Pentax and Olympus have pretty different strengths in the lens departments, so that should make a decision much easier...

Hi,.

I'm interested in what you meant by "have different lenses" because I am also considering between the K100D and Oli 510. Can you explain that a bit please?.

John..

John Schranz wrote:.

Hi,I'm interested in what you meant by "have different lenses" because iam also considering between the K100D and Oli 510. Can you explainthat a bit please?John.

Oly uses a 4/3 sensor system, meaning the lenes have a 2.0X crop factor instead of a 1.5X crop factor; e.g., a 70-300mm lens on the Pentax is 105-450mm in 35mm terms - the same lens is 140-600mm on an Oly..

Some like the 4/3 system because of this crop factor; others point out that is it noiser than the 1.5X APS sensor systems. Both are true..

If you like less noise, the Pentax is the better of the two. But Oly dioes have two very nice kit lenses that give you a good range..

Personally, I would go with Pentax because, other than the two kit lenses, there aren't a whole lot of affordable Oly lenses out there. I don't think any of the top three third-party lens manufacturers (Tamron, Sigma, Tokina) make lenses in the Oly mount. (But I may be wrong about that; I'm not 100% sure....).

And to be fair, those three manufacturers ALSO make few lenses in the Pentax mount, or the Sony/Minolta mount, for that matter. Third-party lens manufacturers go with the big two - Canon and Nikon. Anyone else is going to have less to choose from..

But having said that, there still seems to be much more choice for the Pentax mount than for the Olympus mount..

But go to the specific forums and ask; you will get much better info from users of those specific brands...

Compare the availability of short, fast 'pancake' single-focal-length lenses of the sort you might find useful for lightweight street photography..

Compare the availability of fast telephoto zooms you might find useful for sports..

Compare the availability of weather-sealed lenses..

And so forth...

The other thing that hasn't been mentioned about oly's 4/3s system is that it makes the viewfinder smaller as a result. Just as APS-C digitals like the Pentax cameras smaller viewfinders than full frame 35mm film cameras, the Oly's have smaller/darker viewfinders..

I have the K100d, and I would say the only reason for getting the Super would be for the SSM (in lens focusing motors like Canon uses) contacts. Of course only two lenses out right now can utilize the function, so it isn't a huge factor at the moment. Forget the dust removal. Oly has the better system by all accounts, and the Pentax system hasn't been shown to be any more effective than the Sony system..

Judging a photographer on the basis of equipment is like speculating one's physique from a gym pass..

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Gkreth wrote:.

John Schranz wrote:.

I don't think any of the top three third-party lens manufacturers(Tamron, Sigma, Tokina) make lenses in the Oly mount. (But I may bewrong about that; I'm not 100% sure....).

Sigma makes lenses for Olympus...

Therussmeister wrote:.

Sigma makes lenses for Olympus..

Yes, you are correct. I found some on Pricegrabber:http://cameras.pricegrabber.com/...lr-lenses/sigma/p/545/form_keyword=olympus..