In love K10d

I have shot the k10d for 2 days now and would love to leave some comments.

I have owned, canon 10d, 20d, 30d, 5d

Nikon d1x, and d200

Fuji S2,s3pro

 

I am blown away with the features on this camera that I will actually use.

The SR is superb. The damn 18-55 cheap kit lens is 10x better than either the

nikon or canon entry kit lens. I love it. I had already planned to sell it

just because I thought it would be cheap. I would have paid $300.00 for it

had I seen it prior to purchase. The ability to shoot an image, and then in

camera run through all the white balances while looking at the image change is

ridiculously helpful. So briliant. The autofocus is as fast as canon/nikon.

The build feels like the d200, very heavy and secure. The ergonomics and

MUCH better than canon and on par with any nikon I have owned. The shutter

sounds like a damn leaf shutter, I couldn't believe how soft it was. I was

thrilled. I really am blown away.

Noise is somewhere between the 5d and the D200. Not nearly as bad as the

d200, not nearly as non existent as the 5d. But very workable, and when

present, very film like. Really not much need to shoot high iso's with the

SR, but I would say the noise seems very similiar to my 10d/20d experience.

The turns on the battery door and card door seem so obvious, and strong, but

for some reason my other cameras never had a strong latch like this.

The 77mm limited is a jewel on this camera. Easy to manual focus when

needed, and the colors and image really becomes 3d compared to my other

cameras. The canon 5d with the zeiss lens/adapter was very close, but overly

contrasty- blowing out whites to easily, and extremely hard to focus when

closing down. The pentax viewfinder is as bright and nice as my 5d was,

although the readings are a little tougher to see, but not much.

I'm stoked. I almost didn't write anything, hoping that no one else will buy

the camera and I would have an edge on everyone. But I simply can't resist.

And glad to have invested in a company that is actually making things that are

helpful to the photographer, and not just gouging everyones wallets.

I went from the Canon 5d with 17-85IS lens, 50mm 1.4 lens to-

Pentax k10d with grip, 77mm 1.8, 43mm 1.9, and 18-55 kit.

COULDN'T BE MORE IMPRESSED!

Chris Tapp

www.christapp.com

Oh, and for what it is worth. I would have paid $1800+ for the camera in relation to other cameras. The features are worth that too me. Pentax could charge much more if they desired I believe.

chris

Glad to hear you are lucky with that camera. To charge more would also mean to offer more. No, not the camera features, but the lens selection. Right now I am considering to buy into a second system because Pentax is not able or willing to deliver a 645 Digital. For the K10D, which is admittedly a fine camera, I feel that there is a too limited lens selection right now. And looking on the used market the question comes up where are the 24 million Pentax lenses? I have to look at the system, not a single camera. And so do a lot other people. Right now the demand is higher than they can deliver. But what happens when the happy Pentax shooter wants more? A 2,8/300, a 5,6/250-600ED Zoom lens and so on.

Chris, you are killing me man.... I have to wait two more days until I can finally see a K10D in person.

 

I'm especially interested in your observation of the quietness of the shutter. Coming from Leica M and the equally quiet Olympus E-1 I fear the shutter sound of the K10D will be too brutal in comparison.

 

I'm also curious about the O-ME53 eye cup magnifier got the K10D. If the APS-C viewfinder can come close to a FF viewfinder like in the 5D that's amazing.

 

Thanks for your report. Nice pix on your site too.

 

Cheers,

Jim

Cris Tapp: You wrote: "I went from the Canon 5d with 17-85IS lens,..." I suppose you know that these two items don't work together, that is if you really had and used them?

Chris, thanks for the report. Um, I was waiting till late spring for this camera but more and more I want it ASAP.

 

Gene,

 

Um not entirely sure how pentax is going belly up. The K100D is a incredible seller in Europe and Asia, pentax can't keep up with demand.

 

Minolta went under because it leveredged too much too many times. The APS system obvisously was the killer even though it took many years to do so.

 

Pentax has always been very conservative. And if anything is even talking about stopping manufacture of SLR's (not design and production though) to keep profits high.

 

Oh, did you notice, Nikon is now producing an entry level SLR using the outdated 6MP sensor to compete with the K100D, only it can't compete because it lacks SR, perhaps it can battle the K110D.

 

Your friend sounds like someone who always picks the right stocks. That is no one ever gets them all right and those that do never actually buy them, they just say "I told you so".

 

Sure pentax could be gone but someone will pick up the K-mount (samsung already has) and one way or another Pentax cameras will live on.

 

In terms of the 24million lenses. Last I checked Pentax owners aren't gear pimps like Canon and Nikon owners. They generally make good purchases and stick with there gear. They also tend to collect there lenses and not use them as expendable comodities. My Dad who doesn't even shoot an SLR anymore won't part with his K1000 and SMC Pentax K-mount primes.

 

I've still got all my original Pentax lenses and am still happy with them. The 3rd party lemons have been sold off like ugly step children but not the SMC Stuff.

 

Anyhow, I think Pentax has quality positioned itself to do very well. Granted if the K10D flops I would have to think Pentax might have made to big an investment and put too much value into a sub $1000 body, if it doesn't flop (and by indications it's doing quite well) I would think Pentax might pick up a few percent of market share from various companies.

 

One thing I have noticed is many people shooting both Nikon and Pentax or Canon and Pentax because Pentax offers one thing neither company does, small bodies, with both current prime glass and legacy backwards compatibility including the in camera SR. Just like many people shooting Nikon for work would shoot Leica for leisure I feel like Pentax is creating a niche market for itself with the primes and alternative bodies. I hope I'm right.

Gene, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=aj9runQF0f_4&refer=japan" target="_new">apparently Pentax shareholders and market in general do not agree with your source</a> .

"Our digital cameras are selling well, especially the high- margin digital SLR,'' said Shinichiro Mitsuhashi, Pentax managing director, at a news briefing in Tokyo today after the company announced first-half earnings".

 

EXACTLY! Thats what I assumed, K10D, K100D, K110D are high margin items, thus these bodies are highly profitable. Maybe Pentax will ramp up their 2007 roadmap and get serious about offering D-FA primes at competetive prices?

 

In regards to an earlier statement concerning the whereabouts of the 24 million pentax lenses made, I thought there was "40 million" of their screw mounts, K mounts, K-A mounts, F mounts, FA mounts made, according to their website. I'd guess a (very) small percentage of the 40,000,000 lenses Pentax made are F and FA since they now command more than 2004 retail at ebay.

 

If you've got the SMC prime glass in hand K10D its quite appealing and many people will buy one. Many may never need any lenses beyond the kit lens which I've never read a negative review of. I really like my 18-55 kit glass, but at ebay these items new in the box rarely sell above $50, if at all. The aftermarket is flooded with this kit lens in both Schneider Kreuchach and Pentax logos. "$300" would be silly to pay for it. Doesn't it retail alone for $100?

 

I am quite satisfied to remain on the sidelines till late spring 2007. Thats my "roadmap". Seeing my samsung gx-1s price drop 25% of its purchase price in exactly 5 months has challenged me to wait an additional 5 months for a possible K10D purchase. Canon's full frame 13mp eos mount body for $2,200 after rebate and their complete lens selection still available for sale new in the boxes remains quite appealing to me as I really enjoy ultrawide angle and circular fisheye photography. These views are not possible with any crop factor dslr camera, so 35mm film remains viable for me in the meatime.

 

I am glad you are "in love with your K10D". You have an impressive array of current digital bodies. Pentax K10D becomes your forth dslr manufacturer in your digital system. Thats both amazing and mind boggling too.

 

Lindy

Lindy, I heard rumors that 645D will cost below $2000 - think about it, 18Mpx (or even 30Mpx, that's another rumor) body with sensor twice as big as the one in "full frame" Canons. This might be too good to be true, but who would have thought that K10D, camera competing in specs with Nikon D200, below $1000?

Wow Bronek, thats incredible rumor. Other than hearing of Pentax medium format digital being released soon...for the last 5 years... I haven't heard much else except Pentax *roadmaped* the 645 digital body and one DA lens due out before Dec30th 2007.

 

Pentax has high current profits on dslr line and thats selling dslr bodies at wholesale prices. Having an almost complete set of Pentax dealer wholesale price guides from 1979 thru 2004 to study helps me make fututre equiptment decesions. I've acquired nikon thru 2003 and canon thru 1998 dealer wholesale guides too to round out my future system purchase.

 

DSLR's are just like computers, they get quite better and run you less money. AND, Always they become virtually worthless in 5 years whether they work or not, but are more affordable to replace down the road. Its really the Eyes of Pentax: the glass, where the investment in the system is. Pentax' departure from full frame glass is not reassuring to me.

 

I'm sitting with 5 grand in spending desires and my remaining on the sidelines and deciding which one manufacturer Pentax vs Samsung vs Canon to commit to is empowering.

 

It certainly helps to have a k-mount dslr in hand as the next 5 months pass.

 

Lindy

Too bad Pentax isn't working on a digital 6x7.

In response to where are the 24 to 40 million Pentax lenses, I can not account for all of them but I know where 8 of them are......in my film 35mm SLR bag, to be joined by a shiny new K10D body really soon hopefully. :)

 

Gene (KI6LO)

Ridgecrest, CA

Sorry, the 17-85 was with the 20d/30d, should have noted that. The 50mm was with my 5d. If you would like to look at my images maybe you can tell me what they were shot with if not the 5d?

sureshot? lol

chris

www.christapp.com

The 30 MP is the total upgrade on the 645D.

 

It will presumably start with the 18MP sensor and evolve to 30MP.

 

At least from the comments at Photokina that was my impression.

Lindy,

 

Just one thing to note. I was as skeptical as you about Pentax until the K10D arrived as rumored. While listening to rumors of a K10D being better then the 2x priced Nikon D200 or even comparable was just nuts, yet, it's here and real.

 

Obviously Pentax wants to put out the 645D but it was to do it well, afterall, while they never said they believed 35mm was professional, they always did a nice job on there "pro" bodies and the Pentax MF does have a very strong following.

 

I think it will be a big seller if the IQ, price, and features are where they need to be.

 

Anyway, even a $3000 MF system would be pretty damn good, considering the competition is over $10K for a back.

Yes, it's going to be very interesting to see what happens when a major manufacturer decides it's time to fill that hole in the market. At the moment the difference in price, and sensor resolution between DSLRs and "medium format" digital cameras is a gaping chasm. If Pentax can step in and offer a significantly larger sensor but in a relatively affordable package (relative to Hasselblad and the like), it could be a huge deal.

Sorry Cris! Thanks for clearing this up!

Justin,

 

I've read that "Pentax never considered their 35mm camera line professional" a few times here.

 

In the past few months I started gathering data about the Pentax system and I've now picked up 5 pre 2005 Pentax System Dealer 3 ring binders. When Pentax released the LX they called a "professional" camera. LX which first appears in my 1994 Dealer binder was also Pentax 75th anniversary year: 1919-1994

 

Lindy

Lindy,

 

It appears that the LX was Pentax's only serious attempt at selling a "pro" small format system. Even though the 'pro' label has been occasionally attached to later top-of-the-line Pentax equipment (MZ-S, Z-1p, *istD, and now K10D) it seems that in all of these cases, despite the excellence these products offer, "semi-pro" is probably a better description. The 6x7 system is probably more 'pro' than any of these. Pentax hasn't really kept up with a commitment to maintain availability of a full system of lenses and other accessories that supporting pro usage would require.

 

-Andrew

Well, the Pentax boss stated at Photokina that they will release a pro K-mount DSLR. As I understood it, it is due next year. It is not full frame and he would not confirmed that it was to be called K1D.

Regarding the shortage of (current) Pentax lenses: according to the same interview mentioned above, Pentax will release significantly more lenses than what Sony has promised. If I remember correctly Sony have 21 scheduled. This is within a time period of 2 years.

As far as pentax 35mm not being considered professional, i've seen it in Pentax literature. They even note, "the professional line of MF" or our professional line (before medium format text).

 

The LX was definitely professional in every way. As was the PZ-1P and the MZ-S. And really I don't know what makes the pre M line tremendously inferior to the Nikons and Canons of the day.

 

However, they definitely didn't choose to battle out professionally (in 35mm) post LX, and many consider the LX the last pro body.

 

As I've always said, we 4.5FPS (with no booster/bat pack) and tons of great feaures and full manual control, the PZ-1P was very professional.

 

It really only lacked Canon/Nikon like AF everything else was on par. The only two complaints in build quality was the battery door and perhaps the film door (although I think people had the same complaints about the MZ-S film door).

 

But until they can make large sensors at a high yield, MF-D will either be prohibitively expensive, or inferior to film. At this point it's both. So I think pentax is doing a smart move by entering the DSLR market full force.

I think that if the market opens up to the k10d, it will only allow pentax to pursue the top end market even more. The justification of spending more money in r&d, and focusing more on semi-pro/pro cameras will be valid as the sales results of the 10d come in. I can't wait for a 645d, and only hope that Pentax can get something out by spring.

chris

Quite frankly, these days we certainly do not have an investment in our camera bodies

like we did in years gone by. Meaning, we expect that camera bodies are going to be

"upgraded" at least every 2-4 years depending on what we see on the market that entices

us.

 

That having been said, the lenses become the issue. However, perhaps our paridigm

needs shifting and the reality of today is that we will be shooting with a couple of different

bodies...just as a hedge against the unimaginable.

 

I am aware of many pro photogs who have Pentax and Canon or Canon and Nikon. In this

way, your investment in a particular company ---and your risk ---is lessened.