I bought this lens mid last year for wildlife and birds and am very happy with its performance. (See https://www.flickr.com/photos/stoflom/albums/72157649753740157) I often use it with the 1.4x converter on my K-5IIs and have experienced no problems with the combination. Sharp, good focus, excellent contrast. Is heavy but that is expected. I accidentally knocked off the Zoom-lock but this was fixed free of charge by Pentax in Germany, via the South African agent, even though it was bought from @ in USA.

This lens is a beast. It's 4 1/2 pounds of glass and plastic. And it's well worth owning if you're looking for a long lens. Add that to the K-1 and you're ready for a good workout. Personally, I don't find the weight an issue but I know others do. When working hand held, I use a combo sling strap and hand strap. Otherwise, I have it on a tripod, often with a gimbal head, for wildlife work. Focus is fast, image quality is excellent. I did have to fine adjust the lens to the camera. Once that was dialed in, the IQ straight out of the camera was amazing. I use it mostly at the long end. I love the focus buttons on the lens itself. A great feature I didn't think I needed. Now it's a feature I can't live without. And of course it's weather resistant, which is a major plus for me.

I tested a few long lenses before settling on the Pentax D-FA 150-450. the only other lens I liked during my search was the Sigma 50-500mm.� Compared to the Sigma lens, I personally found the Pentax to be a better lens over all. It didn't have that extra 50mm of reach but that was minor when it came to all the other factors (ease of use, image quality, build quality).

All in all, I can personally recommend this lens.

The lens is worth the price. It is crisp, clear and had an easy learning curve. It is heavy to me, but a monopod or tripod has solved that issue for me.

This lens is outstanding. For years I have been using the Sigma 50-500 mm long lens for wildlife photography but decided to try the Pentax 150-450 mm lens. Both are heavy lenses so the weight issue was not as important to me since I always use a tripod. My Sigma lens is now For Sale! I love the sharpness, fast focusing, and quality of the Pentax lens. I have used it on my Pentax A1 and K3iii bodies and it is superb on both. It was a good buy!

I hesitated about a buying a zoom lens for bird photography, versus a prime lens (i.e. 400mm or a 500mm lens), but decided due to B&H's generous return policy to give the Pentax 150 - 450mm zoom lens a try. I'm glad I did. After using it within a day of receiving it I was truly impressed. It meets or exceeds all my expectations. The quality of the images is way beyond what one would normally expect from a zoom lens. Very crisp and clear. Even with a Pentax 1.4X teleconverter attached there is very little loss of picture quality or clarity. The only problem with using the teleconverter is that the lowest the aperture setting would go with a K-3 Pentax camera body is f/8. Not sure why that is the case. But as a result I can only use the teleconverter with the lens when there's plenty of light available, unless I up the ISO to around 1600 or so. Auto focusing is quick and very quiet. One word of caution, it's an extremely heavy lens so using a tripod with it is a must...at least for me. If you're a Pentax user and are into bird and wildlife photography I highly recommend giving this lens a try versus buying a prime lens in the same range for easily two to three times the cost.

I've had this outstanding lens for over a year now. �I use it primarily for wild-life and flying aircraft (airshows, air races, etc). �It has proven to be tough, solidly built, impact resistant, and weather-impervious. �This is without question, my go-to lens. �I have not removed it (other than to clean it) from my main camera body since I took it out of the box.

Yes, it's heavy. �On my K-70, with filter and a doubled-up "R strap, it weighs over 8 lbs., but I'm 68 years old and I have very few problems with its weight. �Just be sure to invest in a carrier that lets you sling it over your shoulder...get it off your neck. �After three or four hours of uninterrupted shooting, I'm glad of a lunch break, but after that long with cell phone camera, at my age a break would be welcome. �I almost always shoot with it racked out to 450mm and I am exceedingly happy with the quality of the images I get. �I suppose I should mention here that I am not a pro. �I'm a very avid amateur.

All in all, It serves very well the purpose for which I bought it. �I couldn't be happier with it.

I bought this lens for long range photography. I am semi mobile so I depend on my glass to get me close enough for some decent images. Longest range to date, approximately 2 miles from my porch to the Caballo Mts, NM. I have been amazed at the detail of a series of antennas on the peaks. The lens is clear at both ends of the zoom range and aperture range. When I compare the performance of this lens to a similar .sigma lens, I am glad I bought the Pentax. I definitely reccomend the D FA 150-450mm lens.

The Pentax lens is sharp and auto focus is faster than my 100mm macro. I bought this when it came out for my pentax�K1. �Lens is bright and great in the rain and the lens performed very well. It is worth the cost. The lens is fairly heavy so I recommend using a tripod or cotton carrier.

I bought mainly for astrophotography imaging but also for some general long distance landscape use. Its heavy to hand hold so a monopod is a minimum in my opinion. Also requires a very sturdy tripod. I get a lot of movement at full zoom, even from a light breeze due to its weight, but it does take wonderful images.

I love it!