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...I have yet to take a non-blurry closeup with these lenses. My closeups were better without this lens. Now, I do have an "older" digital camera - a Kodak DC210, but the Kodak web site says these lenses will work with this camera. I'm thinking maybe I'm just too much of a novice, and I'm obviously doing something wrong, but the instruction booklet certainly isn't any help. It's one of those "general" instruction booklets that cover multiple products. So, I would say that unless you're really up on use of lenses on digital cameras, pass these up.

I'm sorry someone had trouble with the lenses. Close-up lenses serve a VERY SPECIFIC use that most picture takers neither need nor know how to use. For more information, Kodak puts out publications that can show how to use them. For a photographer who wants to do special work they can do wonders (although more choices of powers would have been nice). However, if you want photos--not pictures, a tripod or other fixed hold, together with EXTREMELY careful focus is necessary for good results. I have been a photographer for 40+ yrs. and glory in the result the 4800 can give me with close-ups and a TOP graphics program. I was in the West for 5 weeks this fall and took over 800 shots on Indian reservations and national parks. I expect 100+ including close-ups to be good, and will be busy until summer working on them (With my Nikon and lab 20 yrs ago I'd be lucky to finish 20). This is when close-up lenses are ESSENTIAL for individual or combination work. If you want quick easy pictures than DON'T BUY THEM. Study first and then decide.

These lenses do what similiar ones do for any camera. Kodak has books out that explain fully how and why to use them. With them you have a chance to do truly beautifully artistic work. However, very close and accurate focusing is VITAL to a clear picture, which require a tripod or other device to steady the camera. If you want to take only "distant" pictures (scenery and people) you probably have no need for them. BUT, remember the computer programs for editing allows your imagination full reign to use or combine pictures as I know from 40 years of slow, painful darkroom work. For more information see my note at the LITHIUM BATTERY SCREEN.

The item does extend the zoom range. (But, one has to purchase the adapter separately to use it at all. It's not expensive, but it should come as a package since the lens is useless without it!)
It comes with caps for both ends. However, the adapter has to come off to use the one for that end of the lens. The cap does not fit the camera end of the adapter. Either you take it apart - which leaves you with a piece capable of scratching other things - or leave the end open. The bag provided does accomadate the two pieces and offers some protection from scratches, but not dust.

Attaching it is easy enough. But, having to do a quick change from normal to the telephoto or vica-versa is not amoung it's virtues. Of course, some of this has to do with the menues of the camera, since one has to change the lens setting too. Resign yourself to just shooting for distance, or carry a second camera to avoid missing an opportunity wihtin normal range. You KNOW how uncooperative wildlife can be!
Most focusing is done by the camera's autofocus. You can do
some general range-finding with the camea's zoom control. Then it's up to the camera. Having the menues set for the correct white balance and focus options is also important because it helps the autofocus.
In short, it does the job as long as one knows how to use all the camera's options to assist.

The lens itself is high quality and after examining the images, I could not find anything bad to say. I am using a Coolpix 5400. The images were sharp from corner to corner with good contrast. The fit and finish are excellent.

On the other hand, you can only use this at max zoom. If you reduce the zoom at all, the corners start to vignette. I am used to the 2X teleconverters that go between the lens and the camera body. They do not have this problem.

A couple of other complaints are that the focus is set at infinity and the internal flash is disabled if you set the camera for tele. You can over ride this by using the "auto" mode, however the lower left of your image will have a shadow from the lens barrel. I have not tried my speedlight with the tele, but I would expect this to work OK since it is much further away from the lens.

The last issue is not a big deal, but if you use the optical view finder, the lens blocks a substantial portion of the viewing area. You might be inclined to move the camera to the right to see what you are shooting.

Over all the quailty is good and I can work with its limitations, but I wish it was a 2X and could zoom without that vignetting effect.

You'd better have tripod ready when purchased this telescope. It's powerful zoom factor 420 mm(equal 35 mm camera). In order to get a good picture from this telescope you must learn how to control exposure and speed shot. It's an excellent tool for Nikon Coolpix 5700.

I baught from another store and it broke. The screen was terrible. It's "old". UGH!

I bought this tv from an Ames before they closed and this tv has lasted this long and is much better then my old magnovox television

I was given this TV as a gift. Although it is large and cumbersome to install, the picture and sound quality are great. Sitting in front of this TV makes you feel like you have a "Big Screen" tv but the picture is superior to a projection television. This is a great Value.

I bought the Sigma Designs IF 28 300mm F3 5 6 3 DL Aspherical Hyperzoom in January, and have shot around 50 rolls of film through this lens. I bought it because I travel frequently, and often need to go back and forth between wide angles and long zooms and have had to deal with that with multiple lenses and bodies. I hoped that this hyperzoom would be the answer. Four months later, I was looking again for other lenses, and have given up trying to get an all-in-one solution.

Starting with the lens' physical attributes: The lens is wonderfully light and small. At first glance, the build quality appears to be OK, but then I start getting rings popping out of position, and the like (the best way to fix it was to jam it against a car bumper!)

The quality of the pictures suffers badly from vignetting. I usually stop down my lenses to f/8.0 to avoid vignetting, but f/13.0+ is needed with this lens when you get above 150mm focal lengths. Looking at the slides through a good loupe, the lower optical quality is obvious. The sharpness simply is not there.

The final straw... was an increasing tendancy for the autofocus to go completely haywire, forcing me to go to full manual. At times (once every 5 ot 6 pictures), the camera would lock up, and the only thing that would unlock it is to remove the lens and put it back - pointing to bad connectors. Then, a new problem turned up, where the light metering through lens is 3, 4, even 5 stops too low. On the final film I ever used with this lens I was shooting a frontlit, light-colored aircraft in full sunlight with 100 ASA film, and the camera reports a proper exposure of f/4.0 at speed 1/15th!!!

Putting the lens on my backup body results in the same results, and both cameras work fine with my several Canon lenses.

Sending the lens to be fixed (under warantee) took nearly 6 months.

Stay away!!!

I am totally happy with this lens. I like to shoot almost anything, from panoramic views to wildlife, and I felt 80% of my needs to compose the picture and get desired zoom or wideangle effect were met. As long as the subject is in contrast with its surrounding, I have never had problems with fast autofocus. The only time it couldn't focus was when I was focusing on a brown bird that was almost camouflaged by its surroundings. I also find it very easy to use, i.e. easy to adjust zoom or manually focus. The rings seem to be in appropriate place where my hand reaches for them naturally. I have other lenses where I have to get away from the view finder and figure out which ring to grab. The performance of the lens has been excellent. I have taken pictures at mid-day with extremely bright conditions, probably the worst time to take pictures, and still with merely a hood, the pictures came out great. The use of Circualar Polarizer and UV filters just puts life into a picture, even in worst conditions(bright noon).

Only problem that I encountered is that I went for overkill and put three filters, (UV, Circular, and Enhancement). This caused the light to be blocked at the edges. To overcome this I had to sacrifice the wideangle from 28 to about 45mm.

If one likes to take pictures while hiking or rock climbing etc, this lens is perfect because you don't have to worry about wideangle, or zoom lenses, and amazingly its extremely light. I have seen people with half that zoom, with longer lenses. Even more amazing is the low price.

This is the ultimate lens to take when traveling or don't want to bring the camera bag. It covers the most widely used zoom ranges. I use to regularly carry 2 lenses (a 35-105mm and 75-300mm), but now I normally only carry this one. It is very compact (looks to be about an inch longer than my Canon 35-105mm lens due to it using 3 sections to extend out instead of the standard 2 on most zoom lenses) and the lens has a lock so it won't accidently extend when carrying it. The zoom knob has a stiff and percise feel to it. The optics are good and my pictures look great. The end of the lens doesn't rotate when zooming or focusing making it easier to work with certain types of filters. The only downside is the longer exposure times needed as compared to a dedicated 300mm lens. If you are looking for a wide-range zoom lens, then this is the one to get.

I returned this lens the same day I received it. I found the macro function to be combersome, less than crisp, and with a miniscule depth of field. With no lock for the lens barrel, the lens extension continually slid forward with the slightest negative angle. And, once extended, the lens was awkwardly balanced and difficult to steady on my Novoflex head.

It was between the very resonably priced 70-300 Nikkor and this one from Sigma. I chose this one, mainly on the basis of the macro capability, and glad I did. I've gotten some super honeybee shots, and frame-filling portraits. Resolution couldn't be better, fully equal to the Nikkor or any fixed focal length lens in this range (as far as I can judge.) Light and relatively short, it's convenient to carry. Pair this with a good short zoom, and you're set.

Even though this is a relatively cheap lens, I still think it could be a little bit better. There is quite a bit of distortion (barreling) which I guess is to be expected considering it is a cheap lens (nice wide angle lenses can cost [much, much more]). The barreling I can live with considering the price and what I use it for, but the chromatic aberrations are really really bad. If you want to see rainbows then this camera is great--taking a picture of the stars reveals them to be giant rainbows... Yeah, not nice. Under normal uses (i.e. non point light sources like the stars), this will usually manifest itself in blue and red outlines around objects. If I take off this lens and just use the camera's internal lens I don't have these problems, so it is definitly the wide angle lens causing the problems.

While this lens isnt bad, a nikon lens is much more functional.

...Without the lens I wouldn't have been able to get the tops in of buildings and clock towers in the photographs I've taken. I've used the lens in conjunction with 360 degree panoramic photography, whereby 18 or so individual photos are taken at twenty degree angles and then stitched together to make one wrap-around image.

In some shots a little distortion is present around the edges of the image, but this effect is common when using super wide angle lens.

In some shots I got no noticeable distortion at all - but they tended to be the lower res ones.

All in all I think this is a cool product and a must have for landscape and panoramic photography.

If you have a Kodak DC290 camera you will need a lens adapter as well...

This lens is really well put together like all genuine brand name Pentax products. The zoom range from 35-80 mm offers great versatility, from wide angel shots to very nice crisp and clear close up shots. 35mm ideal for wide landscape shots and 80mm ideal for close-up portraits of people. This lens has given me lots of enjoyment. It operates exceptionally well, my pictures are crips and clear. It was a pleasure to operate this lens on my Pentax camera. A great deal for a lens of this high standard. Well done Pentax !

This lens came with my Pentax ZX-M camera and has served me well. I use it mostly to document paintings but have also taken some black and white portraits with it. It's reasonably sharp, has enough contrast, and gives good colors. Of course it's not as sharp as a prime lens but it's a good, economical, all around lens.

If it was that wonderful, why did you give it only 1 star? I can only assume you made a mistake