10 mp or 6 mp?

[BobNan]

I've had both cameras, currently have the K10d for the last 2 months now and I actually preferred the k100d more. I also concur that the image quality is better with the k100d, at least if you just take and view jpg's. If you want to spend plenty of time post processing you will get better pics from the raw files of the k10d. If you want a perfect, mint in box k10d with less than 1000 shutter clicks, contact me. Thanks, Bob.

 

[Ricardo Tomasi]

For instance do you need to be able to print large poster size prints
or crop a lot.

This always comes up on topics like this, but is there any tangible difference from prints from the K100 vs the K10? Many people claim to print wall-sized posters from the 6mp images, and when I compare pictures from both the difference in detail is not that much.

 

[Martyn Welch]

I've been shooting an*istDS for three years and bought a K10D last month.
There's a noticeable improvement in resultant image quality between the two

but it does require a bit more dedication and study to extract the very best from it. >

I'm hopefully receiving my K10 this weekend, also having used a DS for the last few years. I'll obviously be using it intensively whilst I get used to its ways but hoped you may possibly have established its strong and weaker points since buying it.

I know it's allegedly way better in RAW and I hope to capitalise on this, but there are times when jpegs are a convenience - could you summarise the settings you've found work best and those that don't, so to speak?

--

The mind is like a parachute, it works best when open.

 

[GordonBGood]

For instance do you need to be able to print large poster size prints
or crop a lot.

This always comes up on topics like this, but is there any tangible
difference from prints from the K100 vs the K10? Many people claim to
print wall-sized posters from the 6mp images, and when I compare
pictures from both the difference in detail is not that much.

There is a slight difference in details with the K10D having slightly more, but it will only be seen in large zooms/prints. There is a slightly more noise on a pixel by pixel basis for the K10D (almost one stop more), but it will harly be seen as more on the same sized prints (other than if Vertical Pattern Noise - VPN - is seen in exposure boosted shadows), and won't be seen at all if the resolution of the K10D is reduced to that of a 6 MP camera; in fact, after a down-res., the noise of the K10D may be even less than for the K100D. Down - res should be accomplished as follows:

1) Blur the 10 MP image with something like a 0.4 to 0.5 radius Guassian filter to reduce the high frequencies that would be above the Nyquist point of the new down sampled image so as to cause artifacts. This blurring will act as a kind of area average and will also reduce noise.

2) Down - res the 10 MP image to 6 MP with a bilinear, bicubic, bicubic spline, or any other interpolation method whose parameters can be set so as not to produce edge artifacts on down sampling.

3) After all other processing is done, sharpen the final image will a small radius sharpening of about 0.7, a noise threshold sufficient so as not to amplify the noise, and enough boost so as to recover any edge definition lost in the above steps (depends on the original sharpness, but perhaps about 150% boost).

The problem is that noise levels of the K10D are always compared on a pixel by pixel basis and not as they should be done properly on a per sensor area and equivalent resolution basis. Once the above technique is tuned to reduce the resolution of the 10 MP image to the same as actually produced from the 6 MP camera, a one time process whose parameters can be reused after that, the down-res'ed 10 MP pictures will always have at least as much dynamic range and image quality as the 6 MP K100D's (except for VPN), but at the cost of this extra processing. Of course the extra processing could be "batched" so as not to be too onerous.

This works because the K10D's newer 10 MP sensor has at least as much sensitivity as the older 6 MP sensor on an area basis and actual black frame readout noise has been reduced on a per photosite area basis on the denser CCD sensor.

Regards, GordonBGood

 

[mrxdimension]

Trying to decide what camera to get. The K10 or K100D Super?

The quality of the lens you use makes a big difference. Stabilization such as a sturdy tripod, or a monopod are also factors.

I'm happy with images from the 6MP K100d. I liked some of the features that the K10d has exclusively. I think you should look at factors other than 6 or 10MP to make your decision.

When I purchased my camera, the K10d was quite a bit more expensive then the K100d. I went with the K100d. I'm happy with it.

 

[topgun2007]

I will be curious what you decide. I have the K100D which I have used for about 8 months and have been very happy with. I am considering upgrading to the K10D but feel like I may be giving up some of the benefits of what I have (can't afford to keep both). I don't ever use the scene modes and actually had forgotten they were there but I was use to shooting with a Pentax PZ-1P film camera (which I still use on occassion). Anyway, you may also want to read the comments to a recent post from someone else who was asking about upgrading from the K100D to the K10D since the responses would be relative to your decision. Good luck.

Regards, Jim

 

[wy2lam]

The K10D offers convenience features that the K100D / K100D Super cannot match:
1. The RAW button
2. Orientation Sensor
3. Two wheels
4. Hyperprogram and Program shift

I'd say, other features are more or less gimmicks, even (less so) Sv and (more so) TAv. I don't care whether the camera has "beginner" buttons or not, but if it leaves out the basics such as an orientation sensor and program shift, I'd steer away from it.

The differencies between 10Mp and 6Mp is not that great, but the K10D
and k100D are very different cameras. The K10D is a far more advanced
model tailored to the more advanced photographer or the photographer
that wants to learn about photographic technique. The K100D has
several beginner-features that the K10D does not have - such as auto
picture modes and scene modes. The K10D body is weatherproff, the
K100D is not. The K10D has a larger and bigger pentaprism viewfinder,
the K100D has a simpler and smaller pentamirror box. If you are
familiar about aperture and shutter, and has no use of scene modes,
the K10D is easier to handle.
--
Take care
R
http://www.flickr.com/photos/raphaelmabo