Originally posted by ruemiser My Friends,
Long time no see. I haven't posted in quite awhile. I love my Pentax K-10d. I've had nothing but great times with it. I only shoot in manual mode so I can control all aspects.
I was considering upgrading. Not necessarily replacing the 10d but checking out what the K-5 is all about. Could someone give me a quick run-down of the most definitive changes from the 10d to the K-5 ? I know the K-5 now has a CMOS type sensor at 16 mp.
Is it worth it? I sometimes use my 10d for Infrared photography and perhaps I can still keep it on hand .
Any help is appreciated.
David - Philadelphia PA
Hi Dave, there are a myriad of improvements from the K10D to the K-5:
Much much much better low light capability. I owned the K10D and I was reluctant to shoot above ISO 800, from everything I've read and seen posted the K-5 is good up to ISO 6400 and "somewhat usable" at 12800. That is 3 stops better than the K10D.
Much better dynamic range, I was getting 8 stops or so with the K10D, I'm getting a bit better now with the K20D, the K-5 has tested out at a mind blowing 14 stops! That is as good as cameras costing 2X or 3X the price of the K-5.
Faster auto focus (tho if you shoot entire manual this might not be a biggie for you)
The K-5 has the ability to adjust microfocus and store those adjustments for 20 auto focus lenses
The K-5 meters much better with legacy K and M glass.
The K-5 has a much faster frame rate and a bigger buffer.
The K-5 is smaller and lighter than the K10D
The K-5 has a low light auto focus assist lamp.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head, but I'm sure there are more. If you are a strict manual shooter I think the main ones for you would be better low light performance, better dynamic range and better metering with legacy glass.
NaCl(all in all a much much better camera body)H2O