You Get What You Paid For? (E-PL3 Vs E-P3 Higher ISOs' IQ Comparison)

See this:-



via http://blog.pchome.net/article/459039.html

The original test source is intentionally not mentioned, as the author does not agree to the test results and believes that there should be some human errors! :-o Btw, I myself cannot figure out where this ISO test is from, although it looks just very familiar! I am almost sure that I posted the test from the same site/reviewer before, but just forget where it is actually from.. So, if anybody knows, please let me know.

Anyway, just in case if the test does not contain any error (as there is simply no evidence of any for the doubt!), it simply tells that you just get what you paid for. Indeed, the truth is that camera makers always know what to put and what to suck from their products. So, since the Q is sold at a higher price, I am now starting to believe the previously unbelievable official claim of "extra-ordinary image processing" of the Q (and what Pentax put into it) that might really exist! ;-D

Fashion Photographer Tested the Q

http://www.adorama.com/ALC/BlogArticle.aspx?alias=The-Pentax-Q-Stress-Test-Day-1

Btw, I see nothing stressy at all although it is said so!

The posted samples are from ISO 320-6400. As you can see, those pictures are really small in size. As usual, for those web-sized photos, they should look okay whatever they are produced from, even with cameraphones, frankly.

Nevertheless, that fashion photographer seems to be quite like the Q. She tells us that her Canon 7D and 24-70/2.8 were put aside because of the Q (with the prime lens mounted, as seen from the EXIF). So, this must be another big victory by Pentax, whom has successfully entered the professional commercial photography field and kicked Canon out of the market, at least for instance! ;-D

Mirrorless is Future of the Market

See what Bloomberg reports:-

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-07/canon-clinging-to-mirrors-means-opportunity-for-sony-cameras.html

Some quotes:-

"The two Tokyo-based companies use mirrors in all cameras with interchangeable lenses, a technique Sony Corp. (6758) is shifting away from. As a result, Canon and Nikon’s combined share of the Japanese market has fallen by 35 percent, while Sony’s share has doubled, according to estimates at research firm BCN Inc."

So, Sony rises up and the big two boys are threatened. And as Bloomberg suggests, clinging the mirror means loss of market share, although DSLRs are still lucrative.

Besides, the Pentax Q is also mentioned:-

"For example, Hoya Corp. (7741)’s new Pentax Q weighs 200 grams and its body is smaller than an Apple Inc. (AAPL) iPhone 4 in terms of width and height. By comparison, Canon’s entry level EOS Rebel T3 weighs 495 grams. "

After all, my Congrats to Pentax for having a mirrorless so that they can now bite the pie from Canon and Nikon! ;-D With the smallest ever ILDC body and system with "comparable DSLR image quality" (as claimed by Pentax and then firmly believed by those brand fans), I am almost sure that Pentax will soon become the market No.1 in the near future! So, let's think how we should celebrate then! (Lol..)

Pentax Q Flickr Pool of Samples

Thanks to Blog reader "eighter" for the alert, we have the following sample pool for the Q, from all the end-users:-

http://www.flickr.com/groups/pentax-q/pool/

Well, what I have to say is that I am NOT impressed with the IQ, especially for the Toy Lenses, nor when the lens on Q is stopped down, which blur and loss in resolution must be resulted (because of diffraction).

There are a lot of original pictures posted with full EXIF, just check the "all sizes" option and download and view, then you can see what lens is used and what are the settings. The Flickr interface is clumsy and troublesome, though. So, beware not to get lost during the course.

Besides, here is a new end-user Q report I have come across, there are 55 photos provided in his post (in 1920 pixels in width):-

http://forum.pentaxfans.net/showthread.php?t=117185
(in Traditional Chinese, Google Translation to English Here)

Whilst the user seems to quite like his new Q, I would say the IQ (in particular the colour rendition) of his downsized photos are just so-so, frankly.

Speaking of samples, maybe we have concentrated too much on the Q recently. It actually comes to my attention that the DFA645 25mm F4 lens has been on sales and below are some sample or test photos that a new user has posted:-

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&thread=39263849

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&thread=39285089

With the small size of the photos, the true power of the 645D and lens is not faithfully shown, nevertheless.

Besides, someone else posted some very nice astro-photos made with the K-5 and O-GPS1 (and software overlaid for multiple images, too), here they are:-

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&thread=39284452




Read Also:-

Toy Lens for micro-4/3 - Now It's Not Exclusive of Pentax

DC Watch First Reviewed the Q

Pentax Q Users' Samples Uploaded at the Japanese Photoble

New Pentax Q RAW and JPEG Full Samples @ PhotographyBLOG

TechRadar Reviewed the Pentax Q

O-GPS1 Astrotracer Examples

New 645D Original Samples (RAW Converted) and Gallery

Pentax' Toy Policy Will Continue After Ricoh's Take-Over in October!

(Source: http://58.64.149.135/discuz/thread-164720-1-1.html)

It can be seen that the above new toy eggs will be on sales in December 2011. So, it proves that the toy policy of Pentax will continue after Ricoh's upcoming takeover on 1st October, very soon! ;-D

The new toy miniature Pentax cameras and lenses now have no colour on them so that the users can paint on them (which I suggested to them two years ago) for any colours and combinations they like. Besides, the lenses are now interchangeable! Oh, well.. :-o

Btw, owing to the unsurpassed success of those Pentax toys, some people are (illegally) cloning those Pentax toys and actually improve them, see:-



I have drawn more than ten number of this back to July (but only got four different colours). This super bright white LED torch of the K-r is really more useful than that original Pentax one as it provides a practical function, but the Pentax' don't! ;-) What is the use of that "hot shoe accessory" of the K-x and K-r?

In addition, the workmanship of the clone seems to be better. And, the zoom ring of it can be rotated, too (whilst the original Pentax cannot).

P.S. If I have the time later on this week, I shall try to take a few photos of this super bright LED Pentax model (of different colours) to show you the beauty of this cloned toy!~

Congrats again, Pentax, for being successfully entered into the toy market and to be the market leader!! ;->

Or, after all, would Pentax just make real cameras in the same small size that really works? See:-



http://gadzetomania.pl/2011/07/28/aparat-dla-krasnoludkow-teraz-kreci-w-hd


Last Story:-

My K-r Toy Story! ;-D

Pentax Q is Selling Very Well at Japan (Best Ever Result for a New Pentax Product!)

This is the latest sales results for ILDCs/DSLRs as posted by the Japanese BCN for the last week:-

http://bcnranking.jp/category/subcategory_0008.html

Click on the second page of the chart we can see the Pentax Q (White/Prime Kit) is there, at the top!



The sales of the Black Q Kit is not bad, neither. It is positioned at no. 17, just right behind the Sony NEX-C3 standard twin-lens kit in silver, which is also sold at exactly the same price as the Q single prime lens kit.

Congrats, Pentax! I think this is the ever biggest sales and marketing victory of Pentax in these ten years or so! And, a bigger sensor is not needed and the real IQ is of second concern, coz marketing tricks could prevail. Anyway, at a price of JPY 69,800 (~US$7k) let's see if the good sales of the Q will continue and persist.

One Stop ISO Advantage of NEX-5N Over K-5

This post is self-explanatory and a picture worths more than a thousand words sometimes. So, here we go:-

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&message=39288778



I am afraid that I have to agree with the OP that the ISO 6400 picture of the 5N is very close to that ISO 3200 picture of the K-5, for both the amount of visible noise and also for the amount of image details that are retained. So, it is either that Sony has improved their that 16.2MP Exmor sensor and has made a new version, or that they have improved their image processing, so that they have successfully sucked out more from the same sensor, or maybe both!


Read Also:-

As Technologies Advance..: A65 Vs A900 ISO/IQ Shootout

Sensor Stains, Pentax' Fault? (Coz K-7 is Also the Same!)

See what Peter Zheng has lately found and reported:-

http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/ricehigh_pentax/message/937

Reports from K-7 users about sensor stains with photos clearly showing those are posted. And yes, the symptom is exactly the same as the previous K-5's.So, it is almost safe to conclude that it's Pentax' AA filter that causes the problem!



(Source Thread: http://bbs.kakaku.com/bbs/K0000036023/SortID=9944776/#9953651)

After all, the AA filter simply would change in state over time and it is generally guessed that the larger amount of heat from the sensor unit melts the AA filter and thus causing the visible stains. That could explain why the less-hot Pentax models like K-r, K-x and K-m have never had that problem reported. But, at the end of the day, the BIG question is that: Will the next Pentax Flagship have the same persistent problem? Or, will Pentax simply NOT install any AA filter like what they have already done to the Q? That would be the safest "solution" to the issue? Right? ;-)

Toy Lens for micro-4/3 - Now It's Not Exclusive of Pentax!

See what the Phoblographer reports!

http://www.thephoblographer.com/2011/08/21/review-slr-magic-26mm-f1-4-toy-lens/

This 3rd party "Toy Lens" could be better than Pentax' because it has interchangeable rings in different colours and more importantly, it does have aperture control!




(URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_BUXzefB6s)

Of course, the image quality of such a toy lens sucks. But it's just the taste and effect we want to have with those toy lenses and we get the "desired" results without using any digital filter and without the need of post processing! That must be really nice!~ ;-D

DC Watch First Reviewed the Q

http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/review/newproduct/20110906_475397.html

(English Here (Machine-translated))

Studio scene ISO tests from 125 to 6400, with different NR settings, are conducted.



Besides, the Fake "Bokeh Control" (BC) plus other digital filters are tested. Different image tones and profile on the same scene are also checked.

At last, some real-life full samples are posted.