K5 @ -5C a quick report

I'm in Mongolia for a while (six weeks, will be back in 8 days).

On Thursday I was high up a mountain with air temps as above, driving snow and a wind that would have a brass monkey looking for a welder!

The K5 and the DA* 16-50mm peformed wonderfully and after a quick spell in the warm to dry the moisture on the lens, both were ready to go again. I know both carry the WR mark, but it is still a bit of a leap of faith using the kit in anything but the driest environment.

Oddly enough, the DLII also worked okay (SWMBO is using this for the trip) with the 18-55 WR kit lens in the same conditions.

Interesting place to visit - holiday or work?

Had a quick look at your photo in the gallery, which made me think of the Oregon Trail tracks we saw a couple of years ago.
I'm looking forward to more photos.

The K-5 does really well in cold and snow. I had mine at -20C and a snow storm and it worked perfectly. I chipped ice off it and it still worked and still does. That was with the DA17-70 which isn't WR too.
I haven't had in heavy rain yet, but the K20D, with the 17-70 again survived Oregon rainstorms with ease.

I was in Rannoch Moor a couple of Februaries ago and did a couple of dawn shoots - the temperature was -10c and didn't seem to trouble my K7. I did keep my battery (and the spare) in my trouser pocket until I needed it.

Used a tripod and Cokin ND grad filter. When I looked through the viewfinder my breath was freezing on the metal tripod and on the edge of the filter!!

Brrrr....John

A bit of both.

Since posting about the ability of the K5 to cope in snow, it has also passed the sandstorm test and been subjected to a good dose of rain - a quick wipe and it was again ready to go. My confidence in the "WR" claim has soared - I will try and stick to buying these in the future.

I've uploaded a couple more pictures to flickr, but with nearly 2000 to look through it's difficult knowing what to include or keep out I'll put another one in the gallery now, seeing as you asked nicely