Pentax makes some good cameras

[dxqcanada]

Ah, PRICL sounds better then PRIC.

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[Vinata]

nice camera

[slackercruster]

Pentax are good mid level cameras. After I got rid of my pro equipment 30 years ago I bought a couple of new Pentax bodies for about $100 each and a bunch of Sigma lenses for next to nothing. Just sold them on ebay. They still worked great. That was the time when yopu had one body for BW and one for color. Or one WA and one Zoom body.

I'm buying some cheap dslr Pentax gear now for disposable cameras. If they get wrecked, I wont lose much. Bot a 10 and 12 mp Pentax for $550 for the pair...and they both take AA batteries! Both in the 3000 shutter count area.

If you check out the resolution specs on Pentax glass, they are about 55- 60% as sharp as Nikon and Canon. Other isuues pop up though like CA with Pentax glass. But for the price, Pentax is a bargain.

These photos were taken with a $75 PS Cheapy Kodak set at the minimum setting of 1.1MP. When all cylinders are firing and the light is right, most cameras will do a decent job. (Sauna is finished now and am sweating like hell!)

[Jeremy Z]

I think Pentax has realized that it is more profitable to market to amateurs than to pros. Amateurs buy many more cameras than pros do.

As for the upgrade path, it is true that they don't make a lot of super long, fast telephotos any more.

However, think about what you really need, and what you can actually afford. Not a lot of us could or would afford a 300mm f/2.8. They're something like $10k, right?

Check out their lens line-up for their digital cameras:
PENTAX Digital Camera Lens Lineup

• They have a 200mm f/2.8. This is a great sports lens. Equivalent to 300mm on a Pentax camera with 1.5x crop factor. Add a 1.5x teleconverter for 450mm f/4. Not bad, right? Especially considering how good the images are from a Pentax dSLR @ ISO 800. They also have a 300mm f/4 and a 60-250mm f/4 with ED glass. Being honest, how many amateurs can afford an equivalent lens in f/2.8?
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...fsdm_large.jpg

• Their Limited series lenses are much loved, and to my knowledge, Canon and Nikon have nothing to compete. These are compact, with all metal and glass construction, yet they have top optical quality. I'm going to pick up one of these shortly as a sharp, all-around prime lens:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...ited_large.jpg

• Their pancake lenses allow us to effectively make an SLR the same size as an old-fashioned rangefinder. Very easy to carry, very good optics. World class SMC coatings (co-developed with Zeiss T*) This one is brand new, and only protrudes 1/2" from the SLR body.
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...ical_large.jpg

• They make a fish-eye zoom, too, for those so inclined:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...heye_large.jpg

• Other parts in the upgrade path, here's their high-end, full-power bounce flash. I have one, and it is fantastic. Swivel, bounce, backlit LCD, built-in diffuser and reflector card, GN 178 (ft.) @ ISO 100, wireless control, quick-lock shoe, 330 VDC power input, etc. This is every bit the match for Canon and Nikon's top-of-the-line bounce flash. This was probably a better investment for me than my 55-200 telephoto zoom. Worth every penny.
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...0fgz_large.jpg

• Macro ring flash:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...lash_large.jpg

• GPS unit:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...unit_large.jpg

• Focusing screens:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...een_medium.jpg

• Battery grip/vertical grip:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...bg2_medium.jpg

• Wireless remote:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...olf_medium.jpg

• Wired remote:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...s205_large.jpg

• Power supply for cameras:
  http://c758710.r10.cf2.rackcdn.com/i...c50_medium.jpg

• Here's their accessories page:
  Digital Camera Accessories -PENTAX DSLR Accessories

• Sigma makes lenses for Pentax mount, and some of them pretty high-end, such as the 30mm f/2.8 that is missing from Pentax's own line-up:
  Product Finder - SigmaPhoto.com

• So does Tamron, like this 17-50 f/2.8:
  http://www.tamron.com/en/photolens/d...pic_a16_02.jpg

Being honest, what else do you need from a camera mfr.? What is missing from the upgrade path? Pros might be disappointed to see f/2.8 prime telephotos above 300mm are absent. Or tilt/shift lenses for architectural photography. However, Pentax did make them at one time for their film cameras, and they're still out there on the used market.

[Jeremy Z]

If you check out the resolution specs on Pentax glass, they are about 55- 60% as sharp as Nikon and Canon. Other isuues pop up though like CA with Pentax glass.

Whoa, that's news to me. What's the source for this data? Are you comparing apples to apples?

[markj]

nice shots

[EchoingWhisper]

The Sigma lenses are actually pretty good compared to Canon/Nikon, pros may find their sealing not as good, but the optical quality doesn't lag behind very much.