Standard zoom lens choice

[pmchin]

Dear all,

I am thinking to upgrade my 18-55mm to a better IQ and speed:

What would you pick again if you have a better choice for the standard general purpose walk around/travel lens:-

Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC
Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC
Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II LD
Pentax SMCP-DA 16-45mm f/4.0 ED AL

worth the price???
Pentax DA 17-70 f4 SDM
Pentax DA* 16-50 2.8

The qualities I'm most interested in are: resolution, contrast. Next most important is speed. Lesser of importance is bokeh (Unless it's BAD bokeh, I heard some said Tammy 1750 does harshy bokeh), and last is AF speed/noise. Zoom range is the least important, they're all "within range", though it's usefulness (especially up to 70) can't be denied. Minimal vignetting/softness can be important too (of course!) One can only take so much p/p

It's to be used as a general purpose lens, aiming for significantly better quality (mainly in terms of resolution/contrast) than the kit, and a bit faster wouldn't hurt!

[dnaxe]

17-50 is the most value for money.

I would personally get (and I own and am pleased with) the 16-50.

The 17-70s, might be an option, but that depends on what you want.

[darrrrrrrrrr]

my reasoning

"with the tamron 17-50 u have constant f2.8 which is quite convenient, plus since you have f2.8 at 50mm u cld potentially skip the fa50 for now. It's not fantastic near wide open so perhaps the 375sgd cld be channeled to an external flash unit instead.

imo the extra 20mm isnt so impt, with 14.6mp you can easily crop if necessary. When i bought it some time back it was 620sgd, not sure if prices went up recently"

only other lens i personally would consider is the da* 16-50, but its a couple of hundred bucks more, much bigger and the sdm is a bit dodgy.. the weather-sealing and the pro-spec build is tempting.. not sure about the harsh bokeh on the tamron, but it hasn't bothered me one bit. some ppl say the focusing on the tamron is slow but it's just the high pitch ZEEEEEE of the screw-drive that makes it sound slow.

if the constant zoom bit isn't that important to you, the sigma 17-70 is a good (popular around here) option too. the pentax 17-70 is a bit overpriced right? i guess that's the reason it isn't popular. if u considering it might as well wait until a weather-sealed version is made.

resolution, contrast, i don't think you'll notice those unless you pixel-peep. in fact if you don't compare the lenses side by side i think you will be happy with any of them.

[hamustar]

I've always been a fan of bright viewfinders, so the biggest aperture zooms will get +1 from me.
The tammy, is a pretty decent lens and given it's size (smaller than the other f2.8 zooms), is another advantage , +1 again.
Reputed to be sharp , +1.......cheap +1.

[fengwei]

All the lenses you listed are pretty good ones. If you wanna save money, get the Sigma 17-70/2.8-4.5. If you got the money to burn, get the DA*16-50/2.8. If you need the F2.8 aperture while don't want to spend big money, get the Tamron or Sigam 2.8 ones

[pmchin]

Thank you for all the replies above.

[flowerpot]

Originally Posted by pmchin Dear all, I am thinking to upgrade my 18-55mm to a better IQ and speed: What would you pick again if you have a better choice for the standard general purpose walk around/travel lens:- Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di-II LD Pentax SMCP-DA 16-45mm f/4.0 ED AL worth the price??? Pentax DA 17-70 f4 SDM Pentax DA* 16-50 2.8 The qualities I'm most interested in are: resolution, contrast. Next most important is speed. Lesser of importance is bokeh (Unless it's BAD bokeh, I heard some said Tammy 1750 does harshy bokeh), and last is AF speed/noise. Zoom range is the least important, they're all "within range", though it's usefulness (especially up to 70) can't be denied. Minimal vignetting/softness can be important too (of course!) One can only take so much p/p It's to be used as a general purpose lens, aiming for significantly better quality (mainly in terms of resolution/contrast) than the kit, and a bit faster wouldn't hurt!

u want resolution and contrast, actually the kit lens is hard to beat, u want fast lens not for bokeh then for ?? higher shutter speed ?? just increase the iso... AF speed again the kit lens is already very very fast...

[Reportage]

what i recommend is a standard 18-200 for daytime shoot and a F2.8 17-50 for nightime. This is to minimize lens changing if you are worried about dust getting into camera.

[nameless1]

Originally Posted by Reportage what i recommend is a standard 18-200 for daytime shoot and a F2.8 17-50 for nightime. This is to minimize lens changing if you are worried about dust getting into camera.

Cannot agree more on this.
every time I change len during outdoor shooting, I alway afraid some dots will appear in my shoot after that

For walk around/travel purpose, you might miss some nice moment or shot while changing lens.

[creampuff]

Seems like Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 got wobbly front barrel issues...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqAO8rglGAA&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiOj-7MAO_w

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4yU3...eature=related

[darrrrrrrrrr]

been using mine for a few months without that issue.. My friend's one wobbles quite a lot but he says it doesnt affect the picture.. ???