I have had the K200 for 2 days now...
I got the K200 instead of the K10 for several reasons. (1) I wanted a DSLR(tired of my "point-n-shoot" and out grew it), (2) My wife needed to be able to use it for her business. Probably more me than her. I had been admiring the K10 for a while and played with it at the store, really wanting it. When the K200 and K20 came out the K10 only remained for sale on line, at least in my area. I drove my wife crazy for weeks reading reviews and even downloading the manuals from the Pentax website as well as other brands. I didn't want to spend this kind of money without actually holding the camera(it's not in the stores yet). Almost all the stores never even heard of the K2oo because the K20 takes top billing..14 mega pixels. Long story short...the advertisement on the K200 is as far as I can see very accurate. Its for those graduating to DSLR and still need some AUTO features. I am not going to try to fool you with a lot of professional sounding lingo. Lets just say I would have preferred the K10 but love this camera. You cannot shoot a bad picture...REALLY! If you can skip through the technical talk in the manual, it tells you everything you need to know. The camera still has plenty of room to play for those of us learning more about how to manipulate shots how we want them plus the auto features for those who aren't. I really like the way Pentax feels like a REAL camera, not cheap plastic like others. My brother owns a popular Cannon. See for yourself, go to a store and hold any of the Pentax late models(K10,K200,K20). I am still fixated on the more advanced K20 but that's for the near future. Then my wife can have this one back.
By the way, Thanks Amazon!!! You sent me a message saying my shipment might be delayed but you upgraded the shipping so I still received it on time...You ROCK. I will continue to use you.

I am an amateur photographer who's always used point-and-shoot cameras. Finally, I got up the nerve (and cash) to get myself a DSLR. I really had no idea what brand I was going to buy, though initially I was leaning towards Canon and their Rebel line of cameras.

Before I took the plunge, though, I started doing lots of reading and reviewing the various reviews/features of different cameras. I must have done this for a week or so.

Eventually, I settled on the Pentax K200D.
First, let me say it isn't a brand-loyalty thing: These guys have never done anything for me, so they're not "mah boys!" I have never owned anything made by Pentax before. I took long, hard looks at the features and performance and went from there.

There are several reasons why I chose the Pentax K200D over similar Canon, Olympus, Nikon, or Sony models:

1) Weather sealing -- Pentax claims their camera is the only environmentally sealed camera in its class ("starting DSLR"). I thought this was pretty nifty. Although you have to make sure you get sealed lenses to "complete" the sealing, it's still nice knowing your camera has a bit of extra protection from the elements than another brand. I don't plan to test this: I'll just take it on faith it's there in the first place!

2) Saving High quality JPEG and RAW at the same time (RAW+).

3) Very high build quality. This thing feels like it's built like a tank. After reading literally hundreds of user reviews from Canon owners, Nikon, etc. the general consensus was their bodies (and cheap lenses) felt a little flimsy. I must admit, I went to the stores and tried out their cameras (the entry DSLR) and I felt the same way.

I'm sure they are great cameras, but Popular Photography's preview of the K200D said it best: "Mate a tank with a SLR body..." or something to that effect.

4) AA batteries. I know this is a downside for a lot of people, but decent 2500mha AAs are extremely cheap and work great. If I ever run out of juice, I know I can hit up practically any store for a recharge.

5) You can mount any lens Pentax has ever made on this camera. Of course, you may not get all the features, but the consistency of the lens mounting was a plus for me (though I don't plan on buying lots of lenses).

6) In-body stabilization - A real biggy for me, as this translates to any lens you buy for the system!

7) It's an APS-C sensor -- this discounted the Olympus line immediately.
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So how do I like the camera? So far it's great!

I've only owned it a few hours, but I've been doing lots of testing with the kit lens (which, according to "the net", isn't as horrible in quality as some other kit lenses).

Autofocus is generally fairly quick, though low light seems to be throwing it off sometimes (duh!)

Light metering seems to be very consistent -- I'm not getting surprise too dark or too light shots unless I intentionally screw the shot up.

Burst rate is a bit low at 4 JPEG or RAWs - but I don't plan on doing too many sports shots so hopefully this won't be a limiting factor. I'm awaiting some Sandisk Ultra II SD cards to come in before I see how much this low rate limits me -- hopefully the fast card will allow a quick buffer flush.

The grip is confortable for me, a 6-foot tall male with large/medium hands. So far I haven't accidentally hit a button while operating the camera, etc. I haven't done prolonged shooting yet.

The menu options are pretty self-explanatory, and I like the manual they give you (though it's huge) -- They do a pretty good job explaining what various functions do, etc.

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So, the verdict? If you're moving from a point and shoot digital camera (I had a Kodak Easyshare Z612 6MP), this thing is going to blow it away!
DSLR sensors are so much larger than point and shoot, allowing more detail, color, etc. It's hard to describe, but maybe I'll get a chance to do some comparison shots with my PNS to show the differences.

Overall, I am very happy with my purchase. The kit lens isn't total garbage, the menu functions are easy to access and the camera performs admirably.

The only thing I miss moving from my PNS camera is the zoom -- I'll have to buy a new lens to get the amount of zoom, but that's fine, as the quality blows it out of the water.

My next purchase will probably be the fast 50mm prime lens for portraits.



I've been shooting in low-light situations (my house tonight) and so far it's doing great.

I can't WAIT to take it out tomorrow (70F and sunny!) and get some awesome shots!


If you're curious, I have 2x flickr shots to share. Warning - they're not the best, as I'm still learning, but they're pretty good I think. Minimal post-processing done with Photoshop.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25308977@N08/2388457255/sizes/l/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25308977@N08/2388205859/sizes/l/

Have only had this camera for two days and it's everything I've wanted in a DSLR and more. I also almost got the K10 but it doesn't the readily available rechargeable AA batteries which I have plenty of. The 10mp sensor is more than enough to get great big sharp enlargements. The grip on the camera is fantastic, I can't see it ever slipping from your hands unless you rub them with motor oil. I'm coming from a long line of Fuji bridgecams I've own, including the 18x zoom s8000 that I also bought off Amazon, the quality difference is like night and day and the price I got for the Pentax makes me wonder why I even bought the former in the first place. If you want to spend anywhere from $200 to $700 more for a DSLR, be my guest but in my opinion your wasting your money, get this this camera and use the money you'll save to get your spouse a nice Mother's/Father's day gift so you won't have to sleep on the sofa because your lame excuses why you spent so much on a camera. Oh..Shake Reduction works like a dream.

I previously owned a Pentax K100D. I decided to step up to a DA* lens and wanted a body to match its weather sealing and SDM motor. The K200D is the perfect prosumer DSLR. It has all of the great features of the K100D Super (the K100D with dust removal), plus many more. The 10.2MP sensor takes great photos. The construction is solid and the dust/water sealing clearly visible on all doors. As with the K100D, this model uses AA batteries, a feature I love. Paired with a couple of sets of NiMH rechargeable batteries (I have 2500 ma Sonys), you are set for over 1500 photos. Also included, built in support for wireless flash operation with the internal flash as master (the K100D required an external flash as the master).

Overall an excellent upgrade from the K100D, and a bargain compared to the K10D from which it gets its CCD. I highly recommend it for prosumers and entry-level professional photographers.

I just got the Pentax K200D and it is amazing, my first thoughts when I was handling it were how solid the camera was! Especially compared to the Canon Digital Rebel XSi and Nikon D40! The Kit lens is also amazing, it's very sharp and has a decent manual focusing ring (Hoo-Ray!). Pentax also included a lens hood!

The camera is VERY responsive when taking pictures, I am using a Sandisk Extreme III 4gb SDHC card and I can fire off six pictures (advertised as only four) in continuous high shooting before the rate slows down!

Picture quality is absolutely amazing but if you want the best pictures you will undoubtedly have to use the manual modes.

I'll add more to this review as time goes by and I acquire more experience with the camera.

I was given a gift of the Pentax100D not a year ago; in March I tried to buy the same camera for my son. It was already out of stock and replaced by the 200D which had combined features of the 100D with the 10D now also obsolete. In comparing the two cameras one can see the improvements in the newer camera: instead of 6 megapixels this camera has 10 megapixels, an advantage for the serious camera buff who wants to have safe blow ups larger than 8x 10. The switch to RAW format is also more easily accomplished than on the 100D. Additionally, while the ISO ratings on the 100D go from 200-3200, the 200D starts at 100, an advantage in bright light, although the maximum rating is 1600--on the theory I suppose that it might be more desirable to have more flexibility in high light scenarios than need it for very low light situations. Another improved feature is the viewing screen on the back of the body. It is fractionally larger than the 100D but it improves clarity. I didn't have a chance to examine all of the improvements in viewing and adjusting the camera however there are more editing features on the 200D than the 100D.I was also delighted to see that every old lens my son had including an old Pentax doubler, worked fine with this camera. There was enough of a difference that, although I really like my camera, I wish I had the features I listed above of the newer one. The only drawback is the price; it was $100 higher at the same time this year than the 100D was last year, +/- $760 with lens and body-- although as I have been tracking the camera the price has been dropping and I got the 200D on a promotion, but it was still higher than I wanted to pay at the outset.

I'm an amateur photographer and i have obviously heard about Pentax brand but somehow unlike Canon & Nikon it's not "visible" in commercials (posters etc.)My previous cameras were Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) and Konica Minolta Dimage A2 with shake reduction. Just recently i have decided it's time to get a new DSLR since both of them while in perfect working condition got kind of old for me. The new Canon XSI was tempting but somehow i kept searching for something else. Well i have found this K200D which is new in Pentax line. I heva read many, many reviews about this Camera, visited "well known" electronic store here in in NYC to get a "feeling" of this baby. After i have finally saw it and held it live i decided to GO for it and purchased it through amazon since the price difference between local well known store and amazon was quite big ( for the price difference i got original battery grip for this camera + no Tax that i would have to pay at "well known store") Thanks Amazon, You are the best!!! It uses 4 AA type batteries (quite rare) which i love since i can use PawerEx Nimh batteries and get several hundreds of pictures before recharging them. At the price of ~$10 per set of 4, well it's 3-4 times less than batteries that Canon Nikon uses. Pentax K200d is weather sealed, has a shake reduction build into the body of the camera (huge savings on lenses - against Canon's IS series or Nikons VR since none of them has shake reduction built in.) Nice and razor sharp 2.7 inch screen, dust removal system, pretty much all You could ask for at the price much below Canon's new XSI. Camera is amazingly user friendly, all buttons are logically placed, a pure pleasure to own it. It comes with redesigned 18-55mmm f/3.5-5.6 II Lens. Again for the saving against Canon XSI i have also purchased 50-200mmm lens meaning I'm all set for a looong time, until i decide to get more sophisticated...much more expensive DA* series lenses (something like Canon L series) I suggest get it, try it, if you don't like it simply return it but i doubt You will, once You get this camera and take some shots with it. For me...Bye Bye Canon, Nikon, Konica/Minolta and hello Pentax!!!

Built upon the fundamentals of the award winning K10D, you can't go wrong with the K200D.

I've been researching to buy a first DSLR for over 8 months, and I realized you simply get the most bang for your buck with a Pentax system. K200D offers advanced features such as SR, weather seals, and dust reduction, but for an entry price. It offers excellent image quality and ergonomics. Furthermore, it uses readily available AA batteries, which makes it ideal for traveling.

Although performance is lower in terms of AF and continuous shooting compared to the market leading Nikon and Canon models, it is not detrimental to what I will use this camera for. For anyone interested in landscaping and portraits, K200D is an ideal choice, especially with the vast amount of prime lenses and third party megazooms available.

I have been an amateur photographer since the late 70's and have always used Nikon cameras FM, F3 and later on a 995 digital Nikon. I always wanted to get into digital SLR's and I could never justify the price of the D100 D200 or D300 and the D40's and lower priced Nikon SLR's felt kind of cheap. I looked at other cameras in the price range of the K200D including Canon, Olympus and Sony and none of them had the build quality of the K200D with its stainless frame and weather sealed body. Also the shake reduction in the Pentax body sure beats having to buy expensive lenses such as the Nikon and Canon to get the same effect. The CCD is a carryover from the K10D which is a highly rated camera and the K200D shares many of the same features as the flagship Pentax K20D such as 2.7" LCD, front programable RAW switch, the newly modified text in menu screens that did away with jibberish abbreviations and the CCD cleaning system which vibrates and you can take a picture of CCD to see where particles of dust are located. It's not a 100% accurate there are times you still have to blow off CCD with bulb blower, but there is a cleaning mode in which you can lock up mirror and not have to hold shutter open with bulb setting. The K200D uses AA batteries which I like, they are easily found. I have been using 2500mah rechargeable SONY NiMh and getting approx 800 shots from a full charge. You can add a battery grip and add 4 more batteries. The camera will switch from camera battery to grip battery when power is low which doubles the amount of shots. Plus grip has a vertical shutter button.
The kit lens is among the best kit lenses out there surpassing many with very clear shots and very good auto focusing.
The K200D has simple settings for the beginner and lots of manual control for advanced photographers. Very well laid out controls and very easy to understand. If you are familiar with 35mm SLR's it seems like a natural transition.
The only downside I see to this camera is fast multiple exposure shooting. If you are looking for strictly sports photography where you shoot 10 20 frames rapid series then this is not your camera.
Bottom Line for the majority of people looking for the best value at this price and even a little more, the K200D ranks at the top of the list.

I'm not a pro photographer, but my transition from a film reflex to a compact digital a few years ago was painful, I missed too much being able to bend the traditional limits of cameras, especially to take night pics. I finally convinced myself to get "good" digital camera. I hesitated a long time between the SLR-quality Sigma DP1, the tiny Olympus E-420 and this Pentax. The reasons for my final choice were a) the great first reviews, b) the quality of the build and "ruggedness" of the camera (seals, AA batteries), c) the availability of pancake lenses to limit bulkiness.
I've had the camera for a week now. The first images came out beautiful and sharp. I also like the camera's programmability (define what each button does) and I think there is a lot to win by reading the manual thoroughly. At the moment I'm taking most pictures in RAW + JPG and fine-tuning the raw image if I think it deserves it, but I like the raw button which allows you to switch easily between file formats.
Because I like tuning things myself, I don't use most of the "easy" functions, but they hardly ever are in my way.
Overall, if you're going for a reflex, want good quality and don't mind a couple newbie-like features, I really recommend this camera.

Have been a Canon fan for the past 30 years and was looking for a new digital camera. Read a review about the Pentax camera and coupling it with the Pentax 18-250 lens. My wife was doubtful at first, but after using it for the past month she is convinced of the usefulness. It does everything that I expect and more because of the antishake feature. I didn't realize what a difference that would make. The selling point was the fact that it is the most water resistant and dust resistant camera that I know of. For me, this was a very important feature because it will be used for outside activities. The picture quality was fantastic for me. The only thing I am considering is upgrading to the 20D

I just baught this camera last week, after reaching the limit of where I felt I could grow with a point and shoot cam. I wanted to move into the more versital world of DSLR. So far so good. I have had good luck with this camera, as stated in other reviews it does have a tendecy to be off a little on color, but not enough you notice when printing out pic.

I find the menus easy to use, and the camera fits into your hands well. I am a big guy 6+ with large hands and I foun. the Cannon and Olympus Cams to small for my hands (on the flip side, my wife is a petit woman and finds this camera a little big)

I have been using this for a week or two so far in conjuction with Corel® Paint Shop Pro® Photo X2 and I have been able to create some great orginal images.

Pros:
- Sharp, crip images
- Quick Auto Focus
- Easy Menus

Cons:
- Bit of a learning cureve from a point and shoot (To be expected since you want the extra versotility, but it takes time to master)
- Colors are a little off, but not enough to distract from this picture.

Please read the full review for this cam on DP Review.

Extensive comparison between Pentax, Nikon, Sony, Olympus and Canon led me to pick the K200 as my first DSLR and after a few weeks of shooting it's starting to feel comfortable and so very much better than my old Canon point-and-shoot. Comments from a newbies perspective:

The menus are truly a pleasure for older eyes. Choosing the 'large' text only affects the line on which the cursor rests, so as not to overcrowd the display. Both sizes of text are very readable. If you wear or need glasses, you'll like the menus.

There are TWO menu systems to consider when operating the camera. The 'Fn' button on the right brings up a smaller set of menus for ISO, white balance, and shooting 'mode' (single frame, burst mode, bracketing exposures & etc) and a few other functions that you will be most likely to need to access when shooting. This allows you to dive into your most-needed settings without having to slog around in the larger full set of menus.

Ergonomics are good for me, a medium-to-large handed lefty. As others mention, the camera is large and no lightweight. Oddly (for such a big camera), the buttons on the 4-way controller ought to be a bit larger but it's very useable as is.

The kit lens is intended for generic use: it's not meant to be extremely good in low-light situations without flash, and if you're looking for a lot of zoom you'll be buying another lens shortly. It's a compromise, a good lense for most peoples daily usage. There's nothing really 'wrong' with it, but it may not be the only lens you'll want to own. The kit lens uses 52mm filters, while other lenses you eventually buy may use other sizes. You should get a UV filter and a polarizing filter right away and leave the UV filter on most of the time to protect the lens. Either of these filters can make a huge difference in the quality of your pictures, with the polarizing filter giving you the ability to 'dial out' glare and reflected or scattered light.

You Will Read The Fine Manual. The Product Description section on Amazon that claims the K200D is 'as friendly as a simple point-&-shoot' is quite a stretch of the truth. The manual is pretty good, luckily. Your best bet might be to set the camera up on a tripod indoors and actually work through any section that confuses you. Hint: learn about using Aperture Priority and take series of shots that use f-stop to adjust depth of field.

There is two 'Cons' against buying this camera. There is no 'live' view through the LCD, though there is a 'preview' mode that displays a frozen frame. So if you want to frame shots using the LCD this might NOT be the camera for you. I shoot through the viewfinder at all times so this is fine for me, but might really disappoint someone who expects to be able to see their shots lined up in the LCD.

The second problem is the USB connector. The end that plugs into the camera is a sort of micro-mini d-shaped connector. The tiny jack on the camera is one exception to the 'built like a tank' design of the k200, and I'm not sure how it'll hold up. Maybe other cameras are no better, but I would have liked to see a larger, more robust connecter here even if it had to be proprietary.

I expect this camera to keep me confused and entertained for years, and feel very pleased and proud to have chosen it over other great entry-level DSLRs like the Olympus Evolt series, the Sony A series and the various Nikon D models. AA batteries, rugged weather sealed construction, and a huge, easily legible LCD made this camera a winner for me.

It is a excellent buy and value for money DSLR.
I am using it for last 3 weeks and its really simple to use if you follow the instruction in booklet.very few buttons and most of the setting can be handled easily.
if you do not know about aperture control and other SLR terms pl. help yourself with a book like DSLR for dummies (buy it any book store around USD 25 ).IT helps.

The most important things is the optical Viewfinder, and is very good and comparitvly bigger view as compared to other leading models.pl. do view thru the OVP while comparing cameras bcos this is what you will be doing in almost any picture you are taking with a DLSR.Also see that while holding the camera by your eye ,are you able to navigate and change aperture and shutter speed etc and can easily see the values in the OVP display.
second important thing that it has a button called GREEN button. the purpose is that if you are in the full manual mode or AV /SV modes you can press this button to set the camera to the values which Camera considers appropriate. and then you can make manual corrections ,like slighly changing the aperture or shutter .
So , this button removes the Guess work out.It also helps you to tell what camera thinks about the settings and you can comapred with what you will be setting.

Camera holds good in big hands and i was very comfortable with the Grip.
I used energizer rechargeables and did not face any problem even if i am using flash all the time.Flash gets ready fast for the next action.

Apart form that it has all the stuff which most of the SLR have.

[...]

In looking for my first digital SLR I did not expect to go to Pentax. With their larger product lines, Nikon and Canon seemed a logical choice. However, like many people I have Pentax lenses and a Pentax flash unit from a 35mm SLR so I looked into my options to make use of them.

While slightly more expensive than the Canon, I found the Pentax to be a much weightier and sturdier camera - not so plasticky. The camera does not focus or shoot as quickly as the Canon, so action/sports photogs should look elsewhere. However, for my portraits and landscapes the camera sets the pics up nicely, is able to view them well on its large LCD display, and is able to do minor edits before loading to my PC.

The Pentax's 10.2 effective MPs means that the camera is very much up to par with its competition. However it does not yet feature direct view that can be found on some competitor's models. Also somewhat of a drawback is that the camera does not come with a rechargeable battery - it uses 4 AAs. You can stretch your battery life by buying the optional battery grip, but I have found so far that the battery life is exceptional. So far I have taken hundreds of pics without putting a dent in the battery performance.

Pentax continues to produce good cameras for average users and I recommend the K200D.

OK, I'll review this purchase. To begin with I will say that 4 stars is as high as I rate anything...it's just a thing. Earning five stars will only become a factor after much use and practical evaluation.
I am pleased with my purchase. Great value. And as with most modern hard- and software, it offers more than I need. So if it works for many years (unlike my first digital camera), I'll be very pleased.
That's all for now.

This is my first digital SLR. I have been using point and shoot digitals for the past few years.I have wanted to get into High Resolution Photography since I saw an article in Popular Science last year. I have been pleased with the quality and capabilites of the K200D. I almost got a Pentax K10 last year, and I am glad I waited, because the K200D has most of the same features as the K10 did. And at a less expensive price. The functions of the K200D took me about 2 days to figure out. And I am getting great photos. I checked out the other DSLR cameras and liked the Pentax the best value. Also be careful about where you get your camera. I have found a more than a few internet camera dealers out there with low prices that when I googled their business it was a scam. I have been very satisfied with Amazon,s pricing on this camera[..]

Spent several weeks researching the web and camera shops for my first DSLR. Have owned and frequently used 2 compacts: Canon S-45, Canon S-80 and a bridge Fuji S9500 prior to this. Starting the research with the "obvious" Canons and Nikons I ended up with a Pentax, mainly for its best value for money.

I opted for body only and ordered separataly a "walk-around /universal lens" :
Pentax DA 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 ED AL IF. Received the camera and lens from Amazon only recently and have shot first dozens of pictures. The first impressions are very good.
Solid build, very good feel in my hands (that is of course subjective)and most of all the camera delivers exactly what I was hoping for. Unlike compact cameras, with this Pentax you can really decide over the depth of field and very easily do manual focusing. That is if you have time for it. If you don't, there is always the P option and also a few scene modes which are quite handy.
The quality of the pictures is very good.
I can really recommend this camera.

I will get back when I gain more experience with it and get second (indoor) lens.

I recently stepped up from my Canon Powershot point and shoot cameras to a dSLR. I spent several months reviewing cameras and settled on the K200D. I purchased the camera from Amazon in March and have shot several thousand images with it.

This camera delivers outstanding image quality with very good dynamic range. The jpegs straight out of the camera are great and you can extensively customize the several picture modes available to deliver the jpegs exactly the way you like them. When you graduate to shooting raw, you will find that the raw files have a lot of headroom for recovering highlights.

The solid compact body has excellent build quality with extensive weather sealing. The dust-alert feature is quite helpful and the dust reduction works very well. I recommend one of the Giotto blowers as an accessory, but I have only had to use mine once so far, despite changing lenses frequently.

The 18-55mm AL II kit lens stands above the most of the competition both optically and mechanically (for example has a stainless steel bayonet mount) and is flare-resistant and quite sharp when stopped down a couple of stops. The icing on the cake with this camera is how well set up it is for use with legacy manual focus lenses. The shake reduction is in the camera so all lenses you use can take advantage of it.

I use Sanyo Eneloop hybrid AA batteries and get between about 500 and 700 images per charge.

This camera has lots of pros, more than I have listed here, it's hard to think of any cons - the SD card was difficult to extract until someone showed me to use the fingernail groove at the top of the cards. That's about it. It's a great camera at (currently) a great price.

I love it, so far so good. Takes excellant pictures. Very easy to use. My only surprize was I not able to take short movies like with other digital cameras. I'll get through it.

I replaced my older Pentax PZ-1p and ZX-7 35 mm SLRs with this camera. It has most of the professional features of the PZ-1p and many more auto features than my ZX-7. The build quality is better that either one, with a steel inner frame and a weather sealed tough, dense material for the body. It is a good fit in my hand. The kit lens is really spectacular, matching most fast glass primes in quality. The pictures I have taken are better than what I could do with 35mm. Part of this is the ease of digital redundancy, but the detail of the 10.2 mp sensor is really breathtaking. I can use all of my old Pentax lenses, even from the manual Pentax K1000 that I still own. BTW, that old K1000 manual SLR camera still works flawlessly, and is one reason I am such a Pentax fan. The shake reduction is huge advantage over the older cameras, and since it is built into the body, the lenses are much less expensive that the Canon or Nikor equivalent. I have always thought Pentax glass is as good as the other , pricier brands. This camera is great as a point and shoot or for more advanced users.

Really wanted to like this camera. Read a ton beforehand and it had mostly superlative reviews. I did like most everything about it except picture IQ-the most important feature in a camera.

Severe underexposure in all modes.

I have been using this camera for the past 3 months. My experience has been positive so far.

Why K200D?

* Built like a tank - No other entry level DSLR has this build quality
* Weather Resistant - No other entry level DSLR has weather seals. You can take pictures outside in a dusty and rainy environment with a K200D and a DA* lens. Can you do this with a Nikon/Canon entry level camera?
* Image stabilization Shake Reduction gives you two stop advantage. No more blurred images.
* AA batteries no need to carry charger, adapter etc - around 800 images with flash
* Built in Wireless Flash
* Shoots RAW and JPEG simultaneously
* Dust Removal and detection facilities
* User selectable noise reduction levels
* Good Ergonomics
* Accurate color reproduction. Excellent IQ upto IS0 800.
* Additional features like DOF preview, lens compatibility etc.

Unless you shoot sports action, you cannot go wrong with the PENTAX system. Unlike some other systems, PENTAX autofocus system never locks focus when the subject is not in focus. However, the focus lock is not lightning fast in low light ( i.e. after sunset) and it takes an extra second or two to lock focus. This is not the fault of this camera but PENTAX is yet to introduce a ring type ultrasonic focus lens. However, when it locks focus, it means the subject is in focus. No doubt about it.

I bought this camera because of the excellent and comparatively cheaper primes available from PENTAX. Ever heard about FA 31 limited lens? ( one of the 3 best autofocus lens in the world ever!) The primes are high quality and competes with Leica and Zeiss primes. They are very much affordable and are optimized for APS-C cameras.

Most of the Nikon and Canon primes are full frame and the crop factor makes them not attractive. An 105mm Nikon prime lens is approximately 158 mm in APS-C. A PENTAX 70mm prime gives you the 105mm field of view on K200D which is the preferred focal length for portraits and it costs only [...]$. The Da 70mm lens is not made of plastic like the Canon 85mm f/1.8 and 100mm f/2 but it is an all metal lens which is again built like a tank. If you want a PENTAX quality prime lens from Canon, you have to go for the CANON L prime lenses which are always above $1000. Visit [...] to know the list of all available lenses from Pentax . Look for lenses designated as "Limited".

What about zoom lenses? You have weather sealed ultrasonic silent motor lenses like DA* 50-135 and DA* 16-50. They are cheaper compared to other systems. Also you have cheaper consumer build quality lenses like DA 55-300mm, DA 12-24, DA 16-45 etc.

One other advantage of the PENTAX lenses is that they have special coating which controls flare very well. This is not the case with all other manufacturers.

Let me reiterate: Only in PENTAX system, you can get professional quality lenses at affordable prices. No other manufacturer produces such high quality lenses that are so compact in size. Go for PENTAX.

For over five years I used 3.2MP Olympus D-540 camera.
It still works fine. But I decided to step up for some more megapixels.
I purchased Panasonic Lumix LZ7... It was ok, but I didn't get "wow effect" as I expected...
Then I purchased Olympus FE-340, same absence of "wow".
Then I got Fujifilm Finepix S700... I still felt that my old Olympus was getting better shots.
Then I decided to get a real camera... After a lot of research I decided to go with Pentax K200D. After I saw the first shot with it, I got that "wow effect" I expected. Really sharp photo and real colours.
And this camera still makes me wow each time I make a shot. Like another reviewer said: "you really can not make a bad shot".
It's my first DSRL camera, so I can not compare it to any else. But some things that convinced me to get it were:
-Weather resistant build. It even has seals in memory slot, USB port and battery port.
-Hardware shake reduction function. Still didn't get any blurred image, and I believe my hands are not "shake-free".
-Accessible AA batteries (you can get it in every shop)
-Really fast Autofocus (according to one review 1.2 seconds compared to Rebels 3 seconds)
The only bad thing I found (or may better to say: I didn't expect) is that you are obliged to see thru viewfinder to make a shot... Something I didn't expect from a digital camera. But I'm used to it, because sometimes I use my father's old Zenith 35mm camera.
Other than that it's a great camera that takes sharp photos with life-bright colors.

I just received my k200d today after many weeks of reading online reviews and a couple trips to the camera shops close to my house. Coming into the dSLR world with no stock in glass from any manufacturer, I was less restricted in my choices and looked at everything from the Pentax I ended up with to the Canons, Nikons, and Sonys I heard everyone else talking about purchasing. The most important features to me were image quality, build quality, in body stabilization, and AF speed. I kept hearing others talk about frames per second and live view, but for the images I will be capturing with my camera, these two features were not that important to me. Out of the box, I could not be happier with my selection, especially considering its current price point.

First and foremost, you can tell once you hold it in your hands you are dealing with a camera that has exceptional build quality. The entry level dSLR's I tried at the camera shops (Canon Rebel Xsi and Nikon d60) felt, well, entry level. The build quality of k200d compares admirably to the feel of the Canon 40d or Sony a700. The weather and dust seals also sold me on the k200d as I plan to use it on outdoor weekends in Colorado and the Grand Canyon this summer. The metal lens mount on the body and the kit lens also showed me the importance Pentax places on build quality. I'm confident this camera will last for years based strictly on build quality and feel.

The image quality has impressed me out of the box as well. I have taken close to 60 pictures with the camera trying to experience the different settings and learn a little more about dSLRs (I've always used a point and shoot digital camera before today). With my limited knowledge of photography and the abilities of the k200d, the quality of the images I've been able to capture is outstanding. The 10 MP and PRIME image processing really do capture a bunch of detail, and the image stabilization seems to keep the noise down even at higher ISO's. I'm sure as I progress in my knowledge of the camera the images will only become better, and I am anxious to put this camera to use to see what it can do. The autofocus seems to be quick and accurate. Something else I liked is the consideration Pentax gives to being back-compatible with older lenses. Though I didn't have any pre-existing glass, I like knowing that my k200d body is something that can grow with Pentax technology in the future.

For those considering their first dSLR, I wouldn't get caught up too much on resolution. For most of us, 8 to 10 MP is going to be more than enough, and I would imagine around 3 fps is going to be more than we enthusiast need. I was tempted to purchase a semi-pro body fearing that I was going to want "more" one day in the future. I can honestly say I am glad I did not spend the extra 500-600 dollars on a semi-prO body for my first dSLR. The k200d has impressed me from the beginning and I am confident it will be with me in the future, either as my main camera or a great backup to my Pentax k20d. I paid roughly 660 on Amazon and will get 100 bucks back through a Pentax rebate. For 560 dollars, anyone would be hard pressed to find as good of an entry-level dSLR as the Pentax k200d.

Good product; dad likes it; dunno much about cameras but he can re-use all the old pentax lenses that he had with his 'film' camera.
Easy to start using ....we'll know more later as the usage ramps up.
Kinda cheap that they dont sell the memory card and camera bag all in one package....and you have to separately buy and pay for each shipping.

I tried quite a few cameras to upgrade from my 2003 Fuji, and in fact bought -and returned!- a new Fuji, before this. This Pentax K200D camera does an amazing number of things well. Settings are easy to use, and it does very, very well just as a point-and-shoot on "automatic" setting. The pictures are extremely nice in colors and detail.
I am by no means a professional - I am still re-learning what a lot of those settings mean. The camera does not overwhelm you with a zillion things, but does give you choices. OR there are a lot of basic Scene modes, that do seem to work decently well, if you don't want to try to do the white balance, etc, on your own. For an amateur like myself, who has to bend my brain to try to remember what those things are at all, it is a great way to pick it up without being overwhelmed with a professional camera. And there have been times when I don't have time to try out these things, so I just put it on automatic and let it figure it out as I switch from bright sunshine, inside a darker space, etc.
The megabytes mean there is a lot of info in each picture - using Photoshop to crop or play with the picture results in some spectacular shots when I need it. Recently, I had to take pictures under a large picnic pavilion, without using a flash but with all the bright sunshine outside. The camera did well, and Photoshop was easily able to get me the detail I needed on the inside shots, balancing out the very bright background. Not every camera has pictures that have enough detail to pull a good shot out of those details. The same thing happened at a school assemble - good shots under difficult conditions.
The only problem pictures I have had are NOT the camera's fault - people moving when I do not have it in sports mode. Putting it in sports mode does indeed help if things are going to move around on you.
I am satisfied with the shutter lag - it's pretty fast - and the quality of the camera.
I am particularly happy that my 20 year old Pentax lense works with this. It was the reason I bought the camera, in the end - the ability to use the old lenses from my old Pentax film camera, and even the additional flash (also ancient). Pentax has made it so you can use them, and even makes an adapter for the really old lenses. This makes upgrading to other lenses so much easier, as there are a lot of older lenses around. And I feel better about not just throwing out perfectly good stuff.

I absolutely love this camera!

In December of '07 I decided to purchase a K10D but then I heard a rumor that Pentax was coming out with a new line of cameras at PMA. After tons of research I realized that the K200D has the same sensor as the K10D but in a smaller package and redesigned software for beginning photographers.

I purchased this camera the second it became available on amazon and I have never regretted it. It's hard to believe that a camera in this price range is this well built, has in body shake reduction, depth of field preview (screen by default, viewfinder via setting change), 11-point AF, advanced metering, and the list goes on.

The kit lens is great but I soon purchased an after market Tamron 70-300 also from amazon.

Nothing on the market comes close to the value of this camera.

Tip: This camera really benefits from a fast SD card. I use the SanDisk Extreme III 4GB.

-David

After my old Canon AE1, I choose the Pentax K200D for the security : Wherever you are, you can find AA batteries and SD card and against humidity, the K200D is tropicalised and build with a iron structure.
I rediscover the pleasure to take photo.

I'm new to dSLR photography, moving up from a terrific point & shoot (Canon A620). I've only shot around 500 images so far--still have a lot to learn about how to get the best results--but already I've gotten some great pics from it. A few pros and cons of the camera from what I've seen so far:

Pro:
-Good kit lens, sharp.

-Good in body image stabilization (I've taken some wide angle shots hand held at 1/10th second with no trouble!)

-Built like a tank! This thing feels like a very solid piece of equipment.

-Runs on AA batteries. Huge plus in my opinion. A good set of rechargeables like the Sanyo Eneloops will probably be my next purchase. AA batteries are great because you can find them at virtually any store if you get caught with no juice.

-Logical control layout; easy to quickly change settings.

-Great image quality overall, even at high ISO! It does take some learning to produce the best results, especially if you are not familiar with things like aperture, shutter speeds, exposure compensation, etc. Of course you always have the auto mode to fall back on, but I try to avoid this as much as I can - trial and error with the other settings seems to be teaching me a lot more about the camera and photography in general.

Con:
-Automatic white balance is rather poor when shooting indoors. This seems to be true of other SLRs that I have used too. The different settings (fluorescent, tungsten, etc.) can help here, but indoor lighting can still be tricky, especially when light is coming from two different types of bulb at the same time. My advice is to take a few shot at different white balance settings and see what looks the best to you. Also, a gray card is very useful for setting manual white balance, which in my experience has been the most accurate and pleasing to look at.

-No backlight for the top LCD screen. A minor annoyance.
But at least this camera has a top LCD, as the entry level Canons and Nikons and others do not.

-No live view. Not really an issue for me at all, though I could see why others would not like this especially if they are used to point and shoots.


I know there are many more things that can be said about the camera but these are just a few which I have noticed so far. All in all I think I made a great choice buying this Pentax. It takes wonderful pictures and is really a joy to use.

I ordered the camera, and because I used the one click it was sent to Florida where I was a year ago. I tried without success to change the shipping address. After many E-mails and calls Amazon shipped me a replacement after the camera was on it's way back to Amazon. A totally frustrating experience.

An excellent camera with a wide host of features. My short list of favorite features:
1) In-camera shake-reduction.
2) Ability to shoot raw and JPEG at the same time (or switch as you like with a dedicated button).
3) Custom capture modes, including black and white (and many others).
4) Ability to use any Pentax lens, new and old, autofocus or manual. (The new DA lenses are superb in sharpness, contrast, and flare-control.)
5) Excellent image quality.
I used to shoot Nikon digital (D50), but switched, and glad I did.

Great camera, very versatile. Best of all , completely compatible with my collection of Pentax lenses. only thing better would be the K20D!

I recently upgraded from the Pentax *ist DS (DSLR) to the Pentax K200D and am VERY happy that I did. I was never unhappy with the DS - it's still a more capable camera than I am a photographer - but I felt I *needed* to upgrade. The main reason for the upgrade was Pentax's in-body shake-reduction. I'm simply not as physically stable as I was and the shake reduction is everything I hoped it would be!! Extremely helpful to us unstable folks!

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the shutter is a lot quieter - makes a difference photographing wildlife. The dust reduction feature is nice as is the additional megapixals. All is all, a VERY good upgrade for me. Well built, dust and water sealed, and backed by Pentax! Nice.

I have had this camera just over 4 weeks and I love it. I have always been a camera buff but the cost of film and processing restricted me. With this camera you get instant feedback if your shot turned out. I will never go back to film.

The camera preforms like I expected. I went with Pentax as my SLR is Pentax also and wanted to use my current lens. I am glad I did.

I have been a loyal Pentax customer for the better part of 25 years. My first was a fully manual K1000 from 1981. ( Which by the way is still a great film camera ) I used that camera to fill in the gap in-between great imaging, and quick imaging in which I use a "point and shoot" digital camera for my digital needs.
I have read reviews, and magazine ads waiting for a decent DSLR that can fill my all in one needs, and not fret about having hundreds of dollars of unused lenses, and filters in a case.
Well here it is! Though not really addressed in their ads at any length, The Pentax DSLR will indeed fit and use all their legasy K lenses!
NICE... all my zooms, wide angle, macro's and filters will be useful again in the 21st century. To my knowledge Canon, Olympus, Sony, etc have missed the consumer boat in engineering their cameras to use the lenses current customers already have in their posession. To be sure, the new lenses will allow for automatic metering, and focus. But for someone who already is comfortable in making my own exposures, and focusing, I can use my stock of lenses that were already invested in.
Thank you Pentax!
Oh and yes...ps... this camera does indeed make great images! Have no fear.

Have been experimenting with the camera since getting it back in early June. I did LOTS of research, wanting to get the most for my $$ in the "prosumer" range. Sure, it would be great to spend mucho $$ on a Nikon D300 but I have to put gas in the car too.
I would say that the positive reviews others have posted are accurate. The camera quality is excellent - its hard to put into words what it feels like, but it does feel more solid and well put together than others. The kit lens is surprisingly good as well. Very sharp and quick. I looked at others in this price range and while the Sony A300 had a cool LiveView feature, it felt "plasticky" and the reviews for the kit lens were usually horrible. After going to a Circuit City and playing with the Sony for awhile, I had doubts as to its potential longevity. The Canon's, Nikon's and Olympus' in this genre all cost more and were missing one or more key features.
Definitely put this camera/lens combo on your short list. Great build quality, nice lens for a great package price, plenty of accessories, compatibility with a ton of older lenses, wireless flash sync, shake reduction in body, weather resistant. Done! Now I'm thinking about a nice complimentary lens to go with the kit. 55-300 is looking nice...

I absolutely love this camera. It gives me the chance to learn and be creative while also using it as a "point and shoot" camera. The shake reduction that is built into the Pentax K200 is awesome. It's extremely difficult to take a bad shot. :) I've taken over 500 shots with the included Engergizer Lithium batteries and still have a full charge. Now I'm addicted to buying lenses for it. You can't go wrong with this camera. I always aspired to buy a Cannon Rebel, but I can't imagine a camera being any better than this one especially for the price. The feel to the camera is fantastic. I thought I would miss the "live view" that I had with my other "point and shoot" cameras, but I'm adjusting well. As other reviewers have said, the Pentax lenses are much more affordable since you don't have to pay for the shake reduction in the lens. I'm giddy and having a blast taking great blurry free shots!

Having owned a Pentax ME Super SLR for more years than I like to admit, and having had a Minolta digital point and shoot for a few years I decided it was about time I bought a DSLR. I used to shoot slide film all the time, but it is now getting ridiculously expensive to develop and hard to get hold of.
I wanted to use all my old Pentax lenses so the K200d seemed a natural progression. I bought one from Amazon with the 18-55 lens autofocus lens.

I am so pleased with this camera!! I have read some negative comments regarding size etc, but to be honest, I love the solid well engineered feel of it and since I bought it I have looked at a Canon and a Nikon and thought the build quality was inferior.

If you want a DSLR It would be hard to be disappointed with the K200D. I have tried my old standard 50mm 1.7 lens and a Tamron zoom with Carl Zeiss lens and got terrific pictures immediately and being an ME Super user I didn't even miss the autofocus

The built in flash is good enough for short range stuff and I have taken some good flash fill daylight shots with it, but I will now be buying a Pentax flash and I expect I will be happy with this camera for many years

I love it...get one.

This is an amazing camera.

I began my search for a camera with the Nikon and Canon products. I had been a Canon S3 IS user for several years and wanted to stick with that brand. However, I was very unhappy to discover that neither Nikon or Canon offered products that ran from AA batteries. Carrying camera gear is issue enough without also having to carry all the extra stuff that goes with rechargeable batteries. When I searched for DSLR devices that ran from AA's, I discovered the Pentax. I am SO glad I made this purchase. Not only did I get AA as a power source, but the camera is FAR more solid feeling than any of the other DSLRs that I looked at. It is rugged, weatherproof (to some degree), and sports a feature set that lets you work in full automatic mode to full manual mode. You are likely to find, as I did, that the camera invites you to experiment with all the manual options to provides for some incredible levels of creativity. My photography has profoundly improved with this Pentax in my hands.

The only thing this camera does not have that I wish it did was a live preview. It is backwards compatible with my older Pentax lens, so I would rather have that than a live preview. Also, and almost as important to me, it uses AA batteries. I will not buy any product that uses a "special" battery...they are overpriced and you have to have at least two to have a spare. I have 24 NiMH rechargeables and a charger analyzer that keeps them in good shape. I thank Pentax for those two features. By the way, the picture quality is excellent. The colors are vivid and well saturated with and without the flash. The flash works well up close (3 feet) unlike most others. The pictures are sharp and well defined from edge to edge. I would have given it 5 stars if it had a live preview. I had looked at two companies who said they were in stock for immediate shipment, but when I ordered the camera and did not buy an expensive Li-Ion battery and large "extremely fast" memory card they were all of a sudden out of stock. Both of them NYC Broadway camera companies. I ordered from Amazon, which cost a little more, but had the camera in two days with no shipping cost. Thanks Amazon for being there again. I should have never wandered away.

Hello fellow Amazon.com shoppers,

As there are many reviews about this camera I will keep this one short.
Pros:
-Great PQ
-Lots of user settings, but auto settings work as good, it picks up the correct scene every time in auto mode. You will quickly understand the menu UI and different settings as they are very good described both visualy and as text on the screen.
-Good VR, you don't hear or feel a buzz, which is good.
-I was able to use my old ('87) 35-70 and 70-210 Pentax lenses. Autofocus works as it should razor sharp and exposure is correctly calculated.
-I really like the kit lens, it is of far better quality than other brands kit lenses. It comes with lens hood and has a professional look to it. Very fast AF (way faster than Nikon!)

Cons:
-The included lithium batteries (AA-size) gave me 750 images instead of the 1200 images as advertised on the box. (12MP JPEG, 10%flash,little screen use).
The next set were Alkaline batteries and gave me 200 shots. So stay away from Alkaline's. Make sure to get the battery grip BG3 and 2 sets of high capacity NIMH's. The camera is quite compact compared to Nikon's but slightly larger than comparable Canon's. I have large hands as I'm 6'6" and I really need the battery grip to have a good feel on the camera. I guess the body is the right size for normal people :)
-The power consumption was higher with the 8GB SDHC card I used at first. Now I get about 900 images with a normal 2GB SD card and one set NiMh's GP 2700mA. I think the SDHC cards use more power, stay away from them if you don't need the capacity.

All in all, very satisfied Pentax customer and feel happy everytime I go out and use it. I noticed I take the camera with me more often than I used to because it is so intuitive to operate. You are always fast enough to get that 'drive by shot' in the city :)

My Pentax K200D arrived over 3 weeks ago and I have taken several hundred pictures. I am a dentist and I use this camera to take portrait and close-up photos almost every day. My K200D is combined with a ring flash and a Sigma 105 macro lens. I also bought the 18-55mm lens in case I want to use it outside the office.
It is easy to use and takes beautiful, high resolution pictures that you can crop and enlarge with great results.

I chose this camera over the Sony, Nikon, Canon and Olympus SLR's for several reasons.
I need to take photos quickly and I need to take them all now. I can't wait for a dead battery to recharge. The K200D uses AA batteries. If the rechargeable AA NiMH batteries are dead, I can take them out and temporarily replace them with standard batteries quickly.
The K200D uses an SD card as well as some of my other digital cameras, digital storage devices and my camcorder. My computer has a built-in SD slot so this simplifies my data storage needs.
Since I hand-hold my camera I wanted a camera with image-stabilizing. The K200D has this feature built into the body, not the lens, so the number of lenses available is greater and the cost of lenses is less and I always have this feature available.
If you read reviews on Amazon or other Web pages you may see criticism regarding brightness or color issues with the K200D. I haven't found this to be a problem. If you don't agree with the engineers at Pentax who calibrated the camera you should be aware there are many simple adjustments available to change the brightness or color settings from the Fn menu, Custom Image options and you can have photos "Your Way" from then on.
Since I shoot in M or Manual mode I use the Auto Bracketing feature all the time. All I have to do is push the Shutter button 3 times and one of the exposures will work. The first shot is what I think should work, the 2nd is darker and the 3rd is lighter.
The K200D can take excellent photos for beginners in the simplest mode and can be highly adjustable for the demanding seasoned photographer. I use the camera for work because it is a fine tool and has the features I need, but all digital SLRs are big and heavy for me. I am no longer interested going on vacation carrying 3 or 4 lbs of camera, batteries and lens over my shoulder waiting for that Kodak moment. For travel and vacation I want small cameras that fit in a purse or pocket. My 2 favorites that I have used for years are the Nikon 8400, and when I may take pictures in water, the Pentax W30. Both cameras take video with sound.
Be sure to avoid shady camera websites with prices significantly below Amazon. For the highest confidence I use Amazon.

I recently upgraded from a P&S to the Pentax K200D. Although I miss some aspects of the P&S, overall I'm extremely pleased with the K200D. It has a host of features that are lacking from other entry level cameras. Among these are: support for a wide variety of old lenses; in-camera shake reduction; wireless flash capability; SD card; AA battery power; weather sealing; dust removal; pixel mapping; RAW+JPEG. On the negative side: it's missing live-view, a video mode, and is limited in number of continuous shots.

* K mount and in-camera shake reduction: these were the main reason why I decided to go with Pentax. I was looking for a deal on an XSi when this showed up. After some additional research, I decided to abandon the Canon and go with Pentax. My first (non-kit) lens was a 50mm f1.7 manual lens. It's near perfect for < $40. I've also learned that Pentax's shake reduction works in three dimensions: horizontal, vertical, and rotational. Other systems lack the rotational dimension.

* Wireless flash: sort of lucked into this one. I bought the AF360FGZ to go along with the K200D and found out that it supports wireless operation with the AF360FGZ. This feature almost covers the cost of the flash. Me likey!

* SD card: I have a bunch of SD cards and prefer it to other formats. I do need to buy faster and higher capacity cards, though.

* AA power: Sanyo Eneloop. Enough said.

* Weather sealing: not essential for me but nice to have.

* Dust removal/pixel mapping: good additions but haven't used yet.

* RAW+JPEG: takes a lot of memory and is slow but I have mine set to record both for now. The JPEG resolution can be set to low for quick emails/copies.

As far as the drawbacks, the live-view and video mode were convenient but I've gotten used to the view-finder and also bought a new camcorder, too.

For me, the most important part of a dSLR camera system is the lens. So even though this is considered an entry level dSLR, it has enough features and capabilities that'll last me a long time.

I am getting lens-buying addiction (LBA), though.

I knew I wanted a 50mm/1.4 lens for baby portraits (main excuse for getting a DSLR). Compared different offerings from Canon, Nikon, Sony etc. When paired with a 50mm/1.4 lens, nothing could beat this in value and features. Shake reduction combined with a fast lens means great indoor shots without the use of flash and extremely shallow depth of field. I haven't been out much to test the kit lens (hard to do when you have an infant), but a few test shots looked good. Only draw back is that it didn't include rechargeable batteries with a charger, but it's easy enough to find AA rechargeables.

It is simply the best of its class overall. I love PENTAXES. I was a Canon person in film. Did not like the feel & handling of Canon lower model cameras. Their images turn out soft as well. I like PENTAX colors more than Nikon's.

Just a great camera to enjoy. I also have K10D & K20D. K200D is my camera to just hang around town

It's a great camera. I'm a good 35mm photographer learner D SLR's for the first time and this camera has a lot of great settings to help out in the beginning of the process or for someone who can zoom in and ut but basically wants high quality family snapshots.

I have a few problems with the controls, as I am yet unable (after a few weeks) to operate the F-Stop/Aperture setting which I can do easily on other brands. But I'm sure that as soon as I actually finish reading th huge manual I'll be able to do it. For now, the dials, though I looked them up are confusing, esp. since some of the things you have to do through menu, not dials.

No battery pack-- something I thought would be a CON is great. Lithium AA lasted for over 1800 pics with Shake Reduction on always, constant review, and about 1/4 built-in flash use. (I don't have the additional battery grip). It will take any AA including rechargeables (though they claim they aren't recommended for best function I haven't had a problem and regular throw aways).

I bought this camera because it is in a lower price range for its features-- most other lines only offer shake reduction built into the body of the camera in the next price range along with the huge amount of preset picture modes and options for creativity (the advanced modes).

I haven't found the dials as easy to use as friends' Canon's (I can pick them up and change the settings without knowing their cameras)but I like this camera better, and the same product is available for a cheaper price. It also fits my set of PENTAX 35mm lenses which is a no brainer and a unique quality.

I say this is a better camera than its similarly priced competitors by far, esp. with the functions. But it can be a bit tricky to use.

I have had a 35mm SLR for several years but it has been collecting dust since the digital revolution and I purchased my first digital point and shoot. Lately I have missed the control that I have with the SLR. After doing some research as to if my film lenses would fit and what the reviews were I purchased the K200D and was surprised by all that it has to offer. I love the fact that it uses AA batteries which I use rechargeable without any problems, the good battery life was also a surprise. This is a great camera and has renewed my passion for enthusiast photography. This camera has all the convenience of a point and shoot with the quality and control of an SLR great entry to midlevel camera with lots of room to grow.

I am an amateur photographer, and till recently I was using a Canon 500N 35mm SLR, which I loved. Its my first DSLR camera, and I am very happy with it. I did a lot of research, and comparisons with Canon and Nikon. Once I decided on Pentax, I had trouble deciding between Pentax K10D and K200D. After a lot of research, I chose K200D, for the following reasons:

1. Both offer the same features and functions, but K200D is cheaper.
2. The only key differences between the 2 are that K10D has a pentaprism viewfinder, whereas K200D has a pentamirror. This doesnt cause any change to the quality of pics taken. The second is that K10D, being the prosumer camera, has most of its functions adjustable manually without having to go into the menu. In K200D, these must be set in the menu settings. Again, no big deal. Just a convenience.
3. K10D is heavier than K200D. For an outdoor person like myself, the weight is an important factor when I am walking on rough and uneven trails for many hrs. With the bag, and camera around your neck, and your friends hurrying you up, you dont want a very heavy camera.
4. K200D is a camera released 2 years after K10D. Its most likely that there are improvements in the software, bugs fixed, if any.
5. K10D only has manual modes. K200D has both preset modes and manual. I see no harm in having the preset modes, even though I dont intend to use them. Might help when I have little time to setup and shoot.

The K200D camera itself is a very beautiful camera, easy to hold and use. It has a robust design, and great performance, under all conditions. ITs even water and dust resistant. The image stabilization function is very useful. The camera has a pretty big image viewer, which shows high and low contrast areas in the image. Useful function.

Some usability issues I noticed was that the function button used for selecting ISO, number of frames, etc, turns off the screen as soon as you select. Thats kind of annoying, because, I would like to see the selection I made on the screen, as confirmation.

Overall, very impressive camera, and I love it. See my sample images.

I have had the camera for a month and I am totally satisfied. I did alot of research and I couldn't be happier with it. I also got the extreme III card from Sandisk and it is very fast.

I have used the camera for about a month now (1500 pictures) and I am in love with it. Paired with the Pentax 18-250mm zoom lens it has been a joy to use. With its incamera stablization, I have been able to capture great shots from Macro to the full extention of the zoom. The greatest benefit for me has been its ability to capture pictures that require no adjustments at all other than the occasional crops. I highly recommend both the camera and the 18-250 lens.

Very pleased with this camera. Already had lenses from a Pentax 35mm camera and write up said they would work with this camera. I was skeptical, but upon receiving the camera, I found they worked perfectly. Has large selection of various modes if you want to customize the way the camera takes pictures or it can be totally automatic. Shake reduction is a great feature for low light situations. All in all, a good buy.

I have had the camera about a month and am very happy with it. It takes great quality pictures and has a great battery life. I've had the originals in for about a month, and the battery light still says they're full.

The only thing I would suggest is to buy a tripod if you plan on using the night setting. It does a great job with the lighting, but it's hard get a focused picture without resting it on something like a tripod or other surface.

This is my 1st DSLR, 6th digital camera.
I selected the camera for it's features, and construction.
It had to have body stabilization, and sensor cleaning. The use
of AA's, and very good battery life, are a definite plus.
Pentax did an excellent job of sealing off the body from moisture, as proven on Kauai, when it and my family and friend were drenched on the Kalalau trail.
The ergonomics seem to be very good. The grip and feel are rock solid, and feel balanced with either the 18-55mm AL2 or the 55-300mm zooms.
The built in flash performs remarkably well, and the low light sensitivity works well, even with the apertures I have on the zooms.
The AA's I have been using were the Sanyo Eneloops, and even with only a 2000mah rating, they lasted the whole day,good enough to fill a 2GB card, which also included a handful of flash/flash assisted pics. The new low discharge Eneloops can sit in the camera for weeks, then be called on for duty without worry...something only the Lithium ion folks could brag about before.
The negatives? The white balance should be on it's own (but the Fn button gets you there quickly, too). The clack of the shutter/mirror assembly is noticeable in a quiet surrounding.

Excelent camera! Great pictures and easy to use. The colors are life-like and the ability to adjust focus and depth of field are a plus!

I have been using my K200D for 2 months now and love it. I compared several cameras in an electronics chain store (Nikon D60, Canon EOS XTi, Olympus 520), and then ordered the K200D after reading many online reviews (DPReview, CameraLabs and others).

This is my first DSLR, after having used a film SLR (Canon) for many years and digital point and shoot cameras (Kodak and Canon) for the last few.

The Pentax feels so much more solid than the other DSLRs in my hands, a piece of real equipment. The camera's features were superior to the Nikon (tho you can never go wrong with Nikon), and the image quality per reviews and my experience has been great. The price point on Amazon made the decision a no-brainer, and I have not been disappointed.

I have read some comments that the JPGs produced by the K200D are overly sharp, exhibiting "jaggies" on edges. I have tried a few times to reproduce this to see how changing the JPG quality settings would affect it, but have been unable to see the effect at all. I will keep trying and update this review should I produce any results. BTW the same article indicated shooting RAW the K200D was fantastic - if you process your photos on the PC and don't mind the extra storage for RAW, then the JPG issue is moot.

The camera operates in any range from point-and-shoot auto everything (including flash) down to full manual, and incorporates many scene modes in addition to the program, shutter priority, aperture priority, and fixed ISO program modes. Settings such as white balance (including custom WB), self timer, continuous shooting and more are rapidly accessed via the function button followed by one of the cursor keys, and there is a switch on the body at the base of the lens to switch to manual focus. Anti-shake is built into the body, keeping lenses simple, reliable and less expensive, a plus over Canon and Nikon. Sensor size is APS-C (a plus over Olympus), and I have read it is the same sensor used in the Nikon D60, which appears to be born out in online reviews.

Only thing lacking IMO is a focus assist lamp for low light focusing, and that can be remedied with a Pentax external flash which has the focus assist lamp. Really it has been only in unfairly low light conditions where focus has failed me (dimly lit indoor displays viewed from a moving cart - like some of the dimmest portions of rides in Disney World). If you are bent on live view that is not here either, but realize live view as implemented on DSLRs has many limitations anyway. The viewfinder on the K200D is very good, BTW, and it is a better tool than live view - with the exception perhaps of the occasional shot with the camera held far away from your face, perhaps shooting over a crowd.

Parting comments: if you have other Pentax K mount lenses they should work here (I do not have any, unfortunately), and if you have the older screw mount M42 lenses there are K mount adapters available to make them work too. So unlike the Canon FD glass cluttering my closet, your old Pentax lenses are still much more than paper weights.

If you are considering a DSLR I highly recommend it.

i have had this camera for a few months now. i think its fantastic for the price. the image stabilization works well - i regularly shoot at 1/15. the camera feels very substantial - much more so than the equivalent canon and nikon pieces. the kit lens is very good. the flash is very powerful. i loved shooting RAW for the first time and am totally taken away by its potential - i am never going to shoot with a camera without RAW again! i have had no issues with color and such - although i have heard professional reviews that have complained about it.

some problems that i saw - the fps rate is really low and seems lower than the specified 2.8. Shooting 3 shots in auto-bracket mode seems to take forever. the software for converting RAW is not that great. i had also bought a remote control from some asian site - and didn't have much success using it - although that likely the remote's fault and not the camera.

I've owned many digital cameras- the epson 1 MP, kodak dc290 2MP, minolta dimage 7 5MP, canon powershot S3 6MP, and now the pentax K200D.

I love this camera, and I enjoy taking pictures with it. Its a great dSLR and I purchased it mostly because of the value pentax offers for the price(especially the built in shake reduction).

Cons:
-I am annoyed that there is not a dedicated button for the changing the shooting mode(single, continuous, timer, remote control, auto bracketing). Everytime I want to use the remote, or the self timer, I have to press the function button, then navigate the menus. It isn't a big deal, but it adds a second or two to something that should take only 2 seconds to begin with.
-this camera does not have an intervalometer. I was used to taking time lapse photographs with my previous 2 cameras, and I was surprised that this camera does not have this function. I imagine that an intervalometer can be implemented by software very easily, so I assume that it was left out so that more advanced photographers would pay more for the K20D.

Pros:
-The shake reduction really works very well. I've taken 1 second test shots handheld and the blur was reduced dramatically. The shake stabilization does however emit a high frequency sound compared to the optical stabilization systems used by canon.
-The build quality of this camera is top rate. Most people don't appreciate build quality these days, but if you just pick this thing up and handle it, you'll realize that it is built to last. Modern electronics usually go obsolete before anyone notices the build quality, but pentax took the bet that some people do notice a difference. It helps me have a peace of mind to know that the camera is splash proof and dust proof.

Photokina 2008 has come and gone. Nikon and canon both have released dSLRs with video capability. I bought my camera in june 2008, and now with the current camera marketin october 2008, I would still have chosen the K200d for the price. I enjoyed the high quality video capabilities of my canon powershot S3 and I hope that when I replace my dSLR in about 5-10 years, pentax will have a competitive dSLR with 1080P video capability. If price wasn't an issue, I would get the canon 5D mark II with 1080P video, but since money is an issue, I am very very happy with the K200D.

For anyone with a budget large enough to buy the K200D or K20D dSLR with a few lenses, the unanimous advice I've found online was to purchase a cheaper dSLR with higher quality lenses. Lenses will maintain their value over a long period of time because lens technology does not advance as fast as electronics technology. Some pentax lenses like the 31mm f1.8 prime is considered by many as THE best autofocus lens ever made. If you want another reason to go for pentax, that would be it- The best pentax prime lenses are also the best lenses that money can buy.

.....whatever needs to be said has already been said by the 68 odd reviewers before me. :-) I just came here to give it the 5 stars it deserves.

I bought my Pentax K200d through Amazon at the end of July 08, and recently returned from a 47 day trip to the great American West. I took nearly 2,600 photos under a wide variety of conditions: dust, rain, surf, museums, near freezing mountain camping, bright sun and twilight. I am still on my second set of lithium batteries. The original batteries that came with the camera were good for over 1400 exposures (with very little flash usage). The results are amazing with superb color saturation and definition. And the camera is tough, much tougher than I expected. It feels good to hold.

I am principally familiar with less expensive Nikon DSLRs, the D40, D50, D60 and D70. The Pentax is far above these fine cameras. I am not talking about the K20d, which I understand is even more remarkable. At under $600 including a quality 18-55 kit lens, it is, to say the least, a bargain compared to other offerings in a very competitive field.

I have been slow to break away from the world of 35mm. However, digital has more than caught up in terms of image quality, and it has surpassed film in terms of convenience and cost. With that in mind, I set aside my Nikon FM2 and lenses and after considerable soul searching, turned to Pentax. In 1975, I had owned a screw mount body and later a Pentax ME, which I loved but lost to a camera snatcher. In the `80s, I turned to Nikon, and still believe that, overall, they provide excellent products. So I have a hand full of Pentax K and Nikon A1 lenses, which I hoped to be able to use.

I was considering an upgrade to a Nikon D80, and checked it out. The D80 was a fine camera back in 2006, but it seems a bit dated now. The Pentax K200d feels better in my hands, much better. The Pentax has both shake reduction in the body and a dust management system, both of which are lacking in the Nikon, and Pentax offers some marvelous new prime lenses, including a 50mm f1.4, made for dslr bodies. My old Pentax K-mount lenses work wonderfully well and provide and inexpensive alternative. [In the K200, you just have to go to Custom Menu, item 23 to enable the older lenses.] After some initial experimentation, however, I stuck mostly with the 18-55 kit lens, quick, versatile and also dust and weather resistant. Moreover, with the shake reduction, I have been able to hand hold with good results at 1/15th of a second or even less depending on the focal length. Perhaps soon I will add the 50-200, or a nice prime lens.

You can't go wrong with this camera.

I've researched almost all beginner/advanced DSLRs on the market, preparing the move from digital compacts to DSLR (I'm familiar with film SLRs however).
Anyway, exhausted from the fact that the perfect DSLR still has not been produced (every single model has something really bad about it: Canon 450D's grip and build quality, Olympus E-520's tiny viewfinder, Nikon D60's very basic metering, and none of these models has a live view implementation that would really make me use it), I decided to go for Pentax which has good performance on the above issues. Looking initially into the K20D, I decided to get the cheaper body of the K200D and invest in better lenses instead. The K200D felt very good in my hands, and its large and bright viewfinder is the best in its class. The availability of high quality and still affordable lenses with shake reduction built into the camera body was also a deal maker. Amazon and Adorama delivered in 2 days as promised.
A couple of weeks after purchase I have a collection of some very nice shots, but still I'm a bit disappointed. Autofocus is unpredictable: sometimes the camera shoots lightning fast, even in burst mode, at other times is struggles to focus with no apparent reason, even with the prime 50mm f1,4 and the new 17-70 f4 zoom. This means that I miss some nice shots while the camera is focussing. When the camera finally does take a shot, I'd say 1 out of 3 shots is out of focus. I end up taking lots of photos hoping one of them will be right.
TO be fair, when the K200D gets the focussing right, the results are very good. Colors are very natural, the exposure is always spot-on, and wireless flash (got the 360FGZ) works very well, too. The viewfinder is wonderful to work with.
All in all, I'm not sure what to expect for this price. The K200D's speed is unstable compared to all other cameras I've used (digital and film). Too bad, but perhaps I'm just expeting too much.

I recently purchased the Pentax K200D with the 18-55mm lens after much comparison of all the popular entry level dSLRs. I chose the Pentax based on actually "feeling" the camera at a local camera store. It was comfortable and feels very well built. I used the camera on a recent trip to the Smoky Mountains and took many picts in automatic with the bracketing mode turned on. The pictures were fantastic. I would recommend this camera to anyone wanting to make the leap from "point and shoot" to dSLRs and wants a bit more than most entry level cameras and the weather resistent well built camera body. This camera really met all my expectations and then some.

I've had the K200D for about two weeks now and have no regrets. This is the best camera out there for the money. If you have any interest at all in learning to take better pictures this camera will be ready as you learn more, but it's also good for the true beginner with lots of auto modes to help you.
I think the things that make this better than the competition are 1) shake reduction in the body. When you start buying lenses you don't have to keep paying for that feature in every single lens (nikon VR?) 2)very durable body construction and weather/dust sealed. Any DA lenses you attach are as well. This is only available in cameras for the pros normally. 3)all pentax lenses for the last 3 or 4 decades can be used, some older manual ones need a $10 adapter--but you can buy tons of used awesome old lenses on ebay for very cheap. 4)this kit lens is the best kit lens out there. I've read alot of reviews and all the experts agree this is the best. It was made for the camera that is one step up from this model--but it's included with the K200D as well. 5)Pentax has an awesome PRIME lens for under $200 (amazon) that everyone raves about. I got it and I agree. FA 50mm F1.4 Get it. You won't be sorry. 5)the RAW button on the side is quite a nice perk. You can program it to suit your needs and it saves you from going into menus to make changes on the fly.6)Takes great pictures--gorgeous colors--makes me look good!7) the menus are clear and easy to understand. There are even some interesting ways to edit your photos right on the camera. I also like the HDR feature which gives more detail in the shadows than would normally be picked up. Thats alot of bells and whistles for an "entry level" DSLR.

Pentax K200D 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera with Shake Reduction (Body Only)
Let me add to the positive reviews for this camera, and please realize I am a picture taker, not a commercial Pro, so my viewpoint may differ a bit. I have had Pentax cameras since the sixties in one form or another. I have also had Canons, and Nikons. This is not to put down any of them, I just think Pentax stands side by side with the best of them.
This model, K200d< will make most anyone very happy with the results. If you do your part, it will do it's part. If the default settings for "vividness-sharpness-contrast-etc) aren't to your liking they can easily be changed. ISO from 100-1600 are very useable. Even at 1600 the noise is minimal, not like most "point and shoots" where anything above 200 shows noticable to severe static. (that is one of the biggest advantages of a DSLR--you can shoot in light that would stop you otherwise) The shake reduction may not be the miracle that Pentax claims, but it is a great tool and will save some otherwise lost/blurred shots. Just don't expect to use a 400mm lens at dusk, handheld, unless you are a statue.
This model has been criticized for having to use the menus instead of a readily available dedicated wheel, or button. True, The K20 is nicer in that way, with the extra control wheel, and such. BUT, most of us will find our favorite settings in the menus and leave them pretty much alone. If you are using AV or TV modes, it isn't difficult to use a finger, and your thumb at the same time, unless you fall down a lot while trying to walk and chew gum at the same time. This is something a pro would use all the time, so it is a THING to them, but not a biggie for the average guy/gal, at least it has been a big 0 in the "pita" category for me.
You can also readjust your shots in the camera, to a degree. Or shoot RAW and you can really readjust shots. Some claim you need to shoot RAW to get nice resolution, or colors. I shoot jpeg 90% of the time, and my shots (if I do my part) are very colorful, and resolution is not a problem. If I were shooting a wedding, I will use RAW as a precaution, but have not found it necessary. If you prefer RAW, then by all means it is there for you. Some say Pentax always tends to under expose. Well, they do, but you can lighten up an image if need be to correct it, many Nikon shots get blown out by bright colors, and that is hard to impossible to fix. Both cameras (and canon-panasonic-sony-etc) also let you + or - the compensation to fix whatever you see as a problem, so if you think it underexposes set it +1, and try that. If it over exposes try -1 and try that until you are where you want to be. In short this will do just about anything you need to do. You can go AUTO, and be very happy once you set it up, or you can be as creative as you can be. The K20 offers a few helpful things to the Pro, but not much useable for the general population. The extra MP's aren't needed for general pictures or most any pictures. The only thing I really wish the K200d had is a "light up" lcd on the top of the camera, I find that would be beneficial to me. The K20 has it, but at another 500 bucks or thereabouts. I'll suffer through. Until I win the lottery, this is my baby, and I love her. As Mom always said "try it, you'll like it"
I did get the battery grip for it. It gives you more to grip, thought this camera is quite comfortable to my hand.Also it has an EV lock, and shutter button on the ends for ease of use in different positions.
Battery life with rechargeables, and lithium is great. Shoot all day, with flash, and screen under most situations. The grip will hold four more AA's to double the life. That is another thing I like, some don't. I like the AA battery power. They are easy to get in an emergency. Dedicated batteries are nice, but try to find one for your camera in a town with no camera shop. Even then a camera shop with Pentax cameras. Pentax, the inventors of so many firsts, and I think the one company that likes photography above gadgets, not that they can't make a gadget. My friend has Nikons, and he does some really nice work with them, but he spent big bucks on lenses,(the lens is the secret, not the camera as far a clarity goes) where I use kit lenses, and many of my old Takumars-M-A lenses, and screw m42s. You can use them all, even Ricoh has mounts for Pentax.(and some Sears) Just remember to take out the Ricoh locking pin (easy with a small screwdriver) or the lens will get stuck on your camera. Dan

A funny thing happened on the golf course, I left my Kodak camera in a cup holder, my son-in-law hit the gas while I was out shagging a ball. Camera fell and the lens popped off and fell into the grass somewhere in the 15th fairway!

Oh well, time for a new camera!

Know that a trip was coming up (Holy Land Tour) I decided to ask my wife for a really nice camera. At first I was looking very hard at the Nikon D-60 and also an Olympus. But then I happened upon the customer feedback for the Pentax K-200. This with the fact I had a Pentax 70-200MM zoom lens orphaned to me years ago, sold me on this camera.

I took the plunge and could not be happier!

This camera rocks! I'm still learning it, but even taking auto-auto pictures gives you superb pictures!

Another thing that sold me is the weather proofing features that the others did NOT have. Trekking around the dead sea and other dusty areas and having my camera ruined just isn't going to cut it!

While this camera is a tad heavier than the Nikon, it's not unbearable by any means.

Lastly, Pentax has been making cameras for decades and decades. You've got a solid brand and reputation backing your purchase up.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and Blessed Merry Christmas to all!

This camera has a great feel. It has tons of features and most importantly, it's super easy to take great pictures. This camera is a great purchase in comparison to the big camera names. You'll get way more bang for your buck by purchasing this Pentax rather than some other camera. In short, there is no way anyone that pays the $500-$600 for this camera will be disappointed!!

I've been using this camera for several months now for a color photography course at my school. I very much enjoy using it as it feels sturdy and fits perfectly in my hands. The only real limitation that I've had with the camera is the poor shooting speed. It wouldn't stop me from buying it over the competition, but it does encourage me to upgrade to a Nikon D90/Canon 40D whenever I get the chance to.

I shoot mostly RAW files because of how well you can edit them when compared with the default jpegs. You can get some really nice shots/detail with them. I do use the RAW+ featuer so that I can quickly and easily view my photos on my computer and edit out the unuseable pictures.

I have some long-lasting Kodak rechargeable batteries and they last more than long enough for me to use it for a day. I have the 18-250mm lens kit and while its pretty nice, I don't use it much beyond 125 or so. I do have the battery grip as well which is very useful to have.

I've gotten some really nice shots with the camera over the semester and it's very nice for the price. I'd defiantly recommend it to anyone whose looking for a beginner SLR and does not mind the low burst rate.

This camera is an amazing camera. Very customizable. The ability to switch between RAW and JPEG with a single button push is a time saver. I have only one VERY minor gripe--that the buffer for continues shooting is limited to 4 frames when shooting at the 2.8 fps, regardless if you are shooting RAW or JPEG.

The Image Quality is excellent, especially when shooting RAW.

The camera is great for people just getting into SLR photography. There are plenty of Auto picture modes to help you along until you are more comfortable taking advantage of the more in-depth control functions.

Two important factors influencing my decision to purchase this camera over other brands is first: weather and dust sealing. I live in the pacific northwest and spend a great deal of time outdoors so this is a must. You simply cannot get weather sealing in other brands of DSLRs until you spend around $1000+. Second, This camera is compatible with all of my old manual focus lenses. That means I don't need to spend MORE money replacing all of my old Pentax lenses, many of which have outstanding image quality. Just because a lens was made 20+ years ago doesn't mean it isn't any good. This is much more convenient and economical than other brands that change their lens mounts every five years or so. Because this camera has in-body shake reduction (something that Canon and Nikon DO NOT have) ALL of my old Pentax lenses can take advantage of this feature. Couple all of this with wireless flash sync and the host of many other things this camera can do and it's an unbeatable bargain.

I'm glad I purchased this camera. I HIGHLY recommend it over any other brands.

I'm an amateur photographer and I've always used point and shoots until I decided to drop some money into a nice DSLR. I did a lot of research and thought I found a Nikon that I wanted until I visited a new camera store in my area. The clerk there introduced me to he K200D. I didn't believe in this camera I never heard of but I went home and compared it to the rest. The K200D has everything I wanted and then some. The main sell point for me was the fact that in camera lab testing, the K200D came out sharper than a Nikon, Canon, or Olympus cameras is was up against. I decided that this is the camera I wanted.

After the purchase, I've loved everything about it. I am very satisfied. The ONLY problem I have with it is the shutter is loud. If your trying to shoot a wedding or an event with a person speaking, the shutter is so obnoxiously loud that you might as well yell *CLICK* every time you compose a shot. (watch reviews on you tube and you can hear it)

Overall, I am very impressed with it's picture quality, build quality, and it's features. The K200D is the perfect camera for a starter and semi-pro photographer. Also, a small bonus (another win for me) is you can say you don't have the same Nikon or Canon camera that almost EVERYONE else has.

While I am quite happy with the ease of use, great price, high quality photos and overall layout of the camera, I was surprised to find out that you can not view the scene through the LCD display when taking a photo. You have to use the standard view finder to view and then after taking the photo you can then see your recent or all photos. It is a great camera and I'll just have to put up with it.

Just what the doctor ordered. I have several lens left over from the 35 mm days. I used Pentax cameras then and can now use the the lens again. So far I am well pleased. Still learning digital against film.

The Pentax K200D is a pleasure to use. I purchased it for my wife, who has not been happy with the point-and-shoot digital cameras we've been using for the past few years. She cut her photographic teeth on a Pentax SLR many years ago and has missed using it.

This camera has brought my wife back to photography in a big way. The feel of it, the comfortable and sensible controls, and the accuracy and stability of the shots has her (and me!) taking shots more frequently. The images are great, with lots of detail and depth. When we want to zoom in for sports shots, we swap out the lens that came with the kit for an old zoom lens that's more than 20 years old. That compatibility ensures we keep the value of our old gear while we get fantastic photographs.

For old-school photographers like my wife and me, this DSLR is a perfect fit.

I love this camera. I bought it from Amazon with the kit lens, and I bought a used lens from B&H. The great thing about Pentax is that they put image stabilization into the body instead of the lens, so I can find inexpensive used lens from people who are abandoning their 35mm cameras. Weather sealing and rugged construction make it great for hiking, backpacking and my kayaking trips. The Pentax might not be the most popular brand, but the cameras are the best bang for the buck.

Every picture I took, in all level of light, outside, inside, flash, snow scene, and in every camera mode possible (14 modes?) was perfect on the camera monitor but when loaded onto my computer was very dark.

My lenses are: SMC Pentax-A, 1:1.4 50 mm and SMC Pentax Zoom, 1.4, 45mm to 125mm.

Both are fine on my Pentax MX film camera, I've used them for years.
Are my lenses not compatible with the K200D?

Thank you

Rosendo Lomas, Sanford, NC, [...]

There is no exceptional about the Nikon or Cannon of the same genre, moreover the pentax offers nice features for the bucks paid. The same competitor models are pricey comapred to k200d. The shutter speed is good, sensitivity priority mode is good, full auto feature rocks. The image stabiliazation on body is very nice, it does work nice. May be the stabilization on lens would be more accurate. However, for the kind of price paid on lens with image stabilzation on nikon or cannon, I 100% prefer to have the pentax. It's a really a nice product, and i hope nobdoy ever dissapointed.

After dabbling over tens of different camera models, ranging from Nikon to Canon and Olympus, I settled for the Pentax with much conviction. I was drawn towards many of the useful features that Pentax has put into the K200D including: Shake Reduction, Weatherproof Body, Robust Build Quality, use of AA batteries for power, and Backwards compatibility with almost all Pentax lenses since the 70s.
One drawback was the effectiveness of Shake Reduction. While it helps for indoor, no-flash photos, it still doesn't compensate for much of the blur and motion. But then, you could still always use a good tripod to fix that.
A very nice camera that helps beginning or expert photographers grow into their techniques.

Since I have had 3 Pentax film cameras over the years (K1000, Me Super, and the Super Program), I had an investment in the K-mount lenses for them. This DSLR was the next logical step up for me, and I am very happy with this camera. I have only had it for about a month, and I am still learning everything that this camera is capable of doing, but what I have learned and experimented with so far has been very good. My old lenses work well with it (with manual focus of course). It has produced some great pictures so far. It seems the marketing trend now-a-days is go with either Nikon or Canon, and I am sure they have very good DSLRs too, but I am a loyal Pentaxian that is happy with this choice.

I have been using an Olympus 550UZ for the past year and decided to upgrade to a SLR. Researched several, especially Nikon and Canon Rebel Xi types. But when I went to my local camera store, the very experienced salesman suggested the Pentax K200D. When I mentioned that Nikon and Canon seem to be the preferred models, he said, "Ford and Chevy sell more cars than Mercedes, but are you going to buy based on high volume or quality?" So, after well over an hour of looking at the first two brands we looked at the Pentax, and I was soon sold.
First I need to tell you what I don't like about the Pentax compared to my Olympus: the loss in zoom power. The 550UZ had an 18X capability, the highest at the time on a high-end point and shoot. While I bought a used zoom for the Pentax, I would have to spend considerably more to get where the Olympus got me. But I can live with this for now.
As to the Pentax:
1) more metal than the Canon/Nikon, making lens to body contact more secure and solid; less plastic to break while hiking, etc. and which gives you that "cheap" feel due to lack of heft
2) uses all older Pentax lenses which saves you money if you have these
3) while some consider the lack of live view a drawback (and I have this on the Olympus and consider it a nice feature), I find the Pentax forces me to pay closer attention to what I'm doing in both composition and focusing. I can still make adjustments with the next pic if reviewing the one I just took shows a problem, but I'm finding fewer problems with the increase in the care I take in making each photo.
4) the price! Got more bang for the buck with this camera than the others could provide, and other reviews here have well covered the features of this camera that you'd have to spend alot of money for in higher end brands.
5) everything about this camera spells out "pro." It feels like a serious camera and also performs like one. Picture quality is excellent. While the Olympus has many features of an SLR (manual focus, adjustments for aperture, ISO, f/stop, etc.), I find I use these features more on the Pentax, and they are easier to use, understand, and keep track of what you are doing. You avoid falling into the "auto" mode rut - why spend hundreds of dollars for an "automatic" camera when you can take much better photos setting things yourself?
I could go on, but I think you get the message. The Pentax K200D was a very surprising and pleasant find, and I have no regrets in purchasing it.

The Pentax K200D takes wonderful photo's and the service from Amazon was great.

We are very happy with this purchase!

I am very happy with my purchase. I researched cameras for about a month and finally decided on the K200D. I am very happy with my decision and cannot imagine a better product for the price i paid. I highly recommend this camera to any looking to upgrade from a point and shoot to an intermediate to experienced photographer. Of course it doesnt have all of the feature of high end pro cameras, but it does have a lot more than you'd expect from an entry level DSLR. Especially when compared to the offerings from Nikon (D40-D60) and Canon (XTi-XS).

This is my first DSLR, so I'm by no means a dedicated Pentax enthusiast as of yet. In fact, I may switch brands in the future if necesarry, but as of right now, I am definitely content with my purchase and would have no problem recommending Pentax products.

I love this camera! I bought received it for christmas after many hours research comparing it to the Canon Rebel XSi, Nikon D60, Olympus E-520 and the Pentax K2000. After a month and several hundred shots I am more than sure that I made the right choice. This camera offers so many great features and is much better than the Pentax K2000 which basically has a bunch of dumbed down features such as the reduction in the number of AF points. The battery life is great too, the Energizer Lithium batteries last an incredibly long time, I'm still on my first set that they provided. I highly recommend this camera.

I bought a used one from Amazon Warehouse. I expected it to have some blemishes. There were none. It is like new and although I have only taken a few indoor shots, I am very impressed. I uploaded some of the pictures to my pc and you can zoom in on our cat so close you can almost count the hair in his ear. Although I am not a camera expert, I do know about resolution as I work with Photoshop and InDesign on a daily basis putting together a Motorcycle magazine. Folks this thing is great and I have not even taken any raw files yet.

If you do read the book you will miss allot of great features.Takes great pictures and I can use all my old Pentax K mount lenses and save allot of money on new lenses.I took over 200 pictures and I'm still on the same rechargeable batteries without charging them yet.

I marked this item for purchase but apparently the month too long that I waited caused the price to rise 15%? Wow - with stores going out of business left and right, maybe we should be rethinking using Amazon who can randomly slap a 15% increase onto a product in a matter of weeks.

I am just getting to know this camera. So far the results have been impressive. Pentax had the best price with features esp. weatherproofing and compatibility with tons of lenses. I haven't gotten deep into the advanced capabilities of the camera but look forward to discovering more!

I only give four stars because I have not yet printed any images.

I bought one K200 for myself and after 6 months - one more as a present. Both work just like Swiss watches. K200 has a tough solid weather-resistant body which feels well in hands. Traditionally, Pentax offers features normally met only in higher-class cameras of other vendors. Just read [...] article - that's all true :)
Also, I personally consider using AA batteries as an advantage when traveling in the backwoods.
Cons - relatively poor choice of lenses. Though, it's not so important for amateurs .... a lot of folks use kit or horrible ones like 18-250mm (hello, distortions) :)

I have the Pentax K1000 film and made the move to this Pentax DSLR. My Sigma lenses that I have had for several years work perfectly with this camera! The quality of pictures is amazing. The only feature I wish it had is the on-board flash sync option of rear-curtain. Otherwise, I am happy with all of its features!

I just couldn't believe that a Pentax camera could be this bad and waited far too long to complain. I have wasted far too much time trying to get exposures right only to find that the pictures are way too underexposed at all the different settings attempted. I periodically get a decent picture if I crank up the ISO to a ridiculouly high 1600 for an average sunny day or use a 5.6 and a very slow shutter speed. So, what am I going to do? At this late date, buy a Nikon or a Canon and forget this disaster ever happened.

I had two Pentax film SLR's for over twenty years, and then came compact digital cameras. I was waiting for a reasonably priced DSLR to move up to. The Pentax K200D fit the bill.

I am able to use my three film SLR Pentax lenses on this camera - no other manufacturer supports their film lenses on their DSLR (except for the very expensive full-frame cameras).

The features are great and plentiful - too many to mention. And I do not miss the "live view" capability at all (framing your shot on the lcd display), as I am very happy and comfortable using the viewfinder to frame my shots and see the camera's settings.

There is some controversy around loss of detail using the built-in JPEG engine which is wonderfully reviewed at [...] I confirmed this loss of detail shooting my dog's hair. As the review points out, if you want all the detail, shoot in RAW and be happy. I also set the camera to use use the Normal setting and contrast/hue/sharpness at 0.

I have owned this camera for over four months now, shooting a couple of thousand pictures, indoors and out, landscapes and portraits, parties, the moon and snapshots. I use Picasa for managing my photos (it supports Pentax RAW). I used auto-bracketing, consecutive exposures, shutter priority, aperture priority, ISO priority, manual and automatic. This camera is a blast to hold and to use.

Bottom line, for a little more than $500, you get a camera that will make any amateur photographer happy. For that price point, I think this is the only camera worth considering.

BUY this cam. I bought it, went to Europe, and inturn had tremendous pics! The camera is the best deal of any SLR because they don't have to advertise like Nikon and Cannon.

I needed to change my old Pentax K100D camera because I messed up the optics on it.. Therefore, while shopping for a new camera, my next choice was also a Pentax, due to my previous great experience with this brand, and I also wanted to use the lenses I already owned. The Pentax K200d camera is so far very good; I especially like the large LCD, the 10.2 MP sensor, the clarity of the pictures, and its good price.

In the last year, twice the auto focus has completely failed to work. I'm currently ready to send the camera off to Pentax for warranty repair, for the second time for the same problem. When I first purchased the camera, the auto focus sporadically stopped working for brief moments with the symptoms progressively worse over time and eventually (auto focus) stopped working all together. I sent the camera off for warranty repair. Upon receiving the camera back, the auto focus symptoms immediately started to happen again and then again (auto focus) died.

The colors are pleasantly inaccurate -- that's correct, the colors are off but with a nice interpretation that tend to skew on the saturated side. That's the charm of the K200d I learned to like. Also, unless you are shooting in ideal lighting the pictures are on the underexposed side - not much of an issue since I shoot in RAW.

I'm thoroughly impressed with the customer service department; I've spoken to them over the phone and through the "live chat" many times. Each time, I've received a conclusion and each time the representatives are knowledgeable and friendly.

When the camera works, I love it. It takes great pictures and it's a joy to use with a solid build and small footprint. I own the 10-17mm, 21mm and 40mm lenses (all DA) -- the unusual lens lineup is the main reason for my purchase. My favorite setup: couple the K200d with the 40mm lens and you have a setup that doesn't attract too much attention in public with decent image quality.

I started out with a K100D and when the K10D came out, I was immediately green with envy. A few years later, the K200D came out, it was competitively priced and had most of the great K10D features. I cut my losses and traded the K100D in for the K200D. I am very pleased with it. The reasons for the trade were for the following features:
+ Remote flash: I've always wanted this feature that Nikon users take for granted, it doesn't work as great and sometimes doesn't detect the controlling flash. But when within range and everything, it works and am very happy to finally have it.

+ Weather seals: sure, it's not bullet proof and doesn't help the lenses at all. But I used to not take my camera out when weather conditions were not fair. The same goes for my friends with canons and nikons. With the K200D, I have no fears of taking it out and actually USING it. I know, it's totally a psychological thing, but the peace of mind is still a feature to me.

+ Sensor cleaner: The anti shake feature is also used to shake off the dust in the K200D, it doesn't really work, I never notice it shaking anything off. But I also set it to shake upon power up. I also have a Giottos rocket blower, the combination seems to keep the K200D relatively dust free. Much more so than my K100D. I know it's not just the weather seals because I know the dust is getting in when I change lenses.

+ Better WB & PRIME engine: the color control is much better in the K200D, an immense improvement and main reason for the upgrade.

+ Shoots in DNG format: I am no longer tied to Pentax's photolab SW. I can now use photoshop without any plugins or upgrades. Very good feature.

The things I miss on the K100D:

- Battery power seems more finicky on the K200D, I had to switch to Eneloops, which allows me to get 1000+ images per charge. AMAZING, but sad that it only performs with Eneloops.

- The images look under exposed and overly contrasted. These features can be offset easily, but it does take some time to get used to and learn to work around. Once you learn its behavior, it is very predictable and linear.

- My external flash no longer gets perfect exposure every time in any condition. For some reason, the K200D works terribly with the FGZ540. It is very easy to under or over expose an image. I am not sure if this is because I shoot in ISO100 vs K100D's ISO200. But the end result is I can no longer turn on the FGZ and just shoot. I have to manually set the flash zoom. The flash exposure setting doesn't seem to do anything either. I've gone on forums to see if I have a defective K200D, but in the end, I've moved on and have accepted the issue.

I am very very happy with the K200D, as the DSLR market gets more and more competitive, I still find the K200D completely usable for all my needs. If you want a DSLR that just works out of the box, you should stick with canons and nikons. Pentax is really for the dedicated and people with a pentax lens collection. Feature for feature, pentax always loses to canons and nikons, but it is still more than enough for anyone who is serious about photography. Especially if you've done film photography, I feel that Pentax replicates the film camera experience better than all other brands. Its simplicity and attention to detail gives it that classic feeling. While other brands focus on speed, specs and little functions that make it completely and totally feel... digital. I do envy those features some times. When I see my friends shoot in 800 or 1600ISO with no noise at all, I am jealous. But then, you really can't do that with film either. So I've come to terms with Pentax's short comings. I hope Pentax will turn things around with their full frame DSLRs.

Firstly, I wanted to give it 3.5 stars, not 4.
I have mentioned below the main camera features, it's rating and a bgjustification. These are the most important points to be considered with respect to the other cameras in competition (Canon XSi and Nikon D60).

1.Weather proof body(4/5):Excellent feature for the price. But, it is of no use without a weather-ressistant lens. But Pentax has recently (May 2009) released 2 weather ressistant lenses (18-55 and 50-200mm) under $250 each. These lenses were not available when I purchased the camera.

2.Processing speed (1/5): Yes!! None of the reviews mentioned this when I bought it(I got screwed!). Try clicking a pic with the shutter open for 6 seconds. The Pentax K200D takes about 7 seconds to process the image and store it in the card (the time taken to store the image is negligible, also considering my high speed Sandisk Ultra card). I tried clicking more snaps with 10, 15 and 30 seconds. The time taken by the camera to process them is 11, 16 and 30 seconds. Until the camera processes the image, you have to wait and cannot click any more pictures.
I compared it with my friend's Canon Rebel XSi and the difference was very evident. The Canon took less than half time to process the pictures.

This gets really annoying while capturing night scenes, ligtnings, etc.

3. Image stabilization (4/5): The Pentax shifts it's sensor to compensate for the shake, unlike Canon and Nikon (they shift the lens elements). Since the shake reduction is in the body, any kind of lens (cheap ones, old ones, etc.) can be attached to the camera body and IS can be acheived. Hence, lenses are cheaper for the Pentax. Whereas in Canon and Nikon, the IS (or VR=Vibration Reduction as Nikon calls it)lenses are costly. But the quality of IS is a little better in Canon (no idea about Nikon).

4. Picture quality (4/5): The picture quality is just like any other camera. The contrast is on the higher end and I like it that way. It makes the pictures ready for printing. I went out with my friend who had a Canon XSi. My pictures looked far better than his when we compared them. The Canon pictures looked dull because they are more natural and the contrast is well balanced. The Canon pictures are a bit (about 10%) sharper than the Pentax.

Overall, no regrets with the picture quality. It is almost "awesome"!


5. Lens compatibility (5/5): If you are planning to use a varitey of lenses, then you are in luck! The K200D is compatible with every single Pentax lens produced till date (some older lenses require an additional mount) Also, the lenses are cheaper compared to Canon and Nikon. There are also third party manufacturers like Sigma and Tamron.

6. Other features: There is no need to review the other features like RAW, LCD, Menu, Modes, etc. since they are pretty much the same in all the cameras.
Although, please note that this camera does not come with "live view", i.e., the LCD does not show the image. You need to use the viewfinder to see what you are capturing.
It also feels like a pro camera, but with the feel comes the weight.It has a small LCD display on the top of the body which are usually present in pro and semi-pro cams. But this LCD cannot be used in situations with low lights since there is no light in the LCD.


CONCLUSION: I would recommend this camera if above features with 4 or more points are very important for the photographer (Weather resistant, lens compatibility, cheap lenses and ready to print pics). The worst part of the camera is the processing speed and the fact that it lacks "live view". I can live without the live view, but I found it slow. Overall, I am extremely happy with the output (pictures), just wish that it would be faster. Great camera!

I was a very active 35mm amateur many years ago and just sort of feel into the point and shoot mode. I decided to get back into trying some creative photography and a DSLR was the way to go but there are so many to choose from. Of course Canon and Nikon are the most popular so I read up on them but Pentax really kept rising to the top due to the fact all Pentax lenses work on all Pentax cameras with the exception of an adapter ring must be used on some, I really liked the idea of having that used market to shop from. Also as I read I found Pentax is tops in Europe and Asia and doesn't even advertise in America so that explained why I hadn't seen much on them. I really took my time and the K200D just seemed like the logical choice for me and I'm as pleased with it as I could possibly be. Oh yea, the shake reduction mechanism is in the camera body, not just the lens like the others so you get that great option with every lens you use. Do your research but, you can't go wrong with this one.