[kmurphy220]

Probably going to wait. Probably not going to buy either but I like to open options and I know the A7's have been on my want list as have a Pentax FF other than a K1000.

[Eyecapturephotos]

Pentax FF will definately be over 2 grand. Likely closer to 3grand. Personally, if you cannot justify a camera over 2 grand, I would get the Sony a7 II, over the A7r because the 5 axis image stabilization, the viewfinder is faster, the ergonmics are better for modern photographers

True, had both and a7ii is certainly better in grip, VF, stabilization, video codecs, weather sealing(never fully tested, but wholly the cam feels built better), AF performance, better ISO performance and customization ad the function buttons and shutter button are simply better

[adwb]

Wait for pentax ff then wait for the comparisons to come out between the ff and the A7r2 and any other mfg offerings.

[Rondec]

I guess we are pretty sure that the Pentax full frame is going to be more expensive than a used A7r. That said, I would at least wait to see what specs and sensor are before jumping one way or the other. I personally, prefer OVFs and Pentax ergonomics to Sony's NEX series, but that's a matter of taste and probably what I have gotten used to over time.

Good luck!

[Sportsgal501]

Should be interesting. For all I know I might stick it with my K-5 for a while. Tough little camera. The a5000 might be gone soon though...

I'd trade|sell the A5000 with the A7000 from Sony around the corner, it will drop in value.

[biz-engineer]

It depends on usage. For landscape / still subject , from wide to short tele, the A7 can do it, with less weight, size and price than an hypothetical Pentax FF DSLR. The dilemma with Pentax is the weakness/lack of availability in the tele and supertele lenses, which make no sense of a bigger, heavier, costly Pentax FF body. I mean, if it is about photographying landscapes and flowers, why carry 1.6Kg of gear, while you can carry one third of the weight+size with a mirroless FF camera.

[audiobomber]

The dilemma with Pentax is the weakness/lack of availability in the tele and supertele lenses, which make no sense of a bigger, heavier, costly Pentax FF body.

It's strange that you are touting Sony over Pentax for lens selection. The only native telephoto lens for Sony FE is a 70-200mm f4. Pentax has a 70-200 f2.8, 150-450mm f-4-5.6, 300mm f4 and 560mm f5.6, plus numerous third-party choices. There is not a single f2.8 zoom available for FE. My K-3 and 17-50 Sigma performance can match either standard zoom that Sony offers, at lower cost and not much difference in size.

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Last edited by audiobomber; 09-11-2015 at 12:22 PM.

[pinholecam]

Wait for pentax ff then wait for the comparisons to come out between the ff and the A7r2 and any other mfg offerings.

There are a few known unknowns that we know the Pentax FF will likely have that is already better.
1. Pixel shift resolution
2. Pentax interpretation of colors
3. Pentax smallish lenses even in the existing lens range (FA31ltd; 43ltd; 77ltd; FA50/1.4; DA100 WR; etc; I'd even throw in DA40XS from my own usage of my lens on A7 ) (the FE lenses loose the size advantage past the 35mm lens option)
4. Pentax interface (been more of less the same since K10D and added upon till the K3)
5. Astrotracer

It depends on usage. For landscape / still subject , from wide to short tele, the A7 can do it, with less weight, size and price than an hypothetical Pentax FF DSLR. The dilemma with Pentax is the weakness/lack of availability in the tele and supertele lenses, which make no sense of a bigger, heavier, costly Pentax FF body. I mean, if it is about photographying landscapes and flowers, why carry 1.6Kg of gear, while you can carry one third of the weight+size with a mirroless FF camera.

If you look at the FE lenses, that size advantage diminishes after FE35/2.8.
FE55/1.8 is longer than my 50/1.4 or 50/1.2 with adapter (I have all 3)
The new Batis 85/1.8 is nearer the size of an OEM 85/1.4 and that FE90 macro is really big (w/o the hood, its already about the size of a DA100WR with hood)
My suspicion is that there is less non-retrofocus designs that can be leveraged on past the 35mm focal length, reducing the advantage of size for longer FL.

A longer lens also balances better on a heavier/larger camera.
Holding the likes of my A7 by the small grip with pinky finger dangling (camera is not tall enough for the pinky) with even the Canon FD135/2 isn't as nice.
Don't forget DA100WR; DA60-250; DA200; DA300; DFA150-450; DFA 70-200; DFA560, and what does FE have? (Yes. only a 70-200/4)
Add in the K-mount 3rd party long lenses and thats far more lenses that the Sony FE system. (Sigma/Tamron 70-200/2.8; Sigma 500/4.5; etc)

I would say that there is a bit fewer UWA lenses for a Pentax FF at release time, but a few do exist at this point of time.
Sigma 12-24; Samyang 14/2.8 (a good copy is real good, btw);

[fwcetus]

At least for now, "just keep using [your] K-5 and stop trying to find a reason to buy a new camera".

[zzeitg]

Good things come to those who wait.

Listen to me. Keep your mind clear. And that's it.

[ACG]

Think ergonomics as well.
Do you want to lug a heavy ff slr around with you?
Go into a camera shop and walk around it with the nikon d 800 around your neck.
Think of the size of your camera bag with selection of ff lenses, present and future tense.
These are important issues.
That is why I opted for the a7r and will not buy the pentax ff slr.

[Nicolas06]

To me you could consider say that the Pentax FF is like a D810 in K mount with SR and smaller built, it will maybe have the better 42MP from Sony but basically give and take few perifical features that's it.

To me Sony A7 familly is still a mater of MF lenses or having a quite heavy budget to get all the Sony native lenses (like 2000-5000$ in lenses). So you should not choose based on the price of the body if your are not just thinking MF.

And contrary to what many think, MF is not that cheap. AF lenses equivalent of the cheap AF lense can be brought for a quite fair price too. Think FA50, FA35, FA28 or FA18-35, FA28-105... Theses lenses are cheap. If you want high end MF lenses that at least Samyang or better Zeiss and Leica. Leica is what would make the most sense in term of size but the price isn't there and if you don't care of the price, well you got a leica already, after all it is even better for MF than the Sony.

And if having a lightweight camera is key, really alternative like m4/3 + primes or Fuji mirorless + prime are quite interresting options too.

In the end why not the Sony A7, but be really sure of what you want and what you'll get. The same for the future Pentax FF.

[normhead]

Cross posted from.. https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/16-pentax-news-rumors/302433-do-we-need-c...ml#post3356375

I look at that chart, and I think the A7RII is a complete rip off. Because, my goal, like a lot of photogrpahers, is the absolute best image, period. Low light is a separate issue, and if I really want great low light, I'll pay for a 645z , A7s or D4s. Right tool for the job, and all that.

But what i want from my main camera is the ability to produce the absolute best image in the best situations. And the best image on the above chart is the D810 at 50 or 100 ISO.

Why, given a choice A7rII of Nikon D810, would I pick the Sony? No Sony image at any ƒstop if going to match the dynamic range of the D810 at 50 or 100 ISO. And since my most dramatic shots are sunsets and landscapes often with huge contrast variety, and need for details in both the highlights and the shadow, to me, the A7RII is simply an inferior camera. I'm hoping the Pentax will match the DR of the D810. The Sony is of no interest.

I'm not just speculating. I paid big bucks for my K-5, because the K-5 was stop better than my K20D. My wife was shooting K-5 , I was shooting k20d, and we shot a couple of sunsets where next to hers, my images were pretty much garbage. The K-3 has been a disappointment, in that it went backwards in DR, and though I love it for wildlife, I still own a K-5 for high DR situations. That is the camera I want an FF to replace. The high dynamic range, best image possible landscape camera. If I were buying today it would be for the D810, not the Sony, even though I'd have to buy all new glass.

[MarkJerling]

Do you want to lug a heavy ff slr around with you?

Yes, I'm a tall guy - big hands - no problem with a dslr or film era slr. I don't like the A7R because it has no optical viewfinder and because it's too small! I can't hold it properly.

Think of the size of your camera bag with selection of ff lenses, present and future tense.

No problem. My camera bag is already full of FF glass!

[kmurphy220]

I like the thick grip of the K-5 but I also like the slip in my pocket convenience of my mirrorless. Weight doesn't bother me I have had a Spiratone 600mm lens on my old K30 and walked around for an hour at night and then swapped back to my Tak bayonet 135 for more night shots. OVF is nicer though since I tried out the EVF on the A6000 and it seems like I'm looking through a tunnel not a lens. But I only use MF full frame pentax glass from the 50's-80's and some minolta glass as well. I generally only bring one lens and make myself frame the shot no matter what. I am looking at the A7 and thinking maybe after all these big releases and I sell my A5000 I might get one of those. But thats in a year or so