Nikon D90 vs. Pentax K7

[nicholas_fiduccia1]

<p>Wow, I am amazed at the objectivity of most of the posters, especially Andrew Gilchrist. His last post was the most balanced posting I have read in a long time. The only advise I can add is to really consider what lenses you need for the type of photography that you do and then go to a site like B&H photo and see what that lens set will eventually cost. If you like landscape photography, a weather-sealed K7 would provide a great benefit over the D90. On the other hand, if you like bird photography which uses very expensive long glass, the Nikon system may be a better fit for you. The Nikon will probably be better if you shoot a lot of action photography since the D90's AF algorithms are a bit more sophisticated and faster than that of the K7. Either way, they are both great cameras!</p>

[eric_arnold]

<blockquote>

<p>If you like landscape photography, a weather-sealed K7 would provide a great benefit over the D90. On the other hand, if you like bird photography which uses very expensive long glass, the Nikon system may be a better fit for you. The Nikon will probably be better if you shoot a lot of action photography since the D90's AF algorithms are a bit more sophisticated and faster than that of the K7.</p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>that's pretty much what i said earlier in the thread, before Ira jumped in with his .02:</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p>depending on your style of shooting. if you do a lot of landscapes and posed portraits, the K-7 will be pretty good at base ISO in terms of resolution. but for sports, action or low-light, the K-7 might lag behind similarly-priced Canon or Nikon models.</p>

</blockquote>

<p> </p>

[bryan_w1]

<p>Andrew's email at first appeared well balanced, which then proceeded to let the wolf into the hen house. I'm suspicious.</p>

<p>Either way, Pentax not only has a 85 f/1.4 (FA and A Star lens - remember?) that's widely regarded as the best ever made, but Sigma is releasing an autofocus 85 1.4 for Pentax this year.</p>

<p>You should also note the Rokinon/Vivitar/Bower manual focus 85 f/1.4 that has a cult following as well.</p>

<p>For me, the biggest disadvantage to using Pentax is the d-bags who always ask "<strong>why aren't you using a CaNikon?" </strong>to be frank. The main thing that truly pains me is low light autofocus, which the K-7 remedies much of for me, from the K20D. But ultimately, nothing that hinders me at this time in terms of reaching my creative potential yet by far.</p>

<p>Frankly, the rest of the stuff (Frames per second, five digit ISO, etc) are part of what I see as just a war of escalation / CaNikon pissing contest, that people with no artistic eye banter about. Of course, If Pentax had similar specs, perhaps we'd be pissing on people too, but until it happens, well... :)</p>

<p>Maybe now that we have a nice Medium Forma Digi cam out we can start picking on full frames? ;)</p>

[thebs]

<p>I'm not a pro. I'm not a semi-pro. And I don't even consider myself an amateur. I'm a 4-year dSLR novice. I got tired of Point'n Shoots. So then I looked around.<br>

Let's get some things straight, Canon and Nikon have: </p>

<ul>

<li>Extensive lens line-up, available at countless stores, lenses available for rental, etc...</li>

<li>Great semi-pro and pro bodies (framerate, solid AF, etc...), full frame options, etc...</li>

<li>In-lens Image Stabilization (that is better than In-Body Shake Reduction)</li>

</ul>

<p>I don't think any Pentax owner will deny these.<br>

Now let's look at Pentax: </p>

<ul>

<li>Buy a Pentax (or K-mount) lens, it works forever, on any current or future body, including AF, period, no exceptions</li>

<li>Offers Shake Reduction and metering for any lens, including adapted lenses, no exceptions</li>

<li>Focuses only on APS-C, re-iterated and dedicated to the format, no ambiguity (with Medium Format is the "alternative pro" option)</li>

<li>Caters to two buyers: Inexpensive, featured $500 (street price) entry level and $1K (street price) expert-amateur controls with full weather sealing (<a href="http://www.neocamera.com/feature_compare_weather_sealed_dslr.html">2009 comparison article</a>, and I've done 5 hours in an on-off Florida monsoon-like session)</li>

<li>Standard build quality on everything, even on the cheap stuff, let alone the seals for weather resistant units </li>

</ul>

<p>Let's get one thing straight, Pentax was late to the dSLR party. It took Pentax 3 years to flush out the first, solid designs, the K100D and K10D circa 2006-2007. That's when I came around.<br>

At the time, I was really disappointed with the Nikon D40 (and, later, equally poor featured D40x and D60), clearly a crippled body designed to get people to upgrade. I'm not just talking about lens compatibility, but AF points, braketing, etc... In fact, it's actually humorous that Pentax was known for its "no-frills" K1000 for decades, only to start offering award winning bodies like the K100D and K10D who were known for their entry-level features and expert-amateur controls, respectively.<br>

And the final straw for myself was the cost for IS/VR lenses. Thanx to competition from Pentax, and Sony (who picked up Minolta's mount) with in-body SR, Canon and Nikon had to become more reasonable with pricing. In fact, the features at the entry-level have also forced both to stop crippling entry-level bodies as well. Competition is good in this regard.<br>

Of course, I live in Florida. So after a year of the K100D, I started looking again at something weather sealed. I considered a Nikon D300 and a nice, fast 180 f/2.8. I love the D300, very fast, excellent feature set -- some of which are only now available from Pentax in the K7, but is still not as fast and the AF is still not as good as the D300s. And Nikon offers more than the aging D300 now. Pentax does not.<br>

But back in 2008, I finally decided on the K20D with DA* lenses, eventually popping for the DA* 200 f/2.8 (<a href="http://www.popphoto.com/Reviews/Lenses/Lens-Test-Pentax-SMCP-DA-200mm-f-2.8ED-IF-SDM-AF">PopPhoto review</a>) because it's barely 5" long. I'm not a pro, but a spectator, and with 5"/hand-length lens rules at stadiums, I don't have problems. I just recently bought the D-FA 100 f/2.8 Macro WR (<a href="http://www.popphoto.com/reviews/lenses/2010/04/lens-test-pentax-d-fa-100mm-f28-wr-macro">PopPhoto review</a>) as well. Not the greatest system, but some great performers.<br>

Optically, Tokina and Pentax share designs, not all, but many. Many of the optics are built at Hoya's Vietnam unit. The build and other aspects of the lenses are different, and not built on the same assembly either (sometimes not in the same country). But if you like a Tokina AT-X Pro lens, then if it's available as a Pentax DA*, it's almost always a better build, and is weather sealed too.<br>

And on the final point for expert-amateurs and wannabe amateurs like myself, let's talk about putting money into a Pentax system. The bodies are cheap, so put that aside. Let's talk glass. What happens when you buy Pentax glass?</p>

<ul>

<li>Again, they work forever, on all current and future Pentax bodies, period, no exceptions</li>

<li>The stay the same price, are replaced and/or appreciate in value</li>

</ul>

<p>No one is "losing money" on Pentax glass. They can be sold. Samsung has also adopted the mount as well. Someone will adopt the mount because of the glass that already exists. No, Pentax doesn't make new, long teles beyond the 200 f/2.8 or 300 f/4 today -- go directly to Canon or Nikon if you want to buy or, more often, rent those. But Pentax loves to make constant aperture zooms and pancake primes, among other goodies that many people like. And they make small, dedicated APS-C sized ones to boot (and often no bigger than the even smaller 4/3rds bodies and lenses, while still twice the sensor area at APS-C).<br>

As far as entry-level, today Pentax also offers the K-x, which is really more of a D90 competitor. The K-x, with the DA 18-55 f/3.5-5.6, is $499 (street) with from reputable, licensed USA dealers (full USA warranty, not gray market). Don't let the price fool you, it's a great, entry-level camera. It also runs on AAs. Again, Pentax really up's the ante at entry-level. If you're like me, starting as a novice, the K-x is a solid offering to consider. In fact, instead of buying a K-7 body to replace my K20D, I stuck with the K20D for myself, and bought the K-x as a backup -- both for my non-weather sealed DA lenses, but also so my wife can use it when she wants to shoot. At $499 shipped, it's hard not to for the price.<br>

Coming from a D60, unless you have a heavy investment in Nikon glass, and you like the Pentax system, look at the K-x for $499 (w/kit lens), or the K-7 for $899 (body-only). Yes, those are the real prices from official dealers (B&H, BuyDig, etc...). Don't pay list. You can't go wrong trying Pentax, even if you go Canon or Nikon later. You can recoup your investments, other than the bodies, which are cheap for the features anyway.</p>

[kanad_sinha]

<p><strong>Body and Design</strong><br>

The size of the two cameras are quite similar. Nikon D90 5.2×4.1×3.0in (132×103x77mm) and Pentax K7 5.1×3.8×2.9in (130×97x74mm). The weight is also almost identical d (D90: 700g vs K7: 750g). But in term of built-quality, K7 is superior with weather/water proof magnesium alloy and stainless steel chassis.<br>

<strong>Control and Handling</strong><br>

K7 might be more comfortable to handle because it has textured rubber, but many would probably say that D90 fits in the hand better</p>

<p><strong>K7 advantages</strong></p>

<ul>

<li>Image resolution: 2 extra megapixel</li>

<li>Continuous shooting speed: 5.2 fps vs 4.5 fps</li>

<li>Slightly better movie mode with external mic/audio input</li>

<li>100% viewfinder coverage compare to 95%</li>

<li>Magnesium alloy + Stainless steel body that is weather/water proof</li>

<li>Come with WR (weather sealed) lens</li>

<li>Post processing: Auto HDR (High image resolution), digital filters, auto corrections.</li>

<li>Shake Reduction / built-in image stabilization that potentially save you money in the long run</li>

</ul>

<p><strong>Nikon D90 advantages</strong></p>

<ul>

<li>Nikon lens selection and accessories are wider.Cleaner image throughout ISO level, however 1600 is still a limit of acceptable images</li>

</ul>

<p><strong>Similarities</strong></p>

<ul>

<li>Share almost the same size and weight</li>

<li>3″ LCD screen</li>

<li>12 bit image processing</li>

<li>Anti dust sensor mechanism</li>

<li>Live view with movie mode</li>

</ul>

<p>From this quick comparison, we know that K7 is a better camera in many aspects but not many improvement are significant.<br>

For example, extra 2 megapixel does not mean that the camera produce better quality picture. The continuous shooting speed differences are also very small, less than 1 frame per second. Auto HDR, digital filters and auto correction might be great for practicality and time saving, but many post-processing software already have those features with greater customization and control.<br>

However, Pentax K7’s built quality is significantly better, and it is weather sealed as well. The movie mode is also better because it provide external audio input, a feature that only offered by high-end dslr camera, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001G5ZTLS?ie=UTF8&tag=web06e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B001G5ZTLS">Canon 5D mark II</a>.</p>

 

[kanad_sinha]

<p>P.S. - the pentax K7 has FULL MAGNESIUM ALLOY BODY, protected from rain,dust,sand,mist,rain or watever u throw at it<br>

its shockproof from about 4 feet, so no more worries about tripod accidents<br>

:)<br>

<a href="http://surfdoc.blogspot.com/2009/08/video-samples-from-k7.html">http://surfdoc.blogspot.com/2009/08/video-samples-from-k7.html</a><br>

try it</p>