Haresh wrote:.

What I am interested in shooting are landscapes ,architecture and a deal of B&W photographs , not much of action.Sowill the kit lens do the trick or should I just get the body andpackage it with another lens.

Kit lens is akin to having it free with body. $60 for 3x zoom is a steal. Espicially considering your applications and budget..

And in general how is the lenssituation for pentax. Are lenses dificult to get hold of or easilyavailable , how expensive are they ? (well for the activity I aminterested in) I am on a constrained budget of around 450 $..

In fact lot of cheap K-mount lenses are available in used market. NEw ones are also enough, unless one has some specific requirements. Such lenses typically cost in excess of $600 each..

Another thing that is of concern is the HOYA takeover, so could thisbe a mistake or it's quite safe to get one of these babies..

That is hardly a matter of concern for buyers. DSLRs will continue to be manufactured as currently these are highly profitable to business.Keep smiling, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612(Thanks for your precious time & invaluable comments)..

Pentax makes a very decent kitlens. Get it and learn what you're missing.Don't wait for the Nikon D-whatever, have fun now!http://www.flickr.com/photos/j_wijnands/..

The K100D is a lovely camera, nice to use and well featured. I describe it as more an enthusiast's camera than a professionals, but that is only because high-end professional lenses are relatively easy to get for Canon and Nikon and quite hard to locate for Pentax. That said there is a large range of very good lenses available..

The kit lenses are fine,especially if you are starting out. The 18-55 is a very useful piece of equipment and very good value for the money and, IMO, an excellent lightweight lens. As someone said, it's essentially free with the camera and a perfectly good lens in it's own right..

The two main advantages of a K100D are that it :.

(a) It has in-body anti-shake, so ANY lens you use automatically benefits. Canon and Nikon lenses with build in anti-shake are expensive. In-body is not quite as good as in-lens, but it's essentially free and still quite good. You can, for example, use an old manual focus prime and it get anti-shake for free - a terrific bonus..

(b) A K100D will take almost any old Pentax lens. These range from full auto-focus lenses to old manual lenses ( which in some cases have superb optics ! ). You can often pick up excellent optics at remarkably low prices. It's well worth learning about pentax lenses and how to use older manual focus lenses because it really does open up a large range of optics to you. This is something you simply cannot do with a Canon or Nikon entry level..

Take a trip over to the Pentax SLR forum and have a look. A lot of the talk is about the K10D, but in relation to lenses the two work basically the same..

StephenG.

Pentax K100DFuji S5200Fuji E900PCLinuxOS..

Stephen G says it all really. It's a fine camera, especially for the price, and the kit lens is regarded as about the best of the comonly available ones (bettern then the NIkon / Canon equivalents). I've been impressed with the quality of mine. Get one and have fun...Mike..

Thanks for the input guys.I now breath a sigh or relief..

Now , I hate to hijack this topic ; but any other accessories which are a must have with a buy ? For exa carry bag , a good pair of batteries (some suggestions)..

Cheers!..

Haresh wrote:.

Thanks for the input guys.I now breath a sigh or relief.Now , I hate to hijack this topic ; but any other accessories whichare a must have with a buy ? For exa carry bag , a good pair ofbatteries (some suggestions)..

A good charger and 2 sets of batteries, 2700mah preferably. Over here GP batteries and chargers are popular but I suspect any brand will do..

A bag, look at lowepro or crumpler. Buy something with a bit of room to grow. Couple of cards, I don't know if the pentax can take advantage of the really fast cards. I prefer several smaller cards to a large one..

A rocketblower, a microfiber lens cloth. A simple card reader for your pc if you don't own one already..

Don't wait for the Nikon D-whatever, have fun now!http://www.flickr.com/photos/j_wijnands/..