Comparing the typical Pentax shooter to the typical Canikon...

ChooseAName · 08-25-2012, 05:08 PM

As Pentax DSLR owner myself, I'd like to think that most Pentax shooters know a thing or two about photography, but I got to wondering...
On average, would you say that the typical Pentax DSLR (not P&S!) shooter knows more, less, or about the same as photography than the typical Canikon DSLR shooter? In this context, "typical" means running into a Pentax or a Canikon DSLR owner on the street, not how many people on the internet do you know who use these cameras and know photography. (I'd imagine the great majority of us on here know how to achieve a proper exposure with aperture/shutter speed/ISO)

The question came to mind because I was at an aquarium yesterday and saw lots of DSLRs all over the place, most of them Canikon. I wondered how many of them had the camera in Auto or how many of them actually had taken time to learn a bit about their cameras, or whether they'd just bought a DSLR because a friend had one and "it takes good pictures." Also, I recently had an acquaintance of mine ask how I got the results I did. I asked her if she left her camera (Canon with the kit lens) in Auto and she said yes. Of course, I'm NOT saying that you can't get good results with a kit lens (as proven by the kit lens thread), but I can't imagine that kit lens + auto + not knowing anything about exposure/DOF/etc will get you very far.

Last edited by ChooseAName; 08-25-2012 at 05:10 PM. Reason: Poll showed up

LeDave · 08-25-2012, 05:16 PM

I'd say same as. There's a awful lot of Canon users who know more, as well as an awful lot who knows less. I've seen an awful lot more Canon professionals over Pentax professionals as well as an awful lot more Canon newbs over Pentax newbs. Brand is irrelevant.

Anvh · 08-25-2012, 05:33 PM

I think the lesser known brands like Pentax do get more buyers that buy the camera often for a more photographic reason and with that i do think they are often more knowledgeable.

Na Horuk · 08-25-2012, 05:46 PM

I think the average is probably similar, but with Canikon you have a lot of really good and a lot of really bad photographers, whereas with Pentax there are probably fewer clueless but also not as many really high end photographers. I would also assume most Pentax shooters are slightly older - people who remember Pentax from the film days. Though, I have no evidence to support any of this. It would be interesting to have an in-depth research of photography demographics and different characteristics of people shooting a specific brand.
Of course, there are also people who don't really care about brand at all and people who use many different brands..

magkelly · 08-25-2012, 06:44 PM

Pentax people tend to be more seriously photography oriented enthusiasts than just camera owners. Fact is Nikon and Canon cameras can be had anywhere. Pros that use them know what they are doing but otherwise it's a big mass market thing with those two. If you want a Pentax you pretty much have to know why you want it and which one because in most places you cannot just walk into a store pick one up and walk out with it. You have to order it. You have to kind of know what you want. Otherwise why go to the trouble of going after one online or having a store special order you one when you could just pick up the latest cheap model of Nikon or Canon on the shelf at Best Buy or wherever. I'm not talking about small cameras like the Optio. They are more easily gotten. DSLR's and that. It usually takes considerable effort to be a Pentaxian outside the big cities. Most people I don't think would go to all that trouble for no reason. Maybe in Japan it's more of a mass market thing, but not elsewhere. Elsewhere you have to work at it and I think that takes more thought and maybe a bit more knowledge of what you're looking for.

ihasa · 08-25-2012, 06:54 PM

OK, the fact that Pentax is a lesser known brand implies that people who choose it have done some homework and have ideas about what they want. Canikon is ubiquitous so they must have more than their fair share of newbs. On the other hand, someone doing in depth research may decide to choose Canikon because of the wider often cheaper lens selection and FF upgrade potential, which perhaps demonstrates better smarts than buying into Pentax. So it's six of one, half dozen of the other.

Sandy Hancock · 08-25-2012, 07:02 PM - **2 Likes**

Of course Pentax owners know more. For a start, they know Pentax exists

**maxfield_photo** · 08-25-2012, 07:15 PM

I said "the same as". The cameras is, after all, just a tool for capturing the image. If one carpenter has a better saw than another, it doesn't automatically make him a better carpenter, it just means he has a nice saw. I think a lot of fanboys on both sides of the Canon/Nikon fence feel like they know more than their counterparts, I would hope that we as Pentaxians would be above such things.

But in one area in particular, lighting, I feel like most of us know less. Whether by choice, or by intimidation, I find that most Pentaxians are "natural light" shooters and don't know much about the use of strobes. I chalk it up in part to the dinosaur of a flash system that Pentax has given us, but even if it were available, I'm not sure many among our ranks are ready to take that plunge. I see a lot more activity in the lens clubs and news and rumors forums than in the flash forum. To me that's the most exciting part about photography, not just passively controlling light via aperture and shutter speed, but actually shaping it, controlling the quality and direction and color of it. Definitely haven't met many Pentax strobists.

Sagitta · 08-25-2012, 07:17 PM - **1 Like**

The stereotypical bumbling idiot DSLR user has the life expectancy of a mayfly. They'll eitehr get bored with their fancy and confusing camera and shellve/sell it. or they'll learn and no longer be a bumbling idiot DSLR user.

I'd say ts a wash as a result, the truly dumb users don't exist long enough to sway the totals.

yusuf · 08-25-2012, 07:18 PM

Just the market size and strong brand presence, if Pentax has the same market and presence, situation would be no different.

jcamero · 08-25-2012, 07:40 PM

I talked to the owner of my local camera shop, that sells and has in stock mucho Pentax gear. When a potential DSLR customer, (1st timer) is shown cameras, (all brands) he pushes Pentax. His new buyers say I want the one Ashton shoots. I may not know how to take the most perfect images, but I can read a side by side comparison, and with my past experience with Pentax film cameras, the choice was quite easy. Finding a retailer was not.

magkelly · 08-25-2012, 07:56 PM

Originally posted by maxfield_photo

I said "the same as". The cameras is, after all, just a tool for capturing the image. If one carpenter has a better saw than another, it doesn't automatically make him a better carpenter, it just means he has a nice saw. I think a lot of fanboys on both sides of the Canon/Nikon fence feel like they know more than their counterparts, I would hope that we as Pentaxians would be above such things.

But in one area in particular, lighting, I feel like most of us know less. Whether by choice, or by intimidation, I find that most Pentaxians are "natural light" shooters and don't know much about the use of strobes. I chalk it up in part to the dinosaur of a flash system that Pentax has given us, but even if it were available, I'm not sure many among our ranks are ready to take that plunge. I see a lot more activity in the lens clubs and news and rumors forums than in the flash forum. To me that's the most exciting part about photography, not just passively controlling light via aperture and shutter speed, but actually shaping it, controlling the quality and direction and color of it. Definitely haven't met many Pentax strobists.

Not everybody likes strobes. I had to learn to use them as part of my internship actually. Didn't like them much. Working with them in the studio messes with my head. After a shoot using them I've had migraines. I decided I was more into natural light and continuous light. I don't think strobes are better. I just think they are different. Strobes aren't exactly cheap besides.

You can get soft light a number of ways. I use continuous lamps and soft boxes/panels that I made. If a job required me to use strobes and they provided them I suppose I would but I'd really rather not. It's got nothing to do with not knowing how to use them though. It's more a matter of preference.

GlennG · 08-25-2012, 08:11 PM

Originally posted by magkelly

Pentax people tend to be more seriously photography oriented enthusiasts than just camera owners. Fact is Nikon and Canon cameras can be had anywhere. Pros that use them know what they are doing but otherwise it's a big mass market thing with those two. If you want a Pentax you pretty much have to know why you want it and which one because in most places you cannot just walk into a store pick one up and walk out with it. You have to order it. You have to kind of know what you want. Otherwise why go to the trouble of going after one online or having a store special order you one when you could just pick up the latest cheap model of Nikon or Canon on the shelf at Best Buy or wherever. I'm not talking about small cameras like the Optio. They are more easily gotten. DSLR's and that. It usually takes considerable effort to be a Pentaxian outside the big cities. Most people I don't think would go to all that trouble for no reason. Maybe in Japan it's more of a mass market thing, but not elsewhere. Elsewhere you have to work at it and I think that takes more thought and maybe a bit more knowledge of what you're looking for.

Almost voted for "same as", but my thought was close to Mag's, so voted for "more than".

Wired · 08-25-2012, 08:38 PM

Originally posted by Sandy Hancock

Of course Pentax owners know more. For a start, they know Pentax exists

and I think that sums it up right there.

I know last summer in our usual summer relaxation location I was approached by at least 3 Canon shooters asking if I could take the photos of their family because it looked like I knew what I was doing. I was handed the camera in full auto mode, I switch it over to manual and do my thing and hand it back. One time forgetting to take it off manual, the owner of the 5D MKII/70-200 2.8 IS goes "oh, can you change it back to auto for me, I don't know how to use "M" mode. Really buddy? Really? I just held a $5000 lens/camera combo and you don't know how to use it?

I run into other Pentaxians (ran into a young kid recently today, maybe 16!?) and when I peer over at the mode dial it's always in M, AV, or TAv. So I figure they know a bit more.

It was funny while I was in the shop buying my K30 today, there were four of us Pentaxians in there out of 6 customers. I thought they were gonna have a heart attack. A guy buying a Q (with Zoom and fish), another buying a K30, and another trading his K10 for a K5. It was great!

Tanzer · 08-25-2012, 10:55 PM

I say "more". Sure, there are pros using the Canikons and a few obvious FF shooters among them, but there are so many more casual shooters using them. And of the people I know who have SLRs, the vast majority of them are casual shooters who would never consider an "off-brand" that doesn't exist as far as they are concerned.

The poll question said "average user" so I am not weighting based on the number of photographs taken. IOW, one pro counts a much as one rank amateur. Kind of like our election process in the US, everyone's vote counts equally, perhaps unfortunately.

You really have to have a reason to go with an abnormal, unadvertised brand. Maybe my case is different because I am not a long-time Pentax shooter, rather I am relatively new to the brand. Not sure I could/would convince anyone else I know, to go this way.

View Poll Results: IMO/IME, the average Pentax DSLR owner knows (...) than average Canikon DSLR owner
More than	61	57.01%
Less than	4	3.74%
the same as	42	39.25%
Voters: 107. You may not vote on this poll

08-25-2012, 05:08 PM	#1
ChooseAName Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Southeast USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 390	Comparing the typical Pentax shooter to the typical Canikon... As Pentax DSLR owner myself, I'd like to think that most Pentax shooters know a thing or two about photography, but I got to wondering... On average, would you say that the typical Pentax DSLR (not P&S!) shooter knows more, less, or about the same as photography than the typical Canikon DSLR shooter? In this context, "typical" means running into a Pentax or a Canikon DSLR owner on the street, not how many people on the internet do you know who use these cameras and know photography. (I'd imagine the great majority of us on here know how to achieve a proper exposure with aperture/shutter speed/ISO) The question came to mind because I was at an aquarium yesterday and saw lots of DSLRs all over the place, most of them Canikon. I wondered how many of them had the camera in Auto or how many of them actually had taken time to learn a bit about their cameras, or whether they'd just bought a DSLR because a friend had one and "it takes good pictures." Also, I recently had an acquaintance of mine ask how I got the results I did. I asked her if she left her camera (Canon with the kit lens) in Auto and she said yes. Of course, I'm NOT saying that you can't get good results with a kit lens (as proven by the kit lens thread), but I can't imagine that kit lens + auto + not knowing anything about exposure/DOF/etc will get you very far. Last edited by ChooseAName; 08-25-2012 at 05:10 PM. Reason: Poll showed up

08-25-2012, 05:16 PM	#2
LeDave Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Minneapolis - St. Paul Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,067	I'd say same as. There's a awful lot of Canon users who know more, as well as an awful lot who knows less. I've seen an awful lot more Canon professionals over Pentax professionals as well as an awful lot more Canon newbs over Pentax newbs. Brand is irrelevant. Last edited by LeDave; 08-25-2012 at 07:03 PM.

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08-25-2012, 05:33 PM	#3
Anvh Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 4,616	I think the lesser known brands like Pentax do get more buyers that buy the camera often for a more photographic reason and with that i do think they are often more knowledgeable.

08-25-2012, 05:46 PM	#4
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	I think the average is probably similar, but with Canikon you have a lot of really good and a lot of really bad photographers, whereas with Pentax there are probably fewer clueless but also not as many really high end photographers. I would also assume most Pentax shooters are slightly older - people who remember Pentax from the film days. Though, I have no evidence to support any of this. It would be interesting to have an in-depth research of photography demographics and different characteristics of people shooting a specific brand. Of course, there are also people who don't really care about brand at all and people who use many different brands..

08-25-2012, 06:44 PM	#5
magkelly Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,901	Pentax people tend to be more seriously photography oriented enthusiasts than just camera owners. Fact is Nikon and Canon cameras can be had anywhere. Pros that use them know what they are doing but otherwise it's a big mass market thing with those two. If you want a Pentax you pretty much have to know why you want it and which one because in most places you cannot just walk into a store pick one up and walk out with it. You have to order it. You have to kind of know what you want. Otherwise why go to the trouble of going after one online or having a store special order you one when you could just pick up the latest cheap model of Nikon or Canon on the shelf at Best Buy or wherever. I'm not talking about small cameras like the Optio. They are more easily gotten. DSLR's and that. It usually takes considerable effort to be a Pentaxian outside the big cities. Most people I don't think would go to all that trouble for no reason. Maybe in Japan it's more of a mass market thing, but not elsewhere. Elsewhere you have to work at it and I think that takes more thought and maybe a bit more knowledge of what you're looking for.

08-25-2012, 06:54 PM	#6
ihasa Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: West Midlands Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,066	OK, the fact that Pentax is a lesser known brand implies that people who choose it have done some homework and have ideas about what they want. Canikon is ubiquitous so they must have more than their fair share of newbs. On the other hand, someone doing in depth research may decide to choose Canikon because of the wider often cheaper lens selection and FF upgrade potential, which perhaps demonstrates better smarts than buying into Pentax. So it's six of one, half dozen of the other.

08-25-2012, 07:02 PM - 2 Likes	#7
Sandy Hancock Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Adelaide Hills, South Australia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,267	Of course Pentax owners know more. For a start, they know Pentax exists

08-25-2012, 07:15 PM	#8
maxfield_photo Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 1,216	I said "the same as". The cameras is, after all, just a tool for capturing the image. If one carpenter has a better saw than another, it doesn't automatically make him a better carpenter, it just means he has a nice saw. I think a lot of fanboys on both sides of the Canon/Nikon fence feel like they know more than their counterparts, I would hope that we as Pentaxians would be above such things. But in one area in particular, lighting, I feel like most of us know less. Whether by choice, or by intimidation, I find that most Pentaxians are "natural light" shooters and don't know much about the use of strobes. I chalk it up in part to the dinosaur of a flash system that Pentax has given us, but even if it were available, I'm not sure many among our ranks are ready to take that plunge. I see a lot more activity in the lens clubs and news and rumors forums than in the flash forum. To me that's the most exciting part about photography, not just passively controlling light via aperture and shutter speed, but actually shaping it, controlling the quality and direction and color of it. Definitely haven't met many Pentax strobists.

08-25-2012, 07:17 PM - 1 Like	#9
Sagitta Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Maine Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,081	The stereotypical bumbling idiot DSLR user has the life expectancy of a mayfly. They'll eitehr get bored with their fancy and confusing camera and shellve/sell it. or they'll learn and no longer be a bumbling idiot DSLR user. I'd say ts a wash as a result, the truly dumb users don't exist long enough to sway the totals.

08-25-2012, 07:18 PM	#10
yusuf Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Palo Alto, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,497	Just the market size and strong brand presence, if Pentax has the same market and presence, situation would be no different.

08-25-2012, 07:40 PM	#11
jcamero Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Wisconsin Photos: Albums Posts: 151	I talked to the owner of my local camera shop, that sells and has in stock mucho Pentax gear. When a potential DSLR customer, (1st timer) is shown cameras, (all brands) he pushes Pentax. His new buyers say I want the one Ashton shoots. I may not know how to take the most perfect images, but I can read a side by side comparison, and with my past experience with Pentax film cameras, the choice was quite easy. Finding a retailer was not.

08-25-2012, 07:56 PM	#12
magkelly Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,901	Originally posted by maxfield_photo I said "the same as". The cameras is, after all, just a tool for capturing the image. If one carpenter has a better saw than another, it doesn't automatically make him a better carpenter, it just means he has a nice saw. I think a lot of fanboys on both sides of the Canon/Nikon fence feel like they know more than their counterparts, I would hope that we as Pentaxians would be above such things. But in one area in particular, lighting, I feel like most of us know less. Whether by choice, or by intimidation, I find that most Pentaxians are "natural light" shooters and don't know much about the use of strobes. I chalk it up in part to the dinosaur of a flash system that Pentax has given us, but even if it were available, I'm not sure many among our ranks are ready to take that plunge. I see a lot more activity in the lens clubs and news and rumors forums than in the flash forum. To me that's the most exciting part about photography, not just passively controlling light via aperture and shutter speed, but actually shaping it, controlling the quality and direction and color of it. Definitely haven't met many Pentax strobists. Not everybody likes strobes. I had to learn to use them as part of my internship actually. Didn't like them much. Working with them in the studio messes with my head. After a shoot using them I've had migraines. I decided I was more into natural light and continuous light. I don't think strobes are better. I just think they are different. Strobes aren't exactly cheap besides. You can get soft light a number of ways. I use continuous lamps and soft boxes/panels that I made. If a job required me to use strobes and they provided them I suppose I would but I'd really rather not. It's got nothing to do with not knowing how to use them though. It's more a matter of preference.

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08-25-2012, 08:11 PM	#13
GlennG Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 824	Originally posted by magkelly Pentax people tend to be more seriously photography oriented enthusiasts than just camera owners. Fact is Nikon and Canon cameras can be had anywhere. Pros that use them know what they are doing but otherwise it's a big mass market thing with those two. If you want a Pentax you pretty much have to know why you want it and which one because in most places you cannot just walk into a store pick one up and walk out with it. You have to order it. You have to kind of know what you want. Otherwise why go to the trouble of going after one online or having a store special order you one when you could just pick up the latest cheap model of Nikon or Canon on the shelf at Best Buy or wherever. I'm not talking about small cameras like the Optio. They are more easily gotten. DSLR's and that. It usually takes considerable effort to be a Pentaxian outside the big cities. Most people I don't think would go to all that trouble for no reason. Maybe in Japan it's more of a mass market thing, but not elsewhere. Elsewhere you have to work at it and I think that takes more thought and maybe a bit more knowledge of what you're looking for. Almost voted for "same as", but my thought was close to Mag's, so voted for "more than".

08-25-2012, 08:38 PM	#14
Wired Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Edmonton, AB Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,519	Originally posted by Sandy Hancock Of course Pentax owners know more. For a start, they know Pentax exists and I think that sums it up right there. I know last summer in our usual summer relaxation location I was approached by at least 3 Canon shooters asking if I could take the photos of their family because it looked like I knew what I was doing. I was handed the camera in full auto mode, I switch it over to manual and do my thing and hand it back. One time forgetting to take it off manual, the owner of the 5D MKII/70-200 2.8 IS goes "oh, can you change it back to auto for me, I don't know how to use "M" mode. Really buddy? Really? I just held a $5000 lens/camera combo and you don't know how to use it? I run into other Pentaxians (ran into a young kid recently today, maybe 16!?) and when I peer over at the mode dial it's always in M, AV, or TAv. So I figure they know a bit more. It was funny while I was in the shop buying my K30 today, there were four of us Pentaxians in there out of 6 customers. I thought they were gonna have a heart attack. A guy buying a Q (with Zoom and fish), another buying a K30, and another trading his K10 for a K5. It was great!

08-25-2012, 10:55 PM	#15
Tanzer Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Perrineville, NJ Posts: 1,375	I say "more". Sure, there are pros using the Canikons and a few obvious FF shooters among them, but there are so many more casual shooters using them. And of the people I know who have SLRs, the vast majority of them are casual shooters who would never consider an "off-brand" that doesn't exist as far as they are concerned. The poll question said "average user" so I am not weighting based on the number of photographs taken. IOW, one pro counts a much as one rank amateur. Kind of like our election process in the US, everyone's vote counts equally, perhaps unfortunately. You really have to have a reason to go with an abnormal, unadvertised brand. Maybe my case is different because I am not a long-time Pentax shooter, rather I am relatively new to the brand. Not sure I could/would convince anyone else I know, to go this way.