I'd say the underexposure issue is an algorithm that's intended to produce useable skies. In the Nikon and Canon the skies are blown out--no definition in the clouds. It's true that the camera-produced JPGs may be more useable in the N & C, but one can recover and warm up the foreground in post-p. with the Pentax. I don't have the K-3iii. The buffer definitely amazes on the Nikon.
You can also get the skies back by lowering down the exposure in raw on both canon and Nikon files. None of the sky is lost. They need to have an option to turn off all the raw rendering as possible. User should just get real Raw files like Pentax K1 .
Amazing! the D500, 6 years after it was introduced still remains as one of the best cameras in the market and the best DX camera for photographers. By far the best deal for sport and wildlife photographers and a great deal and very strong competitor with all the mirroless cameras for landscape photography to anyone that is not willing to produce insanly large prints. Nikon D500 is no doubt the best deal in DSLRs cameras in 2022.
Roberto I will agree with you on this. I was amaze on how well the D500 performed vs the competition. I believe this is probably the very last comparison for apsc dslr and Nikon stacks on top. Flip screen, no overheating, fantastic dynamic range and the price is just affordable. I believe its the lowest in the used market.
Thanks for the good work. I've been a long time Pentax user. I was excited about the new flashship Pentax camera, but after the announcement of the K3III, I found the price was really expensive. Pentax was always a brand with excellent price/performance relationship, but not this time, as you explain in the video. I was expecting a price similar to the previous flagship cameras (K5 & K3-ii). I realized that there were better options for the same price. I saw no future in continuing with Pentax (APS-C or FF), so I made the decision to switch brands, selling all my Pentax equipment. I got a Z6 II, and a small set of primes. It's been a year, I'm very happy with the Z6 II's performance, image quality and AF system. Yes, maybe I miss some things from my Pentax, but I haven't looked back.
Oh yea, many Pentaxian had left after the K3 Mkiii. It was sad as I reviewed them for several years. As soon as they raised the price, the review standards switch as they are now the premium brand and not best bang for your buck. Im glad you are happy with your Z6 🤝🤝🤝👍👍
To pentaxians: i think the purple problem is due to how lightroom handles pef files. I tried the same procedure with rawtherapee on k1ii at 100, 400, 800 and 1600 iso, it wasn't bad. It improved even when i changed dematricing from amaze to igv. I wonder if using dxo brings the same results. So don't sell your gear, just try rawtherapee, it's free.
Negative. This is an old issue. Raw Therapee doesnt use the entire potential of the file. You are limiting yourself with freeware. This is why the Pentaxians wanted me to wait for the "firmware support" for the Pentax K3 MKIII before I do my test. Any freeware wont allow you to use the full potential. Cheers
@@theCameraVille i'm happy with my k5iis , and my second hand k1ii for landscapes... i don't print A2, I don't sell my photos... i just hopped that pentax could stuck with the rules of physics and not trick with computational photography to hide the shit. Perhaps the k5iis and the k1 were the last attempt to get as much as possible out of a sensor in a reasonable way from pentax. I'm happy with the tools of yesterday, like 2010 and after, it's amazing when you compare what was available in 1990, 2000 and 2010. What came after is beyond my capacities.
honest review . my k3 iii was overheated already a few times . I'm not shooting videos , stills only .I have the same icon on my screen . the camera overheated outside was 94F . never happens before with my pentax cameras .
@@theCameraVille yes , camera don't have " breading " space , and to be honest i don't see image quality deference between KP , where i see the improvements 1) drive mode on burst shooting , and some AF on continuous shooting .
Excellent review. Your findings on the Pentax are consistent with other reviews I used to take my decision as an old Pentaxian. Ricoh decided to change the very key of the Pentax brand: value for money. Probably it took them too much money to invest to catch up with the competition on the AF system.
Thanks Siberius! I believe so. I think they took too long to have this model out and the price tag at $2000 is just too steep honestly. There is a ton of great option at that price point.
Nice review! Thanks for your work! I'm impressed by the dynamic range of the D500 and the buffer size. The 20mp seems to be beneficial at least to the buffer. The video features on the 90D impressed me; 120fps, 4K no crop. Beside the weather sealing, the pentax is just a disappointment.
I agree. I cant believe the D500 is still a 5 year old system. Its no wonder they keep making this model. 90D is not bad at all and even at the price tag its nice. Pentax, I was amaze it overheated. It makes perfect sense why it did over heat but I didn't expected it at all. The buffering was a major concern as well sigh. $2,000 is a lot.
This review shows exactly why Li didn't get a K3 MKIII at release; he was going to do a "real" review, comparing the top two other APSC cameras to it, head-to-head! The Pentax loses badly and the other shills on UA-cam didn't want to lost those dollars, so they would say things like, "it's a pretty good camera, and if you have the money, you should buy it." "Oh, the AF system is the best that Pentax has ever produced!, etc. No one would dare compare it to Nikon or Canon. Thank you so much Li. I have removed all the other Pentax shills from my subscriptions and I have kept you, the only honest Pentaxian, in my list! Great job!
Thank you Rudy! Appreciated. I was also told folks who are in those threads and forums were removed if they spoke any negative tone on the system. Sad world we live in. As much as I want to push people to buy Pentax but I cant with this one. I really cant and I have been doing this for 5 years. If the pricing was $1000- $1200 , okay sure lets go. $2000? .... .... no way.. Autofocus video coming soon and let me say, it isnt good. I waited and even after 3 firmware update, its not good. Something really changed in this system. Stay Tune
@@theCameraVille Even new they ain’t much more expensive these days. The K3 iii is €1998 in Germany. A brand new D850 from a serious supplier (no gray market) can be had for 2479€.
@@romanpul yup, I was like looking at the D850. Im like... You can get 45mp, flip screen, better 4k, access to all kinds of lens. Get a grip and it add on more FPS. While the Pentax... ehhh.....
@@theCameraVille There‘s no vertical grip for the K3? 🙈 Maybe you could do a review at the $2k price point. Like K3 iii vs D780 vs whatever DSLR Canon has left at that price
Well I bought the KP and looking at this video I'm pleased I made the correct move. The Nikon d500 takes this camera to the cleaners. Looks like I saved a grand.
Hi, Li! Thanks for the video. I never had underexposed image so far (I have only Pentax lences). The AF is very good, I rearly miss the focus. Some things must be also added: eye detection autofocus - doing very good job, pixel shift, astrotracer (i miss the build in gps). Button customisation is great. I can change every setting I want without moving my eye from the viewfinder (it takes some time to adjust everything on place). Yes the price is little to high, but as every new model you pay a little bit more for what you get. Great for sport, wildlife, events etc. For landscapes I am keeping my K1.
When testing, its up to the reviewer to push the dynamic range to see how good or bad it can be. The end user wont need to do this unless one day they intend to and if so that is the results. As for the AF, good is a C here in the USA. I am glad you didnt say excellent because there should be a firmware update coming soon to fix this AF I am hearing. cheers!~
I am not deceiving myself. Nikon hit a home run with the D500. I almost switched system for it. Now I have a k-3iii because I am comfortable with Pentax (Translated: too lazy to switch).
Thanks for the review~! Sadly I went outside and tested out the same setting. Yup, the entire image does tend to go purple when you push the shadows. I am disappointed.
K3 MArk11 is selling everywhere for 1696..the D500 is running the same price as 'renewed', the 90d, about 100 dollars(US) less. For everyday shooting, the K3III seems to be doing a great job. If you are invested in Pentax then 1700 US a lot less expensive than 1599(Canon) or 1699(Nikon) and add a couple of grand worth of glass and accessories.
No because in recent reports in Europe the heat wave showed the k3mkiii overheat in photo. k1 and Kp dont do this. Its a poor investment on Pentax k3Mkiii. In fact other reviewers have gotten rid of the unit due to this issue sadly.
Here`s my humble point of view. I am not a constant gear upgrader, I still shoot with my k5 in sports situation, demonstrations, every day street and once every while police beating up people when dissolving demonstrations. I will have a lot of the last in the next couple of days sadly, Most of the times I use manual focus (50mm 1.2, a 200mm 4.5 fujinon m42 mount and a kit lens, thats my gear nowadays, Im getting it upgraded as soon as possible thats a fact). As a photographer what Im encountering is that our job is every day more devaluated by the consumers, being reduced to "could you please pass me the photo that..:". Not long ago I was at a firefighters olympics and this pro reporter with full frame canons tells me "you have to upgrade, with this one when there is a car accident I dont even have to look, I simply shoot a burst and they all come up just fine". I was outraged on the inside, being a photographer is about looking, not not looking. I just smiled and walked away. If those of us who consider themselves to be artists dont spend more time trying to educate the consumer instead of educating the manufacturer not long after we will find ourselves to be doing something that has been drained out of aura, spirit, feeling and meaning. The peak has been reached, as far as ISO, as far as FPS, as far as AF. Guys, we have to start crediting ourselves for the results, for the feelings, the colours and compositions. For the editing. None of you is the camera you use. 20 years ago my photo professor told me "the best camera, is the camera that you have". If we dont put that in mind, we will be in serious jeopardy soon.
Hi, your camera is unrepairable according to Pentax authorize outlets. www.precisioncamera.com/PCR . If you like to talk about art, you should stop by Matt Granger or Tony Northup. They are the best. This is a gear channel, not an Art channel.
@@theCameraVille There are a lot of guys on Facebook pissed off at you because of your latest K3 III comparo. Your video revealed a lot about the new K3 and it wasn't great news. I hope they can improve upon this but I would definitely wait to see a deep dive like your video on the next Pentax APSC before pulling the trigger. I bought my KP mostly because of the two comparo videos you did with it (vs the X-T30 and vs the Sony).
@@Tkarma77 Thanks. I have extensively gone over reviews from everyone on the internet including TCS and DPReview to DigiDirect plus others as well as the smaller lesser known Pentax-pundits. They don't go into as much detail IQ-wise as Li has done. I knew Pentax kind of tweaked their raw files but this purple-ish issue is quite alarming for $2K.
Great review, i think an interesting comparison would be to compare the K3ii KP K3iii and see how that goes, using Pentax lenses, this might really show whether an upgrade would be worthwhile or worth the $$$
@@tubularificationed Thats a good question. The adapter suppose to release in May but they postpone. Last I heard it was made out of metal and they built actual adapter. I am sure it will be release in the coming months. My guess is September. A lot of release is suppose to happen in September.
I said in a forum way back when that the K-3iii should come in at about $1300, and I got flamed for it. I was shocked when they announced its price at $2K. I don't care how good the OVF and middle finger grip are, they can't justify that price.
I hear you. I made about 10 videos on this and over time I noticed the fan boys slowly switched out of the system. There is only a small handful left. Maybe 50 people?
Hi Li, can you explain how exactly you are testing the dynamic range? Set manual to f16, 1/8000 ISO 400 and then push the exposure in Lightroom? How many stops? Anything more?
Thanks for doing the review Li. You were right, I should've brought tissues. I can't believe how poorly the K-3 MkIII performed in the dynamic range tests, that's always been one of their strengths. I'm thinking my original K-3 would outperform the MkIII. I was still holding out hope of buying one. Originally I wanted it so I could shoot 4K and stills but when I learned the 4K had a crop I bought my self an EM5 MkIII. Shoots great 4K footage with spot on autofocus. I still thought I would buy the K-3 MkIII purely as a stills camera but I think I'll just stick with my trusty K-3 for now. Eventually I'll probably upgrade to a Nikon Z7 for stills. Thanks for all your efforts, I still would like to see the 450mm lens test. 👍
Yup, I was sad to see the results as well. It was bad. This is what happens when companies take short cuts and start baking without giving pure raw files. I saw this early on with the K1 MKII but it wasnt that bad. This just got worse. They went crazy high.
The exposure test is interesting. It looked to me like the Pentax is overly weighted to the bright sky scene (the clouds have much greater definition than the Nikon and Canon). I, too, was bummed by the absence of a tilt / swivel screen (I love my K1 II screen for macro) and the low buffer for continuous shooting. I did order a K3 since I have a lot of lenses and look forward to using it for sports. I don't tend to shoot more than 1 or 2 seconds of action at a time, since going through 10k pictures of a game is rather tedious and most action is "bursty" in sports. Good review!
Thanks for sharing..I am very happy with my D500 results although sometimes depending on the lens, will under exposes... great video & comments... cheers 😀
Now, after the Pentax K-3 Mark III has improved with the latest firmware update, I'll love to see a video with the Pentax 150-450mm. Because 90% of the time I shoot aviation photography, I have no problem with the fixed display, 4K video or heat. I'm shooting with Sigma 50-500mm and Tamron 70-200 f2.8 and after I bought the K-3 Mark III, these lenses got a whole new value, but I got this Pentax 150-450 on my list to buy in the next months. My old camera is a K5.
@@theCameraVilleI came back after I watched more of your videos here, and I read more comments that say about overheating when taking photos. Never happened to me, even when I shot 2 days at an airshow, outside in 38-39 degrees Celsius. A lot of continuous shooting. One request: please show me where you have a test with K3-III + 150-450mm, if you have one. Thanks.
@@blackmamba0505 ua-cam.com/video/X230c9ZKEwk/v-deo.htmlsi=4_zThDV1UVmYZEfY There is the overheat. Perhaps your not pushing your camera enough or your warning alert isnt working which may need service. Good luck🫡
@@theCameraVille WOW!!! Never known about this issue. As I said, 2000 pictures taken on a very hot day, many continuous shooting, and left the camera on hot concrete, in the sun. worked perfectly. Mine was bought in 2023, and with the latest update. Maybe my settings configurations are made in that way that never overheats. But as I told you, I shoot almost allways aviation moments, fast moving objects, and fast bursts of frames. Even at this day, never had this issue. Anyway, thanks for your help, and keep up your good work, and impartially. Search for "Plane Spotters Bacau" ;)
@@blackmamba0505 Yea, its a first for any Dslr I ever used or seen. You may be in a sweet spot for the camera usage perhaps but if its really hot and its working, there must be something turned on like auto temps Sony/Canon has this feature and it doesn't remove the overheating but it turns off the warning alert . So the camera is over heating but user dont care and let it go. This is where hot pixel and noise start creeping in the photos and video down the road. I'm not sure if there was an update by Ricoh that turned that overheating warning off automatically so you wouldn't see the over heat. Its a real issue so good luck~.
It's sad to see my fears about the K3-III are confirmed. I'm not a photographer any more so I don't really have to worry about kit, but if I do buy another camera it doesn't look like it'll be a Pentax. :(
Follow your instincts. Everyone has their own path. Some are waiting for K1 MKIII, some are waiting for the next apsc and others are shipping to other brands sadly. I wish the K3MKIII was priced reasonably lower. When they charge $2000, it needed to check all the boxes vs the competition but it came up short sadly.
@@theCameraVille it needs to be realistically half the price they're asking, you and I have had this discussion already, it feels like Pentax are relying on die-hard Pentax fans to just buy it because it's Pentax.
I fell in love with the Pentax K3III for the way it handles and that lovely shutter. I am probably paying more for the IBIS, BSI sensor, all metal body and that gorgeous big viewfinder. But I can't help thinking If Canon can make the 90D in Japan and sell it for under 1500 bucks, why Ricoh, who makes the K3III in the Philippines, can't pass on the savings to the consumer?
If you shoot fine art Pentax hands down. I like it gives grain at those levels smooth/sharp photos aren’t always a good thing or artistic choice. No need use that high iso why Pentax don’t give a hoot…
If you are looking for grain, then you are referring to the older dslr camera. Right now Pentax is charging more than the competition with less feature so you are correct. Buy old system on ebay, don't buy new. Pentax is too much and none of the feature is top notch. Cheers Neil~
as someone who used to lug an rb67 everywhere (doubled my weight on backpacking trips) i just cannot fathom the desire for aps-c's. i still seek out a decent 4x5 digital back...one day. yeah yeah yeah, something something light, afforable, range blah blah lols.
@@theCameraVille not fair , i don't trash you . pentaxian for past 30 years , i shoot only with pentax .actually i'll love your honest review and always leave comments , and i don't recall that someone trash you . we all have different opinions , and it's good . keep doing , great reviews .
Nope. People said this to me the last time on the K1 MKII. This time I sat back and waited for 3 months to do the review so the camera + Lightroom can get the firmware update. This has been confirm , this is due to the baking Pentax is doing internally. You are not getting pure RAW files. You are getting jpeg like files.
Good review. Glad I held off and bought a z6ii. Still got the Pentax k1mk2 and k70 and 560mm and 150-450mm. Would like to see how it fair's doing wildlife and action, but as you point out too dear currently hopefully some software will help it out?
Tell me please, friend. I don’t understand when you pulled photos. Pentax was the worst of all, lost color and according to the graphs it is the best. How so?
Thanks for sharing...yes I am happy with results from my D500... always like to see gear reviews although I always think a lot depends on the glass quality for good results.. cheers 😀
I hold Pentax K-x with all 3 fingers on grip and it's like 1cm shorter than K3-III. Anyway, I am going to buy it today for €1700 (discounted from €2000) :)
@@theCameraVille I know this is not the best comparison but I have Fuji S1500 and it's super old but I can't say I like the EVF experience. It's not about lag, it's about...being disconected from the scene I shot. I mean EVF definitely has greater meaning for professionals but for amateur it feels like I am not there, I just see image and click to save it. I just like OVF of my K-x. Hope I'll feel some upgrade from K-x :D Especially this PixelShift power. What I miss regarding this camera is swivel screen and if they decided to keep it fixed they could've definitely come up with some workaround - first what comes to my mind is a smartphone grip, similar to the one seen on phone tripods, just with a hot shoe mount.
I had my eyes on the Pentax K3 III, but after this video, I seriously doubt it.... (Battery-life, Flippy screen, Dynamic Range) these things are VERY important to me. Let's not mention the price...
Yea, still even after 2 years , canon and nikon are cheaper in the used market. Pentax still got over heating issue in photo mode which people had reported and AF has issue sadly.
Wow...this is pretty shocking. . I would have thought the K3 iii would have had the best IQ in its class. Given the state of camera sales, I've wondered what the impact on the Pentax would be if the K3 III doesn't do well.
Its due to all the baking going on in the system. They did more baking this time around than a K1 MKII. In my K1 MKI vs K1 MKII, the dynamic range on the MKII got slightly purple. When I look at the PTP chart, K3 MKIII vs K1 MKII, the baking increased heavily. Its the most I have ever seen in a camera so far. This is why many people need pure raw files.
@@StevenBrener Kp. I am working on the autofocus video for K3 Mkiii. If the K3 MKIII only lower the price below $1400, I will recommend. $2000? thats way overpriced.
@@theCameraVille I haven't pulled the trigger yet on the K3 iii (wanted to love it) because of the fixed screen - but if the dynamic range is compromised by RAW baking, then that has me really concerned.
@@StevenBrener Yup, if you look at the PTP website, you will also notice, they did the most baking ever on this system than any Pentax body. The fixed screen, I knew it was going to be bad but when I had to bend down again to "review " the photo, that was the point of real frustration.
I´m a 90D shooter, and it's a great camera. As a macro photographer, the 90D's 32 mp sensor (coupled with a good lens) gives incredible detail, but I have to say the D500 looks fantastic - superior in some ways. I'm invested in the Canon system, though, so I wouldn't consider a change.
Yea, first time I held the 90D. Felt very nice. Its a great system. Im currently Canon/ Nikon user but 90D is no slouch . If D500 and 90D had a child, it would been magic. 🫡🫡🤝🤝
The D500's buffer actually isn't all that big. I was getting about 32 RAW images recording onto the slower UHS-I SD card before I bought my XQD and even then I was getting about 60 images before it ran into buffer issues since I bought the slowest XQD. Now, with the faster XQD or a CFExpress card it will do 200 frames. What you're seeing is the incredible write speed of the faster cards since the SD cards are slower than even the slowest CFExpress cards available now.
@@theCameraVille yes, but, it’s the faster 400MB/s card. Mine was the 150MB/s card. The CFExpress, even though it is capable of much faster write speeds, only writes at 400MB/a on the D500 as far as I can tell. On my Z6 writing RAW and JPG Fine photos it buffers at around 120 images at the highest 11FPS setting.
Guys ,I am getting a dslr- pentax K5 or Nikon d300 -( never owned a camera before) both at almost the same price… Which should I go with.. (Landscape-portrait-street-occasional wildlife n macros also if I could do decent star photo and low light photo stuff) I don’t wanna spend a lot. Thanks
Nikon has a wider lens selection than Pentax. That is including 3rd party lens like Tamraon and Sigma. In the end you are getting more choices in that department.
Excellent and truthful review. This Pentax is not a success, however you look at it. Thanks for showing it for what it is - and especially for what it isn't! Why would anyone buy it when there are so many excellent full-frame cameras for less?
Because you dont just buy fullframe, you need to buy also all the lenses that you need for work.. and that's why i still consider k3iii (even after excellent and honest finds of this chanel) other then that .. yes no reason to buy k3iii
& if the back moved it would break the weather sealing there’s an app to view images without bending over. Idk I live where extreme weather those other cameras would leak water inside I’ll gladly pass…
Unfortunately its been known that the app is inconsistent in syncing. Also using the app drains more power from the camera, which already takes up too much power as it is.
Just ordered a D500 last night...found one in IMMACULATE condition at 10k shutter count for roughly $1100 total with the MB-D17 battery grip. I have several bodies (it's a serious addiction) but my main ones are Olympus E-M1 Mark III, Nikon Z7, and Nikon D800E but I've had the D500 itch for years. So I found a great deal and pulled the trigger and now I cannot wait. I love the bodies I have but when it comes to wildlife, I'm always left hoping for something a little more and hearing about the D500 AF, I'm expecting to bring home more keepers. I was going to get the D850 but I don't want to invest $2500 in a DSLR, I'd rather wait a couple years until Nikon brings the Z8 or whatever it will be that matches the D850 performance for AF because that's really the only thing lagging in the Z series cameras.
Nice~! Yup, I have several other user picking up the D500 for around that price. Its cheap. Back in the days there was a wait list at $2000 for that system. Such an affordable pro system these days. Yup, I made videos on the Z for wildlife, its not the best. As you can see, my reviews are very unbias. The Nikon world hated my guts for making that video LOL.. I have to tell the truth.
Why is Pentax trending towards so much modifications of the RAW files? I learned photography on an original K-3 in 2014 and just this year bought a mint condition used K-1 Mark 1 because I wanted to avoid the "upgrades" on the Mark 2. As someone who loves what Pentax has been about- robust camera bodies and robust image quality, why ruin that ethos with digital nonsense? If its making the quality worse it seems completely unecessary and quite frankly an arbitrary if not detrimental decision. Could they release a firmware update that gets rid of this "baking" as you say? I'm never going to buy a K-3 after my original as I love my old one and will keep it forever, but for all future K-1s and the future of Pentax I am somewhat concerned. I know and love what I know they are capable of and this isnt it.
I have no clue as well. K1 mk1 doesnt bake and its their last PURE raw camera. I was sadden they did this as well. Looking at other photos out there, I can spot the purple in the shadows on the k3 mkiii .
I am glad that I got the last pure RAW camera they made (as of now) but I really do hope they see this and other reviews and fix these issues. The 2k price is also alarming as the original was 1300 at release and 800-900 new after a year. 2k if I am not mistaken makes it more expensive than an new K-1, which makes zero sense. Hopefully they have some kind of image quality breakthrough in the works where they can put these updates and cameras behind them and get back to what they were best at, especially with their new users and good fanfare with the new glass.
A lot of processing power is being applied to the output. That explains the battery life and the overheating. I am guessing that firmware revisions can make all the difference. I dare suppose that the camera and lenses are part of the firmware loop and native glass will give better outcomes. The 4K would be better if they used the whole sensor and downsampled. The K1 screen would have been a great addition. I think the exposure for the sky is about holding detail and in post, it would yield a better looking result. Are we asking more of the camera in the extreme tests than typical use cases would demand? Nevertheless very interesting food for thought Li.
Yup. Keep in mind , the recording of this video was after the 3rd firmware update. Also folks have reported that even shooting, with no video, during the summer time, the camera over heated. That was sad to hear. The camera is designed too small to handle the heat from the sd card, battery, processing and the ibis. Add on the excellent weather seal, and now you have a nightmare.
I wonder if the problems you highlighted were what kept it from coming to market for so long? There may be some firmware revisions that might help but, I guess buying for video would imply Sony, Canon, Fujifilm and Panasonic. The Pentax offering doesn’t have economies of scale and that would impact price. Almost everything you tested for has probably got a mirrorless solution that responds better than all three cameras you tested. Pentax looked as if they were trying to preserve highlight details. The native iso rating for their sensor might be centred around a lower sensitivity. A very interesting test nevertheless. Have you taken the Pentax out and used it in the field yet?
I bought the Pentax because it was on sale. Would not have bought it at full price I don't think. I already have pretty expensive glass for Pentax and it's what I'm used to and I like it. Makes no sense to switch for me.
Current sale price is still pricey at $1600 usd. That's a lot for a dslr. Also its been known that user for the last year are experience overheating during photo mode in the summer heat. Get ready for that.
yup, it was done on my live show on instagram. We had a 5 day marathon for QandA and Af was part of it. I'm still deciding if I should do one for youtube but there isnt much folks here interested. Maybe just 2. Im thinking most of the folks saw it on the live stream.
@@theCameraVille I would definitely like to see a more detailed review of the camera, Inc autofocus testing and comparisons to other Pentax cameras. Considering >50% of your fan base have told you (your polls) they want to see a full review of the camera, I'd be surprised if only 2 want to see more on you tube. I'd like to see tests using Pentax lenses, inc (plm).. Thx.
@@daellis130 I don't know. Even in this video I mentioned if you are interested in the AF video, let me know down below. Making a video will take hours, so this is why it is important for folks to say something like you are doing now. I am waiting for more folks to chime in. I am sure they are reading this post.
Pentax does have a touch screen that you use to focus and search the menu. It is an upgrade and gets better reviews on other sites but the fix screen that is a head scratcher and a show stopper for me. I'll never buy another camera with a fix screen. Old knees.
Yea, when I had to review the photos, I was like oh shoot, I gotta bend down to review it too!? 🤦♂️🤦♂️ lol Its been 2015 since I had a fix screen. I was younger back then and no knee problems I have knees and neck problems as well. 🤦♂️🤦♂️
I own a Pentax K1 Mark 2 , It takes great pics, but I'm sorry Pentax , after seeing this review , I won't be buying the K3, Pentax up your game, life is not all about big profits. Maybe upgrade the K1 and make it the best all round camera out there. 😀❤️🇦🇺
Does any one know if Pentax has released any firmware upgrades since this review that address some of the issues? For those of us who are invested in lenses for Pentax APSC what is our best option?
@@theCameraVille I was under the impression, the K3III had similar dynamic range to the K-1, I guess you blew that out of the water. K-1 is still on my list of must have...
@@theCameraVille K3III changing colors when pushing the dynamic range is a non starter. I expect Pentax to excel in this area (if nothing else). I guess they put way too much time into the 100% viewing area and just fiddle F'd around of 4+ years hoping no one would notice.
I LOVE Pentax and has been using a k20d for years, but a fixed screen today is unaccaptable. Sorry Pentax but WTF? Just because of this I will change my whole camera set up as my back and knees are giving up lately. I feel Pentax will be history soon because of the thickheaded guys at Ricoh who doesn't listen their customers.
I love my K1, and I loved the KP. I sold the KP thinking this K3MKIII will be excellent. I was wrong. I cant believe it overheated even in photo on a hot day. Others in the comments also mentioned this happening. I wish they just add a flip screen, lower the price tag. $2000 ? That is a ton of cash.
Yea. Pentax messed up this model sadly. Also after a year, so many users reported over heating and the purple. Its pretty bad. I been reviewing Pentax since 2017 with K1 and Kp and they were all excellent. This model was just not ready. Thanks for sharing.
So, ergo, sticking with my K-1 and 150-450 (just got), for now. Eventually, if Pentax continues to shortcut, I will move to a different system. They do not seem to be innovating in the same way they did when they brought out the original K-1.
I would gladly pay 2k for a Pentax flagship IF the image quality was there to match the price. Also sorry to hear they changed the menus for the worse, that was one of the things that made Pentax so much more ergonomic to use. Where did all that development money go into? Autofocus?
@@theCameraVille Thanks for the info. Could you post a EXIF dump of one of the images from the K3III or give us a download URL with one of the raw files ? I tried to reproduce the color distortion problem - without success.
Thanks for the review. Remember, most of the critical points are killed by the middlefingergrip! And that is the reason why old Pentax are price stable. There is no chance of buying a reasonable priced used Pentax. That wasn't a big problem in the past. The K3 MKIII crashed the used market. No one will sell his old Pentax except for a whole bunch of bucks...
Really disappointed and sad with Pentax, had high hopes for this camera a year ago but as more details were released the more disappointed I became, and then the tests, wow! What has happened ed how could they get it so wrong? Good review Li long time coming but very worthwhile👍
@@theCameraVille it's a real shame, I really hoped it would be better, but not so, most now will buy the K1ii second hand or change systems! A few may hold out for whatever the next model is or a K1iii of that ever materialised.
@@tubularificationed Yup~ Pentaxian typically go over to Fuji. Cant believe its more than Fujifilm... ..... .... Let that sink in... This K3 MKIII is more than a Fujifilm... LOl....
The K3 MKIII, they planned so much for the system. Its 2 more months till we hit 1 year and so far folks complained about overheating and autofocus in wildlife. For $2000 I cant recommend it.
Simple, if you watch some of my other comparison you will know lens will give the camera different amount of exposure even if its the same focal length and F stop. Its because every lens is made different with the amount of elements and quality. By having each camera using the same glass, we will be able to determine what is really going on. This is why a test like DPreview test scene doesnt matter much since they all use different lens but the same setting. For people who dont understand, sometimes they use soft lens in their comparison vs sharper lens and some images are brighter than the other in their testing. People get confuse when seeing their results. This way we can see what the camera is actually doing across the board. I used to do it with my Rokinon for the last 4 years, and thought I switch it up.
Pentax is 'baking' image sensors now! Their next one may have a baked cookie as an image receptor, dipped in chocolate with raisons. At least You can eat the crap that You pay for.
Hard to really argue since its been proven and tested by other outlet that it is baking files which will result in purple. Not just in my test but others. Good luck .
My 2013 Pentax K3 cost me new $970 back then. I still shoot with it for giggles occasionally. The AF is horrible but I like the colors and it is built like a tank. I left Pentax long ago but would rather get a K1 than this half arsed overpriced anachronistic APSC clicker.
1.100 dollars/euros for a camera with a UHS II slot, 4k video, a focus joystick, a 10% bigger optical viewfinder, 12 fps continous burst? Surely You like provocations! I think that this camera should assest its price around 1500 and that should be fine. That said, Nikon D500 could not be refreshed in a dslr format, the same, maybe for the Canon 90D. And, finally, Pentax now is a small company and cannot compete in price (giving new features and continuing R&D) with the CanoNikon world, it is simple as that. Make peace with this facts, please.
Its sad the specs is very low for a high price tag. This is a premium era Pentax will be going through sadly. Not the Pentax that most of us all bought into from years ago. Pentax has always been the small company this past decade but they always were able to price their system lower than the competition. Make peace with this fact as well. Look up Pentax K3 MK I and Pentax K3 MKII vs their counter parts of their time. There is no excuse.
Pentax is not a small company. They are a division of Ricoh, which is about the same size as Canon. But Ricoh is sure starving Pentax‘ R&D budget. I think I said that before on this channel, if Ricoh has no interest in pushing Pentax forwards they should sell it to someone who is. What they are currently doing to the brand is just ridiculous
I'd say the underexposure issue is an algorithm that's intended to produce useable skies. In the Nikon and Canon the skies are blown out--no definition in the clouds. It's true that the camera-produced JPGs may be more useable in the N & C, but one can recover and warm up the foreground in post-p. with the Pentax. I don't have the K-3iii. The buffer definitely amazes on the Nikon.
You can also get the skies back by lowering down the exposure in raw on both canon and Nikon files. None of the sky is lost. They need to have an option to turn off all the raw rendering as possible. User should just get real Raw files like Pentax K1 .
I am thinking the same thing. Pentax exposes to the right to retain highlight details.
@@theCameraVille Yes, that is true about the RAW files not being fully RAW.
Amazing! the D500, 6 years after it was introduced still remains as one of the best cameras in the market and the best DX camera for photographers.
By far the best deal for sport and wildlife photographers and a great deal and very strong competitor with all the mirroless cameras for landscape photography to anyone that is not willing to produce insanly large prints.
Nikon D500 is no doubt the best deal in DSLRs cameras in 2022.
Roberto I will agree with you on this. I was amaze on how well the D500 performed vs the competition. I believe this is probably the very last comparison for apsc dslr and Nikon stacks on top. Flip screen, no overheating, fantastic dynamic range and the price is just affordable. I believe its the lowest in the used market.
Thanks for the good work. I've been a long time Pentax user. I was excited about the new flashship Pentax camera, but after the announcement of the K3III, I found the price was really expensive. Pentax was always a brand with excellent price/performance relationship, but not this time, as you explain in the video. I was expecting a price similar to the previous flagship cameras (K5 & K3-ii). I realized that there were better options for the same price. I saw no future in continuing with Pentax (APS-C or FF), so I made the decision to switch brands, selling all my Pentax equipment. I got a Z6 II, and a small set of primes. It's been a year, I'm very happy with the Z6 II's performance, image quality and AF system. Yes, maybe I miss some things from my Pentax, but I haven't looked back.
Oh yea, many Pentaxian had left after the K3 Mkiii. It was sad as I reviewed them for several years. As soon as they raised the price, the review standards switch as they are now the premium brand and not best bang for your buck. Im glad you are happy with your Z6 🤝🤝🤝👍👍
To pentaxians: i think the purple problem is due to how lightroom handles pef files. I tried the same procedure with rawtherapee on k1ii at 100, 400, 800 and 1600 iso, it wasn't bad. It improved even when i changed dematricing from amaze to igv. I wonder if using dxo brings the same results. So don't sell your gear, just try rawtherapee, it's free.
Negative. This is an old issue. Raw Therapee doesnt use the entire potential of the file. You are limiting yourself with freeware.
This is why the Pentaxians wanted me to wait for the "firmware support" for the Pentax K3 MKIII before I do my test. Any freeware wont allow you to use the full potential.
Cheers
@@theCameraVille ok. Thanks for the answer!
@@lioneldm5130 ua-cam.com/video/2uWcAAVvqpQ/v-deo.html
We tried the Sony one on the channel. Very limiting. Its common issue I notice.
@@theCameraVille i'm happy with my k5iis , and my second hand k1ii for landscapes... i don't print A2, I don't sell my photos... i just hopped that pentax could stuck with the rules of physics and not trick with computational photography to hide the shit. Perhaps the k5iis and the k1 were the last attempt to get as much as possible out of a sensor in a reasonable way from pentax. I'm happy with the tools of yesterday, like 2010 and after, it's amazing when you compare what was available in 1990, 2000 and 2010. What came after is beyond my capacities.
Excellent video. So sad for Pentax. Next time, make sure to use black letters on white background for easier reading. Keep up the good job.
My apologies, I should had done that. It was in my thoughts . Thank you again Edilberto~!
honest review . my k3 iii was overheated already a few times . I'm not shooting videos , stills only .I have the same icon on my screen . the camera overheated outside was 94F . never happens before with my pentax cameras .
@@theCameraVille yes , camera don't have " breading " space , and to be honest i don't see image quality deference between KP , where i see the improvements 1) drive mode on burst shooting , and some AF on continuous shooting .
I notice the exact same thing when I had a K3iii. Sold it now, wasn't overly impressed with it, I think the KP is a far better camera
Excellent review. Your findings on the Pentax are consistent with other reviews I used to take my decision as an old Pentaxian. Ricoh decided to change the very key of the Pentax brand: value for money. Probably it took them too much money to invest to catch up with the competition on the AF system.
Thanks Siberius! I believe so. I think they took too long to have this model out and the price tag at $2000 is just too steep honestly. There is a ton of great option at that price point.
Nice review! Thanks for your work!
I'm impressed by the dynamic range of the D500 and the buffer size. The 20mp seems to be beneficial at least to the buffer.
The video features on the 90D impressed me; 120fps, 4K no crop.
Beside the weather sealing, the pentax is just a disappointment.
I agree. I cant believe the D500 is still a 5 year old system. Its no wonder they keep making this model.
90D is not bad at all and even at the price tag its nice.
Pentax, I was amaze it overheated. It makes perfect sense why it did over heat but I didn't expected it at all. The buffering was a major concern as well sigh. $2,000 is a lot.
Nikon D500 has been discontinued.
This review shows exactly why Li didn't get a K3 MKIII at release; he was going to do a "real" review, comparing the top two other APSC cameras to it, head-to-head! The Pentax loses badly and the other shills on UA-cam didn't want to lost those dollars, so they would say things like, "it's a pretty good camera, and if you have the money, you should buy it." "Oh, the AF system is the best that Pentax has ever produced!, etc. No one would dare compare it to Nikon or Canon. Thank you so much Li. I have removed all the other Pentax shills from my subscriptions and I have kept you, the only honest Pentaxian, in my list! Great job!
Thank you Rudy! Appreciated. I was also told folks who are in those threads and forums were removed if they spoke any negative tone on the system. Sad world we live in. As much as I want to push people to buy Pentax but I cant with this one. I really cant and I have been doing this for 5 years.
If the pricing was $1000- $1200 , okay sure lets go. $2000? .... .... no way..
Autofocus video coming soon and let me say, it isnt good. I waited and even after 3 firmware update, its not good. Something really changed in this system.
Stay Tune
That pricetag is wild. $2k is almost D850/5DIV territory
Tell me about it. You can get a used D850 for that much 😂😂🤦♂️🤦♂️.
@@theCameraVille Even new they ain’t much more expensive these days. The K3 iii is €1998 in Germany. A brand new D850 from a serious supplier (no gray market) can be had for 2479€.
@@romanpul yup, I was like looking at the D850. Im like... You can get 45mp, flip screen, better 4k, access to all kinds of lens. Get a grip and it add on more FPS. While the Pentax... ehhh.....
@@theCameraVille There‘s no vertical grip for the K3? 🙈 Maybe you could do a review at the $2k price point. Like K3 iii vs D780 vs whatever DSLR Canon has left at that price
@@romanpul lol. I did that kind of review before. A tons of dislike. It was Kp vs K1. Folks dont like it when you compare full frame vs crop.
Well I bought the KP and looking at this video I'm pleased I made the correct move. The Nikon d500 takes this camera to the cleaners. Looks like I saved a grand.
Yup and looking at the charts, Kp dont bake as much as the K3 MKIII.
Hi, Li! Thanks for the video. I never had underexposed image so far (I have only Pentax lences). The AF is very good, I rearly miss the focus. Some things must be also added: eye detection autofocus - doing very good job, pixel shift, astrotracer (i miss the build in gps). Button customisation is great. I can change every setting I want without moving my eye from the viewfinder (it takes some time to adjust everything on place). Yes the price is little to high, but as every new model you pay a little bit more for what you get. Great for sport, wildlife, events etc. For landscapes I am keeping my K1.
When testing, its up to the reviewer to push the dynamic range to see how good or bad it can be. The end user wont need to do this unless one day they intend to and if so that is the results.
As for the AF, good is a C here in the USA. I am glad you didnt say excellent because there should be a firmware update coming soon to fix this AF I am hearing.
cheers!~
I am not deceiving myself. Nikon hit a home run with the D500. I almost switched system for it. Now I have a k-3iii because I am comfortable with Pentax (Translated: too lazy to switch).
I can totally understand. Switching is difficult but the price tag ... Gosh wish they lowered it for everyone.
Thanks for the review~! Sadly I went outside and tested out the same setting. Yup, the entire image does tend to go purple when you push the shadows. I am disappointed.
Thanks for sharing. Im glad you went out to check on your own. It was sad to find out on my end as well. Cheers~
K3 MArk11 is selling everywhere for 1696..the D500 is running the same price as 'renewed', the 90d, about 100 dollars(US) less. For everyday shooting, the K3III seems to be doing a great job. If you are invested in Pentax then 1700 US a lot less expensive than 1599(Canon) or 1699(Nikon) and add a couple of grand worth of glass and accessories.
No because in recent reports in Europe the heat wave showed the k3mkiii overheat in photo. k1 and Kp dont do this. Its a poor investment on Pentax k3Mkiii. In fact other reviewers have gotten rid of the unit due to this issue sadly.
Here`s my humble point of view. I am not a constant gear upgrader, I still shoot with my k5 in sports situation, demonstrations, every day street and once every while police beating up people when dissolving demonstrations. I will have a lot of the last in the next couple of days sadly, Most of the times I use manual focus (50mm 1.2, a 200mm 4.5 fujinon m42 mount and a kit lens, thats my gear nowadays, Im getting it upgraded as soon as possible thats a fact). As a photographer what Im encountering is that our job is every day more devaluated by the consumers, being reduced to "could you please pass me the photo that..:". Not long ago I was at a firefighters olympics and this pro reporter with full frame canons tells me "you have to upgrade, with this one when there is a car accident I dont even have to look, I simply shoot a burst and they all come up just fine". I was outraged on the inside, being a photographer is about looking, not not looking. I just smiled and walked away. If those of us who consider themselves to be artists dont spend more time trying to educate the consumer instead of educating the manufacturer not long after we will find ourselves to be doing something that has been drained out of aura, spirit, feeling and meaning. The peak has been reached, as far as ISO, as far as FPS, as far as AF. Guys, we have to start crediting ourselves for the results, for the feelings, the colours and compositions. For the editing. None of you is the camera you use. 20 years ago my photo professor told me "the best camera, is the camera that you have". If we dont put that in mind, we will be in serious jeopardy soon.
Hi, your camera is unrepairable according to Pentax authorize outlets. www.precisioncamera.com/PCR . If you like to talk about art, you should stop by Matt Granger or Tony Northup. They are the best.
This is a gear channel, not an Art channel.
Glad I waited. I'll stick with my KP for now.
KP is actually a better bet.
@@theCameraVille There are a lot of guys on Facebook pissed off at you because of your latest K3 III comparo. Your video revealed a lot about the new K3 and it wasn't great news. I hope they can improve upon this but I would definitely wait to see a deep dive like your video on the next Pentax APSC before pulling the trigger. I bought my KP mostly because of the two comparo videos you did with it (vs the X-T30 and vs the Sony).
@@Clodrock I'd check a few other reviews if I were you.. my experience with the k3 III have only been very positive. I came from KP which I loved.
@@Tkarma77 Thanks. I have extensively gone over reviews from everyone on the internet including TCS and DPReview to DigiDirect plus others as well as the smaller lesser known Pentax-pundits. They don't go into as much detail IQ-wise as Li has done. I knew Pentax kind of tweaked their raw files but this purple-ish issue is quite alarming for $2K.
Great review, i think an interesting comparison would be to compare the K3ii KP K3iii and see how that goes, using Pentax lenses, this might really show whether an upgrade would be worthwhile or worth the $$$
That sounds like a good idea~!
@@theCameraVille Do it man! :)
@@tubularificationed Thats a good question. The adapter suppose to release in May but they postpone. Last I heard it was made out of metal and they built actual adapter. I am sure it will be release in the coming months. My guess is September. A lot of release is suppose to happen in September.
I said in a forum way back when that the K-3iii should come in at about $1300, and I got flamed for it. I was shocked when they announced its price at $2K. I don't care how good the OVF and middle finger grip are, they can't justify that price.
I hear you. I made about 10 videos on this and over time I noticed the fan boys slowly switched out of the system. There is only a small handful left. Maybe 50 people?
Hi Li, can you explain how exactly you are testing the dynamic range? Set manual to f16, 1/8000 ISO 400 and then push the exposure in Lightroom? How many stops? Anything more?
yup
Thanks for doing the review Li. You were right, I should've brought tissues. I can't believe how poorly the K-3 MkIII performed in the dynamic range tests, that's always been one of their strengths. I'm thinking my original K-3 would outperform the MkIII. I was still holding out hope of buying one. Originally I wanted it so I could shoot 4K and stills but when I learned the 4K had a crop I bought my self an EM5 MkIII. Shoots great 4K footage with spot on autofocus. I still thought I would buy the K-3 MkIII purely as a stills camera but I think I'll just stick with my trusty K-3 for now. Eventually I'll probably upgrade to a Nikon Z7 for stills. Thanks for all your efforts, I still would like to see the 450mm lens test. 👍
Yup, I was sad to see the results as well. It was bad. This is what happens when companies take short cuts and start baking without giving pure raw files. I saw this early on with the K1 MKII but it wasnt that bad. This just got worse. They went crazy high.
The exposure test is interesting. It looked to me like the Pentax is overly weighted to the bright sky scene (the clouds have much greater definition than the Nikon and Canon). I, too, was bummed by the absence of a tilt / swivel screen (I love my K1 II screen for macro) and the low buffer for continuous shooting. I did order a K3 since I have a lot of lenses and look forward to using it for sports. I don't tend to shoot more than 1 or 2 seconds of action at a time, since going through 10k pictures of a game is rather tedious and most action is "bursty" in sports. Good review!
I think the worse part was having to get on my knees to review the image. That was tough. I havent done that in a while.
Thanks for sharing..I am very happy with my D500 results although sometimes depending on the lens, will under exposes... great video & comments... cheers 😀
nice! D500 holds up nicely after 5 years. I was amaze. No wonder they keep making this system.
Now, after the Pentax K-3 Mark III has improved with the latest firmware update, I'll love to see a video with the Pentax 150-450mm. Because 90% of the time I shoot aviation photography, I have no problem with the fixed display, 4K video or heat. I'm shooting with Sigma 50-500mm and Tamron 70-200 f2.8 and after I bought the K-3 Mark III, these lenses got a whole new value, but I got this Pentax 150-450 on my list to buy in the next months. My old camera is a K5.
Its been known this camera also over heat in photo mode which explains the AF issue. Good luck.
@@theCameraVilleI came back after I watched more of your videos here, and I read more comments that say about overheating when taking photos. Never happened to me, even when I shot 2 days at an airshow, outside in 38-39 degrees Celsius. A lot of continuous shooting. One request: please show me where you have a test with K3-III + 150-450mm, if you have one. Thanks.
@@blackmamba0505 ua-cam.com/video/X230c9ZKEwk/v-deo.htmlsi=4_zThDV1UVmYZEfY
There is the overheat. Perhaps your not pushing your camera enough or your warning alert isnt working which may need service. Good luck🫡
@@theCameraVille WOW!!! Never known about this issue. As I said, 2000 pictures taken on a very hot day, many continuous shooting, and left the camera on hot concrete, in the sun. worked perfectly. Mine was bought in 2023, and with the latest update. Maybe my settings configurations are made in that way that never overheats. But as I told you, I shoot almost allways aviation moments, fast moving objects, and fast bursts of frames. Even at this day, never had this issue. Anyway, thanks for your help, and keep up your good work, and impartially. Search for "Plane Spotters Bacau" ;)
@@blackmamba0505 Yea, its a first for any Dslr I ever used or seen. You may be in a sweet spot for the camera usage perhaps but if its really hot and its working, there must be something turned on like auto temps
Sony/Canon has this feature and it doesn't remove the overheating but it turns off the warning alert . So the camera is over heating but user dont care and let it go. This is where hot pixel and noise start creeping in the photos and video down the road.
I'm not sure if there was an update by Ricoh that turned that overheating warning off automatically so you wouldn't see the over heat. Its a real issue so good luck~.
It's sad to see my fears about the K3-III are confirmed. I'm not a photographer any more so I don't really have to worry about kit, but if I do buy another camera it doesn't look like it'll be a Pentax. :(
Follow your instincts. Everyone has their own path. Some are waiting for K1 MKIII, some are waiting for the next apsc and others are shipping to other brands sadly. I wish the K3MKIII was priced reasonably lower. When they charge $2000, it needed to check all the boxes vs the competition but it came up short sadly.
@@theCameraVille it needs to be realistically half the price they're asking, you and I have had this discussion already, it feels like Pentax are relying on die-hard Pentax fans to just buy it because it's Pentax.
I fell in love with the Pentax K3III for the way it handles and that lovely shutter. I am probably paying more for the IBIS, BSI sensor, all metal body and that gorgeous big viewfinder. But I can't help thinking If Canon can make the 90D in Japan and sell it for under 1500 bucks, why Ricoh, who makes the K3III in the Philippines, can't pass on the savings to the consumer?
If you scroll up , other user have experience the overheating during photo sadly. Not a pro level camera.
If you shoot fine art Pentax hands down. I like it gives grain at those levels smooth/sharp photos aren’t always a good thing or artistic choice. No need use that high iso why Pentax don’t give a hoot…
If you are looking for grain, then you are referring to the older dslr camera. Right now Pentax is charging more than the competition with less feature so you are correct. Buy old system on ebay, don't buy new. Pentax is too much and none of the feature is top notch. Cheers Neil~
Underexposed? How was the meter set, highlight metering? The sky is not blown out like on the other cameras.
All were set the same setting across brands. It was a live 5 day show when we did the review before we did this final video. cheers
@@theCameraVille ok. I think hihglight protection is on by default, that is why I wondered.
as someone who used to lug an rb67 everywhere (doubled my weight on backpacking trips) i just cannot fathom the desire for aps-c's. i still seek out a decent 4x5 digital back...one day. yeah yeah yeah, something something light, afforable, range blah blah lols.
bahaha enjoy Duncan.
Hell yeah. Fair and honest review of the K3-III. Fan boys be chewing me up on FB when I back your findings. Shit's tough, my guy :(
They will praise me if they do well and they will trash me when they dont. Common story :D. But thanks for the backup!
@@theCameraVille not fair , i don't trash you . pentaxian for past 30 years , i shoot only with pentax .actually i'll love your honest review and always leave comments , and i don't recall that someone trash you . we all have different opinions ,
and it's good . keep doing , great reviews .
@@nixxo4166 Thanks Nixxo❤️
K mount user from the beginning. I have never trashed you. I value honest opinions.
Could the results be due to poor ligthroom optimization for the pentax DNGs? I think I read somewhere that ligthroom had problems with fujifilm raw
Nope. People said this to me the last time on the K1 MKII. This time I sat back and waited for 3 months to do the review so the camera + Lightroom can get the firmware update.
This has been confirm , this is due to the baking Pentax is doing internally. You are not getting pure RAW files. You are getting jpeg like files.
Good review. Glad I held off and bought a z6ii. Still got the Pentax k1mk2 and k70 and 560mm and 150-450mm.
Would like to see how it fair's doing wildlife and action, but as you point out too dear currently hopefully some software will help it out?
Who on earth needs a flip screen for just about anything? You're looking through the beautiful viewfinder.
Who on earth over pays a high price tag without it 😂 Its less material for more money. Thank you Tim. Shheesh
A7III can be bought for 1700$. It's funny that the D500 is over 5 years older and still is better and cheaper :P
yup lol.. wild right? The d500 is crazy good. 90D at $1200 is no slouch but Pentax at $2000… … .. ehh
How about a K3 vs K-3-iii ?
KP > K3
@@theCameraVille I was thinking current users of the K3 version one and two would like to see
Tell me please, friend. I don’t understand when you pulled photos. Pentax was the worst of all, lost color and according to the graphs it is the best. How so?
19:25 , Pentax bakes noise reduction now. They dont provide pure raw. You cant turn it off either.
Great review, Li.
Thanks Greg!!
Thanks for sharing...yes I am happy with results from my D500... always like to see gear reviews although I always think a lot depends on the glass quality for good results.. cheers 😀
The sensor so good. No wonder Z50/ZFC still uses it. 🤝🤝
I hold Pentax K-x with all 3 fingers on grip and it's like 1cm shorter than K3-III. Anyway, I am going to buy it today for €1700 (discounted from €2000) :)
🔥🔥🔥🥺🙏🙏🙏🙏do it
@@theCameraVille I know this is not the best comparison but I have Fuji S1500 and it's super old but I can't say I like the EVF experience. It's not about lag, it's about...being disconected from the scene I shot. I mean EVF definitely has greater meaning for professionals but for amateur it feels like I am not there, I just see image and click to save it. I just like OVF of my K-x.
Hope I'll feel some upgrade from K-x :D Especially this PixelShift power.
What I miss regarding this camera is swivel screen and if they decided to keep it fixed they could've definitely come up with some workaround - first what comes to my mind is a smartphone grip, similar to the one seen on phone tripods, just with a hot shoe mount.
Thanks for the great review! D500 is still the king, much better than the K3III...
Totally agree!
I am wondering that as well. $2000? No matter how I try to look at it, it seems to be way over price. Thanks for your input David~!
I had my eyes on the Pentax K3 III, but after this video, I seriously doubt it.... (Battery-life, Flippy screen, Dynamic Range) these things are VERY important to me. Let's not mention the price...
Yea, still even after 2 years , canon and nikon are cheaper in the used market. Pentax still got over heating issue in photo mode which people had reported and AF has issue sadly.
Wow...this is pretty shocking. . I would have thought the K3 iii would have had the best IQ in its class. Given the state of camera sales, I've wondered what the impact on the Pentax would be if the K3 III doesn't do well.
Its due to all the baking going on in the system. They did more baking this time around than a K1 MKII.
In my K1 MKI vs K1 MKII, the dynamic range on the MKII got slightly purple. When I look at the PTP chart, K3 MKIII vs K1 MKII, the baking increased heavily. Its the most I have ever seen in a camera so far. This is why many people need pure raw files.
@@theCameraVille So. if you were to chose - K3 iii or KP?
@@StevenBrener Kp. I am working on the autofocus video for K3 Mkiii.
If the K3 MKIII only lower the price below $1400, I will recommend. $2000? thats way overpriced.
@@theCameraVille I haven't pulled the trigger yet on the K3 iii (wanted to love it) because of the fixed screen - but if the dynamic range is compromised by RAW baking, then that has me really concerned.
@@StevenBrener Yup, if you look at the PTP website, you will also notice, they did the most baking ever on this system than any Pentax body.
The fixed screen, I knew it was going to be bad but when I had to bend down again to "review " the photo, that was the point of real frustration.
I´m a 90D shooter, and it's a great camera. As a macro photographer, the 90D's 32 mp sensor (coupled with a good lens) gives incredible detail, but I have to say the D500 looks fantastic - superior in some ways. I'm invested in the Canon system, though, so I wouldn't consider a change.
Yea, first time I held the 90D. Felt very nice. Its a great system. Im currently Canon/ Nikon user but 90D is no slouch . If D500 and 90D had a child, it would been magic. 🫡🫡🤝🤝
The D500's buffer actually isn't all that big. I was getting about 32 RAW images recording onto the slower UHS-I SD card before I bought my XQD and even then I was getting about 60 images before it ran into buffer issues since I bought the slowest XQD. Now, with the faster XQD or a CFExpress card it will do 200 frames. What you're seeing is the incredible write speed of the faster cards since the SD cards are slower than even the slowest CFExpress cards available now.
I'm using the old XQD card from many years ago.
@@theCameraVille yes, but, it’s the faster 400MB/s card. Mine was the 150MB/s card. The CFExpress, even though it is capable of much faster write speeds, only writes at 400MB/a on the D500 as far as I can tell. On my Z6 writing RAW and JPG Fine photos it buffers at around 120 images at the highest 11FPS setting.
lol …. the D500 buffer isn’t all that big if you don’t put a card in, you get no buffer 🥴
Guys ,I am getting a dslr- pentax K5 or Nikon d300 -( never owned a camera before) both at almost the same price…
Which should I go with..
(Landscape-portrait-street-occasional wildlife n macros also if I could do decent star photo and low light photo stuff)
I don’t wanna spend a lot.
Thanks
Nikon has a wider lens selection than Pentax. That is including 3rd party lens like Tamraon and Sigma. In the end you are getting more choices in that department.
Excellent and truthful review. This Pentax is not a success, however you look at it. Thanks for showing it for what it is - and especially for what it isn't! Why would anyone buy it when there are so many excellent full-frame cameras for less?
I agree! So many good choices out there for less than $2000. Too wild to me.
Because you dont just buy fullframe, you need to buy also all the lenses that you need for work.. and that's why i still consider k3iii (even after excellent and honest finds of this chanel) other then that .. yes no reason to buy k3iii
Another great review, btw.
What? you choose the D500 instead of the D7500 in 2022?
Oh yes~! D7500? Costco camera? nah..
& if the back moved it would break the weather sealing there’s an app to view images without bending over. Idk I live where extreme weather those other cameras would leak water inside I’ll gladly pass…
Unfortunately its been known that the app is inconsistent in syncing. Also using the app drains more power from the camera, which already takes up too much power as it is.
I noticed the K3 Mk3 getting quite warm when just shooting images, not during video use! I haven't found this with any other Pentax camera
Yup. A few people told me this as well. I think one of them may had left a comment down below but yes, it gets overly hot.
Just ordered a D500 last night...found one in IMMACULATE condition at 10k shutter count for roughly $1100 total with the MB-D17 battery grip. I have several bodies (it's a serious addiction) but my main ones are Olympus E-M1 Mark III, Nikon Z7, and Nikon D800E but I've had the D500 itch for years. So I found a great deal and pulled the trigger and now I cannot wait. I love the bodies I have but when it comes to wildlife, I'm always left hoping for something a little more and hearing about the D500 AF, I'm expecting to bring home more keepers. I was going to get the D850 but I don't want to invest $2500 in a DSLR, I'd rather wait a couple years until Nikon brings the Z8 or whatever it will be that matches the D850 performance for AF because that's really the only thing lagging in the Z series cameras.
Nice~! Yup, I have several other user picking up the D500 for around that price. Its cheap. Back in the days there was a wait list at $2000 for that system. Such an affordable pro system these days.
Yup, I made videos on the Z for wildlife, its not the best. As you can see, my reviews are very unbias. The Nikon world hated my guts for making that video LOL.. I have to tell the truth.
Canon eos 90D all the way baby !!!
It was pretty nice.I love the grip
3 questions: Any update Pentax K1 Mark III ? And where can I find good Pentax 645z. Is there any new model coming up for Pentax 645z?
Feb 2022 . CP+. Already did a bts on the instagram about it🔥🔥🔥
Canon 90D 💪🏻
Why is Pentax trending towards so much modifications of the RAW files? I learned photography on an original K-3 in 2014 and just this year bought a mint condition used K-1 Mark 1 because I wanted to avoid the "upgrades" on the Mark 2. As someone who loves what Pentax has been about- robust camera bodies and robust image quality, why ruin that ethos with digital nonsense? If its making the quality worse it seems completely unecessary and quite frankly an arbitrary if not detrimental decision. Could they release a firmware update that gets rid of this "baking" as you say? I'm never going to buy a K-3 after my original as I love my old one and will keep it forever, but for all future K-1s and the future of Pentax I am somewhat concerned. I know and love what I know they are capable of and this isnt it.
I have no clue as well. K1 mk1 doesnt bake and its their last PURE raw camera.
I was sadden they did this as well. Looking at other photos out there, I can spot the purple in the shadows on the k3 mkiii .
I am glad that I got the last pure RAW camera they made (as of now) but I really do hope they see this and other reviews and fix these issues. The 2k price is also alarming as the original was 1300 at release and 800-900 new after a year. 2k if I am not mistaken makes it more expensive than an new K-1, which makes zero sense.
Hopefully they have some kind of image quality breakthrough in the works where they can put these updates and cameras behind them and get back to what they were best at, especially with their new users and good fanfare with the new glass.
@@ErrorlessRBLX I do hope so in the future. K1 Mkiii will be the last hope. 🤝
A lot of processing power is being applied to the output. That explains the battery life and the overheating. I am guessing that firmware revisions can make all the difference. I dare suppose that the camera and lenses are part of the firmware loop and native glass will give better outcomes. The 4K would be better if they used the whole sensor and downsampled. The K1 screen would have been a great addition. I think the exposure for the sky is about holding detail and in post, it would yield a better looking result. Are we asking more of the camera in the extreme tests than typical use cases would demand? Nevertheless very interesting food for thought Li.
Yup. Keep in mind , the recording of this video was after the 3rd firmware update. Also folks have reported that even shooting, with no video, during the summer time, the camera over heated. That was sad to hear. The camera is designed too small to handle the heat from the sd card, battery, processing and the ibis. Add on the excellent weather seal, and now you have a nightmare.
I wonder if the problems you highlighted were what kept it from coming to market for so long? There may be some firmware revisions that might help but, I guess buying for video would imply Sony, Canon, Fujifilm and Panasonic. The Pentax offering doesn’t have economies of scale and that would impact price. Almost everything you tested for has probably got a mirrorless solution that responds better than all three cameras you tested. Pentax looked as if they were trying to preserve highlight details. The native iso rating for their sensor might be centred around a lower sensitivity. A very interesting test nevertheless. Have you taken the Pentax out and used it in the field yet?
I bought the Pentax because it was on sale. Would not have bought it at full price I don't think. I already have pretty expensive glass for Pentax and it's what I'm used to and I like it. Makes no sense to switch for me.
Current sale price is still pricey at $1600 usd. That's a lot for a dslr. Also its been known that user for the last year are experience overheating during photo mode in the summer heat. Get ready for that.
Did I miss your test of the autofocus? Is it on another video?
yup, it was done on my live show on instagram. We had a 5 day marathon for QandA and Af was part of it.
I'm still deciding if I should do one for youtube but there isnt much folks here interested. Maybe just 2. Im thinking most of the folks saw it on the live stream.
@@theCameraVille I would definitely like to see a more detailed review of the camera, Inc autofocus testing and comparisons to other Pentax cameras. Considering >50% of your fan base have told you (your polls) they want to see a full review of the camera, I'd be surprised if only 2 want to see more on you tube. I'd like to see tests using Pentax lenses, inc (plm).. Thx.
*Unless youre Pentax fan base has shrunk in the last 6 months?
@@daellis130 I don't know. Even in this video I mentioned if you are interested in the AF video, let me know down below.
Making a video will take hours, so this is why it is important for folks to say something like you are doing now. I am waiting for more folks to chime in. I am sure they are reading this post.
Pentax does have a touch screen that you use to focus and search the menu. It is an upgrade and gets better reviews on other sites but the fix screen that is a head scratcher and a show stopper for me. I'll never buy another camera with a fix screen. Old knees.
Yea, when I had to review the photos, I was like oh shoot, I gotta bend down to review it too!? 🤦♂️🤦♂️ lol Its been 2015 since I had a fix screen. I was younger back then and no knee problems
I have knees and neck problems as well. 🤦♂️🤦♂️
Thank you for the great review.
not a problem mate!
👍👍👍thanks again 🎉you’re the best 👍good job
Not a problem~!!
I own a Pentax K1 Mark 2 , It takes great pics, but I'm sorry Pentax , after seeing this review , I won't be buying the K3, Pentax up your game, life is not all about big profits. Maybe upgrade the K1 and make it the best all round camera out there. 😀❤️🇦🇺
Romeo, I did do a Pentax K1 vs K3 MKIII. I have a lot on my plate but one day I will put it all together. I would say enjoy the K1~!
Yes, do it
Thank you for the honest review
No problem Steve~!
Does any one know if Pentax has released any firmware upgrades since this review that address some of the issues? For those of us who are invested in lenses for Pentax APSC what is our best option?
Its been reported more on the over heating with just photo mode only on the Pentax K3 MKIII.
I have the 150-450mm on order but I will stick with my KP thank you :) Seems like Pentax could fix many of it's issues in firmware but we will see.
They are on their 3rd firmware so far. I heard there will be a 4th for the Autofocus.
@@theCameraVille I was under the impression, the K3III had similar dynamic range to the K-1, I guess you blew that out of the water. K-1 is still on my list of must have...
@@MichaelRusso I have a k1 crop vs k3 mkiii in the works. 🤝
@@theCameraVille K3III changing colors when pushing the dynamic range is a non starter. I expect Pentax to excel in this area (if nothing else). I guess they put way too much time into the 100% viewing area and just fiddle F'd around of 4+ years hoping no one would notice.
I LOVE Pentax and has been using a k20d for years, but a fixed screen today is unaccaptable. Sorry Pentax but WTF? Just because of this I will change my whole camera set up as my back and knees are giving up lately. I feel Pentax will be history soon because of the thickheaded guys at Ricoh who doesn't listen their customers.
I love my K1, and I loved the KP. I sold the KP thinking this K3MKIII will be excellent. I was wrong.
I cant believe it overheated even in photo on a hot day. Others in the comments also mentioned this happening. I wish they just add a flip screen, lower the price tag. $2000 ? That is a ton of cash.
@@theCameraVille wow, overheating in photo? That's crazy
Have you tried the K-3iii on the D FA 150-450? I remember you saying you were interested in that.
I actually did the video but no one was interested so it was shelfed. We did do ot live on instagram.
@@theCameraVille dang
I think the. White balance is incorrect in the Pentax
Yea. Pentax messed up this model sadly. Also after a year, so many users reported over heating and the purple. Its pretty bad. I been reviewing Pentax since 2017 with K1 and Kp and they were all excellent. This model was just not ready. Thanks for sharing.
So, ergo, sticking with my K-1 and 150-450 (just got), for now. Eventually, if Pentax continues to shortcut, I will move to a different system. They do not seem to be innovating in the same way they did when they brought out the original K-1.
A few folks recently spoke about the camera freezing in the summer while in photo. There might be a few in the comments section as well.
I would gladly pay 2k for a Pentax flagship IF the image quality was there to match the price. Also sorry to hear they changed the menus for the worse, that was one of the things that made Pentax so much more ergonomic to use. Where did all that development money go into? Autofocus?
I would done the same and also less buffer and less overheating in photo mode.
at that rate the next Pentax camera is gonna be some kind of KitchenAid seeing how much Ricoh likes making machines that bake.......
LOL!!!! Kitchaid LOL
What firmware revision was on the K3III ?
Latest
@@theCameraVille Thanks for the info. Could you post a EXIF dump of one of the images from the K3III or give us a download URL with one of the raw files ?
I tried to reproduce the color distortion problem - without success.
Why ISO 400 instead of 100 for the dynamic range comparison?
Random
One of the best reviews on APSC- dslrs in recent days.
Thanks Vana!
Thanks for the review. Remember, most of the critical points are killed by the middlefingergrip!
And that is the reason why old Pentax are price stable. There is no chance of buying a reasonable priced used Pentax. That wasn't a big problem in the past. The K3 MKIII crashed the used market. No one will sell his old Pentax except for a whole bunch of bucks...
lol!! No problem dude. $2000 is wildly expensive. I would expect it to dominate in all category but it didn't.
You're good man
You are a better Man~!
Much appreciated
No worries~!
Really disappointed and sad with Pentax, had high hopes for this camera a year ago but as more details were released the more disappointed I became, and then the tests, wow! What has happened ed how could they get it so wrong?
Good review Li long time coming but very worthwhile👍
Ian~! You know it my guy. You saw all the BTS on this. This is actually the first trio comparison that Pentax didnt do well on. Sad days.
@@theCameraVille it's a real shame, I really hoped it would be better, but not so, most now will buy the K1ii second hand or change systems! A few may hold out for whatever the next model is or a K1iii of that ever materialised.
If I was pentax I would look at my tec that help make the came.
😂😂😂😂
No focus test?
D500 #1 , 90D #2, Pentaxkiii unusable.
Great video. Sponsored by Fuji of course 🤣🤣🤣
100% Fujifilm sponsor me LOL.
@@tubularificationed Yup~ Pentaxian typically go over to Fuji. Cant believe its more than Fujifilm... ..... ....
Let that sink in... This K3 MKIII is more than a Fujifilm... LOl....
@@theCameraVille images under exposed, iso 400...., non sponsored? Just for free?? Soooo cheap for Fuji. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
That’s why I use the original K3.
The K3 MKIII, they planned so much for the system. Its 2 more months till we hit 1 year and so far folks complained about overheating and autofocus in wildlife. For $2000 I cant recommend it.
I hafta say, I NEVER want to have a card with 800 shots on it after shooting. The time to go through all that... too much like work. 300 is too much.
For birdies I usually hit over 2000.
So D500 it is...
Its a great system. If you need video, 90D isnt bad at all.
why did you use a sigma lens and not a pentax lens
Simple, if you watch some of my other comparison you will know lens will give the camera different amount of exposure even if its the same focal length and F stop. Its because every lens is made different with the amount of elements and quality.
By having each camera using the same glass, we will be able to determine what is really going on. This is why a test like DPreview test scene doesnt matter much since they all use different lens but the same setting. For people who dont understand, sometimes they use soft lens in their comparison vs sharper lens and some images are brighter than the other in their testing. People get confuse when seeing their results.
This way we can see what the camera is actually doing across the board. I used to do it with my Rokinon for the last 4 years, and thought I switch it up.
You should have the g9
What is that?
2K for a 2021 camera with a fixed screen is a huge miss for Pentax.
Also after a year, turns out it overheats in photo mode. People started to sell them off after they found out.
@@theCameraVille I had a KP that got hot in photo mode. I returned it for the K70. The K70 is an awesome camera for the money
Why look through a crappy screen when you can see life through the viewfinder?
Pentax is 'baking' image sensors now! Their next one may have a baked cookie as an image receptor, dipped in chocolate with raisons. At least You can eat the crap that You pay for.
lol!!!!!
Lol I bet k3 mark 3 is worst than k3 mark 2. Congrats for the 5 years lee !,
LOL!!! OH my ..... LOL ... KOSTAS!! Where is my Mushroom.
@@theCameraVille the season is on my man !! Going to get some !
尼康最棒！五年前的机器还是如此厉害！
Yes, it is still top notch for Nikon D500. I am still amaze no other system has come close yet in its class.
Smdh bro...if these workshop models coming up suck, my whole heart gon' fall out of my chest.
LOL!!! You should be fine. Only extreme cases here~!
Never had a purple problem with my Pentax !! Clearly you anti.
Hard to really argue since its been proven and tested by other outlet that it is baking files which will result in purple. Not just in my test but others. Good luck .
My 2013 Pentax K3 cost me new $970 back then. I still shoot with it for giggles occasionally. The AF is horrible but I like the colors and it is built like a tank. I left Pentax long ago but would rather get a K1 than this half arsed overpriced anachronistic APSC clicker.
😂😂😂😂🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️ I would as well. K1 > K3 mkiii.
Pentax
Kodak
1.100 dollars/euros for a camera with a UHS II slot, 4k video, a focus joystick, a 10% bigger optical viewfinder, 12 fps continous burst? Surely You like provocations! I think that this camera should assest its price around 1500 and that should be fine. That said, Nikon D500 could not be refreshed in a dslr format, the same, maybe for the Canon 90D. And, finally, Pentax now is a small company and cannot compete in price (giving new features and continuing R&D) with the CanoNikon world, it is simple as that. Make peace with this facts, please.
Its sad the specs is very low for a high price tag. This is a premium era Pentax will be going through sadly. Not the Pentax that most of us all bought into from years ago.
Pentax has always been the small company this past decade but they always were able to price their system lower than the competition. Make peace with this fact as well. Look up Pentax K3 MK I and Pentax K3 MKII vs their counter parts of their time. There is no excuse.
Pentax is not a small company. They are a division of Ricoh, which is about the same size as Canon. But Ricoh is sure starving Pentax‘ R&D budget. I think
I said that before on this channel, if Ricoh has no interest in pushing Pentax forwards they should sell it to someone who is. What they are currently doing to the brand is just ridiculous
The best APS-C camera system is Fuji. They are the only ones who take the format seriously.
I will agree with you on that point. They are always making another model and they have many more to come.
oh its a brilliant review 1199usd 90D comparison with 2199 USD nikon D500😂😂😂😂😂😂
lol!!!
It's not Bad on the knees..
Come on bro!!!
Nacho you must be on young stud. Im sorry, my knees cant keep up with you young fellas.
Get these used and save more. No reason to buy new. Great cameras though.
That depends. D500 soon will be out of Nikon service which will cost even more than normal to fix. The camera is discontinued.