Pentax K-3 III Review

Pentax K-3 III

Over 5 years after launching their previous flagship DSLR, Pentax finally announced the K-3 III in late 2020. Following months of delay, the Pentax K-3 III arrived spring of 2021, after the most difficult year for photography yet.

Ricoh, owners of Pentax, acquired a huge legacy of incredibly capable DSLR cameras and now introducing more significant changes than before. The new Pentax K-3 III fits into the lineage with similar ergonomics as its predecessors while improving on key capabilities. A vastly superior Shake-Reduction system now compensates for 5½-stops over hand-holding, while incorporating a new 101-Point SAFOX XIII Phase-Detection AF system and shutter capable of 12 FPS continuous drive.

The Pentax K-3 III acquires nearly every feature from the K-3 II to remain one of the most capable DSLRs on the market. Compared to its predecessor and the Full-Frame Pentax K-1 Mark II, this newest APS-C flagship is only missing a GPS required to run the unique-to-Pentax Astrotracer function that compensates for the rotation of the Earth to track stars for astrophotography.

This is an incredibly feature-rich camera with extensive exposure modes, ultra-flexible drive options and highly sophisticated 5-axis image-stabilization system that has is used for many unique features. These include Automatic Horizon Correction, Shift & Rotation movements, Full-Color Capture and Anti-Alias Filter Simulation, plus Astrotracer when paired with an external GPS unit. Bracketing for nearly every parameter except focus is available, plus HDR, Interval Timer, Interval-Composite, Multiple-Exposure and Time-Lapse are all possible in-camera. The new SR system adds a dedicated Panning mode too.

Ergonomics have been revised with the addition of a third control-dial and a dedicated AF joystick. A newly developed OVF provides 1.05X magnification, the largest among APS-C DSLRs. With its thoughtful controls, the Pentax K-3 III is among the most efficient digital cameras on the market and it manages this while staying quite compact for a DSLR. This camera is fully weatherproof and freezeproof down to -10C.

This review takes a close look at the Pentax K-3 III in terms of features, ergonomics, usability, performance, image quality and unique photographic controls.

Pentax K-3 III Features

The Ricoh Pentax K-3 III is among the most feature-rich DSLR ever made, only exceeded by its predecessor, the K-3 II
Pentax K-3 II, and both generations of the Full-Frame K-1 II
Pentax K-1 Mark II. This flagship camera can easily handle every type of photography under any condition when paired with the suitable lens. As always, a weatherproof camera body requires a weatherproof lens to be completely protected. While all high-end DSLRs are weather-sealed, Only Pentax offers freezeproof models, allowing photography in much colder weather.

Pentax is the only manufacturer to incorporate image-stabilization into DSLR bodies. IBIS stabilizes any lens, regardless of its type, including those without a stabilized counterpart such as tilt-shift, fisheye and bright prime lenses. This cost-saving feature delivers stabilization improvements to all lenses when upgrading cameras. The new state-of-the-art 5-axis stabilization mechanism inside the Pentax K-3 III compensates for up to 5½-stops of camera-shake, delivering a full-stop improvement over its predecessor. This efficacy places the K-3 III on a similar level to most modern mirrorless cameras yet a number perform much better now.

The movements of the Pentax SR system add numerous features that are impossible on other DSLRs: Automatic Horizon Correction, Composition Correction, Pixel-Shift Capture, Anti-Alias Simulation and Astrotracer, when using an optional GPS unit. This is one of only two features lost compared to the K-3 II that included a builtin GPS plus Time-Lapse. Although most mirrorless cameras readily include IBIS, none have implemented these features yet either.

A newly designed 26 megapixels APS-C CMOS sensor in the K-3 III is capable of producing sharp print up to 27"x 18". This is currently the highest-resolution APS-C sensor with a common Bayer Color-Filter-Array and a small increase over the K-3 II. The greatest leap is the sensitivity range of the new sensor that spans ISO 100 to 1,600,000! This new stellar range is a whole 5-stops above the K-3 II, matching the Nikon D500 reviewed here
Nikon D500. By combining this ISO range and mechanical shutter-speeds from 1/8000s to 20 minutes, plus Bulb exposure, the Pentax K-3 III offers an unparalleled exposure latitude.

Pentax perfected Exposure Modes even further on their K-3 III. Its mode dial sports 14 positions! Five of these are ubiquitous on modern DSLR cameras: Auto (Green), Program (P), Shutter-Priority (T), Aperture-priority (A) and Manual (M) mode. The remaining 9 are: Sensitivity-priority (Sv), Shutter-Aperture-priority (TAv), Bulb (B), Flash-Sync (X) plus 5 User-Defined (U1..U5) modes. Sensitivity-Priority is unique to Pentax DSLRs, letting photographers directly set ISO sensitivity. Shutter-Aperture-Priority complements Sensitivity-Priority by letting the user select both shutter-speed and aperture, leaving ISO sensitivity up to the camera. Bulb keeps the shutter open until explicitly closed. Flash-Sync fixes the shutter-speed to 1/180s which is the flash-sync speed.

Another significant improvement in this DSLR is the new SAFOX XIII autofocus system that sports 101 points. The central 25 points are cross-type and sensitive to -4 EV. This Phase-Detect AF system combines depth and exposure data to improve continuous performance using Scene-Recognition. While this is a huge advancement for Pentax, it narrows the gap rather than surpass competitors. Where he Pentax K-3 III takes the lead is with its new 12 FPS continuous drive, the fastest among APS-C DSLRs. Only a handful of Full-Frame DSLR are capable of shooting continuously faster.

Image processing in this DSLR is extremely flexible. Starting from one of many color modes, image rendition can be adjusted by Saturation, Hue, Key, Global Contrast, Shadow Contrast, Highlight Contrast, Clarity and two Sharpness scales, each in 9 independent steps. This camera offers very detailed control over white-balance with three types of Automatic White-Balance, one for neutral results under a single type of lighting, one for warm results under tungsten light and one to balance among mixed lighting. There are 9 Preset WB settings, plus Kelvin and Custom WB, each with 3 memories. WB can be fine-tuning in 29 steps along 2 axis for incredible precision.

This Pentax offers several extremely useful features. Accompanying Depth-of-Field Preview, is a Digital Preview feature that captures a test photo to preview exposure, color and white-balance. Should the preview turn out perfect, the photographer can save it directly without having to release the shutter again. This Digital Preview is cleverly used when changing white-balance and image parameters to assist in finding optimal settings.

There are extensive drive modes, including versatile bracketing, in this DSLR. AEB captures up to 5 frames with a maximum of 2 EV increments between each. The user can limit parameter variation to aperture or shutter-speed. Other drive modes include three continuous drive speeds, an Interval Timer, Interval Composite, Multiple-Exposure and Mirror Lock-Up. Self-Timers or Remote-Trigger options can be selected independently with any Drive Mode. Options are Instant Release, 12s Self-Timer, 2s Self-Timer and 3s Remote Delay. These latter two automatically perform Mirror Lock-Up to minimize vibration during exposure.

Ricoh greatly emphasized their new 100% coverage viewfinder with its 1.05X magnification, the largest among APS-C DSLRs. This OVF features an LCD overlay that shows a Dual-Axis Digital Level to assist composition. As with their Full-Frame offerings, Ricoh fitted the Pentax K-3 III with triple control-dials. A newly added 8-way joystick makes this DSLR even more efficient than previous generations. Its set of professional photography features is completed by having Dual SDXC memory-card slots. One supports UHS-II cards, while the other handles UHS-I. Note, like the majority of professional cameras, the K-3 III does not include a builtin flash.

Pentax offers a broad selection of lenses, covering rectilinear focal-lengths of 11 to 560mm, plus a recently updated 10-17mm fisheye zoom. Although not quite the selection offered by other manufacturers, this covers all but the most specialized needs. Notably absent are tilt-shift lenses and ultra-bright primes with very few third-party improving the situation. Note that Pentax does not need to offer any stabilized lenses and constructed some of best high-end lenses specifically for APS-C cameras, saving on bulk and weight.

Basic video capabilities are included in this DSLR. It can capture 4K Ultra-HD video at 30 FPS or Full 1080p HD at 60 FPS. Lower frame-rates from 24 FPS are available with both resolutions. Stereo audio can be recordable using a builtin or via an external sound-source connected using a standard 3.5mm mini-jack. A second identical connector is available to monitor stereo audio on a headset. Audio recording is adjustable in 20 steps with an optional Wind-Filter. Some features are restricted for video: Multi-Lightsouce WB and Panning Shake-Reduction are the two most important unsupported features.

Typical connectivity features are included in the K-3 III. A USB-C port makes it possible to charge a proprietary Lithium-Ion battery internally, the same one Pentax has been using for years now. Unfortunately, and shockingly for a camera of this price, a standalone charger is not included! Luckily, the primary audience for this camera is likely to already have several. Bluetooth 4.2 LE and WiFi 802.11/b/g/n allow wireless image transfer and remote control. Oddly, these protocols are already slightly dated yet should be sufficient. At least Bluetooth 4.2 LE is a Log-Energy version that minimizes power-consumption.