Author Topic: Stick with Pentax or change?  (Read 2356 times)

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Stick with Pentax or change?
« on: 23 October, 2018, 03:58:23 pm »
I have a Pentax K200D, which is a 7 or 8 years old now. Lenses are a Tamron 18-250 f3.5-f6.3 zoom and the Pentax plastic fantastic 50mm f1.8.  I take snaps for my own enjoyment, some of which may feature bike rides.

The catch that holds the flash down on the K200D is bust, so I have deployed a bit of tactical insulating tape.  I'm giving serious thought to buying something to replace it.


Looking at the recent Pentax offerings I see my local dealer has the K70 as its entry level offering for £600. Many bells and whstles, video capability too, wifi enabled, mind boggling ISO 0f 102400 etc etc.  The Pentax website suggests the K50 is slightly less whizzy, but I can't see it available for new in the UK.


Reviews of the K70 suggest other brands do what it does in a better way. The wifi thing forexample is said to be clunky, but then would I use it?

Do I get a K70 so I can use my old lenses, or bin/trade in the lot and try something else?


There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Re: Stick with Pentax or change?
« Reply #1 on: 23 October, 2018, 04:26:19 pm »
Your investment in lenses isn't huge, so I wouldn't let that be the deciding factor.

You've spoken about your needs in a fairly self deprecatory manner, which is fine, but doesn't really help the decision making process. If all you really want are "snaps" you're likely better off with a camera from the "travel" category - inbuilt capable wide angle to tele lens, IS, small, economical.

When I faced this question a couple of years ago, I was an Olympus E aficionado, but I decided size was important to me and went for a mirrorless m4/3 (oly as well, but that's coincidence. No point using old glass on new body as it defeats the "small" objective). The Canons and Nikons of this world were alluring, especially with the wealth of lenses both OEM and third party, but really only if you want what they offer.

What does your "wish list" look like?

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Re: Stick with Pentax or change?
« Reply #2 on: 23 October, 2018, 05:39:19 pm »
I can  see the self depreciation being less than useful. I hope my pics are a bit better than snaps, but what do I know. Here's a link to some pictures of bikes:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/mtaC5DYLcdWWRhZn9

Here's a link to photos taken in poor light. I'd like to do that sort of thing but easier. I'm currently a bit restricted by the low ISO of the k200d.

https://goo.gl/photos/vd7yQkziJAYok7Mi8


I started taking photos probably the same time as Nic, who we both know. We bought cheap SLRs together and worked out why f numbers did what they do.  His photos are lots better than mine though. Mind you he does have one of mine on his wall, shot on XP1.

I tried using a cheap compact and struggled with it, although that could be down to not being familiar with it.

A shopping list is hard to come up with. The market has moved on greatly since I  bought the k200d, which was an insurance replacement for a Pentax *ist D, so the standard features these days will probably tick all my boxes anyway.

Did that help?

There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Re: Stick with Pentax or change?
« Reply #3 on: 23 October, 2018, 07:13:40 pm »
Yes, it tells me you need to think more about lenses than the camera. I'd reckon you would enjoy a decent shortish telephoto something like a 135mm (35mm equiv.), and possibly a 200, possibly a decent zoom. That would push you towards canon for value, along with the low light capability. Look at lenses before choosing the body.

And do say hi to Nic if you see him (now he has abandoned where real people live)

Re: Stick with Pentax or change?
« Reply #4 on: 23 October, 2018, 09:37:56 pm »
Interesting thread. I lost my Pentax kit last weekend, owing to an act of gross stupidity. I seem just to have put it down in Cologne station, and not picked it up. K-30 with standard zoom, 50-200 and 55-300  :facepalm:

Doesn't look as though it's coming back, so I'm looking at replacement too. But I think I'll stick to Pentax. I've used it all my life, partly because my father-in-law, who got me interested, had an ME Super. I'll give it some time in case the kit turns up, but the K-70 looks a good option. For one thing, I still have a very good Pentax flash unit.

Re: Stick with Pentax or change?
« Reply #5 on: 23 October, 2018, 10:45:20 pm »
I'd go Canon kit, plus definitely consider investing in a used canon 135 f2 - about 500 on ebay but won't lose much value over time and absolutely amazing for low light stuff like your musicians [Tim!]