no 1 just "happened." I looked up and went, "whoa." And the DL3 is perfect for it due to the 16x9. Its funny with your tools/toys. Sometimes you get ones that you are totally enamored with at the start, but over time start to lose interest. Others have an initial spark to suck you in, push you back a bit with some of their foilbles, but then start to really shine in your hands. I am quite enthralled with the DL3 now. I'm starting to get what its about and can be about...and it turns out it is quite a lot. I really hope they do a DL4 with a few tweaks. I love the concept. The Pentax was much more hit and miss during the trip, and fankly didn't see as much use for the obvious reason - more to carry. I've even pondered taking back the K10d and going dslr-less. But the reality is that in my day job I'm increasingly being one of the "visual guys". And if you show up to shoot a project with a p&s, you will get very funny looks. Sadly, the dslr is needed for street cred. In my case, I'm migrating from shooting auto to more manual control and with the Pentax I just need more practice and learn more about wtf I'm doing. And I keep telling myself that at $700 with the kit lens for 10mp, shake reduction in the body, sensor cleaning, full weather seals, and good ergonomics, that is a hell of a deal. Just buy good glass (first on the list is an of SMC A 50/1.4, or maybe a Voigtlander 40/2.0) and learn the tool. I'm down on auto focus anyway, as I like to *feel* what is going on with the shot. I have a driving analogy about my track car but that's for another rant. Short story (from a long book I'm working on) is that we're analog beings shooting analog subjects with digital tools - and there is an inherent problem found in that which requires critical attention.
