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05-29-2018, 10:22 PM - 1 Like   #16
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The k-s2 for sale here has a repaired AC part, that makes the price still more enticing. I've been watching it but alas my budget is tighter than i had hoped..

05-29-2018, 10:47 PM - 3 Likes   #17
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Honestly anything from the k-5 or newer has excellent image quality and features, so pick whatever suits you. I'm still taking excellent pictures with my K-01.
05-30-2018, 07:20 AM - 6 Likes   #18
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I went with the K-70 and am VERY happy with it. As many have said before you get a lot of bang for your buck. Since you have a 100mm here's a recent shot with my D FA 100mm Macro WR. At f/5 so had plenty of room to decrease DOF. Even in this harsh light this camera lens combo captured the petal details pretty good I think.
05-30-2018, 09:05 AM - 1 Like   #19
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If you prefer the pro-design and ruggedness of a used flagship model, a lightly-used K-3 or K-5 IIs would be the way to go image-quality wise. The recently discontinued K-3 II is still available new at a greatly reduced price. I believe B&H offers it with a battery grip thrown in! This model has no built-in flash, but Pentax has a neat very compact hot shoe flash that is built with WR and has tilt for bounce shots at about $150. It is also more powerful than a built-in flash.

The K-70 and KP, however, do feature superior low light/high ISO performance than the K-3 or K-3 II, along with comparable resolution to the K-3 II.

05-30-2018, 10:53 AM - 1 Like   #20
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I really like my K-5 II and have a hard time wanting to change away from it even today. It's very good in low light, nice controls and control layout, great LCD on the top for quick settings checks. K-01 is very interesting and I could see the appeal there, especially for street carry and using manual lenses. K-70 for its low-light abilities which are another level beyond the K-5's.

K-3/II and the KP just didn't seem to offer enough to coax me out of my K-5 II. My hope is that the next APS-C DSLR from Ricoh/Pentax makes me want to change things up.
05-30-2018, 11:24 AM - 1 Like   #21
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One drawback to the K-70 is the drain on batteries. I carry an extra and so far it has not been a problem but thought it worth mentioning.
05-30-2018, 01:40 PM   #22
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QuoteOriginally posted by DW58 Quote
I went with the K-70 and am VERY happy with it. As many have said before you get a lot of bang for your buck. Since you have a 100mm here's a recent shot with my D FA 100mm Macro WR. At f/5 so had plenty of room to decrease DOF. Even in this harsh light this camera lens combo captured the petal details pretty good I think.



Great shot, I really like the color saturation levels.



I really appreciate all the various thoughts from everyone, I hadn't really given the K-5ii very much thought before, but I think I should go over the reviews and give it some consideration.


-Rich

05-30-2018, 02:27 PM - 1 Like   #23
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If you consider the K-5 II, I recommend the IIs, which like subsequent models, including the K-3, K-70, and KP, has no AA filter. This lack of the filter can reveal subtle fine detail. I bought the original K-5, then sometime later the K-5 IIs and did notice improved image detail. Although I have both the KS2 (mainly for its remarkably small size) and still have the K-5 IIs, which I still like a lot, I now most often shoot with the KP. The K-5 IIs is very good for low light work, but not quite up with the K-70 and KP.
05-30-2018, 03:59 PM - 2 Likes   #24
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You can check out shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=889257&u=523490&m=66875&urllink=keh.com if you're on a budget: at KEH Camera Store
05-30-2018, 06:12 PM - 1 Like   #25
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QuoteOriginally posted by PentaxRich Quote
Great shot, I really like the color saturation levels.



I really appreciate all the various thoughts from everyone, I hadn't really given the K-5ii very much thought before, but I think I should go over the reviews and give it some consideration.


-Rich
If you are used to a MZ5N then none of the dslr will be too small and certainly not too light. Before I had my K5iis I had a Kr and it's mode was right where your shutter speed dial is hence I got movie mode instead of a faster Hutterites speed etc. The more advanced models have less modes so less things to ignore.

My MZ5N had its mirror gear go on me earlier this year so having to make due with a MZ7
05-30-2018, 07:41 PM - 1 Like   #26
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I've got both a K-3 and a K-S2. I like them both. K-3 has better ergonomics, more robust construction, superior autofocus (faster and more accurate), better metering, direct access to controls (e.g. a button for ISO), higher capacity battery and a host of little things that go with the flagship line. K-S2 is smaller and I find the grip less comfortable, but it's great for grab-and-go use. The flippy screen is really useful too. The K-3 has better image quality IMO, but there's not much between them really. You can't go wrong with either of these. The K-70 seems to have all the virtues of the K-S2 plus a 24mp sensor, pixel shift and a few other things - so it might be an even better choice. K-P would be better again, but it's a lot more expensive.
06-01-2018, 02:24 AM   #27
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The only problem with the K-5 family is that they cannot control the aperture mechanism on Pentax's PLM-type lenses. So far there is only one of these, but unless Pentax give us a software fix (if one is possible), there is a slim possibility you would be buying into obsolescence for new lenses down the road. This is a shame, because the K-5 series were and are excellent cameras and can be had for bargains used.

If you are happy (and there is no reason you should not be) with the current range of lenses, however, there is no reason why a K-5 shouldn't come into consideration. I would echo the comments of those above who recommend one of the later variants; I got mine just before those came out, but I liked it so much that the only thing worth trading up to was a K-1.
06-01-2018, 06:27 AM - 1 Like   #28
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The one lens that the K-5's cannot drive, the 55-300 PLM RE WR seems like a nice lens. There's piles of 55-300's that it can deal with, the older version, that isn't much behind the Retractable in image quality. There will probably be more issues like this in the future, but when? And which lenses? It seems really minor when we're talking about someone just dipping their toes into Pentax DLSR's.
06-01-2018, 07:02 AM   #29
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QuoteOriginally posted by pres589 Quote
The one lens that the K-5's cannot drive, the 55-300 PLM RE WR seems like a nice lens. There's piles of 55-300's that it can deal with, the older version, that isn't much behind the Retractable in image quality. There will probably be more issues like this in the future, but when? And which lenses? It seems really minor when we're talking about someone just dipping their toes into Pentax DLSR's.
perhaps this information can be of help


these articles explain how the various Pentax Camera bodies work with the various Pentax lenses and have info on the types of Pentax lenses



"Pentax Lens Compatibility Chart
Copyright 2006-2016 Mosphotos.com. All rights reserved.

Pentax bayonet lenses labeled "SMC Pentax" are referred to as "K" lenses in the table below. Other Pentax bayonet lenses have the lens designation as a part of their name as in "SMC Pentax-FA."

Note that "star" lenses work like their "non-star" counterparts: DA* lenses work like DA lenses, FA* like FA, F* like F, A* like A, and M* like M.
Exceptions: FA and F "soft" lenses behave like M lenses in terms of metering. "

The Pentax Camera Lens Compatibility Chart

____________________________

" Pentax K-Mount Lens Series Explained: The differences between various Pentax lens series

In a nutshell

There are several series of Pentax K-mount lenses; the ones currently being produced include the DA (digital), DA L (cheap digital kit), D FA (full-frame, digital optimized), and FA (full-frame) series. While all Pentax K-mount lenses ever produced are compatible with all current Pentax DSLRs (in some cases with restrictions in that not all exposure modes of the camera are supported by old lenses), there are significant differences between each lens series and each has different features. Furthermore some of the newer lenses do not work with older cameras. We'll be exploring the differences between the various K-mount series lenses in this article. Read more about specific K-mount lens/camera compatibility here.

The DLSR designation below encompasses the mirror-less K-01. "

Pentax K-Mount Lenses Explained: The differences between various Pentax lens series

__________________________________________________________________________

" The Evolution of the Pentax K-mount
Technical Information and a Little Bit of History "


Read more at: https://www.pentaxforums.com/articles/photo-articles/evolution-of-pentax-k-m...#ixzz5HBMlIs3h
06-01-2018, 10:57 AM   #30
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Second ZombieArmy's comment that you can't go wrong on anything later than the K5. Actually, great pictures are being taken with DSLR antiques. Check out Yuri Leo's 500px page for a collection of really stunning portraits shot with a Pentax K10D and a Jupiter 135mm (probably the 37a) - a roughly $200 rig:-)
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