Finally received my K - 7

jena · 07-04-2009, 12:52 AM

I picked up the K - 7 this morning and after waiting quite impatiently for the battery to charge (in fact I whipped it off the charger well before charging finished) took it out for a test run.

The camera feels very good in the hand, although the new placement for the buttons takes a bit of getting used to. Also found the 4 way controller a bit strange to use to select focus points as you now need to press the OK button first. Once I got used to that the camera just felt very instinctive to use.

Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20.

Auto focus seems to be much quicker with the two lenses I have used, the 18 - 55 WR kit lens and the 50 - 135.

So far very happy with the new beast.

These three were taken with the DA* 50 - 135

18 - 55 WR kit lens

robjmitchell · 07-04-2009, 01:32 AM

Hey thats a CUTE cat

Congrats on getting the K-7! I picked mine up this morning to and it ROCKS!!! I also got the WR Kit lens and spent some time with it on my K10d while i waited for the batteries to charge. It has much nicer colour than my sigma 17-70 and its going to be a tough time choosing which i prefer.

So hows it compare with your k20d, Its light years ahead of the K10d in terms of AF, High ISO, Exposure and that disturbingly quite shutter sound.
Cheers

jena · 07-04-2009, 02:37 AM

Thanks Rob, yep I totally agree, Winky is a very cute cat even cuter when she is attacking the dog

.

The AF is very fast compared to the K20 (which with the recent firmware upgrade was reasonable), Auto focus in low light bears no resemblance to the K20 it is so much better. Exposure metering on the K-7 also seemed to be improved.

I wasn't expecting a great deal out of the kit lens but it seems to be very sharp and the colours from it so far have been very good. The image of the cat was with this lens.

And yes, the shutter is very quiet and smooth.

I had hardly arrived home with the K-7 and hubby was inside to collect the old K20, only to later grumble to me that he hardly touched the shutter and the camera had focused. So I can only imagine how much faster the K-7 must feel to you.

Enjoy the camera and I look forward to seeing what you get out of it.

Karen

**Ash** · 07-04-2009, 04:47 AM

Thanks for sharing this experience Karen.
It's a great plug to the K-7 that it's significantly better in AF than the K20D (and K10D), the main criticism of Pentax cams.

You guys keep the shots coming!

Mystic · 07-04-2009, 04:56 AM

thanks for sharing.. looking forward to see more..

Dale · 07-04-2009, 04:56 AM

Good quick review, and some nice shots. Your model in the last looks thrilled to be a test subject of the K7.

I found a K7 in Geelong this am, and had a bit of a play. It is fast on the focus, and very light.

How did you find the weight vs stability? I've been shooting a K10D with the grip. It is nice and stable, but not so much fun to lug around on street shooting days, never mind on long walks!

jena · 07-04-2009, 05:14 AM

Stability is absolutely fine, I carry my camera on an R-strap ( BlackRapid: RS-4 Strap ) which allows it to sit neatly at the hip but pulls up very quickly into position to shoot.

I have smallish hands and also suffer arthritis which means that anything with too much weight becomes painful quickly, however I am able to hold the K-7 very easily.

I have generally shot with pentax SLR and DSLR, however diverted to the Sony alpha-100 in 2006 following an episode where I got to play with a Canon with image stabilized lens. At that time Pentax were talking about in body stabilization but it was still unclear when they would release such a beast. I loved the in body stabilization of the Sony.

I returned to Pentax a year later as a result of killing the Sony on a glacier in New Zealand (I took a fairly bad fall in which I was largely unhurt other than pride, however the Sony died). Pentax had by that time released the K10 and I succumbed to pressure form my hubby to return to Pentax but always felt that the stabilization was not quite as good. Well the point of this ramble is, NOW the stabilization is as effective as I could wish it to be. I am more than happy with how this camera performs.

As for the model in the last shot, well he was happily absorbed in playing his nintendo DS and was oblivious to the photo being taken.

raider · 07-04-2009, 07:18 AM

Congrats on the K-7!

May I know where u guys bought the K-7 and for how much?

Cheers
raider

xhanatos · 07-04-2009, 08:40 AM

I believe jena pre-ordered her camera from:
Pentax K7 DSLR Camera

I purchased mine from vanbar for $1485.00 and opted for 5 year warranty for another $149.

raider · 07-04-2009, 08:56 AM

Thanks for the info.

jena · 07-04-2009, 03:32 PM

Originally posted by raider

Congrats on the K-7!

May I know where u guys bought the K-7 and for how much?

Cheers
raider

Raider, Xantos is correct, I purchased mine from Digital Camera Warehouse.

pop4 · 07-04-2009, 05:07 PM

Originally posted by jena

Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20.

Congrats on getting the K-7.
I'm not sure if you know, but you can also quickly change ISO on the K10D and K20D by pressing the OK button and using the front edial. With the K-7, the only differences are that you press the ISO button and use the rear edial, but they're pretty much the same thing, button + edial.

xhanatos · 07-04-2009, 05:50 PM

Originally posted by pop4

Congrats on getting the K-7.
I'm not sure if you know, but you can also quickly change ISO on the K10D and K20D by pressing the OK button and using the front edial. With the K-7, the only differences are that you press the ISO button and use the rear edial, but they're pretty much the same thing, button + edial.

i shoot AV most of the time and for the k10d, i have the front e-dial set to ISO so there is no need to press any buttons. already have similar setting on k-7

pressing the iso button then the Green button reverts back to auto-iso. love the shortcuts!

Edvinas · 07-04-2009, 05:53 PM

Originally posted by jena

Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20.

Reading this I realize why Pentax is bashed for poor manuals.

In K10D/K20D you can change ISO directly in two ways:

To change ISO without going into menus, press OK button an turn front e-dial. Works in Green, P, Tv, Av, Tv, M, B, X modes. For Auto ISO press OK and Green button. Works in all those modes except M (for obvious reasons). Basically OK button on K10D/K20D works like ISO button on K-7.
Additionally in Tv and Av modes you can assign ISO to any of e-dials, effectively you get TSv and ASv modes

mel · 07-04-2009, 06:15 PM

While I'm thrilled for your new acquisition, I must say, using the word "finally" in your title is rather cruel to those of us still waiting for our pre-orders placed weeks ago to arrive into our own personal hands.

Looks like you're having fun. I'm dying a small death every additional day I have to wait. Enjoy. I can't wait to get mine.

07-04-2009, 12:52 AM	#1
jena Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 48	Finally received my K - 7 I picked up the K - 7 this morning and after waiting quite impatiently for the battery to charge (in fact I whipped it off the charger well before charging finished) took it out for a test run. The camera feels very good in the hand, although the new placement for the buttons takes a bit of getting used to. Also found the 4 way controller a bit strange to use to select focus points as you now need to press the OK button first. Once I got used to that the camera just felt very instinctive to use. Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20. Auto focus seems to be much quicker with the two lenses I have used, the 18 - 55 WR kit lens and the 50 - 135. So far very happy with the new beast. These three were taken with the DA* 50 - 135 18 - 55 WR kit lens

07-04-2009, 05:53 PM	#14
Edvinas Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Kaunas Posts: 1,458	Originally posted by jena Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20. Reading this I realize why Pentax is bashed for poor manuals. In K10D/K20D you can change ISO directly in two ways: To change ISO without going into menus, press OK button an turn front e-dial. Works in Green, P, Tv, Av, Tv, M, B, X modes. For Auto ISO press OK and Green button. Works in all those modes except M (for obvious reasons). Basically OK button on K10D/K20D works like ISO button on K-7. Additionally in Tv and Av modes you can assign ISO to any of e-dials, effectively you get TSv and ASv modes

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07-04-2009, 01:32 AM	#2
robjmitchell Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Melbourne Aus Posts: 1,776	Hey thats a CUTE cat Congrats on getting the K-7! I picked mine up this morning to and it ROCKS!!! I also got the WR Kit lens and spent some time with it on my K10d while i waited for the batteries to charge. It has much nicer colour than my sigma 17-70 and its going to be a tough time choosing which i prefer. So hows it compare with your k20d, Its light years ahead of the K10d in terms of AF, High ISO, Exposure and that disturbingly quite shutter sound. Cheers

07-04-2009, 02:37 AM	#3
jena Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 48 Original Poster	Thanks Rob, yep I totally agree, Winky is a very cute cat even cuter when she is attacking the dog . The AF is very fast compared to the K20 (which with the recent firmware upgrade was reasonable), Auto focus in low light bears no resemblance to the K20 it is so much better. Exposure metering on the K-7 also seemed to be improved. I wasn't expecting a great deal out of the kit lens but it seems to be very sharp and the colours from it so far have been very good. The image of the cat was with this lens. And yes, the shutter is very quiet and smooth. I had hardly arrived home with the K-7 and hubby was inside to collect the old K20, only to later grumble to me that he hardly touched the shutter and the camera had focused. So I can only imagine how much faster the K-7 must feel to you. Enjoy the camera and I look forward to seeing what you get out of it. Karen

07-04-2009, 04:47 AM	#4
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Thanks for sharing this experience Karen. It's a great plug to the K-7 that it's significantly better in AF than the K20D (and K10D), the main criticism of Pentax cams. You guys keep the shots coming!

07-04-2009, 04:56 AM	#5
Mystic Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Lithuania Photos: Gallery Posts: 490	thanks for sharing.. looking forward to see more..

07-04-2009, 04:56 AM	#6
Dale Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Surfcoast Victoria Australia Posts: 560	Good quick review, and some nice shots. Your model in the last looks thrilled to be a test subject of the K7. I found a K7 in Geelong this am, and had a bit of a play. It is fast on the focus, and very light. How did you find the weight vs stability? I've been shooting a K10D with the grip. It is nice and stable, but not so much fun to lug around on street shooting days, never mind on long walks!

07-04-2009, 05:14 AM	#7
jena Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 48 Original Poster	Stability is absolutely fine, I carry my camera on an R-strap ( BlackRapid: RS-4 Strap ) which allows it to sit neatly at the hip but pulls up very quickly into position to shoot. I have smallish hands and also suffer arthritis which means that anything with too much weight becomes painful quickly, however I am able to hold the K-7 very easily. I have generally shot with pentax SLR and DSLR, however diverted to the Sony alpha-100 in 2006 following an episode where I got to play with a Canon with image stabilized lens. At that time Pentax were talking about in body stabilization but it was still unclear when they would release such a beast. I loved the in body stabilization of the Sony. I returned to Pentax a year later as a result of killing the Sony on a glacier in New Zealand (I took a fairly bad fall in which I was largely unhurt other than pride, however the Sony died). Pentax had by that time released the K10 and I succumbed to pressure form my hubby to return to Pentax but always felt that the stabilization was not quite as good. Well the point of this ramble is, NOW the stabilization is as effective as I could wish it to be. I am more than happy with how this camera performs. As for the model in the last shot, well he was happily absorbed in playing his nintendo DS and was oblivious to the photo being taken.

07-04-2009, 07:18 AM	#8
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989	Congrats on the K-7! May I know where u guys bought the K-7 and for how much? Cheers raider

07-04-2009, 08:40 AM	#9
xhanatos Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 379	I believe jena pre-ordered her camera from: Pentax K7 DSLR Camera I purchased mine from vanbar for $1485.00 and opted for 5 year warranty for another $149.

07-04-2009, 08:56 AM	#10
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989	Thanks for the info.

07-04-2009, 03:32 PM	#11
jena Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 48 Original Poster	Originally posted by raider Congrats on the K-7! May I know where u guys bought the K-7 and for how much? Cheers raider Raider, Xantos is correct, I purchased mine from Digital Camera Warehouse.

07-04-2009, 05:07 PM	#12
pop4 Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: YMML Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,879	Originally posted by jena Changing ISO is very quick with the button rather than going through the function button on the K10 and 20. Congrats on getting the K-7. I'm not sure if you know, but you can also quickly change ISO on the K10D and K20D by pressing the OK button and using the front edial. With the K-7, the only differences are that you press the ISO button and use the rear edial, but they're pretty much the same thing, button + edial.

07-04-2009, 05:50 PM	#13
xhanatos Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 379	Originally posted by pop4 Congrats on getting the K-7. I'm not sure if you know, but you can also quickly change ISO on the K10D and K20D by pressing the OK button and using the front edial. With the K-7, the only differences are that you press the ISO button and use the rear edial, but they're pretty much the same thing, button + edial. i shoot AV most of the time and for the k10d, i have the front e-dial set to ISO so there is no need to press any buttons. already have similar setting on k-7 pressing the iso button then the Green button reverts back to auto-iso. love the shortcuts!

07-04-2009, 06:15 PM	#15
mel Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Virginia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,531	While I'm thrilled for your new acquisition, I must say, using the word "finally" in your title is rather cruel to those of us still waiting for our pre-orders placed weeks ago to arrive into our own personal hands. Looks like you're having fun. I'm dying a small death every additional day I have to wait. Enjoy. I can't wait to get mine.