Pentax K10D DSLR Camera User Review

Name of product: 

Approximate date of purchase: 

My Review 

I chose this DSLR for the backward compatibility of the Pentax lenses. Over the past 10 years, I had bought old lenses and film bodies and had grown to appreciate the quality of the old lenses. I found that some old lenses worked well on the camera, while others never seemed to focus sharply. One example of the good: The screwmount Takumar 35mm f2.8. One example of the bad: The Zeiss Ikon Flektogon 20mm f2.8 (which produces very good results on film). I like the K10D's design of buttons and controls. It is my first DSLR, and I enjoy using it and like the photos I get from it.

Camera "pros" 

Layout of the controls. Ease of use. I don't use all of the manual control features, but I often use: select WB, change ISO, and exposure compensation -- all are easy to set.

Camera "cons" 

I sometimes see the widely reported softness in JPEG format shots. I wish it had an even higher ISO setting available.

Is this camera easy to use? 

How is the image quality in good lighting? 

How is the image quality when using the flash? 

Do you like the camera's style and feel? 

How is the camera's LCD screen? 

Do you feel like the camera is/was a good value? 

Would you recommend this to a friend? 

Kyle Schurman, Digital Cameras Guide, says: