[Arne Bo]

But don't forget that (legally) you have to pay an "Einfuhrumsatzsteuer" (import VAT) of 19%. Often this eats up a lot of the price advantage. And you might have to go through expensive and cumbersome procedures if anything is wrong with your item. For me, it needs very, very good deals to justify buying overseas.

These are valid points. Thats why i usually don´t order more delicate and expensive goods from overseas. I will have an eye on the cayber monday deals here in germany, perhaps some lens for a pentax mount will be on discount. But i don´t see very much Pentax discounts at local stores.
I just saw the cash back option at the pentax homepage. Hmm, i would get 100€ back if i buy a K5ii or K5iis. Tempting.

[delegopa]

For travel & outdoors the already mentioned WR 18-135 would be a good start. Got that too and like it. What you dont get with this lens are low-light capabilities and those portraits with lots of bokeh.
In the lens database on this site you can read a lot of opinions and more important see some pictures taken with those lenses.

Buying overseas will give you only one year of warranty instead of the normal two here.
If you dont take the K-3 this might be interesting:
Cashback-Aktion Winter 2013 - RICOH IMAGING DEUTSCHLAND GmbH

[viper56]

Your title really nailed it that you made a mistake touching the K-3. I'll throw my two cents in as well. I own a K-X and typically use a DA 50mm & DA 35mm for almost everything. You may want to sacrifice a little money for an older body and go with a simple prime & shoot a while and see what you like. You can chalk the money up to learning your way around a DSLR and you may save yourself some money knowing what you like after shooting.

But, with the budget you have, I wouldn't be able to say no to the K-3 so enjoy.

[grispie]

I just saw the cash back option at the pentax homepage. Hmm, i would get 100€ back if i buy a K5ii or K5iis. Tempting.

one thing you need to consider is whether making some sort of video interests you.
The K5(ii) does not have manual controls for that. if you are sure that you don't, by all means go for a K5 package...

[i_trax]

Pentax K-3 Review - Conclusion - PentaxForums.com
Good for:
demanding photographers seeking excellent still image quality
users looking for a compact yet versatile high-end DSLR
outdoor shooters
users who frequently use live view with AF lenses

Not so good for:
videographers
sports shooters
beginners


K-3 is excellent but very complex photographic tool, it might take you weeks or months to master it.

[RonHendriks1966]

Pentax K-3 Review - Conclusion - PentaxForums.com
Good for:
demanding photographers seeking excellent still image quality
users looking for a compact yet versatile high-end DSLR
outdoor shooters
users who frequently use live view with AF lenses

Not so good for:
videographers
sports shooters
beginners


K-3 is excellent but very complex photographic tool, it might take you weeks or months to master it.

But he wants to enjoy the camera for the coming 4 years, so what's in the few it takes learning, even if they become some months.

[JanG]

But he wants to enjoy the camera for the coming 4 years, so what's in the few it takes learning, even if they become some months.

Exactly. And, of course, the K-3 can be a camera as easy to use as any other: just put it in the green mode and you get results. Probably not the best possible but surely results that are more than acceptable for a beginner (if Arne should be a beginner at all).
When I started out into digital photography in 2005 I had not used a SLR for years and got an affordable bridge cam. I sonn noticed its limitations and started looking for a better cam. After some budget problems I finally got the K20D in 2008, maybe the best available APS-C cam out there right then. I was a very early adopter, among the first to get the cam in Germany. I was not for a second afraid that the cam would overwhelm me - and it never did - although I had A LOT to learn.
Today, I am still using the K20D as my main cam (hopefully, my K-3 will arrive in two weeks :-D ), and I think it was a very good decision to buy a cam I could grow into. No frustrations on my path, I could try out whatever I wanted because the cam had the features, it was rewarding to buy good glass etc. I never had buyers remorse and I'd probably be on my third or fourth DSLR today had I bought a K10D, K100s or K200 at the time of my decision - and I would have spent a lot more money than I did by going for the top model.
So, my recommendation is, if you are serious about photography - and a budget of 2000 € definitely sounds serious to me besides Arne's very specific demand for help here - go for the top model that will last for some time as much physically as by its feature set.

[Ishpuini]

At the museum it is usually forbidden to use any flash within the exhibitions. So a lens with good low light qualities would be nice.

I've done my share of museum photography, so there's a few pointers I would like to give you. Depending on the kind of exhibits, museums are not necessarily the best places to use lenses with so-called low light qualities, i.e. "fast" lenses or lenses with large aperture openings. Small exhibits that are presented behind glass require you to move close to eliminate unwanted reflections, and apart from this requiring a wide angle lens (potentially lots of perspective distortion, thus not necessarily correctly presenting the object photographed) you are confronted with very shallow depth-of-field. Using a "fast" lens wide open to have as fast a shutter speed as possible will only reduce this DOF. It's best to choose a camera with good high ISO capabilities instead, thus allowing you to stop down the lens to gain a deeper DOF.

Extension tubes can help get close, or a lens such as the DA35/2.8 macro limited (longer macro's may require you to have to move back too much to catch the entire object). A flexible hood is also practical for pressing against the glass while still being able to photograph at an angle if desired.

Of course, if you're working in a car or dinosaur museum (i.e. large objects), the above doesn't hold...

If you're wanting to photograph paintings, a tilt-shift lens can be very practical. Esp if the paintings have a glass pane mounted in front of them, using a normal lens requires you to stand exactly in front of them and hence you will often see a reflection of yourself in the picture. Being able to shift your lens enables you to stand slightly to the side of the painting, thus being able to choose a position with minimal reflection more flexibly while still photographing the painting in correct perspective.

hth, Wim

[grispie]

K-3 is excellent but very complex photographic tool, it might take you weeks or months to master it.

Fastest way to learn the craft...

[Arne Bo]

Thank you all again.
To clearify my need at work. I won´t do so much work with the objects and the exhibitions. I´m the event manager at the museum and will take pictures at the events. (after the event is on it´s way i usually have time to take pictures) The subjects of the fotos will be mainly people, of course from time to time they will be in the exhibitions. On the other hand we have lot of dance and music (it´s an ethnological museum) or demonstrations of arts. These more dynamic parts of the events will have more stage light and won´t be within the exhibitions. These parts are the reason i would like some video capabilities for. (Oftentimes we have really nice little concerts and it would be nice to have some documentation)
Of course i want to take shots of the objects for me personally, but it is not part of my work.
I will push my budget to about 2.500€ (i cancelled some other things, but you need to have priorities) and against all reason i really want the K-3 body. And i want it as soon as possible. I´m not very patient as you can see. I think i will buy the bundle with the 18-135mm to learn the kamera and have something to bring me trough the miserable winter weather in hamburg.
And then i have enough money left to get some good lens. Now i have to decide which one. Still difficult, but i have part of the plan now.

[grispie]

against all reason i really want the K-3 body. And i want it as soon as possible.

So you bit the bullet :-)
it makes all sense in the world!
We are not in a situation like 10 years ago where dslrs were still developing rapidly, so this body will serve you for years to come.

ps: just get yourself a cheap DA35 2.4 with it. For now, that is all you need.

[Class A]

I´m the event manager at the museum and will take pictures at the events.

Think about getting a wide-angle zoom then.

The Sigma 10-20/3.5 is excellent, for example.

For event shots that draw the viewer in, you want to be up and close but still get coverage. Even 18mm can be too long then. Furthermore, extreme wide-angle lenses exaggerate angles and thus add drama to scenes that otherwise would look pretty static / boring.

P.S.: Good idea to get the K-3 straight away. I don't see the point in climbing up a ladder of models if you know that you will make want to make use of the features of the K-3 anyhow.

[RonHendriks1966]

I will push my budget to about 2.500€ (i cancelled some other things, but you need to have priorities) and against all reason i really want the K-3 body. And i want it as soon as possible. I´m not very patient as you can see. I think i will buy the bundle with the 18-135mm to learn the kamera and have something to bring me trough the miserable winter weather in hamburg.
And then i have enough money left to get some good lens. Now i have to decide which one. Still difficult, but i have part of the plan now.

Or one other option is to buy the K-3 with the DA HD 20-40mm lens and buy the DA*50-135mm by the time you actually go on holiday and by then your budget again stretcht a little

[Rondec]

Thank you all again.
To clearify my need at work. I won´t do so much work with the objects and the exhibitions. I´m the event manager at the museum and will take pictures at the events. (after the event is on it´s way i usually have time to take pictures) The subjects of the fotos will be mainly people, of course from time to time they will be in the exhibitions. On the other hand we have lot of dance and music (it´s an ethnological museum) or demonstrations of arts. These more dynamic parts of the events will have more stage light and won´t be within the exhibitions. These parts are the reason i would like some video capabilities for. (Oftentimes we have really nice little concerts and it would be nice to have some documentation)
Of course i want to take shots of the objects for me personally, but it is not part of my work.
I will push my budget to about 2.500€ (i cancelled some other things, but you need to have priorities) and against all reason i really want the K-3 body. And i want it as soon as possible. I´m not very patient as you can see. I think i will buy the bundle with the 18-135mm to learn the kamera and have something to bring me trough the miserable winter weather in hamburg.
And then i have enough money left to get some good lens. Now i have to decide which one. Still difficult, but i have part of the plan now.

I think you will be satisfied. There is definitely a learning curve with an SLR, but better to get a camera that you can grow into, than one that you will be frustrated with in a month or two.

Good luck!

[Arne Bo]

Or one other option is to buy the K-3 with the DA HD 20-40mm lens and buy the DA*50-135mm by the time you actually go on holiday and by then your budget again stretcht a little

That would be an option, but the DA HD 20-40mm isn´t available yet. I would have to wait. I´m really bad at waiting.