UKC

Hi does anyone have first hand experience of the Pentax K-r dSLR? Good & bad points? I have some old 35mm Pentax glass and it sounds like it should be compatible. Does anyone have experience using the old film lenses on new digital Pentax bodies? Any input would be much appreciated!

Thanks!

In reply to Ireddek: I have used Pentax K10D for long time. It is a great camera, very durable. It has different sensor and probably firmware too than K-r, so I can't tell anything about K-r. About K10D, the only annoying issue was high noise in ISO 400 and above. In my opinion, it was mostly a problem with firmware and denoising algorithm causing visible regular artefacts in high ISO. Here are my photos taken with K10D

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mloskot/tags/pentaxk10d

I have used fantastic old manual lens SMC P-A 50mm F/2.0

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mloskot/tags/smcpa50mmf20/

Summary, if you have Pentax K-mount compatible lenses, I would stick to Pentax body as old Pentax prime lenses are fantastic quality.
If you don't have anything now and investing in new kit from scratch, I think I would look for Canon or Nikon. I have just switched from Pentax K10D to Nikon D7000 but no I have to live for next months with kit lens only

You may find this helpful: http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/

In reply to mloskot:

Thanks for your input & that link. Also loving your photos thanks for sharing! Yeh I have some 8-10 year old lenses & also some really old ones that used to go with my 1st camera the Pentax K1000 (a hand-me-down of my dad's & still my all time fav camera & a total work horse!) Nice to know I can most probably retrieve some of those lenses from the box in the attic now & start dusting them off.

I love Pentax... & feel a strange loyalty to the brand, but they've been a bit slow in the overall digital revolution. Have been avoiding going down the dSLR path for some while for various reasons, but managed to kill my compact on the weekend & don't think I want to hold back any more, time to step up again & wield a proper camera for a change

In reply to Ireddek:

I have a k-x the model before the k-r and love it, prefer it to the Nikon I considered as smaller and lighter, good for those long walkins.

I only got mine a few months back and they were doing them cheap as the k-r was coming out, if you search the internet you might still find some available.

Taken loads of climbing pics and never been disappointed, I know people get really defensive about canon v's nikon v's panasonic but all modern dslr are really good and the lens makes the most difference. If you already have a few pentax lenses then I would stick with pentax. I do know that because the sensor is not full frame the focal length of the lens changes but about 1.5 between a 35mm film and pentax k-x.

In reply to Ireddek: I've got a pentax K5 now, but used to own a Km, and an older model *ist DS.
Have used old 35mm glass on all bodies and they all produce very decent results. In fact my default outdoor lens would be the M 28mm f3.5!
If you're going to be in the standard british weather quite a bit, it might be worth considering a K20d 2nd handed or a weather sealed body, with a cheap 18-55mm WR kit lens, the kit lens is one of the most under-rated pieces of kit!

In reply to Ireddek: I have also just bought a K-x and absolutely love it. I have an old 28-200mm lens which I have not really used it with yet but have taken a few shots and they seem ok. I do agree with the following review
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/pentaxkr/ - the lack of visible AF points in the viewfinder is a draw back on the K-x therefore if you have the extra dosh get the K-r. If you are looking to get a DSLR go for what you know - pentax!

In reply to Ireddek:

Thanks for all that everyone! Nice to know all those pounds I spent on lenses way back will be of some value again. I might just have to go & visit some shops this weekend & see who wants my money most I'm rather excited about it now!

In reply to Ireddek:

the pentax listings are not complete but still worth checking before you spend money

http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/cat23.html

In reply to Ireddek: I've been real happy with my K10D since I bought it a few years ago. I vowed not to get too fussed about new models coming out with more 'bells and whistles' and as a result I have been able to get to grips with it and just enjoy taking photos, rather than wishing for the next bit of tech.

You'll be fine using the old glass with a DSLR, just remember you will lose all the auto focus etc of a new lens, but I guess if you are used to using a standard slr it won't be an issue. Manual is more fun anyway.

In reply to Ireddek:

The place to get information about Pentax is the Pentax Forums:

http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/

In reply to Ireddek:
I have the Pentax K-m which I use with my old Pentax M-series lenses. There is more about using old lenses with modern DSLRs on the Pentax forums, here:

http://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-beginners-corner-q/110658-using-m...

To use fully manual lenses successfully you need to do two things; (1)go into the camera's custom function menu and check that "Allow aperture setting other than A" is set to "2(allowed)" and (2) find out how to activate the stop-down metering mode(the so-called "green button").

Have fun, the old lenses are great.

In reply to Ireddek:

Dear all

Once again thanks for all the advice & directing me to the settings as described in the Pentax Forum. I have a feeling I'd be frequenting that forum more once I've bought the camera tomorrow, because unfortunately just like good outdoor gear shops the better camera shops here in Bristol adhere to the same old fashioned notion of being closed on Sundays. Getting ever so excited!

In reply to Ireddek: apart from the pentaxforums there's a UK based one here.
www.pentaxuser.co.uk/forum