Welp. I've had this little baby for about a month now, and this would usually be roughly the end of the honeymoon phase, and when the faults of the device would begin to become over-apparent. This has been, however, a joyous four weeks for my most loved hobby. I now feel that I can honestly say that this is the best camera I have used.
Now, I don't want to turn this into some arbitrary fanboy "best camera eva" post and waste your time and mine. I want to break down my personal experiences in photography and how the K-50 improves on them.
I began my interest in photography in photo class in high school around 2002. It was more or less a superficial enjoyment though as I did not care much to learn about exposure. Nevertheless, it did get me started. Jump forward to 2005, I had just finished basic training and decided that my girlfriend at the time and I need to spend some time together. We went traveling--she had a Canon Rebel XT (350D). I had never used a DSLR before then, but looking through that viewfinder did take me back. She let me use the Rebel on trips while she used a video camera. It was at the San Diego Zoo where it hit me: I love photography. Unfortunately, it would be years before I had the funds to buy a DSLR of my own, and I forgot about photography.
Jump ahead to 2008, I was walking around the local flea market with a friend when I discovered a Pentax P3 with an A 50mm f2 attached. I picked it up, tested out the shutter and aperture, and asked how much the man wanted for the set. He said $20. I noted that it was a bit beat and the lens was pretty rough focusing, and I was able to talk him down to $5! And it began.
Weekly we would go to the flea market and I would collect K-mount lenses. Even my friend got the bug and bought a K1000. We went around shooting, going through rolls and rolls of film. I was becoming obsessed. I read everything I could find on photography and exposure. I took photography classes at community college and my university. I learned the histories and the names, especially Garry Winogrand. I realized that my strength and passion was street photography. And in late 2009 I bought my first DSLR: The Pentax K-x. It was an easy decision; I had accumulated a presentable collection of great manual primes, and I would only shoot available light/flashless, so the ISO performance was a must. Plus, it was very compact, not much larger than the P3--perfect for the street.
About another year passed, and the K-r was released. I wasn't too interested as I was not feeling I was missing any features. But my good friend who shared this hobby with me was in need of an upgrade to digital. We agreed that I would sell him my K-x and I would use that money to upgrade to the K-r. Unfortunately, I was one of the unlucky ones who suffered from focusing and odd firmware issues. Still, I took many great photos with it, but I was losing the enjoyment.
It was around the end of 2011 when I remembered my love for Garry Winogrand's work and I discovered the rangefinder. To test it out, I researched and bought a Yashica Electro 35 GSN. I was speechless. This camera was pure magic. I took it everywhere and forgot I even had a DSLR. Then it escalated: The Konica Hexar! My god! I thought I had loved photography before, but I had no idea what it truly meant. It was the first time I had felt comfortable introducing myself as a street photographer, and that's how my school's art department knew me. But the momentum grew as the digital world called to me again, and in 2012 I bought a Fujifilm X100. Sure, it wasn't a true rangefinder, but then neither was the Hexar. But all this embellishing surely adds up for a full-time student. Money has to come from somewhere, so I sold the K-r and said goodbye to DSLRs. I was a rangefinder man. Or so I thought.
No, I was wrong. The honeymoon only lasted a month, and while the colors were breathtaking, the camera as a whole just had too many issues. The lens was soft, the autofocus was slow, the manual focus was nonexistent, and the menu made me feel handicapped. Moreover, parallax was proving to be too inaccurate for low-angles. I began to realize that things were getting too complicated and my obsession was making me lose focus of my hobby. On top of all this, my reckless spending was causing my to miss bills. I had to make a tough, adult decision and sold practically everything except my Yashica Electro 35 GSN, Pentax ZX-5N, that old, sentimental A 50mm f2, and a couple of rare K lenses. And that's all I had to shoot with.
That is until photo class last summer. It was a photo print based class, so I needed something digital. I had been great with money, but I didn't want to get caught up in that old camera binging trap again. Also, I had just bought my girlfriend a Nikon P7000 for her birthday so she could take the class with me. I searched ebay and found an old Pentax K100D in great condition. I thought back to the first DSLR I had ever used, the Canon Rebel XT, and I still thought those images looked great, and the K100D was even newer! So I bought it along with a used DA 35mm f2.4. I was really impressed, and I made fantastic prints. I was told that the only thing limiting me was my tool, but it was all I could afford.
Six months later Christmas came, and my girlfriend teamed up with my dad and bought me the K-50 I had been drooling over for a few months. I was so happy that I immediately bought my girlfriend a K-x. She knew of my fondness and nostalgia for the model and brand, so we were both very happy and went shooting together daily. Using the wonderful reviews and database here, I bought the F 35-70mm on the cheap, and I was no longer feeling the remorse or regrets. Just pure photography.
So, here we are today, and as I said, the K-50 has survived the honeymoon phase. The camera is truly a wonderful tool. It is quick and stealthy, and with the 35-70mm on my camera and the 35mm f2.4 on her's, we make an unbeatable street team. Also, being the studious scholar [my father thinks] I am, I have been awarded with the Sigma 30mm f1.4. I have never been happier with my favorite hobby. I have an amazing camera and some of the best lenses I have ever used. There is not one thing I can point out about the K-50 that makes it so enjoyable; it just feels right. The grip, the weight, the speed, the controls, the menus, the weather sealing are all incredible. It has a rare perfect blend of professional build, feel, and looks, with the handling and aura of an old film camera. It has the street appeal of the P3, the excitement of the Rebel XT, and image quality better than the X100!
If you have made it this far, I applaud you. But more so, I thank you for sharing in my experiences in photography with me. So if you have any experiences you would like to share, or maybe you would like to just give a shout out to that one special camera model, please post a comment.
Thanks!
Last edited by bsamcash; 01-28-2014 at 12:23 AM.