Originally posted by btnapa Thanks for the follow up Mike.
... I guess we are stuck with the bulk and cost of the 28-45.
I agree that the K3 is no slouch but my switch is purely to produce large 60x80 or something in that neighborhood prints. I was wondering if you had gone super big on prints and seen comparative print results from the K3 and the 645Z side-by-side. If I were to stay with up to 20x30 or even a little bigger prints, the K3 is more than adequate. However, the intended application is much large prints hence the 645Z.
Boris, no problem. Optically the 28-45 is excellent by all accounts. And size wise, while cumbersome, I don't have a problem with it. The weight, and its effect on the balance of the camera is what bothers me. Given all the discussion here, I'm inclined to contact Pentax to see what it might cost to buy a 28-45 without AF and OS. I suspect the weight could be dropped by maybe 1/3, which would help a lot. AF is nice, and for me OS is unnecessary, especially since the camera turns it off once you plug in a wired remote to use on a tripod, which I do 99% of the time anyway.
Regarding printing, my printer is only 24" wide. I regularly make prints on 24x18 paper and have gone as large as 24x60, but not yet from the K-3 or 645Z. Given what I've seen from both, the 645Z would exhibit more detail in that range.