Pentax K-5 IIs Samples

The Pentax K-5 IIs is compared to its predecessor, the K-5
Pentax K-5, below. All images below are 100% unmodified crops from their respective cameras. Both cameras were set on aperture-priority mode with fixed ISO. The remaining settings were left on automatic. Cameras were each independently calibrated to deliver optimal image quality.

These crops help determine which ISO sensitivities are acceptable to used on these cameras. Most cameras compensate with noise reduction as noise increases but this introduces softness. The point at which a print becomes unacceptably noisy is a matter of personal taste.

Pentax K-5 IIs	Pentax K-5
ISO 80	ISO 80
ISO 100	ISO 100
ISO 200	ISO 200
ISO 400	ISO 400
ISO 800	ISO 800
ISO 1600	ISO 1600
ISO 3200	ISO 3200
ISO 6400	ISO 6400
ISO 12800	ISO 12800
ISO 25600	ISO 25600
ISO 51200	ISO 51200

The Pentax K-5 IIs manages to exceed the performance of the K-5 by a visible margin at all ISO sensitivities. This should only be visible in the largest prints, at least until ISO 3200. Above that the K-5 IIs can squeeze slightly prints. Unusually because of its lack of anti-alias filter, the K-5 IIs actually requires less sharpening compared to its predecessor to acheive optimal image quality!