Update: I got to take the K-7 out for its first big test drive Saturday at the zoo. I only used the 50-200 WR due to the subject matter and the fact that it was fairly windy and I didn't want to change lenses with dust and sand and leaves flying around in most places.
I uploaded all of the pictures to Flickr in
this set. I also shot a few videos just to try it out - none of them more than 15 seconds in length - but I haven't had a chance to run those through iMovie yet.
Overall I am very happy. I have to get used to many of the new features and learn how it reacts to situations so I can learn how to compensate, etc. but all in all it is fantastic. I tried to use different features - metering modes, ISO button, EV button, etc. - things I would have had to dig through menus to get to in the ist*DL but are just a thumb or finger push on an external button on the K-7. The speed is drastically faster, focusing ability is much improved, and the automatic white balance adjustments are light years better. I did not manually adjust WB even once but everything came out the way it should - in camera - without any guidance from me, whereas in the ist I would have had to go into the info screen and adjust WB for indoors, shade, etc. or else get bad exposures I'd have to later fix in PP. The K-7 read the lighting accurately and adjusted accordingly. That fact, combined with it automatically saving portrait photos in portrait when importing into iPhoto, saved me a ton of PP time because previously I'd have to spend quite a bit of time rotating photos and manually correcting WB. No more! Hallelujah!
I am pleased with the WR lenses so far. Not DA* quality by any means, but an upgrade from the Sigma 18-125 I was using in the past. I can't wait for our WDW trip in May when I will rent one or two nicer lenses from cameralensrentals.com (shameless plug because they DO rent Pentax lenses, unlike the other online rental places I've seen that only do Canikons). I'm definitely taking the DA* 55mm f/1.4 and will likely also take a longer telephoto prime - maybe the DA* 200mm f/2.8 for use in shows like Beauty & the Beast, Indiana Jones, Animal Kingdom, etc. The WR 50-200 is only f/4-6.3 so it will obviously not be quite fast enough at 200 to be very good for those dimly lit shows.
Anyway, I ramble. Feel free to browse through
the set on Flickr.
Yes, I know all about having money just "lying around". Got a small bonus Friday at work and today had to take my CRV to the shop for a hanging emergency brake. I am so busy at work I don't have time to fix it myself and I know it will magically make the biggest portion of the bonus go "poof!".
