Pentax 21387

The best all-purpose zoom Pentax ever made for APS-C. Sharp, weather-sealed, and way better than your kit lens, just don't expect it to focus fast in the dark.

What surprised us most is how sharp this thing is across the frame, even wide open at 16mm. The optical design with one ED and three aspherical elements puts it in the 87th percentile for optical quality in our database, which is genuinely impressive for a consumer zoom. It's not just sharp in the center, corners hold up well too, making it a sneaky-good choice for landscape work on a tripod. The downside? Autofocus. The DC motor is reliable but it's not quick by modern standards, and it can hunt a bit at the long end when the light drops. It's a middle-of-the-pack performer for AF speed, which is fine for landscapes but frustrating if you're trying to track a moving subject.

The most direct competitor is Nikon's AF-S DX 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, which adds optical stabilization but lacks weather sealing. If you're on a Nikon body, that's your equivalent, but for Pentax shooters, the in-body shake reduction in your camera makes the lack of lens-based VR a non-issue. The Sigma 16-300mm and Tamron 18-300mm superzooms offer way more reach, but you'll sacrifice the optical excellence and weather sealing that make this Pentax special. For pure image quality in a walkaround zoom, the Pentax is the pick of the bunch.

Pricing on this lens is all over the map, with a spread of over $105,000 across vendors (yes, you read that right, some listings are clearly placeholder nonsense). In the real world, you'll find it around $597, which is a solid deal for the optical quality and weather sealing you're getting. At that price, it's a no-brainer upgrade from the kit lens. Just make sure you're buying from a legitimate retailer and not some algorithmically generated price from a marketplace bot.

The Pentax HD DA 16-85mm is the lens that should have come bundled with every Pentax DSLR from the factory. It's a massive step up from the typical 18-55mm kit lens, offering a more useful zoom range, genuine weather sealing you can trust in a downpour, and image quality that punches well above its price tag. If you're a Pentax shooter looking for one lens to leave on your camera for hikes, travel, and everyday life, this is it. The 24.5-130mm equivalent range covers almost everything short of serious wildlife or sports, and the HD coatings do a great job keeping contrast snappy even when the sun's in the frame.

If you're shooting a lot of portraits or anything that needs subject isolation, this isn't your lens. The slow variable aperture and mediocre bokeh will leave you frustrated. Grab a fast prime like the Pentax 50mm f/1.4 instead. And if you need serious telephoto reach for wildlife, skip this and look at the 55-300mm PLM.

Buy it if you own a Pentax DSLR and don't already have it. This is the definitive walkaround lens for the system, delivering sharp, contrasty images in a package that can handle real weather. It's not perfect, the autofocus can be sleepy and the aperture is slow, but for the landscapes and travel work it's built for, those are minor quibbles. Pair it with a fast prime for low light and you've got a killer two-lens kit.