I mentioned in an earlier thread that I'd ordered a K-5, and then the price dropped a bit more. It's now selling for just under a grand (body only) from reputable dealers like B&H. This is a hell of a bargain.

I've been learning the camera and playing around with it for the past week, and let me say that it does live up to its reputation. Handling & ergonomics are superb; you just want to pick it up and hold it. Everything is snappier than the K20D (which I still like very much): focusing, frame rate, general operation. The shutter is very quiet.

Low-light performance is great. Photos are very clean, and when noise does begin to appear, it is very fine and detail is preserved to an extent that photos are still appealing without NR applied. And they clean up very nicely in Lightroom. Focusing in low light is quick and positive.

The level of customization available is very high. It'll take me awhile to make the camera "mine." But right out of the box and skimming the surface of the controls and menus I already fell confident with it. It's complex, but not difficult. Very well thought out.

So that's my shameless Pentax plug for the week.

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no pics?

is there a smiley for "jealous"?

Well mostly I have a lot of "test" pictures so far! Here is the very first shot though, straight out of the box.

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Looks like there are some issues with artifacts in that image... Perhaps it is just an old lens.

I got some tasty results with my K-r and my Leica glass over our trip last week. I'll post a few up in a separate thread so as to not hijack once I upload them. Also got to play with an old film Pentax ME Super - good freakin' god we've gone downhill in the quality of our viewfinders.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/28/2012 03:26PM by Z.

I'm sure it's a wonderful camera, but where the hell do you run across a skull?

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vision63
I'm sure it's a wonderful camera, but where the hell do you run across a skull?

That is in my back yard!

Z, the viewfinder is quite good: pentaprism, 100% frame coverage, 0.92x magnification.

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You make it seem as if everyone doesn't have one in their yard!

Edit: LOL! I was responding to vision63 but it applies to you as well.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/28/2012 04:00PM by deckeda.

It's a weird thing, this Internet-interest about a camera I've never used. But the K-5 has interested my for a year. The similarly-priced Canons and Nikons have not. (Well, owning an Elan II does sort of predispose me to like the -D series, with their back thumb dial.)

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Uncle Wig
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Z, the viewfinder is quite good: pentaprism, 100% frame coverage, 0.92x magnification.

yeah, but it's 100% of a small frame. I remember my film body with a much larger view finder. I regret I sold it.

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space-time

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Uncle Wig
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Z, the viewfinder is quite good: pentaprism, 100% frame coverage, 0.92x magnification.

yeah, but it's 100% of a small frame. I remember my film body with a much larger view finder. I regret I sold it.

Yes, if you do see an old Pentax film body at a store somewhere with a lens on it, pick it up and prepare to sigh.

Pentax makes some really nice DSLR cameras. If they had broader marketing and distribution that would help. I also think they need higher end camera such as a D700, 5D mark 2 type cameras. The full frame Pentax lenses are lovely and are not fully being utilized with the current aps-c sensors.

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pRICE cUBE
Pentax makes some really nice DSLR cameras. If they had broader marketing and distribution that would help. I also think they need higher end camera such as a D700, 5D mark 2 type cameras. The full frame Pentax lenses are lovely and are not fully being utilized with the current aps-c sensors.

Everyone is wondering what Ricoh will do. Hoya sure didn't help move Pentax along. There are persistent rumors of a Pentax full-frame body but I sure don't know. Plenty of existing FA lenses to take advantage of such a sensor, but on the other hand, Pentax has invested heavily in lenses designed for the aps-c format. Given the lock that Canon and Nikon have on the FF market, would it be wise for Pentax to dive in?

Getting Pentax cameras into physical stores would be a big help. I think the K-01 would do much better in person than simply looking at photos and reading reviews. Same with the Q, and maybe more so. The results I've seen from that little @#$%& are impressive indeed, but the user feedback I read is often just about how much fun it is. If it were in Best Buy or Target....

We'll see what comes this summer and fall.

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Quote
Uncle Wig

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pRICE cUBE
Pentax makes some really nice DSLR cameras. If they had broader marketing and distribution that would help. I also think they need higher end camera such as a D700, 5D mark 2 type cameras. The full frame Pentax lenses are lovely and are not fully being utilized with the current aps-c sensors.

Everyone is wondering what Ricoh will do. Hoya sure didn't help move Pentax along. There are persistent rumors of a Pentax full-frame body but I sure don't know. Plenty of existing FA lenses to take advantage of such a sensor, but on the other hand, Pentax has invested heavily in lenses designed for the aps-c format. Given the lock that Canon and Nikon have on the FF market, would it be wise for Pentax to dive in?

Getting Pentax cameras into physical stores would be a big help. I think the K-01 would do much better in person than simply looking at photos and reading reviews. Same with the Q, and maybe more so. The results I've seen from that little @#$%& are impressive indeed, but the user feedback I read is often just about how much fun it is. If it were in Best Buy or Target....

We'll see what comes this summer and fall.

I think Pentax users are maxing out and looking to options such as full frame. That keeps them buying Pentax lenses. I liken it to when Toyota users got wealthier and spent their money on German and US luxury cars. There was no brand to be loyal to to in higher priced models since the Camry was the nicest car they had. They came out with Lexus and kept those customers. Even Sony implemented this and I think they will reap some rewards with the A900 replacement.

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