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Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII

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Pentax K-3 II

24 MP | APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) CMOS Sensor

Pentax K-3 II
$829.00

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Canon 6D MII

26 MP | Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) CMOS Sensor

Canon 6D MII
$1199.00

CHECK TODAY's PRICE
Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Comparison Overview

In this review, we will be comparing K-3 II and 6D MII, two Semi-Pro DSLR cameras from Pentax and Canon. Pentax K-3 II was introduced to market in April 2015 and Canon 6D MII was launched in June 2017. As you can see, K-3 II is 2 years older than 6D MII. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Pentax K-3 II has a 24.0MP APS-C sensor whereas Canon 6D MII has a 26.0MP Full frame sensor.

Let's have a brief look at the main features of Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Pentax K-3 II Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2015-04-23
  • 24MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor
  • No Anti-aliasing (AA) filter
  • ISO 100 - 51200
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3.2" Fixed Type Screen
  • Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder
  • 8.3 fps continuous shooting
  • 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • Built-in GPS
  • 800g. 131 x 100 x 77 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body
  • Replaced Pentax K-3 Compare

Canon 6D MII Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2017-06-29
  • 26MP - Full frame CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 40000 ( expands to 50-102400)
  • Canon EF Mount
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder
  • 6.5 fps continuous shooting
  • 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • Built-in Wireless
  • Built-in GPS
  • 765g. 144 x 111 x 75 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body
  • Replaced Canon EOS 6D Compare

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Pentax K-3 II over Canon EOS 6D Mark II
Built-in Image Stabilization Sensor-shift vs None All the lenses are stabilized
Max ISO 51.200 vs 40.000 28% higher Max ISO
LCD Screen Size 3.2" vs 3" 0.2 inches larger display
Viewfinder Coverage 100% vs 98% More accurate viewfinder
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/8000s vs 1/4000s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting 8.3fps vs 6.5fps 1.8 fps faster
Headphone Port Yes vs No better video control
Dynamic Range 13.6 vs 11.9 higher dynamic range
AE Bracketing Range ±5 EV vs ±3 EV Wide Bracketing range is useful for HDR
Flash Sync Port Yes vs No Connect off-camera flash
Pixel Shift High Resolution Mode Yes vs No Increased resolution with pixel shift
Anti Alias Filter Simulator Yes vs No Turn on Anti Alias filter effect to minimise Moire
Astrotracer Mode Yes vs No Great for Astrophotography
Storage Slot 2 vs 1 Extra storage slot
Reasons to choose Canon EOS 6D Mark II over Pentax K-3 II
Wireless Connection Built-In vs Optional Better connectivity
Articulating Screen Yes vs No Flexible shooting positions
Touch Screen Yes vs No Easy control of camera functions
Max Sensor Resolution 26 MP vs 24 MP 8% more pixels
Number of Focus Points 45 vs 27 18 more focus points
Number of Cross Type Focus Points 45 vs 25 20 more cross type focus points
Battery Life 1200 shots vs 720 shots 480 more frames with a single charge
Weight 765 g vs 800 g 35 g lighter
Color Depth 24.4 vs 23.6 higher color depth
Low Light ISO 2862 vs 1106 better High ISO performance
Sensor Pixel Area 33.19µm2 vs 15.24µm2 117% larger pixel area
Selfie Friendly LCD Yes vs No Rotate LCD for taking Selfies
NFC Connection Yes vs No Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices
Bluetooth Yes vs No Connect your camera to other devices via Blueetooth
Smartphone_remote control Yes vs No Remote control your camera with a smartphone
Autofocus at f/8 aperture Center point vs none Autofocus with teleconverters
Support for UHS Memory Cards UHS-I vs none Read/Write in Ultra High Speeds
Common Strengths of Pentax K-3 II and Canon EOS 6D Mark II
External Flash Shoe Yes vs Yes Better for flash photography
Viewfinder Yes (Optical) vs Yes (Optical) Better framing and control
RAW Support Yes vs Yes Better image quality
Face Detection Focus Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
Max Resolution 24 MP vs 26 MP Bigger prints and more details
LCD Screen Resolution 1.037k dots vs 1.040k dots Higher resolution screens
Continuous Shooting 8.3fps vs 6.5fps Fast shooting speeds
Microphone Port Yes vs Yes High quality audio recording option
Environmental Sealing Yes vs Yes shoot at tough conditions
Timelapse Recording Yes vs Yes creative shooting
Top LCD Display Yes vs Yes Help viewing and changing settings easily
AE Bracketing Yes vs Yes Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
AF Micro Adjustment (Fine Tune) Yes vs Yes Adjust each lens for accurate focusing
Common Weaknesses of Pentax K-3 II and Canon EOS 6D Mark II
Built-in Flash No vs No Require external flash
Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs. In this section, We are going to illustrate Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions.

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII. Pentax K-3 II is 13mm narrower and 11mm shorter than Canon 6D MII but it is also 2mm thicker.

Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Camera Size Comparison - Front View


Here is the back view size comparison of Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII.

Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Camera Size Comparison - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII.
Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Camera Size Comparison - Top View

Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Detailed Size Comparison

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Canon 6D MII is 35g lighter than the Pentax K-3 II but we don't think this will make a significant difference.

Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since Canon 6D MII has a Full frame sensor and Pentax K-3 II has a smaller APS-C sensor, Pentax K-3 II's lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will generally be lighter and smaller than the Canon 6D MII lenses.

Weight Comparison

DSLR Cameras

K-3 II
6D MII
Min
Average
Max
Thickness Comparison

DSLR Cameras

K-3 II
6D MII
Min
Average
Max

Weather Sealing

Both K-3 II and 6D MII have weather sealings in their body, making them resistant to water and dust.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Pentax K-3 II's 3.2" LCD screen is slightly larger than Canon 6D MII's 3" screen.

Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII: Sensor Comparison

Pentax K-3 II has a 24.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Prime III processor. On the other hand, Canon 6D MII has a 26.0MP Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features DIGIC 7 processor.

Another difference between these two cameras is that Pentax K-3 II's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moire occurring in certain scenes.

Below you can see the K-3 II and 6D MII sensor size comparison.

Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII Sensor Size Comparison


As seen above, Canon 6D MII has a 2.4x Larger sensor area than Pentax K-3 II. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.

DxOMark Sensor Scores

DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that 6D MII has a better overall score of 85, 5 points higher compared to K-3 II's score of 80.

What types of Photography are Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.

Pentax K-3 II for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Canon 6D MII for Portrait Photography

GOOD
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 26.0MP
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Pentax K-3 II for Street Photography

EXCELLENT

Canon 6D MII for Street Photography

EXCELLENT
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Large Body
Read the details
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
No Image Stabilization
Large Body
Read the details

Pentax K-3 II for Sports Photography

EXCELLENT

Canon 6D MII for Sports Photography

EXCELLENT
Image Stabilization
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Continuous Shooting: 8.3fps
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
25 Cross Type Focus sensors
27 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 720 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Read the details
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Continuous Shooting: 6.5fps
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
45 Cross Type Focus sensors
45 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 1200 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Average Continuous Shooting: 6.5fps
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Pentax K-3 II for Daily Photography

GOOD

Canon 6D MII for Daily Photography

EXCELLENT
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Large Body
800g
Body Thickness 77mm
Read the details
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Large Body
765g
Body Thickness 75mm
Read the details

Pentax K-3 II for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Canon 6D MII for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Built-in GPS
Read the details
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 26.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Read the details


Canon 6D MII vs Pentax K-3 II Comparison of Available Lenses
Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Canon 6D MII has an advantage over Pentax K-3 II There are 271 lenses for Canon 6D MII's Canon EF mount, on the other hand there are only 149 lenses for Pentax K-3 II's Pentax KAF2 lens mount.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. Pentax K-3 II has a big advantage in this regard because it has a sensor based image stabilization which means that all the lenses mounted to this body will be stabilized. On the other hand, Canon 6D MII doesn't have this feature so you have to buy a lens with optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 77 lenses for Canon EF mount with Optical Image Stabilization features.

Lens Type # of Pentax K-3 II Lenses # of Canon 6D MII Lenses
Standard Zoom 22 25 (22 Full Frame)
Standard Prime 19 16 (16 Full Frame)
Wideangle Zoom 12 29 (20 Full Frame)
Wideangle Prime 24 45 (45 Full Frame)
Telephoto Zoom 20 53 (50 Full Frame)
Telephoto Prime 12 41 (41 Full Frame)
SuperZoom 15 17 (9 Full Frame)
Wideangle Fisheye Prime 3 3 (3 Full Frame)
Macro Prime 14 25 (23 Full Frame)
Perspective Control Prime 8 16 (16 Full Frame)
Telephoto Mirror Prime n/a 1 (0 Full Frame)
TOTAL 149 271 (245 Full Frame)
Pentax K-3 II vs Canon 6D MII: OUR DECISION

You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.

Here is a summary of how Pentax K-3 II and Canon 6D MII scores compare:

Pentax K-3 II
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #25 out of 94 in Mid-size SLR cameras
Ranked #71 out of 1190 in all Cameras
Canon 6D MII
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #12 out of 94 in Mid-size SLR cameras
Ranked #38 out of 1190 in all Cameras

Canon 6D MII scores higher than the Pentax K-3 II in Overall. It has better image quality and better value than Pentax K-3 II. On the other hand, Pentax K-3 II is more portable and has more features than Canon 6D MII.
If image quality is very important for you and you want to get the most bang for your bucks, choose the Canon 6D MII.
If you are looking for a small camera where you can take everywhere with you, and having more features are also important, Pentax K-3 II is the right choice for you.

Pentax K-3 II
Pentax K-3 II
$829.00

Canon 6D MII
Canon 6D MII
$1199.00

Canon 6D MII vs Pentax K-3 II Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Pentax K-3 II Canon EOS 6D Mark II
Brand Pentax Canon
Announced 2015-04-23 2017-06-29
Body Type Mid-size SLR Mid-size SLR
Sensor
Type CMOS CMOS
Size APS-C Full frame
Dimensions 23.5 x 15.6 mm 35.9 x 24 mm
Area 366.60mm2 861.60mm2
Megapixels 24 megapixels 26 megapixels
Max Resolution 6016 x 4000 6240 x 4160
Max Native Light sensitivity 51,200 ISO 40,000 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity - 102400 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 100 ISO 100 ISO
Min Boosted Light Sensitivity - 50 ISO
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points 27 45
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Pentax KAF2 Canon EF
Number of Available Lenses 149 271
Screen
Type Fixed type Fully Articulated
Size 3.2" 3"
Resolution 1,037k dots 1,040k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) Optical (pentaprism)
Viewfinder Coverage 100% 98%
Viewfinder Magnification 0.64 0.71
Photography Features
Max Shutter Speed 1/8000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization Sensor-shift Digital only
Built-in Flash
Max Flash Sync 1/180s no built-in flash
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 8.3 fps 6.5 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 1920 x 1080 1920 x 1080
Video Formats MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Optional Built-In
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 800g 765g
Dimensions 131 x 100 x 77mm 144 x 111 x 75mm
Battery Life 720 shots 1200 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS BuiltIn Built-in
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 80 85
DxO Color Depth 23.6 24.4
DxO Dynamic Range 13.6 11.9
DxO Low Light ISO 1106 2862
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