K3iii a few initial thoughts

What a delight it was to go to SRS in person and pick up the camera in person - first time I've done that since I purchased my K-7 from them ahem years ago.... Of course the shop is a bit different currently and it's not a free for all for customers to browse wherever they want. Still full of interesting stock though, and of course friendly staff; you don't get that on t'internet.

No comments on AF etc as yet, as I've not had time to use the camera at all today. And TBH AF speed is not one of my major concerns or reasons for buying so it would be better to look for reviews from others to whom this really matters.

What I can say though is that first impressions are great.

The camera feels very tightly constructed and dense in a way that will be familiar to Pentax owners, perhaps more so than any other dSLR I've used. The viewfinder is lovely; large and bright. The menu system appears to be logically laid out and it's clear to read. The shutter is very nicely damped and quiet - the reviews on the internet make it sound a lot louder than it actually is. The grip is lovely and personally I would not see a need for the additional vertical grip for my use, despite the fact that I have large hands (I'm 6'3" and not exactly dainty).

Tonight I'm going to try and set it up with a few standard user profiles - and work out what I want to assign to the smart fn button! Over the next few days I hope to try it out a bit, and perhaps compare some images with my other camera - Fuji X100V which may well use a variant of the same imaging chip - to see how it competes in terms of ISO (only up to c6400 though as I have never ever needed to go higher than that so I'm not in the slightest bit interested!).

I'll report back when I've got something to share but in the meantime, for others who are anxiously waiting for the post to arrive, I think you're going to be very happy!

Cheers,

Jon

Honestly, this is all I am interested in, autofocus and tracking speed.

Every single review I have seen so far says AF speed is not a major concern for them ... ARGHHHH!

Sounds like a trip to Watford is the answer Mike....try it out

Trouble is that I’ve got used to manual zone focus from using MF lenses and found that so liberating that it’s what I tend to do if I want super fast shots... it’s faster than any AF I’ve ever used!

I absolutely agree , manual focus is so much better in so many ways as it pinpoints exactly where you want the focus point to be. I know it’s been said a thousand times but the split screen viewfinder was fantastic in the film days

I'd actually forgotten that the new camera was due to be received/delivered about now after months of snippets/ mini reviews etc...good to see that finally its out there for all you lucky boys and girls. Hope no major disappointments.


+1...my thoughts exactly...particularly when taking shots of a moving object at or close to infinity.



+1...again totally concur...small birds in amongst branches/vegetation will defeat any AF but not MF.

Now that I've collected mine I can add to the initial thoughts.

Viewfinder I practically fell into. I absolutely love the viewfinder.

AF accuracy seems spot on even in poor light. AF speed is as good as my lenses will allow. AF hunting is negligible to non existent.

Image quality is superb and noise is low. I've taken a few test shots of the cat (black) with auto ISO going to 25600 and they are surprisingly clean and usable.

Construction is rock solid. Comfort is better than my K-5 which I felt didn't have a deep enough grip.

Negatives:
Control layout means I keep ignoring the joystick and trying to change AF points with the 4-way buttons. I'll get used to that...
Can't find any other than USER ERROR...

I was slightly worried live-view AF would be slow because it is CDAF only but it doesn't feel slow in the slightest. But it wouldn't have been the end of the world as I hardly ever use LV.

More to come as I get used to it and discover more.

I see from your Flickr you have the 16-50mm & 50-135mm, how do you find the autofocus speed on them as I always thought they were slow to get where they needed to on previous bodies plus they tended to hunt quite a bit. Fantastic quality though so I have kept mine for when I decide the K-3 III price is right for me.

The 50-135 doesn't feel any faster (although I'll go out one day with both the K-3 and K-3iii bodies and try it out). BUT, it locks on better (less hunting) and the focus point adjustment with the joystick is a breeze (when I remember, but that's my fault not the camera's).

Largely I have been using my shift lens and the FA31 so far. The focusing seems pretty good to me. I'm planning to take the 50-135 to the allotment and try to photograph my chickens... they move fast enough!

Having both the 16-50 and the 50-135 I’m looking forward to the analysis on the k3 iii performance. The large bright view finder and joy stick focus points has me intrigued and wanting this k3 iii. Thanks so far for the trial outings

OMG yes, the 16-50 is the slowest thing in the world! I think the short travel distance is actually it's downfall as it overshoots too often and has to hunt back and forth even on the K-3 iii.

The 50-135 actually feels faster on the K-3 iii than on my K-5. Not by much but still better because it does not hunt. It has a long travel distance which is the main issue in terms of speed but it seems to nail the focus every time.

What really surprised me was the DA* 300 actually feels fairly snappy at a 'working distance'. It is no 55-300 PLM which felt instantaneous last time I used it with my dad's K-70.


You'll be disappointed with the 16-50 as nothing can seemingly fix that things AF speed, other than a redesign with a PLM or DC motor. The image quality of that lens is still superb though which is why I have kept mine all these years. I know that at f/5.6 it has out-resolved all the sensors on the cameras that I have owned. I'll have to take it out on the K-3 iii to see how its resolving power renders on the 26MP sensor.

I tend to use the 50-135 in situations where AF speed isn't as important but it is better than the 16-50.


Separately, screw drive lenses vary a fair bit mostly depending on their focus throw and gear resistance. The slowest one so far is the 50 f/1.8 which is quite stiff. The 100 f/2.8 WR feels fast within a working range. My collection of DA Ltds seem fine. I've got all bar the 35 Macro, which I gifted to my dad.

I if anyone desperately wants I can set up a focus calibration target at a set distance from a tripod and test the K-5 and K-3 iii off against each other specific lenses. Easy enough to film on a mobile phone.

This is in the works, so to speak. Let's hope it doesn't take as long as the K-3iii. I've yet to find a "standard zoom" I'm happy with, and tend to stick to my primes in that range. I was hoping it might get released at the same time as the camera, but hey ho.

K.

Thanks Tyr for the update on the 16-50 s performance on the k3iii I still love the lens and I know it is difficult to use but when you get things right with this lens it is something special despite all the bad reviews. I would never sell it either. I use it with manual focus more now as er’m SDS but the K70 viewfinder while not bad I could do with a bit more clarity. Ah old eyes the price for
experience

I wonder if anyone has a screw drive converted 16-50 for comparison.

This would interest me to as the SDM motor has given up on my 16-50 and have considered the 'screw drive fix' over a repair.