I think "nice" really hits the nail on the head with regards to this new camera. It's going to be perfect for people who want simplicity and nice photos.
Despite all the grumbling from people who say Pentax needs a high-end camera, this sort of thing is what Pentax REALLY needs: a small, affordable, entry-level camera with simple controls and features so that Mrs. Soccer Mom can pick it up and photograph her kids. All the research and industry newsletters I was able to read back at Reed's said that the Soccer Mom type (they used different terms) is really key for the photography industry, and if you ever go out to a place where lots of families are gathering, you'll see how true this is. I visted the new California Academy of Sciences yesterday in San Francisco for the sneak-preview, and probably 90% of the families I saw with children and dSLRs were shooting Canon Rebels or low-numbered Nikon cameras. I saw a handful of older men and one pro-looking woman with higher-end Canons and Nikons, but the low end truly dominated the crowd. Oddly, I saw no Sony dSLRs, but did see one KonicaMinolta (or Minonika, as I like to call them). This just goes to show where the money is, and where a business like Pentax must place their emphasis in order to turn a profit. As much as some people want a Pentax version of the 5D or better, Pentax wants to stay in business. John Celio P.S.: for the curious, here are some of my photos from the new Academy, most shot with a D-FA 100 on my K10D: http://www.neovenator.com/special/index.php?dir=academy/ -- http://www.neovenator.com http://www.cafepress.com/neovenatorphoto -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
