[slip]

Hi everyone.
I am not a pentax owner but am looking into the K100D for my girlfriend.
I have looked at many website reviews, and all of them love this camera except for one problem:
poor incidecent/ tungstun non flash performance.
Has anyone one else experenced this?
this site Pentax K100D Digital Camera - Review - The Imaging Resource! shows a picture taken indoors shows exactly how poor it does without flash

it can be rescued with photoshop, but it definately would be a pain for each and every photo.
now I know my girlfriend can live with using the flash indoors all the time, but not me. I love windows lighting etc.

the bigger question:
does anyone know if pentax is going to fix this? would it be a firmware update?
this person took the same shot with other brand name DSLR's and all handled the photo very well except K100D.
I hope there is a fix as it looks like a great camera but I couldn't buy it unless there was a fix


thanks to all

[acrbill]

I have noticed that my k100d is lack luster in the low light department. Usually not nearly as bad as the authors pic though. I have a 2 year old that I am always trying to snap pics of, and using a flash all the time cannot be good for her little eyeballs. You might consider waiting for the k10d which should be a few notches about the k100d.

[RickS]

Most DSLRs, including Canon and Nikon, have the same problem with AWB reaching down to the very warm color temperature of tungsten lighting. Checking the review sites that test for it will bear this out.

When shooting indoors in that type of light environment, it's a simple step to switch the K100D from AWB to Tungsten white balance, which will yield excellent results. Just remember to do it. No big deal.

I responded to a post on the DP Review site a while back, in a discussion about successfully fixing white balance errors in jpeg files. Even though that's not the specific subject, here, the sample I posted also illustrates the use of AWB vs. Tungsten light setting using an *ist DS, which is pretty much the same circumstance as with the K100D. There are three examples taken in tungsten light - one with Tungsten setting, one with AWB setting, and one where the AWB results was corrected in post processing.

Here's the link:
PentaxTungsten WB Test photo - Rick S photos at pbase.com

I hope this is beneficial.

Rick

[Tim_Pent*x]

I bought the K100D, absolutely marvelous camera. I shoot raw so the WB issue was easily correctable in the raw converter. However, in JPEG, white-balance is indeed a problem. I e-mailed Pentax about a possible firmware update to improve the WB and there reply was there was nothing in the works (this was last week). They commented that the K10D should do a better job.

I should add that the previous reply from RickS is accurate in that setting the WB to the correct situation is critical but my experience with other DSLR's is that the Auto White Balance and Tungsten WB on the K100D are not as accurate as other camera's, however to many they may be close enough. Having said thiat, I still want to reiterate that this camera takes superb, sharp pictures and that in raw, the indoor lighting problem completely disappears. The anti-shake feature is almost worth the price alone!

I am a Canon 30D owner but also have a K10D on order. The K100D is going to my Son.

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Last edited by Tim_Pent*x; 10-28-2006 at 07:44 PM.

[acrbill]

very interesting. I really need to step up from my 512 cards so I can do all of my shooting in RAW.

[Falcons]

I have yet to see a DSLR yet that has a perfect AWB - fortunately it is quite easy to set it manually or just shoot raw.

Just because a reviewer points this out on the K100D it is not a statement that all other DSLR's have a perfect AWB setting.

[Edvinas]

I have looked at many website reviews, and all of them love this camera except for one problem:
poor incidecent/ tungstun non flash performance.
Has anyone one else experenced this?
this site Pentax K100D Digital Camera - Review - The Imaging Resource! shows a picture taken indoors shows exactly how poor it does without flash

All DSLRs AWB performs almost equally bad in such conditions. Check reviews of Canon, Nikon DSLRs on Digital Camera Reviews and News: Digital Photography Review: Forums, Glossary, FAQ. They always testing AWB performance in tungsten lights. And it is always poor. K100D is just the same as other DSLRs in this area.

Also you can check the same site for a Nikon D80 indoor non flash portrait

it can be rescued with photoshop, but it definately would be a pain for each and every photo.
now I know my girlfriend can live with using the flash indoors all the time, but not me. I love windows lighting etc.

Shoot RAW. In RAW you can fix WB very easy and absolutely without any loss of quality. BTW, to get nice WB indoor you need to make one simple preparation: set WB manually using white piece of paper or grey card.

the bigger question:
does anyone know if pentax is going to fix this? would it be a firmware update?

I doubt it. It is common problem for DSLRs and I don't expect here Pentax making revolution.

this person took the same shot with other brand name DSLR's and all handled the photo very well except K100D.

Read review more carefully. Another picture is taken with the same K100D using flash.

I hope there is a fix as it looks like a great camera but I couldn't buy it unless there was a fix

Up to you. Mine Pentax DSLR indoor look like this. Manual in camera WB set used white paper sheet, converted from RAW with Lightroom without adjustments:

[slip]

All DSLRs AWB performs almost equally bad in such conditions. Check reviews of Canon, Nikon DSLRs on Digital Camera Reviews and News: Digital Photography Review: Forums, Glossary, FAQ. They always testing AWB performance in tungsten lights. And it is always poor. K100D is just the same as other DSLRs in this area.

Also you can check the same site for a Nikon D80 indoor non flash portrait



Shoot RAW. In RAW you can fix WB very easy and absolutely without any loss of quality. BTW, to get nice WB indoor you need to make one simple preparation: set WB manually using white piece of paper or grey card.



I doubt it. It is common problem for DSLRs and I don't expect here Pentax making revolution.



Read review more carefully. Another picture is taken with the same K100D using flash.



Up to you. Mine Pentax DSLR indoor look like this. Manual in camera WB set used white paper sheet, converted from RAW with Lightroom without adjustments:

WOW that shot definately looks great! cute kid

thanks for clearing this all up for me.

My girlfriend, at this moment anyway, is not very technically inclinded with cameras.
How EASY is it to set the white balance with the K100? I read about how, but until you have one in your hand, you don't really know.

As far as ease of use, do you think that the K10D with more knobs and less menus would be less confusing for her?

thanks

[Edvinas]

How EASY is it to set the white balance with the K100? I read about how, but until you have one in your hand, you don't really know.

It is very easy:
1. Switch AF to manual (isn't necessary to do it first, it can be done anytime before step 5).
2. Go to WB menu (with Fn button);
3. Choose the last option (manual white balance)
4. Point camera at plain white paper sheet (or anything neutral white).
5. Take a picture;
6. Confirm with "OK" button that manual WB is set.
7. Set focussing back to AF.

Don't be afraid of those 7 steps. I was very specific and everything is done in 5-10 seconds.

Of course you don't need to do that before each picture, just do it once before photosession (artificial lighting in room won't change, right?). Very simple and you'll definately get better WB than any AWB or preset WB.