Pentax KP

Only Canon, Nikon and Pentax still have dSLRs in their product catalogs, but although they’re still on the shelves of the retailers, I don’t know if any of those dSLRs is still being manufactured.

Pentax is committed to the dSLR architecture, and with the full frame K-1 Mk II, and no less than three cropped sensor models, the KF, the K-3 Mk III and the K-3 Monochrome, they have the youngest dSLR model range of the remaining big three (all four Pentax models were launched between 2018 and 2023).

Between the predecessor of the current KF (the K-70) and a then to come K-3 Mk III, Pentax thought there was room for an intermediate model, the KP, a technical evolution of the K-3 Mk II, but with a totally different design.

*Pentax KP (left) and K-5 (right).* *A very different ergonomic study* *(this KP is shown with the “small” removable grip).*

Launched in 2017 and retired in 2021, the KP begged to be different – from its Pentax siblings and from Canon & Nikon’ remaining dSLRs.

The KP was designed as a sort of mini K-1, with the aim of looking physically smaller than the K-3, but be more configurable and more solidly built than the entry level K-70. Its styling was reminiscent of the manual focus, non motorized cameras of the nineteen seventies, with a slim body and a shutter release button placed in the middle of the top plate.

Equipped with a newer generation 24 Mpix sensor, the KP retained the autofocus module of the “pro” K-3 Mk II. Like it, it could be fitted with an optional battery grip. It inherited the image processing engine of the K-1, and improved on its full frame brother with a more flexible configuration for its third control wheel.

Beyond the style, the KP’s main differentiation point with the K-70 and the K-3 Mk II was the ability for the photographer to choose between 3 sizes of hand grips.

The design of those interchangeable hand grips is somehow controversial. Professional reviewers like Chris Nichols of DPReview and Petapixel fame positively hated it. Among the Pentax photographers, some like it, some shoot with a KP in spite of it, and some remained true to the K-3 Mk II because of it.

*Trying to hold the KP firmly with one hand – a rather uncomfortable way to use this camera*

The small grip was supposed to be mounted on the KP when the photographer was shooting with small (and light) primes, the large grip (and the battery grip) when shooting with a long and heavy tele-lens or tele-zoom, and the medium one the rest of time.

In the American market, the camera was packaged with the three hand grips initially, but after a while Pentax only included the small grip in the base configuration, the large one being part of an extra cost bundle also including a battery grip, and the medium sized one being sold separately for $49.99. None of those grips is available now, and my KP will be stuck with its small grip for the time being.

*Pentax KP next to a Fujifilm X-T4 – counter-intuitively, the mirrorless camera is larger than the dSLR, and offers a significantly longer battery life.*

The Pentax KP is not the only camera with a retro-inspired, small grip design – look no further than the very successful Fujifilm X series, but what works very well on a X-100 or a X-T4 does not click on the KP.

First impressions – is the grip worth the buzz?

Pentax APS-C cameras tend to be small, and the KP looks even smaller than its siblings. But it’s not its compact size that strikes you the most when you bring the viewfinder of the camera to your eye for the first time, it’s its weight. It’s not really heavier than a Pentax K-5 or K-3 (all tip the scales at approximately 700 g), but its compact design and its small grip make its weight much more noticeable.

*Pentax K-5 – you can hold it with one hand with confidence*, *and even adjust some settings with the rear control wheel.*

On a K-5 or a K-3 (and on other dSLRs of more conventional design), the camera can be held firmly with the palm of the right hand and the three lower fingers, leaving the thumb and the index free to move and reach the different control wheels and commands. You can be confident that you won’t drop the camera while you’re moving around your subject, looking for the right angle.

If you try and hold the KP with one hand, you have to pinch the right side of the camera between your thumb and three of your remaining fingers (no room for the pinky). Even with a prime lens or a light zoom, we’re talking about two pounds of glass and metal here, that you will be afraid to drop if your fingers start releasing their grip (it’s not a coincidence that the previous owner of this camera had included a wrist strap in the package I received).

*How the KP has to be operated if equipped with the small grip – held firmly in the palm in the left hand, right hand thumb and index on the controls.*

With the small grip in place, the KP definitely requires a two-hand operation.

Solutions to the hand grip challenge

The design, the ergonomics and the small grip of the KP may work for you. Personally I would have liked the camera to be more conducive to one hand operations, and I believe that the slim design of the KP would have worked better if the camera had been one or two hundred grams lighter and its body just a bit taller.

The simplest way for me to address my “grip problem” would be to buy the OEM large grip (Pentax reference O-GP1672). Based on the input of other KP users, it should make “one hand operations” easier. If only I could locate one.

Pentax KP with the Battery Grip – the battery grip is designed to be paired with the large hand grip – but even with the small hand grip still in place, it makes the camera much more comfortable to hold.

The camera I bought came with the optional Pentax D-BG7 battery grip (but without the large hand grip, unfortunately). I’m not a fan of battery grips in general because they make the camera bulkier and often require to remove the battery door, but in the case of the KP, the battery door (and the OEM battery) remain in place, and the grip addresses two of the KP’s glaring issues – the battery life and the ergonomics, without much of a weight penalty (300g approx).

With the battery grip in place, the battery capacity of the camera almost triples: the 1050 mAh battery remains in the body of the camera, and only starts being drained when the battery located in the grip is depleted (the grip accepts the same 1050 mAh battery as the camera does, or the larger 1860 mAh battery of the Pentax K-5/K-3 series).

As for the ergonomics, the battery grip is a huge improvement. It’s supposed to help with vertical composition, but even when composing an horizontal image it makes the camera much easier to hold and control : I’m not afraid to grab it with one hand anymore, and although the front control wheel remains difficult to access, the one at the back of the body is easily reached.

A last option is to do for the KP what I did for my other “slim bodied” cameras (the Fujifilm X series and Sony HX-60): I ordered a Leather Half Case from a non specified Chinese vendor on AliExpress. Those half cases add almost a centimeter of leather under the bottom plate, they also make the front of the camera’s body a bit thicker and increase the surface presented to the fingers, making the camera much easier to hold.

*One of the many online stores selling KP half cases.*

I picked the black one (it’s also available in fancier colors). This half case is well finished, and makes the KP much more comfortable to hold. A few millimeters here and there can do a lot. I can even reach the rear control wheel while holding the camera firmly in the palm of my right hand. A definitive improvement, and a permanent fixture on my camera now.

*The leather half case makes the KP much easier to work with.*

Shooting with the Pentax KP

Now that I’ve described in length my two major gripes with the KP, it’s time to discuss the positives. Optical viewfinder, abundance of physical controls, configurability, and of course, image quality. It’s a very pleasant camera to use, that begs to be taken to a photo stroll, and will reward you with great pictures. More about the Pentax KP in the next blog post, in two weeks.

More recent content in CamerAgX

Georgia pictures from my Flickr Album

*Cartersville, GA – home of the first Coca-Cola wall advertisement (1894). Restored in 1989. Pentax KP – Pentax DA Limited 35mm f/2.8 macro*

*Cartersville, GA – Pentax KP – Pentax DA Limited 35mm f/2.8 macro*

*Cartersville, GA – one of the many restaurants painted in Coca-Cola colors. Pentax KP. Pentax DA Limited 35mm F/2.8*

*Cartersville, GA – another Coca-Cola Red restaurant. Still standing. Pentax KP. Pentax DA Limited 35mm F/2.8* macro.

*Cartersville, GA – the 4 Way Lunch restaurant – Detail – Pentax KP – Pentax DA Limited 35mm F/2.8*

If you’ve spent time on Pentax dedicated forums, you may have read that Pentax and Ricoh (the owner of the Pentax brand) follow a “blue ocean strategy” and want Pentax dSLRs to become “the Leica M of the dSLRs”.

I don’t know if those statements are coming directly from Ricoh or are just an invention of creative bloggers. But it aligns very well with what Ricoh have been doing with the GR series, and Pentax with the K-3 Mk III.

“Blue Ocean” means that instead of competing with sharks in an area rich in preys – so rich it’s tainted red by the blood of the victims, you retreat to a zone with fewer fish, but also fewer competing predators, and no blood. The Blue Ocean. As for becoming a Leica M equivalent, it obviously relates to a strategy where – by sticking to a technology that everybody else has abandoned, you build a niche for yourself and serve a small group of highly motivated (and wealthy) users with products which are without an equivalent anywhere else.

*Pentax K-5 II – Sigma 8-16mm lens – bench in Atlanta, GA*

You can see the Blue Ocean strategy at play in the way Ricoh declines its ultra compact GR camera into a series of extremely specialized products (GR IIIX with 40mm lens, GR IV monochrome, GR IV High Diffusion Filter, …). As for being the Leica M of dSLRs, consider the case of the Pentax K-3 Mk III: the last and arguably most elaborate APS-C dSLR launched by any camera manufacturer, it was proposed at a comparatively very high price, and was followed by an even more expensive variant equipped with a monochrome sensor – that’s taken directly from the Leica marketing playbook.

You can argue that Pentax did not have much success as an innovator in the recent years (the Q series and the K-01 did not meet their public), and that until recently they were selling cameras primarily on value.

*Pentax K-5 II – Pentax DA 18-55 lens – porch in Marietta, GA*

The K-7, K-5 and the K-3 Mk I and Mk II are a good example: not rated as highly as Canon or Nikon’s best cameras when it came to autofocus or video performance (for instance), they produced images of high quality, and offered advantages unique in their category (in body image stabilization, full weather sealing) at a price point lower than their competition.

The pricing strategy started changing with the launch of the Pentax KP in 2017 and became obvious with the release of the K-3 Mk III – which clearly tried to be the best dSLR with an APS-C sensor – ever – but was at the same time more expensive than Canon and Nikon’s offerings.

As of today, you still have to spend almost $1800 for a new K-3 Mk III (that’s the 2025 Holiday promotion, it still lists officially at $2000) and up to $2200 for a K-3 Mk III Monochrome, which is much higher than Canon’s 90D at $1200, and Nikon’s only remaining new APS-C dSLR, the d7500 currently selling for $700.

It percolates on the cost of older Pentax dSLRs on the second hand market – the K-5 and the first two K-3 models could still be considered bargain buys not so long ago, but the K-3 Mk III has pulled the prices upwards. Being the most recent predecessors of the K-3 Mk III, the K-3 Mk II and the KP are logically the most impacted.

The introduction of tariffs on second hand cameras coming from Japan has made the matter worse by cutting the main source for cheap Pentax cameras: imported second hand Pentax dSLRs are subject to tariffs, factor that if you buy from a Japanese retailer.

*Pentax K-5 II – Pentax DA 18-55 lens – Hood decoration (Chevrolet)*

More about Pentax cameras in CamerAgX

The recent Pentax cropped sensor dSLRs line up today: from the K-5 to the KP in a few words

The Pentax K-5, K-5 II and K-5 IIs: Available new between 2010 and 2013, the K-5 remains a very good value proposition – with a solid build, a long battery life, great ergonomics and a very good 16 MPIX sensor delivering very good images. Some details are dated: there is no WiFi, and live view and video capabilities are very limited, but it’s still a very good camera if you’re shooting exclusively still images. Nice copies of the K-5 can still be found between $200.00 and $250.00. The K-5 IIs is approx. $100 more expensive.

The Pentax K-3 and K-3 II: – Sold between 2013 and 2017, the K-3 and the K-3 II are essentially a K-5 IIs with a 24 Mpix sensor. The K3 II gets a better autofocus system and an integrated GPS but the K-3 and the K-3 II keep the same fundamental qualities and limitations as the K-5. And they make you pay dearly for their 24 Mpix sensor (up to $650 for a K-3 Mk II).

The Pentax K-70 and KF – launched respectively in 2017 and 2022 – are more or less the same camera under a different name – they are the remote successors of cameras like the K-r tested last year in those pages, the last two representents of a long line of the mid-level Pentax dSLRs. They benefit from some “pro” features like weather sealing and in body image stabilization, they have the same 100% viewfinder and the same 24 Mpix sensor as the K-3 or the KP and offer WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. The LCD display at the back is fully articulated. But their autofocus module is dated and limited, they’re not as solidly built as a K-3 or the KP (polycarbonate instead of a magnesium alloy), they are deprived of the K-5 and K-3’s top plate display and only have one SD card slot and a smaller battery.

Note that the entry-level or mid level Pentax dSLRs (starting with the K-30 up to the K-70s built before 2021) may all suffer from issues with the solenoid controlling the aperture – the most recent K-70s and the KF are using a different component and will be OK. The KF is still available new for approximately $650.00 in the US, and a nice second hand K-70 can be had for $400.

*Pentax K-r – “SR” is for “Shake Reduction”. It’s a important differentiator – no other brand offers in body image stabilization (IBIS) on digital reflex cameras*.

The Pentax KP was launched in 2017 as a replacement of the K-3 II, and discontinued in 2021. It introduced a new slim, retro-inspired body design with user replaceable hand grips – esthetically pleasant but with controversial ergonomics. It benefited from a new and improved image processing engine and from a tiltable rear display. It combined characteristics inherited from the K-3 II (24 mpix sensor, all metal construction, 27 point autofocus system) with characteristics typically seen on entry level cameras (only one SD card slot, small battery, no top plate LCD display). If you can live with those limitations and its ergonomics, it’s the closest you’ll get to the image quality of the K-3 Mk III, at a fraction of the price.

Like the K-3 Mk II, the KP has become expensive – the typical second hand price being in the $600 to $750 range.

*The KP’s differentiator – a tillable rear display*

I only know the Pentax K-3 Mk III from its specs sheet, and reviews I’ve read or watched here and there. Under a body that looks similar to the previous K-3s, it’s a very different camera, and now that the Nikon D500 has been discontinued, a credible candidate to the title of most elaborate APS-C dSLR.

With a new 26 MPIX BSI sensor, a new autofocus system, a top plate LCD display, a third control wheel, a touch screen and a joystick to select from 41 autofocus points – it’s a very significant step above the K-3 II and the KP. It has almost everything expected from a top of the line dSLR, and its specs sheet compares favorably with the best APS-C mirrorless cameras. The only glaring omission is the lack of an articulated or tiltable rear screen, which can be an issue when shooting with wide angle lenses or for macro-photography. Still available new from retailers, it can not be found second hand for less than $1300, more than twice as much as a more abundant Nikon D500.

CamerAgX – a new life for old gear

Pentax KP – Quirky grip design – great camera (Part One)

The Blue Ocean, or how Pentax’s positioning of the K-3 III affects second hand camera prices