Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction (Body Only) by Pentax
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Digital camera reviews of Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction (Body Only)
Digital camera Review: Shooting "out of the box..."
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently acquired a Pentax K10D DSLR with a Pentax SMCPDA 16-45mm Zoom f/4.0 ED/AL Lens and a Tamron 70-300mm Di AF Lens to cover everything from wide-angle to zoom - telephoto situations. I fitted the lenses with the standard UV filters and the camera with the Pentax BG2 Battery Grip (more about this later...)
I previously owned a Canon EOS-10D 6.3MP Digital SLR with a Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens & a Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens with the usual filters and accoutrements - I owned the whole kit since 2003 and used it extensively through Mexico, the States, Europe & Africa - all in all an excellent camera and lenses.
After recently becoming "savvy" on the new technology available - I decided to "upgrade" myself to bigger resolutions and newer "pluses" - I did extensive research and finally decide on three candidates:
1- Leica DIGILUX 3 7.5MP Digital SLR Camera (with Leica D 14-50mm f/2.8-3.5 ASPH Lens) with Optical Image Stabilization.
2 - Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR.
3 - Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera (with Shake Reduction.)
After extensive research and reading many reviews regarding these three cameras - I came to the conclusion that the Pentax was going to be the better choice for the money over the amount of features, reliability and brand performance - in other words I definitely think that I'm getting more "bang-for-my-buck" over my other two choices. The reasons I did not choose the other two were:
Leica - of course is legendary and their lenses are superb - unfortunately this camera was compared too often to the Panasonic DMC-L1 - actually it was a joint venture between the two companies - that kind of "cheapened" the Leica on my view - no offence to Panasonic Lumix owners - is not just what I was looking for / "not my cup of tea." Also, the technology / features that the kit contained were too little for the price. My other choice in Leica was the M8 - just a dream of a camera, but way out of my regular "Joe Blow" budget! - This is the camera I would have if price was no object - but reality strikes you hard!
Sigma SD14 - I am still very intrigued by this camera and the technology it uses - maybe when it is a bit more proven and upgraded in a few features I will do the "jump" into the Sigma realm - the experts keep calling it the "wildcard."
As for the brand I used - Canon - nothing wrong with it - it is just that the competition - Pentax and Sigma are offering a better rounded package than what they are offering at the moment - I was interested on the Canon EOS 5D - which I could've used my old lenses - but for the price and the offerings, others give more.
So... I finally decided to "shoot out of the box..." and leave the market dominated by Canon and Nikon and try a different flavor this time around.
Conclusion: I am extremely pleased with my choice of the Pentax K10D over the other venerable brands (especially Leica!) - the camera does have some issues: speed of auto focus (not consistent, but adequate) - speed of continuous shooting (again not consistent, but adequate) - the battery grip is useful as it can automatically switch to a 2nd battery - very handy - I just wish that they would've applied the same concept to the SD card compartment - it is just for storage - it does not switch for photo recording purposes - I just find it a bit silly to stop and remove the card from the compartment, do the "switcharoo" with the used card and replace the compartment back on the grip - I know... moans-and-complaints!
Overall compared to my previous equipment - this is by far the best camera that I've owned.
I've used: Minolta (film) - Olympus (film) - Leica (film) - Sony Mavica (digital) - Canon (digital.)
I've already tried it using both lenses in a variety of sceneries - high daylight, dawn, lots of shadows, nature, etc - and I am nothing but extremely pleased with the results!
Digital camera Review: Something *ist DL owners may want to know
Summary: 4 Stars
I owned a *ist DL for about 8 month and bought this upgrade. I don't have any experience with Cannon or Nikon. So my review is mostly based on a comparison to *ist DL. Hope this will help those in the same situation.
I am not a Pro and will not be a Pro. So I only need a decent but inexpensive camera with a handful choice of lenses. I bought K10D mainly for (1) shake reduction (2) dust removal (3) RAW button (4) 10MB CCD. Of course, there are plenty other features to expect. At this pice level, I think K10D beats Cannon and Nikon and any others. Plus, I have had a DA 50-200mm and a couple of K and M42 Takumar manual lenses. Sticking to pentax is the best for me.
After about 150 test shots, I can share you some of my opinions:
Pros:
-- Shake reduction is great (but it has its limit)
-- dust removal comes handy
-- RAW button is very useful
-- manual choice of any one of 11 focus points, great for composition
-- faster focus than *ist DL
-- rich functions, e.g. SV mode, program line
-- support ISO 100
Cons:
-- Weather-seal does not mean too much if you don't get weather-sealed lenses
-- 10M is not much bigger than 6M (*ist DL), it is good to have but don't expect a big difference (but this is not Pentax or K10D's problem)
-- Battery meter drop from full to empty without stopping at a half-empty status
-- PentaPrism viewfinder is not brighter than the pentamirror of my *ist DL (at least no noticable difference)
-- shutter release is not as crispy as *ist DL (just a personal feeling)
It's bigger and heavier than ist DL. Great ergo design. I am happy with K10D. I take one star off for the cons listed.
PS: the ccd/stablizer slides inside (even power off) when you flip the camera. a little scary when I first got it. But after some reading I think it is "normal".
Digital camera Review: THE BEST DSLR in its Price Range
Summary: 5 Stars
Before I get K10D, I experienced with Olympus E-500, CANON XTI, Nikon D80.
I used Olympus E-500 to take lots vivid color pictures that I love very much, but no water resistance and no second Display window, also only 3 focus point makes it not so enjoyable. Same thing happen to Canon XTi, no water resistance and no second Display window make it little hard to use when you need to change settings. The Nikon D80 is a great camera but also have no water resistance and shake reducer build in on camera, the color tone of D80 isn't the kind that I would love. Finally I bought Pentax K10D, the feeling of the body,the water resistance, shake reducer,auto dust remove,vivid color tone,etc...makes me feel the K10D is the way to go. Only complaint would be the Limited Edition Lens are hard to get. Get it while you can!
Digital camera Review: The Pentax for Professionals
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this camera immediately after release. I've been shooting with Pentax cameras since the early 1990's. Admitedly, I was slow to switching to digital, primarily because Pentax took longer than most to come up with a digital SLR. I wanted to hold out because of the amount of money I had invested in the lenses, flash equipment and other accessories. So when they finally came out with one, the *IST D, I bought it. At the time, it was fine for what I needed. But as time moved on I needed a camera that had more professional features. I had to wait again. So long, that I almost sold my entire Pentax gear and was going to move to Sony. Then right before I was ready to sell, they came out with the K10D. And I can confidently say that it was worth the wait. For us professionals who don't shoot Nikon or Canon, we needed a 10 mega pix or higher camera, with faster continuous shutter, anti dust, blur reduction, a more rugged body and of course, one with a great processor. Thankfully Pentax delivered just that. For my type of shooting (swimsuit models and glamour photos) I find that coupled with the battery grip, a large memory card, and the FTZ 540 flash, I find myself completely satisfied with what the camera gives me. The shake reduction is a great feature to have and find myself using my tripod less and less. The focusing is quick and reliable, even in low light (with a high speed lens). Even though the standard flash synchronization speed is 1/180, this camera does have high speed synch with the appropriate flash. The camera does take better photos in the RAW feature. Not as sharp with JPEG, but this is under CRITICAL tests. For what virtually everyone will be shooting, the high quality JPEG, coupled with a great lens, like the DA*50-135mm F2.8, or the film FA*28-70mm lens, the results are spectacular. I find that I like my settings on "Bright" image tone and contrast on 3. It really makes the colors pop. The factory settings tend to be a little soft on the contrast and I prefer hard contrast. While shooting a bikini contest in Spain, I had to shoot in some rain. The rain didn't even bother the weatherproof body. This combined with the weatherproof lenses are pefect for humid counties such as Mexico and the occasional rain you may encounter. The battery lasts for a long time on one charge, but it's best to have the battery grip just to play it safe. The light meter is highly accurate and the custom user features are great. I find myself shooting in manual mode all the time, but knowing that a simple touch of the green button gives you instantly perfectly exposed shots is a nice. It saves me from hunting for the perfect exposure. The biggest advantage is that the Shake Reduction technology is sensor based, not lens. So you can mount any lens you want on the body and the shake reduction will function. This is not the case with Canon or Nikon. So Pentax has the edge on that one. Occasionally, when I've enlarged my images to 200x the normal size, I have found the occasional hot pixel, or dead pixel. It will be a green or red color. Since then, my camera has been serviced by Pentax (a cleaning that I needed after the swimsuit event. All that sand and dust does a number on your gear!) and they have since run a program on the camera that has eliminated this problem. If you are undecided on what brand to go with, I can only tell you to go with a brand you trust and one that you have had a good experience with. If you want the most bang for your buck, the Pentax K10D will deliver what you need and more. It is the most fully featured SLR for under $1,000. You will not get a better deal anywhere. However, if you are a sports photographer, the continuous shutter speed is slower than the Nikon and Canon. It's fast for my needs (3fps) but if you shoot a lot of fast moving subjects, this camera will not be the best choice. But if you want quality, reliability and a wide lens selection, the K10D is just what you need. The camera truly is a tool for photographic artists. In the wide array of choices for an SLR camera, every brand is great. But I can some it up in saying that if you want a tool to bring out the best in your artistic expression, Pentax is the brand to choose. Nikon is for the photojournalist, Canon is for sports photographers, but Pentax is for artists.Digital camera Review: Very nice camera.......White balance still not accurate
Summary: 4 Stars
Very nice camera, especially for just that price.
With many convenient buttons that you can directly switch to the funtion you want, saved a lot from browsing and choosing from menu items.
Just like *istDL, K110D and K100D, the white balance still not accurate. Mostly too yellowish, especially under tungsten lights. Sometimes even with customized WB still too much yellow that I have to remove it using software after shooting.