Any opinions on the Pentax K100D?

[wkrider]

I have some Pentax lenses and the reviews say that this camera will work with any Pentax lens. I have the SMC Pentax-A 1:2 50mm and the Auto Zoom 1:4.0-5.6 f=70-210mm. I like that it has shake reduction system, the 2.5 screen and several other features that are to many to list. It is 6.1 effective megapixels, here is a link...

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0605/06052205pentaxk100d.asp

 

[Thumper_ehhhhh]

I have the K100d they say they all work. They dont. I have a sigma miniwide from my old pentax super me that will attach but not work. All k mout lens will attach most will prob work. Not all will work with all the features though. It is a great camera I don't regret getting it. I recomend it. Oh yes the shake reduction is very nice.

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

I just bought this camera and I love it! It is my first DSLR, so I am still learning, but so far so good. DH even wants one now.

 

[wkrider]

I just bought this camera and I love it! It is my first DSLR, so I am still learning, but so far so good. DH even wants one now.

Do you mind if I ask where you got it? On-line or at a store.

Thanks to both responds for the info.

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

Do you mind if I ask where you got it? On-line or at a store.

Thanks to both responds for the info.

I bought it from beachcamera.com. I ordered it on Wednesday and I had it by Saturday (regular shipping). It was $500 after rebate, that includes the lens. You could also use buydig.com (they are sister sites).

 

[Shifletjl]

I also recently purchased the Pentax K100d. It is my first SLR. The camera is very comfortable to use. I take mostly family portraits, landscapes and a little indoor volleyball. As a new user, I am very happy with my camera.

 

[wkrider]

I bought it from beachcamera.com. I ordered it on Wednesday and I had it by Saturday (regular shipping). It was $500 after rebate, that includes the lens. You could also use buydig.com (they are sister sites).

I checked the Beach Camera site and the Buydig site....they had the K110D body lens kit but only the K100D body without lens listed....Do they have them and lot list them?

http://www.buydig.com/shop/searchresults.aspx?kwd=&mnm=Pentax&cti=3014&apr=&zpr=&prevCti=2014

http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/sea...d=&mnm=Pentax&cti=3014&apr=&zpr=&prevCti=2014

 

[ukcatfan]

I second Buydig/Beach. I bought my K100D from them. I had also bought my S1 IS from them. They are super fast and seem to be completely honest. They do not usually even try the add-on sales like most online retailers. There is one thing that I would suggest, as they are more difficult than Adorama or B&H for returns. Before you let the delivery guy walk away, insist that you open the box and inspect that everything is there and not damaged. I really do not think you will have problems at all, but I have read someone complaining that they did not receive something they ordered when Buydig claimed to send it. Simply inspecting your package in front of the delivery guy will completely prevent any problems there. They require a signature anyway, so you can guarantee that it is not just left at your doorstep and goes missing.

As for the camera, it is great. It is my first DSLR, so I cannot compare to others. I picked it over the Nikon and Canon b/c of the way it felt and the IS built in to the body. I have had it since Oct. and I am very happy with it. With you already having some nice lenses, I think it comes down to which Pentax instead of if Pentax. Replacing those lenses with a new brand is going to really increase your costs. I bet you could even bring in your lenses to a camera shop that carries the K100D and try them out.

Specifically on lenses, the 50mm f/2 SMC A is the same 50mm I have for mine. I wish I could have afforded the new autofocus one, but that one is much more than the $45 I paid. I am happy with it. Being manual focus, it is not ideal for action shots, but it is pretty nice. This is a review of it: http://www.photodo.com/product_304.html

I believe that this is a review of your zoom: http://www.photodo.com/product_291.html It seems like a pretty decent one to me. It is certainly better than my cheapo Tamron 80-210mm ($25).

I would also suggest getting the kit lens so that you can cover the wide end. It is 18-55mm. With the 1.5x crop factor of the K100D, your 50mm becomes 75mm and your 70-210mm becomes a 105-315mm. The kit is effectively a 27-83mm with the factor considered. You will have pretty good coverage with those three lenses and only a small gap (55-70mm) that can usually be corrected by taking a few steps back or forward.

Let us know if you have any specific questions.

Kevin

 

[ukcatfan]

I checked the Beach Camera site and the Buydig site....they had the K110D body lens kit but only the K100D body without lens listed....Do they have them and lot list them?

http://www.buydig.com/shop/searchresults.aspx?kwd=&mnm=Pentax&cti=3014&apr=&zpr=&prevCti=2014

http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/sea...d=&mnm=Pentax&cti=3014&apr=&zpr=&prevCti=2014

They are probably just out or running low of the kit lens at the moment. Pentax is selling as quick as they make them right now. It is the same kit lens for all models and it is boxed seperately, so you might get them to offer one if you call. I paid an extra $17 over the body only price back in Oct. from Beach.

Kevin

 

[wkrider]

Specifically on lenses, the 50mm f/2 SMC A is the same 50mm I have for mine. I wish I could have afforded the new autofocus one, but that one is much more than the $45 I paid. I am happy with it. Being manual focus, it is not ideal for action shots, but it is pretty nice. This is a review of it: http://www.photodo.com/product_304.html

I believe that this is a review of your zoom: http://www.photodo.com/product_291.html It seems like a pretty decent one to me. It is certainly better than my cheapo Tamron 80-210mm ($25).

I would also suggest getting the kit lens so that you can cover the wide end. It is 18-55mm. With the 1.5x crop factor of the K100D, your 50mm becomes 75mm and your 70-210mm becomes a 105-315mm. The kit is effectively a 27-83mm with the factor considered. You will have pretty good coverage with those three lenses and only a small gap (55-70mm) that can usually be corrected by taking a few steps back or forward.

Let us know if you have any specific questions.

Kevin[/QUOTE]


Thanks for the great info on my excisting lenses. I think I will go Pentax since you explained the lens coverage to me.

 

[wkrider]

I just called Beach Camera...when they are out of stock of an item they remove it from the wedsite...I just need to keep checking back, he did not know when they would be getting more.

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

I just checked adorama.com and they have it in stock. They also have a $50 rebate.

Here's the link

http://www.adorama.com/IPXK100DK.html?searchinfo=k100d&item_no=8

ETA: B&H also has it in stock

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...s&Q=&sku=438218&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

 

[wkrider]

I just checked adorama.com and they have it in stock. They also have a $50 rebate.

Here's the link

http://www.adorama.com/IPXK100DK.html?searchinfo=k100d&item_no=8

ETA: B&H also has it in stock

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...s&Q=&sku=438218&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

Thanks a bunch....looks like B&H has a better price....

 

[Groucho]

I have the K100d they say they all work. They dont. I have a sigma miniwide from my old pentax super me that will attach but not work. All k mout lens will attach most will prob work. Not all will work with all the features though. It is a great camera I don't regret getting it. I recomend it. Oh yes the shake reduction is very nice.

What doesn't work about the lens? The lens compatability should be 100%, nothing less, with K-mount lenses. I do have one lens that works on my K1000 but not my DL, but that's because it's actually a K/Ricoh mount, and there's a piece of metal that sticks out - I presume it wouldn't mount on any later Pentax film cameras, either. Apparently if you grind down the metal, it'll work fine on the DSLRs, but it's not worth it for a cheap Craig short zoom lens!

Not only should the compatibility be 100%, all the features should work. The only "gotcha" is that lenses without an "A" aperture setting must be used in full manual mode (just as they would on a film camera) and you must hit the A-EL button to stop down the lens if you want it to take a reading. Not such a big deal, and it's tempered by the fact that all manual lenses will still get focus confirmation when you've dialed in the focus right.

Anyway, if something isn't working, that's pretty surprising. It might even be worth asking on one of the Pentax forums, like at Steve's Digicams or DPReview. I don't think I've heard of such an issue before (but I don't spend all my time there, either.)

wkrider, I have the older Pentax *ist DL (I'm holding out for a K10D as my next upgrade) and love the Pentax line. I think the combination of quality and price and features is unbeatable in the current market. On a WDW trip from January, I took over 2,500 photos with mine - there's a link in my signature to my trip report and my gallery, where you can see over 600 photos from the trip (the "worth presenting" ones at up to 1600x1200 resolution. The sensor is the same as the K100D one and I shot in RAW format for all but a few on-ride photos, so the quality is basically exactly the same as the K100D, only without the IS.

 

[wkrider]

I have some Pentax lenses and the reviews say that this camera will work with any Pentax lens. I have the SMC Pentax-A 1:2 50mm and the Auto Zoom 1:4.0-5.6 f=70-210mm. I like that it has shake reduction system, the 2.5 screen and several other features that are to many to list. It is 6.1 effective megapixels, here is a link...

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0605/06052205pentaxk100d.asp

Groucho, based on the above lens info how can I tell if they are "K" lens'? The zoom lens has "KR" on the lens but the 50mm does not denote it anywhere. These fit on my old Pentax A3000 35mm. I also have a "Focal DT-5000 Zoom" flash, do you know if that will work as well with the K100D? Sorry for all the questions but if these work then it makes getting the Pentax that much sweeter.

Thanks

 

[ukcatfan]

Groucho, based on the above lens info how can I tell if they are "K" lens'? The zoom lens has "KR" on the lens but the 50mm does not denote it anywhere. These fit on my old Pentax A3000 35mm. I also have a "Focal DT-5000 Zoom" flash, do you know if that will work as well with the K100D? Sorry for all the questions but if these work then it makes getting the Pentax that much sweeter.

Thanks

Your Pentax branded lenses would not have a K/Ricoh mount. Yours should work with no problems.

Kevin

 

[Groucho]

Basically, if it plugs into a Pentax camera since 1976, it's a K-mount and will work on any Pentax DSLR. If it's earlier than that, then it's an M42 screwmount and will work with a simple adapter.

There are lots of variations of the K-mount (see here for some more info) but the only one that causes problems is the Ricoh mount... which is the KR, which it sounds like you unfortunately have one of.

If you want, you can apparently grind down a little bit of the metal tab on the back of the lens to make it mount - that's the only problem, that it sticks out too far to mount onto the body on the DSLRs (and possibly the newer 35mm film cameras, but I'm not sure.)

...a quick check reveals that the extra bit was used for auto-aperture on Ricoh cameras, which otherwise used standard K-mount lenses. FWIW, the problem lens that I have (Craig 35-70mm) is marked as "P/K-A.R" on the mount.

I don't believe you'll ever find any Pentax-manufacturered lenses like that. The Ricoh lenses are, I'm pretty sure, relatively rare. Your Pentax 50mm should be fine (and is a superb lens). The best replacement for the zoom would probably be the Pentax 50-200mm, which can be had for (off the top of my head) a little under $200 after rebate. It's a fine lens at a good price and a great complement for the kit lens.

As for flashes... I'm pretty sure that your flash will not work. I believe you need a P-TTL flash. It's possible that you can attach it and it'll fire it, but metering will not work properly I would guess? I have an old flash for my K1000 and it fits on my DL just fine but I've never actually tried using it based on what I've read, which all says that it won't work.

 

[Thumper_ehhhhh]

What doesn't work about the lens? The lens compatability should be 100%, nothing less, with K-mount lenses. I do have one lens that works on my K1000 but not my DL, but that's because it's actually a K/Ricoh mount, and there's a piece of metal that sticks out - I presume it wouldn't mount on any later Pentax film cameras, either. Apparently if you grind down the metal, it'll work fine on the DSLRs, but it's not worth it for a cheap Craig short zoom lens!

Not only should the compatibility be 100%, all the features should work. The only "gotcha" is that lenses without an "A" aperture setting must be used in full manual mode (just as they would on a film camera) and you must hit the A-EL button to stop down the lens if you want it to take a reading. Not such a big deal, and it's tempered by the fact that all manual lenses will still get focus confirmation when you've dialed in the focus right.

Anyway, if something isn't working, that's pretty surprising. It might even be worth asking on one of the Pentax forums, like at Steve's Digicams or DPReview. I don't think I've heard of such an issue before (but I don't spend all my time there, either.)

wkrider, I have the older Pentax *ist DL (I'm holding out for a K10D as my next upgrade) and love the Pentax line. I think the combination of quality and price and features is unbeatable in the current market. On a WDW trip from January, I took over 2,500 photos with mine - there's a link in my signature to my trip report and my gallery, where you can see over 600 photos from the trip (the "worth presenting" ones at up to 1600x1200 resolution. The sensor is the same as the K100D one and I shot in RAW format for all but a few on-ride photos, so the quality is basically exactly the same as the K100D, only without the IS.

It mounts just fine. I just get errors with it even in manual. Maybe i'm not doing it right. I'm just a newbie at this DSLR stuff myself. All that comes up on the smaller screen on the top is av-- and that flashes and 193 Amount of pictures left. When I push the button down it turns from 193 to 3. Everything is on manual, I tried all the letters b,m,Av,Tv,P. Inside the viewfinder f-- is showing and it is flashing. The lcd screen just flickers when turning on. The lens is sigma mini-wide II 1:28 f=28mm multi coated lens made in japan. 0 52. The 0 has a slash through it. ANy ideas?
Thanks

 

[ukcatfan]

It mounts just fine. I just get errors with it even in manual. Maybe i'm not doing it right. I'm just a newbie at this DSLR stuff myself. All that comes up on the smaller screen on the top is av-- and that flashes and 193 Amount of pictures left. When I push the button down it turns from 193 to 3. Everything is on manual, I tried all the letters b,m,Av,Tv,P. Inside the viewfinder f-- is showing and it is flashing. The lcd screen just flickers when turning on. The lens is sigma mini-wide II 1:28 f=28mm multi coated lens made in japan. 0 52. The 0 has a slash through it. ANy ideas?
Thanks

This sounds very similar to the problems with the Sigma 24-135 on a Pentax digital. I almost got it instead of my kit lens until I heard the horror stories. Cameta was selling the bad ones for $99, which should have sent off warning signals anyway. I believe that Sigma will do some sort of re-chipping/re-programming for this problem, so you might want to call them.

Kevin

 

[Groucho]

It mounts just fine. I just get errors with it even in manual. Maybe i'm not doing it right. I'm just a newbie at this DSLR stuff myself. All that comes up on the smaller screen on the top is av-- and that flashes and 193 Amount of pictures left. When I push the button down it turns from 193 to 3. Everything is on manual, I tried all the letters b,m,Av,Tv,P. Inside the viewfinder f-- is showing and it is flashing. The lcd screen just flickers when turning on. The lens is sigma mini-wide II 1:28 f=28mm multi coated lens made in japan. 0 52. The 0 has a slash through it. ANy ideas?
Thanks

Ahh, piece of cake. I have that lens myself - very nice little lens. (I only wish mine was autofocus!)

What you want to do is set the aperture ring to the "A" setting - this puts the lens itself in auto-aperture mode and allows the camera to set that. You probably have the ring on another setting, which means that it's forcing the camera to work in aperture priority mode, which is why you've getting the Av setting. The viewfinder says "F--" because when the lens cannot communicate what aperture it's set to to the camera, so the camera doesn't know and just says "--" (this also means that it can't auto-meter unless you press the A-EL button.)

If it's not doing anything when you press the shutter, try putting it in manual focus mode. (I'm guessing this is a manual focus lens?) When the camera is set to autofocus, it won't fire the shutter on a manual focus lens unless it determines that it's focused. In manual focus mode, it'll fire no matter what.

Also, the "193" is the number of shots left on your memory card (I assume you're shooting in RAW on a 2gb card) and the "3" is the amount of shots left in the buffer, if you do continuous shooting. There's a setting in the custom menu to tell it whether or not to show you the remaining buffer shots on a half-press.

Hopefully that helps, let me know how it works. Don't feel bad, I had exactly the same questions when I first got my DL.

BTW, my manual-focus Sigma does not tell the camera the focal length, either. I'm not sure if yours is new enough to do that. I came up with a quick and easy way to add the focal length to exif data, I can give you that info if you like.

Oh, and if your lens doesn't have an "A" setting, there's a trick for that, too.

For reference, here's a shot I took with my Sigma 28mm 2.8...

Not too bad for a lens that'd been sitting untouched in my camera bag for several years!