In an earlier post (See: A couple of Pentax autofocus SLRs). In that post I noted that I had purchased two Pentax autofocus SLRs and that neither of them had worked. I also said: “So if there’s a message here it’s probably that it’s wise to avoid Pentax ZX series cameras, attractive though they may be”.
Famous last words. I decided that I wouldn’t let my frustration with the last two get in the way of trying out what appeared to be an interesting line of cameras, and one that I hadn’t yet tested. And in any case they’re so inexpensive that the degree of risk was small so I got another one.
Feature rich and small and light the ZX-L easy and fun to use. It has the pretty much all the features that anyone would need, but is so easy to use that nothing impedes the user experience.
The camera has a quality feel: solid and well made even if it is mostly made of plastic. It’s easy to hold and is not tiring to use. It has dedicated controls for most functions.
Turn the ring around the mode dial to select the shooting mode.
The camera has a KAF2, with a manual aperture coupling which makes it compatible with K and M series lenses as well as later autofocus lenses. FA J and DA lenses also work because of the on-body aperture control. I’m not a user of Pentax DSLRs, but I’ve read that the control layout is similar.
I’ve read that the flash system is very flexible, but since I barely use flash this is unlikely to be an issue for me. There is also a built in flash.
The camera features three-point autofocus, which generally works well but which, under certain conditions (I’m not exactly sure that there was a clear pattern as to which) seemed to hunt a little. You can’t choose a specific AF point, but that’s fine with me as I generally use a central spot anyway and this is available via a dedicated switch. Although I haven’t used the camera with manual focus lenses I’ve read that in this case a “green diamond” will light up in the viewfinder (accompanied by a beep) to confirm focus.
It has a multiple exposure mode, which it’s unlikely I’ll ever use
Some features I liked: a backlit, illuminated LCD which comes on automatically when conditions get dark; depth of field preview; AE lock; 1/4000 second shutter speed; good, if a little small viewfinder display; toggle switch around the shutter release to change aperture, shutter speed etc.
The camera also has a number or custom functions:
Auto bracketing range in EV:1/2 EV; 1/3 EV; 2/3 EV; 1 EV.
Reset to single fram after autobracket: Yes/No.
Shutter release delay time with remote controller: 3 sec; immediate.
Autofocus-activation with the remote control: Off; On.
Meter method w/ AE lock: Spot; Multi-segment.
AE lock when subject in focus: Off; On.
Autofocus method in Action mode: Continuous; Focus Lock.
LCD illumination mode: Shutter release half down, in the dark; when preview button is pressed; Not illuminated.
Power On illumination pattern: Regular; Irregular; No illumination.
Leader In/Out on rewind: In;Out.
Wireless flash affect on built-in flash: Master mode (flash is fired); Controlled (flash not fired).
