Thanks guys for all the information. I read every reply. I basically like Pentax cameras better than Canon -- which probably won't surprise you lot. :-) It's why I first found this list, and I have had 3 Pentaxes.
But the reason I switched, years ago, was because 1.) It was taking soooooo long for Pentax to come out with new cameras. That problem seems to be solved. 2.) It was taking them sooooo long to come out with new zooms.That problem may not be solved, although there are more than there were. I could sell all my Canon glass and probably afford the K-5, but it may be too big for me to comfortably hold (or wear around my neck). So I am going to have to find one (somewhere) to hold. And hold the K-r. Even though I haven't been paying a lot of attention this last year, I was still hearing good stuff about Pentax. I really like one of my Canon lenses, but I bought another one with somewhat of the same focal length because the first was too soft. And oddly I never "warmed up" to the second although it is quite sharp. Some lenses one never gets a "feel" for or feels good about, and a lot of you probably know exactly what I mean. So there are not a lot of Canon lenses in my kit that I love. Or I could wait until the K-3? (someone mentioned a new camera is in the pipeline) comes out, and get a K-5 at a reduced price. Unless Pentax takes a long time coming out with that. Unsure if they are actually turning out things faster now, or just releasing things in clumps which makes it look better, but isn't faster. The 17-45 zoom looks good, but getting one with a longer focal length might be a tad tricky. Anyway, thanks again, you've given me a lot to think about. So I will. And, Bruce, I got a big kick out of the below. Heh. Marnie aka Doe :-) In a message dated 8/24/2011 11:16:21 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected] writes: OK, look Marnie: I'm going to cut to the chase and make this decision really easy for you. Start ==> * If you can afford it, get a K-5. * If you cannot afford a K-5, give up some of your expensive habits ... and get a K-5. * If you *still* can't afford a K-5, get a K-r. ==> Done. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.

