[Midnit_kos86]

I have a question, I am debating on which camera to buy at the moment.... And I want to take advantage of these two sales.... One which ends soon like in 6 hours , so I wanted another set of eyes if at all possible.

Basically I'm trying to decide which would be the better deal, this would be my first DSLR, I have lenses, for my film body, and want to merge into the digital world. I would mainly use my camera for portraits, weddings, family outings, but since I live in New York I was thinking the wheather sealed would be nice to have..... I rarely use my camera for more then a couple of hours, unless I help out at a family wedding, which I'm not planning on any this year. I've spent time looking at specs, and reviews.... And in the end the main difference is the weather sealing, do I want to spend an additional 200 on WR items?

I dont want to buy the k-500 for being cheaper only to discover the k-50 takes better close up portraits... I'm leaning towards the k-50 but I'm afraid it's going to be way to much camera for me.... I'm pregnant and want a good camera before baby comes home, since my dark room usage will be probably zero until she is a couple of months old... I don't want to be camera less for her first days... And I don't trust my point and shoot to take the photos I want.

Options:

Pentax K-50 2 Lens Weatherproof DSLR Bundle
Costco option 699.99 s&h included
Includes:
Pentax K-50 Weatherproof Camera Body
18-55mm WR Lens
50-200mm WR Lens
Camera Bag
16GB SD Card
USB Cable I-USB7
Battery Charger Kit K-BC109(A)
Strap O-ST132
Eyecup FR
Li-Ion Battery D-LI109
AC Plug Cord D-C02J
Hotshoe Cover FK
Body Mount Cover
Software CD-ROM S-SW138
___________________________
OR

Groupon offer for 499.99 s&h included

Pentax K-500 DSLR camera kit:

Pentax K-500 camera
Pentax AA battery holder (D-BH109)
USB cable (I-USB7)
Hotshoe cover FK
Eyecup FR
Body-mount cover
Software CD-ROM S-SW139
Pentax K-500 DSLR camera kit with zoom kit includes all of the above, plus a Pentax 50–200mm zoom lens.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------- Post added 02-22-14 at 07:14 PM ----------

Also the groupon offer has the same kit, minus the 50-200mm lens for 399.99...... Is the 50-200mm a good investment for 100.00 if I go with that option? Any thoughts?

[ruggiex]

K-500 does not have focus point indicator in viewfinder which can be confusing unless you simply use center point. To me that affects how portraits are taken so my vote is k50. Plus, you wouldn't worry about water spills, vomits etc while dealing with a baby at the same time.

[Midnit_kos86]

K-500 does not have focus point indicator in viewfinder which can be confusing unless you simply use center point. To me that affects how portraits are taken so my vote is k50. Plus, you wouldn't worry about water spills, vomits etc while dealing with a baby at the same time.

Haha, yes... Point taken on the liquids.... They are going to be more frequent in my life :/

[fgaudet]

I have a question, I am debating on which camera to buy at the moment.... And I want to take advantage of these two sales.... One which ends soon like in 6 hours , so I wanted another set of eyes if at all possible.

Basically I'm trying to decide which would be the better deal, this would be my first DSLR, I have lenses, for my film body, and want to merge into the digital world. I would mainly use my camera for portraits, weddings, family outings, but since I live in New York I was thinking the wheather sealed would be nice to have..... I rarely use my camera for more then a couple of hours, unless I help out at a family wedding, which I'm not planning on any this year. I've spent time looking at specs, and reviews.... And in the end the main difference is the weather sealing, do I want to spend an additional 200 on WR items?

I dont want to buy the k-500 for being cheaper only to discover the k-50 takes better close up portraits... I'm leaning towards the k-50 but I'm afraid it's going to be way to much camera for me.... I'm pregnant and want a good camera before baby comes home, since my dark room usage will be probably zero until she is a couple of months old... I don't want to be camera less for her first days... And I don't trust my point and shoot to take the photos I want.

Options:

Pentax K-50 2 Lens Weatherproof DSLR Bundle
Costco option 699.99 s&h included
Includes:
Pentax K-50 Weatherproof Camera Body
18-55mm WR Lens
50-200mm WR Lens
Camera Bag
16GB SD Card
USB Cable I-USB7
Battery Charger Kit K-BC109(A)
Strap O-ST132
Eyecup FR
Li-Ion Battery D-LI109
AC Plug Cord D-C02J
Hotshoe Cover FK
Body Mount Cover
Software CD-ROM S-SW138
___________________________
OR

Groupon offer for 499.99 s&h included

Pentax K-500 DSLR camera kit:

Pentax K-500 camera
Pentax AA battery holder (D-BH109)
USB cable (I-USB7)
Hotshoe cover FK
Eyecup FR
Body-mount cover
Software CD-ROM S-SW139
Pentax K-500 DSLR camera kit with zoom kit includes all of the above, plus a Pentax 50–200mm zoom lens.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------- Post added 02-22-14 at 07:14 PM ----------

Also the groupon offer has the same kit, minus the 50-200mm lens for 399.99...... Is the 50-200mm a good investment for 100.00 if I go with that option? Any thoughts?

They're pretty much the same camera, aside some minor stuff. And don't worry about getting too much of a camera. All Pentax are very user friendly. Image quality should be identical, they share the same sensor, AF system, image processor... It is a tough choice.

The K-500 doesn't have focus confirmation (little red square) in the viewfinder, this can be very annoying if you're using auto focus (11 or 5 points) because you won't really know where the camera locked focus on...

WR is a good thing to have but, it's still very new in the entry-level range of cameras (I think only Pentax offers it at entry-level). My K-r (no WR) has seen almost as much dust/wetness as my K5 (WR) and so far, so good. You just need to be more careful and take better care at drying/dusting your gear (which you should still do with a WR kit)

To me, just for the Focus Confirm it's worth getting the K-50. And WR is a plus. $200 may look steep but you do get a camera bag (~$80) and LiON battery (~$60) and an SD card (~$15) extra.

Bear in mind that this only my opinion

[Boker]

Or look into a used K-5

[Midnit_kos86]

Would buy a camera bag anyways.... So yes that alone helps with the pricing.... Plus, I think I would feel less stressed about taking it to the beach if I got the k-50 .... Leaning more towards this model...

And it is the best priced kit I've been able to find so far... Anyone have any idea if I could find it cheaper somewhere else?

Thank you all for opinions

---------- Post added 02-22-14 at 07:42 PM ----------

I havnt even thought about a k-5.... I know they are way more expensive.... And I just am nit sure about buying used... Most I've seen have a no return policy.... I can't bring myself to make that kind of purchase without a safety net scary to me

[dansamy]

If you're buying new, get the k-50 & an accidental damage plan.

[Midnit_kos86]

If you're buying new, get the k-50 & an accidental damage plan.

Costco automatically extends the warrenty to two years, I don't see an option for adding more.... :/

[FrankC]

The kit with the two lenses is a better option IMHO because of the two lenses. The K500 kit only includes the 50-200 which you may find fine for most portraits (1/2 length to head shots), but it's too tight for group shots. Plus the WR feature in the body can be very helpful in bad weather, on boats, near swimming pools, kids running through sprinklers, etc...

I've never been one to buy any photo equipment like cameras or lenses based on whether they were a good deal. I hope that you've chosen these two options because they do what you need them to do, as opposed to just being a good deal.

The members here who own the WR kit lenses seem to like them quite a bit. They appear to be good enough to get started learning about photography and taking some entry-level jobs like parties, events and even a friend's wedding too.

For me, if the K50 did what I needed it to do, I'd go with that kit over the other. However, if it was within my budget, I'd buy the body only and go with an intermediate to advanced-level lens as opposed to the kit lenses.

[oxidized]

K-50. The lack of AF confirm is enough to make me get the K-50. Run away from any camera without AF confirm!

[fgaudet]

For me, if the K50 did what I needed it to do, I'd go with that kit over the other. However, if it was within my budget, I'd buy the body only and go with an intermediate to advanced-level lens as opposed to the kit lenses.

Better lenses is always a good option and will make a bigger difference than a better body. But the kit lenses are far from bad. Especially for a beginner. They're not the sharpest nor the fastest but WR lenses similar to the kit lenses are well over $1000 new (each... DA*16-50 // DA*60-250). Stick with the kit. Once you've mastered what you've got, start thinking of upgrading.

This was shot on a K-r (K-50's older brother) with the DA L 18-55 AL (the most basic one)... It is as nice as some other shot taken with lenses 10x the price...

[filoxophy]

If your budget allows, get the K-50 kit and be happy. But if money is tight with the little one coming, I would jump on that K-500 for $400, no WR/AF confirmation/tele zoom lens and all. From your description, I think it would satisfy 90% of your photo desires. Same image quality as the K-50, as others mentioned. The K-50 bundle obviously has its advantages, but this is my take. Can't go wrong between the two!

[rrstuff]

Easy. Buy K-30, which costs as much as K-500 and is pretty much identical to K-50.

[dansamy]

Costco automatically extends the warrenty to two years, I don't see an option for adding more.... :/

I'm not talking about warranty. I'm talking about accidental damage coverage. Drops, spills, etc.

[Midnit_kos86]

The kit with the two lenses is a better option IMHO because of the two lenses. The K500 kit only includes the 50-200 which you may find fine for most portraits (1/2 length to head shots), but it's too tight for group shots. Plus the WR feature in the body can be very helpful in bad weather, on boats, near swimming pools, kids running through sprinklers, etc...

I've never been one to buy any photo equipment like cameras or lenses based on whether they were a good deal. I hope that you've chosen these two options because they do what you need them to do, as opposed to just being a good deal.

The members here who own the WR kit lenses seem to like them quite a bit. They appear to be good enough to get started learning about photography and taking some entry-level jobs like parties, events and even a friend's wedding too.

For me, if the K50 did what I needed it to do, I'd go with that kit over the other. However, if it was within my budget, I'd buy the body only and go with an intermediate to advanced-level lens as opposed to the kit lenses.

I've been looking at k-50, k-30 and k-500 as options for my introduction to digital, so when I saw these two options today i knew I would have a hard time deciding... I have lenses that I love from my film pentax, that I can't wait to see how they perform with a digital body.

I found out that costco has an additional 2 years option you can buy for 49 that covers drops, spills and general usage wear. I think that I am going to go with the k-50 kit with the accidental coverage as suggested by user dansamy above, I hadn't even thought of that before.

The offer from groupon I can't see an option for additional insurance.

Does anyone have any thoughts on the different colors? Any problems with paint peeling? Costco has 4 color options but I don't want the paint to chip like one my point and shoot, two years old, and the red paint has already chipped in most areas, even though I use a case all the time when not shooting :/.

I was leaning towards the white or blue.... Unless I find out the paint chips.... Then I'll just do black.... ?????

Thank you everyone for input has helped me immensely, I was driving hubby nuts