[aksansai]

e_nogueras sold me his K-3 in "excellent condition". Pentax K-3 Body, D-BG5 Battery Grip & O-FC1 WiFi Flu-Card 16GB / Shutter Count 2680 - PentaxForums.com

He didn't tell the truth. He should have said "it might as well be factory new". Well-packed, pristine like-new condition - this camera is fantastic and is a marked improvement over my "excellent condition" K-5 that I've had since new. I couldn't be happier. If you have an opportunity to purchase something from Edgar, don't hesitate. Courteous, highly communicative, and highly diligent to make sure that your purchase will arrive to you quickly and in great condition. For all those that gave consideration to his K-3 but passed the opportunity - THANKS.

We have great Pentaxians on the form like Snapppy who creates great YouTube content that reflects the kind of photographer I relate to - enthusiastic about photography and able to leverage the great lenses that have been created and passed down for decades with our K-mount systems. He's a bit more of a collector than I am, but his video on the K-3 (he has multiple Pentax cameras, film and digital) along with Ed from Photo Universe had me wanting to upgrade from the K-5. While the K-3 Mark II has some improvements and the Mark III is simply out of budget, the K-3 Mark I gives me quick access to a flash - something I prefer over having a built-in GPS unit.

I'm looking forward to getting some practice with this new sensor with my fleet of MF and AF glass, some was inherited from my late father and the rest was acquired over time as I got more comfortable shooting with my K-5. Now the torch will be passed to the K-3. During my initial testing, I have quickly noticed the following:

• Screwdrive on the K-3 is remarkably quieter and snappier when focusing
• Acquiring focus in low-light is supremely better than the K-5
• Noise at ISO 3200 is fantastic, even with smaller pixels crammed into an APS-C package
• Button and control layout is different, yet it is so intuitively Pentax
• Shutter action is smooth and quiet - an order of magnitude of improvement over the K-5

My oldest daughter is graduating high school, and I wanted to give it a shot to do her senior portraits myself. I picked up Edgar's K-3, Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8, and a Manfrotto 695CX monopod to compliment my tripod, M 50mm f/1.4, M 135mm f/3.5, and DA 50mm f/1.8 primes. I figure this strong collection of a great body and glass will set me up for some great shooting.

I'm uncertain what I'm going to do with the K-5. It has been my trusted workhorse platform for family and landscape photos. As an amateur, I've also shot a wedding with the venerable DA* 50-135mm f/2.8 with professional results. It has a lot of life left in it, so I feel I might hang onto it as a backup but hopefully as a great starter Pentax DSLR for one of my kids. My younger sons have taken interest in photography, and I certainly have a decent variety of lenses for them to learn with.

Attachments:

• iPhone XS Max; f/1.8; 1/15s; ISO 2000
• Pentax K-3 DA 50 f/1.8; f/1.8; 1/13s; ISO 3200

Attached Images

   

[ismaelg]

Hello,

I'll tell him I know Edgar personally. Great guy to hang out with! We both share a passion for coffee as well.

Thanks,
Ismael

[Joetitch]

Hello,

We both share a passion for coffee as well.

Thanks,
Ismael

Good thing that SR is so good for countering the coffee jitters😊

[mikesbike]

A wonderful deal for all concerned. I've had the KP for several years, and now the K-1 II for a couple of years as well. Yet I still have and occasionally use my fine old K-5 IIs, which is in perfect condition. I suggest you keep your K-5 as a backup, or as alternative for casual use with a general-purpose lens. Mine works exceptionally well with the DA 18-135mm, with which AF is better than with other lenses on this camera.

Your Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 has a very fine reputation so you should get fine results from it! However, fast zoom lenses of this focal length range are quite large and weighty. For times when you really don't need the 200mm reach, the DA* 50-135mm is overall a truly marvelous lens. It offers WR, has more zoom range at the short end, letting more into your frame, which can be very important, and is far more compact with great handling, while providing very fine imaging quality. It matches ideally with a 16 or 17-50mm f/2.8 ( I have the Sigma EX DC HSM and like it very much. Perhaps even the new Pentax DA* 16-50mm f/2.8 WR PLM might be a future possibility for you) or matching very well with the DA 20-40mm Ltd for a compact, extra high-quality kit. In my own case, I've had the DA* 50-135mm for over 10 years, opting to also get the DA* 200mm f/2.8 instead of a much bulkier 70-200mm f/2.8 so at no more than 1/2 the weight at any given time on the camera I can essentially cover that range with easier handling.

The K-3 is a great camera, delivering very high resolution, and still has a handy built-in flash for instantly-available grab shots and daylight fill. Congrats for taking advantage of such a marvelous find!

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Last edited by mikesbike; 02-11-2022 at 09:06 PM.

[e_nogueras]

aksansai

Thank you for the kind worlds, it was a pleasure doing business with you. I am glad that awesome camera went to a home that will take great care of it. Enjoy your "NEW" toy. Thank you!!!

Also, Thank you to my friend and mentor

ismaelg

for raising the bar on how to take maniacally good care of my photographic equipment. Owe you a few coffees!

Here some of the last photos I took using that camera!

[aksansai]

For times when you really don't need the 200mm reach, the DA* 50-135mm is overall a truly marvelous lens. It offers WR, has more zoom range at the short end, letting more into your frame, which can be very important, and is far more compact with great handling, while providing very fine imaging quality. It matches ideally with a 16 or 17-50mm f/2.8 ( I have the Sigma EX DC HSM and like it very much. Perhaps even the new Pentax DA* 16-50mm f/2.8 WR PLM might be a future possibility for you) or matching very well with the DA 20-40mm Ltd for a compact, extra high-quality kit. In my own case, I've had the DA* 50-135mm for over 10 years, opting to also get the DA* 200mm f/2.8 instead of a much bulkier 70-200mm f/2.8 so at no more than 1/2 the weight at any given time on the camera I can essentially cover that range with easier handling.

While the copy that I rented (2016) was fantastic, another 6 years with the SDM issues really caused me to balk. True, the 70-200 is definitely heavier to wield, but I wanted to avoid having to get the SDM lens converted to screw drive when it ultimately decides to give up the ghost. I had an opportunity to get the 50-135 for $280 with functional SDM a couple months back but hesitated. Ed (Photo Universe) talked about moving from the 50-135mm to 70-200mm for IQ gains in one of his videos talking about the K5 Mark II (wasn't in the title), making me feel comfortable with the lens. Note, if I had known just how much quieter the screw drive was on the K-3.... heh, might have pulled the trigger nonetheless.

I like the lens recommendations that you put in there - hopefully, over time, cash flow will free up to allow me to pick some of that quality lenses. Until then... I'll be beefing up my forearms and leveraging the monopod to help me keep the camera upright.

Cheers!