Rough weekend for gear

cwood · 05-23-2011, 08:56 PM

I shot a wedding on Saturday. As usual, my wife and I shot as a team with 2 Canon and 2 Pentax bodies. About 30 minutes before the ceremony started... my 16-50 SDM motor died. Then about 10 minutes before the ceremony my 360FGZ died. This is all without my K200 backup body which died 2 weeks ago (~3000 actuations... circuit board fried according to repair center with a $250 repair).

On top of that my k-7 is useless at and beyond ISO 1600 which is less than ideal for receptions.

Its getting harder and harder to justify my investment in Pentax... Fortunately the Canon gear was flawless. I was ready to buy a k-5... now I'm thinking 7D. After all... they all take nice pictures. I'm still editing the pictures right now and due mostly to the equipment failures... it looks like about 80% of my final proofs will be coming from my Canon gear this time.

Canon 5DmkII with 35mm F1.4

Pentax k-7 with 43mm F1.9

Noob · 05-23-2011, 09:35 PM

Wow, it looks like you're a really unlucky guy. I like Pentax lenses over their bodies personally. I wish their glass could be mounted on Nikons.

twitch · 05-23-2011, 09:41 PM

Ouch. Honestly if you and your wife shoot weddings together it makes sense to consolidate into 1 system, I wouldn't blame you for a second if you got the 7D. You could share backups then; lenses, bodies flashes etc.

Mind you, the K-5 with Sigma 17-50 or Tamron 17-50 would be a great combination.

DSims · 05-24-2011, 01:29 AM

Too bad about the SDM failure - it's a nice lens otherwise!

You should still consider the K-5 or even Canon T3i.

Nikon D3s is the best for low light (also best overall DSLR in my opinion), but D700, K-5, and D7000 are very good too. But since I don't have an actual need for the D3s right now, I'm happy with my K-5 which is still very impressive at recovering detail from even poorly exposed shots.

I've also kept my K200D because it's still a very nice camera.

Based on the results I get I think the DXO Mark rankings, where the K-5 beats both the D3S and 5D Mk II in 2 of 3 categories, are more than just hot air.

Last edited by DSims; 05-24-2011 at 01:48 AM.

05-23-2011, 08:56 PM	#1
cwood Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: California Posts: 851	Rough weekend for gear I shot a wedding on Saturday. As usual, my wife and I shot as a team with 2 Canon and 2 Pentax bodies. About 30 minutes before the ceremony started... my 16-50 SDM motor died. Then about 10 minutes before the ceremony my 360FGZ died. This is all without my K200 backup body which died 2 weeks ago (~3000 actuations... circuit board fried according to repair center with a $250 repair). On top of that my k-7 is useless at and beyond ISO 1600 which is less than ideal for receptions. Its getting harder and harder to justify my investment in Pentax... Fortunately the Canon gear was flawless. I was ready to buy a k-5... now I'm thinking 7D. After all... they all take nice pictures. I'm still editing the pictures right now and due mostly to the equipment failures... it looks like about 80% of my final proofs will be coming from my Canon gear this time. Canon 5DmkII with 35mm F1.4 Pentax k-7 with 43mm F1.9

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05-23-2011, 09:35 PM	#2
Noob Inactive Account Join Date: Apr 2011 Posts: 127	Wow, it looks like you're a really unlucky guy. I like Pentax lenses over their bodies personally. I wish their glass could be mounted on Nikons.

05-23-2011, 09:41 PM	#3
twitch Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 4,571	Ouch. Honestly if you and your wife shoot weddings together it makes sense to consolidate into 1 system, I wouldn't blame you for a second if you got the 7D. You could share backups then; lenses, bodies flashes etc. Mind you, the K-5 with Sigma 17-50 or Tamron 17-50 would be a great combination.

05-24-2011, 01:29 AM	#4
DSims Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Southern California Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,236	Too bad about the SDM failure - it's a nice lens otherwise! You should still consider the K-5 or even Canon T3i. Nikon D3s is the best for low light (also best overall DSLR in my opinion), but D700, K-5, and D7000 are very good too. But since I don't have an actual need for the D3s right now, I'm happy with my K-5 which is still very impressive at recovering detail from even poorly exposed shots. I've also kept my K200D because it's still a very nice camera. Based on the results I get I think the DXO Mark rankings, where the K-5 beats both the D3S and 5D Mk II in 2 of 3 categories, are more than just hot air. Last edited by DSims; 05-24-2011 at 01:48 AM.

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