[creampuff]

Having owned the K100D, K10D and K100D Super,
I would go for the K200D (if you can't afford the K20D).

While the K10D has the two e-dials, slightly better viewfinder, and same sensor, I do feel that the K200D combines the best of the K10D and K100D Super in a compact package. Performance wise it is definitely shows improvements in AF over the K100D series.

[WMBP]

I have thought long and hard and researched even harder, everything, for me points to Pentax. So much so, I got very interested in the Pentax film SLR's, now I have a few bodies and some lenses.

I have been thinking about the K10D since I first posted this, I have a few I am watching on eBay. I guess I'm waiting for the right deal, *IST, K100D, K10D. I just want a DSLR, but I think I would prefer the K10D over all the rest.

Ah, very wise. I'll cross my fingers and hope that the ebay spirits smile on your bids.

When you're shopping it helps to de-romanticize what you're buying. Let me try to help there, by reminding you that, if you can't take good pictures with a K100D, you won't be able to take good pictures with a K10D or for that matter, with a Nikon D3; and vice versa, if you know what you're doing with a Pentax K20D, you should be able to take a really good picture with a K100D, and *ist DS, or even a good point and shoot. The body's just a body, just a tool, piece of hardware, something you have because there's no way to get around it. As a necessary piece of junk goes, the K10D's a better body than the K100D (or the K200D). But if you end up with a used *ist DS, well, just remember that professional photographers in the late 1990s would have killed to have such a good camera.

Will

[skid2964]

One reason I have been challenging myself with film lately. I like that each shot really has to count. Kinda like hunting with a single shot rifle.

Plus, I just like when a less-popular brand shines above the rest. I like being different. I don't like doing something just because everyone else is. I guess that's why the obnoxiously powerful car I had in the 80's was a Pontiac instead of a Ford or Chevy like everyone else had. Pontiac was classy to me, so is Pentax. they just have a great history.

I had a Nikon D70s from late '06 to early '07. I wasn't really ready for it, sold it and got a Canon S3, I have mastered that and I am now ready to jump into the DSLR world again.

[brothereye]

K10D body + K100D High ISO = K20D

It's been so long since I've studied Calculus, I can't remember how to solve for this....

I have a K100D, and I'm very pleased with it. You can easily make 8x10s at iso 200 with no noise problems. I also have a K10D, which I like do like better except when I'm shooting moving subjects in very subdued light, which is usually what I use the K100D for. My only real complaint against my K100D is that it always seems like I'm loading a set of batteries into it. I can put freshly charged energizer NiMH batteries in it, and they don't seem last anywhere near as long as a freshly charged set lasts in my *ist DS. I just always make sure I have a spare set handy for the K100D.

[Michaelina2]

WMBP: But if you don't want to search for a new K10D and don't want to buy used (which I fully understand), then save your money, buy the K100D, and get yourself a good lens like the Pentax 16-45 f/4 or the Tamron 28-75 f/2.8. Remember, lenses matter more than bodies and lenses last longer, too.

I'll second that notion. In fact, if you really want to save some money, I would choose a DA 40/2.8 Limited over the 16-45. You can get a new 40 for about $275. It's somewhat faster and if you need a wider reach use panorama software to stitch some frames together. The K100D plus a DA 40/2.8 Ltd can become an awesome combo with which to slay the IQ gremlin.

Now... if only I could've followed my own advice... Nahhh...!

... my 2 cents...

[axl]

The K100D plus a DA 40/2.8 Ltd can become an awesome combo with which to slay the IQ gremlin.

Now... if only I could've followed my own advice... Nahhh...!

... my 2 cents...

I have followed this advice ....
And you are right, K100D + DA40ltd IS one awsome combo...

[HermanLee]

It's been so long since I've studied Calculus, I can't remember how to solve for this.....

I studied Calculus III and I think this is the hardest problem I ever encountered

BTW, Brothereye, I see in your signature that you own DA*16-50 and Sigma 18-50.
Is the Sigma macro version? If it is, how is it compared w/ DA*16-50.

Sorry, OP, don't mean to hijack the thread.

Thanks,

[iamweasel]

I have followed this advice ....
And you are right, K100D + DA40ltd IS one awsome combo...

I may be following this advice too.. been hunting for a good lens for sometime but i really cant decide...

[brothereye]

I studied Calculus III and I think this is the hardest problem I ever encountered

BTW, Brothereye, I see in your signature that you own DA*16-50 and Sigma 18-50.
Is the Sigma macro version? If it is, how is it compared w/ DA*16-50.

Sorry, OP, don't mean to hijack the thread.

Thanks,

Hopefully no one will object too strenuously.
The Sigma I have is not the Macro version, and it is not as good as the DA*.
Having said that, it's a pretty good lens for the $260 US I paid for it. Much sharper than the kit lens I have, and faster too.
Due to a bad case of rationalizing lba, I ended up with a DA16-45 then a Sigma 18-50 and finally the DA*. I realized this was ridiculous. Even worse I had an unused DA18-55AL kit lens knocking around in the closet. So I decided something had to go. I kept the DA* because when I sat down and did some informal testing, the DA* performed almost as well as my A 50mm prime, which I've had good results with. The Sigma 18-50 didn't perform as well as the DA*, but it performed better compared to the DA16-45. The testing was done by me shooting detailed subjects in RAW with several lenses under the same light at the same ISO with the same camera body and stopping down about 5 stops, one stop per frame, and repeating this procedure at three different focal lengths, then comparing the frames side by side on my PC to see if I could see any difference(which involved a fair amount of pixel-peeping, which is something I normally don't do.) I was originally planning to sell the Sigma 18-50, but it was pretty sharp, especially stopped down a little bit. It was a real surprise. So I got rid of the DA16-45 which wasn't as good as the Sigma(although it was better than the 18-55 kit lens I'm still trying to sell on fleabay.) The other real surprise was a Tamron 28-200 lens(non-DI) that I was planning to sell. It was sharper than the DA16-45 and even a little sharper the Sigma 18-50, but not as sharp as the DA*. So I kept it as well.

Why did I keep the Sigma when I have the DA*? It seems a little smaller and handier than the DA* and it's easier(cheaper) to buy filters for it. It's basically my kickaround, I'm not planning to take pictures, but I might take pictures kind of bringalong lens. I think it was an excellent replacement for the kit lens, considering that I bought mine new for under $300.

Having said all that, keep in mind these were single examples of each lens, so your results might be different from mine.

The other thing I took away from it was this: at lower magnifications like 50-75%, you might be able to see the difference when comparing two frames from different lenses, but looking at any frame by itself without something to compare it to made most frames looked pretty sharp, even the ones from the kit lens.

[cardinal43]

@skid2964:

This is off topic, but where are you located in MS? I grew up in Hattiesburg.

[skid2964]

@skid2964:

This is off topic, but where are you located in MS? I grew up in Hattiesburg.

I'm in Brandon, Reservoir area. I grew up mainly in north Jackson.

[PentaxPZ]

I have a K100D Super, yes I too lokked at the higher models but would I ever use the extra features?
Answer is no.....

So I bought the 100D, and yes there are third party grips available for about £40 (with space for batteries)....
and love the sensor cleaning fearture, but no its not weath proof like higher models.

I would not change mine!

[Confused]

Hi skid2964

Re your quandary:

I have been thinking about a DLSR for months now.......had my sights set on K200D, now considering a K100D Super

Here's my 0.02 cents worth. Like many others before me, I've been in precisely the same boat as yourself in deciding which DSLR to purchase. Everyone on this thread has made some very valid points for and against these various models. I understand that this is going to be your initial DSLR, so unless you have unlimited funds at your disposal, I believe it's especially important that you get this decision right first time. Most 'entry level' DSLR's usually have some form of 'auto scene' mode to help out casual users or inexperienced beginners, but hopefully you would soon learn to outgrow them and find out what Through The Lens (TTL) cameras are all about. That overworked phrase "easy" is all too often bandied about with casual abandon nowadays. Whilst I'm not trying to suggest that photography in all it's various forms should necessarily be unduly difficult to comprehend, it helps greatly to understand the underlying principles that lay behind the combination of shutter speed, aperture and ISO (sensitivity) BEFORE you start using a DSLR in anger ! For instance, I assume you'd agree that perhaps it wouldn't be the most intelligent thing to let oneself loose in an auto-mobile, without first having mastered the basic controls ? I don't know whether or not you've had the chance to handle all of the cameras which have previously been discussed, but the first thing you've probably done is to look through the primary interface between you and the camera, namely the viewfinder. In my opinion, the bright optical Pentaprism viewfinder of the K10D is visibly superior to the Pentamirror design found in the K100D/K100DS/K200DS models and the rest of the package is purely the 'icing on the cake' to coin a phrase. If you can possibly find one of the few remaining examples of a brand-new K10D at a bargain price from a trustworthy dealership somewhere, if I were you I'd grab it with both hands ! I'm 1000% confident you wouldn't regret this decision....

Best regards
Richard

[quantum]

Me too was pondering between k200d and k100d super and guess what... the winner is k10d