[zworld]

I'm essentially ready to upgrade my Pentax body and get a new lens. I'm willing to spend some cash to do this, because it's been several years and I'm ready for an upgrade. I'll be moving from an *ist DS and a K-01 to a...well, that's the problem. I'm a hobbyist photographer that enjoys landscapes and capturing a beautiful sunset, Taking pictures of flowers, and having a good camera to take family photos on occasion. Lately, I feel the old passion of photography growing again, so I find myself using my cameras more and more. For the first time in several years I am feeling the limitations of my gear.

I could be convinced to buy the K1, but it truly is overkill for me, I think. I just don't know that I'd use it enough to justify the price. I like the price of the KP and the fact it's an APS-C camera, but I like the K3II features a bit more. I've heard rumors that the K3II will be replaced this year and end up being an APS-C camera that sits between the K1 and KP, so this seems ideal - but it is a rumor so I'm not certain.

SO, my question is do I buy a very expensive camera that is probably overkill; or, do I buy an affordable camera that doesn't quite have the feature list I would like; or, do I wait for a K3II replacement?

Does anyone have any thoughts or guidance? Thanks in advance! :-)
~b

[photoptimist]

Is the K-1 overkill or is it a growth opportunity? Perhaps a more advanced camera is the right choice to let your passion grow.

That said, if you prefer APS-C, then the KP is an extremely capable camera and a K-3 replacement may be coming. Yet neither the timing of the next K-3 nor it's pricing are known so you may be waiting a long time just to get an expensive APS-C camera when you could have had the K-1 or KP all along.

I'd think carefully about what limits you feel with your current gear and what limits you might feel with the different options.

Good luck!

[npc]

If I were you I would get right now a K-3II or K-70 depending on what fits best your feature preferences and price range. Sony has not released any new APS-C sensor since the 24mix that is already an all current Pentax APS-C offerings so chances are that even if they release a new camera later this year it sill will be the same sensor.

[mattb123]

Unless you need something specific I see no point in waiting. Buy now and get out shooting.
If you like the K-3ii features then just get one. They are great cameras. In fact they pretty much all are. They keep getting better but a great camera you buy today will still be a great camera for years.

I still use my K-3 almost daily and I also have a K-1 and a 645D. The K-3 is compact, fast, and it can take a beating and that is often the right tool for what I'm shooting.
The K-1 is great too but keep in mind you may want different lenses if you go that route. It's bigger, heavier, and a little more fragile than a K-3. But it's a fine camera.

[pathdoc]

Warning - extremely heretical opinion ahead.


If you are a hobbyist, and your *istDS is still working reliably... consider not upgrading.

I bought a K-5 in 2012 to replace an irretrievably dead *istDL, but only for that reason. I was, and have remained, ridiculously happy with its performance. I was ready to shoot it until it fell apart, especially since some early guesses as to the K-1's price were in the $3000 US range. But then the K-1 was everything I wanted and more, at what for a full-frame dSLR is really a stupidly low price, and I could not resist.

I bought the K-1 mostly because I could, but only after a year of waiting to see what its ups and downs were like in the hands of others, and to think about what its place was in my amateur/enthusiast workflow (I am still working that out).

Late last year I also bought an *istDS (for a ridiculously low price) because it has the analogue TTL protocol for flash that was designed into the LX and the Super Program, and because I heard that its older CCD chip works well with Takumar M42 lenses (many of which I had bought on recommendation from this site, along with the genuine K-M42 screw-in adapter).

Perhaps what you should consider, if you don't already have one, is a second-hand Pentax analogue TTL flash from that era. Explore that and spin the *istDS's career out a little bit longer while you wait to see what succeeds the K-3ii. The best thing about it is that you can use K and M series film-era lenses at any aperture within the flash's power limitations and the flash will cut itself off, regardless of aperture selected, when it has had enough light. No subsequent Pentax DSLR, not even the K-1, can do that.

Write down EXACTLY what it is about the *istDS that limits you, and exactly what it is in feature terms that you want out of its replacement. IIRC all the 16MP cameras are now discontinued and all remaining models still in production are K-3 technology or better, so anything you buy will put you ahead of where you are now.

Remember that the K3-ii has no internal flash, so if you're at all accustomed to popping that up as a handy fill-in or last resort, it will not be there for you and you will need to buy one and remember to carry and fit it. The same applies to the K-1, but I shoot that one almost like a medium format camera, carefully and with prior consideration of whether flash will be required (and then I have options).

Shoot your *istDS till it dies, then shoot the K-01 as a backup. If the K-3 successor isn't out by then, buy a KP. All the initial foibles will be well known, and you might even find one going secondhand.

Certainly, secondhand K-1's are starting more and more to appear, at what in some cases are very, VERY reasonable prices, so that might be a more attractive option by then too. But remember that absence of a flash. This isn't a camera you grab for quick candid dinner-party or sleepover-type shots.

[BigMackCam]

I'm essentially ready to upgrade my Pentax body and get a new lens. I'm willing to spend some cash to do this, because it's been several years and I'm ready for an upgrade. I'll be moving from an *ist DS and a K-01 to a...well, that's the problem. I'm a hobbyist photographer that enjoys landscapes and capturing a beautiful sunset, Taking pictures of flowers, and having a good camera to take family photos on occasion. Lately, I feel the old passion of photography growing again, so I find myself using my cameras more and more. For the first time in several years I am feeling the limitations of my gear.

I could be convinced to buy the K1, but it truly is overkill for me, I think. I just don't know that I'd use it enough to justify the price. I like the price of the KP and the fact it's an APS-C camera, but I like the K3II features a bit more. I've heard rumors that the K3II will be replaced this year and end up being an APS-C camera that sits between the K1 and KP, so this seems ideal - but it is a rumor so I'm not certain.

SO, my question is do I buy a very expensive camera that is probably overkill; or, do I buy an affordable camera that doesn't quite have the feature list I would like; or, do I wait for a K3II replacement?

Does anyone have any thoughts or guidance? Thanks in advance! :-)
~b

I think some people consider the K-1 to be "more" camera than the K-3II or KP. It's really not - rather, it's different. There are times when a full-frame camera has certain advantages, but equally times when a "cropped sensor" APS-C camera has advantages too. I shoot both formats (Sony full-frame, Pentax APS-C), and like them both equally. If I had to choose just one, it would be APS-C, because of the size and weight advantage.

The K-3II is an outstanding camera and extremely good value-for-money. The KP is considerably more expensive, misses out on a few key features, but has better high ISO performance (and, I seem to recall, better dynamic range)... plus, it's very compact. If and when a new APS-C "flagship" model is released, I think we can expect it to be more expensive than even the KP - which makes the K-3II an even bigger bargain if you can live with the noise at higher ISOs (that, of course, will depend on your individual use-cases).

I have the K-3 and K-3II and find them to be really excellent. I have no intention of replacing either for some considerable time

[SpecialK]

For the first time in several years I am feeling the limitations of my gear.

What are those limitations?

[Skodadriver]

I'm essentially ready to upgrade my Pentax body and get a new lens. I'm willing to spend some cash to do this, because it's been several years and I'm ready for an upgrade. I'll be moving from an *ist DS and a K-01 to a...well, that's the problem. I'm a hobbyist photographer that enjoys landscapes and capturing a beautiful sunset, Taking pictures of flowers, and having a good camera to take family photos on occasion. Lately, I feel the old passion of photography growing again, so I find myself using my cameras more and more. For the first time in several years I am feeling the limitations of my gear.

I could be convinced to buy the K1, but it truly is overkill for me, I think. I just don't know that I'd use it enough to justify the price. I like the price of the KP and the fact it's an APS-C camera, but I like the K3II features a bit more. I've heard rumors that the K3II will be replaced this year and end up being an APS-C camera that sits between the K1 and KP, so this seems ideal - but it is a rumor so I'm not certain.

SO, my question is do I buy a very expensive camera that is probably overkill; or, do I buy an affordable camera that doesn't quite have the feature list I would like; or, do I wait for a K3II replacement?

Does anyone have any thoughts or guidance? Thanks in advance! :-)
~b

As mentioned, what are the limitations you feel?
A full frame camera may require a further large expensive outlay on FF lenses.....APSC has a fairly wide range of good lenses and the crop effect can lose some of the imperfections in corners of budget legacy lenses and post processing can deal with much of the CA.....but a FF camera will allow for wide angle lenses to be used at their native focal length and provide better signal to noise.
Do you need GPS?
Would you use an on-board flash or purchase something that gives greater performance and bounce options?
My advice is......assume you may upgrade again (if the passion increases) stick with APSC for the moment and pick the model that has your current requirements of a camera.
Or go the whole FF hog.
Nice position to be in really.

[bm75]

If you're on a budget invest in lenses. The more I use my k5 the more I love it. Buying new gear it's more a hype than a real need, sometimes.Especially if you can't exactly focus the limitation of the gear you already have. If you simply need a change, no budget limits.....well invest in k1 and lenses!

[zworld]

Warning - extremely heretical opinion ahead.


If you are a hobbyist, and your *istDS is still working reliably... consider not upgrading.

I bought a K-5 in 2012 to replace an irretrievably dead *istDL, but only for that reason. I was, and have remained, ridiculously happy with its performance. I was ready to shoot it until it fell apart, especially since some early guesses as to the K-1's price were in the $3000 US range. But then the K-1 was everything I wanted and more, at what for a full-frame dSLR is really a stupidly low price, and I could not resist.

I bought the K-1 mostly because I could, but only after a year of waiting to see what its ups and downs were like in the hands of others, and to think about what its place was in my amateur/enthusiast workflow (I am still working that out).

Late last year I also bought an *istDS (for a ridiculously low price) because it has the analogue TTL protocol for flash that was designed into the LX and the Super Program, and because I heard that its older CCD chip works well with Takumar M42 lenses (many of which I had bought on recommendation from this site, along with the genuine K-M42 screw-in adapter).

Perhaps what you should consider, if you don't already have one, is a second-hand Pentax analogue TTL flash from that era. Explore that and spin the *istDS's career out a little bit longer while you wait to see what succeeds the K-3ii. The best thing about it is that you can use K and M series film-era lenses at any aperture within the flash's power limitations and the flash will cut itself off, regardless of aperture selected, when it has had enough light. No subsequent Pentax DSLR, not even the K-1, can do that.

Write down EXACTLY what it is about the *istDS that limits you, and exactly what it is in feature terms that you want out of its replacement. IIRC all the 16MP cameras are now discontinued and all remaining models still in production are K-3 technology or better, so anything you buy will put you ahead of where you are now.

Remember that the K3-ii has no internal flash, so if you're at all accustomed to popping that up as a handy fill-in or last resort, it will not be there for you and you will need to buy one and remember to carry and fit it. The same applies to the K-1, but I shoot that one almost like a medium format camera, carefully and with prior consideration of whether flash will be required (and then I have options).

Shoot your *istDS till it dies, then shoot the K-01 as a backup. If the K-3 successor isn't out by then, buy a KP. All the initial foibles will be well known, and you might even find one going secondhand.

Certainly, secondhand K-1's are starting more and more to appear, at what in some cases are very, VERY reasonable prices, so that might be a more attractive option by then too. But remember that absence of a flash. This isn't a camera you grab for quick candid dinner-party or sleepover-type shots.

Great reply - Thank you. You've given me things to consider.

[zworld]

What are those limitations?

Mainly, it's the pixels. No, I will probably never blow up an image to fit the size of a wall. I do think, though, that more pixels mean more information, more information means more detail, and more detail means I can capture macro images and fine lines better with a camera in the 24MP range than one in the 6MP range. My K-01 is a 16MP camera, but I find as I get older I like the viewfinder and diopter combo instead of the screen accommodates my reading vision issues better. Also, I like the wider ISO ranges available on the newer models compared with the *ist DS.

---------- Post added 05-23-17 at 01:37 PM ----------

As mentioned, what are the limitations you feel?
A full frame camera may require a further large expensive outlay on FF lenses.....APSC has a fairly wide range of good lenses and the crop effect can lose some of the imperfections in corners of budget legacy lenses and post processing can deal with much of the CA.....but a FF camera will allow for wide angle lenses to be used at their native focal length and provide better signal to noise.
Do you need GPS?
Would you use an on-board flash or purchase something that gives greater performance and bounce options?
My advice is......assume you may upgrade again (if the passion increases) stick with APSC for the moment and pick the model that has your current requirements of a camera.
Or go the whole FF hog.
Nice position to be in really.

assume you may upgrade again (if the passion increases) stick with APSC

Well, now that is something bigger to think about. Maybe I should be looking at full frame. The subject of my post continues to be relevant...too many choices.

[bm75]

Mainly, it's the pixels

Lenses are a much more important than a new body , if IQ is the matter. Outresolving a 16 mpx sensor isn't simple. If you choose a 36 mpx camera, you'll need extra-quality lenses to par with the sensor. Otherwise you'll have no big improvement. I don't know what your lenses are, but in your shoes I would accurately search this Forum and the web for informations about how my lenses perform with high-mpx cameras.

[jddwoods]

Lenses are a much more important than a new body , if IQ is the matter. Outresolving a 16 mpx sensor isn't simple. If you choose a 36 mpx camera, you'll need extra-quality lenses to par with the sensor. Otherwise you'll have no big improvement. I don't know what your lenses are, but in your shoes I would accurately search this Forum and the web for informations about how my lenses perform with high-mpx cameras.

Pull up the in depth review of the K-3 (original) and in it, is a list of the sharpest lenses you can get for the higher resolution 24 megapixel sensor. One lens missing from the list that should be there is the DFA 50 Macro.

[pathdoc]

Lenses are a much more important than a new body , if IQ is the matter. Outresolving a 16 mpx sensor isn't simple. If you choose a 36 mpx camera, you'll need extra-quality lenses to par with the sensor. Otherwise you'll have no big improvement. I don't know what your lenses are, but in your shoes I would accurately search this Forum and the web for informations about how my lenses perform with high-mpx cameras.

I'm not afraid to put a Super Takumar on a K-1, and there are more than enough people who happily shoot them on the K-1, on full frame Canon DSLRs for video (in preference to their native glass), and on 42MP Sony bodies for stills. Some of them are professionals who make their living from this. That seems to indicate to me that a well-made old lens is good enough for anything the APS-C or full-frame world can throw at it.

[gm4life]

You can't go wrong... I mean from K70 to K1 - Pentax has phenomenal cameras. The K3II is most definitely the best deal of the bunch. However that doesn't mean a KP or K70 or even K1 might not be a better fit.

I was in the same place six months ago, I made a very informed choice to go APS-C as I had several thousand I was willing to drop and am glad I did. This is just a hobby and for documenting family vacations and events etc. I like the smaller lens size. I am good on equipment for now too, I am however waiting on the DFA * 85 one of those will be part of my kit too.

Both full frame and crop have pros and cons. I like the crop for the more moderate size, YMMV. I love my K3II and KP two very different and awesome performing cameras. I shoot both with the battery grip on BTW. I know I wasn't much help but seriously you can't make a wrong choice.