- Average user rating: 4.5 stars out of 27 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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9 out of 9 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Great camera!"
Pros: 10 MP, Quick response shooting Raw, big buffer
Cons: Can't use pop-up flash with external flash attachment
Summary: I've used Pentax film SLRs since 1989, but this was my first DSLR. I came close to jumping to Nikon last fall when the D80 came out, thinking that Pentax would never release a 10 MP DSLR, then, a week after I almost pulled the trigger on Nikon, I read the Pentax announcement.
I've used this camera since late November 2006 and it's worked great. The battery charge last a long time and holds a charge for a long time even when not used. One of the things I liked with the off-centered hot shoe of Pentax film SLRs was that you could use both the built-in flash and an external flash simultaneously; with the K10D the pop-up can't come up because the flash attached to the hot shoe blocks it. But that's a small matter. I have about 10 Pentax lenses and I wasn't looking forward to dumping them if I moved to a different camera brand. I've tested all of those lenses on the K10D and all work just fine.
I was also wondering if I'd need fast SD cards, or if the camera buffer would hold several Raw shots, so I pressed the shutter release as fast as I could for about 8 frames and it had no trouble keeping up. I shoot a lot of quick brackets with a macro lens so this is important to me. And when you open the Raw images in Photoshop, you can get the equivalent of a 25 MP camera, with no visible loss of quality (that applies to all Raw images, not just Pentax, but it's amazing).
I doubt if this camera will lure many people away from Nikon or Canon, but for those of us who have been shooting Pentax for a long time, I offer Pentax a hearty, "Thank You!"
- 2 replies to this review
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I'm a Pentaxian! I chose the K10D because I have a number of legacy lenses, but I'm going to the new Pentax digital only lenses because of picture quality and ease of use. I'm very impressed with the optical quality of the new lenses and the ease of focusing them. The new Pentax K10D's picture quality far exceeds that of the 35mm film SLRs that I currently own and was accustomed to using. The resolution of the lenses easily allows an 8.5" x 11" print and can easily go further. That is more than I can say for the 35mm SLRs. The K10D is feature rich, much more than the 35mm predecessors. I'd say that the image quality of the K10D compares favorably to the 2.25" x 2.25" film format.
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>I doubt if this camera will lure many people away from Nikon or Canon...
Surely not many, but I'm one of them. As I'm focused on wildlife shooting, the waterproof body and built-in IS are _the_ decisive points for me. This combined with the overall build quality, large viewfinder etc. is something what Canon nor Nikon nor Sony can offer in the price range.
I have a Canon film SLR so I was mostly leering at Canon 350D/400D, but since K10D/GX-10 came out, I do not see any option in the Canon portfolio. Of course those who, unlike me, have some nice 'L'enses, would hardly change the stable...
BTW, the lenses are a little problem for many advanced photographers, because the Pentax's porfolio of new lenses is not so rich and also Sigma and others offer many lensens for other brands only. I hope the popularity of this model plus its support for ultrasonic AF and Samsung's entry into the K-mount system would change this situation in near future...
Where to buy
Pentax K10D (with 18mm-55mm lens):
$379.99
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