Originally posted by laissezfaire So I currently have the K100D Super and have a DA* 50-135mm ordered and on the way... I was told to spend money on the glass and not on the body unless my skills developed to a point in which I needed more. I like this advice since there will be more and more technology every year, but good glass will remain good glass.
You're on the right path so far.
Quote: Having said that, I'm strongly considering upgrading to the K20 as I'm tired of going through the menus for everything and can't take the autofocus speed of the K100DS in low light which is my top gripe.
The principle that lenses matter more than bodies does NOT mean that bodies are unimportant. If you feel the need to get a body with more controls on the outside (or to get any of the other advantages of another model), well, then it's just a matter of budget.
Quote: All of those out there with the K20 (and maybe even experience with Nikons), please help. Am I missing anything?
K20 Pros
- I have my budding Pentax lens collection (2) soon to be 3, including the 50-135.
- weathersealing and build construction, including metal mounts on all but the cheapest new lenses
- high MP sensor, although I honestly think 10 or 12 MP is fine. I guess CMOS is good though, the D90 also has this.
I agree that the difference between 14.6 MP and 12 MP is not a big deal as far as image quality or print potential goes. I don't count the K20D's higher res as a significant advantage.
Weather-sealing and solid build are important, or CAN be important - but the fact that they are aren't found even in all high-end cameras (for example: Canon 5D) suggests pretty clearly that not all serious photographers regard weather-sealing as CRITICAL. I don't.
I've said it hear before: The advantages of the K20D are fairly simple. It is a nicely built and - more important - nicely designed body. The ergonomics are a real treat. If you shoot a lot of photographs, you'll appreciate this more than you might if you shoot fewer photographs. In-body image stabilization is an important advantage of the Pentax line as compared to the Nikon and Canon lines. The importance of this feature can, I think, be inferred from the fact that nearly every other camera maker today EXCEPT Canon and Nikon has in-body stabilization. Finally - and perhaps most important - the K20D is considerably more affordable than comparable cameras from Canon and Nikon. Since some of those comparable cameras also have pretty nice ergonomics, in my judgment, it really boils down to affordability.
Quote: K20 Cons
- no WB button, Auto WB on Pentax is not so good indoors, thus this is even more critical. If I had to pick my #2 gripe about my K100DS, it's WB.
I don't think this is a problem. I shoot raw 99.9% of the time and I keep the white balance set to auto. I (almost) never have a problem that can't be solved with a click in post-processing, and to be honest, I really don't have to correct white balance very often in post, either.
Quote: Nikon D90 pros
- I just tried this out. The feature set is impressive, especially the 920k-dot (VGA) screen and interesting movie mode.
- IQ is tested to be equal to the D300
- focus speed is very fast, 4.5 fps is nice
- lens based IS seems to perform better than sensor based - is this true?
From what I've read, it does seem to be true - but not significant in most situations. In-camera image stabilization is very good and you have it all the time. Lens-based image stabilization is perhaps slightly better, but only occasionally - and of course you get its benefits only if you're using a stabilized lens. By "better only occasionally" I mean that, if the body-based stabilization does the job, then for that job, it's every bit as good as expensive lens-based stabilization. You might think of the analogy of tripods. A pretty good tripod is actually 100% as good as a GREAT tripod about 90% of the time. I'm making up the "90%" but you get the point. I'd really like to do a shoot-out comparing the K20D's stabilization to the results obtained by, say, a Nikon with a VR lens attached. I'm pretty sure nobody would be able to tell the difference in 99%+ of the shots.
Quote: Nikon D90 cons
- Feels cheaper, a bit more plasticy
Something to that, but remember, it's about the lenses, not the bodies. And, I might add, it's not just about the lenses but about the SYSTEM. And a Nikon system has some advantages that go beyond the lenses.
Quote: - Lenses are more expensive and when similarly priced have plastic mounts, even for mid priced ones (e.g. the DA* 50-135 was $750 vs. plastic Nikon 18-200 mm VR at $640)
Yep.
Quote: Overall, I guess, my limited experience tells me that the pentax has great, fairly priced glass, even for the enthusiast like me. Nikon has some very nice technology in their cameras but offer cheap glass for the consumer at high prices.
Well, it's only money. There are, I have no doubt, more high-quality new lenses available for Nikon (or Canon) mount than for Pentax. Most pro photographers may be sheep but they're not STUPID sheep. The best Pentax lenses are as good as the best Nikon and Canon lenses. But they're not better. Where's the advantage? The Pentax lenses generally are much more reasonably priced.
Quote: Every single camera salesperson I run into says, "forget Pentax, get a Canon or Nikon". It's quite amazing.
Ignore what sales people say. Sales of Canon and Nikon stuff butters their bread. Plus, I meet an awful lot of camera sales people who (a) know NOTHING AT ALL about Pentax and who therefore can't be counted on for a fair comparison in terms of quality alone, and (b) who don't even know very much about Nikon and Canon. I know good sales people, too, and don't mean to slander anybody here who happens to sell retail cameras. But it's just a fact: an awful lot of sales folks in every field (cars, computers, clothing, cameras) know shockingly little about the stuff they're selling.
Unfortunately, if you ask professional photographers (instead of sales people), you'll get the same advice, and the pros DO kind of know what they're talking about.
Quote: Finally, the Pentax message board and community is incredible, and the level on knowledge on the Nikonians board doesn't come close. it may be in that board, I just can't find it!
And that may be really important. Pentax users are a BIT (just a bit) like Apple computer users in the 1990s: a self-supporting community. Something to be said for that. But we need that self support in ways the Nikon and Canon folks don't.
Will