Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction and 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens by Pentax
|
List Price: Our Price: $999.95 You Save: $0.04 (0%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $520.00 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more digital camera details and other models |
|---|
Digital camera reviews of Pentax K10D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction and 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens
Digital camera Review: My upgrade from the Pentax *ist D
Summary: 5 Stars
I knew that I had to have this camera as soon as I saw the words "Image Stabilization". I have been shooting with Pentax camera's and lenses and upgrading them since I started shooting with a K1000 in 1980. Over time, I have accumulated and upgraded camera's and lenses (now to some of the auto-focus lenses), and all of them can be used (including bellows and teleconverter) with the K10 D. I often shoot in low light hand held (because I can't bring in my tripod) and I think that the " IS" is going to be a benefit when shooting under these conditions. I also work with a 100mm-500mm telephoto lens and in experimenting with it, I was able to photograph (hand held & clearly read), at a lower shutter speed, a license plate on a car about 125 ft away.
As I have been going to larger prints, the RAW & RAW + jpeg formats (on the fly) will give me the ability to make better images of the important shots that I want to create without using up memory on images that are not as important.
All of the new shooting modes (in addition to the Av & Tv modes) may be overkill. Sometimes I think that it is easier to use the M setting. I can see that if you are shooting a lot of images in succession of action or a lot of depth of field control, it might be appropriate for some users to use these camera settings.
The optional battery grip BG2 is an important option for serious photographers to consider. It just makes using a camera in the portrait mode a lot more convenient. I have not yet totally figured ot how I plan to use my external handle mount flash with it yet, but I know there are some brackets out there that I think I can make work. (I don't use a lot of flash in my work anyway).
I am looking forward to getting into using this camera to create new and interesting images. I am writing this review probably prematurely given that I have not yet had the chance to use it more.
Digital camera Review: Perfect even for serious beginners
Summary: 5 Stars
A little back story: my interest in photography started just a few months ago, after I started collecting desktop wallpapers. It doesn't hurt that my girlfriend is beautiful. So, with only basic point & shoot experience under my belt, I started reading up on photography techniques and looked for a camera. Being the novice as I was, I was only looking at Canon and Nikon. Fortunately, a photographer friend of mine recommended the K10D by Pentax, a very experienced camera maker that doesn't have the marketing dollars of Canon or Nikon, and I was simply floored. On paper, it looks great, especially given the price. You're getting higher end features like shake reduction and weatherproofing for introductory DSLR prices. Shake reduction featured in the body is particularly valuable, as it applies to all your lenses and thus reduces the price you have to pay for them.
I went to a camera shop to compare the cameras, as my friend told me it's also important to see how the cameras feel in your hands. While the K10D is definitely heavier than the Canon Rebel XTi, I found that the extra weight was actually reassuring; it doesn't feel like a toy. I also like the way the controls were laid out on the back, and the dual dials plus extra exposure modes together with the green button really make things a snap.
The only cons: ISO performance beyond 800 could be better, and some people may like having dedicated buttons for ISO and WB, though the new firmware makes selecting ISO a lot faster. Oh, and you might find yourself spending a lot of time taking lots and lots of pictures...
If you're serious about having better control over your pictures and getting great image quality without breaking the bank, go for the K10D. You can use the money you saved to buy all the new and old lenses that the K10D can still mount. You won't regret it; I sure didn't.
Digital camera Review: DSLR Newbie
Summary: 5 Stars
Others have sung the praises of this camera enough.
I will point to the only possible thing to look out for: write errors. I ended up exchanging mine. I concede that it may be the card (although it's happened on two different branded cards of different capacities, one SD (1 GB) and one SDHC (8 GB)), purchased from authorized retailers, not eBay. For an xxx dollar camera, I just couldn't take the chance that it was two bum cards before my exchange period ran out. And yes, I formatted the cards in the camera multiple times and yes, I had a lot of capacity remaining on the card at the time of the error. Searching photography forums, this is not an isolated case, but it doesn't seem overly common either. When described to the Pentax rep (who was very helpful), she believed it to be a camera issue.
Whether it is the cards or the camera, it would be nice that the camera would beep to alert you to errors. The shutter will continue to operate and things will otherwise seem normal. However, no images will be captured after the error. You need to shut off and restart the camera to clear the error. So, if you aren't checking after every shot, you might miss some shots that you can't get back.
Hopefully the new one won't have the issue.
Digital camera Review: pentax k10d vs spotmatic
Summary: 5 Stars
If you are a lifetime 35mm photographer like me you will love the pentax k10d.I used the Pentax spotmatic F for nearly 40 years & didn't want to let go of the film technology,but this digital version is like magic.It does have one automatic setting you can use to start out, but you will soon leave that behind & take control of everything yourself.I also bought two books to help me figure out the "magic"...the "lantern" book by Peter K. Burian and the "everything" book by Yvon Bourque.Both books are very helpfull. I was going to use my old lenses but have already bought a new more powerful digital lens.The old stuff is going on e-bay. great camera.........jtgDigital camera Review: Pentax software is not ready for Mac Leopard
Summary: 2 Stars
Having read all the reviews on the camera, I bought one with the 18-250 Pentax lens. I have been using a Lumix FZ50 and decide to try a DSL and this seemed to be it. Shooting in raw would be an advantage and did not want to spend months learning Adobe. I tried to install the Pentax software on my Mac Leopard with no luck. Pentax is working on the software for the Leopard but no word when it will be ready. It could be months and new model Pentaxs are coming out in less than a month. Frankly, aside from the faster shutter, my Lumix FZ50 had far better results with its stabilizing system. I was disappointed and returned the camera.