Pentax or Sony DSLR?

[LouiseTopp]

Hello I have some money put away towards for a DSLR which I am going to get in January to help me with my landscape photography.

I am tempted by the Pentax Kr which is a discontinued model on Amazon, at £294.99 (the new version is £513.88)

I also have my eyes on the Sony A57 at £499.00 also on Amazon.

Can you please tell me what model I should go for, the Sony or the Pentax?

Appologies for the nature of my question. I have boarderline learning difficulties, and some people might think my question isn't seriouse, but it is. Thank you.

[Inkanyezi]

These are two very different cameras in some respects, and the Sony is not a DSLR but an EVIL camera, which might make a difference. My choice would be the Sony if I had to choose between those two, but YMMV. My preference would otherwise be a totally mirror-free camera, and my present camera is an Olympus OM-D. Sony's closest competitor is the NEX 7, which lately was presented as Hasselblad with some modifications.

In my opinion, the viewfinder of the Sony is superior to that of the K-r, and AF with live view, when it works as it should^*, is a lot faster with the Sony. Others may have other opinions, there is an endless quibble about the advantages or disadvantages with electronic versus optical viewfinders. I have my position in the EVF booth.

*) Phase detection AF, as with DSLR cameras and Sony SLT, is faster than contrast detection AF as in completely mirror-free cameras. However, contrast detection AF is more reliable. Phase detection AF does not check whether focus actually is achieved, and often such systems have consistent focusing errors.

[Melkus]

Unless money is a problem I don't think I would be looking at the Kr over the K-30. The K-30 is much better camera and well worth the exter cost. All the reviews and feed back from there owners have been very good. The K-30 can be had with one of two lens kit of the two lens kits you can get it seem the 18-135mm lens is the best.

Now I did use the Sony A57 and I like it a lot only down side was the EVF but that's just me. It took very good photos, fast autofocus and great video just name a few also because it takes A-Mount lens you can use the older Minolta lens from back in the 80's many of which are as good if not better than what you can get today and can be had drit cheap.

[Mark von Kanel]

Hi Louise,

Go to a local camera shop and hold both of the cameras before you choose, down load the manuals and have a read of them before you go to the shop. When you get to the shop play with the camera and its controls. one of them will feel right to you! Just be honest with the shop and tell them what you can get it for on line from a UK dealer and they will probably match it and then you have somewhere to go to if it goes wrong.

if you buy from amazon and you dont like it just send it back. i think under the uk distance selling laws you have 14 days to return it for a refund but youll need to check that ive never done it. I no longer use online retailers for any of my major purchases, as my local dealer looks after me to well.

[wlou]

Unless money is a problem I don't think I would be looking at the Kr over the K-30. The K-30 is much better camera and well worth the exter cost. All the reviews and feed back from there owners have been very good. The K-30 can be had with one of two lens kit of the two lens kits you can get it seem the 18-135mm lens is the best.

Now I did use the Sony A57 and I like it a lot only down side was the EVF but that's just me. It took very good photos, fast autofocus and great video just name a few also because it takes A-Mount lens you can use the older Minolta lens from back in the 80's many of which are as good if not better than what you can get today and can be had drit cheap.

Hello Paul, I am looking to add lens to my Sony dslr a500 and I am surprise to read that the old Minolta lens would fit on the alpha body.Is it a know fact?

[Inkanyezi]

Hello Paul, I am looking to add lens to my Sony dslr a500 and I am surprise to read that the old Minolta lens would fit on the alpha body.Is it a know fact?

C'est vrai, Minolta AF lenses work on the Sony DSLR and SLT cameras. Sony bought Minolta's camera section and continued with the same mount.

[Melkus]

Hello Paul, I am looking to add lens to my Sony dslr a500 and I am surprise to read that the old Minolta lens would fit on the alpha body.Is it a know fact?

Yep sure is. Good guide about this as to which are the most look for lens.
http://reviews.ebay.com/Top-Minolta-...00000007572656

[Manfred M]

Is there a particular reason that you are looking only at Pentax or Sony? Depending on the direction you are looking at going in, there are other strong players in the marketplace too.

[LouiseTopp]

Is there a particular reason that you are looking only at Pentax or Sony? Depending on the direction you are looking at going in, there are other strong players in the marketplace too.

Think I will touch up the Sony. I know optical is better then electronic. I love photography and I have depression. It goes because I am concentrating on something else. Anyone else here have it?

I liked the Sony over the Canon because there is stabilisation in the body, with Canon it’s only in the lenses, and if I did find a bargain lens that fitted (there is a shop down the road what has them occasionally) I would go for.

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Louise,

No one has asked what you want to photograph?
Or what you are using now/have used previously?

I am thinking the first may influence what lens(es) you might want/need.

The second may help with the learning curve of operation, although that's less important, with regular practice, you'll get used to whatever you buy.

Cheers,

[LouiseTopp]

Sorry. I do landscapes and historic buildings. I don't do glamour or fashion and it's not really historic. Hysteric at times but not something to remember

[revi]

A few small corrections if I may...

These are two very different cameras in some respects, and the Sony is not a DSLR but an EVIL camera, which might make a difference. My choice would be the Sony if I had to choose between those two, but YMMV.

The recent Sony cameras (other than the NEX series, which I wouldn't compare directly with the Pentax Kr) are not mirrorless. They have a semi-transparent, fixed (?) mirror combined with an electronic view finder.

My preference would otherwise be a totally mirror-free camera, and my present camera is an Olympus OM-D. Sony's closest competitor is the NEX 7, which lately was presented as Hasselblad with some modifications.

To avoid confusion, the NEX series is from Sony (marketed by them, at least)

Remco

[LouiseTopp]

They have a semi-transparent, fixed (?) mirror combined with an electronic view finder.

is this god in a camera?

Good I meant, althrough he can help me if he wants. Har har!

[Manfred M]

If you are looking at availability of inexpensive used lenses, then the Pentax is going to be the winner here as it will take every K mount lens ever built. BUT, there is a very large caveat on both the Sony and the Pentax. Both cameras were built with autofocus in mind and you really should check out to see how well the focusing screen works for manual lenses, I haven't shot either Pentax or Minolta (Sony bought the Konica / Minolta camera business) in years, and have never used a Sony, so I can't comment from personal experience. I have tried it on Canons and Nikons and am not impressed on how the amateur cameras handle manual focus lenses. You pretty well have to use the back screen and magnify, which is a pain. especially when shooting outdoors in bright light.

If in-camera stabilization is your primary reason for going to these cameras, this feature is less important with the focal lengths you are likely to use in landscape and architectural shots; wide angle to normal to short telephoto. Stabilization tends to be important for longer focal lengths. I own three Nikon professional lenses, 14-24mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm, and only the 70-200mm is stabilized. I did a lot of research on image stabiliation when I first started looking at switching over to a DLR. I ended up concluding that the only advantage to in-camera was going to be the fact that it would work for any lens.

There are some technical things that I do not like about the Sony design; the fixed pellicle mirror is going to reduce the amount of light that hits the sensor and that is never a good thing, as it puts the design at a disadvantage to a true DSLR right away. The mirror is a huge dust and dirt trap as it is totally exposed to the environment whenever you change lenses and looks to be more problematic than sensors. As it is in the optical path, anything on the mirror is going to affect your image, and keeping it clean / cleaning it would be a concern. This is not an issue in a DSLR, as the mirror flips out of the way during exposures. The sensor is protect by the shutter between exposures.

[MrB]

Save up a little bit of extra money and go for the Pentax K-30 Digital SLR with 18-55mm WR Lens - e.g. £579 from SRS in Watford. You will then have a good quality weather-resistant camera body with a capable and versatile weather-resistant standard zoom lens - Pentax give you a lot for your money. What could be a better starting setup at that price for someone living in the unpredictable climate of the UK?! Read some of the reviews on the Web, e.g. http://www.photographyblog.com/revie...ew/conclusion/

Cheers.
Philip

[jeeperman]

Being I shoot Sony I thought I might pop in and mention something that I have not seen mentioned as of yet. Should you still look at Sony as an option....do go in to a shop and get familiar with it first. Mainly the viewfinder. The viewfinder is the 1st gen in the A57. I have not used one myself as I use an A77 which has a 2nd gen viewfinder. Yes both are electronic but not even close to the same animal. The 2nd gen only comes in the A65, A77, A99 and are still a bit spendy.
As I have not used one I can only tell you what I was told to look out for. The 1st gen had poor resolution and the highlights and shadows tend to block up. This does not happen with the 2nd gen and honestly you would not know you were looking threw an electronic VF unless told.
Sony can use many lenses made prior to them buying minolta and I use a 50mm 1.7 from minolta but be warned the saught after lense with AF come at a descent price if you can find them....if.

[Melkus]

In thinking about Sony I think about the A-580 I had and now I wish I not sold it, oh well live and learn.

[revi]

Also something to consider:
Canon and Nikon are the two major brands, Pentax and Sony are, relatively speaking, small players. That means that there's a lot more stuff available for Canon and Nikon than for Sony and Pentax.

And, Sony has some (non-standard) quirks in several (many?) of their cameras, like non-standard hot shoes, no standard connections for wired remote controls, and such. That makes getting certain accessories tricky and/or expensive (think off-camera flash with sync cables).

[LouiseTopp]

The Pentax has gone down slightly in price on Amazon £499.00 and is now the same price as the Sony. I am tempted by the Pentax and probably wouldn't get another lens for it in a long time. It is Weather Resistant, 81 protection joins for a complete protection of the electronic circuits against splashing water, snow, dust and sand which is good.

Where as the Sony has 3D technology I wouldn't use. I saw this on U Tube and might watch about the K 30 on there.

[Mark von Kanel]

How about a second hand Nikon D7000 or cannon equivalent? 7D i think, you can pick up both of those with a lens for arround that kind of cash and they are both great cameras.