[dmfw]

Reviews of the KX mention its great performance in low light with high ISO. However, I find that my new KX, with the stock 18-55mm lens, is having issues with: indoor shots with Very Late afternoon indirect sunlight and Nighttime shots with multiple close light sources.

I would appreciate hearing from anyone who uses this camera for lowlight / high ISO work. How well does your KX function in lower ligh?

The upshot, am I expecting too much from this camera with the stock lens, or might there be an issue or defect with this camera?

Thanks

[Ira]

Reviews of the KX mention its great performance in low light with high ISO. However, I find that my new KX, with the stock 18-55mm lens, is having issues with: indoor shots with Very Late afternoon indirect sunlight and Nighttime shots with multiple close light sources.

I would appreciate hearing from anyone who uses this camera for lowlight / high ISO work. How well does your KX function in lower ligh?

The upshot, am I expecting too much from this camera with the stock lens, or might there be an issue or defect with this camera?

Thanks

The issue is you have to read the manual and learn.

The kx's superiority with high ISO is unquestioned, and the shooting descriptions you're describing can be handled with properly operating a point and shoot.

[dehanson1]

I too recently bought a kx. The iso works good for me. However, I did buy a Pentax FA 50 mm 1.4 lens and that lens works magic in low light situations and its very sharp.. They are about 359.00 at Adorama and B and H. Youll never regret purchasing that lens

[hcc]

Reviews of the KX mention its great performance in low light with high ISO. However, I find that my new KX, with the stock 18-55mm lens, is having issues with: indoor shots with Very Late afternoon indirect sunlight and Nighttime shots with multiple close light sources.
I would appreciate hearing from anyone who uses this camera for lowlight / high ISO work. How well does your KX function in lower ligh?

It is not just the camera, but the (camera+lens) system that you need to consider. The kit lens is not the best lens for low-light. In low light, you want to use a large aperture (small f) to maximise the amount of light detected by the camera sensor. You can off course increase the ISO, and the K-x is quite good at high ISO... but this is a poor substitute to a large aperture lens. Pentax and others have some excellent large aperture lenses: FA50mm f1.4, ...

You should consider seriously some large aperture lenses like f2 or bettter f1.4. These fast prime lenses have excellent Image Quality (IQ), and Welcome to Photozone! will give you an objective review assessment of the various lens. Certainly Pentax has a large offer of fast primes, and there are some excellent older, second hand lenses on the market. There are other brands with K-mount: Zeiss, Voigtlander, Sigma, and their prices are not that prohibitive (but Zeiss).

Invest in a good lens: it is worth it...

[Ira]

I stand by my first post:

There is no way that the kit lens could be considered "disappointing" based on the KX's high ISO capabilities and the light levels described--plus, contributing these failures to a faulty camera.

Original Poster:

Please post a photo here so we can look at your EXIF data.

As the world's worst photographer for years and years and years, I've long known that it's mostly the fault of the photographer--not the equipment. And in this case, especially so.

[icywarm]

If it is a focus problem, try using live view or manual focus. They both use systems for focus that in some situations can provide better results than the 'normal' AF.

[sterretje]

It's difficult to make something out of your description. You don't even state what you think is wrong with your photos. My guess is that they're under exposed, reason being the mention of other light sources. But they might as well be over exposed or they are out of focus.

As somebody said, post an example and list the relevant exif data

[gebco]

but I get great results in the conditions you are describing. The only thing I find with the kit lens is that it is a bit soft a wide open aperture when combined with the high ISO. My 55-300 is noticeably sharper.