Enthusiastic photographer looking to make next step

Thanks, this is exactly the sort of information I'm after. Experimentation with DOF is actually one thing I'm really keen to explore, which I guess means another tick against a DSLR.

Thanks so much for your post. That does look a great deal on the Samsung. Do you know how much bigger it is than say, a Km? I only ask as camera size is a key consideration for me.

You should be able to look up the dimensions of both on the Pentax UK website (The GX-10 will the same dimensions as the K20D/10D)but from memory this is no more than 1cm wider than the KM and all other dimensions are similar. The Km along with the K7 have a slightly more compact footprint than the K20/10 models

Hi Rob, I know it's over budget by a fair margin but take a look at the Olympus E-P1 that goes on sale tomorrow. It sounds like it could be a good compromise for you between size & creativity. The Panasonic G1 is a similar affair but is somewhat cheaper & slightly bulkier.

Both these cameras are a kind of hybrid between SLR & high-end compact, they have no mirror & use an electronic viewfinder, but they do offer interchangeable lenses.

Of your 2 choices however I'd go with the K-m - the creative options outweigh the comparitive bulk easily. Don't forget you can use old lenses picked up from ebay very cheaply to give you even more control & creativity.

Plus, don't rely on advice from a shop, there are some very good independent dealers who will give good & honest appraisal of your needs, but there are also others who will just push your budget to the max & sell you anything just to shift it from the shelves.

I know it's very personal, but I really didn't like the feeling of looking through an electronic viewfinder with the Panasonic, but Rob can only make his decision after listening to others' opinions and going into a shop and playing with them first hand. If there's a large Curry's superstore near you they are stocking their superstores with almost every DSLR and other camera option imaginable, quite a selection to play with at the bigger stores.

As the actress said to the bishop, "it doesn't feel quite so big when I compare it to the others"

Brilliant!

I sometimes work close to the huge (could be biggest in the country) Currys Superstore at J9 of the M6, and I have been in there a few times recently having a go with as much as possible, thankfully with minimal sales patter too!

That has enabled me to get a good feel of a number of cameras and take some sample shots etc. (as virtually all of them had charged batteries which suprised me - my local Currys is crap like that).

It was there I was able to try both the G10 and the Km, which were originally the two cameras I had narrowed down to. I haven't tried a K10D/K20D, which is a shame as I'm very intruiged by the GX-10 deal at Park. It seems an awful lot of camera for the money.

Incidentally, I have tried the G1, and it didn't sit right with me, I'm not sure why, it just didn't. I do love the look of the Olympus E-P1, but I fear its some way out of my price range currently

Did you mean to say a tick against the G10 ?
One of the main advantages of dslr is creative control of depth of field.

You seem to very keen on the compact form so K-m would be better than a K10D. I use a K100D and with many of the small prime lenses it is no worry to cart around
Pete

Sorry I meant tick for the DSLR! Doh!

As someone has said, the K-m has an ideal companion in the pancake lenses Pentax do:




If the lenses are too expensive, second hand Pentax-A 50mm lenses give a similar effect for about £30!

I have a G10 and a K100DS, and there are a few areas where dSLR will always outperform any compact.

The most important, which is true of every compact with a small sensor, is control of depth of field, and what is in and out of focus. Even with a kit lens, any SLR is going to give much greater control over this. As a result, you are able to compose shots more carefully, choosing which elements you actually want to be in focus. An SLR will enable you to isolate subjects and blur the rest much better than a compact.

Second is higher ISO performance, and yes there is an enormous difference. The G10 is not bad up to ISO400 and ISO800 at a real pinch and small print sizes. Any SLR will do much better.

Third is speed of operation, in particular focussing. SLRs will sometimes enable you to get a shot when a compact has yet to achieve focus.

On the other hand, the G10 is obviously smaller and therefore easier to take with you - and the best camera you have is the one you have with you. It is also silent in operation (if you turn the various beeps off) and like most compacts offers a movie mode which can occasionally be of use.

Of all the compacts, the G10 is perhaps the easiest to use for the more creative photographer as the interface and ability to control and over-ride manually is frankly rather better than some SLRs. I leave mine in manual mode with the histogram on the rear LCD, and by using the control dial to change exposure it's easy to nail the exposure first time almost every time. That is an enormous advantage when you want to work quickly.

Given this is a Pentax forum, obviously people are going to point you in the direction of the K-M, which is a very capable small camera. But one other possibility to add to the list if you can afford it might be the Panasonic G1 - a sort of hybrid that is smaller than SLRs (lenses smaller too) but offers excellent image quality and all the manual controls you could want. It may possibly offer you the best of both worlds. However, the accompanying lens system is limited and expensive - and if you see yourself buying more glass in the future, the Pentax would be a much better route to take.

The G10 is a great camera. Looks like a high quality rangefinder film camera! And it has all the manual capabilities along with RAW format if you want to use it.

But for me, the issue is image quality. One of the factors affecting image quality is how far the image must be magnified to fit the size of the ultimate print. That is where I've noticed quite a difference.

Point and shoot cameras have, (or did have, see the Olympus e-P1 just coming out, or the Sigma dp2) small sensors. In your discussion you mentioned the Canon G10 and the Pentax K-m. Dpreview have added a criteria for comparing cameras based on the size of the sensors. The G10's sensor density is 34mp/sq cm, and the K-m's sensor density is only 2.8mp/sq cm. Sensor size, actually pixel density, makes quite a difference when you are cropping the centre of an image and blowing it up to 20X25cm...

Dick

Thanks again to everyone who has posted here. Your advice and insight has been very useful.

After a fair amount of consideration, combined with having a go with a vast number of cameras (at the Currys Superstore at J9 on the M6, absolutely loads to try), I took the plunge and bought the K-m (with both the 18-55mm and 50-200mm lenses.

Been very impressed with the build quality and ease-of-use. Taken a few shots around the house, but going to go for a bit of a wander later to have a proper experiment!

Hi Robbie

Well done. I am sure that you will find it a joy to work with. I would recommend though that you consider something along the lines of a B-tech in digital photography. I am about to start level 3 and have found it both fascinating and worthwhile. It has done wonders for my confidence in constructing and taking shots and I do now know an awful lot more about Photoshop. I don't know it all but there again I have never met anyone that does. Even Scott Kelby the author, who probably knows more than most, I bet does not know it all. These courses are not easy to find. I live in Leics and had to cross the border to Notts but well worth it.
Join the Shropshire photo Society or at least look at their website because it is a great way to get info quickly and cheaply.
Look forward to seeing some of your images.

Ian

Congratulations Robbie! I bought a K-m for my husband yesterday and am very impressed with it.

I am sure you will enjoy using it!