Pentax *ist DL

Auto Mode (7.5)
The *ist DL has three automated modes. The exposure compensation control works in all its automated modes, including the scene modes. The *ist DL offers a Program mode, which sets both the aperture and shutter speed, plus shutter and aperture priority modes.

White balance and ISO can be automated or manually set. The automated modes are set via the mode dial, on the top of the camera, to the left of the viewfinder.

Movie Mode (0.0)
The *ist DL does not offer a movie mode.

Drive / Burst Mode (6.0)
The *ist DL is rated to shoot as fast as 2.5 frames per second in continuous shooting mode. That's not very fast, when you're shooting sports or anything quick-moving. I couldn't get 2.5 fps from the camera – it was more like 2 fps for the first three frames, and then a hiccup before the next couple of frames.

Playback Mode (7.5)
With its 2.5-inch, 210,000-pixel LCD, the *ist DL offers above average image review. The magnification control goes up to 12x, which gives a very good idea of how sharp the image is. The camera will display the image by itself, with a histogram superimposed, or with the file name, exposure, and shooting data. It's also possible to display nine thumbnail images at a time on the display, and in thumbnail mode, to select multiple images for deletion. Images can also be deleted one at a time. The LCD makes the Playback Mode on this camera. Its size, resolution, and color are excellent, which makes it feasible to check image quality onscreen.

The camera has a slide show mode, which shows all the images on the SD card in succession. The images will show for 3, 5, 10 or 30 seconds each. The *ist DL does not offer cropping or a choice of transitions for the slide show.

Custom Image Presets (7.5)
When the custom presets are engaged, many options in the Record mode are locked out. The presets take over tone, saturation, sharpness, contrast, white balance, and autofocus mode.