Our recent discussion of the Pentax Q got me thinking, which is always dangerous. One big problem with list discussions is that so much of photography is personal. On an email list like the PDML, folks are typing quickly and often don’t make clear when they know they are giving an opinion and when they think they are expressing a fact. For example, I like small cameras because I am likely to grab one as I walk out the door. That was one of the attractive features of Pentax and it’s a very attractive feature of the current generation of mu43 cameras like the E-P2. I am convinced the image quality of the smaller four thirds sensors is not as good as APS-C. Of course, I have a K7 and the difference is less obvious that it would be with a K5. I could have gotten a K5 if I had sold the K7 and not bought my more recent mu43 purchases. I didn’t and I still wouldn’t.
I am an amateur and my photography is there to let me play artist and contribute to the family scrapbook. The latter is always good enough with any of these cameras. My wife uses an Optio I-10 and (annoyingly) seems to do as well as me. Noise just doesn’t bother me very much so my high iso performance is more than adequate. The biggest challenge for me is the limited dynamic range and I enjoy that challenge. When I am taking pictures to please myself, I don’t mind the limitations of the camera. Sure, I can delight in a new lens but usually it’s a prime. My SOP is to go off with one prime and work around it. I’ve recently realized that I’m a better adapter than a chooser. I actually dislike having to pick from too many choices. I find it much more satisfying to take a small camera and one prime and try to make it work. I completely understand that a pro can’t do this and when I’m asked to do weddings I show up with the K7, the flash and the FA135, the DA 18-55, etc. Lately however, that stuff just sits in the bag. I honestly think that if I had the money I would get a Q and a few lenses rather than a K5. The Q system would be inferior for every technical reason and it would get a lot more use. Sorry for the manifesto but better here than going off topic in class. ;-) -- Steve Desjardins -- 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.