[newmikey]

I am really seriously thinking of downgrading from my K-5 to my K20D, selling the K-5 while it still commands a reasonable price then potentially get the Ricoh GR or similar down the line for high-ISO shooting (which in my case is mostly people in groups or in-house architecture in buildings and museums).

I am still absolutely thrilled with the output of my K-5 but my K20D is no slouch either at ISO settings up to 400 and I still love its form factor. I shoot mostly landscape and architecture.

The K20D is now at 50K clicks, the K-5 at 20K so easier to sell.

Am I crazy?

[manntax]

No not at all I personally love my K10D and won't sell it ever. And K-01 for low light work or places where quite shutter and smaller form factor counts is for me enough. I enjoy also full frame with pentax SLRs and film which I absolutely love and would probably shot only if I could afford that. And thats about all what I need. A bunch of primes 1-2 zooms for when they needed and am good for years to come Until I can afford anything more fancy or Ricoh show us more commitment to Pentax brand and K mount as well as some more communicative attitude towards their users..

So yeah I perfectly understand your thinking !

[Arjay Bee]

Yeah -I agree - I have not upgraded to the K5 series. Two camera solution seems a practical way to go. I have started thinking about the RX-1 - but maybe 35mm lens length is not wide enough.

The thoughts in this thread also impact on my thinking...https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-dslr-discussion/235886-re-purposin...t-bookend.html

[Michaelina2]

...Am I crazy?

No...

What ever works for you, works for me.

Best of success... M

[Kobayashi.K]

What generally is overestimated is the maximum life time of a digital camera, notably by (ex) film-camera users. The K20D is about 5 years old and it has probably another 5 years to go (raw estimation), but because of its electronics it can also suddenly found dead tomorrow. So, that must be taken into account for upgrades, and even more so for downgrading.

[Lukinosity]

the possible imminent demise of your older camera is a very good point. The shutter will fire longer than you will care to own it, but electronics do tend to die.

[newmikey]

I am taking into account that the K20D might die on me the day after I do the downgrade but then it's all down to bad luck and I'll jump on the K-5 II(s) before it gets phased-out. Looking back from that point I'll have spent a bit of money to stay "almost current" which is exactly the spot I like being in - never an early adopter.

The point is that I want and need a DSLR to take advantage of a good selection of glass built-up over the past 6 years, but I'd also like something portable with a large sensor.

Rambling on, I know...

[Primes4ever]

Personally, I would not downgrade, but that is your decision. When I got my K-5, the K20d went to the sidelines and was eventually sold as the K-5 was such a step forward.

[normhead]

I gave my k20D to my sister.... for sunsets etc I have to have the superior DR coupled with the ability to rescue shadow detail. Using the K20D beside Tess using a K-5 convinced us both that the K-5 was a must for what we do. But hey, maybe you don't shoot many high contrast situations, the K20D was great as long as there was enough light and no heavy shadows.

[TaoMaas]

What generally is overestimated is the maximum life time of a digital camera, notably by (ex) film-camera users. The K20D is about 5 years old and it has probably another 5 years to go (raw estimation), but because of its electronics it can also suddenly found dead tomorrow. So, that must be taken into account for upgrades, and even more so for downgrading.

A lot probably depends upon the usage of the camera. There seem to be quite a few folks on here who are still using and enjoying some of Pentax's earliest DSLRs. But you're right about electronics being unpredictable. I've been reading the Facebook rants of a friend whose 2 yr old flat screen tv suddenly developed a blue line that runs through the middle of the picture. Naturally, it's out of warranty now. From what he says, it was a very expensive set. On the other hand, the tv my wife and I bought about 5 years ago was just a middle-of-the-road size and brand. We bought it based on its value more than anything else. It has run almost non-stop for those 5 years...from about 7:30am until about 1-2am, 7 days a week...with no problems whatsoever. (Watch...I've probably jinxed it now! )

[ChrisJ]

Another option is to buy a K-01, keeping the images from much the better Sony Exmore R series sensor. There's a lot wrong about the K-01, no viewfinder, handles like a brick, you discover muscles in your hand you didn't know you had because you have to grip it firmly, all the negatives have been discussed ad neausium, but image quality is still unrivaled, I bought my body only from SRS for £236 - absolute bargain. Match the K-01 (or your K5) to a limited prime and you won't want to sell it. Older models, even Pentax, don't come close.

Chris

[pentasonic49]

I find that the K20 is a better size for my hands than the K5. The K20 is still capable of taking wonderful pictures and downgrading won't be a great problem.

[tclausen]

Another option is to buy a K-01, keeping the images from much the better Sony Exmore R series sensor. There's a lot wrong about the K-01, no viewfinder, handles like a brick, you discover muscles in your hand you didn't know you had because you have to grip it firmly, all the negatives have been discussed ad neausium, but image quality is still unrivaled, I bought my body only from SRS for £236 - absolute bargain. Match the K-01 (or your K5) to a limited prime and you won't want to sell it. Older models, even Pentax, don't come close.

Chris

Hmm....surely, you mean "there's *not* a lot wrong about the K-01" given that you sing the praise of its image quality

I've got (more than) one, and I very much hope for a K-02 with with a slightly deeper buffer and a 2nd wheel .... the Mark Newson design is actually an advantage.

Anyways, that's off on a tangent...I wanted to confirm what ChrisJ says about the IQ of the K-01 being really hard to beat, up there near the 5iis

[Andi Lo]

No you're not crazy. After I switched I actually decided to keep the K10 instead of K20 or K-x. My K10 have around 70k clicks, and the K20 only 16000 so the K10 is essentially worthless while the K20 commands higher price. I intent to only use it for DA limiteds and takumars, which means mostly good light, so high iso isn't necessary. While K20 results are very nice throughout the whole range, I think K10 at ISO 100 has something really special

K-x with takumars is rather unbearable as the live view eats too much battery, and the viewfinder isn't very good. Also K10 + grip + DA 40 is just way too cool looking (so does the k-x with DA 10-17... but that lens is gone already). I'd keep the K-x but I dont have too much use for it, and it being my last AA battery camera sort of annoys me.

K-01 is a good suggestion as well as the IQ to price ratio is unbeatable (K-5 class sensor for $250? dayum), but it only does certain things well, so make sure you want to do those things

[normhead]

If you are ever going to try and use tilt shift, the K-01 is the only current model that is really acceptable, because of the heavy overhang for the flash housing on all the others.