From KP to something smaller?

Hello,
i haven't been active here for a very long time (!), i want to get back into photography, i have a KP, and many lenses (i don't remember which ones tbh). I will go on a 2.5 week trip to Mauritius with my 2 small kid (5 and 1 yo), i don't want to carry much gear, so i am looking for a very small/compact camera, ideally with a zoom covering 16-50mm (APS-C), that i can take landscapes and also portraits of the kids. I don't know if this exists? i dont mind if it's a DSLR or whatever the new technology is (i haven't paid much attention to the latest, it seems a lot of "cool retro" looking with fixed lens, which probably won't work for me.

thanks!

Smaller cameras tend to have smaller sensors, so nearly rules out anything APS-C. Personally I think the best fixed zoom lens travel camera is the Lumix LX100 & II or its Leica variants Typ 109 / D-Lux 7 or 8 (M43 sensor).

I guess a Pentax solution is to stick with your KP and get the 18-50mm f/4-5.6 retractable lens to keep the size down, although naturally wouldn't be as compact as the LX100.

If you really want to keep things small, hassle free and APS-C, may be a GR is the solution, although not a zoom you'd have to make the choice between 18mm or 26mm, and no viewfinder.

The Ricoh GR range will give you the same image quality as your KP and is truly pocketable but has a fixed lens. If you want a small camera with a zoom lens you will be looking at a smaller sensor, with image quality not much better than a decent phone. I'm not sure what is currently in production. I have an old Canon G12 which is versatile, but inferior image quality to the GR and not as small. My Pentax WR rugged camera is pocketable but the image quality is not as good as a phone.

I was so impressed with my GR that I recently bought a GR111x to give me a choice of focal lengths. On holiday I can put one in my left pocket and one in my right. Together they still weigh less than K3 with 20-40 and do the same job, with nothing slung around my neck. Better still, my wife can carry one and I carry the other. She gets the human interest stuff, while I do the boring landscapes. I generally find that the GR focal length is more useful than the GRx. I bought the clip on viewfinder for the GR but have never needed to use it.

thanks a lot , the GR looks good but is fairly pricey, and though i think i would enjoy as a day to day camera to carry with me at home (Berlin), i dont know if it's really good for my next trip eg. beach sand and portraits of kids.
I actually consider buying a rugged camera, i had a W80 (i think) which was amazing and died eventually, the one i bought after that died within a week. The quality was very poor (this was like 17 years ago?!), and there was no RAW shooting which i find limiting.

I had the 18-50 i bought for my last trip (Azores), it was not great, i never got used to that "pressing a button to open it", image quality was subpar vs my usual 17-50 f2.8. I struggled to sell it (i got 50 euros).

Sounds like you have a keen eye for quality results, although the format of the WG is really practical and pocketable, it's not going to match up to the results of an APS-C sensor as you pointed out.

The GR is really your only choice within the Pentax/Ricoh arena with the size constraint and desired IQ. I've had a couple of 18mm versions of the GR, they covered landscape for travel pretty well, but wasn't really a fan of using them for anything else. The body is almost bulletproof, but always thought that the lens mechanism is vulnerable, and as you pointed out risky in a sandy environment.

The GR (III) is perfect as a travel camera. The IQ is insane and it fits in your pocket despite having a proper DSLR sensor.

Beach and sand = link ? No RAW, but you can take it in the water and shoot the children splashing around from close up!

Steve

I would also suggest something like a WG8 waterproof/sandproof camera. A Ricoh GR lens mechanism and sand will not go well together.

Totally against the desire for a 'smaller' camera than the KP, a K5 will do absolutely everything and really doesn't weigh much. Put it on an over the shoulder strap (Jobi?) and you would hardly know you were carrying it.

I have used my K-3 on beaches with no problems at all so I imagine a KP would also be fine. If there's sand blowing about then I'd stick to WR lenses but otherwise as long as you don't throw sand or water over it then it should be fine.

I keep a separate waterproof camera for situations where there is a high chance of getting the gear wet or covered in sand so I'd use that when needed even if image quality is significantly lower. This used to be a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FT30 but I've sold that and moved to a Fujifilm XP120 which should be better. Pentax and Olympus still make rugged/waterproof cameras that can be bought new.

My current waterproof is a Pentax WG3, which is over 10 years old now and still working, though I only use it when necessary. It's next outing will be when I take the grandkids to Centre Parcs. I previously had waterproofs from Olympus and Sony. These had pretty decent IQ but both started to let in water after 2 or 3 years. The Pentax's IQ is nothing special but it has been very durable.

Waterproof cameras never have the best IQ unfortunately. They serve to provide memories of people and events but are not for creativity or art.

hello, thanks a lot for all the comments and suggestions. Now I am debating whether to get a WG1000 (the cheapest, probably good enough), the WG90 or the WG8. I cannot seem to understand the differences between them.. it's adding 70 euros each time between models (German prices). The real step up would be from Olympus which shoots in RAW, is it necessary? i don't know.
Now i am thinking to do a combo: take my KP + maybe the 24mm sigma lens (very small and great quality but no portrait of the kids, or the Tamron 17-50 (more versatile but much heavier, + a small rugged like the WG1000 which i can take on the stand up paddle or at the beach (eg. going in the water, should be fun with the kids).

OR: get Pentax 20-40mm lens which is WR, 20mm is not super wide (last time i went to Mauritius i took a lot of 10mm shots, landscape+sky were amazing), and 40mm is a bit short for portraits? Also need to find a good price for it (new is crazy expensive)

Thoughts?

If you can carry 2 lenses... your Pentax 10-17/Sigma 10-20, and Tamron 17-50 will do the trick. If you have more space then replace the Tamron with the 55-300 lens.
Rest can be taken by your camera phones perhaps....
Best wishes and have fun

For travel I tend to use either a KP or K3iii body paired with the 20-40mm Ltd, if the 20mm end is not quite wide enough the diminuitive Pentax 15mm Ltd delivers great results