K5 performance

Relatively new to the Pentax world and have currently a K5 Pentax 16-45 Sigma 70m Macro, Pentax 50m 1.7 and Tamron 135 2.8 manual.
The K5 appears on paper as a complete photographers camera this is what influenced me to depart from the Sony NEx system, however I am slightly disappointed with the results to date, any suggestions on default settings to try and restore my confidence

Its not unusual I'm sure for slight disappointment at the very first images from a new camera, and new system as well. So don't be worried, its most likely just a case of letting a few things gel through a bit more use and experience.

I like playing with settings and reading the manual, so that would be my first recomendation. If you're taking JPEGs then go straight to the Custom Image Settings (right hand button on the four-way controller) and try out shots with the different presets, and look at the fine tuning options such as contrast, saturation, sharpness. Take a few shots of the same thing at different settings to get a feel for each 'look'.

But if you're not happy with any particular images please post them here so we can see - you're more likely to find a specific solution that way.

Finally, if you have been taking RAW images, it is normal for these to appear rather muted and lacking in 'sparkle' initially - they need processing to bring out the full quality.

Hi and welcome to the the world of Pentax. Sorry to hear you are disappointed so far. Could I ask in what way you are disappointed and also how you have set your camera up, ie which setting are you using; auto, AV, P etc?

If you have any examples you can upload them to the forum so we can see and hopefully help.

Regards,

John K

I'm not surprised. Despite all the praise for the camera, I always find images from mine to be very flat, two dimensional, lifeless and "digital". There's obviously lots of detail, excellent low light performance and a wonderfully wide dynamic range. And yet...

Afetr a couple of weeks abroad with the K5, I can't wait to get back home to my elderly K10 which, for me at least, produces images of a very different quality.

I'm sure the fault lies with me and the way I use and set up the camera, as others seem to do very well with it, as I am sure will you, when you get used to it.

Great reply's guys, I have posted several shots on the gallery recently, initially some were taken with a Tamron 70-300 which I feel are soft and consequently have now sold and looking to replace.
My main comparison is that I tend to carry around with me a Fuji 100x and tend to duplicate shots, these images tend to have more punch and saturation.
I really love the handling of the K5 and do not believe there are many other cameras currently that have the same build or handling quality, however I am at a cross road as whether to continue with the marquee or try alternatives

You can upload images right into this thread if you wish. If you do we can discuss them and hopefully sort out the problem.

John K

Looking at your gallery portraits there, I can't see any one consistent issue apart from slight softness maybe - this appears to be the lens from the look of it. Colours and other IQ matters it is difficult to assess based on the subject matter.

Why not put up here a specific image and give details of what you are feeling about it so that you can get other viewpoints on it?

Are you saving the images in cameras as RAW (PEF or DNG) or JPG?

If RAW, you will need to do some processing yourself to get the best from your images.

I agree, the gallery images look just fine. There's nothing drastically wrong. Nothing that a tweak in Photoshop or whatever program you use wouldn't sort out. You could probably teach us a thing or two!
If you think they're soft (not that they look it) a bit of sharpening should sort that out. Some cameras add that in camera, as can the K-5 but you'd need to turn the sharpness up. Most DSLRs presume you'll work on the image after you've taken it, not just Pentax.

John K

Going to stick with the K5 and adopt some of the suggestions, just ordered Lightroom 5 and seeking out either a 200 or 300 range telephoto.
Watching closely the classified adds on the forum, however cannot understand some of the Jargon (Bump Pm ? ) or how to go about purchasing.
Think the site is great

I came from the GX10 (KD10 equivalent) to the K5 and I too thought that the K5 images didn't appear to have the same punch as the GX10 images.

It's not that the KD10 or GX10 could produce better images, it came down to the fact that the out-of-box settings are different for each. Within the menu of the K5 are a whole raft of image settings that will allow you to tweak according to what you perceive to be most pleasing to your tastes.

As McGregNi advises above, you need to experiment. You can also use the PDCU software to get instant previews of how the different options; natural, bright, landscape, portrait etc will appear.

What??? ... my post above has gone a horrible green, looks so unatural. What can it mean? .... I'll have to check my settings