What Can You Tell Me About ProMaster

[Shifletjl]

My DH surprised me with a Promaster Spectrum7 AF28-300XR EDO f3.5/6.3 IF Macro lens for Mothers Day. I have a Pentax K100D (with the kit lens and the 50mm 1.4) and was looking to purchase a new lens that will give me some length, but had only considered 200mm on the long end (the Pentax 50-200 to be exact).

The reviews I've read about Promaster this morning are mixed. I am hoping someone on our board will be able to shed some light on this company or better yet this lens in particular.

I certainly don't need "pro-quality" lenses in my bag (wanting them is a different story), but I do want to create the best quality photographs for my investment of money and time.

 

[JR6ooo4]

My DH surprised me with a Promaster Spectrum7 AF28-300XR EDO f3.5/6.3 IF Macro lens for Mothers Day. I have a Pentax K100D (with the kit lens and the 50mm 1.4) and was looking to purchase a new lens that will give me some length, but had only considered 200mm on the long end (the Pentax 50-200 to be exact).

The reviews I've read about Promaster this morning are mixed. I am hoping someone on our board will be able to shed some light on this company or better yet this lens in particular.

I certainly don't need "pro-quality" lenses in my bag, but I do want to create the best quality photographs for my investment of money and time.

Wow! 28-300 zoom. That is a lot... or is that different because it is a macro lens?

Mikeeee

 

[Shifletjl]

From what I know, 28-300 is the zoom. My husband was thinking that this lens would cover a lot of my photography needs. I'm thinking that it may not be the best choice.

 

[Groucho]

Well, it's a lot of range for any lens... and probably a relatively inexpensive one. The best thing to do, since you have it in front of you, is use it for a few days, take a bunch of shots in a range of conditions and focal lengths, and see if you're happy with the quality. All the reviews (positive or negative) don't really matter if you're happy (or unhappy!) with the lens.

I would guess that it probably won't have the image quality of the Pentax 50-200mm... but it will have a lot more range. It probably depends on how much you value having a single "walk-around" lens and if you'll be happy with the quality of it.

FWIW, I do have a Promaster circular polarizer, so I do know of them, but I don't remember seeing them making lenses currently. Obviously they are!

 

[Shifletjl]

Good suggestions Groucho, thanks.

 

[jann1033]

i think promaster might be one of those lenses that some one makes and puts a bunch of names on. ie phoenix, cosina, vivitar , rather than their own "lens"ie canon, nikon,,that may also be common with some of the big guys like canon , don't know. i had ( well still have but rarely use) a promaster 100-300mm zoom that is ok, sort of soft, a bit noisy but ok i'd use it on a tripod. like most lenses i think you have to go lens by lens as to how good it is...i presently have a phoenix( pretty sure it was also marked under promaster, they look identical) macro 100mm that is pretty sharp( which prime or non zoom lenses usually are anyway). the only problem being it has a 1:1 adapter and the lens is 1:2 so a pain to have to put the adapter on, take the adapter off to change the macro ratio. it does get really good reviews though and other than that it's pretty good. just the adapter is a pain.this is a recent shot at 1:2, cropped but hand held...imo iw's usable and i 'm sure would be sharper if i had used a tripod.

one thing i have to say for them,the lens was making a noise so i sent it in, they were great, fixed it adjusted the focus( was having a hard time getting it to focus with the adapter on) and were really nice to deal with. so while they aren't the top of the line stuff, i'd get them if that was my budget limit for an occasional use lens or lens to use till i could afford an upgrade...( ie what i got the macro for)

they do have a nice external flash for canon( not sure if it's a pentax mount as well) for pretty inexpensive( well comparatively speaking). their stuff isn't usually built as well as the more expensive stuff but it isn't as expensive either so it's a trade off. i think it does not have high speed sync. but has most features of the more expensive flashes

 

[Shifletjl]

Jann, thank you for sharing your experience with promaster. Especially valuable to learn that they value customer service which is rare these days. Your macro lens is doing a good job for you. I too believe promaster is a label and not the manufacturer of the lenses they market. I've read that Promaster lenses are made by Tamron or Tokina (depending on the source).

Well, I'm still unsure I will keep this lens. It seems a bit heavy for me to use as a walk around lens, but I do like the macro feature. I might exchange it for a 50-200mm (since I'm covered from 18-55mm) and a macro lens later.

Anyway, I appreciate the information everyone!

 

[jann1033]

if tokina is the manufacturer i'd be more inclined to use them since tokina usually gets pretty good ratings...don't know if pentax merged with them or not( saw a blurp that pentax/hoya merger fell through, hoya and tokina are somehow connected but didn't read the article) so i don't know what if anything that would mean for the future. for some odd reason in my area promaster is about the only third party everyone carries

 

[Groucho]

FWIW, Tokina is, as I understand it, a completely separate company, but they occasionally share lens designs. Not unlike the way Japanese and American car companies sometimes sell other company's cars under their own nameplate. (Biggest example being GM's "Geo" line, which was 100% imports, made by Suzuki, Toyota, etc.)

The 10-17mm fisheye is a Pentax design that Tokina rebadges and there's another one that escapes me at the moment that's a Tokina design that Pentax rebadges. From what I've heard, Tokina generally has decent stuff.