Pentax HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE Specs & DoF

55–300 mm

Focal length

f/4.5–6.3

Maximum aperture

29°–5°

Diagonal angle of view (APS-C)

APS-C

Designed for

5.5×

Zoom ratio

Specifications#

Brand: Pentax
Model: HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE
Lens type: Telephoto zoom
Focal length: 55–300 mm
Maximum aperture: f/4.5–6.3
Image circle: APS-C (23.5×15.6 mm)
Mount(s): Pentax K
Projection: Rectilinear
Lensfun correction profile: Yes — distortion/vignetting/TCA

Equivalent focal length on different cameras#

Field of view and depth-of-field equivalence when this lens is used on bodies with different sensor sizes (natively or via an adapter).

Camera format	At 55 mm	At 128 mm	At 300 mm	Equiv. aperture (DoF)
APS-C	82 mm · 29°	192 mm · 13°	450 mm · 5°	f/6.8
APS-C (Canon)	88 mm · 27°	205 mm · 12°	480 mm · 5°	f/7.2
Micro Four Thirds	110 mm · 22°	256 mm · 10°	600 mm · 4°	f/9.0

Depth of field & background blur#

Computed on its native APS-C format (CoC 20 µm). “Blur @2 m” is the size of an out-of-focus point at infinity, as a percentage of frame width, with the subject at 2 m — a simple bokeh index. Full table: 50 mm f/5.6 on aps-c.

Focal	Aperture	at 1 m	at 2 m	at 5 m	at 10 m	Hyperfocal	Blur @2 m
55 mm	f/4.5	5.5 cm	22.7 cm	1.47 m	6.32 m	34.4 m	1.5%
55 mm	f/8	9.8 cm	40.7 cm	2.74 m	14.0 m	19.4 m	0.8%
128 mm	f/4.5	0.9 cm	4.0 cm	26.2 cm	1.06 m	186 m	8.3%
128 mm	f/8	1.7 cm	7.2 cm	46.6 cm	1.90 m	105 m	4.7%
300 mm	f/4.5	0.1 cm	0.7 cm	4.6 cm	19.0 cm	1.0 km	50.1%
300 mm	f/8	0.2 cm	1.2 cm	8.2 cm	33.7 cm	576 m	28.2%

Handheld & night-sky limits#

NPF assumes typical 20–24 MP sensors (≈6 µm pixels on full frame, ≈3.9 µm on APS-C, ≈3.3 µm on Micro Four Thirds).

Body	Min. handheld shutter (longest focal)	500 rule at 55 mm	NPF at 55 mm, f/4.5
APS-C	1/500 s	6 s	5 s
APS-C (Canon)	1/500 s	6 s	5 s
Micro Four Thirds	1/640 s	5 s	5 s

Compatible cameras#

Bodies in our database with a native Pentax K mount. Full-frame bodies switch to an APS-C crop with this lens.

Adapt it to other systems#

Sony E-mount Canon RF Nikon Z Fujifilm X-mount Micro Four Thirds L-Mount Canon EF-M Fujifilm G-mount Hasselblad XCD Nikon 1 (CX)Pentax Q Samsung NX Canon EF Nikon F

Similar lenses#

Pentax HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED WR f/4–5.8
Pentax smc Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED f/4–5.8
Pentax smc Pentax-DA L 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED f/4–5.8
Sigma 55-200mm f/4-5.6 DC f/4–5.6
Pentax smc Pentax DA* 60-250mm f/4 IF SDM f/4
Pentax smc Pentax-DA 50-200mm f/4-5.6 DA ED f/4–5.6
Pentax smc Pentax-DA L 50-200mm f/4-5.6 ED WR f/4–5.6
Pentax smc Pentax-DA* 50-135mm f/2.8 ED IF SDM f/2.8
Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 APO EX DC HSM II f/2.8
Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 APO EX DC OS HSM f/2.8
Pentax HD Pentax-D FA* 70-200mm f/2.8 ED DC AW f/2.8
Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM f/2.8

Frequently asked questions#

Is the Pentax HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE full frame?

No — it is designed for APS-C sensors. On a full-frame body it vignettes or triggers crop mode.

What is the Pentax HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE equivalent to on APS-C?

Its focal length is already the real value for APS-C: 55–300 mm frames like 84–460 mm on full frame.

What is the Pentax HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm f/4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE good for?

As a telephoto zoom it suits sport, wildlife, events and compressed landscapes.

Sources & licences#

Lensfun lens database — CC BY-SA 3.0