Forgot Password
Pentax Camera Forums Home
 

Closed Thread
Show Printable Version Search this Thread
07-05-2016, 02:38 PM   #31
Veteran Member




Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 11,913
QuoteOriginally posted by bwDraco Quote
I'll wait for a second opinion, then.
To be fair/ kind to DPR, the K-1 AF settings are complex and perhaps a little poorly explained in the manual. Much the same as the K-3/K-3II AF settings.

Canon and Nikon give you 20 pages in the manual about their AF settings, have white papers about it etc. Even though it has just about the same level of features as Canikon AF, Pentax gives you just 2 pages in the manual about the K-1 AF, and one page on the camera web site about it.

07-05-2016, 02:38 PM   #32
Banned




Join Date: Jan 2009
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 9,675
QuoteOriginally posted by bwDraco Quote
Come to think of it, it certainly seems DPReview rushed the review and did not properly test the AF on the K-1. I'll wait for a second opinion, then.

Draco
Or maybe it is a firmware thing.
07-05-2016, 02:40 PM   #33
Veteran Member
bwDraco's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: New York
Photos: Albums
Posts: 1,071
Don't discount the possibility of a defective AF unit.

It's entirely possible that DPReview's review sample of the K-1 has a faulty AF module causing it to drop to infinity during AF tracking. More testing is going to be necessary to determine how DPReview arrived at those results.

Draco
07-05-2016, 03:10 PM   #34
New Member




Join Date: May 2016
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 16
I haven't read the latest review but I remember the person who did the first thoughts review said that it was the first camera in a while that made him excited and that they wish that they could have spent more time with it. Regarding the AF, they probably just upset that the focus points are all in the center/crop-frame portion of the sensor and that it doesn't have a ga-zillion focusing points. Does that sound about right?

I love my K-1. The only new glass that I bought for it is the 28-105 for general walkaround. I am buying older primes because I don't like the overly processed look of newer lenses. No regrets getting rid of a D750 and Tamron lenses to do so.

07-05-2016, 03:47 PM   #35
Site Supporter
Site Supporter




Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Hamilton, Texas
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 771
QuoteOriginally posted by jake14mw Quote
In their next flagship camera, I would really love it if they overhauled the AF system. Not tuning SAFOX, an overhaul with great AF performance. Every camera is always the same, AF TUNING. What are we on, SAFOX XII? Enough already, overhaul it.
Is it possible that Canon and Nikon may be sitting on some patents that Ricoh have to work around?
07-05-2016, 03:57 PM   #36
Pentaxian




Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: New York
Posts: 4,833
DPR tends to grade on a curve, relative to other products on the market. A camera that scored 80% 5 years ago might only get 60% today if they repeated the review. If they didn't do that, general tech improvements to all cameras would have pushed many new scores to 100%.

That means the K-1 poor AF relative to current cameras might be better than an older camera rated good AF.

You can also see the grading curve in their camera groups. The K-5 was semipro. The later, slightly improved K-5ii got shifted down to mid-range because some other new camera models raised the bar.
07-05-2016, 03:59 PM   #37
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
RobA_Oz's Avatar

Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Tasmania, Australia
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 8,182
QuoteOriginally posted by DeadJohn Quote
DPR tends to grade on a curve, relative to other products on the market. A camera that scored 80% 5 years ago might only get 60% today if they repeated the review. If they didn't do that, general tech improvements to all cameras would have pushed many new scores to 100%.

That means the K-1 poor AF relative to current cameras might be better than an older camera rated good AF.

You can also see the grading curve in their camera groups. The K-5 was semipro. The later, slightly improved K-5ii got shifted down to mid-range because some other new camera models raised the bar.
I doubt an 85% miss rate would have been acceptable for the K-5. I really have trouble accepting that figure as representative of the K-1's AF tracking performance.

07-05-2016, 04:10 PM   #38
Pentaxian




Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 740
no sliver boby,no love
07-05-2016, 04:23 PM   #39
New Member




Join Date: Jun 2016
Posts: 21
I thought the review was mostly fair but maybe a little biased on the auto focus section. My main problem is if I am using AF-C on a Nikon body it is almost always AF-C d9 (the 9 points in the middle are used for tracking). Using a single point means that if the point moves off the subject it might refocus on something else. Using 9 points, on the K-1, seems to work a lot like the Nikons I have owned in the past.
07-05-2016, 04:27 PM   #40
Senior Member
Bromberger's Avatar

Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Stuttgart, Germany
Posts: 186
QuoteQuote:
In addition to these limitations the focus points aren't illuminated in the viewfinder until you lock focus, at which point they glow red. This was a bit frustrating when attempting to focus in low lighting conditions. After all, if you don't know where the focus point is before you even initiate focus, how do you place your point over your subject properly?
is this true?
07-05-2016, 04:38 PM   #41
Pentaxian




Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Romania
Posts: 15,132
Sort of. You can for example press the AF Mode button, which will briefly engage the red AF points light.
07-05-2016, 04:48 PM   #42
New Member




Join Date: May 2016
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 16
QuoteOriginally posted by Tony Belding Quote
Is it possible that Canon and Nikon may be sitting on some patents that Ricoh have to work around?
The majority sensors in all of the cameras (except Canon?) seem to be made by Sony so maybe Sony keeps the best tech/patents for itself, like backlit sensors with phase detection. It's software/interface for the A7's is where it is behind. Then, there are the obscene lens price tags.
07-05-2016, 04:48 PM   #43
Senior Member
richmondthefish's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 221
QuoteOriginally posted by jake14mw Quote
An astoundingly brief review. Are all their camera body reviews that brief? I have been saying for years that the three areas that Pentax was behind were AF, video, and flash system. Apparently, DPReview doesn't care about flash because it wasn't mentioned. We all know video is not something Pentax cares about at all.

The AF review area did surprise me. I have been reading such good things in this forum about the K-1's AF performance. The bike test did not surprise me, but only a 50% keeper rate in simple centerpoint focusing? How can that be true? This does not jive with what people have been writing in this forum. I am interested to hear what people think about this.

From everything that I have seen and read, Pentax seems to have done a great job with the K-1 to cater to the Pentax community. I think they packed a lot of features at an excellent price point. In their next flagship camera, I would really love it if they overhauled the AF system. Not tuning SAFOX, an overhaul with great AF performance. Every camera is always the same, AF TUNING. What are we on, SAFOX XII? Enough already, overhaul it. I would also like to see them address some of their flash system deficiencies. Regarding video, I give up, I honestly don't think they are ever going to take it seriously, so while I would love better video handling, I expect nothing there. Wether or not they or we like it, video is becoming more and more blended with photography, and more people are using it.


I don't see the AF part that surprising. AF was the recurring weak point that i've seen from multiple independent reviewers. I think if you are reviewing cameras like the D750 and A7R2 then the K1 does probably seem weak. If you're a Pentax forum user upgrading from a K5 then obviously the AF isn't an issue. Pentax probably was able to deliver the camera this cheap because of the shared R&D from the K3 and the autofocus was obviously not an area that made sense to them. I'm way too stupid to actually know how they make these decisions but i'd venture they were able to secure lots of 36 mp Sony sensors for a good price and they knew this would be a major selling point to the camera. Who knows but getting an brand new AF might have made zero sense for them because it might have priced the camera into D810 territory or beyond. I'd love to pick their brains but im sure they made the decisions very calculated and are well aware of the the cameras weak points but they probably can't easily improve on them without screwing up their pricing/delivery of bodies.
07-05-2016, 04:52 PM - 1 Like   #44
Pentaxian




Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Romania
Posts: 15,132
Well, sure, Pentax has a somewhat weaker AF, but... http://youtu.be/F_u1_RfLRTE?t=351
07-05-2016, 05:11 PM   #45
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
monochrome's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Working From Home
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 26,276
The entire review exhibits confirmation bias. I blame Ricoh USA for not being more helpful to all reviewers.
Closed Thread

Bookmarks
  • Submit Thread to Facebook Facebook
  • Submit Thread to Twitter Twitter
  • Submit Thread to Digg Digg
Tags - Make this thread easier to find by adding keywords to it!
af, camera, dpreview, dpreview give k-1, dslr, files, focus, full frame, full-frame, k-1, k1, nikon, page, pentax, pentax k-1, pentax news, pentax rumors, result, results, review, ricoh, thanks, tune, web
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Can anyone with a K-1 give me a review of the AF? Sperdynamite Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 71 06-29-2017 10:48 AM
The Pentax K-1 is the most popular camera on DPReview! :-) 12345 Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 43 06-16-2016 08:03 AM
Pentax K-1 tie with sony A7 II as best sub 2k camera on Dpreview.com discharged Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 11 06-10-2016 10:29 AM
dpreview first impressions of K-1 Newfie Pentax K-1 & K-1 II 73 02-22-2016 08:28 AM
What will Dpreview give the K-7 jct us101 Photographic Technique 22 07-29-2009 03:58 PM



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 03:56 AM. | See also: NikonForums.com, CanonForums.com part of our network of photo forums!
  • Red (Default)
  • Green
  • Gray
  • Dark
  • Dark Yellow
  • Dark Blue
  • Old Red
  • Old Green
  • Old Gray
  • Dial-Up Style
Hello! It's great to see you back on the forum! Have you considered joining the community?
register
Creating a FREE ACCOUNT takes under a minute, removes ads, and lets you post! [Dismiss]
Top