UKC

My Pentax ME Super has finally given up the ghost and with a birthday looming I think I'll treat myself to a new camera.
I already own a decent quality compact digital camera which I use when climbing and I have been attempting to research DSLRs for mostly landscapes and situations where carrying the extra size/weight is not an issue - without spending more than £600. I'd prefer not to buy second hand although I believe that there are some good used deals to be had.
I've narrowed down my search, I think, to either a Nikon d5300 or a Pentax k50.
The Pentax is currently favourite as it's about £150 cheaper and I can use my old lenses.
The nikon wins most reviews for image quality and features but I'm finding it hard to justify the extra expense.
Any ideas or advice would be gratefully received.

Thanks

Pmc

In reply to baron:

2nd hand body, brand new lens.

Buying brand new body and lens is the compromise, not the best option. Presumably your budget is fixed, my way you spend more on the glass - £600 isn't much. I bought a 2nd hand canon 60D while it was still the latest model in that series, saved about £300. If you buy from a good shop they will only handle good stuff - in my case the shop sold the original owner the 60D and the 5D he upgraded too. The shutter count was low, around 2000.

In reply to baron:

Instead of the Pentax K50 have a good look at the Pentax K-S2, I'm very pleased with mine - compact, weather proof and 20MP, the improvement over my K10D is remarkable

In reply to Philip:

But Phil, he's already got glass from his old Pentax. Assuming he's happy with those lenses then there's no reason not to put all the budget into the body.

Having said that I'd agree that used bodies are the way to go. Buy one generation back and get 90% of the performance for 50% of the cost.

OP - if you're happy with your old lenses then I'd thoroughly recommend a used Pentax, as it'll integrate with your lenses very readily. And Pentax has one huge advantage over Canon and Nikon: in-body (as opposed to in-lens) stabilisation. You should be able to find a used K3 in budget.

Only caveat - if you plan to use mf lenses, budget £80 for a replacement focusing screen with a proper split image.

In reply to Jamie Wakeham:

I find I don't need a split screen with my Pentax manual lenses; the AF system has a visual and beep focus indicator when manually focussing - which seems very accurate

Some useful and interesting ideas - looks like I'll have to do some more research/looking around.
Thanks for all the quick and helpful advice

Pmc

In reply to baron: "I have been attempting to research DSLRs for mostly landscapes and situations where carrying the extra size/weight is not an issue - without spending more than £600. I'd prefer not to buy second hand although I believe that there are some good used deals to be had."

I know you said you don't mind a heavy camera, but why dSLR ? Its only advantage these days is slightly faster autofocus when using native lenses, but they're going to be expensive lenses. Are you a twitcher ? If not, and you're not looking for a specialist tool for birds/wildlife, a mirrorless cam will let you afford far more lenses and will make pix every bit as good as a dSLR will. And the smaller you go, the more likely you are to take your camera with you

In reply to baron:

I come from a very similar camera background as yourself and I bought the Pentax S2 recently and really can't fault it. It's a lovely intuitive camera and happily takes legacy glass. Handles well, nice compact body, weather proof, decent image quality and good spec for the money. Great bit of kit I'd second the vote earlier for it!

Thanks for the ideas - guess with so much choice it might have been better to ask people if they've ever bought a camera that wasn't a decent one


Pmc

In reply to baron:

I recently bought a d5300, and I'm really happy with it.

Lightweight, really useful swivel screen, nice low light performance, good battery life.

I bought it for about £450 with a 35mm 1.8. Well within your budget.

In reply to baron:

Buy my older Nikon D40 with 18-55 and 55-200VR Lens !! Perfect as a first DSLR.......

In reply to baron:

Buying cameras that are actually crap is getting quite difficult now.

In reply to baron:

Even if you don't like to buy a second hand camera. I'd prolly look into a Pentax K3 if possible. That way the body is not going to be holding you back and you can still use all the glass from your ME.

Also, I think you might even find the K3 as a bargain for under 600 (eg. one local retailler is selling new K3's for 800 €, so about 560 £).

Pentax isn't the best for action shots, but for scenary and art, it's really good. And their glasses are top notch.

In reply to HeMa:
I was going to get the K3, but when I compared the real world differences from a climber's point of view the lower cost but lighter more compact K-S2 met my requirements better, still 20MP and similar image quality

In reply to baron:

I used to have an ME Super. I always liked it for its compact size.

However I agree with Moffatross and I would definitely consider a mirrorless camera. So much smaller and lighter but with the same or virtually the same sensor size as a consumer DSLR (APS-C or micro four thirds). The AF is really quick on most models these days and there's a great selection of lenses available too. And the modern hi res viewfinders give superb viewing. Not sure what the extra bulk of a DSLR would be good for.

In reply to stp:


Real viewfinder, which is pretty darn important in certain lighting conditions.

And also bigger cell than on most mirrorless cameras.

In reply to HeMa:


That goes both ways. Using a lens with small maximum aperture in dim light and you can't see very much, even more so with the small viewfinder image you get with an APS-C sensor. On the other hand, with a mirrorless camera you get a bright image in all lights (easily viewable in full sunlight) with the advantage of overlays like a live-view histogram. On the whole I prefer a real optical viewfinder but I have to admit to some of the advantages of EVFs.

And I'd agree with stp - I'm not sure what you get with the extra bulk of DSLRs, though some of the entry level DSLRs are fairly compact.
Anthony

In reply to baron:

Just to throw out another option (if you did decide to go with Nikon) I recently bought the D3300 and i'm super impressed.

As far as dSLR's go its about as small and lightweight a body as you can go. It's the same sensor and processor as in the D5500, although you don't get the swivel screen and it has less auto-focus points. For landscape however those shouldn't really be much of an issue and it'll give you the same image quality as the more expensive D5500.

Like above though, the CSC's are probably worth a serious look.

Joe M

In reply to HeMa:

Which lighting conditions do you mean ? Astrophoto ? Dark interiors ? Into the sun ? Come on, don't just say 'certain' and leave it vague :-P

If by cell, you mean battery, 400-500 shots from a mirrorless per charged battery is like 20 rolls of film, plenty And a spare battery costs peanuts.