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06-05-2013, 07:35 PM   #1
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Upgrade Dilemma

I recently spent a few days in Vegas. I spent the majority of the time with my camera attached to my hand like a prosthetic. During this time, I primarily shot through my Pentax - F 35-70mm 3.5-4.5. This is a lens I got off of craigslist for twenty dollars. I also used my 18-55 WR for wider shots. My expensive, lovely 35mm Limited did not really leave my bag. This trip was fairly indicative of the style that I shoot, and so while I coveted the 35mm LMTD for a long time, I find myself shooting more around 70. I also learned during this trip that I am sometimes frustrated by how light hungry the k10D can be. I lost shots to motion blur even when using a tripod, and my M-50 1.7. So my dilemma (trilemma?) is this; Should I stick with the 35mm Limited that I had wanted for so long? Or should I sell it and track down something that matches what I actually shoot, say a 70mm Limited? OR should I sell it and fund an upgrade to the K5? I love my K10D's ergonomics and always use it with the battery grip as well, and am worried about the change in feel to the K5. I'm sure many forum members have made similar decisions/upgrades. Any input? Many thanks.

06-05-2013, 08:06 PM   #2
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Hard to beat the ergonomics and better ISO performance of the K-5. If you can I'd try out the K-30 for how it feels unless you just have to have a grip. As for the lens, have you used Exposure plot to analyze what focal length clusters you have in your current photographs? When i was first buying lenses after having the 18-55 & 55-300 combination it was useful in deciding what primes to go for first.
06-05-2013, 08:09 PM   #3
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Well, I've looked at the spread of focal lengths in PS and found that I technically shoot more 35 than 70, but reviewing those images I found that most of them were with the 35-70, and most of them I had wished were wider. So tough call? There are no Pentax dealers anywhere near here for me to give the K-5s ergonomics a try. And yeah, I'm pretty married to the grip.
06-05-2013, 08:43 PM   #4
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Beware, we tend to unconsciously use the wide and tele ends of zooms when walking / wandering / etc. Perhaps if you had a 35-80 instead you would find most of your shots at 80mm..
Also, I don´t like Exposureplot becouse of this reason. I rather use the filters in Lightroom to select a specific set of photos, a specific lens and then see which are the most used focal lengths. This way I can also review the images that correspond to each "most used" FL.

Regarding your query, I never used a K10 nor DA70- If this turns out to be the FL you need / want I would look at the FA77.. And I guess the K-5 is a massive upgrade from K10. But I´d go for the lens first.

06-05-2013, 09:25 PM   #5
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New Body or New Lens?

Hello Trencherman, Welcome to the Forum!
I've owned a K10D for about 5 years and a K-7 for the past two years. Both have grips, in fact every SLR I own has a grip, including the film bodies. I just like the 'feel' of the longer vertical size, and the weight doesn't particularly bother me.
Anyway, you might be interested in my honest opinion of the ergonomics and user-friendly features of the two. Granted, the K-7 isn't a K-5, but the body is the same, the K-5 has more features and better high ISO.
Overall, the K10D is the more comfortable, rugged-feeling and intuitive camera, but it is very limited in features. No video (which I never use, but still..), no live view, ISO tops out at 1600, isn't very useful above 400 and doesn't really have much in the way of lens focus correction. Still, I've kept it and use it regularly, it's my backup and often I take 2 bodies to classic car shows and live music events.
The K-7 is very comfortable to use but not quite as good a 'fit' for my hands. A very hard difference to put into words, it's just a subtle thing. The features are what I like best, an ISO button instead of going into the Fn menu, live view, faster AF, lens corrections, higher (and better, but the K-5 would be even better still!) ISO performance.
Here's a thought that might put it into perspective; I've considered getting a K-5II, for the improvements. The more I thought about it, the more I considered selling the k-7 and keeping the K-10D as a backup to a new K-5II. Crazy? I guess so, but that's probably what I'll do.
So, if you can afford to buy a K-5 without selling the K10, I think you'll be happy. There are many times when two bodies are useful, if not completely necessary.
Then you can consider some fast prime lenses, maybe a 2.8 24mm and a 70mm.
JMO, good luck!
Ron
06-05-2013, 09:40 PM   #6
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I just did an analysis of the 10,000 K-r pics I have taken and here are my sweetspots (28mm, 40mm, 80mm & 170mm). Bare in mind, I accounted for the lens ranges. This is for portraits though.
06-06-2013, 10:23 AM - 1 Like   #7
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QuoteOriginally posted by bjelde Quote
I just did an analysis of the 10,000 K-r pics I have taken and here are my sweetspots (28mm, 40mm, 80mm & 170mm). Bare in mind, I accounted for the lens ranges. This is for portraits though.
Sounds like a DA40 and a Samyang 85/1.4 might suit you well.

06-06-2013, 12:34 PM   #8
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I upgraded from K10 to K5 and have almost never used the K10 since...so much so I kind of forgot a lot of how to use it since the controls are a bit different.
06-06-2013, 12:46 PM   #9
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Until I got my hands on a DA 18-135, my most used lens was my F35-70. While I think my DA 8-135 will take over as the most often mounted, the F35-70 will remain my favorite as the 35-70 is great for both street photography and family events and its close focus capabilities let me easily capture the small things I encounter like jewelry and flowers.
06-06-2013, 01:24 PM   #10
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Only talking about lenses-- I will vouch for the DA 70mm - one of my very best lenses, in terms of sharpness, color, bokeh, and handling/construction. It's outstanding!! I can always tell what images I took with it. It's an excellent short telephoto lens, and an awesome portrait lens. Paired with the F 35-70, you're set for great images -- add a wider angle prime like DA 15 or DA 21, and you're pretty much set for a while...

But you will benefit greatly from a body upgrade from K10d to a K5. So much better in low light! I don't think it's worth hanging onto the DA 35 limited if you don't use it that much, or to its full potential. It is very telling that you didn't find a need to mount it that often during your recent trip, as you said you tended towards 70mm anyway.
06-13-2013, 11:42 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Docrwm Quote
Sounds like a DA40 and a Samyang 85/1.4 might suit you well.
Hey thanks for that suggestion! I just picked up the DA40 as part of a k-01 and it has been awesome! I had never heard of Samyang 85/1.4 but it sounds like an ideal lens for me!

I was just trying to help the OP by sharing my stats. It was a pleasant surprise to get helpful lens tips for myself!
06-13-2013, 11:53 AM   #12
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Motion blur is cause by a slow shutter, not a particular camera.

Exposure Plot and similar tools are not always reliable. As mentioned, zooms are frequently used at the extreme ends - trying to go wider or longer. Also, machine- gunning 50 shots to get 2 keepers skews the results.

The 70 is a nice and unobtrusive lens. A Tamron 90 is also nice for the true macro capability, and is cheaper (and bigger). The 12-24 is an excellent wide zoom - and cheaper, wider and longer than the 15-21 pair :-)
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