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Do I pull the trigger?

J

jwp1964

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 16, 2004
207
22
Enterprise, KS
I've been weighing the purchase of the Nikon D5000 or the Pentax K-X for months. I am leaning towards the Pentax for offering most bang for the buck and the fact that Amazon has Pentax K-x 12.4 MP Digital SLR with 2.7-inch LCD and 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AL and 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED Lenses (Black) for $699.95 right now. It may make me hit the purchase button. Any last minute negatives about the K-X I should be aware of? Probably going to buy tonight...:confused:
 
Have you thought much about the system you'll be buying into?

Maybe look at prices of certain lenses that will work with the Pentax. It might be a struggle to hire Pentax lenses too if you need a wide lens for a week or a big telephoto in the future.

From what I've seen of the K-X, I really like it myself, I just am not sure the sytem will grow with me as a photographer in the next few years.

On another note, will Pentax's next generation body to this be the K-Y? :D
 
Pulled the trigger tonight...price dropped twice...final was $628 for the Pentax K-X body and 18-55 and 55-300mm lenses.

Unfortunately I won't be able to try it out for about a month. Hoping to get some great wildlife shots this fall. I kept looking at the D5000 and even the new D3100, but just could not find better bang for the buck.
 
jwp1964 said:
Pulled the trigger tonight...price dropped twice...final was $628 for the Pentax K-X body and 18-55 and 55-300mm lenses.

Unfortunately I won't be able to try it out for about a month. Hoping to get some great wildlife shots this fall. I kept looking at the D5000 and even the new D3100, but just could not find better bang for the buck.
Click to expand...

i'd try and sell the lenses for some better ones after you've been shooting a while, but the body seems solid. have fun!
 
If you get the Pentax SMC M 50mm f/1.7 prime lens on e-bay you'll have a combination that can, as far as shooting in low light goes, only be rivaled by something costing three times as much :)
 
gnd said:
If you get the Pentax SMC M 50mm f/1.7 prime lens on e-bay you'll have a combination that can, as far as shooting in low light goes, only be rivaled by something costing three times as much :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. With the price I paid I have a few unexpected dollars for some gear. What is a reasonable price for the lens you mentioned?
 
gnd said:
If you get the Pentax SMC M 50mm f/1.7 prime lens on e-bay you'll have a combination that can, as far as shooting in low light goes, only be rivaled by something costing three times as much :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. With the price I paid I have a few unexpected dollars for some gear. What is a reasonable price for the lens you mentioned?
 
jwp1964 said:
Thanks for the tip. With the price I paid I have a few unexpected dollars for some gear. What is a reasonable price for the lens you mentioned?
Click to expand...

You should get it for less than 50$ (I actually got one for free). Be warned, it's manual focus only, but has amazing sharpness and contrast even wide open, great colour rendition and pleasing bokeh.
Another great lens you can find on ebay for under 50$ would be Pentax SMC M 28mm f/2.8.
In the "old days" the manual film cameras used to be sold with one lens, which was usually the fast normal prime (50mm f/1.7 or f/1.8 depending on camera manufacturer). The second most common lens to be sold with a camera was a wide angle prime (around 24-35mm, depending on camera manufacturer). This is the reason why ebay is full of fast normal primes and wide angle primes (50mm f/1.7 and 28mm f/2.8 lenses).
 
gnd said:
You should get it for less than 50$ (I actually got one for free). Be warned, it's manual focus only, but has amazing sharpness and contrast even wide open, great colour rendition and pleasing bokeh.
Another great lens you can find on ebay for under 50$ would be Pentax SMC M 28mm f/2.8.
In the "old days" the manual film cameras used to be sold with one lens, which was usually the fast normal prime (50mm f/1.7 or f/1.8 depending on camera manufacturer). The second most common lens to be sold with a camera was a wide angle prime (around 24-35mm, depending on camera manufacturer). This is the reason why ebay is full of fast normal primes and wide angle primes (50mm f/1.7 and 28mm f/2.8 lenses).
Click to expand...

Thanks again. I think my dad had a Pentax film camera that may have the lens you mentioned. I'll have to have him check the back of the closet. This post may start a bit of a trip down memory lane...I''m 46 so I remember the old days!
 
Congrats on the purchase :)

aaaaaaron said:
i'd try and sell the lenses for some better ones after you've been shooting a while, but the body seems solid. have fun!
Click to expand...

These lenses are no slouches. The 18-55mm has great sharpness (especially stopped down, its great for landscape work), and the 55-300 is also meant to be an improvement on previous Pentax zooms.

Sure you can always spend more $$$ and buy "better" lenses but don't let this statement make you think your gear is rubbish. It's far from it.

Learning and improving your technique will do more for your images than buying any amount of gear will do.
With what you've just bought and good technique you'll produce fine images.
 
Thanks for the help everyone. I can't wait to get started. I'm sure I'll have many more questions in the future in this forum and I have two more right now:

1. What is best BOOK for intro to learning/understanding DSLR cameras, and

2. What is a good website for novice to pick up hints/tips/help regarding DSLR photography (besides MacRumors of course)?

Thanks in advance for the assistance.
 
jwp1964 said:
gnd, just checked out your website...amazing photos!
Click to expand...

Thank you very much!
Which website do you mean though? The one listed in my profile as my home page? That one is actually not my site. It's just a few of my photos featured at the official Pentax photo gallery. I'm just one little photographer among many ... :)
 
jwp1964 said:
Pulled the trigger tonight...price dropped twice...final was $628 for the Pentax K-X body and 18-55 and 55-300mm lenses.

Unfortunately I won't be able to try it out for about a month. Hoping to get some great wildlife shots this fall. I kept looking at the D5000 and even the new D3100, but just could not find better bang for the buck.
Click to expand...

Now that you have shown the independence needed to jump the Canon/Nikon boat, be sure to look at the outstanding lenses offered by Tamron and others. Have fun and show us your photos.

Dale
 
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