Originally posted by causey D3x, first dslr? He might manage to miss those precious moments.
Dear me! A V1 would have been a much better choice, in my book, anyway, of why not a K-r?!
While waiting for a Pentax FF (with screw drive) we've invested in two cameras that I also wish Pentax made versions of: The OM-D E-M5 (stupid name, why not just OM-5?!), and a V1 (like the Buzz Bomb, of the WWII era).
Not perfect cameras, but so much more advanced than anything made by Pentax, till today: The only real fault with the OM-5 is that it is slightly too small to hold securely (unless you buy the grip, a costly add-on) if you have big hands. But it is a technological dream: Already (after less than a week) my wife has managed to take better pictures of birds in flight, than we ever have managed with the Pentax we own/have owned (K-x, K-7, or the K-5), even with the puny Sigma 30!
The lightning fast focus of the V1 works best with native lenses, but I have managed to take supremely sharp shots of birds on the ground, free-hand, with a equivalent focal length of 816mm, using a fairly cheap AF-S G lens. No way I could do the same with my beloved K-5, so from now on our K-5s are more or less restricted to wide angle work, up to short telephoto lenses, say the DA50-135, a superb lens, by the way.
Both the OM-5 and the V-One would do well with longer native lenses (Panasonic makes a fairly long lens for the m4/3, but that is not color-corrected if attached to an Olympus body). Say a 100-400mm for the V1, and something similar for the OM-5. The V1 lacks a wide as well, while the OM-5 has quite a wide selection (but no really wide, like 24 on a FF.
While I would love a FF Pentax, I think it might be time for me to switch to Nikon full time, if the rumored D600 will arrive in the near future. The Aptina guys seem to have a magic touch, at least as far as the V1 & J1 goes!
DPReview recently published their interactive studio shot with the K-01, so we exchanged the gun slingers to K-01, K-5, V-One, and OM-5. Very interesting results, to say the least!
We also tried out the NEX-5N, as we happen to own that, too! Going from JPEG ISO 200, to 3200, and RAW the same way the worst performer, wasn't the puny V1 sensor, as one would think, nor the ugly K-01, but the K-5! This test doesn't stress the cameras dynamic range (an area the K-5 is pretty impressive), but their resolution. Certain subjects, like the wrist watch, at high ISO, isn't the V-One's forte, while it is with relatively high ISO where the K-01 shines. The colors might be a little subdued with the K-01, but resolution seems more than OK. Of the two Pentaxes, the K-5 seems overall loser, to my surprise!