Stop me from buying a K5 even after owning a 40D

[anuragagnihotri]

<p>Hi, <br>

I am on the verge of buying a pentax k5. <br>

I not only own a 40D, i have just bought a new sigma 10-20 for it. And i also <br>

had plans to purchase a tele zoom for it. Tamron 70-300 VC. <br>

But the attraction is almost fatal. I am increasingly thinking about a k5 plus few primes <br>

that they make. 15, 21, 40, 70...<br>

Can someone slap me on the face, talk me out of spending unnecessary money...<br>

Why do i need a K5?<br>

Or should i go and buy it?<br>

regards,</p>

 

[jim_larson1]

<p>WHY do you need a K5?</p>

<p>Do you just want those primes? Are the pentax primes <em>any good?</em></p>

<p>Canon makes 15mm, 20, 24, 28, 35, 50 and 85 mm primes. The "consumer" versions, though in some cases dated, are <em>good</em> lenses, generally F2.8 or better. The 35 is a mere $300. The 50 is under $100!</p>

<p>The 15/2.8 is a fisheye. . .they tell me that defishing software is readily available. Supposedly. . .the 15/2.8 correction profile is built into Lightroom.</p>

<p>I have the 24/2.8, 35/2, 50/1.8, and 85/1.8. I love them all. Even my (now broken) 35/2; which I am dithering about rebuying.</p>

<p> </p>

[matthijs]

<p>No, I won't try to talk you out of it.</p>

<p>Just some questions.</p>

 

<ul>

<li>Why don't you use both and keep the one you like best or keep and use them both but for different purposes?</li>

<li>Is this a rational decision or one from the heart?</li>

<li>What will the K5 bring that the EOS system can't in any way or form?</li>

<li>Is it stupid gear lust or love at first sight?</li>

<li>Have you actually shot with a K5 yet or are you lusting after some pixels and some numbers on a website?</li>

<li>Are you able to create art with your 40D? Will you be able to create better art with a K5?</li>

<li>Are you loaded? (financially)</li>

<li>Do you need to spend some money to get inspired?</li>

<li>What kind of shots or what kind of shooting will the pentax bring you? </li>

<li>Why not a 7D?</li>

</ul>

<p>Have fun and above all: keep shooting,</p>

<p>Matthijs.</p>

[Sanford]

<p>If you've got the money, by all means go for it! Life is short so why not experience all the great cameras the world has to offer. If I could I would own one from every manufacturer. I used to do just that when camera stores had a more generous trade-in policy and used cameras retained more of their value.</p>

[Sanford]

<p>BTW, beautiful shots on your site.</p>

[keith reeder]

<p>Based on your gallery and style, the K-5 won't give you anything you can't get from your 40D.</p>

[g dan mitchell]

<p>If you are buying it for some real, practical, photography-related reason... go for it. Can you articulate what this camera will let you do that you cannot do with your current equipment?</p>

<p>If you are buying it just because you are obsessed with it and/or are suffering from Gear Lust... wait a couple months and see if you still feel like you need it.</p>

[anuragagnihotri]

 

<p>Jim:</p>

<blockquote>

<p><em>Canon makes 15mm, 20, 24, 28, 35, 50 and 85 mm primes. The "consumer" versions, though in some cases dated, aregood lenses, generally F2.8 or better. The 35 is a mere $300. The 50 is under $100!</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>20, 24, 28, 35, 50, 85 are 32, 38, 56, 80 and 135 unfortunately. Fast lenses are too expensive. Consumer grades<br>

are bigger, and equally fast as the pentax primes. They are not as good looking either, nor that well built. There's no wide and i shoot wide. Pentax has a 15, and a 14 too (23mm and 21mm). <br>

The way i look at it is: i like k5...will buy a 15 with it and later a 21 maybe. It will be small and cute :)<br>

Will shoot with 10-20 and 40 combo as well. </p>

 

<br />

 

 

 

[anuragagnihotri]

<p><em>Matthjis:</em></p>

<blockquote>

<p><em>Why don't you use both and keep the one you like best or keep and use them both but for different purposes?</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p><em><br /></em> yes, that's what i am thinking i will do. 40D with zooms, a heavy set up for when i am doing landscapes etc...maybe 40D will go and something else will come...and k5 with primes, a small set up for more spontaneous shooting.</p>

<blockquote><em>Is this a rational decision or one from the heart?</em></blockquote>

<p>heart and primes and a need to go small.</p>

<blockquote><em>What will the K5 bring that the EOS system can't in any way or form?</em></blockquote>

<p>what K5 will bring can be had in EOS system too, but not in such a small form factor, and the DA primes. When i got my (used) 40D, the feeling was not of joy but of a 'challenge' and of being 'puzzled'...because i found it BIG compared to my LX3.</p>

<blockquote><em>Is it stupid gear lust or love at first sight?</em></blockquote>

<p>yup.</p>

<blockquote><em>Have you actually shot with a K5 yet or are you lusting after some pixels and some numbers on a website?</em></blockquote>

<p>no, not at all. i read dpreview review and everyone gushing about it etc etc.</p>

<blockquote><em>Are you able to create art with your 40D? Will you be able to create better art with a K5?</em></blockquote>

<p>That's the thing...i'm yet to transfer images from it onto my comp...i've hardly used it in the last 6 months. It kept lying in my cup-board for 4 months without a lens, then i bought the sigma 10-20 2 weeks back. Its proving to be too big for me. Will have to get into habit.</p>

<blockquote><em>Are you loaded? (financially)</em></blockquote>

<p>Not at all. But i can spend some money now, some money that i had earmarked for the equipment after i decided i need serious gear, something more than my compact camera.</p>

<blockquote><em>Do you need to spend some money to get inspired?</em></blockquote>

<p>No.</p>

<blockquote><em>What kind of shots or what kind of shooting will the pentax bring you?</em></blockquote>

<p>Candid, street, people, and possibly everything else to some extent.</p>

<blockquote><em>Why not a 7D?</em></blockquote>

<p>Too big. Bigger than the 40D.</p>

[anuragagnihotri]

<blockquote>

<p><em>Can you articulate what this camera will let you do that you cannot do with your current equipment?</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>Some background is needed:<br>

I have been shooting with a Panny LX3 for 2 years. The pictures turned out good, so i started thinking of doing something about them, may be display them in a gallery and whatever. That set me thinking about the resolution and being able to print bigger than what i possibly could with LX3, a compact camera. And the need to buy a serious camera. <br>

I got a 40D, purely because it was available cheap from a friend. Later, when i saw it, i was bewildered by the size. I thought i will have to adjust with it and see how it goes. <br>

Enters, K5, a small but serious camera, and those primes. <br>

My LX3 pictures can be seen here, if you want to:<br>

http://www.fluidr.com/photos/agnihot</p>

[hjoseph7]

<p>"Can someone slap me on the face, talk me out of spending unnecessary money..."</p>

<p>I'm not going to talk you out of it, the K5 is a wonderful camera with features that are lacking in the 40D. Like a previous poster said why don't you keep both cameras ? You are not going to get a ticket and have to go to court because you own another system camera. Although I'm a canon 7D, 5D, 30D owner, I'm seriously thinking about the Olympus E5 because of the weather sealing , top-notch lenses, no edit jpegs, and double exposure. To each his own ! </p>

[anuragagnihotri]

<p>Thanks Gerald, and Keith, all those pictures were shot with a Panasonic LX3, on a wide lens. </p>

[anuragagnihotri]

<p>Some background is needed:<br />I have been shooting with a Panny LX3 for 2 years. The pictures turned out good, so i started thinking of doing something about them, may be display them in a gallery and whatever. That set me thinking about the resolution and being able to print bigger than what i possibly could with LX3, a compact camera. And the need to buy a serious camera. <br />I got a 40D, purely because it was available cheap from a friend. Later, when i saw it, i was bewildered by the size. I thought i will have to adjust with it and see how it goes. <br />Enters, K5, a small but serious camera, and those primes. <br />My LX3 pictures can be seen here, if you want to:<br>

<br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.fluidr.com/photos/agnihot" target="_blank">http://www.fluidr.com/photos/agnihot</a></p>

[boblester]

<p>If you have the money, go for it. As has been said many times, the Pentax DA primes are little jewels. A K5 with the DA15,35,70 and 100WR macro is my dream outfit. </p>

[bueh]

<p>I seriously considered switching to Pentax because as a prime lens shooter I find the in-built image stabilization very attractive. I bought two K10D kits (and some lenses) from that big internet auction site and used them extensively for two months.</p>

<p>I went back to my old EOS 20D because I simply could not make the colors look right with the Pentax cameras. Especially skin tones would always look too beige/orange and just plain weird. I tried all in-camera processing -- changing WB, saturation, tones, whatever -- it never looked right and when I browse my pictures I can immediately tell which ones were taken with the K10D. It really, really surprised (and frustrated) me.</p>

<p>Maybe it's me. I want to have my photos look right straight out of the camera and not spend time in post-processing messing with extensive RAW manipulation. The Pentax dSLR just did not work for me.</p>

<p>Other drawbacks were the different (IMHO lesser) camera ergonomics and the cost and availability of Pentax lenses. That there are only few fast lenses in their system also bugged me. And the poor backwards-compability of the K10D surprised me. I no longer recommed the Pentax system.</p><div></div>

[joseph_wisniewski]

<p>If you're talking about switching, yes, it makes perfect sense. I used to have dual systems, Nikon and Pentax. There were things I needed that I couldn't get from Pentax, but I do some pretty hefty product stuff, not a Pentax forte. But for general purpose photography, well, I used to spend a lot of time with a simple three lens kit, a portrait tele (typically a 105mm f2.5 Ai-S Nikkor), a normal (50mm f1.4, 50mm f1.8, or 45mm f2.8, depending on my mood), and a 20mn f2.8 or 24mm f2.8. Pentax can replace that kit, better than any other camera company.</p>

<ul>

<li>The Pentax 31mm (note the weird focal length) may be the best "normal prime" I've ever used. The Nikons weren't even close.</li>

<li>I love the 77mm, it's so close to a Nikon 105mm ff2.5 Ai-S on FF that it's really hard to pick a winner. I find it amazing that no one else makes this incredibly useful 105mm equivalent for an APS. </li>

<li>The 14mm f2.8 isn't the shining star that the other two are, but it was probably on even footing with a Nikon 20mm on FF.</li>

</ul>

<p>There are other real gems, those are just the three I owned. In my opinion, that 31mm is so spectacular that it's enough reason to go Pentax, all by itself, if normal is a big part of your world. If portraits are, Pentax has the 55mm f1.4, which is a lot friendlier focal length than a 50mm, and has optical characteristics that make it well suited to portraiture.</p>

<p>In short, Pentax has a committment to APS as their "primary" format that made them come out with a bunch of very high quality primes in focal lengths matched to real world tasks, and you just don't see this from Nikon, Canon, or Sony. Four thirds, sort of, but with Oly pulling out of the DSLR market...</p>

[Sanford]

<p>Now I am really impressed that I have learned you shot those with P&S! </p>

[matthijs]

OK

 

I understand.

 

I do the same but I try to stay within Canon.

 

 

I have a 400D, a 50D and a 5Dii.

 

I prefer small lenses on the 400D like the 50/1.8 and the 28/2.8.

 

My bigger lenses and zooms I use on the other two. (including my 50/1.4... My second 50)

 

And I'm still looking for the perfect 50 for my 5Dii. Currently lusting after a Zeiss MP F/2, need I say more?

 

So I wish you the best of luck and fun,

 

Matthijs.

[JDMvW]

<p>Why buy a K5 when you can get a beautiful RED K-r or a rainbow of colors in the K-x line?<br>

Of course, my personal favorite might be the very exclusive one shown here : http://gizmodo.com/5536387/rainbow-pentax-k+x-is-some-sort-of-culmination</p>

<p>;)</p>

[DWScott]

<p>It's fun to try cameras from the different marques. You don't know what you like until you try. I like the ergonomics of Pentax and Nikon the best; Canon I find confusing to the point of unworkable. Image quality varies by sensor and internal processing, but the K5 (along with the D7000) has a remarkable sensor that delivers lovely images. The final ingredient is lenses. For my taste, nothing renders colour like Pentax lenses - love the SMC coatings.<br>

For your priority list, light weight, small size, interested in primes, street shooting (where image stablization on all lenses is a bonus), then you are a perfect candidate for Pentax. As to the K5 -- why go for anything less? It is destined to be a classic (as much as digital cameras can be.) I have had the K10D, K20D and the new K-r. They are all beaten handily (in different ways) by the new K5. Enjoy it!</p>

[w_t1]

<p>micro 4/3</p>

[e._r._averitt]

<p>Why not, go for it! To each his own.<br /> <br /> I prefer a Texas Size camera to a Petite one, for handling larger telephoto lenses.<br /> <br /> Pentax 1.53x (your 21mm will be a 32mm) crop or Canon 1.6x (20mm will be a 32mm, or a 200mm+1.4 extender will become an amazing 448mm! ) crop, your choice.<br /> <br /> Like others, I too, have owned, and still have my favorite cameras and lenses. One of these is my Honeywell Pentax Spotmatic F, SMC Takumar 50mm f1.4, bought new in 1975. Another one a Mamiya 645, 45mm f2.8(crop 28mm), 55mm f2.8 (crop 35mm), 80mm f2.8 (crop 50mm), and 150mm f3.5 (crop 90mm) primes.</p>

<p>However, none of these are as good as my EOS 3 (with ECF) or EOS 7d (no ECF, but excellent wireless control of multiple EX Speedlites) and L zooms in capturing photos of my grandchildren, in their fast moving sporting activities! Just add glass f2.8 and faster, then you too will see the amazing results of the lightning fast auto-focus, of the EOS system, has to offer!</p>

[hal_drallmeyer]

<p>Looking at pictures on your flicker it seems to me it really doesn't matter what you use. You already have talent, the most desired feature of any camera.<br>

Outstanding work!</p>

[dogbert]

<p>Well if it were me, I'd ditch the 40D, not get the K5 and instead use the money to buy a 5D Mark II and some Canon primes. 24 f2.8, 35 f2, 50 f1.8 and 85 f1.8 are all small, sharp and good value for money.</p>

<p>I think the Pentax 15 mm is f4 and their 21 (35 equivalent) if and f3.2 or something. So with Canon you get an extra stop for less money. Normally within systems an extra stop will cost you twice as much for a lens.</p>

<p>I have used both systems and tested Canon consumers primes against Pentax lenses, and lens for lens, Canon lenses are just as sharp and faster and cheaper than Pentax. The Pentax lenses are metal but aluminium not brass. And Canon's AF leaves Pentax for dead.</p>

<p>Of course the 5D II is not a small camera, but the FF viewfinder makes composition so much easier. You need to see it for yourself to understand what all the fuss is about.</p>

[michael_elenko]

<p>Anurag,<br /><br />I've been shooting with Pentax DSLRs since 2005 and added a Canon 7D to the toolbox last August. I also frequently borrow a 5DMK2. My current Pentax body is the K20D and I've owned two prior models. Before, I shot with Nikon and Minolta film-based systems quite happily. If any of these tools don't satisfy then I'll simply return or sell them for something better. It's the process and resultant photos that matter.<br /><br />Each system has their unique and overlapping benefits and drawbacks. Many folks will regurgitate Internet-based reviews, spec sheets, rumors from the same, or advertising copy without touching one brand or the other. Others will generalize their experience from using a particular camera 25 years ago. So be it.<br /><br />It seems like your requirements revolve around portability, a smaller form factor, and prime lenses. It also seems that your relationship with a Canon DSLR is more based on circumstance rather than a commitment to a vested lens collection, so you are closer to a free agent here.<br /><br />In my experience the Pentax system would serve you quite well. I've not even touched the K-5 yet, but have handled the K-7 which is similar dimensionally and functionally. The subsystems (sensor, AF performance, FPS, features) of the K-5 are significantly improved. If my commission work wasn't driving me to procure a 645D, then I would consider a K-5, as well my own 5DMK2.<br /><br />I appreciate the smaller size of the Pentax body. It's a joy to take hiking, x-country skiing, out on the street, and just traveling. Pentax has built a fairly nice range of small APS-C optimized primes that deliver excellent results--equal in color rendition and dimensionality to any Canon product I've used.<br /><br />The ergonomics of Pentax cameras are superior to most of the Canon DSLR bodies I've used. The button and dial placements are intuitive and easy. Multipurpose functions don't require a long learning curve. The viewfinder is bright enough (for a cropped sensor) and you can easily get third party split screens that work well for manual focus (I've used a Katz Eye for years). The menus easy to navigate and learn. Some shooting modes are unique and useful for photographers. To me the design of the Pentax system is executed with photographers in mind. <br /><br />Some systems seem like they are the product of engineers designed for other engineers who just happen to take a lot of pictures.<br /><br />The weakness of the Pentax system involve more professionally-oriented use and support. Fairly average zoom lenses, a flash system that's imperfect, AF that' s not as configurable for sports and wildlife, a paucity of new lenses >300mm, no current technical lenses such as tilt-shift, few storefront retailers and no lens rentals in metro areas. There are also fewer third party products, though you can get most basic wireless gadgets for studio work. If you haven't yet, do weigh whether these factors are important to you.<br /><br />I could go on about how much I enjoy using my Canon products as well as their issues, but that's been covered well here and in this forum.<br /><br /><br>

ME</p>