Pentax K-7 14.6 MP Digital SLR with Shake Reduction and 720p HD Video (Body Only)
Pentax K-7 14.6 MP Digital SLR with Shake Reduction and 720p HD Video (Body Only) Review
Over the past three years I’ve worked my way up through the hierarchy of Pentax DSLR’s. Starting with the K-100 then the K-10 to the K-20 and now to the K-7. I still have and use the K-10 and K-20 and have been very satisfied with the picture quality from both of them. The picture quality of the K-7 is noticeably softer than either of these two. I’ve done numerous comparison tests with the three cameras using the same settings and the same lenses on tripod and in all tests the K-7 images are inferior or, at best, sometimes equal to the other two cameras. In an album the K-7 pictures always stand out as just not being as sharp as the other pictures from the other cameras.
I’ve been in touch with the Pentax service people by email and all they could offer is that I make sure the camera is set on factory default settings for best results.
Noise is also greater with this camera than in the other two but for some reason that does not disappoint me as much as the image softness. The images are definitely fuzzier than with the older cameras.
I love the construction of this camera and the smaller size is a plus for me. But all in all I wish I had not purchased it and at the full opening day price, too.
11/27/09
Here I am a few days later and to be fair, I want to report my latest evaluation. I’ve taken the advice of both the Pentax service people and the folks who were good enough to comment on this review. From the Pentax advice I’ve gone back to the default settings. From the comments to this review, I’ve shot both RAW and JPEG.
I’ve done some more testing pitting the K-7 vs the K-10 with two lenses, the 40mm limited and a Tamron 18-250mm. I shot the same scenes with RAW and JPEG using both lenses and compared the results. With this many variables it hard to get consistant results but I must say I’m a lot happier with the K-7 now. In RAW it is just as good as the K-10 in RAW. And I found out that the lens makes a big difference. Both cameras are equal with the 40mm limited lens in both JPEG and RAW. With the Tamron lens, the K-7 doesn’t do well. I’m assuming that the AF needs some adjustment within the camera which can be done but I haven’t taken the time.
In conclusion, I find that for best results, don’t stray too far from the factory default settings. Trying to add a lot of sharpness adjustment to JPEG images just seems to make them worse. For better pictures shoot in RAW. I don’t know if my next statement makes sense because I have virtually no experience with RAW but the K-7 RAW images seem to have a lot less noise in them, too.
And finally I would like to raise my rating of this camera from 2 stars to 4 stars. It’s a decent camera but just like other complex instruments, one has to learn how to play it.
Pentax K-7 14.6 MP Digital SLR with Shake Reduction and 720p HD Video (Body Only) Feature
- High-resolution, 14.6-megapixel CMOS sensor; compact, magnesium alloy body
- Weather resistant, dustproof, and coldproof (14 degrees F, -10 degrees C)
- Fast 5.2 fps shooting with the new PRIME II Image processing engine; top shutter speed of 1/8000 sec freezes even the fastest action in well-lit settings
- 3-inch LCD; Live View mode, with contrast AF, Face Detection, and optional histogram, grid, and bright/dark area display
- Capture images to SD/SDHC memory cards (not included)
Pentax K-7 14.6 MP Digital SLR with Shake Reduction and 720p HD Video (Body Only) Overview
The Pentax K-7 features a rugged, yet compact new body design, a new 14.6 megapixel CMOS sensor rebuilt from the ground up, and advanced features such as HD Movie Capture and new, unique-to-Pentax camera controls. Compatible with every Pentax lens ever made, the high-end K-7 features an abundance of long-anticipated new and improved features that are exclusive to the camera and combine to make it a tremendous photography tool.
Pentax K-7 14.6 MP Digital SLR with Shake Reduction and 720p HD Video (Body Only) Specifications
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