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05-03-2014, 01:07 PM   #1
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K-3 Things not so good or...

So I have had my K-3 for 6 months and taken 31 592 images.

I was wondering if there is some things about the K-3 you wish they had done differently. I have a few things I would like to change...


1) I think that the AF-button is impossible to find when I want to toggle AF-S or AF-C. I find that I miss the old way with the lever. Save the AF-Button for turning AF-A on and off and to switch the focus points.

2) I miss the lever for changing the exposure setting, Point/Center/Matrix. I have to search for the button all the time...

3) I do not like the Shake reduction for the video. It is practically useless. I want the "mechanical" SR back. It worked good on the K-5.

4) I miss a way to choose which card to put the files on. I find myself pulling the card I want as backup card to get the camera to switch.

5) Turning On and Off the LCD is not optimal. Pushing one button a couple of times as on the K-5 feels easier than using two buttons.
I find myself having it turned off all the time.

6) Well, that is all I actually find enoying or somewhat irritating with the K-3.



Am I unable to adapt or do my thoughts have merit?

/T

05-03-2014, 01:19 PM   #2
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Hard to build a new camera which is an upgrade to everything that came before without it being different.
If they make a K-3 the same as the K-7/K-5 series then they have essentially made another K-7/K-5 series body. I think most people expected something really new.
I don't have a K-3 (and very unlikely to) but I suspect I'd find the changes a little confusing too, but I do have a K-7 and have to work with the differences of my K-01 and now the K-50 (not to mention the Q and the MX-1)
It's a challenge I admit, but it helps prevent my aging brain from turning into clay.
05-03-2014, 01:46 PM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by Tjompen1968 Quote
I was wondering if there is some things about the K-3 you wish they had done differently. I have a few things I would like to change...
Good list, I would agree to all of those at least somewhat. None are reasons to not like the camera, but maybe things they should think about for the next version. Changing between AF-C and AF-S is just plain awkward, I cannot do it without taking the camera from my eye and actually looking. I think I miss the metering lever the most though. The lock on the mode dial is nice and I do use it but I would rather have the metering mode lever back.
05-03-2014, 03:10 PM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by Tjompen1968 Quote
5) Turning On and Off the LCD is not optimal. Pushing one button a couple of times as on the K-5 feels easier than using two buttons.
I find myself having it turned off all the time.
That, to me, is a big advantage.

05-03-2014, 05:26 PM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by OregonJim Quote
That, to me, is a big advantage.
True but I would like it to be easier to turn on and off. Sometimes I find myself wanting to look at the settings on the LCD.

---------- Post added 05-04-14 at 02:28 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by jatrax Quote
Good list, I would agree to all of those at least somewhat. None are reasons to not like the camera, but maybe things they should think about for the next version. Changing between AF-C and AF-S is just plain awkward, I cannot do it without taking the camera from my eye and actually looking. I think I miss the metering lever the most though. The lock on the mode dial is nice and I do use it but I would rather have the metering mode lever back.
I love my K-3, just some things that has changed maybe not to the better...
05-03-2014, 07:32 PM   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by Tjompen1968 Quote
Am I unable to adapt...
Perhaps. I have had some of the same frustrations, but with different features.


Steve

---------- Post added 05-03-14 at 07:35 PM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by Tjompen1968 Quote
Sometimes I find myself wanting to look at the settings on the LCD.
Yep, the "Info" button on my K10D is really nice by comparison. Ditto for getting info in playback mode.


Steve
05-03-2014, 11:33 PM   #7
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I'm still having to adjust to the new AF and metering controls. I think the K-5 controls are better. At first I thought it was a minor change and I would hardly notice it, but its been more annoying than I expected.

05-04-2014, 12:56 AM   #8
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For me, the K-5/K-5II are more intuitive at all than K-3.
05-04-2014, 03:58 AM   #9
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Definitely the mechanical SR.
05-04-2014, 06:25 AM   #10
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Chacun a son gout! Are you guys taking advantage of the User modes? I can go from still shooting (AF-S, center AF point, matrix metering, SR on), to action (AF-C, Expandable AF point, CW metering, SR off) with a couple of clicks of the mode dial, and I do so, frequently.

Electronic controls suit me perfectly because they're much faster to manipulate as a set, and they never forget to reset when I change shooting modes (unlike yours truly). User modes allow me to reset a bunch of parameters at a time, and reset to know values just by turning the mode dial or shutting the camera off.

QuoteOriginally posted by twitch Quote
AF still sucks on the K-3. Accuracy and speed. AF and metering control is a backwards step. Everything else is better though.
That is not my experience. I rarely miss focus with a still photo and I have ridiculous number of perfectly focussed BIF's. The small center point is pinpoint accurate and the sophisticated AF-C controls leave any previous Pentax in the dust for action shooting.

---------- Post added 2014-05-04 at 09:26 ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by JinDesu Quote
Definitely the mechanical SR.
Which no Pentax has had since the K20D. I configured the otherwise useless Raw/Jpeg button to control SR on my K-3.

Last edited by audiobomber; 05-04-2014 at 07:26 AM.
05-04-2014, 06:40 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by twitch Quote
AF still sucks on the K-3. Accuracy and speed. AF and metering control is a backwards step. Everything else is better though.
I can't agree with you even a little bit. We must have different K-3s.
05-04-2014, 07:26 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote

Which no Pentax has had since the K20D.
The K-5 used mechanical when in video. No?
05-04-2014, 07:32 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by Tjompen1968 Quote
So I have had my K-3 for 6 months and taken 31 592 images.

I was wondering if there is some things about the K-3 you wish they had done differently. I have a few things I would like to change...


1) I think that the AF-button is impossible to find when I want to toggle AF-S or AF-C. I find that I miss the old way with the lever. Save the AF-Button for turning AF-A on and off and to switch the focus points.

2) I miss the lever for changing the exposure setting, Point/Center/Matrix. I have to search for the button all the time...

3) I do not like the Shake reduction for the video. It is practically useless. I want the "mechanical" SR back. It worked good on the K-5.

4) I miss a way to choose which card to put the files on. I find myself pulling the card I want as backup card to get the camera to switch.

5) Turning On and Off the LCD is not optimal. Pushing one button a couple of times as on the K-5 feels easier than using two buttons.
I find myself having it turned off all the time.

6) Well, that is all I actually find enoying or somewhat irritating with the K-3.



Am I unable to adapt or do my thoughts have merit?

/T
When I wrote my article up about the K3, a lot of these were points I would have touched on had it not been sidetracked by the other issue of which I won't mention here. LOL

Your list is great, but especially the Shake Reduction thing for video. It drives me insane... I actually think it was one of the strong-points of choosing Pentax for video, prior to the K3. The mechanical SR was SOOOOO good, that often you couldn't tell the difference between footage taken on a tripod vs. hand-held. What they've done in the K3 is an abomination, and a huge step backwards. At the very least, they should have given users the choice to pick digital or mechanical.

The other issue that struck a chord with me right away was the metering switch.

Of course, some of the feature changes they made were great, but some of the ergonomic alternations felt like forced changes that didn't make the camera more intuitive... but less.
05-04-2014, 07:41 AM   #14
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The problem I have with this type of thread, is the assumption that things could be changed without creating new problems. I find the camera quite functional with a few months of use. But then I'm a guy that would be happy with K-1000 controls on my camera so I guess I just don't have very high standards. If I can make it work, I'll use it.
05-04-2014, 08:10 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by audiobomber Quote
Chacun a son gout!
Klingon? Edit: Oh! Not Klingon! French!

---------- Post added 05-04-14 at 08:17 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by normhead Quote
But then I'm a guy that would be happy with K-1000 controls on my camera so I guess I just don't have very high standards.
This is my problem as well. In fact, I would be happier with minimal automation (and far fewer buttons) for my style of shooting.


Steve

Last edited by stevebrot; 05-04-2014 at 08:18 AM.
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