[kosmoejtg]

Honestly, I really don't feel it's easier. I mean, you are absolutely correct regarding availability, but I don't often stumble upon a lot of "casual" users of Canon/Nikon cameras that are truly reaping the rewards of such widespread availability when it comes to getting help. Most the Nikon/Canon shooters I know are either very self-sufficient technically or they are just kind of stumbling through spraying and praying. That said, I do think increased availability gives them a slight edge when it comes to borrowing gear. So, in the end, I think it is a wash--it's simpler for a casual user to just pick up a Pentax, but casual Nikon/Canon shooters are much more likely to find good gear to borrow.

It is not just about borrowing gear, though that is a nice thing to have. It is also about having someone you can ask a question of if needed. In my office there are enough Canon and Nikon owners that folks can find someone with a similar camera. The only way i can find someone with a Pentax is if i sell someone my K-30 (I know just the guy) when i upgrade.

[meeverett]

But Nikon makes no sense at all. Who in the world thought it would be user-friendly to put ISO under a menu found by pressing some obscure "i" button! What's wrong with a button that says "ISO!"

I distinctly remember feeling like this when I unboxed my mother-in-law's D7100. I actually felt like I needed to read a decent portion of the instruction manual before I actually had a firm grasp on the "basics." The more I read the more I wondered about the people who designed such an interface.

[dansamy]

Canikon users can also go into any Wal-Mart & get things like flashes or grips.

[kosmoejtg]

Canikon users can also go into any Wal-Mart & get things like flashes or grips.

Exactly my point. It would really hard for Pentax to get to that point, they would have to displace some other vendor to get shelf space. Most of these stores (Best Buy, Costco, Walmart, etc) are only going to carry so many medium or high end cameras.

[meeverett]

It is not just about borrowing gear, though that is a nice thing to have. It is also about having someone you can ask a question of if needed.

That's the problem though, in my interactions with casual Canon/Nikon users, I have found a vast majority are just people with big point and shoot cameras (i.e., their D5100 never ever leaves auto, "flower," or "mountain") and they aren't really a resource for anything but borrowing gear.

[kosmoejtg]

At the camera class I mentioned at the beginning of the thread the instructor mentioned that in one of his other classes someone brought in a Canon 400MM or something like that. He said more than half the class was able to try it out on their cameras. You have to admit that is an advantage. It is also a good way to proliferate the brand if even on person invested in that lens.

[bsamcash]

I distinctly remember feeling like this when I unboxed my mother-in-law's D7100. I actually felt like I needed to read a decent portion of the instruction manual before I actually had a firm grasp on the "basics." The more I read the more I wondered about the people who designed such an interface.

Why is this such a hard thing for Nikon! Every Pentax DSLR I've had has had a dedicated button for ISO. It is part of exposure! One of those most basic and common things that will need to be set!

[OrchidJulie]

In my experience most Canikon users have trouble using their own cameras, let alone helping anyone else...what menu is that in?

It's really only easier to buy them.

+1 This is absolutely true in my observations

[geru2000]

People generally go with the first camera a salesman puts in their hands.

A lot of people in Syracuse use Canon because the salesman at Ra-Lins uses Canon. (This is a 'pro' who couldn't tell me the difference between a parfocal and varifocal lens, and didn't know that IF lenses are only at maximum focal length at infinity focus).

I'm sure there are nearly as many who use Nikon because the salesman at Best Buy uses Nikon (And 24 MP is better than 18 MP )

I mostly hear "Pentax? They still make cameras?"

Hey neighbor. I live north of you, Watertown, wasn't aware of Ra-Lins do they stock Pentax equipment, new or used?

Are you referring to the older gentleman at Best-buy (@ Destiny or whatever they call it now)? I've had several long conversations with him about cameras and while he's a Nikon guy he doesn't seem to push one brand or the other,
I find him more knowledgeable than many sales people in stores like Best-buy.

I'm aware of 2 other Pentax users up here everyone else I know is either Canon or Nikon. The one thing they all say after handling the Pentax is how impressed they are with the feel and build quality.
When I handle their Nikon's and Canon's I have just the opposite reaction (unless it's one of the more expensive models) they're ergonomically inferior and cheaply made compared to Pentax.

[boriscleto]

Hey neighbor. I live north of you, Watertown, wasn't aware of Ra-Lins do they stock Pentax equipment, new or used?

Are you referring to the older gentleman at Best-buy (@ Destiny or whatever they call it now)? I've had several long conversations with him about cameras and while he's a Nikon guy he doesn't seem to push one brand or the other,
I find him more knowledgeable than many sales people in stores like Best-buy.

I'm aware of 2 other Pentax users up here everyone else I know is either Canon or Nikon. The one thing they all say after handling the Pentax is how impressed they are with the feel and build quality.
When I handle their Nikon's and Canon's I have just the opposite reaction (unless it's one of the more expensive models) they're ergonomically inferior and cheaply made compared to Pentax.

Ra-Lin's doesn't carry Pentax. They have at times in the past, but the salesman, Wes, told me Pentax just doesn't sell. This was when the K-30 was still fairly new and he acknowledged that it was a very good camera. He shoots both Canon and Nikon, but he prefers Canon. The other two camera shops in Syracuse, MQ and Johnson, are very Canikon biased.

As for BestBuy I really don't know. One time I was in the camera section and the girl who was there was trying to sell someone on her favorite brand even though he was looking at something else.

There is another Pentax user in Syracuse who is registered here, I haven't seen him post for a few months. I saw a yellow K-01 at the zoo last month. The only Pentax I have seen in the wild since the K-r I saw at the Adirondack Museum...

[RyanW]

Every time I go to a photo class, the instructor is usually wrong about something, or just oversimplifies to avoid confusion. So that's why I sort of zone out until it's time to actually take some pictures in the garden lol.

Been there! I was at a class wherein the instructor was covering shutter priority and I noted on my camera it was Tv, not S. He was sure that was just a mode for shooting pictures on the television. He was an excellent instructor on any of the non technical aspects of photography which are the more important anyway.

[RyanW]

Sighs it's not about the brand it's about the quality. Pentax > Canikons anytime

Well not for:

1. Flash
2. Long lenses
3. AF
4. Vendor support
5. Third party support
6. and many other things that matter to many

I'm fine with Pentax and agree you get good value, but Pentax certainly don't excel in all areas, or in many that are important to a lot of folks.

[donfenix]

If the instructor stated that and focused on brand rather than results then you should have dropped it and demanded a refund.

I agree with this. You could have asked whether the instructor had actually tested all lenses from all other brands.

[pentajazzz]

when people ask me, why I'm shooting PENTAX, I'm asked in surprise:" but what else?"
and make BIG eyes...
what's all.

[mrNewt]

I would say bias and ignorance... they usually go hand in hand anyway.