Noticeably larger and about one-and a-half times heavier than the SMC Pentax DA 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 AL WR kit lens, the 16-45mm gives you better wide-angle coverage. The flip side is that you lose telephoto reach, with a maximum effective focal length of 67.5mm.
Street price : around £235
Read the full Pentax smc DA 16-45mm f/4.0 ED AL review
Image tests
Sharpness Test
The Pentax lens shows good sharpness at all focal lengths. At 35mm, however, there's a slight softening towards the edges.
Fringing test
Fringing at the centre frame is minimal, but there's a blue trace at all focal lengths towards the middle and edge frame.
Distortion test
Barrel distortion is apparent at 16mm and 20mm. However, at longer focal lengths distortion is minimal.
Image test verdict
The Pentax performs well, delivering good and consistent sharpness and distortion results. Fringing is visible near the edges of the frame.
Score: 4/5
