms of 35m (26-107). Also wanted to get it before pricing continued to go up up up. Harder to find this online in Canada for cheaper than $500US/700CDN. Quite solid build, and heavy! Still trying to learn how to get used to this lens as it behaves differently from my 16-45. Sharpness appears to be get better around 5.6/6.3, and solid at f8. My copy appears to be average at 17 but gets better at 24 and solid right through to ~60. the SDM keeps things quiet and only a few squeaks(low frequency) can be heard.
Very good conditions, almost new. The good surprise was the presence of a protective UV front-lens ;-) Nice objective well designed and powerfull. SDM focus is accurate, silent and rapid. The focal range 17-70mm APSC (=25-105mm full-frame) is adapted for portrait at ~70mm, sport, around ~50mm and landscape ~17mm. Images are clear and sharp. Very good deal.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
The Pentax DA 17-70mm f/4.0 AL(IF)SDM lens is a better replacement for the standard kit lens. It has a wider range of focal length 25-105mm equivalent in 35mm film terms which provides everything from wide angle to moderate telephoto. It also has a wider aperture of f/4 throughout the range. It is a very sharp lens, almost as good as the more expensive DA*16-50mm and if anything better at wide angle. It is also smaller and lighter. The only drawbacks are no weather sealing and as it is SDM only having no screw drive it will autofocus with the more recent Pentax cameras - K10D, K20D, K-7 but with older bodies will be manual focus only. It is now my most used lens on my K-7 and I am very happy with it.
I purchased this lens to replace another Pentax lens, the 16- 50mm DA lens which I found to be an underperformer, given its cost. The DA 17-70mm lens has performed well and is definitely an upgrade from the 16-50mm DA lens it replaced. The autofocus system does work well and only ocassionally misses its mark but is usually quick and responsive. The images this lens produces are crisp and very sharp especially when the lens is stopped down. Overall I am pleased with my purchase.