personal opinion here...I never liked the way the canon 450/500/550 fit into my hand. I get cramps after a while. The D90 feels better and I would say that ergonomics should be an important consideration.
the K-r kit 2 package is a bargain when compared to the canon kit 1, plus the high ISO performance gives you more breathing room in terms of aperture control when compared with the 550.
both being entry-level cameras, the limiting factor is actually you, the photographer. i would say buy the best valued camera, learn and then decide. if your only investment is a tammy 17-50, that's not really an investment into a specific camera system, so you could still shift to another model in the future.
btw, regarding the comment about how canon has more lenses to choose from than the pentax...I would like to correct that statement and say that it is just not true. Pentax is the only current dslr system that is still compatible with the past 25+ years of lenses released in the k-mount. Canon, in the aps-c guise, can't really boast this. What they can boast of are L lenses that cost two to three times the price of the Pentax equivalent in Limiteds.
Plus...have you not seen the reviews on the K-5s? leading the market at the moment in terms of APS-C dslrs...
the K-r kit 2 package is a bargain when compared to the canon kit 1, plus the high ISO performance gives you more breathing room in terms of aperture control when compared with the 550.
both being entry-level cameras, the limiting factor is actually you, the photographer. i would say buy the best valued camera, learn and then decide. if your only investment is a tammy 17-50, that's not really an investment into a specific camera system, so you could still shift to another model in the future.
btw, regarding the comment about how canon has more lenses to choose from than the pentax...I would like to correct that statement and say that it is just not true. Pentax is the only current dslr system that is still compatible with the past 25+ years of lenses released in the k-mount. Canon, in the aps-c guise, can't really boast this. What they can boast of are L lenses that cost two to three times the price of the Pentax equivalent in Limiteds.
Plus...have you not seen the reviews on the K-5s? leading the market at the moment in terms of APS-C dslrs...
