Hello all,

Yesterday, I went to a Pentax demo day in a local store here in Antwerp, Belgium. I talked to the sales rep for quite some time and tried out some of the new lenses at the same time. The rep actually wasn't from Pentax but from De Beukelaer who are the distributor for Pentax in our area. He showed genuine enthusiasm for the brand and he looked like a nice guy too. The kind of people Pentax needs.

Here's what I learned:
1) He couldn't say anything about the release dates of the upcoming lenses.
- I initially asked about the DA*60-250/4. I had word from Germany that it was expected late July, but this guy told me he would be surprised if it would be before September (I explicitely asked about September as I'm leaving on a trip then that would suit the DA*60-250 very much).
- He didn't know anything about the DA15 limited, but I expected that.
- What surprised me most was that he was as vague about the DA17-70/4 as he was about the DA*60-250... Isn't the DA17-70 already selling in some places?

2) He confirmed that Pentax was working on releasing two new cameras. One entry model (K2000D?) aimed below the K200D. And one body build around Samsungs 135format sensor. When I asked him how Pentax would be dealing with the lack of new lenses for 135format, he told me he didn't know. Timing for this? Entry model first and then the pro model, but no exact dates obviously.

3) I tried some of the new lenses. Well, only the DA*200/2.8 and the DA*300/4 because I hadn't handled these before.
- My first conclusion was the fast focus that I perceived on both, even in low light.
- When I looked at them more closely the build quality really impressed me. Considerably better still that the two DA* zooms. Heavier too.
- Both share the same shade, which can save some place in a bag when both are needed.
- The tripod socket on the DA*300 was beautyful. It worked ever so smooth! That put the one on my Sigma EX 70-200 to shame. Another reason never to want Sigma again...
- One thing that was important to me was their ability to fit on a teleconverter. I am trying to sell my Sigma EX2xTC so having this one fit the new telelenses would give it a much larger sales potential. And... It fit. I examined more closely and saw that both lenses have rear elements that do not move when focussing (contrary to the FA*300/4.5 e.g.) and that these are relatively deep into the lens body. This makes me believe that this might be done to accommodate a converter that will reach into the body (like the old A 1.4x-L and A 2x-L), and that as such the upcoming TC might be tele-only, and won't fit onto the DA*50-135/2.8 e.g. But perhaps Pentax will make -S versions too?

4) We asked about the W60 too, but again, no news.


He didn't have the DA35/2.8 macro, but my friend Marc who went along to the demo did! I played a bit with that one after leaving the store and I was impressed!!! Despite of 35mm FOV for some reason not really suiting my photography (the FA31 and FA43 strangely do) its close focus abilities are amazing. Not for 1:1 as that really gets too close to the front element to my liking, but if you like to get real close with a standard lens, this one is perfect. AF was fast and MF was beautifully damped (the best in any limited so far, FA or DA).

In all it was an interesting day, although I didn't learn anything world shocking, but I hadn't really expected this either...

Wim

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Belgium, GMT+1
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