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Lousy picture quality
By: Mike McLeland
March 19, 2008 @ 12:49 PM
After only 5 months with my new K10D, I’ve made the difficult decision to get rid of it (everything, lenses, etc.). All the BLOGS acknowledge this camera takes “soft image quality pictures”. The fact is that the image quality is NOT just “soft”; they’re fuzzy, blurry and downright lousy. Pentax told me just to Photoshop all my pictures or shoot everything in RAW. OUCH! For this much $$$, you can definitely do MUCH BETTER than a K10D! Do your homework!
Rating: 1 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
Excellent difficult to fault.
By: Cliff Saunders
January 2, 2008 @ 11:13 AM
This is my first SLR camera, a bit daunting at first but it is a camera that you quickly adapt to. I used this on holiday basically to get a feel of it; most other people had smaller hand held type. The result compared to the others was stunning. Had to supply pictures through because other photographs were poor, which made me feel good knowing I had purchased a smashing piece of equipment.
Rating: 9 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
A 'so so' camera
By: Kisha
November 20, 2007 @ 5:02 PM
After using this camera for about two months, all the above reviews sound like paid ads by Pentax. K10D is not that great. I am getting better results with a two years old 8 MP Panasonic FZ30 with its 35-420mm (35mm equivalent) Leica lens. K10D scores only in dim, unfavorable lighting conditions and where long shutter speeds are used due to its advantage of being a 10 MP camera. Low noise and all that. The latches which need to be twisted to access the SD card and the battery also appear very flimsy. On most of my assignments I still prefer to carry my old faithful Panasonic FZ30 giving me the most important advantage of recording images in uncompressed TIFF format where as to get similar quality I have to shoot in RAW with K10D and spend hours in front of my PC carrying out necessary corrections.
Rating: 6 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
Excellent camera
By: Mr C. E. Saunders
October 10, 2007 @ 7:42 PM
This is my first SLR camera, this made me a bit worried could I use such a piece of equipment, the answer an absolute yes. I have reduced the pixel to 6, as this gives me all I require plus lots of superb pictures.
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
It's all about the viewfinder
By: John H
August 15, 2007 @ 10:56 AM
Remember when SLRs had clear, crisp viewfinders that showed a near-life-size image through the taking lens? Isn’t that what an SLR is all about? But lately, most of them use mirrors in the viewfinder to save cost and weight, but usually at the cost of brightness and clarity. The K10D has an excellent viewfinder. Its imaging performance is as good or better than most DSLRs. Add anti-shake, weather sealing, great handling, fine lenses (old and new), and a great price and Pentax wins my dollars hands down. No, you won’t find one at your local BestBuy or Circuit City like the big-NikonCanonOlySonySigma conglomerate camera companies’ products. Go to a real camera store and try out the Pentax viewfinder and handling and look at the price/feature factor. No contest.
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
There is no short-list. This is IT.
By: Mandi Brooker
August 5, 2007 @ 3:18 PM
I have been reading reviews of dSLRs for months now, and eventually decided on the K10D. I was expecting something fantastic after reading all the rave reviews, and it has more than lived up to my expectations. The image quality is superb, and it’s really, really intuitive to use. I had film SLRs years ago, but have spent the last few years being babied by a good compact digital, and I was afraid I might have forgotten how to take "real" photographs. Not a bit of it – it all seems so natural (and, to respond to the first posting, no, it’s not because I know how Pentax works – my film cameras were Minoltas) with the most important controls falling right under one’s fingers or thumb. I’ve only had the camera about 36 hours and already it’s starting to feel like breathing – I just want to open the aperture and it opens, without my having to think about what I’m doing to make it happen.
On the other hand, my son-in-law who had never seen – or certainly never handled – anything other than a camera-phone was ALSO taking really great photos within minutes of picking the camera up – it’s just that good.
I love the way the camera will automate for you – for example, pin-sharp autofocus – but the second you want to override that, it hands over control, meek as a lamb. After years of wrestling with my compact, trying to get it to allow me just to manually focus, this is heaven.
I bought the camera because of the weatherproofing, but hadn’t realised that everything about it is take-anywhere, not just the build. Last night I sat at the back of the Sydney Town Hall and took usable photographs of a troupe of Whirling Dervishes under not-very bright stage lighting – no flash and HAND-HELD. With a 100mm lens. Amazing. And under GOOD conditions… beautiful portraits, great wild-life shots, fabulous macro… this camera does it all.
I am a convert!!!
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
Pentax GIVETH & taketh away
By: Larry in Dallas
July 16, 2007 @ 1:12 PM
For almost 4 decades, I’ve been shooting Pentax SLRs and glass. By now everything is totally intuitive and ALL my old lenses work on the K10D just the way they worked on the body for which I originally purchased them.
I upgraded from a 6MP *istD when I decided that I needed the availability of anti-shake. It’s definitely what I needed.
Working with RAW images in the camera enables me to leave an edited set of prints to be looked at while I do the real post-processing work. DNG works with whatever version of Photoshop I’m familiar with.
Picture quality is a function of the photographer and the lens used. Using RAW, the camera adds NO degrading to the image. However, I don’t work in prints of greater than 2×3 feet.
I’d like to say it’s truly ergonomic, but given my prior experience with Pentax equipment, I’m not sure if this is true or I’ve simply become accustomed to the way Pentaxen work.
Pentax took away the flash TTL facility and replaced it with a P-TTL capability. I can understand why, but I’m not enthusiastic about replacing my old flashes with a more expensive new one. Right now I’m using a workaround. That’s why I can still rate the K10D as a 10.
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
Great features and performance for the price (are you listening Canon)
By: f-stop
June 30, 2007 @ 8:42 PM
I have owned this camera since Feb 07. I had my heart set on buying a Nikon D80, but after reading reviews I decided to look for a K10D. All it took was a few test shots and feeling it in my hands and I was sold. I’ll stick with Pentax if they keep coming up with innovative and feature rich products like this camera is, kudos to Pentax for keeping the price down as well.
I hope Nikon and Canon are paying attention, they’ve definately been beaten this round.
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
K10D: Great Pentax Product
By: M. Quijada
May 29, 2007 @ 9:12 AM
I have had this camera since December 2006. I origianlly had the Nikon D70 and even though this is a great camera, I bougth the Pentax KD10 just to "test the waters" with its imaging stabilization feature. Needless to say I have been so satisfied with it to the point that I have done what I thought will be unthinkable a few months ago: selling my D70 on Ebay! My greatest compliment is that by using the K10D I have really grown with it in furthering my somewhat limited knowledge of photography!
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
From the day the K10D was announced, my heart was set on it.
By: John Doe
April 23, 2007 @ 6:48 AM
After perusing the reviews and absorbing the hype, I continued to assimilate any fact or comment made about this Black Beauty of a DSLR. And I wasn’t disappointed. The first shots out of the K10D were so vivid and lifelike that I was amazed. And if I weren’t amazed, I could change to the Bright mode and a little plus and minus configuring: and I’d be amazed again! I want to take this opportunity to thank Pentax for providing me with such a magnificent photographic tool that I can grow with. It seemed like the camera was telling me: Well, let’s get with it. It’s picture-taking time! Every control seemed so intuitive, as though I was born into this camera: the camera and I were one–fused together. After the recent firmware updates, I’m sure we’ve fused together. At first, it was difficult to get my mind to concentrate on the manual. The camera seemed so easy to operate. But when I realized that I needed the manual and its index, for one purpose…and one purpose only: to peruse the index (or table of contents) for interesting subjects that I wanted to know more about, or to have as a reference when I felt I didn’t understand a certain function, etc. Taking that approach, I’ve scoured the instruction manual, and loved every minute of it. Don’t read the manual from front to back, or you’ll fall asleep as I did. It’s designed to answer your questions. And I’ve now become an avid lover of the RAW button and the flexibility it provides. An speaking of RAW mode, I’ve had loads of fun developing and manipulating RAW files “within” the camera. It’s easy and satisfying…! If you want to do more exotic stuff, then you’re free to use the included Pentax software, or opt for a DNG program if you prefer. It’s up to you. I’m just getting used to the auto ISO setting where I set both ISO parameters: high and low. Why not let the camera decide what’s best in that regard. I was using the 100 to 400 auto ISO mode, and automatically switching to ISO 1600 in available light (and liking the results!), but when I found out about the higher ISO auto mode: I’ve decided to expand, or grow with the camera. And if the 1,600 ISO setting isn’t sufficient, then you can increase the ISO to either 3,200 or 6,400 in the in-camera RAW development mode. The versatility of the hyper modes and sensitivity modes, etc. only makes me want to push my creativity. And when you live in a hot, cold or damp environment, the sealed body gives you comfort of mind that your investment is being preserved. Just thinking about the 100,000-shutter release test makes me feel confident in the quality of the components used throughout the camera. Everyone should know about the image stabilization onboard, along with the dual dust removal system. Dust has always plagued DSLR owners, and those who want to buy a DSLR; yet, fearing to do so because of the havoc dust plays on precious images is now a thing of the past. So, make the leap to an excellent camera that those thoughtful (and NOT greedy) folks at Pentax have provided at an economical price (considering the competition). And if anyone ever asks if the camera is worth the amount of money dished out: let them know that every cent spent on the K10D more than pays for itself in quality, features and image quality, etc. That’s my opinion–and like rear ends–everybody’s got one. That’s my opinion for whatever it’s worth. The bottom line (disclaimer): the decisions up to you. Investigate further, that’s your right and obligation as a buyer. This or any other camera is not for everybody. Keep that in mind. But this camera grows with you. So why buy one camera now…and another later if you’re merely testing the waters, and want to find out if photography is more than a hobby or interest? You can save a lot of money and grief if you make your mind up now, not later. Nevertheless, you grow with this camera, and in my opinion, the Pentax K10D is the camera to grow with. It’s a beauty, that she is… It melts into your hand and heart. Take care. And good luck on YOUR decision whatever that may be…
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
The bar is raised
By: Dan G.
March 8, 2007 @ 9:40 AM
Bought this camera recently for wedding events, and it’s by far the best camera I have owned to-date. Make sure you know what you are doing if you want to take full advantage of it’s features.
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No
k10 use and review
By: jean-pierre grosemans
March 1, 2007 @ 1:59 PM
I own a k10 since mid December 2006; after long and repeated tests with the competition; the k10 came out as the winner; the k10 proved to be up to par with what they pretend ( pentax )the camera will; the camera reminds me of my first pro slr in the old days the Nikon f1
this is the 2007 equivalent.
took hundreds of shots up to now, all situations and conditions and the results are fantastic.
bravo pentax
Rating: 10 :: 0 out of 0 people found this user review helpful. Was this user review helpful? Yes | No