Pentax K-3 Announced (April Fools 2012)

Full-frame, backwards-compatible K-mount DSLR

By PF Staff in Site News on Apr 1, 2012

Update as of 10/2013: the Pentax K-3 has been announced for real- click here for details

It has been over a year and a half since we've seen a new DSLR from Pentax- the K-5 and K-r both came out in the fall of 2010, and the K-r ended up being discontinued in late 2011, prior to the announcement of its successor.

While we all expected the next DSLR announcement from Pentax to be about the K-z (the K-r's successor), today Pentax Japan surprised us all by giving us an early look the Pentax K-3, a new full-frame addition to their DSLR lineup.  Together with this camera, which will likely not start shipping until this fall, Pentax will also be re-releasing many of their FA-series full-frame lenses as D-FA lenses.

The key specifications of the Pentax K-3 are outlined below:

• Sensor: 24.0 Megapixel CMOS (36x24mm)
• ISO Range: 100-25,600 (50-102,400 expanded)
• Autofocus: 29-point SAFOX X w/light wavelength sensor
• Shutter: stepless, 30s-1/8000s rated for 200,000 actuations
• Framerate: 6FPS at maximum resolution
• Video: 1080p/720p recording at 60/30/25/24 FPS, VGA recording at 120/30FPS
• Image processor: Dual PRIME M
• Media: Single SDXC/SDHC/SD card
• Body Color: Graphite black

Note that these are tentative and based on initial reports; the official specifications have not yet been publicly published by Pentax.

The K-3 uses the same "crippled" KAF2 mount that's found on other Pentax DSLRs, meaning it's fully backwards-compatible with manual lenses, but needs to stop-down meter when one is mounted.  Whenever DA (APS-C format) lenses are mounted, the camera will automatically switch to a 12-megapixel cropped sensor mode which only utilizes the APS-C image circle.

Professional photographers using the K-3 will be eligible for the PENTAX Professional Services program (PPS).

PentaxForums.com Hits the 2-million Post Milestone!

2,000,000 posts on the forum as of early this morning

By PF Staff in Site News on Jul 22, 2012

Just a few hours ago, the 2,000,000th post was made on our Pentax Forum!  We are also pleased to say that this makes our forum the largest Pentax forum on the Internet in terms of post count and daily activity!  The 2-million post milestone was reached two years and 3 months after our 1,000,000th post, meaning that an average of just over 1,200 posts were made every day since then— nearly twice the rate before we hit one million. 

This shows that the Pentax community is stronger than ever, despite whatever issues the company may have had over the past years.  Let's hope that in turn, we'll be rewarded with the availability of a Pentax full-frame, or at least the prompt announcement of another high-end body!

We couldn't have reached this milestone without you, our members, so in order to say thanks, we will be giving away some shiny new Pentax gear on the forum over the coming weeks.  Stay tuned, as Pentax K-30's and more may await!

Merry Christmas from the PF Team!

By PF Staff in Site News on Dec 24, 2014

As 2014 slowly comes to an end, we'd like to wish all of our members Happy Holidays and a Merry Christmas!  If you capture any great holiday moments, or if you're lucky enough to discover a new Pentax under the tree, don't miss the December "Holiday Spirit" photo contest— our last official photo contest of the year.

Despite a continuing decline in worldwide camera sales, our site and the Pentax community thrived this year.  Some exciting new products were announced in 2014, and we've just recently surpassed 3,000,000 total posts on the forum, so we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for supporting us (as well as Pentax) and making the community what it is today.

We trust that you are as excited for the content and news that lie ahead as we are.  Before the New Year, we will follow up with another post that looks back at the highlights of 2014.  Shortly afterward, expect our in-depth reviews of the Pentax K-S1, DA 16-85mm lens, and the new Ricoh Theta.  Stay tuned!

Feel free to share your own holiday greetings and shoutouts in the comments section below.

In Memory of Rupert

Beloved forum member and friend of 11 years

By PF Staff in Site News on Dec 22, 2017

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Rupert, a beloved forum member and dear friend to many of us here at Pentax Forums.

Rupert joined Pentax Forums just one day after the community was founded, over 11 years ago on December 8th, 2006, and continued being an active member up until this very month.  During this time, he made over 25,000 posts and became well-known for his passion of capturing photos of squirrels.

His memorial service will be held on the evening of Friday, December 22nd. We have already sent flowers (pictured above) on behalf of the entire community.  In addition, the family suggests a donation to Cancer Care Services.

Condolences can be left on the forum or on the memorial site for the family to view.  In addition, we invite everyone to take a moment to browse Rupert's photo gallery and albums, which showcase some of his favorite photos. You can also view Rupert's last forum post, in which he remained in very good spirits.

"Otis" - Captured with the Pentax K-5 IIs by Rupert in 2016

Today is without question a very emotional day, and our sincere condolences go out to all of Rupert's close friends and family.  His spirit will forever be remembered on the community.

Looking back at 2012: Pentax and PF

The year's highlights in terms of products, updates, and events

By PF Staff in Site News on Dec 31, 2012

As 2012 comes to a close, let's take a look at the highlights of this year in the Pentax world and on our web site! 

Products

We'll start by looking at Pentax's camera systems. While Pentax hasn't delivered the breakthrough products that many enthusiasts have been hoping for (i.e. a full-frame DSLR or new high-end APS-C camera), overall, it has been a great year, and Pentax is doing better than ever.  Most notably, the Pentax K-30, launched this June, has proved to be a very successful upper entry level DSLR.

In addition to becoming popular thanks to its intuitive user interface, superb image quality, and weather sealing, the K-30 ended up winning the iF Product Design Award just last week!  If you're a beginner that has a budget of around $650-800, we can highly recommend the K-30 as a first DSLR or as an upgrade over older Pentax cameras.  The K-30 competes primarily with the Nikon D5100/5200 and the Canon 650D, and we've recently posted an in-depth comparative review of these three cameras in case you're still trying to decide on what to get.

Another noteworthy camera is the mirrorless Pentax K-01, launched in February.  Thanks to its K-mount, the K-01 was the first mirrorless camera to natively support DSLR lenses.  At first, the K-01 didn't get too much attention among photographers due to it's bold design and $749 price tag, but after being reduced to just $316 in November, it's been selling like crazy!  At this price it truly is a steal, considering that its image quality is almost on par with that of the Pentax K-5 and Nikon D7000 at a fraction of the price.

Finally, Pentax should also be commended for the expansion of the Q system: now that the 15-45mm (~80-250mm eqv.) telephoto zoom and the K-mount adapter have been launched, the Q has become a much more versatile camera, allowing photographers to use it for much more than everyday snapshots.  Pentax will be stressing that one should look at the entire system, and not just the Q camera body, when deciding to get a compact mirrorless.  On top of that, now that the Q has fallen in price by up to 75% (from a launch price of $799 to approximately $250), it has become a much more attractive option for many Pentax fans outside of Japan.