Pentax K-500 Review
The PentaxK-500 DSLR builds a package for beginners, which has a good chance to reach the top in the highly competitive market segment. Pentax packs pretty much everything on equipment in the K-500, which a photographer can expect from a camera in this class, and still puts delicacies such as a field of view to one hundred percent covering prism finder, shooting up to ISO 51,200 or a movably mounted 16-mega pixel CMOS sensor on top of it, even with the analog lenses can benefit from anti-shake. Whether it is worthwhile to pay the reasonable price for the K-500, shows the detailed test.
Pentax K-500 – Ergonomics and Processing
Already the first impression shows that the Pentax K-500 to be more than a souped-up plastic bomber for beginners. Since it is technically almost identical to its big sister Pentax K-50, it has a perfectly crafted case that runs on a stainless steel chassis. Only the splash of the K-50 is missing. Taking the K-500 in hand, so you can feel its weight of 848 grams, including the lens quite clearly.
The great early handle allows a firm grip at all times, but is not suitable for very small hands. Ergonomically, the K-500 is well thought out. A rotating wheel in front and one behind the trigger for the right thumb facilitate camera control and permit the setting and taking pictures with one hand while maintaining the same zoom setting.
Further operation is performed via buttons on the back. Pentax has taken a four-way rocker switch with dial from outside the chosen four individual buttons around the OK button around. This prevents incorrect settings in inaccurate Press. Among the other control, buttons are found useful helpers.
The green switch before the timer will reset all functions back to default if one has galloped in the menu. Also a button for you to switch between JPEG and RAW, which can be used as a depth-there. ISO, flash, self-timer, or rapid series and bracketing and white balance can be selected directly.
On the three-inch display, which dissolves 921,000 points and thus always provides a good image, the K-500 Live View. But also makes fun of the prism viewfinder that covers the field of view to one hundred percent and eliminates parallax errors and time delays. The memory card slot of the K-500 is easy to open and closes securely thanks spring hinge.
The rubber cover of the remote control socket cannot keep up. It can be bad to bring back into position. This works easily with the rubber cover of the USB-/AV-Anschlusses. This very easily slips out of the anchorage.
The tripod thread stainless steel is on the optical axis. Opening the battery compartment works for tripod use. Like the Pentax K-50 also provides for an optional battery 500 K-cage. The camera can be operated with empty battery with standard AA batteries.
The Pentax K-500 menu is clearly structured and clearly divided into different tabs. Most settings can be but also about the very clear configure Quick menu and Hot keys, so you do not have to go to the menu very often in everyday life. This provides good operability together with the good workmanship of the camera is an ideal prerequisite for a quality entry-level DSLR.
Pentax K-500 – Features
Designed as entry-level DSLR, the Pentax K-500 may of course a full automatic, which takes over-all settings and automatically selects nine scenes, not to be missed. In Scene mode, there are 19 shooting situations from the classics such as Portrait and Sport modes such as color enhancing forest and blue sky to the exotic such as stage lighting and museum. There are also different digital filters like retro look or color reversal.
How much in the small camera actually infected, one experiences only when one actually uses their various configuration options, including manual mode. A look at the mode dial is enough, because in addition to the usual full-and half-automatic modes, the manual mode, the video mode and scene programs are there still other more unusual options.
The Pentax K-500 also allows the sensitivity of code, in which the photographer sets the ISO speed, and the camera does the rest. But there are also the aperture and time delay, in which the camera the right sensitivity to Pentax K-500 determines selected parameters. On the mode dial are also two user-programmable modes and long-term exposure. The K-500 can also be programmed interval shooting.
Up to 999 pictures at intervals of three seconds to 24 hours are possible. These are available on request as interval video in which all the images are saved as MOV. Exposure rows of three images are possible and with the HDR function automatically sets the K-500 three shots over each other. The values of the HDR bracketing can be set in full minus three levels of plus / minus one to plus.
The Pentax K-500 comes with on-board flash, which must be actively expanded, but then turns out to be quite versatile. The performance can be readjusted by rotating wheel. It dominated the second curtain sync and slow sync. The power of the flash stops naturally in borders, and the image edges it drops. For home use, it is sufficient. And the system boot can be increased at any time professionally.
The auto focus in Live View compared to other DSLRs especially afloat. The face detection works only there. You can choose between single-servo AF and use the automatic or the viewfinder. Between 11 AF points, you are free to choose from.
Either Pentax K-500 selects all five, an individually identifiable or the center. During the manual, focus helps a symbol with sound in the viewfinder or in Live View magnification option.
Following the constraint of time filming the Pentax K-500 in full HD resolution and optionally at 30, 25 or 24 frames per second. HD and VGA are also offered. The sound is captured only in mono on the soundtrack, and a readjustment of the focus is not provided. Although you can focus again on the AF / AE-L button, the motor of the lens but then so loud that the video is actually of no use.
Also, the camera is pumping quite a long back and forth until the correct setting is found. Since it regulates rather manually on the lens. The kit lens is ideal for zooming during movie recording nature not particularly. After all, the K-500 is a direct video interface option.
Pentax K-500 – Image Quality
The press release of the Pentax K-500 is proud to announce high-quality images at a maximum ISO setting of 51,200. ISO range up to which the images of the K-500 are actually high quality and how the kit lens DA L 18-55 3.5-5.6 AL beats this, we have investigated in detail in our test lab. The resolution of the image stabilizer equipped with CMOS sensor with 16 mega pixels keeps within limits.
It has often advantages for image quality when megalomania is replaced by reason and so evident at signal-to-noise a ratio which is below the threshold of 35 dB until ISO 3200 that the K-500 can deliver low-noise images. In the high ISO ranges from 12,800 but the interference signal is then so strong that some details are superimposed by noise. When luminance noise looks similar: to ISO 3200, everything is still in the Lot, then it becomes critical.
Color noise is not a problem. The particle size is slightly higher, but not unpleasant stings the eye. When the texture sharpness up to ISO 1,600 and everything is fine up to ISO 6,400 at normal deductions, you can still see no significant blurring. In addition the images look muddy.
When the input dynamic Pentax K-500 to ISO 1600 makes excellent ten f-stops, with 6400 figures is still 9.3. The tone value is evidence of contrast image results. Up to ISO 1600, the camera can also differentiate, nevertheless, still 160 of 256 gray levels. Based on the lower and upper limits determined in accordance with the ISO auto, are obtained with the K-500 very good results.
Also the noise reduction can be customized for each ISO level. The color reproduction of the K-500 duly stamped out of line. By default set to ” bright “, you get flashy results that have nothing to do with naturalness. Here one can only guess, quickly to “Naturally” switch. The white balance works quite reliably. At the speed, 0.11 seconds and 0.28 seconds with no auto focus are a good average value. In Live View mode, it then focusing takes 0.92 seconds at wide angle and 0.86 seconds in the telephoto position. This is actually very good for live view of a DSLR.
Pentax K-500 – Conclusion
The Pentax K-500 is an all-around solid companion for beginners and advanced. It pleased the photographer’s heart with an above-average equipment that lacks a few features such as a panoramic mode, a vari-angle display, a GPS module or a Wi-Fi functionality.
For this, it provides excellent image result up to ISO 1600 and can be used safely up to ISO 6,400. Even with basic amenities such as interval shooting or a controllable HDR function cannot offer any competitor. In video, there is still room for improvement, otherwise the K-500 has everything a beginner needs-SLR. And their average price of 500 euros stings like the many a contestant.
Our Opinion
PROS : Extensive equipment that is superior to the competition part., Fits comfortably in the hand, the operation is ergonomically very well resolved., Fast autofocus in Live View mode, at least compared with the DSLR competition., Very good image quality up to ISO 1600, ISO 6400 prints possible.
CONS : Video function not contemporary with mono sound and lack of AF tracking., Color setting by default too bright., Set lens shows strong barrel distortion at a wide angle.
- Design
- Features
- Image Quality
- Value of Money
