Tried the K7 today

<p>So, I went to the store and the sales guy let me take the K7 for a few shots from INSIDE the store - he wasn't too keen to let me walk out with it - "outside" shots were taken through the huge windows of the store.<br />I mounted the DA*300 f4 and the DA*16-50 f 2.8, used Av at ISO 100 (speed?) and snapped a few shots which I didn't keep because they were rather pointless but turn out <strong>very</strong> nice, with good color rendition and sharpness of the surrounding TV's, computers, and people :), and the buildings and cars and trees; but I did get a feel of what it would be like if I bought it:<br />1. great feel in my small hands, especially with the 16-50 lens.<br />2. rather "out of balance", i.e.: tipping down with the heavier 300mm when compared with the K20D + the 300mm lens. I mean: I found it harder to "hold still" than with the K20D. I suppose adding the grip would solve the problem by adding a bit more weight rear-wise.<br />3. Great AF! Seems faster than that of the K20D even wide open at f2.8 or/and F4 respectively for both lenses used.<br />4. Superbly less noisy than the K20D/K10D<br />5. Just love the faster frame rate @ 5/s, ... also very quiet; great for bird photography.<br />6. Going through the menus and submenus seems more user-friendly ... opinion only.<br />7. Great idea to finally hide the SR "inside" the camera: that has always been a problem with me triggering the SR "off" accidentally.<br />8. Lovely viewfinder.<br />9. Larger, higher resolution rear screen, would be helpful when one reviews dozens (hundreds ?) of pics before going home to the computer.<br />The salesman offered to take "another tour" of the K7 sometimes this weekend, but this time he would "gladly" let me take it outside the store, even out near the shore so we can test "bird shooting" ... great number of seagulls here and the Canada geese have arrived ... as long as he stays with me!! That's OK, there's room in my car.<br />Next time, I will try to post some pics of the "tour". I will for sure crank the ISO way up that next time to test the noise at above 1250/1600.<br>

JP</p>

<p>VERY interesting, Jacques!! I have also read that the metering is different, and resulting exposures somewhat improved. It is a great thing for you to get this opportunity to preview the K7 for yourself. Were you and will you be using some of your own lenses?</p>

<p>I get a similar advantage of better balance for larger lenses with my K20D over my K200D, which is similar in size to the K7. But the K200D's grip added does indeed help to make up for that difference. The grip provides a much better feel with larger lenses. This way, when you want to go compact with smaller lenses, the more compact body is then superior, but can adjust for larger lenses simply by adding the grip.</p>

<p>Jacques, it's always so much fun to try out a new camera, especially with lenses you already own.</p>

<p>I tried the K-7 with the DA 300mm when the Pentax reps came to Seattle last month. I thought it felt very stable with the grip. Not using the grip on a long telephoto is unthinkable to me--the only time the grip comes off my K20D is during tripod use.</p>

<p>Though the K-7 seems like a really fine, well designed camera, I'll stick with my K20D (for now he says). I'm saving my shekels for the 645D--by the time it actually comes out I'll have enough shekels saved--though I may be too feeble to use it.</p>

<p>ME</p>

<p>Thanks for your review but can you really judge image quality like colour fidelity and sharpness from a camera lcd and jpg preview nowadays or did you see your photos on a computer display?</p>

<p>Here is a side by side comparo of the K20 and K7.<br>

<a href="http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=pentax_k20d%2Cpentax_k7&show=all">http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=pentax_k20d%2Cpentax_k7&show=all</a></p>

<p>I had a similar experience taking my FA50/14 in to test with a couple months ago and have this to report:</p>

<p>1) No balance issue for me with FA50/1.4<br>

2) Ergonomics OK, even with my wonky hand (low grip strength, arthritis, limited range of motion in wrist)<br>

3) I took the images home to pixel peep on my calibrated monitor. Jpegs very nice in a brightly lit store with daylight fluorescents. Raw format not supported (as of a few months ago, maybe it is now) by Aperture 2.<br>

4) Videos very nice and manual focus manageable when re-composing at wide aperture. CCD wiggle pronounced when panning rapidly (I understand this is common to all the video-dSLRs).</p>

<p>5) Not enough sound captured to make any statement on the built in microphone, but I suggest if you're using it for mixed-media journalism you probably want an external microphone.</p>

<blockquote>The salesman offered to take "another tour" of the K7 sometimes this weekend, but this time he would "gladly" let me take it outside the store, even out near the shore so we can test "bird shooting" ... great number of seagulls here and the Canada geese have arrived ... as long as he stays with me!! That's OK, there's room in my car.</blockquote>

<p>A store like that is a treasure, Jacques!</p>

<p>Does the preview image on the rear LCD appear faster than on the k20? I think the k20 skimped on the processing power for this.</p>

<p>Michael (Kuhne):<br />That confirms my thoughts about the balancing act of the K7 with a large lens attached.<br />Thanks for the reply.<br />JP</p>

<p>Michael (Elenko):<br>

I suppose this 645D will be quite a beautiful camera to use. What in a world would I do with all those APS-C lenses I already have if I ever "graduated" to a 645 or a FF model?<br>

As for the grip attached to your K20D, I would imagine that it makes the camera much more stable when used with large glass, as you mention. I don't have a grip for my K20D but probably will if/when I get the K7.</p>

 

<p>Scott, The preview comes up almost instantly on the K-7, not like the K20D.<br>

To me, the only place the K20D is better than the K-7 is the noise dept...Likely as Justin says, it is because I shoot Jpegs..</p>

<p>Markus:<br>

I saw the photos both on the K7 screen and a computer display. I must admit that, in spite of the tiny size of any camera rear screen, it is not the best way to judge a picture but it does make a difference when it is a higher res screen. At least, "in the field", it helps somewhat better than with a low res screen such as those on the K10/K20D.</p>

<p>Les:<br>

I checked this review ... not very complete but does show what we already know.<br>

The best review(s) of the K7 I had the chance to read were in the last two issues of the French magazine "Chasseur d'Images", from Europe. These were very complete tests and the results were up to par to what Pentax proclaims: an excellent DSLR.</p>

 

<p>Trent:<br>

Nice to see that you actually pixel-peeped the pics from the K7. I ought to do the same, likely next weekend, when I perform my second field tests!<br>

Good for you that the grip is comfortable for your limited wrist ROM. That will appeal to a lot of people who are afflicted with arthritis, a real scourge in our modern world.<br>

Video on the K7: although this seems to be a nice feature, it is not something which attracted my attention when I decided to investigate the possibility of getting the K7. However, I can see that it could be a great feature for those who want "on the spot" video clips without having to resort to a dedicated video camera.<br>

JP</p>

<p>Dave, yes this place is rather accommodating in spite of it being a franchised store. I guess it is the staff who will not be afraid to break the rules when it comes to selling efforts: they want my "business"; they want to keep me as a customer .... I did buy quite a few things -photography-related- there already.<br>

Only problem is: they are not photography specialists and they do sell a lot more than just photography equipment. </p>

 

<p>Javier, I couldn"t agree more: I found the shutter "almost silent" on the K7 even during continuous shhoting a high rate, which really added to the temptation (of buying it).</p>

 

<p>The shutter is my favorite part of the K-7</p>

<p>That is the sort of things I like to read when I consider buying, and thanks again!<br>

Post more pics from the K7 when you have the chance.<br>

Cheers.<br>

JP</p>

<p>This is an interesting set of observation Jacques. I am undecided at this point as I am happy with my K20D.</p>

<p>I have a question for you. You commented (#4) that the K7 noise was significantly less than K20D / K10D. You mentioned that you shot at 100ISO. Did you mean you observed less noise at 100ISO? K20D at 100ISO should not be that noisy. </p>

<p>Subho,<br>

"Noise" as in "real noise" ... what I meant was it is utterly more silent than the K10D/K20D a far a the shutter noise is concerned.<br>

I did not try the K7 under high ISO, i.e.: 1600 and up. That will definitely be a further test. By the way, I couldn't go out this past weekend because we were in the middle of a major move and that took a full four days ... certainly more testing soon!</p>