Pentax kx

[Bigmike]

Brief background:
Four years ago I was an advanced amateur photographer. I unfortunately had a stroke and lost the use of my left hand and was unable to grasp a lens barrel to focus. With the advances made in AF and anti-vibration I now feel I can handle a camera one-handed. Am I correct in assuming this and would a Pentax K-x meet my needs in auto focus and anti-shake? I have been reduced to a small disability income and do not want to invest a lot of money in a camera I find I cannot use. Thank you for any advice provided. I really want to get back into photography. Pre-stroke, it was one thing I was really good at.

Michael Crowder

[Niresangwa]

Originally Posted by Bigmike

Brief background:
Four years ago I was an advanced amateur photographer. I unfortunately had a stroke and lost the use of my left hand and was unable to grasp a lens barrel to focus. With the advances made in AF and anti-vibration I now feel I can handle a camera one-handed. Am I correct in assuming this and would a Pentax K-x meet my needs in auto focus and anti-shake? I have been reduced to a small disability income and do not want to invest a lot of money in a camera I find I cannot use. Thank you for any advice provided. I really want to get back into photography. Pre-stroke, it was one thing I was really good at.

Michael Crowder

K-x is a great little body, arguably the best entry level body and at the current price tag makes it a complete steal. Specifically in the situation you describe however, a couple of considerations..

as with all pentax bodies, they tend to be smaller and lighter than comparable platforms, so it shouldnt be an issue using it one handed (heck, last night at a shoot i was hanging off of a tall fence with one hand while i used my k20 with 'heavy' 50-135 zoom and battery grip in the other hand)..

one thing i would mention is that while the AF will suit you just fine, you have to account for the usual things such as contrast for the camera to work with, and lens selection will affect this, though the pentax kit lenses are really quite good.. the anti-shake in body also functions very well as long as you have correctly accounted for the shutter speed vs the focal length..

i'm sure this doesnt need to be pointed out, but you will need to use a hand to turn the zoom ring, though as i did last night, i knew the zoom i wanted to use last night before risking life and limb to shoot one handed last night....

props for taking on what i can only assume to be a very satisfying challenge

[jerome.oneil]

Try the forums on the The Disabled Photographers' Society the user's there may be able to help you and also offer you tips.

Jerome

[Mr Guy]

I hope this doesn't come out insulting, as it struck me as a genuine concern. Here's my pitch for going to the K-7 or the new K-5 and a really good comfortable monopod. For starters, the K-7 and K-5 are AMAZINGLY weighted so you can easily hold them by the grip with a couple fingers. Secondly, as a purely practical concern, the K-7 is a frigging tank. Maybe it's presumptuous of me to think you're going to drop your camera more, but I drop mine pretty regularly, so to me, the build quality of the metal framed K-7 and K-5 is a serious feature.

There are some other advances in new Pentax digital cameras I think will make this a lot better and happier experience than film. I don't know if you're used to Pentax, but they have a concept called "Hyper Modes" in their "Program" mode that I think will be ideal for you. Pentax cameras have a green button that mimics their "green mode" (fully auto point and shoot, except for zooms, of course). When you are in any other mode than green mode, pressing the green button sets all the camera settings to the defaults for the metering. What that allows you to do is shoot in fully automatic Program mode until the camera makes a decision you don't like. Then you can adjust the e-dial dials and jump directly into AV, TV, or ISO priority modes just by setting the portion of the exposure you want to control and letting the camera take the rest. Hit the green button again and you're back into automatic mode.

Right now K-7 used are running roughly the same as K-x new. K-x are really good cameras, don't get me wrong. It's just my gut level feeling that the K-7 is more designed to be completely controlled in one hand, and will just be a heck of a lot more convenient to use.

Since you're on a limited budget, you might consider renting a K-7 from CameraLensRentals.com for a weekend. It's a hundred bucks, so that may set you back a bit on buying the actual camera, but the piece of mind it gives you may be very very worth it.


*EDIT*

Gushing a bit more why Pentax would be a good choice for an exclusive right hander: Limited Prime Lenses

Cause really, with autofocus, a monopod, two e-dials and a prime lens, you're set!

[Mr Guy]

Originally Posted by Niresangwa

i'm sure this doesnt need to be pointed out, but you will need to use a hand to turn the zoom ring, though as i did last night, i knew the zoom i wanted to use last night before risking life and limb to shoot one handed last night....

Thanks for that reminder

Pentax DA Series Prime Lens Reviews and Specifications - Pentax Lens Review Database
Pentax FA Series Prime Lens Reviews and Specifications - Pentax Lens Review Database

Pentax makes it very convenient to be arrogant about not using zooms!

[Niresangwa]

good call on going with a higher tier camera... heck, k10s and k20s will be at cheap prices soon enough... best idea was the use of primes though.

..out of interest, have you handled a k5 yet? I'm still on the amazon waiting list, but seemingly cant get enough of reading the first-hand accounts...