I was really enjoying the K1's Pixel Shift and was looking to get an APS-C K-mount that had this feature for when I wanted to travel light. To be honest, I was hoping to get the K70 and would have bought it if it went on sale during the holidays but instead, the KP fell below $ 900 which made it a bit more compelling considering it had a third control wheel which I really like on the K1, had the improved 5 axis 5 stop stabilization, and had a grip available for when I wanted to use my K1/K3 batteries or if I was shooting portraits. The more precise focus points was a minor decision contributor too.
Man this thing is small. Comfortable, though needed to change how I thought about gripping it. On the K5 series bodies and K1, you can essentially hold the camera with your middle finger - The KP with the large grip seems like it's being held up more with my ring finger and thumb. I didn't have a problem with it using what I've used it with so far. I do prefer the grip and layout of the K1 and K3, but I'm finding the KP perfectly fine with the large grip attached. I have not used the KP with the 60-250 yet though, but usually I'm holding large lenses by the lens not the body so I doubt my opinion will change much when I get around to it.
Compared to the K3, having a tilt screen is really nice. I'm always looking for different angles to photograph from and with my crappy knees and not being very tall, shooting from a low position or an overhead position is so much easier with a tilty screen. On the K3, for overhead shots I always had to have the camera slightly in front (which reduced how high I could hold the camera) to be able to see 'something' but still I was essentially shooting blind. With the KP, I can look at the leveling meters and frame the image with confidence that I'm framing how I want.
And since I'm frequently shooting with less than ideal technique, I was hoping the 5 axis stabilization would give me sharper photos than with the K3. Fortunately, I'm finding that to be the case as the KP is very much like the K1 where shots that shouldn't be taken because of less than ideal shutter speeds or grip turn out to be very good and usable. I was asked to take some pictures at work which required being on a ladder, arms fully extended shooting straight down and th lighting required 1/30th of a second - pics came out awesome. I'd venture to estimate that the KP is a stop and a half more forgiving than the K3. And since the K3 and K70 probably have similar SR systems, I'm very pleased with the improvement in sharpness with the KP.
Shutter sound is quite nice - much quieter than the k30 - Just tested it against the K3 and the k3 pitch is higher and its louder! I've never heard anyone mention this - the KP is quieter than the K3! Since I enjoy taking candids, this is important for me. I had always planned on keeping the k3 as a backup and using the K70 if I got it, as my landscape/ hiking camera and not using it so much for event photography or even travel photography which was a shame because the tilting screen is great for not being noticed as much when taking someone's picture. So now, I'm not sure if I'll keep the K3 as the KP can handle landscape, travel and event photography really well.
Some other random observations:
customizeable info screen is awesome - same as k1
Third control wheel for bracketing is the way it should be
Kept forgetting the front control wheel is vertical rather than horizontal like all my other cameras - I think I've adapted to this now, but it take me a few times to remember
Really nice feel (and look) with limiteds - used DA35 Macro and DA15 today and the DA20-40 is pretty awesome too.
Buttons on back significantly smaller than K1 -- too much bezel around tilt screen
Battery life was short! I'm really tempted to get the grip just for being able to use the larger K-1 battery!
Single SD card slot. But I just got the WD Wireless Passport Pro and I'm using this for instant in the field back ups. Not as secure, I know, but it's better than nothing.
Shutter feels mushy like K-1
shutter release port missing
no side to side on screen tilt
change in layout from k5iis k3 k1 - a lot that's different LV, iso button (I've since assigned the iso to the exp comp button - not a prob for me since in AV and TV mode, I have the opposite wheel adjust exp comp). After about a month, I've adjusted to the button layout and UI of the camera.
So I knew I would like the size, the third wheel, feature set, and the tilting screen and I've been very pleased with these aspects. My expectations were exceeded in how good the Shake Reduction, ergonomics, and shutter sound was. When the KP first came out, it looked great, but the value proposition tilted it out of consideration. Now that the price is where it is now, I'm feeling it presents enough value over the K70 where I'm happy I made decision to go with the Pentax KP.
Last edited by mike.hiran; 02-05-2018 at 12:19 AM.