K10d or K100d for old lenses

I am loking to get into the pentax system. i have read that the new super mount

dosn't work well with the old manual lenses. Something about the new mount is

missing something, so only stop down metering can be used. so what's the story?

I use an *ist DL, which predates the k100d, and I can only use stop-down metering with my old SMC-M 50mm 1.7. I doubt there's any difference between the K100D and the K10D.

With rebate and recent price drop, get the K10D. You get a much better body, function and anti-shake even with M42 screw mount. Pentax has the best function for manual lens of all the DSLR. You get auto everything (except AF of couse) with "A*" and "A" manual focus lens. With K-mount, yes you have to use M mode and stop down meter but you get to focus with lens wide open (Aperture close automatically when shutter release). Even with M42 lens, you get the trap manual focus function which no other DSLR give you with manual lens. It is also the best body for Tamron adaptall lens. If you get a KA adapter, your adaptall lenses have the same function as a KA lens. This include iTTL. Who else could do that?

SO with M lenses it's stop down, and with A lenses it's Normal?

Right. 'A' lenses allow you to set the aperture with the body, so you can shoot in all modes.

All other lenses (M, M42 with adapter, etc) require a custom setting to 'allow' these lenses to

work and stop down metering. What doesn't work is putting the new DA lens on film bodies.

They have a smaller image circle and no aperture ring (you can put in on and take pictures,

but it will close to the smallest apperture and your image may not fill the frame).

A, F, FA, DA, D-FA work with all auto-exposure modes. K, M, and M42/645/67 (with adapters) require stop-down metering. The stop-down metering isn't too hard to do--in manual mode, essentially acts as aperture priority. You use manual mode, set the aperture on the lens, press a button om the camera body and the lens will stop down briefly and the camera will set the "correct" exposure.

K100D too can trap manual focus with M42 lens.

Thank you so much

Having just purchased a K10D, I can vouch for the ease of use with K mount lenses. Just press a green button near the cable shutter release button to get cottect exposure for the chosen aperture, and the exposure won't change unless you re-meter the scene. Just use the aperture ring as you normally would.

 

I found this very useful when I took a series of 3 shots (28/2.8) with a Panorama stitch in mind. The exposure will not change over the course of the 3 shots, thereby making the stitch (PS Elements V5) look natural.

 

You also get SR with old manual lenses which is very good (the camera asks you which focal length manual lens you have attached!).

 

K10 feels bigger and more solid than the K100, moreso with the grip attached. When I handled both, (for me) it was a no brainer to cough for the extra $ for the K10 body and grip.

 

Hope this helps a little.

The focusing screen in the K10D causes step-down metering to be erratic and expose improperly according to many posters on the DPReview forum. The other Pentax bodies (K100D, DL, D, etc) don't have this problem. The focusing screen in the K10D is designed to be user-replaceable and replacing it with the same type of screen as the D used (LL-80 or one of the other options) will make step-down metering more accurate.

 

Of course, with digital and histograms it isn't such a huge deal. I hope the next body Pentax releases doesn't have the same annoyance.

It was incorrectly noted that DA lenses cannot be used on film cameras. At least one of them can--the DA40. It appears to provide a true 43.27+mm image circle and communicate with later model cameras.

Interesting combo here:

http://pentaxk10dblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/using-da-lenses-with-35mm-cameras-after.html

I bought a K100D because I own some excellent K series lenses from the '70's. I did have one problem that took a while to solve: the lense faceplate shorted out the sensor contacts on the camera body, which caused the lens to not stop down when taking pictures. I solved this with some fine drafting tape (not sure of the brand, but very thin orange non-conducting stuff) over the area on the lense where the sensor contacts are.

sorry, M series K-mount lenses. Like the wonderful 100mm Macro.<div></div>