[JoepLX3]

If my budget is limited and I want to biggest bang for the buck then should I go for K-7 with cheaper lenses OR K-x with more fancy lenses?

What results in best IQ for my applications (candid portraits of my 2 & 4 years young children - in- & outside - not too far away)?

K-x + Pentax DA 16-45 mm F4 + Sigma 50-150 mm F2.8
K-7 + 2 kit zoom lenses

Is the this the right answer?
- Good lenses will keep value, camera's get replaced?

What is the IQ difference for a Sigma 50 mm F1.4 on a K-7 vs K-x?
- Significant or not?

[noahpurdy]

Always get the best lenses you can afford. The camera body will always be secondary to the lenses in terms of IQ.

As far as K7 vs K-x, the only difference you're likely to notice is the lack of physical controls on the K-x. In some cases (low-light) the K-x is better than the K7.

[JimC1101]

Go for the lenses. I have the K-X and love it so maybe I am biased but it is a great camera. Aside from weatherproofing, I don't think you will be missing much and where high ISO is concerned, you will be gaining.

Body's come and go, and when they come out with the next gen K-7 which will include the high ISO capabilities of the K-X, you will be able to get the body only and use the better lenses that you pick up now.

[rawr]

I'd say go for the K-x with some nice lenses. The K-x has great IQ and great low-light performance, so for candid indoor portraits (no flash etc) it will do very well. All you will lack vis-a-vis the K-7 is the extra controls, top LCD, weathersealing etc, the better viewfinder and about 20% more resolution (at 200-400 ISO - past that the effective resolution of the K-x and the K-7 is much the same). The K-7 is a beaut camera though.

The whole philosophy of most camera makers (Pentax VERY much included) is that the camera body is just an accessory to the lens(es). Your focus on getting good lenses is the right one. Digital bodies will come and go as sensors and electronics improve. Optics and lenses change on a much slower cycle.

I'd also suggest something like the Tamron 17-50 f2.8 or even the Pentax 17-70 f4 as alternative very high quality zooms, depending on your budget, for either camera. Somewhere in there you should also squeeze in a DA Ltd prime as well

[future_retro]

I'd get the Kx regardless of lenses

I've had a Kx, and have a K7 now, and I always tell people that the Kx is just the better camera, it really takes better pictures in my opinion

paired with some fast lenses I can't image what the Kx can do

I've been limited to the K7 and the kit lenses and while I manage just fine it's literally just "good enough" and nothing to write home about, the Kx is really something spectacular and if I didn't need weatherproofing at the time I wouldn't have made the switch

[kytra]

I have both the Kx and the K7. Bought the K7 after the Kx.

K7 wins hands down in features and ergonomy. When these two are impacting the picture taking, you'll be better with a K7.

Otherwise, as bodies come and go, it would be better to take a Kx and some nice lens (like the DA 40mm for example) and eventually grow in the K7 successor afterwards.

[JoepLX3]

Thanks guys, one thing fixed, now just have to select the right color .
- I am thinking olive-green (if also shining metal looking, not clear from bad pictures at Pentax site).

Oh, I was a little surprised by your response. On the other side, you know the lens side, I good some feedback that camera is more important than lenses for IQ (and it counts for every lens, no matter bad or good). But good to see here are also lens "lovers"!!!

Initially I was thinking of the m43, so the K-7 is actually kind of hudge for me...

Currently "vision" on lens selection:
- Tamron SP 17-50 mm F2.8 XR Di II LD ASL IF, 430g = 325 Euro

One of these:
- Sigma APO 50-150 mm F2.8 II EX DC HSM, 780g = 575 Euro*
- Pentax DA* 50-135 mm F2.8 ED [IF] SDM, 685g = 800 Euro*

But I have to check the reach of these lenses with below lens. My kids are still young (2 + 4 years, so relatively close) so maybe below one is actually better for me. Oh, my goal would be the above Tamron for inside usage and the other for outside. So outside starting at 75 mm (35 mm full frame equivalent) is pretty long.

- Tamron SP AF 28-75 mm F2.8 XR Di LD Aspherical = 325 Euro

Maybe some overlap between the two lens is good, but on the other hand how much long is this 112.5 compared to 75 of the wide zoom lens? Should I make the wide lens kit longer? (I can get flash + prime for inside / portrait applications)

- Sigma 17-70 mm F2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM, 535g = 350 Euro*

After having used these two and my fathers old 50 mm F2.0 manual focus lens for some time I will figure out which additional lenses I need to get, probably 1-2 primes.

Hmm, selecting lenses is even more difficult than camera!!!

[noahpurdy]

The Pentax 50-135 is one of the best zooms they have ever made, with an IQ rivaling that of most primes.

[JoepLX3]

The Pentax 50-135 is one of the best zooms they have ever made, with an IQ rivaling that of most primes.

I did also hear positive story about the Sigma...

[Marc Sabatella]

If IQ is the main concern, get the best lenses you can, and then whatever body you can afford with what's left.

If camera usability and control is the main concern, get the best body you can, and then start saving for the lenses that will get you IQ to match.

[JoepLX3]

If IQ is the main concern, get the best lenses you can, and then whatever body you can afford with what's left.

If camera usability and control is the main concern, get the best body you can, and then start saving for the lenses that will get you IQ to match.

Thanks for your advice, I will go for K-x, width
- Pentax 16-45 F2.8 vs Tamron 17-50 F2.8 vs Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4.0
and in the tele range
- Pentax 50-135 F2.8 vs Sigma 50-150 F2.8

To be exented later by for example one of these (depending on my feelings):
- Pentax/Tamron 18-250
- Sigma 50 F1.4
- Tamron/Sigma 70-200 F2.8
- Another prime lens 30-40 or > 100

[abmj]

...
- Pentax 16-45 F2.8 vs Tamron 17-50 F2.8 vs Sigma 17-70 F2.8-4.0
and in the tele range
...
- Pentax/Tamron 18-250 ...

I have had the Pentax 18-250 for some time and like it a lot, especially for travel as a "single-lens" option.
That said, I recently obtained the Sigma 17-70mm - the newer one, f2.8-4 HSM - and fell in love with it. It now resides on my camera full-time as my walking-around lens. The 18-250 only comes out if I need the extra reach.

[JoepLX3]

Because this discussion is going more into the direction of lenses, I opened a new thread here:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/111044-advice-...-lenses-3.html