Developed a couple of years ago to be the flagship of Pentax, the K-3 featured a host of advanced functions and user-friendly features to help its owner take better quality photos and be easier to use under demanding shooting conditions in the field.

Now, I could go all technical and talk at length about its newly developed and fully adjustable anti-aliasing simulator, its new APS-C-size CMOS image sensor and a top sensitivity of ISO 51200 for taking photos under extremely poor lighting conditions, but I wont.

All I’ll say is that it’s a tough camera. The K-3’s exterior casing is made of sturdy yet lightweight magnesium alloy, and thanks to the inclusion of 92 special sealing parts in the body, it boasts a dustproof, weather-resistant and cold-resistant construction that can be used at temperatures as low as -10°C.

It also boasts 24 megapixels, and can continuously record as many as 22 images in the RAW format or 60 images in the JPEG format in a single sequence, at a maximum speed of approximately 8.3 images per second. Oh, and it fits my hand like a glove. 

It records full HD movies too and comes equipped with a stereo mic terminal for external microphone connection and a headphone terminal. 

There are lots of other features that I could go into, but all I’ll say is that it will be replacing my aging Pentax K20 sooner rather than later.  Prices are now becoming competitive as there’s an upgraded version on the market, the K3-II, but for me it isn’t a big enough upgrade.

For more details, check out the website below and other reviews on the ‘net.

Website:  www.ricoh-imaging.co.uk

Price Around £650.00 Prices will vary according to lens choices

Above & below are a selection of images taken with the K3 and a variety of Pentax lenses.