I have the Pentax A*300 2.8. I use it with a Bogen 444 Carbon One tripod, so I would assume the 3221 would be fine. I also have Pentax 1.4XL teleconverter for it.
While it comes with a nice metal case, I recently bought a backpack style camera bag so that I can get more use out of it. I was leaving the lens home a lot of times since it was not convenient to carry through the woods.
This is not light lens. According to the KMount equipment page it is 6.5 pounds. (I never put mine on a scale to verify it.) Make sure you want to carry this extra weight around with you at the zoo.
While I love the pictures I get from it, I will be the first to admit, it is not a very versatile lens. Make sure the tripod head can handle it. I have a Giotto MH 1001 (I think, as my gear is not in front of me. It is definitely a giotto ball head though) which is a little undersized. While it is rated for the weight, I think the length of the lens makes it a bit unwieldy on that ball head.
Even with that drawback, which would probably be solved by me buying a better ball head (someone here will comment I shouldn't be using a ball head with this setup,) I still love the lens. It has enabled me to get shots that were not possible in the past. For zoo shots remember you more then likely would not be walking around with this beast on the camera, so figure on extra time to get the tripod setup, mount the lens, and then attach the camera.
Jeff
At 03:20 PM 7/11/2003 -0400, you wrote:
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2003 15:15:08 -0400 From: Lon Williamson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: PDML Pentax Discuss <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: My first long telephoto prime: advice sought Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
I'm a sucker for zoo shots.
My Sigma 70-300 is a tad short at the long end.
I've compensated with 500mm f8 mirror lenses (Lentar and Spiratone), but am thinking about faster primes combined with TCs.
I do NOT need a "birdie lens". I don't think I want to mess with something as long as a 600mm.
That leaves me with 300mm and 400mm primes from Pentax.
Just how impossible/heavy/awkward is the A 400mm f2.8? Will a Bogen 3221 tripod be adequate for it?
And how about the 300mm f2.8 lenses?
-Lon
