The Live View of the K-r is much better.

As for the rain, I just ignore it and carry on anyway. The K10D, K20D and K-5 have all performed without a glitch no matter how wet it was. The weatherproofing on the lenses has also been fine.

However, I never change lenses until everything is absolutely dry again.

Both the cameras you mention have excellent IQ and I would be happy with either on that score.

I would guess that it will be easier to find one outside the UK - we seem to have a limited number of colours here. However, check Amazon because they tend to list a wider range than most.

The K-r is faster than the K20D, but you've hit the nail on the head regarding weather resistant sealing. If you want to shoot in the rain, you've really answered your own question.

Civility costs nothing Chris.

No idea, but let's stop it there and get back on topic please.

Welcome back Tony, hope we can cheer you up a bit with our stream of friendly banter!

It's all down to supply and demand in the end, plus of course the limitations of actual manufacturing and distribution costs.

I would expect the makup to be higher on accessories than on the loss-leader or small margin headline products such as camera kits.

Anybody who works in a retail environment will know all about add-ons.

Very interesting. I wish it were possible to do multiple tests with several samples of each lens though, especially as these are all used ones. We have no idea where sample variation may cause differences, or indeed whether or not individual lenses have been mistreated by previous owners. Sometimes even partially dismantled and "owner serviced" which is a real lottery of skill levels.

What we can say is that a good independent lens can be very good indeed, notwithstanding actual build quality and how they stand up to continuous use.

The one bonus that only gets mentioned occasionally is the superb colour that Pentax cameras deliver. This is fantastic for weddings and portraits where the skin gets a very, very nice rendition and tone. Many cameras look cold by comparison.

Please PM the new member and then they will be able to reply. e-mail address removed to avoid excessive spamming for you.