[top-quark]

Hello all,

Recently moved up to a Pentax K-r from an Olympus E-PL1. As the first "proper" camera I ever owned, I was rather fond of it and couldn't believe it was me taking those photographs. That said, using it in anything other than iAuto mode proved extremely error prone and frustrating and upgrading the kit lens even to a bog-standard super zoom was going to be prohibitively expensive. So I thought I'd try something else.

I was looking at the Samsung NX series but the K-r seemed to be an awful lot of camera for the money: 921K dot screen, AF lamp, 100-25600 ISO (more often than not I find myself shooting in dimly lit rooms) and an easy automatic mode should I get lost. Then, of course, I wanted some new glass to upgrade the kit lens!

That's how I found this site and I read the various reviews for lenses both within and way outside my price range. I eventually settled on the Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 HSM. No idea whether I made the best decision, but it certainly wasn't a bad one. Now I'm looking at the DA* 50-135mm, since I figure that'll be good for capturing my daughter's dance shows, and then maybe moving up again to the K5 and then... Expensive hobby, isn't it?

Still looking for something a little more discreet, though. Nothing shouts "I AM TAKING A PHOTOGRAPH" like pulling a DSLR out at a social gathering, particularly if the attached lens looks more like artillery than optics. So maybe an NX too

Why Pentax? Well, apart from the favourable reviews it's the name I associate with high-end photography. As it happens, the brand is quite good value compared to the competition. Let's hope that the future for the company is brighter than the recent past (and let's hope too that they haven't bet everything on the Q!).

[snappychappy]

Welcome to the forums and enjoy the new kit.

[Mareket]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Pentax! And good choice of kit, I can personally recommend the 50-135 (as many others will), but either way you'll love having a 'proper' camera. Kit doesn't make you a good photographer, but as any Apple fanboy will tell you, it's always nice having a piece of equipment you can look at and appreciate, and I certainly think Pentax win in that regard.