Отзывы о Фотоаппарат Pentax K-1 Mark II Kit

Сравнивать 645D с K-7 может только очень неискушенный фотолюбитель. Сравнивать K-7 со среднеформаткой говоря...

Прекрасный фотоаппарат за свои деньги (брал в Японии, с доставкой обошелся в 20700 рублей). Отличные малошумные ИСО. Вполне приемлемо можно работать до ИСО 1600. Китовый объектив приемлим, не более. Я заказал себе SMC-A 50mm 1.7 почти на следующий день :). С батарейками из комплекта (Energizer Li) работает вторую неделю...

После СМЕНЫ,ФЭД,мыльницы...

снимаю им около 3 месяцев в солнечную...

брал что бы иметь качественные снимки не заморачиваясь настройками, аппарат прекрасно для этого подходит,...

Все мои работы выполнены именно им, я даже его использовал в ночных съемках и был очень доволен результатом.

К10 в ките брал перед поездкой в Италию, камера отработала на ура, причем опыта съемки цифрозеркалками на тот момент не было, только дальномерные фотоаппараты и мыльницы, но мы не об этом. Камера выдержала пыль, песок и даже кратковременное погружение на острове Капри по вине природы и нашего капитана лихо вошедшего в набегающую волну - обтерев сухим полотенцем тушку и линзу продолжил снимать (по приезду обнаружил залежи соли в кармане под вспышкой), у соседа рядом вечным сном почил кэнон модель не помню, но от соленой воды наверное что то каратнуло. Съемки производил в джипеге, настрелял 3500 кадров за 2 недели...

This is an amazing camera, both for the price and as a first dslr, easily matching up to more expensive nikon and canon competitors. I bought the package with both the 18-55mm lens and the 55-200 which I highly recommend, as it is much cheaper than buying the lens separately later, use the short one for landscapes as it captures a surprisingly wide angle and the long one for portraits and far away objects, as kit lenses go these are very high quality.

Pictures come out really well, colours are rich and pictures are clear and sharp, works great as a point and shoot but I recommend switching to manual mode and playing with different white balances, you can really make pictures 'pop' with a few tweaks to the settings. Auto mode is ok, it captures the scene and you can tell the picture was shot on a high quality camera and if thats all you want it for this does the job too. Auto focus isn't the fastest but not slow either, it is noisy but it doesn't bother me, i quite like it when my camera makes mechanical sounds, it makes it seem solid somehow, you can always flip to manual focus and twist the focus ring on the lens yourself if you want silent focussing.

Don't be put off by the low megapixel count compared to others on the market (16 here vs 20+ in canon and nikon). Megapixels arn't everything (my phone camera has more megapixels than this dslr, this still blows it out of the water in image quality) and this is unlikely to be the limiting factor in your photos, the size and quality of the sensor is more important here. Small camera shakes and slightly imperfect focus will mean in 99% of photos taken by the average user the difference in megapixels will be meaningless. Even with a tripod and a remote you won't notice it if you arn't blowing up the pictures to an enormous format.

The main reason i opted for this camera over its competitors is the number of nice little features it has that makes it a great entry level dslr, namely lens options, in camera shake reduction and battery mount. If, like me photography is a hobby for you and you are on a budget this camera particularly stands out for a number of reasons. Firstly and probably most importantly is the lens options.

If you want to take a great photo the right lens is important, a low-end dslr with the right lens will take a better photo than a full frame, £1000+ monster with the wrong lens, pentax havent changed their mounting system since the 70's which means all the old lenses, even the ones from old slr cameras like the k1000 will fit this camera and work, and the best part is they can be bought off ebay for like 10 or 15 quid. No they don't interface with the autofocus so you have to focus them manually, and they don't produce the same image quality as their super expensive counterparts, but this camera lets you buy a range of lenses on the cheap so you can have options when you're shooting and you can explore different techniques and have a lot of fun without breaking the bank, it also passively teaches you a lot about photography if you are looking at a scene and thinking what lens would work best rather than using the same one over and over.

On top of that pentax have put a shake reduction (normally a feature of premium lenses) feature on the sensor, meaning that all these old lenses will benefit from it. As i previously said shake will probably be more of a limiting factor in image quality than lack of megapixels, so this helps tonnes with image quality. The shake reduction also apparently works with the optional gps module to move the sensor and track stars, allowing for long exposure astrophotography shots using the pentax astrotracer function. I haven't tried this since i haven't splashed out on the gps module yet, so I can't really comment on it but it looks fun.

Finally, if you buy a battery adapter (approx £5) you can power the k-50 off AA batteries, handy if you run out of charge, particularly on holiday or camping or something as AA batteries can be found in most places, its a small thing but better than alot of other cameras where you would have to buy the special battery (£50+) or battery grip.

All in all its a great camera and you really can't beat it for the price

Length:: 2:56 Mins

Firstly I should mention the negatives with this Pentax K-S1 camera - it may look great and it's quite small and light for a dSLR, weighing 804g including its kit 18-55mm lens, but the right hand grip on the body is quite small making it a little awkward and uncomfortable to use one handed, so it feels heavier than it actually is. This is particularly noticeable when you directly compare it with another dSLR, but fortunately it's not so obvious when you start using the camera out and about. Plus the rear mode dial on the back of the camera is quite tricky to rotate (you think it's a jog wheel that can be moved with one finger, but it requires two fingers to grip and rotate it, just like when it's the mode dial on top of the camera). Plus the four way buttons within this wheel are initially tricky to find and read as they lie within this selector (but you soon get used to them). We don't think this is anywhere near enough to not to completely recommend this excellent dSLR camera, but I guess some might. In fact the Mode Dial on the back of the camera is a brilliant idea - when you are in Live View (as you nearly always are, as it's so useful) you can see what mode you are in instantly, so no more accidentally taking loads of pictures with say an inappropriate scene selected or in rubbish low resolution video 'photo' mode (yes I'm thinking of you Canon SX50 HS). I could use every setting on this camera without reading the quickstart guide, whereas my new Olympus OMD EM1 that cost three times the price was incomprehensible until I read the full manual and I can hardly read its top mode dial. So for me the KS-1 scores very highly on control ergonomics - and this isn't co-incidental, the KS-1's flat field user interface is specifically marketed as "eliminating many of the complexities of a DSLR".

Some say the KS-1's shutter/mirror is very noisy, but the shutter noise isn't as loud as my Olympus e620 dSLR, which was a great little 4/3rd camera - shutter noise is always going to be a problem with a dSLR that has a mirror (back in the days of film when you only took say forty 35mm shots in a day, the noise didn't intrude, but with a dSLR capable of taking thousands of shots in a day that shutter noise by your ear can really wear you down - and those sitting next to you). The only SLR alternative is a mirrorless dSLR like the bijou Olympus OMD E-M10 that uses a high res LCD screen (EVF) for the viewfinder, and although the shutter isn't silent it is a lot quieter (the E-M10 is let down by poor auto-focus in gloom though). If you find the idea of SLR shutter noise objectionable, also have a look at megazoom bridge cameras such as the significantly lighter 649g Canon SX50 HS that does have a very quiet shutter and a fixed wide angle/macro to 50x zoom lens built in, but it has noticeably poorer image quality, albeit still acceptable in everything but low light - but our household takes a lot of photos in low light. The 18-55mm (f/3.5-5.6, wide angle to 3x zoom) stock lens on this KS-1 camera is fine for general use indoors, in daylight and for starlight night-time shots (for macro shots you need extention rings or a Pentax macro lens though). In fact most noise from this Pentax camera is due to the noisy screw thread auto-focus drive to the lens, rather than from shutter release, but the combined effect of both is quite noticeable. The KS-1 has a bright auto-focus assist LED light.

Designed to be the king of bling in dSLR terms of its wide range of fun body colours (we have the Blue version), this stylish Ricoh Pentax K-S1 dSLR seems partly aimed at tempting relative youngsters to move decidedly up a notch photographically from their smartphone, compact and tablet cameras - I mentioned to my son that the KS-1 all white version looks just like the armour on the Starwars clone troopers, and he said `wow that's sounds cool'. When I was a lad in the 1960s my dad's 35mm film SLR was the most complicated thing in the house, and so I was drawn to it and fell in love with photography. Later generations though had exciting stuff like gaming consoles, PCs, iPads, and smartphones, and many simply don't seem to be interested in the black box dSLRs of their parents & grandparents despite being avid photographers. So I got this Vine review Pentax KS-1 dSLR camera for my 18 year old son, who always had difficulties focusing my old dSLRs resulting in very disappointing blurred images. No such problems with this Pentax KS-1 and its super fast auto-focus though, and I have to say my son highly rates the camera - the camera's photo image quality speaks for itself once you view them onscreen. He read the entire quick start booklet to get going (the full manual is a pdf on the supplied CD-ROM) and promptly rushed out taking sunset pictures. And if he wants to take a photo around the house, it's this camera he mostly grabs now rathe

Pros:

Getting started. The 52 page start guide book is simple enough to get you going. It was the usual routine to insert the card, I had a spare ready, as it comes without one, and battery, which came with some life. I topped it up for a couple of hours with its plug in charger. I will buy a spare battery, another Pentax 20140, to keep to hand.

The flash pops up manually, it has a menu for many different settings to explore, and there is a hot shoe for additional kit. You may find you don't need the flash as much as you think if you haven't used a camera of this quality before.

The lens is balanced to the body nicely and creates a tidy, together, feel when holding the camera. The stability is in the body.

The 18 - 55mm lens locks on smoothly and the large screen lights up, you can get going with entering settings. This couldn't be more straightforward. Adjusting the zoom feature and sharpening up wheel (my names!) is quick and easy to get right. Other lenses can be interchanged making the camera even more versatile. All Pentax lenses going back years, even to the 60's, will fit the camera, I was advised by an expert in my local camera shop. The kind chap there also said he had sold many of these cameras to students of photography which is a good indication.

I read that the anti aliasing technology fills in and reduces `jaggies' which seems a sensible idea to make the image more pleasing, smoother, with fuller resolution.

The larger than usual optical viewfinder takes us back to the golden age of being able to actually see what you're taking, especially on a sunny day. I am really enjoying this again; it helps tremendously to actually take the photo you were hoping for. This is an absolutely great feature.

The inbuilt anti shake is definitely required for me, with a speedy shutter and optimum sensitivity that will give me all the help I need.

I already have an hdmi cable, which I use with my ipad to tv for amazon prime films, iplayer etc, so I can show pictures on the tv through that.

Moving the images from the camera onto my computer was also straightforward, the imac just accepted the new camera through a cable I already had, and downloaded them from the card inside.

It's great to see that you can programme frequently used functions in for rapid access, like setting a car radio to your favourite stations. Time spent in preparation will be repaid when the moment arises and needs a quick choice.

I also approve of the easily located movie control on the on/off button. It's all about seizing the moment and being flexible with what you do with it.

It is helpful to have the currently set mode showing in green so there's no chance you are in the wrong zone. Red shows you are in movie mode, a totally clear and obvious distinction.

Cons:

My Fuji Finepix bridge camera weighs 564g and this one obviously weighs more at 767g - three quarters of a kilo - so this is a serious camera that needs its comfortable strap and perhaps a protective case for outdoor work. I carry mine over my shoulder rather than sticking out from my front, it feels less nerdy!

The lens cap could be easily mislaid as it doesn't seem to have anywhere to attach a lanyard.

The manipulation of the controls might be difficult for those with very wide fingertips, I use my nails a bit to select and move the wheel up and down. The same goes for picking open the cable entry port.

The camera is intuitive, but firm with you when you use Auto, you have to hold the button down until it's good and ready. Then you are allowed to have your shot. A delay necessarily occurs. Deciding to over ride auto and put in your own instructions is what makes a photograph rather than a snap. There is a time and a place for both.

The bulk and weight of this grown up camera mean that you will be taking your photography more seriously. It looks the business but also that brings in a degree of intimidation compared to pulling out a point and shoot.

I don't have any real need for effects, that can be done on the computer screen more easily, but I can see it could be fun to try them all. Now I know how our local estate agents always manage to get such deep blue sky in their house brochures! Using the green for 'forests' choice produces an almost electric green. I think I will stick to sorting out my colours on my imac in iphoto. These are extra functions that are superfluous at present for me.

Your choice of lenses may involve further spending on telephoto and, wide angle for example. Sigma lenses will fit it too. Wide angle lenses are really expensive because it is so difficult to get the glass properly prepared right up to the edges. There is a lot of waste in the factory I was told.

A tip for even closer up photos is to take the picture then crop it la

TL;DR: I've owned this camera for almost 3 months now and highly recommend it. Canon and Nikon are great, but this camera is unbeatable at this price point, particularly with its weather resistance and great photography features. Plus who doesn't love underdogs?

This is a great first time digital SLR. I was originally planning on getting something for under $500, be it used or new. A friend who shoots a Canon 7D recommended the Canon T3i which I was almost completely settled on, but then I started reading reviews online and found this camera. I simply couldn't ignore the incredible feature set of camera at this price point, namely:

1) Weather resistance
2) Pentaprism viewfinder with 100% coverage
3) Image stabilization built into the body
4) Dual control dials (front and rear)
5) 1/6000 sec. max shutter speed
6) 6 frames per second (FPS) continuous shooting

To get these features from Canon or Nikon, you need to spend a few hundred more typically. But for me, the weather sealing was the biggest selling point.

WEATHER RESISTANCE
I took this camera to the beach a few weeks ago. Holding it in hand, I double-checked to make sure all the rubber port covers were closed, then walked out into the surf and snapped a bunch of great shots of my wife and kids playing in the water. My only concern was not actually dropping it into the water which due to the pressure of depth might get water past the seals. Fortunately, hand-holding this camera is easy because it has a great handgrip, deep and rubberized. The camera was splashed with seawater and had sand blown on it which stuck due to it being wet, but I wasn't worried, it kept on working. After returning home, I rinsed it off in the shower, dried it with a towel, and it looked good as new. Incredible if you ask me!

Update 2015-01-09: If anyone was wondering, my K-50 is still working fine and still looks as good as new! This is by far my favorite feature of this camera that I can't live without. I love never having to worry about dust and moisture when using this camera!

PENTAPRISM VIEWFINDER
The viewfinder is nice and bright with a pentaprism finder vs the pentamirror you'll find in comparable Canon/Nikon SLRs. It's got 100% coverage, so what you see in the viewfinder is what you'll see in your shot, just the way it should be. I try to frame my shots perfectly in the camera and avoid cropping later. Your autofocus points and confirmation are shown in the viewfinder along with your light meter and the most important controls. With practice, you can change settings to get the shot you want without taking your eye out of the viewfinder very much.

IMAGE STABILIZATION
This is primarily intended to reduce handshake, allowing you to use slower shutter speeds during handheld shooting. The bonus of this feature is that no matter what lens you use, you will benefit from the image stabilization (unlike Canon and Nikon who integrate IS/VR into the lenses, adding to their cost). However, unlike IS built into the lenses, this in-camera image stabilization (called Shake Reduction by Pentax) doesn't actually show its effect through your viewfinder, due to the fact that it moves the camera's image sensor to compensate for movement. With it enabled, I seem to be able to get steady shots with a shutter speed 2 stops slower than 1/(focal length x 1.5). I haven't tested it by turning it off and comparing the results, so I just trust that it's working. Another bonus of this feature is that it allows you to adjust composition before shooting. If you use live view, you can move the image up/down, left/right, or tilt it a bit. I've never actually taken photos using this, but I imagine it might be useful by allowing for minute adjustments when shooting from a tripod to set up the perfect shot.

DUAL CONTROL DIALS
Dual control dials are great when shooting in manual or one of the "priority" modes. You can quickly adjust your aperture, shutter speed, and ISO while staying in the camera's viewfinder. They're also fully configurable, so you can change them to work however you like. Update 8/28/2014: One thing I've found is that it's not possible to reverse the direction that the dials work in.

18-55mm WR LENS
It also happens that this kit lens has very good optical quality. I compared it to an original SMC Pentax 50mm F1.4 prime lens I bought off of Craigslist, which is considered to be a very sharp prime. I can hardly tell any difference between the image quality these 2 lenses produce. This speaks very well for the 18-55. And it's weather sealed. It is a bit noisy during autofocusing, but if that's a concern you can buy lenses for this camera with quieter internal focusing motors; however, they are a bit more expensive. For a kit lens, this thing is great.

1/6000 MAX SHUTTER SPEED
1/6000 is half a stop faster than the 1/4000 offered on

Somehow when I picked the camera up it just felt wrong the balance was all out and it did not feel as though it was a camera I could easily use. I compared it to my Cannon SX30 which has exactly the same size body (ignore the lens) and the SX30 seemed so much better balanced.

Having said that, it is a good camera that takes excellent photographs. This is the first DSLR camera I have used although I have plenty of experience with film SLRs. I had been looking for a camera to upgrade from my Cannon SX30 (now discontinued) Canon PowerShot SX30 IS Digital Camera (14.1 MP, 35x Ultra Wide-angle Optical Zoom) 2.7 Inch Vari-angle Purecolor LCD (discontinued by manufacturer) for quite a while and this seemed ideal from the specifications. I am now not sure if I want a DSLR as my main camera. I will compare it briefly with the SX30.

For a given focal length the lens is noticeably better with a much crisper focus the SX30 is slightly soft focus. Although the SX 30 has a much greater zoom without needing to change lenses. More about lens changing later.
The viewfinder is much better and brighter.
If you like power zoom, just moving a lever, this is not for you as the zoom is manual and the wheel at the top that usually zooms in a non DSLR does different functions.

I have the white model with the colour coordinated lens and body, it comes with a small white ring to fit on the end of the lens to cover the black end of the lens if you are not using a lens hood. Don't bother with the ring as it is not very noticeable and it falls off immediately anyway.

The shutter is remarkably loud in fact I have not come across a noisier one with any of the film SLR cameras I have used, definitely it will scare wildlife if you are stalking to take a photograph.
Initially you have to set it up, all the usual things like date & time, I fell at the first hurdle here and should have read the comprehensive instruction manual supplied. There is not the normal "save" option, save is "Settings complete".
All this is displayed on the colour screen which is nice and clear to see which can be used as a viewfinder if you switch to "live view".

In use you can use it as a fully automatic camera except for the manual zoom you can just press the shutter, the auto focus is very fast and accurate with many different settings. In fact it is fast from turning on to taking the first photograph.
There are 4 capture modes:-

AUTO:- Which lets the camera decide which is best and it usually makes a very good job of this.
SCN:- Which allows you to select from 19 scene modes including `portrait', `Surf and snow' and `Stage Lighting'
EFFECT:- Which allows you to select from 10 of effects including `Brilliant colour' and `Bold monochrome'
P/Sv/Tv/Av/TAv/m/B:- This is where the fun starts as you can use it as a full manual camera or select various exposure modes such as `shutter' or `aperture' priority.
There are also many other ways of fine tuning such as fixing the ISO film speed which I found useful when using other lenses that do not auto focus.

As most of the clever stuff is in the camera and not the lens it is possible to use lenses from other cameras with an appropriate adaptor. I used the Fotodiox Pro Lens Mount Adapter, Selective 35mm Olympus Zuiko Lens to Pentax K Mount Camera adapter (Please See Compatible Lens list), OM-PK Pro with Olympus OM series lenses. To do this you have to switch to manual focus. This also shows a problem with the view finder, it is nice and bright with useful information displayed BUT it is only a ground glass screen so it has none of the usual SLR focussing aids such as split screen. I found that the only thing that actually worked was to set the lens at infinity, set the ISO speed, set the shutter speed, and then use a light meter to determine the aperture setting. As I wanted to use a long lens to photograph wild birds this worked well with a 400mm lens. There is a setting that allow the auto focus to work if you input the focal length of the lens so that the metering works. I found this to be quite accurate with fixed focal length lenses up to 200mm but obviously not with zoom lenses which I had to use manually with a meter.

IN SUMMARY
A very good and versatile camera which I expected to get used to the balance after I had used it extensively for a fortnight but I did not and although I am now familiar with the controls I still don't like it.

I'm a relatively new photo enthusiast. Almost a year ago, I got a $300 bridge superzoom (Sony DSC-HX200V), and now I'm hooked. I started learning some of the more advanced features, but I wanted to "get serious" with a DSLR. (I love the Sony for what it is, but the 1/2.3” sensor can only do so much, and it doesn’t have a thread for lens attachments like filters.)

I'm glad I chose the K-50. If this is roughly where you're at, and your emphasis is on still photography, this is a great choice — especially if you're into outdoor photography, at all.

The features and image quality just can't be beat at anything like this price. (If you don’t need weather sealing, I believe the K-500 is basically the same camera, and it is ridiculously cheap.) The value is most obvious with the pro-style features, like dual control wheels and weather sealing; get ready to spend over twice as much for those features with one of the two major brands. (If you want to use it outside much, the sealing is the killer feature. We're going on an Alaska adventure this summer, so the weather resistance sealed the deal for me.) Another major benefit is the in-camera shake reduction system. This means the telephoto lenses can be cheaper than IS telephoto lenses for the big 2. (Compare the prices on the weather-resistant 55-300mm Pentax lens versus the not-weather-resistant Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens.) The burst shooting, 6 fps, is downright crazy.

I made this choice after reviewing just about every online image quality comparison I could find, and I thought the K-50's IQ was generally better than and very rarely less satisfying than the output of an SL1 or d3300.

Now that I own the camera, I'm already very impressed, and that's without yet learning how to do much with the manual modes. AF is super fast and very accurate. (If it's focused on the "wrong" thing, just point it at the "right" thing, half-press the shutter, keep the shutter half-depressed to keep the focus locked where you had it, and frame and shoot as intended. It's so fast that I can do all of that in about half a second, and I'm still not even a very experienced amateur.) The full auto and scene modes are very good. Right out of the box, if you're at least kind of knowledgeable about the basics of photography — if you can frame a shot and not work too hard against what the lighting is giving you — you'll get good-to-great shots right away.

Kit lenses are solid as well. I basically just leave the 55-200mm on for running around. It makes for great portraits with fantastic bokeh/depth of field. (Put everything on auto, set the zoom length to roughly 85-100mm, and then start taking awesome portraits pretty much instantly.) It zooms well enough for kids’ sports and not-super-distant wildlife shots, too. (For our trip to Alaska, my spouse — who’s also pretty good at framing a shot and holding a camera steady — will carry the superzoom for those shots that an SLR can’t get without a ridiculously large & expensive zoom lens.)

There are a lot of fun effects and other post-processing tools, too, if you'd rather do these in-camera than in software. (I wouldn't recommend that strategy generally, but deleting the bad shots and trying some minor processing is a fun way to kill the ride back from a day's adventures, and I've found at least one effect that's easier in-camera than on a computer.)

The real viewfinder is also very good; it has 100% coverage — another feature not common in this price range — which helps with framing shots. (For those with slightly diminished eyesight, they have a neat accessory that B&H should but does not suggest: the Magnifier Eyecup O-ME53, which magnifies the viewefinder by an extra 40%. It gets 4.5 stars on B&H, with most of those saying their vision “isn’t as good as it used to be” and it's helped substantially with manual focus via the viewfinder.)

The Live View is also very good, and if you want to use manual focus with Live View, you can zoom in a lot closer to focus, a feature I've already found helpful.

This camera is thus great if you want to learn to take pictures (more) like a pro. A lot of reviews suggest it’s also great if you have film SLR experience and want to feel like you're getting back on that bike (not least since the mount works with most legacy Pentax lenses; for newbies like me, that just means some fun on eBay down the road). Even if you just want something fairly easy that kicks tail right out of the box, this is a fine choice and a great buy.

Like all cameras, it does the best in outdoor daylight. (If it’s very sunny, shots can get a little washed out, but this is also really true for all brands. Thus, I'd recommend a circular polarizing filter.) It still does pretty darned well in low

The Pentax K3 is the company's current flagship model and competes roughly in the same class and is priced almost exactly as the Nikon D7100 and Canon 70D, both of which I was able to handle briefly in the past. I upgraded to this camera from a Pentax K-r, a 2010 entry-level model.

- Build Quality and Ergonomics -

As usual for a Pentax, the build quality is superb. Not just good - superb. The K3 is built like a tank. Its full-metal chassis feels considerably more solid than either the D7100 or 70D and it fits perfectly into my hands. The rubber parts and deep grip make it comfortable to hold. Then there is the weather sealing, of course. I shot a Holi festival recently and the camera received a couple of colourful splotches, then it started to rain and it got thoroughly wet. When I came home I carefully rinsed it off under the shower. No problem at all, works like a charm. Of note is the fact that all kit lenses Pentax offers with the K3 are weather sealed, as opposed to the policy of competitors which sell weather sealed cameras, but only offer weather sealed lenses that cost almost as much as the body.

As to be expected from a semi-pro camera, the K3's body is riddled with buttons that are intuitive to use and provide access to most functions without having to dive into the menu. I use the camera with my left eye and keep stabbing myself in the eye or smudging my glasses when using the back AF button, maybe it can be moved further outside in the future. The viewfinder provides 100% coverage at 0.95x magnification - it is bright, clear and generally a pleasure to work with.

- Image quality -

The image quality of the K3 leaves little to desire. Provided a decent lens is mounted, pictures are sharp, detailed and crisp. The default JPEG style is not to everyone's taste, but it can be changed and I shoot RAW anyway. The camera's dynamic range is impressive and it allows for shadows to be pulled up several stops in PP without unacceptable losses in image quality. The one area where the K3 did not quite meet my expectations is high-ISO noise performance. I am slightly hesitant to use images shot at ISO 3200, but I guess my standards might just be a tad bit high. In general high-ISO performance is good, but nothing to rave about.

- Performance -

The K3 feels very responsive. It powers up quickly and hasn't given me any errors or freezes yet. The AF is a bit of a mixed bag. It is very fast and accurate and does very well in low light, but still fails to perform satisfactory in subject tracking. When using AF.C I often find it to be rather hesitant in reacquiring focus when the subject has moved. The number of AF points (27) could also be higher and spacing wider, but at least the majority (25) are cross type and the centre 3 are rated down to f/2.8, which is very good. Of note is also the lack of dedicated sports lenses with high performance AF in Pentax' lineup. If you shoot a lot of fast paced action and sports you should probably consider other options (which is a shame considering the stellar frame rate of 8.3 fps). For anything else, the K3's AF is great. When using manual focus in live view, the K3 offers focus peaking - really useful for all the cheap, old, but optically great MF lenses the Pentax system has on offer. I use it a lot with the SMC-A 50 f/1.7 which was very hard to focus through either my K-r's viewfinder or liveview.

- Conclusion -

The K3's only notable drawback is that it's definitely not the first choice for the dedicated sports photographer. Everyone else gets a camera that delivers impressive image quality, high performance and superior build quality and weather sealing. For me it's the complete package.

This camera was an upgrade from a K100D purchased in 2006. My wife runs a Christmas Tree festival to help less fortunate kids have presents under the tree Christmas morning. I take pictures of children with Santa. In 11&12/2013 I am taking photos in a dimly lit room and having to wait on the camera to focus on the subject before taking the photo and folks are coming up alongside me and snapping 6 or 7 photos to my 1 and they aren't using a flash! I replaced my K100D with this K500 and WOW! What a difference! During the 2014 festival the performance of this camera was readily apparent when I was able to auto-focus in this dimly lit room and fire off multiple shots very quickly. The difference is the ISO setting on this camera vs the K100D. It can get up to 51000 ISO compared to the 3200 max of the older model. The colors this camera sees are incredible as well. When photographing the Christmas trees without using the flash, all the colored lights on the trees really stand out and make for some beautiful shots.

Here are the stats on the attached photo:

Filename - IMGP3897.JPG
Make - PENTAX
Model - PENTAX K-500
Orientation - Top left
XResolution - 300
YResolution - 300
ResolutionUnit - Inch
Software - K-500 Ver. 1.00
DateTime - 2014:12:13 21:07:45
YCbCrPositioning - Co-Sited
ExifOffset - 706
ExposureTime - 1/8 seconds
FNumber - 3.50
ExposureProgram - Normal program
ISOSpeedRatings - 800
ExifVersion - 0230
DateTimeOriginal - 2014:12:13 21:07:45
DateTimeDigitized - 2014:12:13 21:07:45
ComponentsConfiguration - YCbCr
ExposureBiasValue - -0.30
MeteringMode - Multi-segment
Flash - Flash not fired, compulsory flash mode
FocalLength - 18.00 mm
FlashPixVersion - 0100
ColorSpace - sRGB
ExifImageWidth - 4928
ExifImageHeight - 3264
InteroperabilityOffset - 54468
SensingMethod - One-chip color area sensor
FileSource - Other
SceneType - Other
CustomRendered - Normal process
ExposureMode - Manual
White Balance - Auto
FocalLengthIn35mmFilm - 27 mm
SceneCaptureType - Standard
Contrast - Hard
Saturation - Normal
Sharpness - Hard
SubjectDistanceRange - Distant view

This photo was shot with an ISO setting of 800. In the old film days this shot would have been very grainy, but the noise reduction circuitry is really exceptional for what is classified as an entry level camera. I recently spent some time along the Nantahala River in North Carolina near Smoky Mtn Natl Park and was taking pictures of the kayakers coming through the rapids. I was able to get some really great stop action photos and this was using an older Sigma 70-210 manual focus zoom lens. I like to think that I have a good eye for composing photographs, but this camera has enabled me to step up to the next level.