Pentax where to try

[juchua]

I'm a newbie, currently planning to get my first DSLR. Was considering between Canon 500D and Pentax K-X.

If someone can kindly advise some of my question below?

1)Where can i get to test out Pentex camera? any paticular shop that is specialised and have good price for K-X?

2)I like to shoot scenary and portraits. Does Pentax have a less expensive 50/f1.8 ? and an all in one 18-200?

3)What is the price range like?

4)How many shots can i take with 4AA Battery?

Please kindly advise if anyone is in my shoe before considering between 500D and Pentax K-X. Thanks in advance for your help and have a great year ahead.

 

[airconvent]

Some answers in bold. Cheers

I'm a newbie, currently planning to get my first DSLR. Was considering between Canon 500D and Pentax K-X.

If someone can kindly advise some of my question below?

1)Where can i get to test out Pentex camera? any paticular shop that is specialised and have good price for K-X?
best way to do it is to join in the pentaxian outing this saturday. all tests come with commentary from the owners

2)I like to shoot scenary and portraits. Does Pentax have a less expensive 50/f1.8 ? and an all in one 18-200?
Sigma and Tamron both have the 18-200 in Pentax mount. Don't forget the 18-250 too!

3)What is the price range like?
Check out Gengh's Price Guide here :
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=534146

4)How many shots can i take with 4AA Battery?
The Lithiums are rated at almost 2000 shots per set while i have personally gotten 1000 shots from 1 set of sanyo eneloops

Please kindly advise if anyone is in my shoe before considering between 500D and Pentax K-X. Thanks in advance for your help and have a great year ahead.

 

[Reportage]

any paticular shop that is specialised and have good price for K-X?

good question....is there a shop that has staff who knows how to operate the K-X and even has a demo set available for testing?

 

[banana0ne]

wah, but pentax is not really that bad in user interface. It's quite easy to navigate and even newbies could cope up with it easily. Additional features may need special attention but it's not necessary to play in the first time.

 

[wongcho]

The guide on the number of shots is reported in the Pentax manual:


Batteries Normal Recording Flash Photography Playback Time
(50% Use)

AA lithium batteries 1900 1100 680 minutes

AA Ni-MH 640 420 390 minutes
rechargeable batteries
(1900mAh)

AA alkaline batteries 210 130 350 minutes

It will depend on your usage pattern (eg. using flash more often draw more battery and hence number of shots will be reduced, using manual focus versus auto focus etc..)

I find the numbers reported by Pentax pretty realistic.

 

[scorpioh]

Pentax has easily one of the most intuitive interface - provided u know the basics of photography. Seriously, till today, I still can't handle a Nikon camera. Ha.

 

[banana0ne]

I'm quite lousy in handling a D60. until now I cannot set the ISO.

 

[juchua]

Thanks all for your reply, anyone know where i can get a chance to try out the Pentax KX? when to best denki and Harvey Norman, can't seem to find them. Jus want to get a touch an feel before making purchase decision.

Pentex pics tend to be dimmer i notice? Please correct me if i'm wrong, compared to Sony and Canon entry levels?

 

[woefulwabbit]

Any of the shops listed in the price list thread should allow you to try out. Might want to call them up to check stock and confirm can try before you go down.
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=534146

Yes, the Pentax K-x (~$950) is considered an upper-entry level DSLR, competes against the Canon D500 (~$1200+) and Nikon 5000D (~$1100+).
Sony doesn't have a comparable camera capable of video recording.

 

[elavan]

"dimmer" is partly due to wider sensor dynamic range, everything will tend to look grey and drabby. that's when PP, primarily levels adjustments come in handy. there is also a possibility of underexposure/inappropriate metering settings due to user error.

the punch you see on sony systems is their DRO at work, which is very impressive, produces vibrant and punchy out-of-camera output. but at times colors are too loud, and lacking in micro-contrast. it works well in certain shooting styles, but it's not 1 size fits all. such enhancements can be done according to taste with some PP, which is another essential skill to acquire if you wish to be successful and versatile with your DSLR.

in any case comparing jpeg processing, i'd give the vote to sony's implementation, personally love it, but i shoot RAW exclusively, so it doesn't matter at all to me.

 

[tootboink]

"dimmer" is partly due to wider sensor dynamic range, everything will tend to look grey and drabby. that's when PP, primarily levels adjustments come in handy. there is also a possibility of underexposure/inappropriate metering settings due to user error.

the punch you see on sony systems is their DRO at work, which is very impressive, produces vibrant and punchy out-of-camera output. but at times colors are too loud, and lacking in micro-contrast. it works well in certain shooting styles, but it's not 1 size fits all. such enhancements can be done according to taste with some PP, which is another essential skill to acquire if you wish to be successful and versatile with your DSLR.

in any case comparing jpeg processing, i'd give the vote to sony's implementation, personally love it, but i shoot RAW exclusively, so it doesn't matter at all to me.

so it's true that pentax pictures appear dimmer/less vibrant? darn i was hoping it wasn't haha.

 

[night86mare]

so it's true that pentax pictures appear dimmer/less vibrant? darn i was hoping it wasn't haha.

set the tone curve to vivid or bright

that's what i did since k100d, what i do on k20d..

 

[felixcat8888]

so it's true that pentax pictures appear dimmer/less vibrant? darn i was hoping it wasn't haha.

You need to adjust tone to Bright or vivid and you will be pleased with the pictures after that.

 

[poppyer]

yes, i miss the vivid tone,
but since I shoot at RAW and use Lightroom, there is no camera specific profile for pentax vivid.

How to overcome this problem? or have to use the Pentax Utility to convert raw to jpg first?

set the tone curve to vivid or bright

that's what i did since k100d, what i do on k20d..

 

[juchua]

Thanks all for the comments, i'm trying to avoid any processing after the pictures are taken in JPEG format. A fan of the vivid and vibrant colours of Sony cameras.

The Kx is really something value for money. Any Kx owner care to share your un process out of the camera pictures here for reference?

 

[elavan]

sony's jpeg engine also has it's pitfalls..i've seen blown colors especially in the red channel from it's OOC output. there is no free lunch. that kind of treatment on all your shots is also like MSG, it tastes good but too much flavour and sickening after awhile.

in fact, no single jpeg customisation can give you your desired output all the time. Bionz engine or Pentax engine, I got frustrated shooting jpegs although a standard tone is applied to my OOC output, it cannot deliver the results simply because different scenes require different treatment.

that's why i encourage anyone to look to a higher level, shoot raw and manually balance everything, most versatile and most control over your work. :bsmilie:

 

[juchua]

sony's jpeg engine also has it's pitfalls..i've seen blown colors especially in the red channel from it's OOC output. there is no free lunch. that kind of treatment on all your shots is also like MSG, it tastes good but too much flavour and sickening after awhile.

in fact, no single jpeg customisation can give you your desired output all the time. Bionz engine or Pentax engine, I got frustrated shooting jpegs although a standard tone is applied to my OOC output, it cannot deliver the results simply because different scenes require different treatment.

that's why i encourage anyone to look to a higher level, shoot raw and manually balance everything, most versatile and most control over your work. :bsmilie:

Hello Elavan, processing raw shots are time consuming? Please bear with my ignorance. Shooting in Raw format, will required post processing for everything single shot?

Not sure if i should go to the mainstream Canon 500D or the Kx.......

 

[banana0ne]

Hello Elavan, processing raw shots are time consuming? Please bear with my ignorance. Shooting in Raw format, will required post processing for everything single shot?

Not sure if i should go to the mainstream Canon 500D or the Kx.......

you can always go on JPEG output as some of us use it for casual shots, just need to set the cam to Vivid or bright to pump up brightness. And if you feel some artistry in you, you can revert to RAW to bring in more customization in your shots. ie. you can adjust the look of the image depending on your taste.

BTW, images that come out from Pentax has full of character, one knowledgeable individual can see the difference from other brands.

 

[scorpioh]

you can always go on JPEG output as some of us use it for casual shots, just need to set the cam to Vivid or bright to pump up brightness. And if you feel some artistry in you, you can revert to RAW to bring in more customization in your shots. ie. you can adjust the look of the image depending on your taste.

BTW, images that come out from Pentax has full of character, one knowledgeable individual can see the difference from other brands.

Yes. my friend with the D700 was impressed by the punch and color of my raw-converted jpegs from my wretched pathetic K10d...

 

[juchua]

Yes. my friend with the D700 was impressed by the punch and color of my raw-converted jpegs from my wretched pathetic K10d...

Care to share some of your pictures?