[agsy]

TAv mode is absent from the Kx model.

[glanglois]

TAv mode is absent from the Kx model.

Alas .....

[thibs]

In low end models, forget about TAV, two wheels etc.
Now, if the K-r is targeted higher than K-x (I mean, in market segment), then it may inherit of some of these.

[glanglois]

In low end models, forget about TAV, two wheels etc.
Now, if the K-r is targeted higher than K-x (I mean, in market segment), then it may inherit of some of these.

The theory, based on nothing other than a bit of thought, is that Pentax maintains the K-X as the low-end entry level. If that doesn't sound silly. At about its existing street price.

There is room, then, for USD $700-$850 K-R kit. Street price depends on its value in relation to competition. That is the high-end entry level. Perhaps aimed at (would-be) enthusiasts rather than budget-minded family memory keepers.

WR is a big unknown here but the addition of a new sensor, AF points, competitive video, perhaps improved SR, etc. would provide the justification for the higher price as well as provide justification for upgrade from K-X. And it's available in fuchsia with a black pommel and pale pink fender skirts.

K-7 continues to be marketed, at ($900-$1K) for those who like the sealing, size, handling, and still image capabilities. It's behind on ISO (from a competitive position) but it's the entry level for the outdoor niche interested still images. I'd suggest a 55-300 WR release to accompany this emphasis. Moderately-priced 17-70 WR would be an ideal complement but hardly likely. Think old-style Sigma (non-OS, non-HSM) with weather resistance rather than * sealing.

Then we have the wunderkind, K-5, at the top of the heap. Plenty of room for improvement over the K-7, as we read endlessly, and room, too, for the appropriate pricing at $1,600 (maybe) and falling to competitive levels.

If either of the new cameras find their pricing pushed too close to the older model, the older model drops again or (in the case of the K-7) vanishes entirely.

We'll look at this again at the end of this year.

[Class A]

And it's available in fuchsia with a black pommel and pale pink fender skirts.

I want bilious green dots on the pale pink fender skirts, please.

[glanglois]

I want bilious green dots on the pale pink fender skirts, please.

Fine, then. I'll throw in a pristine while crinoline underneath - give the guys a second thrill.

I wonder what Google translate would do with all of this?

[Class A]

Dear Pentax,

please add acceleration sensors in addition to the gyro sensors so that you can measure camera displacement as well as camera rotation. This would be fantastic for hand-held macro photography.

If forward/backward moves could automatically adjust the focus that'll be brilliant but I'd be happy with just a compensation of sideways and upwards/downwards moves.

[enoeske]

How about using face detection as well as several of the autofocus points closest to those faces to calculate the minimum aperture needed to get them all in focus? I would think that the camera could say, I need to focus here and remember the distance, and also I need to focus here, then use those two distances to look up a depth of field calculation for which aperture is needed.

[Jyrkira]

If forward/backward moves could automatically adjust the focus that'll be brilliant but I'd be happy with just a compensation of sideways and upwards/downwards moves.

I think we already have this. It is called Shake Reduction.

[Class A]

I think we already have this. It is called Shake Reduction.

Shake reduction as implemented by current Pentax DSLRs only compensates for image blur caused by camera rotations. Gyro sensors measure the rotation and the sensor is shifted to counteract the resulting image blur.

This works well for non-macro photography but in the latter camera displacement shifts cause worse image blur than camera rotation so a different approach to image stabilisation is needed. Hence my suggestion to also measure camera displacement.

[mattdm]

Dear Pentax,

please add acceleration sensors in addition to the gyro sensors so that you can measure camera displacement as well as camera rotation. This would be fantastic for hand-held macro photography.

If forward/backward moves could automatically adjust the focus that'll be brilliant but I'd be happy with just a compensation of sideways and upwards/downwards moves.

Shake reduction as implemented by current Pentax DSLRs only compensates for image blur caused by camera rotations. Gyro sensors measure the rotation and the sensor is shifted to counteract the resulting image blur.

You sure about that? As I understand it, the ability to compensate for rotational movement is new in the K-7 (see http://www.pentaximaging.com/slr/k-7); previous incarnations only did lateral shifts. The K-7 didn't trade out the lateral corrections for rotational ones — it now does both. At least, so says logic.

[Class A]

You sure about that?

Yes.

Pentax DSLRs prior to the K-7 only compensated for shake caused by the following rotational motions: Yaw and Pitch. The K-7 added correction against "Roll".

No Pentax DSLR compensates translational motions, i.e., camera displacements that do not involve any kind of rotational component. If you put your Pentax on rails and moved it during exposure, it wouldn't be able to detect that motion as it only detects rotational movement, thus causing image blur.

That's fine for regular photography were pure camera displacement has negligible influence on image blur and rotational shake totally dominates. Think about keeping a laser pointer dot still at a far away wall; you better get the rotation of the pointer under control, rather than shifts that occur in parallel to the wall.

[Alcazar]

Think about keeping a laser pointer dot still at a far away wall; you better get the rotation of the pointer under control, rather than shifts that occur in parallel to the wall.

Mmmh... istn't the laser pointer dot a circle? if you rotate a circle, nothing really happens...
i mean what you control IS the shifts that occur in parallel to the wall, any rotational shake you would not notice
or is there something i've misunderstood?
m

[Alcazar]

- next to the "view"-button i'd like a dedicated button (or the ability to set another button to this, eg the raw-button) that let's me quickly do the single task that i do the most: zoom in to 100% to check sharpness. (1 pixel in image = 1 pixel of LCD, not something like 107.9% like it's now) Would be smart to zoom in on the area in the image where the focus point was selected to be.
- ability to switch off blurring when zoomed in more than 100% in view mode
- possibility to directly connect a portable usb hard disk to copy images to, without the need for a computer in between
- bigger, brighter, and focus-accurate viewfinder
- tethering
- possibility to switch off dark frame substraction
- iso below 100
- ability to choose exposure times longer than 30 secs.
- AF-button on the grip

[Class A]

Mmmh... istn't the laser pointer dot a circle? if you rotate a circle, nothing really happens...

Imagine the circle is not red throughout but shows a pattern (as an image would do). Rotate the laser pointer and the pattern rotates. That's one source of image blur caused by camera "roll". That one isn't depended on the distance to the subject though.

The rotation I was really talking about occurs through the other two axes of the laser pointer and correspond to "yaw" and "pitch" rotation. You may want to call it "tilt" and "swivel"/"pan" in our laser pointer example. Small swings of the laser pointer will yield large movements of the dot on the wall. This is why shake reduction targets the "yaw/pitch (and roll)" rotation of the camera, rather than camera displacements.