Pentax 1.3 Sensor...

Just a little survey that I might want to pass on to Pentax...Who Wants a 1.3 Cropped Sensor and Why?

What would be the benefits of such a format and would we be willing to spend the extra bucks to do so?

Will Pentax develop or co-develop their own sensors?

Best Wishes
Ben
______

Not me.
Not applicable.
Not much.
Not at all.
Not likely.

G
(The difference between 1.5 and 1.3 is not significant, in my view.)

It all very much depends on....

Coverage of the new DA* lenses, if they cover an image size not much bigger than APS-C, then there is unlikely to be a camera with the same chip size as the 1D Mk2/3... so no benefit.....

I guess that the race will 'plateau' at 10-12 MP.... with more emphasis on image quality from each pixel.....

In the jump from 10D to 400D (6 -> 10 MP) there really hasn't been a significant jump in quality....

They said that about 5MP, 6MP 8MP. In fact only 12 months back it seemed that all the camera reviewers were insisting that 6MP was enough for anyone and that anything above was doomed to failure because of noise problems. But what do they know? They have their favourites and just follow the market.

As long as people buy, manufacturers will supply. The only brake will be technological advancement and as we know that just goes on and on and on........
See you in a couple of years with 20MP
Cheers
Graham

It all depends on whether Nikon enters the 'full frame' sensor arena,....if they do then pentax and others will be obliged to follow.

Ben,
Agree with George. Why would I want a larger sensor?

What I want is clean, highly detailed images suitable for large printing. The *ist-D was great, the K10D is superb.

It's dynamic range, smoothness of tones, and lack of noise that attract me - not sensor size. The current DA lenses are so compact, I can really travel light! (Well under half the weight of an equivalent Canon system )

If I want wide angle, I use the SMC-DA 12-24mm
If I wanted a larger format I'd go for the 645D...

Out of interest Ben, you mentioned somewhere you'd switched from Canon - which Canon?

Matt

I guess you were not around when the storm turned in to a Tornado at DP Reviews. I announced my switch on both the Pentax and Canon forums and as a result was banned from DP Reviews and have been refused entree ever since. I was officially sponsored by Canon France. I am a Canadian based in Paris. I began looking in to Pentax, as I had used Pentax Medium format for years. I made the official switch to Pentax about six weeks ago. I am now sponsored by Pentax. I used everything from the 20D to the 1Ds Mkll. Great products...However the potential of Pentax having expertise in MF was what helped make my decision to change platforms after 20 years of loyal Canon use.

http://pentaxlife.com/benjamin-kanarek-post-processing-method#more-213

Ben,
Thanks for the reply
"DePressing Review" I think it was called around here

That's interesting to hear... I sometimes get hung up about whether I'd get better results from a 5D or even 1DsII - but I suppose you can probably put my mind at ease
I'm still blown away by the K10D

Good to have you around!
Matt

It is quite clear from the specs for the new DA* lenses that they are designed for the APS-C sized sensor, so I think we can discount Pentax using a larger sensor, at least for a few years! Thier design philosophy seems to be that the APS-C sensor is good enough for 35mm equivalent work, and that if you need larger, save up and buy the 645 digital!

That just about sums it up! The results from the APS-C sized sensor are superb at this stage and that can only get better in the future.

As has been said, the 645D is the next logical step up, if there is sufficient demand for it. And that I suppose also depends on the final cost.

I'd happily go for a sensor that had a different aspect ratio so that it had the same shape as an A3 size paper.

There would therefore be more effective pixels to use, as you wouldn't have to chop off the ends of the frame for most uses.

There's talk of a 1.3 factor sensor. I wonder if the new 50-135 and other DA lenses would cover it?

Several places on the web are running 'official rumours' that Nikon will be using a 1.1 size sensor in it's new Dx3(?) pro camera to appear with or at the PMA show in orlando in about 10 days time.

This makes it more or less a certainty that Pentax will make a larger sensor model, since in order to climb the ladder they must chase Nikon in the manner of K10 chasing D200.....perhaps the legendary K1D.......

Pentax have already announced a camera with a big sensor - it's called the 645D.

IF Nikon does produce such a camera, it will be very expensive, and pro-only. Pentax is not in the pro market for its K-mount cameras (not since it dropped the LX and didn't replace it).

Just think what it would mean. It would have to produce a whole new range of FF lenses. This is just not going to happen.

G

George,

Pentax used to make FF lenses until relatively recently so it would not be difficult to dissinterr the designs,....indeed thay may have been keeping this very eventuality in mind.

A larger sensor (than APS) would allow less noise at higher iso as this seems to have limited the 10 meg cameras including K10 due to the physical size of the photosites.

It all comes down to cost. A larger sensor will put up the cost (and size) of the camera, and this will limit its appeal. And if there is more competition than there is now (Nikon as well as Canon) the potential sales will be even smaller, and the economies of scale will in turn be smaller.

Pentax, like Canon, will be forced to have yet another lens line, which will reduce the sales of individual lenses, thus increasing the cost and reducing profitabilty.

This is a vicious circle, and it's quite unnecessary because we already have high enough quality from the APS-C sensor, together with a low enough price.

You might buy a full-frame DSLR from Pentax for £3,000, but I won't, and nor will most other people. The price/quality balance just isn't right and never will be, because as FF costs come down, so will APS-C.

G