Pentax *istDL DSLR...opinions??

[ndelaware]

Start here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond50/page17.asp scroll down the page to see the comparison between the D50 and the *ist.

Here is a qoute from that review directly under the comparison shots:

"The difference between the Pentax *ist DS and Nikon D50 is pretty clear here especially at ISO 400 and 800 where the D50 continues to deliver clean tones the *ist DS is already looking speckled and somewhat noisy. Additionally there's no loss of detail in the D50 images which hints to either a very good noise reduction system or minimal noise reduction.

The graph below supports what we've seen in visual comparison, the D50 delivering low luminance noise levels especially between ISO 200 and 800. At ISO 1600 noise levels are similar to the Canon EOS 350D and Nikon D70 although with no obvious loss of detail. As mentioned above the D50's noise is most noticeable in the red channel (luminance is mostly made up of green)."

The *ist only gets a "Recommended" rating compared to the D50's "Highly Recommended" from DPReview who I don't think wear Nikon pjs. And neither do I since I've never owned a Nikon product.

This is from Cnet.com's review:

"The good: Svelte and affordable; logical interface; solid image quality.

The bad: Autofocus sometimes flustered by difficult scenes; auto white-balance setting mediocre for outdoor shadows or artificial light.

The bottom line: A great value per ounce, the Pentax *ist DL is a logical choice for budget-minded enthusiasts looking to upgrade to a digital SLR, but it's not ideal for shooting action or running on full auto."


From Macworld.com:

"Macworld’s buying advice
If you already have lenses with a Pentax K, KA, KAF, or KAF2 mount and are looking to go digital, then the Pentax ist DL is an obvious choice. (Note that you can also use screw mount lenses or 645 and 67 series lenses with a special adapter.) If you’re trying to choose between the DL and its main competitors, the Nikon D50, and the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, then you’ll find better image quality and more lens options with the competition. In the end, you should get your hands on all three cameras and see which one has the feel and interface that makes the most sense for you."

From DigitalCamerainfo.com:

"Low Light Performance (5.5)
In theory, any digital camera with a 3200 ISO rating and low noise scores should also perform well in low light. We tested the *ist DL by shooting exposures of the color chart at decreasing light levels of 60, 30, 15, and 5 lux. 60 lux is about what your living room looks like at night with only two table lamps on. 30 lux is the equivalent of a single 40-watt bulb. 15 lux is about what you’d find in a broom closet with lighting coming from a hallway far, far away. 5 lux is almost total darkness.




The *ist DL was difficult to manipulate in low light. First, there were issues with the manual white balance. It had a really hard time measuring it and would read “no good” much of the time. When it did manually calibrate the white balance, it wasn’t consistent or accurate, so we tested the camera’s low light capabilities using the tungsten white balance mode. The second problem was the focus. As you can see, this Pentax has problems focusing in low light. The third problem is the color. The darker the surrounding light got, the more everything took on an overall bluish tint. All of the low light shots are splotchy and look like a cross between modern pop art and a Georges Seurat painting."



The Pentax is a good camera for the price. The D50 is a better camera for just a bit more.

 

[Anewman]

My only hesitation at this point are the two things I've seen mentioned the most about the Pentax in reviews and photography forums...low light focusing being on the slow side and the fact that the buffer memory fills up quickly in continuous shooting. From what I've read the D50 does much better in both these areas and one of my reasons for wanting to switch to a dslr is for those low light situations that p&s don't generally do well with. But overall the Pentax dslr's seem to be spoken very highly of, expecially for the price. And in the meantime the K100 kit has come down another $5 on beach (every bit helps!!).

It sounds like lowlight shooting and BURST mode is important to you, if so I would advise you to get the D50 vs the Pentax DL or even K100.

1. Buffer is over twice as large on the Nikon(12 jpegs) vs the Pentax models(5 jpegs).

2. Recognized superior High ISO noise levels.

3. Fast primes such as a 50mm 1.8 lens in the $100 range for the Nikons, would help greatly with lowlight focus and image quality. IS of the k100 can not stop subject movement. Fast primes period are just more readily available at most camera shops for the NIKONs.

4. Faster flash sync speed on the D50.

B4 I am accused of wearing Nikon PJs, I have been shooting Canon since the 80s. I have recommended the Pentax line plenty of times(here and elsewhere), but if this is truly important to you the choice is obvious. A couple months ago Beach/Buydig was selling D50 Refurbs in the high $400 range.

I also find it ironic that ndelaware gets accused of spreading FUD and wearing Nikon PJs, by someone that has how many posts promoting Pentax????
Not a bad thing, I just found it kinda ironic.

 

[Groucho]

Regarding my messages, I've written many positive things about the D50. I want to make sure that the Pentax is given equal time - and what's wrong with making sure people are aware of an extremely viable option that can save them a good amount of money? (Or just to let them know that it's out there at all?) I was also recommending a Fuji in another thread.

If you're looking for information to support a given point (that the D50 is "better" than the Pentax line), you can always find such things on the internet. However, I've also seen plenty of reviews that do not find any "ISO issues" with the Pentax.

From Shutterbug:
"Digital noise is very well controlled, making the *ist DL better than average in this respect. The colored specks are virtually invisible at ISO 200, barely noticeable at ISO 400, and visible at ISO 800. By ISO 1600, the pattern is prominent but quite acceptable unless large prints are required. ISO 3200 is available, too, but produces mottled color specks that obliterate fine detail; use this option only when there’s no other way to get a sharp photo."

From DCRP (reviewing the original ist D):
"As you can see, noise levels are extraordinarily low, even at ISO 1600."

From DCRP, reviewing the K100D:
"You need a sharp eye to see the difference between the ISO 200, 400, and 800 shots. All three are very clean, so making large prints at these settings is a piece of cake. At ISO 1600 things still look very good -- almost as good as what Canon's CMOS sensors produce. Strangely enough it seems like the K100D has less noise than the Samsung GX-1S, which I think uses the same sensor. The ISO 3200 setting isn't great -- there's a fair amount of noise as well as a reduction in color saturation -- but you could probably get a small print out of photos taken at that sensitivity."

From Steve's Digicams:
"While noise is present at the higher ISO settings, the *ist DL compares favorably in this respect with the high-end prosumer digicams that overlap its price range."

From Megapixel (reviewing the DS):
"Moreover, at 200 ISO, the photos are no noisier than would be the images from many cameras at half that sensitivity, while higher ISO settings such as 1600 ISO, although a bit noisier, are completely useable." They also give it 10/10 for image quality for both outdoor and flash, a 10/10 for focusing, and a 9/10 for metering reliability.

A longish DenGuru review directly pitting the D50 vs the DL found no ISO differences.

If you're after a bigger buffer, the Pentax DS series has that. There are no shortages of lenses available, prime or otherwise.

Moreover, the DL has plenty of things that the D50 lacks.
Obviously, a much larger LCD.
The Pentax allows you to fine-tune the focus manually after autofocus has done its thing ("quick shift").
The front of the kit lens does not rotate when zooming/focusing, unlike the D50's kit lens. This is important when using speciality filters like polarizers, graduated colors, etc. It also has a distance scale, lacking on the D50's kit lens.
The D50 has no depth of field preview.

And yes, the D50 has a couple things that the Pentax ones lack, like an orientation sensor. No camera is perfect, certainly not the D50 nor the ist line.

The point is that the Pentax is an extremely good camera for an extremely good price. There are no more "issues" that should keep anyone from choosing it than any other DSLR near its price range.