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11-20-2016, 09:46 AM - 1 Like   #1
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After 5 years of soul searching, I have purchased a used K5. It is a monumental leap to go from my trusty MX that traveled the world with me for the past 37 years and move into digital photography. I did have a chance to play with and purchase a new K3, but this used K5 came along and I snatched it up. If digital and I get along well, next year I will move into the full frame K1. If not, I will sell the K5 and go back to film.


Why did it take 5 years to decide? Well, I am a sentimental sort and the MX has a ton of history with me, and it still works like it was new. I am not one to snap a shot every time I see something I might think is interesting, rather I am more of a composition shooter, the way my dad taught me. In my travels I shot 8 to 10 rolls every year, but now I shoot only 1 or 2 36 frame rolls per year. I always wanted to go DSLR, but could never justify the cost due to the low volume. When the K1 was introduced I started to rethink, and after playing with a K3 at a local camera store I decided to give it a try. What sold me is the ability to go fully manual, which is all I know. Watching a video online on how it is done, and then reading it in the manual I found it was no big deal. I can do that.


All the other stuff on the camera does me no good, and I don't intend to use the plethora of options it offers. I will shoot jpg, and am not interested in in-camera processing or post processing other than having prints made direct from the file. My work involves sitting in front of three monitors 8 to 10 hours a day, and spending more time in front of a monitor to doctor the images I take has absolutely no appeal. Yes, at one time I was into developing and printing my own, but that was so far different from what I was doing for work that it was fun. Visit a country for work, shoot film on my days off, collect rolls, develop when I got back home. It really was fun, but that came to a halt as I traveled less and less. Haven't done any developing in years.


The excitement is overwhelming as I wait for an opportunity to use the camera, right after I burn up the last 10 shots on this roll of film in the MX. Yep, it was put in the camera almost exactly a year ago. Right on schedule.

11-20-2016, 10:18 AM   #2
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I used to use a Pentax K-1000 when digital was not available. After I got my Pentax K-20D (early digital) I was amazed at how the digital use was so simplified and useful, along with great images. Having the Manual mode along with other options is really nice. I now have a Pentax K-5IIS and Pentax K-3II and they are great performers. I had two K-5's and they yielded high quality images, but the K-5IIS provides more detail due to the lack of an anti-aliasing filter. That is also true of the K-3II (lacks anti-aliasing filter). So, if you want to evaluate the film vs. digital capability, the K-5 will tell you a real lot, but not as much as the Pentax camera bodies that came after it.

I hope you enjoy your K-5, it does deliver high quality images as I said, and that you are satisfied enough to pursue a later model Pentax camera to enjoy if you like.

Happy shooting.
11-20-2016, 10:29 AM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
What sold me is the ability to go fully manual, which is all I know.
I bought my K-5 for the same reason 4 years ago. I used a K1000 for 25+ years, All I wanted in a DSLR was fully manual control

QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
I don't intend to use the plethora of options it offers. I will shoot jpg, and am not interested in in-camera processing or post processing other than having prints made direct from the file.
A year ago, I might have agreed with you, but most of the in-camera options are actually easy to use, and can really produce some interesting effects, both enhancing normal pictures, or creating something surreal.

In any case, welcome! Take a look around ,consider joining any of the groups listed in my signature, and I look forward to seeing your pictures.
11-20-2016, 10:56 AM   #4
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Welcome to the golden age of digital photography. We are so lucky to live in a time when both are available. One reason (of many) that I picked up digital was that I used to shoot the now extinct Kodachrome and local quality color labs are now gone.

As I shoot both film & digital, I think youʻll love how digital handles low light better than film. Also because youʻre not shooting rolls of 24/36 and paying for each, it will evolve your style to more experimentation and risk. The flip side is that youʻre not forced to have that same patience and vision with the slow start to finish process of film photography.

I understand your perspective on not wanting to spend more time behind a computer to post process but you may want to consider shooting jpegs and RAW simultaneously. In that way, youʻve got the convenience of the jpegs, but if you have an extraordinary image, you could still realize its full potential.

You mentioned that the K3 sold you because of its ability to go full manual, which is all you know. But trust me, itʻs like only knowing how to drive a manual transmission car. Automatic transmission (or exposure modes) is easier, more convenient, faster.....but not necessarily better. In tricky lighting situations like night photography, Manual makes the most sense, but you may want to explore:
Aperture Value (Av) for when you really want shallow depth-of-field bokeh, or great depth-of-field throughout a session.
Time Value (Tv) for when you really want blur or frozen motion throughout a session.
Time & Aperture Value (TAv) for when you really want to pick shutter speed and f/stop and let the camera pick the necessary ISO for a normal exposure.

For sure, if you can afford the K-1 youʻre going to find it matches your MX viewfinder size, brightness, lens field of view, depth of field, etc. But the K5 has the smaller lighter size and with the APS-C sensor gives you more reach for your telephoto or macro shots. Again, congratulations on your first DSLR; itʻs never too late.

11-20-2016, 12:14 PM   #5
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You might want to reconsider shooting RAW rather than JPEG. You don't have to spend that much time in front of the computer to just do simple adjustments to contrast and brightness, and you get a higher-quality image from RAW.

Plus, if you're shooting only about 72 photos a year, with presumably some of them not keepers, you wouldn't really be spending that much time in front of the computer at any rate!

Last edited by leekil; 11-20-2016 at 12:15 PM. Reason: typo
11-20-2016, 12:50 PM   #6
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I suspect you may find that you will be taking many more images than you have been with film on your K-5.....next year the k-1 maybe....... and maybe keep the MX as a 2nd body for nostalgia.
Being able to review what you have taken is such a blessing.
Enjoy.
11-20-2016, 04:49 PM   #7
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Thanks for the good words and encouragement. I have been told that the volume will naturally go up because there is no cost risk with taking a shot of questionable composition or just because. What I am really excited about is if digital is good to me, and I to it, then a full frame is in the future, which is what I set out to investigate so many years ago and found Pentax didn't have at the time. Well, they do now, and when the Nikon salesman says that it blows the competition away at that price point, then you know it is something worth reaching for.

11-20-2016, 09:13 PM   #8
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The K-5 remains an excellent camera. What lens(es) did you get with it?
11-20-2016, 09:42 PM   #9
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Like you, I was reluctant for a long time to take the digital plunge but I finally did about four years ago. At first, I stuck to the camera's most basic functions as I concentrated on learning to see the world through a viewfinder again. But it very quickly re-awoke a part of my brain that had been dormant since the early '90s. It was like having been without one of my senses for a very long time and suddenly having it restored. I literally began seeing the world a little differently, becoming more acutely aware of light and shadow, color and composition even when I didn't have a camera in my hand. These days, I'm beginning to stretch my envelope a bit and experiment with other settings, just so see what they do and to understand how I can get more out of my camera. In a lot of ways, its much simpler than film but it also has many nuances that I'm still wrapping my brain around. But like most things in life, it's the journey that's really important.
11-20-2016, 11:27 PM   #10
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Hello there, yes I hope you enjoy the K-5, I certainly do with mine, I may even get a K-5IIs to accompany it and preserve the ability to make images using the great sensor they have. well I like it anyway
11-21-2016, 12:43 AM   #11
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Welcome to the digital Pentax universe!

While jpeg is sufficient for most tasks I do, do consider using some of the in-camera options. I often use cropping to another aspect ratio and/or the digital filter marked "parameter adjust" or some such, which allows you to reprocess the saturation color sharpness hi/lo key. Great tools that save me a lot of work later or rescue a blown exposure. I also often re-save as picture mode Monochrome after the shot. And if the image demands still more effort I hit AEL and save as raw at that moment. I find these 'bonus features' really handy!
11-21-2016, 09:00 AM   #12
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The 18-55 DA lens comes with it. I have an SMC 135, 50 and 28mm lens from the MX. The basic manual functions are all I am really after at this time. It was a real struggle to knowingly push the MX aside to pursue the current format of digital. Fortunately the MX will go to the grave with me, and if I want to shoot film and can find it locally, the option still exists! I suppose when I retire the option to post process images may be more appealing, but not now. First, let me get to know a little more about digital and the camera. Just think, this is my first new camera in over 35 years! That in itself is exciting.
11-21-2016, 05:22 PM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
I have an SMC 135, 50 and 28mm lens from the MX.
The 18-55 is a very good lens, the optical quality is very good until most conditions, and the WR allows me to go out in the rain and snow when other photographers have to stay inside.

Once you get used to the crop factor, I think you'll enjoy the primes on the K-5, I have those focal lengths as well, and I've been pleased with them all.
12-31-2016, 07:47 PM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
After 5 years of soul searching, I have purchased a used K5. It is a monumental leap to go from my trusty MX that traveled the world with me for the past 37 years and move into digital photography.
About 12 years ago I began to worry that film would disappear with the world's move to digital, and so I started buying up film and freezing it. Then I went digital. Now I'm testing out my frozen film with my MX and LX. The results are another story, but I'm realizing I like shooting film and will continue to do so along with my digital photography. The mindsets are different. Enjoy your K-5, but don't give up on your MX; it's a lovely camera.
01-01-2017, 09:32 PM   #15
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Today was a good day for shooting. Used one of the primes (200mm) and realized that relying upon auto focus is not necessary as the view finder really is excellent. The one thing that is taking time to get accustomed to is the field of view is much more narrow than 35mm, so that using wider lenses for familiar circumstances is necessary. All in all, a most excellent experience with this camera.
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