Digital Trends

Excellent DSLR

by Michael Smegielski on May 20th, 2008 at 11:57 AM:

I was given a Pentax K1000 over 35 years ago and shot thousands of great images and acquired a decent collection of lenses so when I was finally ready to move up to a digital SLR, I looked to see what Pentax had available. It wasn't until the introduction of the K200D that I was satisfied with the resolution, features and the ability to use my old glass that I felt ready to move up. I have been very happy that I did. I am a big guy at over 6'6" and the size and feel of the camera are perfect for me. (The comparable Canon and Nikon feel to light and toy like) The weather and dust protection are a very nice bonus. In the past month since taking delivery I have shoot over 500 images from portraits to action shot with excellent results. Color reproduction is true and I have been able get 20 x 30 prints with no problems. I have taken portraits in a variety of lighting conditions with no problems. In low light at ISO 1600 the image is very good as long as the noise reduction at High ISO is on and I have been able to print at 16 x 20 with very little evident noise. Action shots are OK if you can get the shot you want quickly but the burst rate is slow for this kind of photography BUT if you are taking shots of your son or daughters soccer game you can get some very nice images with a little patience.

I do quite a bit of motorcycle and motorcycle event photography and I purchased the 28-250mm lens as a general walk around lens and have been extremely please with the results. The image stabilization works well but you need to make sure that you have a pretty stable base when shooting hand held.

Some reviewers have complained about the use of AA batteries instead of a proprietary Li-ion rechargeable. I look at the AA Batteries as a major advantage. I just watch for sales and keep an extra set with me and I am always ready. I don't have to carry a charger, I don't need to worry about buying a very high priced replacement or spare and no matter where I am there is usually someplace where AAs are available. It was this option that made me choose the K200D over the K10D and the K20D.

The criticism that the K200D only goes to ISO 1600 is somewhat fair BUT I have seen some of the images a friend of mine has taken at 3200 with his Nikon and for what I need 1600 is more than adequate. In my film days I would rarely use even ISO 1000 so for me the extra ISO is a bonus.

In conclusion, I obviously am very pleased with my choice. The camera has all the features one could want in a D-SLR and more. I shoot mostly in Aperture priority and there are more than enough custom adjustments for me to be as creative as I like and then there are the times that Program and Auto are perfect for the vacation snaps. It is the perfect camera for the amateur photographer moving up from either film or a point and shoot, with enough professional level adjustments to play with to keep the enthusiast happy. The fact that it is built like a truck is a bonus. Great camera at a great price.