K7 arrival

[nostatic]

I was going to hold off, but got antsy and ordered one up. A few pics. Short story is much better performance than the K20 wrt AF, fps and general performance. It seems to shoot a bit hot, so I'm dialing in some negative exposure comp. Size is a bit bigger than G1, certainly smaller than K20d. Jury is out if it is too small though the grip shape is nice. My thumb is a bit big though.

The 43/1.9 is a very nice fit as is the 35ltd. Pics later.

These were taken without exposure comp. There is a significant jump going to -0.3. This is indoors in a very dark room, iso 800 or 1600, shutter speeds as low as 1/5 sec.

43ltd

43ltd crop

31ltd

31ltd crop

77ltd

77ltd crop

I particularly like the way these convert to b&w - I like the grain (this is iso 800)

And for size ( K7 with 50-135*, K20d with 16-45,)

 

[Jorgen Udvang]

I was going to hold off, but got antsy and ordered one up. A few pics. Short story is much better performance than the K20 wrt AF, fps and general performance. It seems to shoot a bit hot, so I'm dialing in some negative exposure comp. Size is a bit bigger than G1, certainly smaller than K20d. Jury is out if it is too small though the grip shape is nice. My thumb is a bit big though.

The 43/1.9 is a very nice fit as is the 35ltd. Pics later.

Hmmm... looks nice. It will be interesting to hear how you get on with the camera.

 

[Jonathon Delacour]

Thanks for this. As you say, the B&W grain is particularly tasty, though I don't mind the look of color shots either. How are things looking at ISO 3200? And, most important question of all, how does the 31 Ltd feel on the K-7?

 

[nostatic]

The 31 is just a tad heavy for the size, but it is all relative. The 43 is about perfect. I was shooting with the 50-135* today and that lens rather dwarfs the body but as long as you're not trying to hold it to shoot one handed for long periods it is fine.

Any of the ltd primes is perfect with this body, especially the DA lenses as they are light. It is less squarish/bulky than the K20d (which isn't that big anyway) and performance is quite snappy. AWB is incredibly good and AF is improved over previous Pentax bodies.

Shot with the 43, cropped, indoors, backlight - terrible lighting. Minor tweaks in Aperture. It is a pretty well behaved body.

 

[nostatic]

Some shots of the K7 with 31ltd. K20d with 43ltd (with hood) for comparison

 

[Jonathon Delacour]

Thanks for posting these K-7 with 31/1.8 shots, which make it clear that the 43/1.9 is a much more natural fit for the camera. I look forward to seeing some more K-7 pictures!

 

[nostatic]

Well, after taking a lot of shots back to back with the K20d, I finally sent the K7 back. While the K7 has more features and has better AF, AWB and fps, I found that each time I shot I'd get back and sometimes I'd prefer the K7 shot, other times the K20d. In the end the form factor is just too small for my hands, and it is more comfortable for me to carry the K20d. Plus bigger lenses (31ltd and zooms) are better balanced on the K20d.

The K7 with any of the DA ltd primes is an awesome setup, and for any Pentax user with a body prior to K20d it is a no-brainer upgrade. For those with K20d, there really isn't a bump in iq - which is fine for K7 owners because the iq on the K20d is quite good. I have learned to use the AF on the K20d so while the K7 requires less thought it isn't a night/day difference for me. And I found the video implementation to be too much work relative to either my DLux4 or a proper handycam.

So to make myself feel better I ordered a 16-50* zoom

 

[Jorgen Udvang]

That's an interesting conclusion, and it leads me to the thought that it's possibly an ideal travel camera for myself, combined with the 15mm f/4, the 43mm f/1.9 and 70mm f/2.4 (or 77mm f/1.8... difficult choice).

Just need to dig up some monies first...

 

[Jonathon Delacour]

Well, after taking a lot of shots back to back with the K20d, I finally sent the K7 back.

I think I saw this coming when I read your first couple of posts about the E-P1 on the Four-Thirds forum. I understand your logic in finding the K-7 too small, given that you were intending it as a K20D replacement. On the other hand, I got a shock when I saw the side-by-side shot of the K-7 and K20D and immediately realized it was way bigger (i.e. deeper) than I'd expected. I was seeing the K-7 as a small, carry-everywhere camera, which it's clearly not.

Interesting to see whether you decide to go with the E-P1. I was underwhelmed by the E-P1 and the two Olympus m4/3rds lenses when the details were released and handling it in a store a couple of days ago didn't make me any more enthusiastic.

Now I'm pinning my hopes on either Panasonic's compact m4/3rds camera + 20/1.7 pancake or the Samsung NX10, which is rumored to have a 30/1.4 prime. Either of those lenses (40mm-e and 45mm-e) would suit me perfectly. Both cameras are expected to ship in Q4 so I'll just have to be patient.

That's an interesting conclusion, and it leads me to the thought that it's possibly an ideal travel camera for myself, combined with the 15mm f/4, the 43mm f/1.9 and 70mm f/2.4 (or 77mm f/1.8... difficult choice).

Jorgen, the K-7 plus those lenses would indeed be a superb travel system.

 

[bcf]

That's an interesting conclusion, and it leads me to the thought that it's possibly an ideal travel camera for myself, combined with the 15mm f/4, the 43mm f/1.9 and 70mm f/2.4 (or 77mm f/1.8... difficult choice).

Yes, that's tempting. ALthough the 43mm (approximately 65mm equivalent in 35mm terms) makes for a very strange focal length, which would be of little use to me. I would rather take the 31mm. A 28mm would be ideal (40mm equiv.).

BTW, if you are looking for a small travel camera, why not an Olympus E-620 or E-30 ? Unless of course you want prime lenses, not zooms.

 

[Jorgen Udvang]

Bernard,
There are no strange focal lengths The 35mm f/2.8 Macro is an alternative though.

Yes, an Olympus camera would be logical, since I have a lot of very good OM primes, but I also need something that is weather sealed, and the E-3 is so large. Nice viewfinder though. The E-620 is nice and small, but no weather sealing and the viewfinder isn't really good enough for precise manual focusing. The E-30 to me is neither fowl nor fish.

For the K-7, I would obviously have to buy a weather sealed lens as well. The 55mm f/1.4 is a strong candidate, as is the 16-50mm zoom.

Every time I go through the facts, the K-7 comes out as a more or less perfect travel companion. The Panasonic G1 or GH1 are actually the most interesting alternatives at the moment, but no weather sealing and no in-body IS (and Panasonic camera support in this country is worse than lousy). I will wait and see if Olympus comes up with a pro spec m4/3 body though. The K-7 isn't available here yet anyway, and my wallet is probably more or less empty the next couple of months

 

[bcf]

There are no strange focal lengths

True But one is more or less comfortable with a given focal lens...

Every time I go through the facts, the K-7 comes out as a more or less perfect travel companion.

True. The only thing bothering me is the movie stuff, which I don't need and which somehow "pollutes" the camera

For now, I have a D700 which I use with a bunch of prime lenses: mostly 28/2.8, Voigtlander 40/2, 105/1.8 (just bought, it's all your fault, just discovering this marvelous lens) or 85/1.8, plus sometimes the 20/2.8 and 70-300VR (or Voigtlander 180/4). I have just bought an old 28-50mm (manual) Nikkor zoom, which looks promising - my most used focal lengths being 28 and 40mm. The D700 is a little too big for my taste though.

 

[nostatic]

Interesting to see whether you decide to go with the E-P1. I was underwhelmed by the E-P1 and the two Olympus m4/3rds lenses when the details were released and handling it in a store a couple of days ago didn't make me any more enthusiastic.

Hmm, I guess I'm not the only one. I was not happy with the screen blackout time on the E-P1 (seems like a less responsive camera than my DLux4), and frankly a lot of the images on the E-P1 thread just don't really thrill me. And it is a rather big and heavy camera compared to the DLux4. But there is no free lunch.

I kind of already miss the K7 as it has some very nice features. The shutter is the quietest dSLR I've ever heard. That alone is almost worth the price of admission. I also had a Km/K2000 for awhile and while it is an "entry" level camera I was surprised at the performance and iq. That is smaller than the K7 so if one is looking for a "travel cam" in dSLR it isn't a bad choice. It isn't weather sealed though...but I'm guessing that the next version of it will be. My hunch is that all Pentax dSLRs will be weather sealed (currently the Km/K2000 is the only one that isn't).

When the K7 comes down below $1K I'll likely pick another one up. With a 15/35/70 ltd setup I think you'd have a pretty amazing small system. For me it isn't an replacement for the K20d because I just didn't like the 50-135* zoom on the K7. But the 43 was awesome.

 

[nostatic]

Every time I go through the facts, the K-7 comes out as a more or less perfect travel companion. The Panasonic G1 or GH1 are actually the most interesting alternatives at the moment, but no weather sealing and no in-body IS (and Panasonic camera support in this country is worse than lousy). I will wait and see if Olympus comes up with a pro spec m4/3 body though. The K-7 isn't available here yet anyway, and my wallet is probably more or less empty the next couple of months

Have you played with the G1? I bought one for my g/f and I frankly do not like the EVF. The articulated LCD is nice though.

The rumor is that Pentax will be adding more "lower end" weather resistant lenses (they currently have the 18-55 and 50-200 kit lenses now WR). And in the high end there is 16-50* (have one coming today), 50-135* (a truly amazing lens - really), 60-250*, 200*, 300* and 55/1.4*. But I still come back to the fact that the small DA ltd primes on the K7 are a total natural.

And the shutter. Did I mention the shutter?

 

[nostatic]

For the K-7, I would obviously have to buy a weather sealed lens as well. The 55mm f/1.4 is a strong candidate, as is the 16-50mm zoom.(

Did someone say 16-50?

 

[Jonathon Delacour]

Yes, that's tempting. ALthough the 43mm (approximately 65mm equivalent in 35mm terms) makes for a very strange focal length, which would be of little use to me. I would rather take the 31mm. A 28mm would be ideal (40mm equiv.).

Aah, at last, a kindred spirit! Which is better, a 40/2 Ultron on a D700 or a 28mm lens (I have several) on a D300? I honestly can't decide, so I continue to use both. But since the 40mm/42mm focal length is close to perfection for me, if Sony release an autofocus version of the Zeiss 28/2 along with their A700 replacement, I'll be very tempted to buy one of each and sell my 28/2 ZF.

For now, I have a D700 which I use with a bunch of prime lenses: mostly 28/2.8, Voigtlander 40/2, 105/1.8 (just bought, it's all your fault, just discovering this marvelous lens) or 85/1.8, plus sometimes the 20/2.8 and 70-300VR (or Voigtlander 180/4). I have just bought an old 28-50mm (manual) Nikkor zoom, which looks promising - my most used focal lengths being 28 and 40mm. The D700 is a little too big for my taste though.

28mm, 40/42mm, 58/60mm, 85/90mm are the only (full-frame equivalent) focal lengths that really appeal to me (though, like you, I have a 20/2.8 and the Voigtlander 180/4 for emergencies. Interesting that you bought an old 28-50 zoom because you use the 28mm and 40mm lenses most often. I bought a 28-45 Nikkor zoom for the same reason, though I haven't used it much.

 

[bcf]

Aah, at last, a kindred spirit! Which is better, a 40/2 Ultron on a D700 or a 28mm lens (I have several) on a D300? I honestly can't decide, so I continue to use both.

Exactly. And it's funny how the D700 "feels" bigger than the D200, BTW. The K7 would be better in this respect of course.

Interesting that you bought an old 28-50 zoom because you use the 28mm and 40mm lenses most often. I bought a 28-45 Nikkor zoom for the same reason, though I haven't used it much.

My first tries seem to indicate that the lens is sharp. I will compare it to the 28 and 40mm lenses, and to a 24-85mm zoom which is rather bad outside the center of the frame. The problem with an AI-S zoom, of course, is that the EXIF will not contain the exact focal length.

 

[Lili]

I know I am late to this thread but thanks for all your info on this camera!
I'd planned on selling both my K100d's but the buyer backed out. Reviewing my work from them, esp with the 50/1.4 FA makes me very glad I did not; that lens on this format is awesome for informal portraiture. Pentax does primes so very well, don't they?
Anyway, the K7 looks lovely, and your confirming how quiet the shutter is is really helpful.
Saving and waiting for any price drops now...

 

[Jorgen Udvang]

I finally had the chance to try the K-7 today. The boxes arrived at the shop while I was there. The camera is everything I thought it would be; compact, light, feels solid, excellent ergonomics, great viewfinder.

I also tried it with the new 55mm f/1.4. I'm sure it's a great lens for portraits, but the AF is really slow. I have to sit on the fence for a while anyway, but this is a camera that could live with :thumbup:

 

[bcf]

also tried it with the new 55mm f/1.4. I'm sure it's a great lens for portraits, but the AF is really slow.

Have you read the test of the lens at dpreview? Not very positive to say the least...

I have also handled the camera in a shop. Perfect for my hands, much better than my D700. At first I was really seduced.

But I keep reading of poor QC, bad samples etc.

And the image quality remains to be seen. I am waiting for more tests. I hope the pics will be really usable up to 1600 ISO.