[Rondec]

Really, lay out your ideal kit. What do you want to do - which lenses will cover that? What kind of camera do you think you'll need? Then do the old fashioned side-by-side comparison and look at the cost-benefit analysis.

Here's my requirements: good longer macro (100mm+), long zoom, close macro, weathersealed walkaround. The icing on the cake is fisheye and UWA. I'm not overly concerned with flash control, most of my shooting is ambient or controlled lighting.

Thus: DA18-135 WR, DA55-300, Sigma 28mm f1.8 macro, DA10-17 fisheye. I have a few other lenses, but this is my essential kit with a K5 (formerly K10).
Compare with a weathersealed body from another manufacturer- I haven't done that, maybe I should but it's academic now.

You should do this before making the decision to any given system.

This is it. Don't buy into a system based on a single camera body -- you need to think about what lenses you will want down the road and whether or not Pentax/Sigma covers it with their lenses.. If they don't, then maybe Canon/Nikon would be a better fit.

To me, Pentax has several selling points -- in body image stabilization, smaller lenses, weather sealed bodies and lenses at a variety of price points, pentaprism viewfinders with 100 percent coverage in lower end cameras. In general, I think you can fill out a nice lens line up with a mixture of Tamron/Sigma/Pentax lenses (at least I have).

(FA 31 limited shot).

[6BQ5]

Another thing about the K-mount series is that Pentax has not changed the registration distance of 46.5mm (or whatever it is). So any M42 or K-mount lens you find ever made can be mounted on a Pentax DSLR with no problems. The M42 lenses would need an adapter but even those are as plentiful as dirt and air.

Yes, you can easily drown yourself in lenses if you have a Pentax K-mount body.

[monochrome]

This is it. Don't buy into a system based on a single camera body -- you need to think about what lenses you will want down the road and whether or not Pentax/Sigma covers it with their lenses.. If they don't, then maybe Canon/Nikon would be a better fit.

That's way too sensible and dispassionate.

[normhead]

Do they make lenses for someone who lives with their 91 year old Grandmother who can only get out for a few hours a week?

Because if they don't I've spent way too much on them in the last 5 years.

I only wish I could have lived longer when my Grandmother when she was 91... she came to my place and just loved it, after 3 months I shipped her to my uncle, it was his "turn", he never gave her back... I won't make that mistake again.

[tuco]

How many typical camera buyers want legacy glass on their modern DSLR, I wonder. So having that feature is perhaps less of a benefit than implied here. And a quick check on keh.com shows more quantity of used lenses available from one of the other camera manufactures than Pentax.

[Rondec]

That's way too sensible and dispassionate.

But, it is the way to do it. Silly to buy a system for one lens, even. I do think APS-C would give some boost with regards to high iso as compared with a Lumix (probably about a stop), if that is important to the OP.

[boriscleto]

When do you fish?

Just a few times a year. But my dad says he is retiring this year and moving back to Syracuse to do some fishing. He's my source of flies anyway. I have a Porta-Bote now and that will come in handy for fishing and birding.

[LuisLimbert]

Thank you all. Every one provided very good responses. I will also practice stabilizing my camera better. Since I do not plan on going pro, I believe the Pentax system will suit me just fine. Rondec, that's a beautiful pic btw.

[Waratah]

This is worth a look

You Tube

You Tube

[Clavius]

This is it. Don't buy into a system based on a single camera body -- you need to think about what lenses you will want down the road and whether or not Pentax/Sigma covers it with their lenses.. If they don't, then maybe Canon/Nikon would be a better fit.

It's a camera system, not a marriage. A multiple system kit that covers all focal lenghts that one uses is still a complete kit. It might even be superior, picking the cherries from multiple systems. But that's just my combination of LBA / CBA / GBA speaking.

Very nice shot btw.

[6BQ5]

How many typical camera buyers want legacy glass on their modern DSLR, I wonder. So having that feature is perhaps less of a benefit than implied here. And a quick check on keh.com shows more quantity of used lenses available from one of the other camera manufactures than Pentax.

I think the ability to use legacy glass and just how easy it is to do, especially on a Pentax DSLR, is one of the best open secrets in the world of photography. If more people overcame the stigma of "old", "manual", and "inexpensive" and tried it then demand for legacy glass would increase and the prices would follow.

Personally, I think it's amazing that I can get a Pentax SMC 50mm f/1.7 for about $50 on eBay when you consider how sharp that lens is in the right hands!

[tuco]

I think the ability to use legacy glass and just how easy it is to do, especially on a Pentax DSLR, is one of the best open secrets in the world of photography. If more people overcame the stigma of "old", "manual", and "inexpensive" and tried it then demand for legacy glass would increase and the prices would follow.

Personally, I think it's amazing that I can get a Pentax SMC 50mm f/1.7 for about $50 on eBay when you consider how sharp that lens is in the right hands!

I'm talking about your average camera buyer who wants auto focus and zooms. And I suspect even experienced shooters reach for modern glass when they are serious and need fast, reliable focus.

[boriscleto]

Personally, I think it's amazing that I can get a Pentax SMC 50mm f/1.7 for about $50 on eBay when you consider how sharp that lens is in the right hands!

I just got a K 50/1.4 for less than $90 after shipping.

[Rondec]

It's a camera system, not a marriage. A multiple system kit that covers all focal lenghts that one uses is still a complete kit. It might even be superior, picking the cherries from multiple systems. But that's just my combination of LBA / CBA / GBA speaking.

Very nice shot btw.

Thanks.

I just think for most folks, you want to choose one system that will cover most of your needs. If I were starting, a K50 with an 18-135 and a DA 15 limited and a 50-ish prime (my preference is DA *55) would be what I would begin with and that would make me happy for a long time. I just don't think it makes sense to buy into a system knowing that you will have to buy another brand for something else (say, telephoto or flash system). But a lot depends on how much money you have to spend as well.

[monochrome]

I just got a K 50/1.4 for less than $90 after shipping.

That lens has been remarkably stable for years at around $90 - $99.