Disclosure: We earn money from the affiliate links to products associated with content in this article.
Pentax K-r was announced in 2011 and is an APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) DSLR camera with 12 Megapixel CMOS sensor. Its native ISO ranges from 200 to 12,800 and expands to 100 - 25,600 in boosted mode. The camera has a Fixed 3.0" screen with 921k dot resolution and built-in Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder. It has a built-in Sensor Shift in body image stabilization.
Pentax K-r can capture video up to 1280 x 720 resolution.
In this section we present pros and cons of Pentax K-r.
And here are some specifications which fall into average criteria and are neither in PROs nor in CONs category:
Pentax K-r has a 3.0" Fixed screen with 921k dot resolution.
Camera has a built-in Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder. It has a 96% coverage and 0.85x (0.57x 35mm equivalent) magnification.
Pentax K-r features a 12 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor with dimensions of 23.6 x 15.8 mm and a total area of 372.9 mm2. Its native ISO range is 200 - 12,800 and expands to 100 - 25,600 in boosted mode.
Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how Pentax K-r's APS-C sensor compares with other types of sensors:
| Sensor | Dimensions | Area | Aspect Ratio | Crop Factor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Medium Format | 44 x 33 mm | 1452 mm2 | 4:3 | 0.79x |
 | Full Frame | 36 x 24 mm | 864 mm2 | 3:2 | 1x |
 | APS-H | 27 x 18 mm | 486 mm2 | 3:2 | 1.3x |
 | APS-C | 23.6 x 15.8 mm | 372.9 mm2 | 3:2 | 1.5x |
 0.webp) | APS-C (Canon) | 22.3 x 14.9 mm | 332.3 mm2 | 3:2 | 1.6x |
 | Micro Four Thirds | 17.4 x 13 mm | 226.2 mm2 | 4:3 | 2x |
 | 1-inch | 13.2 x 8.8 mm | 116.2 mm2 | 3:2 | 2.7x |
 | 1/1.7-inch | 7.44 x 5.58 mm | 41.5 mm2 | 4:3 | 4.7x |
 | 1/2.3-inch | 6.17 x 4.55 mm | 28.1 mm2 | 4:3 | 5.6x |
Camera is equipped with PRIME II processor and can take pictures up to 4288 x 2848 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolutions like 3936 x 2624, 3072 x 2048, 1728 x 1152 with 3:2 aspect ratios.
Pentax K-r has Pentax KAF2 lens mount. Due to APS-C sensor its crop factor (also called lens multiplier) is 1.5x. This means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.5.
The camera has a built-in Sensor Shift in-body image stabilization (IBIS). This means that you are still getting vibration reduction when camera is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.
Pentax K-r has a USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) input for data transfer.
Pentax K-r comes with D-LI109
4 x AA battery pack with battery life of 470 shots.
The camera has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) card slot.
Pentax K-r's shutter speed can go up to 1/6000 sec. Camera can shoot continuously up to 6.0 fps.
Pentax K-r has a built-in flash with maximum range of 12.00 m at ISO 100 and also accepts external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe or Wireless connection. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/180 sec.
Pentax K-r has dimensions of 125 x 97 x 68 mm (4.92 x 3.82 x 2.68"). It weighs 598 g (1.32 lb / 21.09 oz) which is neither heavy nor lightweight.
125 mm (4.92")
97 mm (3.82")
97 mm (3.82")
68 mm (2.68")
Pentax K-r dimensions
We give scores to the camera for different type of photography based on its features and specifications. Let us see how Pentax K-r is suitable for six different types of photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 70 and is GOOD choice for Landscape photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 69 and is AVERAGE choice for Sports photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 61 and is AVERAGE choice for Wildlife photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 81 and is GOOD choice for Portrait photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 80 and is GOOD choice for Street photography.
Pentax K-r gets a score of 78 and is GOOD choice for Travel photography.
We evaluate Pentax K-r and give score of 63 out of 100. We also give separate scores for 7 different categories according to the available features and specifications some of which are listed below. These evaluations are relative and may change each time a new camera is added to the database.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 66 for Sensor parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 75 for Photo parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 42 for Video parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 76 for Focusing parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 69 for Screen and Viewfinder parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 46 for Connectivity parameters.
We give Pentax K-r a score of 41 for Battery, Storage and Physical parameters.
For a full specification list please go to the specifications page:
