Guy Stuff at Guys Clubhouse

First let me say I ordered my Pentax from B&H out of New York city on Tuesday around lunch time. It arrived Thursday mid afternoon. I also saved $100 – $200. I’ll confirm that next post but man, is that great service or what!!  I’m not going to write much right now but my first impression is, this is more camera than I  thought I’d ever own. When was the last time you owned a camera you thought could take a good whack? The thing is a Tank! I need to go and start reading the 325 page manual. Basic stuff is simple so far and next post will be better. Here’s a couple pics of the real deal in my hand. More soon.

Well I decided to upgrade my camera situation and start shooting again. Deciding on what camera to purchase at first seemed easy but the more I read, the more unsure I became. When I was done, I was pleasantly surprised at my choice. Not wanting to spend more than a couple of grand,  I headed straight to the Nikon page.  That turned out to be wishful thinking because the more I thought about it, I just couldn’t justify spending that kind of money to get 10 or 12 mega pixels. Then the lens after that. So I turned to Canon. The  EOS Rebel T2i seemed ok with 18 mega pixels and a lens for 1200 bucks or so. Trouble for me is the build quality. In depth reviews and user ratings all pointed to the fact that it feels cheep and plasticy in your hand. I want something durable and robust. Moving up to the next model that is more durable is a substancial increase in price.  I pondered all this for a week before deciding to take a look at the Pentax K-7. What a shock I got.

The K-7 has a magnesium alloy body, is weather proof, 14.6 mega pixels, shake reduction built into the camera body, and, check this out, will use any k-mount lens ever made. What does this mean to me? As a former portrait wedding photographer that shot everything with a Pentax P-5 SLR, I have several very high quality Pentax lenses that have been collecting dust for years. I’ll be able to use these again! Not only that, but their are millions of k mount lenses out there, you can pick up some really high quality ones Cheap! So, that was it for me. I’ve ordered it. The lens that comes with it is not the best, it’s a 18-55 mm f-3.5 but who cares, I’ll use my old one or pick up an auto focus lens at a pawn shop.

To see and read about the cameras I’ve mentioned, or see any camera, I recommend you take a look at dpreview.com as it’s full of great info.