Pentax K-5

APS-C, 16.1 MP, 3"
Retailer
    Style
      Color
        You save

        Summary Pentax K-5

        Prices Price
        Body only
        $800
        With 18-55mm lens
        $1,549
        all K-5 prices
        Score Snapsort rank
        Within its price range
        #n/a of 4
        Among similar cameras
        #n/a of 6
        Specifications Key specs
        Sensor size
        Help APS-C 23.6x15.7mm
        Screen resolution
        Help 920k dots
        Megapixels
        Help 16.1 MP
        Movie format
        Help 1080p @ 25fps
        Screen size
        Help 3"
        Light sensitivity
        Help 12,800 ISO
        see all specifications
        Lenses Lenses
        Browse Pentax K-5 lenses at LensHero
        Pentax K-5Pentax K-5

        Replacement

        Pentax has replaced the K-5 with the K-5 IIs and K-5 II.

        Pentax K-5 IIs
        Pentax K-5 IIs announced September 2012
        GPS Has a GPS
        Low light performance Slightly lower noise at high ISO
        Battery life Longer battery life

        Compare the new Pentax K-5 IIs vs the K-5
        Pentax K-5 II
        Pentax K-5 II announced September 2012
        Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO
        Battery life Longer battery life
        Color depth Better color depth

        Compare the new Pentax K-5 II vs the K-5

        reviewsWhat are people saying about the K-5

        "Fast contrast detect Auto Focus in Live View"
        dpreview.com | talking about the camera's auto-focus
        "The Pentax K-5's compact, solid body, generally well thought-out ergonomics, comprehensive feature set and excellent image quality, in both still and movie modes make it one of the best APS-C DSLRs currently on the market."
        dpreview.com | talking about the camera's overall-performance
        "One of the best APS-C DSLRs in terms of high ISO image quality"
        dpreview.com | talking about the camera's iso-noise

        gallery

        Explore our gallery of 4 sample photos taken by the Pentax K-5.

        Videos

        Demonstration of the Pentax K5...

        Demonstration of the Pentax K5 weather sealing
        • Review
        • Pro
        • Weather sealed

        Pentax K-5 Review

        Pentax K-5 Review
        • Review
        • Pro
        • Image quality
        • Weather sealed

        A US Soldier demonstrates how ...

        A US Soldier demonstrates how well Pentax stands up to Sand and Weather
        • Tutorial
        • Shooting video
        • Photography

        Pros

        Report a correction

        The Pentax K-5 vs other recent entry-level DSLRs

        Dynamic range Wide dynamic range Help
        14.1 EV
        Continuous shooting Rapid fire Help
        7 fps
        External mic jack External mic jack Help
        Record higher quality audio with a microphone
        Viewfinder Doesn't use battery, see more detail Help
        Pentaprism
        Viewfinder coverage Above average viewfinder coverage Help
        100%
        Thickness Thin Help
        2.9"
        Viewfinder size Large viewfinder Help
        0.60x
        Weather sealed Weather sealed Help
        Shoot in extreme weather
        Shutter lag Short shutter lag Help
        104 ms shutter lag
        Size Quite small Help
        Prosumer size (131×97×73 mm)
        Built-in focus motor Built-in focus motor Help
        Autofocuses with more lenses
        Fastest shutter speed Fast shutter speed Help
        1/8000 of a second

        Cons

        Report a correction

        The Pentax K-5 vs other recent entry-level DSLRs

        Movie format Full HD Help
        1080p @ 25fps
        Screen size Below average sized screen Help
        3"
        Touch screen No touch screen Help
        More buttons
        Screen flips out Fixed screen Help
        Less flexible
        Cross type focus points Fewer cross-type focus points Help
        9
        Lens availability Slightly fewer lenses available Help
        113 lenses
        GPS No GPS Help
        Missing geo-tagging
        Lowest price Expensive Help
        $799.99
        Popularity Not so popular Help
        Among snapsort users
        Screen resolution Low resolution screen Help
        920k dots
        Supports 24p No 24p movies Help
        Missing that film look
        True resolution Lower true resolution Help
        16.1 MP
        Autofocus Manual focus only Help
        None
        Focus points Fewer focus points Help
        11
        Announced Old Help
        September 2010
        Light sensitivity (boost) Very low boost light sensitivity Help
        51,200 ISO
        Weight Heavy Help
        740 g

        dxomark

        DXOMark

        Appearance

        front photo of the Pentax K-5back photo of the Pentax K-5angle photo of the Pentax K-5

        Discussion

        Pentax K-5
        K-5
        Pentax

        Report a correction

        Showing 25 comments

        andrew (10:24 PM, May 22, 2012)
        This is the best Aps-c sensor camera you can buy! it is you know it Nikon fan boys! the Iso preformance is unreal!!! i was getting a d7000 but opted for this at the last second and now im glad i did it is one hell of a camera!! can do everything, very profesional yet smaller than usual! my buffer holds 28 raw files in 7fps burst! witch is better than a 5d! and there is the same choice of lens available just cause nikon makes more lens's than pentax doesnt mean noten sigma and tamoron are out there too people!! buying this camera and you will not be disapointed! :D
         
        m.Svitek (9:44 PM, March 20, 2012)
        Just buy a good SDXC card and use that... A 64GB one will write just as fast as the buffer; about an unlimited number of shots
         
        m.Svitek (9:41 PM, March 20, 2012)
        I personally own the k-5 and a d7000 and I actually enjoy the shooting freedom of the pentax much more. Don't let the lens availability mark turn you off the pentax! It covers just the same range as any F-mount lens setup... And costs much less (more prime lenses too)
         
        Aiveaivan (7:47 PM, February 08, 2012)
         im not a pro on camera but i like taking picture's im thinking which one i choice  k5 or d7000
         
        Andrew From Ireland (6:31 PM, February 08, 2012)
        Watch this video....... Nuff said!
        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MVESxMQuOw&feature=related

        I shall be buying this :D
         
        Chris J (0:43 AM, February 01, 2012)
        I've been using snapsort to help with decisions on purchases. The major problem with doing that is the use of "popularity" as a criterion of quality. Really? Why would I care how many people in a country in which I don't live have bought a particular camera. That is a totally subjective statistic. We cannot know why they did that. We should rely upon objective evaluatuons to guide us, not a herd mentality. Please, please, please remove popularity from the point scoring system. I presently have to do that manually and re-score the cameras on objective parameters. Objectively the Pentax K-5 kills every pro-sumer DSLR and most of the Pro DSLRs as well. A review of the Pentax 645D would be nice if I ever decide to go crazy and buy a camera instead of a car; I may as well have what is apparently the best pro DSLR over the second-best Nikon.
         
        Marco (10:20 AM, January 21, 2012)
         Some sites say 22 jpeg and 20 raw ...the delay between to continuous shooting sessions depend on how fast is your sd card (I think...)
         
        Andrew O'Hara (11:16 AM, January 20, 2012)
        Hi,

        I'm really interested in getting this but my worry is the high speed shooting and the buffer speed, as I will be mainly using it for fast sports. Like how many photos can you take in 7fps before she clogs up and once it does how long before I can shoot again? Is this even a good choice for sport photography?

        Thanks for any help, 
                                      Andrew - Ireland
         
        Mecloud (4:42 AM, November 11, 2011)
        I will go for Nikon or Canon. They have more complete range of lenses and accessories. 
         
        guest (11:05 PM, November 07, 2011)
        Uh, duh...  Why would anyone compare ISO of a $1200 APS camera against a $2k+ Full frame?
         
        Avatar for Paurush Praveen Paurush Praveen (6:20 PM, November 02, 2011)
        I am confused between Pentax K5 and Nikon D5100, Getting lenses at reasonable price for Pentax is difficult (I want one prime lens ~50mm and one multipurpose (18-135 or 200mm)). 
        For D5100 I have no such problem Which way should I choose. Photography is my hobby I am not a professional photographer.
         
        Avatar for RCB RCB (3:48 PM, August 29, 2011)
        Because they are carrying the water for Nikon
         
        pilotmandan (3:30 AM, August 25, 2011)
        megapixels dont play a very big role in slr cameras. I can take pictures on my Nikon D1 (2.3 megapixels) and blow up poster prints crystal clear. Its all about the glass!
         
        Avatar for Snapsort Snapsort (1:52 AM, June 24, 2011)
        Hi Naveen, yes I would recommend the K5 for that type of photography.


        Regarding investing in a new system: have you considered Nikon or Canon?  Given the # of lenses and bodies that they make and sell they would be the safest investment. That said, Pentax has been making lenses for a long time and I don't imagine they'll stop any time soon.

        By the way, have you seen our sister site http://lenshero.com, it lets you browse lenses by camera and style, for example Pentax K-5 lenses.
         
        Avatar for Naveen Venkataraman Naveen Venkataraman (10:01 PM, June 23, 2011)
        I have a Oly E510 with 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 and 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 kit lenses since 2007 and am considering the K5 as an upgrade option. I mainly shoot architecture, landscapes and indoor art galleries. Would you recommend the K5 for these uses?

        Secondly, I'd like to have your thoughts about investing in the Pentax system, especially given that Olympus has discontinued its DSLRs. I am concerned about investing in a new body and lens system only to have it end soon.
         
        Avatar for Snapsort Snapsort (2:10 AM, June 03, 2011)
        Its from Pentax's site, I think they say 740 with 50% flash, or 980 with no flash. http://www.pentaximaging.com/slr/K-5/
         
        Avatar for James McDonnell James McDonnell (4:51 AM, May 23, 2011)
        My Manual says it can get 980 Shots off a single charge.. Where is 740 shots from?
         
        Bees (1:35 AM, May 03, 2011)
        guys saying Canon or nikons has more lenses available, i ask of you ,how many lenses do enthusiast really need? do you need a pair of 12-24 , two pairs of say 18-200 zoom lens etc etc .now think again, do volumes of available lenses for sale impresses you ...or thoses volumes that one company has to offer really matter when some are even redundant and not what you need or what you want is the newest models?.add this to the fact that every lens they provide has additional cost to every IS/VR system built in into the lens.
        With Pentax SR shake reduction system built in the body, you can use every pentax lens produced without the additional cost of IS/VR built in the lenses . it even have backward compatibilty with 25+milllion available pentax lenses. what more can you ask?
        DXo sensor mark rating gave the highest rating versus available competetitor to K5.
        Dpreview gave the gold award to K5 over D7000 saying k5 is the Best APS-C DSLR in the market.
         
        GuernyFermin (9:40 AM, April 27, 2011)
        The Nikon D7000 has better image quality, better Handling,better everything.. i Have been in the business for so many years and Nikon just gave it all this time.

        Superb! Well-built and big time "Street Cred"

        check my facebook account.

        Gurney Fermin
         
        Kohza (9:56 PM, April 14, 2011)
        That's good, no? Quality over quantity.
         
        Guerney Fermin (3:29 AM, April 11, 2011)
        pentax K5 is not that accessible in terms of lenses and accessories. and i would rather be seen with a Nikon D7000 .
         
        Avatar for Snapsort Snapsort (4:37 PM, April 05, 2011)
        The K-5 is a pretty impressive camera, it might be worth waiting for!
         
        Lens (9:41 PM, March 26, 2011)
        I have the opportunity of buying a K-7 at a serious reduction (€ 750 coming from € 1050). Is that reduction worth the while to go for the K-7, or should I wait for the K-5 to drop in price somewhere the following months?
         
        Peter (0:05 AM, February 12, 2011)
        Beautiful camera from my dreams. Unfortunatelly I cannot afford it at this time I am waiting till summer and I hope it will be cheaper up to this time.
         
        Signosis (0:30 AM, February 01, 2011)
        Thanks for the quick reply.
        Having looked at the comparison I guess my question was answered with a resounding "yes".
        However the Alpha 700 was never over £1600, mine was £560 new two years ago.
        Thanks again.