[JohnBee]

I don't trust the downsampling of teh interwebz. Sorry. If it hasn't been done for the express purpose of comparing noise output at the same resolution I'm not going to use it as such. Maybe your source/browser/whatever are AOK but I'm not going to trust it unless I have two RAW's going into lightroom (or someone like DxO does the same for me).

Hi ElJamoquio,

I just had quick look at a K-5 and D3200 RAW shot at ISO6400 and the 24MP file looks very good even without the low level NR. That being said, I'm thinking the K-3 will be slightly better than the K-5 in terms of noise performance as well as in resolution and detail.

[ElJamoquio]

Hi ElJamoquio,

I just had quick look at a K-5 and D3200 RAW shot at ISO6400 and the 24MP file looks very good even without the low level NR. That being said, I'm thinking the K-3 will be slightly better than the K-5 in terms of noise performance as well as in resolution and detail.

Thanks.

[maxfield_photo]

Man, that K-1 prototype gets me every time. It's about the ugliest camera I've ever seen, looks like the bastard love child of the MZ-S and a baboon's butt. Still I'd be using it tomorrow if it were released today.

[DanWeso]

I just had quick look at a K-5 and D3200 RAW shot at ISO6400 and the 24MP file looks very good even without the low level NR. That being said, I'm thinking the K-3 will be slightly better than the K-5 in terms of noise performance as well as in resolution and detail.

From someone who’s itching to upgrade from a K-x to a more feature rich camera, I do hope the K-3 is the improved K-5 replacement.

[Quazimoto]

DanWeso - I upgraded from a K-x to a K-5 and I'd say it's a worthwhile upgrade. There's a lot more than just ISO and megapixels... It's just a more serious camera all round... but yes it would be better for you obviously if the K-3 was even better.

[Edvinas]

Still a one-year warranty. Why does Pentax have so little confidence in their products?

Isn't one year warranty typical in USA?

[LamyTax]

So now Pentax doesn't have a clue about producing a 35mm sensor FF DSLR ? So I guess I will get the new FF Canon 6D then.

"Pentax has no clue about FF" OR "Pentax has developed FF for 12 years", I see. You like talking in extremes.

Not everyone is such an engineering genius like you, who could develop a FF body in a fortnight. Hoya had scrapped pretty much all R&D. Pentax is still around because they developed things anyway. But their resources were very limited. Which is not the case anymore, Ricoh has transfered more than 50 engineers to Pentax for starters.
But developing a new FF body still takes a lot of time. But maybe you can help Pentax out, give them a call...

As in, over the 60D?

You can't really compare a 60D/7D competition to the K-30/K-3 competition because A) the Pentaxes are weather sealed, so I'm looking at that as a major feature of the K-30, and thus strange to have a K-3 that is basically the same - and B) well this actually a different point but here we go:

No I do not think the 7D makes a whole lot of sense. Honestly, do people on this thread really think the Canon body line up is not... well, a wank? 1100D, 600D, 60D, 7D, 5D-3, 1DX... and then to top it off, a lot of the preceding lines are not discontinued, so they overlap - the 1000D and 1100D overlapped for a bit, the 650D and the 600D are both being made (I think), not sure if the 5D-2 is out of production yet - oh and yes, before the 1DX there was the 1D and the 1Ds.
The 7D makes sense by itself, but I think it would make more sense to have: 600D, 7D, 5D3... Anything less than the 600D would be fine to be mirrorless - K01 style.

And, your "pity for those who bought one" - well, I pretty much think that about any Canon APS-C camera, yes it is a pity, because normally, for the same money, you could have got a lot more camera in a Pentax. The Nikon D5100 is currently not much less than the K-5... and it sucks in comparison. As does the 60D...

Weather sealing is overrated, but that's just one a sidenote. It's mere protection against softly dripping water, it doesn't work so much anymore if there's any larger force at work. So of course you can compare them.

The 7D used to have the best AF for APS-C cameras on the market and I'm unaware of any change on that fact (photokina will change that, sure). But you're right, it's a totally useless camera.

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Last edited by LamyTax; 09-05-2012 at 12:48 AM.

[Clavius]

Hoya had scrapped pretty much all R&D. Pentax is still around because they developed things anyway. But their resources were very limited. Which is not the case anymore, Ricoh has transfered more than 50 engineers to Pentax for starters.

I can't agree with you more here. It really says a lot that Pentax was not only able to survive, but also develop such wonderfull machines whilst Hoya had bound and gagged them.

Often people curse Pentax for not doing any serious marketing, but I hink Pentax had to choose between using their tiny budget for R&D or marketing. And I think they made the right choice: Investing as much as possible in R&D. Imagine the other way round: Lots of marketing for crappy products, what kind of name would they have had by now?

Weather sealing is overrated, but that's just one a sidenote. It's mere protection against softly dripping water, it doesn't work so much anymore if there's any larger force at work.

Really? I accidentally dropped mine in salty sea-water. Fully submerged! No problems whatsoever. Not even after rinsing off the salt in the shower. Since then I really trust the WR. I could just be lucky of course. So nobody should go out and try it!

[Alizarine]

Is 12 years rushing it ?

Ever since they scrapped the K-1 project and bought by Hoya - think anyone in Pentax really made a vigilante team of engineers and designers to keep the digital-135-format program afloat, undercover, in some abandoned-but-advanced tech-and-optics lab as the Hoya overlords float through the Pentax offices and factories, firing trusted ol' lens designers and other key people?

Not that I disliked Hoya that much (they let the K-5 run into production and not just dissolve the company), but digital 135 wasn't really in their vision....

[LamyTax]

I can't agree with you more here. It really says a lot that Pentax was not only able to survive, but also develop such wonderfull machines whilst Hoya had bound and gagged them.

Often people curse Pentax for not doing any serious marketing, but I hink Pentax had to choose between using their tiny budget for R&D or marketing. And I think they made the right choice: Investing as much as possible in R&D. Imagine the other way round: Lots of marketing for crappy products, what kind of name would they have had by now?

Exactly. Pentax could be gone.
All this will make even more sense once you see the photokina announcements. They're back.

Really? I accidentally dropped mine in salty sea-water. Fully submerged! No problems whatsoever. Not even after rinsing off the salt in the shower. Since then I really trust the WR. I could just be lucky of course. So nobody should go out and try it!

Those seals are better than no seals, of course. They're designed to withstand what I've described, they certainly can do more than that, but I would not count on it. You'll see higher failure rates the more pressure the water has. And seals age. I would not try shooting with a K7 during a storm. And I have my doubts that a K5 will perform well for long time there. For that, better buy underwater housing.

The 7D does offer some protection against water, too. But neither a K5 nor a 7D are water tight.

Ever since they scrapped the K-1 project and bought by Hoya - think anyone in Pentax really made a vigilante team of engineers and designers to keep the digital-135-format program afloat, undercover, in some abandoned-but-advanced tech-and-optics lab as the Hoya overlords float through the Pentax offices and factories, firing trusted ol' lens designers and other key people?

That's sort of what they did, but for the products we've seen. FF was just not possible.

[Vormulac]

Weather sealing is overrated, but that's just one a sidenote. It's mere protection against softly dripping water, it doesn't work so much anymore if there's any larger force at work. So of course you can compare them.

I would have to respectfully disagree as I have shot in *pouring* rain many times with my K-7. I spent all day shooting at a big cat sanctuary in torrential rain and apart from one guy with a 5D was the only one who got any decent pictures because everyone else there had their cameras wrapped in plastic and shielded from the downpour. Never had any fogging or evidence of even the slightest water penetration.

[LamyTax]

I would have to respectfully disagree as I have shot in *pouring* rain many times with my K-7. I spent all day shooting at a big cat sanctuary in torrential rain and apart from one guy with a 5D was the only one who got any decent pictures because everyone else there had their cameras wrapped in plastic and shielded from the downpour. Never had any fogging or evidence of even the slightest water penetration.

You're not actually disagreeing with what I've said.

[gazonk]

Really? I accidentally dropped mine in salty sea-water. Fully submerged! No problems whatsoever. Not even after rinsing off the salt in the shower. Since then I really trust the WR. I could just be lucky of course. So nobody should go out and try it!

I would have to respectfully disagree as I have shot in *pouring* rain many times with my K-7.

Which lenses do you guys use? I still don't have a decent WR-ed lens (The 18-55 WR that came with my K-5 is now permanently attached to my K10D which my son mostly uses). I have of course considered the 16-50, but I really don't like spending that much on a lens that doesn't convince with respect to IQ compared to my 16-45, weighs more AND has the dreaded SDM problem!

[Clavius]

I would have to respectfully disagree as I have shot in *pouring* rain many times with my K-7. I spent all day shooting at a big cat sanctuary in torrential rain and apart from one guy with a 5D was the only one who got any decent pictures because everyone else there had their cameras wrapped in plastic and shielded from the downpour. Never had any fogging or evidence of even the slightest water penetration.

I always find it kinda cool how, when it starts to rain, other shooters scurry away and look at me like I'm some sort of fool for staying in the rain.

[Clavius]

Which lenses do you guys use? I still don't have a decent WR-ed lens (The 18-55 WR that came with my K-5 is now permanently attached to my K10D which my son mostly uses). I have of course considered the 16-50, but I really don't like spending that much on a lens that doesn't convince with respect to IQ compared to my 16-45, weighs more AND has the dreaded SDM problem!

I only have one real WR lens: the 18-135. I thought a superzoom would be the only logical choice because when it's moist/rainy/dusty I don't want to have to change lenses either.