Battery grips

I've never thought of adding a battery grip before but have recently bought a 50-135 and find the camera grip a bit small with the extra weight of the lens.

I'm not interested in the extra battery life the grip provides and also hardly ever find myself shooting portrait. So I guess it would be purely for handling.

Has anyone added a grip and not looked back or found its not for them?

I'd be looking to add the pentax d-bg5 to a k3 (unless there is an aftermarket which is build wise indistinguishable from the original).

Like you, I had never considered a grip until I thought of trying one as a possible solution to getting portrait orientation shots straight!

I was surprised to find I liked it (because I generally appreciate the relatively small size and low weight of Pentax bodies) and got on OK. Mine is D-BG4 equivalent on a K5. It's a Meike, which seems to be the best of the copies. I found it of good quality and I've had no problems with it. The bonus being it only cost me about £30 (from memory)new on ebay. I figured at that price it was worth a punt. I'm afraid I don't know if they have produced a D-BG5 equivalent for the K3.

A lot depends on the size of your hands. Mine are like baby steam shovels so the grip makes the camera fit better and is more comfortable. I first had a grip on my Z1p. This had no batteries or controls. It was just a grip. I've had a grip on every camera since from my *istD on up to my K3. CHEERS Vic.

For me "gripping" depends on which lens I'm using, the style of shooting, and the duration of the event I'm photographing.

I was photographing a wedding at the weekend without a grip, and after several hours (and several hundred shots) the battery ran out! It wasn't a disaster because I did have a spare in the camera bag - but it did remind me that I should more carefully when to use the grip (the additional battery life would have made the flow smoother).

If you do a lot of portraits then the alternate controls are much smoother and easier to use in portrait view.

Larger lenses (i.e. the 60-250) feel much better balanced on a body that is "gripped".

All this needs to be weighed up against the additional bulk and weight, the comfort factor (as Vic Baby-Shovels mentioned) and the cost.

Hope my views help

Thanks for the 'Meike' name. They don't seem to do a k3 version yet unfortunately.

I don't think I've read yet someone not liking the grip once they've purchase it (saying that I think I'd force myself to like it if it cost me £150).

I've got medium sized hands. My little finger supports the bottom of the camera normally.

I've had both a third party grip (Meike) and the genuine Pentax grips.

I find that particularly with larger lenses the handling of the camera does feel much better. I use it most of the time, just leaving it off when I want to 'travel light'.

The first grip I tried on a K-5 was the Meike. It is great value for money, and worth having if you aren't certain whether or not you really want a grip and just want to try it out. Quality wise in my opinion it's perfectly adequate.

After that I bought a genuine (used) Pentax grip, which is undoubtedly a better quality and a better and more solid fit. I think it's worth the extra cost.

My recommendation would be to spend a relatively small amount and try the Meike grip. If you find you like a grip on your camera then seriously consider selling the Meike and getting the Pentax grip. You will notice the difference.

The other thing to consider with third-party grips is that they (as far as I know) are not weather sealed, whereas the genuine Pentax ones are. This would mean that were you to expose the camera + third-party grip to rain, the connector between grip and body could get wet and potentially short some pins. I bought my third-party grip with the view of if I like it, I will buy the Pentax one. I just keep spending my money on lenses instead

For me the Pentax BG-4 grip has always been just another part of the camera, and it remains permanently on the K7. I don't really have any need for extended battery life, so I just use the battery slot in the grip which removes the need to take the grip off to change the battery. But I have two batteries which I rotate in use, and it needed for a long shoot then I will load up the body with the other battery so its all ready.

I make full use of the vertical format controls and I do shoot a lot of portrait style images, so for me a quick flip up and over and the camera is firmly 'gripped' with the fingers over the controls almost exactly like when shooting ' landscape' with the body controls. This duplication and reproduction of the controls in the familiar layout oh the grip is integral to my use of it, most of the point, as well as the extra stability and security in handling.

When using a longer lens the grip makes for easier handling. Only downside I seem to find is if not careful when the grip is switched on I end up inadvertently changing the exposure settings by accidentally moving one of the front or rear e-dials/wheels on the grip, especially if the camera has been hanging by my side still on and ready for use.

I must admit this also happens occasionally even though the grip is off. For me the e-dials/wheels on the camera and grip are too easily moved and could be tighter or have more friction to them so they do not turn so easy. I never had this problem on my K20D seems to have occurred on models since then. My personable opinion of course.
Don`t know if anyone else has this problem.

I find the Pentax grip dials and buttons very solid and secure, the feel matches that of the body equivalents perfectly, and that tactile consistency is an important part of it. Truckerathome, are you using a Pentax original or third party?

ive just been using the 50-135 with a flash and the extra weight of the lens makes it really quite uncomfortable. (ive never had an issue before with a 16-45 and flash)

i think its made worse as im trying to get used to using the af button for focus which means bending my thumb and giving less grip there. (on my k7)

i think the grip will be on my christmas list for sure. (hope srs are doing a christmas discount )

I bought a grip for the K10 but found it made an already heavy camera even heavier and never used it. Then it was stolen.

the k 10 was not that heavy people that had hold of mine with the grip on liked it as it was lighter than the nikon and canon eqifalent

the pentax one is a pound short off 140

I use an original grip. The dials are secure and solid, its just that if you brush them or accidentally touch them I feel they move too easily therefore adjusting exposure settings when not required. I feel they could do with more friction or even perhaps "click-stops" to stop them being inadvertently moved. I have lost many a shot where the camera has been set at a set shutter speed to freeze action, I have then moved to a different shooting position and quickly raised the camera, taken some shots only to find after the initial action that the dial has moved the shutter speed to a slower speed rendering the shots unusable due to blur. Yes I should check the speed before shooting but as the camera had been pre-set I should not really need to. I don't know if the e-dials can be tightened so they don't turn as easily, if they can it is definitely something I would do (possibly the humps around the dials have been made smaller as I never had this problem on my K20)