*ist D worth to delay and wait?

[Sarbu Alexandru-Cristian]

You should be able to disable it, with a Pentax function - as with *ist.

I think the illuminated AF points is quite commonplace these days.
Certainly the F80 has it, and I am sure the Canon/Nikon DSLRs do
too. However, I would prefer not to have it because the overlay
makes the image dimmer and I prefer centre AF point only anyway.

 

[john hart]

Besides, the K1000 is a god among photographers who
want a reliable camera, so I don't think Pentax would compromise
that tradition.

That may be true for the K1000, but unfortunately I have had a different experience with the ZX-5N. I do 3D (two-camera) adventure sports photography, and the venue isn't always gentle, but I do take special care of my equipment. In the last 4 years I have gone through FIVE camera bodies. I kept repairing them for various problems like frame overlapping, failure to rewind fully, broken plastic actuator tabs, etc. etc. When the same problem happened over again I had to ditch that particular camera body, because when a camera fails on a remote cliff or something, a lot that may be extremely difficult to recover is lost. But I had a big investiment in Pentax lenses (because I need two of everything), so I was sort of stuck. I like the 5N's because they are light and when they work the images are great. But I will be very very suspicious of this new DSLR (as much as I would like it to be a success). The price better be reasonable, and a good extended warranty better be available and cheap too!

John Hart
http://www.crystalcanyons.net

 

[rustedborg]

John,

Sorry to hear about you problems with the ZX-5N. I have no experience with the 5N, but I do have experience with the Pentax ME and PZ-1. My ME has held up like a tank. I know I can always rely on that camera ... even if I knock it around. My PZ-1 has also done wonders, but (like all things made of plastic) it is more fragile than the ME. That said, I cannot speak ill of Pentax quality.

I have never needed to repair my ME (knock on wood), but I did have to repair my PZ-1 after a freak accident. I was shooting a football game for a local paper and needed to change film rolls. Right as I was in the middle of loading fresh film, someone crashed into me from behind (a drunk fan who was p*ssed off at a ref's call). When he slammed into me, my thumb PUNCTURED the delicate shutter of the PZ-1.

I was horrified, but less than one month later I had my camera back from Pentax with a new (and perfectly functioning) shutter.

I'm looking forward to the *istD, but I also agree that the camera better be inexpensive and offer a nice warranty against damage. (Yes, I have insurance on my cameras, but it's much better to have a product warranty that it is to make an insurance claim.)

That may be true for the K1000, but unfortunately I have had a
different experience with the ZX-5N. I do 3D (two-camera)
adventure sports photography, and the venue isn't always gentle,
but I do take special care of my equipment. In the last 4 years I
have gone through FIVE camera bodies. I kept repairing them for
various problems like frame overlapping, failure to rewind fully,
broken plastic actuator tabs, etc. etc. When the same problem
happened over again I had to ditch that particular camera body,
because when a camera fails on a remote cliff or something, a lot
that may be extremely difficult to recover is lost. But I had a
big investiment in Pentax lenses (because I need two of
everything), so I was sort of stuck. I like the 5N's because they
are light and when they work the images are great. But I will be
very very suspicious of this new DSLR (as much as I would like it
to be a success). The price better be reasonable, and a good
extended warranty better be available and cheap too!

John Hart
http://www.crystalcanyons.net

 

[Harvey F]

Is there any information about the body of the camera.

Is it plastic or metal?

Harvey F

They delayed. But if the delay means a better product to the
consumers, than it's worthy to delay and wait. But, I believe *ist
D will not be better than S2 and SD9 because they use better
sensor. And it will not be better than D100, because Nikon lens is
better. And it will not be better than 10D because Canon's noise
reduction and imaging processing/compress algorithm is much better.

The only thing I am expecting is it could reach a very cheap price,
something like 1100 US$ or even lower. Than it could be a hot sales
point together with it's portability.

Anyhow, let's see the review. Hope the miracle will happen, though
by the limitation of sensor (I wonder why they don't select Fuji
Super CCD --- themselve does not produce sensor so it's free to
select a better one), lens, and imaging algorithm, I think it will
be difficult.

Tony

 

[rustedborg]

If the *istD is like every other SLR or DSLR body made in the last 20 years, it will be a combination of BOTH plastic and metal (the metal being used for the frame of the body and the lens mount, and the plastic being used for exterior accents and grips).

Is there any information about the body of the camera.

Is it plastic or metal?

Harvey F

 

[Harvey F]

Hello Rustedborg,

Thank you for responding. I have found your post's very interesting and informative. My next purchase will be the first SLR that I have owned.
I like the size of the Pentax. I hope the camera has good reviews.

Can you tell me if any of the Pentax lenses, particularly the telefoto have image stabilization.

Regards,

Harvey F

Is there any information about the body of the camera.

Is it plastic or metal?

Harvey F

 

[Rob Brigham]

That wont help. The problem is that there is an extra overlay which reduced the brightness of the finder. Whether you turn the illumination off or not makes no difference as the physical layer is still there.

I think the illuminated AF points is quite commonplace these days.
Certainly the F80 has it, and I am sure the Canon/Nikon DSLRs do
too. However, I would prefer not to have it because the overlay
makes the image dimmer and I prefer centre AF point only anyway.

 

[rustedborg]

Thanks for the compliment. Although I have a fair amount of experience with Pentax glass, I am not an "expert" on all things Pentax ... particularly when it comes to the newest Pentax lenses.

As far as I know, Pentax has no lenses with image stabilization or vibration reduction. IS and VR are Canon and Nikon exclusive ... as far as I know. Olympus purchased licensing rights from Canon to put IS on several prosumer digicams (the 2100 and E-100), and Panasonic recently created their own version of IS (OIS is what I think Panasonic calls it) for the new FZ1 digicam.

IS really helps on long telephoto shots. Those Canon IS lenses are so nice that sometimes I consider switching to Canon ... but I'll wait and see what Pentax has up its sleeve. I'm also paying close attention to the new 4/3 system from Olympus, Kodak, and Fuji. Olympus is scheduled to have the first 4/3 system DSLR out at the same time as the *istD, but no one knows what the price will be.

If the 4/3 system is priced low enough, I "might" consider it over the *istD ... but the 4/3 system needs to be pretty cheap if I'm going to abandon all my Pentax glass. The 4/3 system sounds promising, but it kind of reminds me of the failed APS SLRs of the late 1990s. The APS SLRs failed for a number of reasons, but the biggest one was that the APS SLRs were priced similar to 35mm SLRs and the film was/is more expensive to develop than 35mm ... with less image quality than a 35mm negative.

With the exception of the Canon IX APS SLRs, all the APS SLRs had their own set of compact and proprietary lenses ... so you had to buy an expensive new body, new lenses and expensive film. No wonder APS SLRs flopped.

Thank you for responding. I have found your post's very interesting
and informative. My next purchase will be the first SLR that I have
owned.
I like the size of the Pentax. I hope the camera has good reviews.

Can you tell me if any of the Pentax lenses, particularly the
telefoto have image stabilization.

Regards,

Harvey F

Is there any information about the body of the camera.

Is it plastic or metal?

Harvey F

 

[Harvey F]

Thanks again rustedborg for the information.

I feel like you and am going to wait until the new offerings from Olympus, Nikon etc. come out before I make a decision. I want to be as sure as I can that the camera I choose will be the right one for my needs. I am using a Sony S85 and it is a nice camera so I don't have to rush. I will make a decision before the end of this year.

I'd rather wait a bit longer see the new models and not be sorry afterwards.

Regards,

Harvey F

As far as I know, Pentax has no lenses with image stabilization or
vibration reduction. IS and VR are Canon and Nikon exclusive ... as
far as I know. Olympus purchased licensing rights from Canon to put
IS on several prosumer digicams (the 2100 and E-100), and Panasonic
recently created their own version of IS (OIS is what I think
Panasonic calls it) for the new FZ1 digicam.

IS really helps on long telephoto shots. Those Canon IS lenses are
so nice that sometimes I consider switching to Canon ... but I'll
wait and see what Pentax has up its sleeve. I'm also paying close
attention to the new 4/3 system from Olympus, Kodak, and Fuji.
Olympus is scheduled to have the first 4/3 system DSLR out at the
same time as the *istD, but no one knows what the price will be.

If the 4/3 system is priced low enough, I "might" consider it over
the *istD ... but the 4/3 system needs to be pretty cheap if I'm
going to abandon all my Pentax glass. The 4/3 system sounds
promising, but it kind of reminds me of the failed APS SLRs of the
late 1990s. The APS SLRs failed for a number of reasons, but the
biggest one was that the APS SLRs were priced similar to 35mm SLRs
and the film was/is more expensive to develop than 35mm ... with
less image quality than a 35mm negative.

With the exception of the Canon IX APS SLRs, all the APS SLRs had
their own set of compact and proprietary lenses ... so you had to
buy an expensive new body, new lenses and expensive film. No wonder
APS SLRs flopped.

Thank you for responding. I have found your post's very interesting
and informative. My next purchase will be the first SLR that I have
owned.
I like the size of the Pentax. I hope the camera has good reviews.

Can you tell me if any of the Pentax lenses, particularly the
telefoto have image stabilization.

Regards,

Harvey F

Is there any information about the body of the camera.

Is it plastic or metal?

Harvey F

 

[Sarbu Alexandru-Cristian]

Oops - you're right. But... I guess that most people will use all the AF points, so for them this is an useful feature. I hope that the viewfinder will be good enough... we'll have to wait and see.

Alex

 

[David Kieltyka]

Not quite, what you describe is actually a pentamirror, rather than
a prism.

Duh...right you are. A pentaprism uses a glass prism to flip the image right-side-up and laterally reverse it. A pentamirror uses a set of mirrors to do the same thing. Both systems rely on a mirror (the "flipping mirror" per early Japanese camera manual translations) to redirect light from the lens.

-Dave-

 

[wjwncpro_Ds]

--
My Pentax galleries http://www.pbase.com/wjwncpro
PPG http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/WayneWasilewski

 

[JensR]

Hi Wayne,

this proves two things: People have always wondered about the same things (buy now, buy later) and there always have been people trolling and flamebaiting.

Not so much has changed, has it?

Cheers
Jens

PS: I almost bought a very used *ist D two years ago. That camera still has some appeal. But ultimately, I decided against it.

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
'I don't own lenses. I pwn lenses.' (2009)
My Homepage: http://www.JensRoesner.de