It could be compared to a kid at Christmas, receiving a shiny new bike, but it is missing the seat and handlebars. Or, the same child receives a slick new scooter, which is missing the wheels. They are promised that the additional accessories would be available in days, but it is near torture waiting.
That is what frequently happens with photographers, when they buy a new camera, which comes as the body only, without a lens. Having the body, a battery and charger and a strap just doesn’t cut it. The possibility exists to look through the numerous menu items and see many of the features, but taking that first picture is out of the question.
That is where I find myself today and yesterday…………a photographer with a shiny new camera, but no lens. I might as well have a wheel-less scooter. But, what a camera it is.
The last Pentax camera I owned was my favorite camera; a 645N medium format beauty which took incredible pictures and was a work of photographic equipment art. I sold it to buy another digital SLR camera.
The camera I recently sold was not my favorite. It was a very good hobbyist camera and a very good video camera, but it did not fit my hands and was not the best still camera. I needed to move back up to a professional full-frame camera. That is what I did.
The Pentax K-1 camera has something of a cult following of photographers who appreciate a full-frame camera that is built for the elements with extensive weather-proofing and lots of useful features. I ordered the HD Pentax-D FA 28-105mm F3.5-5.6 ED DC WR lens separately through a camera shop in Minnesota. The lens was sent out UPS ground and it has been sitting in Illinois for 4 days. It is supposed to arrive tomorrow, which seems a little optimistic.
The short zoom 28-105 seems to be a very good “first lens” for this camera because it is versatile and very sharp for a zoom lens. As a recent member of the Pentax forums and the Pentax Facebook group, the lens came highly recommended by users. I also bought an L-plate or L-bracket with the camera to allow for quick tripod mounting, either horizontally or vertically.
In the past, I have owned Fuji Film, Nikon and Canon cameras and built systems of lenses and flash units and other accessories around each. This is like starting all over. For a landscape photographer, the K-1 is considered one of the best DSLR cameras you can own. That is my favorite area of photography, along with architectural photography, so the camera has its work cut out for it. With the right lens, this should be a good camera for macro, portrait, auto and urban photography as well.
I just need my wheels now. (update: lens arrived on 6/25)
