[Pedroboe]

One question I have and I apologize if it's an annoying one, as I didn't do a search.... Are the limited lenses that much better with the K1? I love my 35,43 and 77 but they are not particularly spectacular with K5iis, as most of you know. Will utilizing the whole frame make them less prone to fringing or edge to edge distortion? I only have the green versions.

[sutherland]

When I think of Spain, the photography settings/subjects that come to mind are:
- Cityscapes
- Street
- Markets
- Cathedrals
- Alleyways

Assuming you are set on the K1, a 24-70mm would be a great walkaround lens for Spain. Great handling in low light is a must. The K1 will get you there. If you are intending on visiting Barcelona, that city comes alive at night, best to have a camera you can confidently use at higher ISOs.

[Excalibor]

14000 is not a lot of actuations for a K5 of any description. Have you considered having it serviced?

Re Andalucia, I was in Seville in April, stunning place. Buy tickets in advance to avoid the queue, there is an entrance to the cathedral just behind the geraldo tower, that is much quieter, set aside half a day for the alcazar and treat yourself to some Ines Rosales tortas de acite I recommend the orange ones

Well, the Giralda is nice, and the cathedral spectacular, but not to be missed: the Alcazar, and at night, the Torre del Oro (Golden Tower) and nearby, the Torre de Plata (Silver Tower) which is actually inside a parking lot, to the left of the cathedral when viewed from the Golden Tower. BTW, the river is beautiful at night, and fresh! La Cartuja is a mandatory visit on Sunday mornings, to take the tapas and enjoy the colorful streets. I still think that Plaza the España is beautiful and makes for really spectacular photos. There's a tower, on the west side of the town, near the Plaza de Hércules, Hercules Squasre, where you can watch the whole city using mirrors as telescopes. It's really interesting as well!.

Cheers!

[Cerebum]

One question I have and I apologize if it's an annoying one, as I didn't do a search.... Are the limited lenses that much better with the K1? I love my 35,43 and 77 but they are not particularly spectacular with K5iis, as most of you know. Will utilizing the whole frame make them less prone to fringing or edge to edge distortion? I only have the green versions.

I have the 21mm limited and it is spectacular on my k3. Where did you read about the k5 not being equally impressive?

[Cerebum]

Well, the Giralda is nice, and the cathedral spectacular, but not to be missed: the Alcazar, and at night, the Torre del Oro (Golden Tower) and nearby, the Torre de Plata (Silver Tower) which is actually inside a parking lot, to the left of the cathedral when viewed from the Golden Tower. BTW, the river is beautiful at night, and fresh! La Cartuja is a mandatory visit on Sunday mornings, to take the tapas and enjoy the colorful streets. I still think that Plaza the España is beautiful and makes for really spectacular photos. There's a tower, on the west side of the town, near the Plaza de Hércules, Hercules Squasre, where you can watch the whole city using mirrors as telescopes. It's really interesting as well!.

Cheers!

There are also some wonderful churches like Iglesia Colegial del Salvador,

The Best Churches in Seville – Devour Seville Food Tours

And don't forget to visit place de españa at both day and night

Re the silver tower, I missed that one! I really need to go back!

Having a fish eye is really useful for the churches

[troika]

I could have posted this question myself because I'm going through the same thing, except that I knew what answer I would get, so I didn't ask. I will live vicariously through your question and the discussion that follows, though.

I've had a K5ii for about 6 years. It's been an amazing camera and I'm all in on Pentax. Picture quality is still great, but it's starting to get a little bit quirky. I'm trying to understand what's going on with it, but it probably needs to be sent away for CLA.

I've gone to a shop twice to check out the KP for the exact reason that you said. The first time was right after it came out and Pentax was having a local in-store event. I went ready to come home with one (sort of). But I didn't connect with it. The way it felt in my hand mostly, but also I think I would miss the top LCD, but mostly, it just didn't feel right to me...AND they also had a K1, which conversely felt great.

Last week, was the second time and I had the same experience. I love my K5, I don't think I would bond with the KP the same way. Putting my camera next to the KP last week, it's really the same size with a rounding margin. the weight savings is really the smaller battery, smaller grip and trimming things like the top LCD that I really don't want to give up...AND the K1 still feels really good conversely. the same way that the KP doesn't really feel that much smaller, the K1 really doesn't feel that much bigger. I know it weighs more and on a hike or stroll around Europe, I do care about that, but then again a cell phone or a point and shoot would be lighter still and I've decided that I'm an SLR shooter, so I'm not going that way.

The KP leapt past the K3 models on image quality, so I can't feel good about upgrading from K5ii to K3ii knowing that Pentax already makes a better ASP-C camera. I have decided that the KP is not for me. It's a decision for me at this point between the successor to the K3ii or the K1 and/or shooting film while I send my beloved K5 off for service. If I could just win one of those K1s from the forum, that would be that, I guess. :-)

[Pedroboe]

Bravo, well said. I've taken the K5iis these past few days through it paces and it is performing well. It doesn't even look or feel that old, except for a few scratches on the top lcd. I just remember having to do a lot of post processing when doing landscape (amateur) and portrait shots. White balance, etc but also get the feeling that the sharpness is not the best but of course, I blame the lenses for that. I could take the body with a 18-135 and skip the 20 - 40. The sigma 10-20 will definitely help and the 35 macro limited would complete it. I would probably leave behind the 100 macro, the 100_300 and the 77,unless I want some cool bokeh shots of my girls. Or the 43? It's such a cute and small lens! There is also a lot of things we can spend money 💵 on during the trip, keeping my trusty old K5iis! Sometimes relationships need a little stress before they can rekindle..... I think that I will keep on with what I have until pentax releases something irresistible.

Regards


Pedro

[Scorpio71GR]

For what it is worth, I use my K-1 way more than my K3. I have problems with all the extra weight but the ergonomics on the K-1 are just so much better than the K3. What keeps my K3 going is the 16-85, DA*50-135, and the DA Limiteds. If I had to chose one it would be the K-1

[Pedroboe]

There are also some wonderful churches like Iglesia Colegial del Salvador,

The Best Churches in Seville – Devour Seville Food Tours

And don't forget to visit place de españa at both day and night

Re the silver tower, I missed that one! I really need to go back!

Having a fish eye is really useful for the churches

Thanks for the great advice and photos... I include some from mine.

[Cerebum]

Thanks for the great advice and photos... I include some from mine.

OK, those are superb. I love all three but the umbrella shot and the portrait would grace any wall. I am in the doldrums a bit with my photography but this is what I aspire to. Thank you so much for sharing AND KEEP YOUR K5, ITS BRILLIANT

[Excalibor]

Bravo, well said. I've taken the K5iis these past few days through it paces and it is performing well. It doesn't even look or feel that old, except for a few scratches on the top lcd. I just remember having to do a lot of post processing when doing landscape (amateur) and portrait shots. White balance, etc but also get the feeling that the sharpness is not the best but of course, I blame the lenses for that. I could take the body with a 18-135 and skip the 20 - 40. The sigma 10-20 will definitely help and the 35 macro limited would complete it. I would probably leave behind the 100 macro, the 100_300 and the 77,unless I want some cool bokeh shots of my girls. Or the 43? It's such a cute and small lens! There is also a lot of things we can spend money 💵 on during the trip, keeping my trusty old K5iis! Sometimes relationships need a little stress before they can rekindle..... I think that I will keep on with what I have until pentax releases something irresistible.

Regards


Pedro

I think this is a very intelligent decision. The 18-135 is certainly a very capable and sharp lens, it will serve you well... My proposal of the 100 instead of the 18-135 was so you would be mostly primed: taking the 18-135 with you, I'd skip the 35mm: if you have a portrait and want bokeh, shoot at 70 or 100mm and you'll get a creamy bokeh and tack sharp images. The 43mm is cute, but a bit tele for a trip, imho. To be honest, when I went to Seville, I only had my trusty Fujifilm X100S, which has an attached prime 23mm f/2 lens, and my Lumia phone, with some spectacular Zeiss module which I still cry nowadays. I only had an Olympus E-510 by the time, and I didn't even think about taking the DSLR with me. BTW, I have spectacular pictures of Seville, and I walked around light (even in January was sunny and mostly warm during the day!). As a comparison, when I went to London last year, I took my lightweight Canon EOS 1300D with me and 2 lenses: the 24mm f/2.8 for general walking and the 50mm f/1.8 for details; they served me well; to barcelona, I changed the 50mm for the 55-250: it's heavier but I knew I would be taking pictures of Dali's works from afar, including the Sacred Family.

My advice: the 10-20 is probably enough, but if you are taking the 18-135 then you don't need anything else. I'd even say, 10-20 and 20-40: 40 is tele enough for some decent portraits. It won't allow to shoot some details and if your cropping is limited it might be too short. But de 18-135 is light and cool. You will be glad to walk lightweight, it's horribly warm in Andalucía right now, even with this crazy Summer we are having this year.

Have fun!

---------- Post added 08-13-18 at 11:26 PM ----------

For what it is worth, I use my K-1 way more than my K3. I have problems with all the extra weight but the ergonomics on the K-1 are just so much better than the K3. What keeps my K3 going is the 16-85, DA*50-135, and the DA Limiteds. If I had to chose one it would be the K-1

This is intriguing: the K-3 is amazing in the hand, with or without the battery grip. How can the K-1 be so much better than amazing? Especially being heavier? I haven't been able to handle one, that's why I ask, of course. Just a brief answer so we don't highjack the thread...

Thanks!

[Pedroboe]

I think this is a very intelligent decision. The 18-135 is certainly a very capable and sharp lens, it will serve you well... My proposal of the 100 instead of the 18-135 was so you would be mostly primed: taking the 18-135 with you, I'd skip the 35mm: if you have a portrait and want bokeh, shoot at 70 or 100mm and you'll get a creamy bokeh and tack sharp images. The 43mm is cute, but a bit tele for a trip, imho. To be honest, when I went to Seville, I only had my trusty Fujifilm X100S, which has an attached prime 23mm f/2 lens, and my Lumia phone, with some spectacular Zeiss module which I still cry nowadays. I only had an Olympus E-510 by the time, and I didn't even think about taking the DSLR with me. BTW, I have spectacular pictures of Seville, and I walked around light (even in January was sunny and mostly warm during the day!). As a comparison, when I went to London last year, I took my lightweight Canon EOS 1300D with me and 2 lenses: the 24mm f/2.8 for general walking and the 50mm f/1.8 for details; they served me well; to barcelona, I changed the 50mm for the 55-250: it's heavier but I knew I would be taking pictures of Dali's works from afar, including the Sacred Family.

My advice: the 10-20 is probably enough, but if you are taking the 18-135 then you don't need anything else. I'd even say, 10-20 and 20-40: 40 is tele enough for some decent portraits. It won't allow to shoot some details and if your cropping is limited it might be too short. But de 18-135 is light and cool. You will be glad to walk lightweight, it's horribly warm in Andalucía right now, even with this crazy Summer we are having this year.

Have fun!

---------- Post added 08-13-18 at 11:26 PM ----------



This is intriguing: the K-3 is amazing in the hand, with or without the battery grip. How can the K-1 be so much better than amazing? Especially being heavier? I haven't been able to handle one, that's why I ask, of course. Just a brief answer so we don't highjack the thread...

Thanks!

Thanks

Well, now you are making me want to take my MX instead haha. I am seldom disappointed with the results and it does have a decent zoom range, but of course I 😍 a viewfinder. Then there's the k01, which by being so flat, allows you to rest it in most surfaces without a tripod....

---------- Post added 08-14-18 at 08:57 AM ----------

I also have the gh4, but it's not smaller than K5iis and I don't enjoy it's stills quality or viewfinder. Only advantage is the weight. I also have premium lenses for it.

[aslyfox]

a thought

have you tried to discover any restrictions on photography on or in sites you plan on visiting

not sure where you would find such notices, perhaps web sites for those attractions

there may be restrictions ranging from no flash to no tripod or no monopods

if interested in a small tripod, this caused a stir on the forum a little while ago:

Moman Mini Tripod - Greatest $30 Purchase in Last 5 Years! - Page 4 - PentaxForums.com

[Pedroboe]

Thanks

Well, now you are making me want to take my MX instead haha. I am seldom disappointed with the results and it does have a decent zoom range, but of course I 😍 a viewfinder. Then there's the k01, which by being so flat, allows you to rest it in most surfaces without a tripod....

---------- Post added 08-14-18 at 08:57 AM ----------

I also have the gh4, but it's not smaller than K5iis and I don't enjoy it's stills quality or viewfinder. Only advantage is the weight. I also have premium lenses for it.

As per your suggestion, this looks like it should cover the range very well... Still not sure if I need the 100? It's not exactly small and light. But there may be situations when you want to compress...

[Scorpio71GR]

This is intriguing: the K-3 is amazing in the hand, with or without the battery grip. How can the K-1 be so much better than amazing? Especially being heavier? I haven't been able to handle one, that's why I ask, of course. Just a brief answer so we don't highjack the thread...

Thanks!

It is the ergonomics of the K-1. The button layout and Menus just seem more natural. The articulating screen is a godsend to my poor old aching back. I would probably really enjoy a KP but my K3 has served me well. The K-1 is the camera I've been waiting 10 years for. Also I rarely need the grip on the K-1. It balances well with most lenses. I can use my 60-250 on the K-1 without the grip. The 60-250 gets really unbalanced on the K3 when zoomed all the way out to 250mm. However nothing can really beat the K3 and DA*50-135 for size and IQ.