Who Says Entry-Level DSLRs Can't Be Fun?
The Pentax K-x Brings a Touch of Dash & Whimsy to the Table
What shoots stills, HD video, and comes in a choice of colors? If you said 'My phone does', your point is well taken. But if you want seriously sharp stills and video imagery that holds up way beyond the borders of a palm-sized LCD you have to look beyond the nifty snappy tucked away in your pocket or purse.
Before we move on it's important to note the Pentax K-x is, despite its entry-level status, a very capable imaging device. It can't place a phone call, but It does feature a 12.4Mp APS-C format CMOS s, a Live View mode for real-time composing and editing on the camera's LCD, an image-enhancing HDR mode, a 4.7f/p/s burst-rate, a Dust Removal system, an in-body Image-Stabilization system that is backwards-compatible with most every Pentax-mount lens ever made, and a Pentax DA L 18~55mm zoom lens that should satisfy your most immediate needs. So what's with the colors?
Back in February 2009 the senior management at Hoya (Pentax' parent company) followed their collective hunches and released a white version of its then-current entry-level DSLR (the Pentax K-2000) in a limited run of 2500 units. And wouldn't you know, they sold out quickly. More interestingly, in a marketplace where 80% of Pentax DSLRs are typically sold to men-folk, half of the white K2000s were snapped up by women-folk.
Did senior management take note? Yu-betto! (That's Japanese for 'You betcha'). Are they running with the idea? Doudan yu-betto
oyobi biggu ma. ('Ditto you bet
and big time''). How biggu ma? Let's just say in addition to the 4 color options available in the US - Black, Navy Blue, White, and Red, in Japan the K-x is available in a staggering 100 color combinations. Want a canary-yellow body with an emerald-green grip? No problem. Will Pentax ever offer the same hallucinatory color options here in the States? Tentei nou
sasae kakyoku. (Lord knows
stay tuned.)
AW note Though I initially viewed the color option with a cocked eyebrow, I have to admit I've had a crush on the Red K-x ever since a brief hands-on with one at the well-attended K-x product intro at New York's International Center for Photography. After a lifetime of black and chrome cameras
what the hay.
Marketing, specs, and cool imaging technologies aside, the K-x is housed in an ergonomically contoured polycarbonate body, which surrounds an all-metal chassis. The controls are easy to read and navigate, and you have the option of choosing your own particular exposure and tonal parameters along with a variety of preset, custom, and manual modes. Included among the preset modes are the usual (and very usable) outdoor/indoor settings, monochrome filter effects, and a neat cross-processed film emulator.
For low-light shooting, the K-x employs a sensor-shift shake-reduction system for up to 4-stops of image stability and an ISO range that can be expanded to 12,800.
The Pentax K-x is also available as a 2-lens kit that, along with the 18-55 zoom includes a 50~200mm telephoto zoom lens. The 2-lens kits are available in Black and Navy Blue. A third option is a 2-lens kit containing the 18~55mm zoom and a longer-reaching 55~300mm telephoto zoom lens. Alas, this kit is only available in Black
atto saishou tameni sate.
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