KFvs Sony A9 III
Sony
Sony A9 III (2023)
Starting from £5999 new
Best for Sports & action professionals
View Sony A9 III
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Landscape & Outdoor — KF (2022): The Pentax KF is a rare thing — a weather-sealed DSLR with in-body stabilisation and an articulating screen at an accessible price. Video is modest at 1080p/60p, but for outdoor and landscape photographers who prefer optical viewfinders and want real weather sealing, the KF delivers in a format that is increasingly hard to find.
Sports & Action Professionals — Sony A9 III (2023): A paradigm-shifting camera — the global shutter eliminates every rolling shutter limitation that has constrained action photography for years.
Who should buy what
KF (2022)
- Outdoor and landscape photographers who want weather sealing at an accessible price
- DSLR users who want IBIS and an articulating screen without switching systems
- Pentax K-mount lens collectors who want a modern body for their glass
- Photographers who prefer the natural feel of an optical viewfinder
Sony A9 III (2023)
- Professional sports photographers who need zero blackout and 120fps burst
- Wildlife photographers who demand the most advanced Sony AF available
- Photojournalists who need flash sync at any shutter speed
- A9 II owners upgrading to the world's first full-frame global shutter
Quick take: The sony a9 iii has the highest resolution at 25mp; the kf is the most affordable. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | KF (2022) | Sony A9 III (2023) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £700 | £5,999 |
| Sensor | 24.2MP APS-C CMOS | 24.6MP full-frame Exmor RS CMOS (global shutter) |
| Resolution | 24.2MP | 24.6MP |
| Video | 1080p/60p | 4K/120p, 4K/60p, 1080p/240p |
| Autofocus | SAFOX 13 phase-detect AF with 11 points | AI subject recognition AF, 759-point phase-detect |
| Stabilisation | In-body Shake Reduction (SR II), up to 5.5 stops | 8-stop IBIS |
| Burst Rate | 6fps | 120fps blackout-free electronic |
| Battery Life | ~410 shots (CIPA) | 530 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 643g (body only) | 703g body only |
| Dimensions | 131.0 × 101.0 × 76.0mm | 136.1 × 96.9 × 82.9mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical pentamirror, 0.95× magnification, ~100% coverage | 0.64" Quad-XGA OLED EVF, 9.44M dots |
| Screen | 3.0" fully articulating touchscreen, 1.04M dots | 3.2" fully articulating touchscreen |
| Mount | Pentax KF-mount | Sony FE (E-mount) |
| Memory Cards | Single SD UHS-I slot | Dual CFexpress Type A / SD UHS-II |
| Connectivity | USB, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | USB-C 3.2, HDMI A, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3 |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | KF | Sony A9 III |
|---|---|---|
| Landscape | — | |
| Travel | ||
| Portrait | ||
| Wildlife | ||
| Casual | — | |
| Street | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | ||
| Sports & Action | ||
| Wedding & Events | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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Camera family history