02.09.07
Pentax K10D Review
Digital Photography Review?
Pros:
- Smooth clean images with good color and tone, not as crisp as we would like
- Robust body with dust and weather seals, high build quality
- Accurate and fast auto-focus
- Unique exposure modes; sensitivity, shutter/aperture priority, hyper program
- Selectable program lines; Normal, Hi speed, Depth and MTF (lens sharpness)
- Good range of image parameter adjustment (-5 to +5 for each)
- Dedicated RAW button a useful addition
- Selectable RAW format (PEF or DNG)
- Unlimited continuous shooting in JPEG mode
- Occasionally useful ‘digital preview’ allows you to take a test shot which isn’t saved
- User definable Auto ISO (set minimum and maximum ISO)
- Good built-in flash metering
- Large and bright Pentaprism viewfinder (0.95x magnification)
- In-camera Shake Reduction system offers some advantage in low light
- Dust reduction by anti-static coating and optional sensor ’shake’
- Mirror lock-up implemented as part of the self-timer
- Function menu for quick access to important settings (although hard buttons are better)
- Large, bright and high resolution LCD monitor
- Good battery life from high capacity Lithium-Ion rechargeable
- Proper hinged doors covering the connectors (not the cheap rubber bungs)
- In-camera RAW development and image retouching (B&W, Sepia, Soft etc.)
- USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface (with mass storage device driver)
- Value for money
Cons:
- In-camera image processor unable to deliver crisp sharp edges, better to shoot RAW
- About a third of a stop less highlight dynamic range than the competition
- Slightly inconsistent continuous shooting rate (although always around 3.1 fps)
- Would have been nice to have hard buttons for White Balance and ISO sensitivity
- Turning up sharpness setting doesn’t deliver crisper edges
- Average automatic white balance performance, still very poor under incandescent light
- Flash must be raised for AF assist (although AF works even in very low light)
- Color space selection buried in custom menu