[raz]

You are wrong, look in the reviews for cameras, websites of Nikon or Canon, or press release of dslr-s or hi end cameras... they say "pro DSLR", "professional cameras".

They say in the Fuji X100 press: "[...] careful study to create the perfect compact-sized professional camera."

[d.bradley]

I think people comparing price points and merits of the K-5 compared to the Nikon D7000 and other models are forgetting that Pentax is the only camp to join the high-ISO capibilities of the new Sony sensor with sensor-stabilization. Even Sony will be playing catchup.

[mysterick]

You are wrong, look in the reviews for cameras, websites of Nikon or Canon, or press release of dslr-s or hi end cameras... they say "pro DSLR", "professional cameras".

They say in the Fuji X100 press: "[...] careful study to create the perfect compact-sized professional camera."

Not wanting to belabor the OT nature of this: It's Semantics, not reality.

[DogLover]

Not wanting to belabor the OT nature of this: It's Semantics, not reality.

Agreed. They could call the K5 "Bob" and I'd still want one.

[illdefined]

"professional" actually does mean something to pro photographers and is less about hardware and more about services and customer support.

in this regard at least, Pentax clearly cannot compete.

[Gimbal]

I think people comparing price points and merits of the K-5 compared to the Nikon D7000 and other models are forgetting that Pentax is the only camp to join the high-ISO capibilities of the new Sony sensor with sensor-stabilization. Even Sony will be playing catchup.

On the other hand, now you have the option to pump up the iso instead so SR isn't such a big deal anymore.

[dotchoucou]

Can someone explain to me in a few sentences what is tethering? I why this is a problem if it is not there on the K5?

I am not sure because I did not find its translation in the photo dictionary I am using for English to my language.

many thanks

[raybird]

On the other hand, now you have the option to pump up the iso instead so SR isn't such a big deal anymore.

I don't think high ISO capability will stop C/N from producing and selling IS/VR lenses. Being able to shoot handheld at a slower shutter speed and being able to shoot handheld in low light are not necessarily the same thing.

[ohyouloveme]

Agreed. They could call the K5 "Bob" and I'd still want one.

rofl agreed.

[Col]

Can someone explain to me in a few sentences what is tethering? I why this is a problem if it is not there on the K5?

I am not sure because I did not find its translation in the photo dictionary I am using for English to my language.

many thanks

Tethering Overview
Tethered digital camera operation is where the camera is permanently attached to a computer by a cable and so is usually restricted to lab or studio work.

Tethered shooting setups vary a bit depending on what equipment is being used, but the general idea is the same. When the camera is driven from the computer, the view-finder is a window on the computer screen, which gives a larger and clearer view finder than the camera's LED screen.

As you take pictures they are downloaded to the capture application programme via Ethernet, USB 2.0 or FireWire ports on the computer. It takes a few seconds per image and the images can then be saved to hard disk in a variety of formats.

The capture of images can be initiated from the camera, but its shutter button, which is controlled in conjunction with a status signal from the computer, is used only to initiate the capture of still images.

Why tether your DSLR camera?
For the professional shooter there are many advantages when working tethered:

Better preview capabilities

More disk space (no need to rely on memory card availability)

Easy file management

Ability for clients and creative directors to “observe” the images directly as they are shot

Usually you can connect a camera to a computer using the appropriate cable for Ethernet, USB 2.0 or FireWire ports.

The facility was available with Pentax up to the K20D

[raz]

"professional" actually does mean something to pro photographers and is less about hardware and more about services and customer support.

in this regard at least, Pentax clearly cannot compete.

Olympus can ? Fuji can ? I don't think so.

And I don't think anybody will sue Pentax if they say, like all the other camera manufacturers, "professional image quality" as Olympus does in their press release, or even "pro DSLR".

Even in the 645D who clearly isn't made for average Joe, they use "professional" word very awkwardly" as they were really afraid of this word or meaning.

Agreed. They could call the K5 "Bob" and I'd still want one.

Is not about you and me, is about the rest of 98% in the market.

Pentax did some great cameras (K7, K5 and 645D), they advanced alot in the last 3 years, they should have some real guts and be more aggressive in their marketing.

[m8o]

My take on things is that a very vocal minority of users on internet discussion forums are disappointed because their pet feature is not included in the spec sheet. That is very different from "a majority of faithful Pentax users".
IMHO as well.

and, folks very happy with the offering will say so once or twice. Those dis-apopointed with say so 10X or 100X more... Akin to saying "a majority of posts of faithful Pentax users in this thread". Best I can tell, even the 645D doesn't have support for tethering. so...time to move on from the subject.

[m8o]

... The perfect camera will never exist ...

Just like the ever ellusive Perfect Camera Bag.

[Entropy]

There is hope for all the non-optional DFS afflicted. Falconeye just quoted someone stating "I switched it of and used bulb for more then 30seconds, next picture in <1sec. Of course this refers to firmware 0.30 (or earlier?) so a lot could change till the final release.

@pentaxmz: I think Pentax understood your request. They are right in that no DFS at all will yield bad image quality. What they probably should have acknowledged is that you want to do the DFS yourself (taking one dark frame for a number of subsequent real shots). To the best of my knowledge no noise reduction can yield the same quality as a proper DFS and strictly speaking taking a dark frame for each image is the best possible solution as the temperature and thus the dark noise can change over a series of shots. Taking less dark frames is a compromise, albeit often a very workable one.

I REALLY hope that report is correct and the Pentax chat rep was wrong when he stated the situation had not changed.

My take on it:
90%+ of the benefit of DFS can be obtained using a single dark frame sample of a given shutter speed in particular conditions (namely temperature). There is little extra benefit to doing it for EVERY shot that meets certain conditions.

Also, it is frustrating that the threshold which it goes from "off" to "on" is arbitrary. If I'm happy with image quality of a 25 second bulb exposure, am I really going to be completely unhappy with the IQ of a 35 second exposure? It is MASSIVELY frustrating to have to use a stopwatch for every bulb shot during a fireworks show to avoid ever accidentally crossing that 30 second threshold.

Also, I attempted to do some nighttime HDR panorama work - I basically gave up. If you are taking 6-10 brackets to stitch together, it is massively frustrating when almost your entire exposure time is doubled. (When in autobracket mode, the forced auto-DFS kicks in with exposure times of only a few seconds.) I am losing huge amounts of time and gaining almost nothing image quality wise compared to if I took one dark frame bracket set prior to starting my pano.

If forced auto-DFS is gone and the K-5 can replace BOTH my K20D and K10D (I keep the 10 around for fireworks as the 20 is wholly unsuitable for fireworks), I'll be buying it. If forced auto-DFS is not gone, I'm likely to start considering switching systems rather than upgrading bodies. This is such a ridiculously easy "feature" to remove from the camera, but so far, it stays around.

[wicked1]

I think a very big mistake from Pentax is they don't announce the K5 as a professional camera. Olympus did that with their E-5.

I cannot see why the marketing of Pentax is afraid of naming their cameras "professional".

Because there's no tethering