[D1N0]

Only for DSLR. Pentax wants to be the third ILC brand by market share, I believe, which means they're up against Sony, Nikon, Canon, Panasonic, Olympus and Fuji, to name the bigger ones. If they want to become number 3 they'd have to beat either one of the big three, Canon, Nikon and Sony.

They have said no such thing. In the dpreview photokina interview they said ""We believe we can revive Pentax as the leading company for DSLRs" what that means? Market Leader? Technology leader? Kazunobu Saiki was just in a good but overly enthusiastic mood? I think the latter. Canon has an unbeatable Brandname. Pentax is two steps behind the best in AF tech and Video. So one and two are not very likely. Pentax excels in area's other companies neglect. That's the reason they are still here.

[monochrome]

When he was in good favor a few years ago Jim Malcolm privately expressed Ricoh's goals to a group of PF members similarly, on a Conference Call I arranged.

We need to understand Ricoh takes a very long view for their success horizon - 20 years - believing constant incremental growth over time, while apparently minimal in the early years, becomes nominally substantial in the later years due to the law of compounding.

Pentax is different in more than merely products.

[RonHendriks1966]

I think that the change in the camera market over the past 5 years is changing a lot of dreams and ambitions.

[Pål Jensen]

The A 50 1.2 isn't a perfect lens either. Bokeh at 1.2 is dizzying. And what do you have a 1.2 for? Just leave it to chinese manual lens manufacturers. A 1.4 will be ok.

The point of fast lenses is not DOF but ability to shoot in low light. Pentax is arguably the best there is for low light use, with astrotracker and all. Whats missing are fast lenses. It makes sense.....

[D1N0]

The point of fast lenses is not DOF but ability to shoot in low light. Pentax is arguably the best there is for low light use, with astrotracker and all. Whats missing are fast lenses. It makes sense.....

That used to be the point in the film days, now there is cmos

[monochrome]

That used to be the point in the film days, now there is cmos

You have to see to focus with an OVF in low light, which is when I prefer an A50/1.2 over an FA50/1.4 (I realize an FA is AF, but it often misses focus in low light).

[sculptor666]

putting out new 135/85/50/24 glass is great, and i will buy a few, but it's not a reason to switch brands, and it's nothing new to photography.... maybe they've given up on that. i wish pentax would make niche lenses.... you can afford to be behind on af/video if you make the right glass... being cheaper and better is great, but maybe not enough to leap ahead of other manufacturers. right now canon is the only oem to make greater than 1:1 macro. every university in the country with an etomology dept, every natural history museum, all field entomologists, etc... basically have one choice, and all the students see one brand. ricoh could easily make a usb powered macro rail coupled with stacking software. make a specialized astro lens, make a 300mm 1:1 macro, make an 800mm f4 bazooka that's smaller than the current 560

[D1N0]

You have to see to focus with an OVF in low light, which is when I prefer an A50/1.2 over an FA50/1.4 (I realize an FA is AF, but it often misses focus in low light).

use live view

[JPT]

They have said no such thing. In the dpreview photokina interview they said ""We believe we can revive Pentax as the leading company for DSLRs" what that means? Market Leader? Technology leader? Kazunobu Saiki was just in a good but overly enthusiastic mood? I think the latter. Canon has an unbeatable Brandname. Pentax is two steps behind the best in AF tech and Video. So one and two are not very likely. Pentax excels in area's other companies neglect. That's the reason they are still here.

I agree that he was in an enthusiastic mood, but it's also quite likely that he just misspoke. Given that the articles "a" and "the" don't have an equivalent in the Japanese language, it's entirely possible that Saiki-san just meant "a leading company for DSLRs". Even quite fluent English speakers use articles wrongly all the time. Anyway, I prefer to look at what Ricoh has been doing than combing over the wording of comments for implied meaning.

[Doundounba]

... right now canon is the only oem to make greater than 1:1 macro. every university in the country with an etomology dept, every natural history museum, all field entomologists, etc... basically have one choice, and all the students see one brand.

Totally agree. The MP-E 65mm dominates the macro field. I think/wish that Ricoh, especially as an outdoors-y brand, would compete here. And make it different from the MP-E! Give me 1:3 to 3:1 as a range (instead of 1:1 to 5:1). Make it weather sealed. Maybe a little longer than the MP-E, something like 80mm instead of 65mm, and only F/4 - there's little need for F/2.8 in this type of lens, IMHO, and this would make the lens a bit smaller. Sell it for the same price as the MP-E. I'd buy that immediately! I think 1:3 to 3:1 would be a much more useful range than 1:1 to 5:1. And, FWIW, I'd probably not buy a 200mm 1:1 macro...

[monochrome]

use live view

Ruins my night vision.

[mee]

Ruins my night vision.

Does the night mode (red view) work in live view or just the parameters main screen (with aperture, shutter speed, iso)?

[Snakeisthestuff]

Does the night mode (red view) work in live view or just the parameters main screen (with aperture, shutter speed, iso)?

It does, it displays everything in the red view once activated (Menues, picture review...).

[npc]

They have said no such thing. In the dpreview photokina interview they said ""We believe we can revive Pentax as the leading company for DSLRs" what that means? Market Leader? Technology leader? Kazunobu Saiki was just in a good but overly enthusiastic mood? I think the latter. Canon has an unbeatable Brandname. Pentax is two steps behind the best in AF tech and Video. So one and two are not very likely. Pentax excels in area's other companies neglect. That's the reason they are still here.

When Ricoh faquired Pentax they were making such statements for a while (about becoming n3) ... for example in one interview Jim Malcom said "No doubt about it. I have no hesitation, in my mind and in my business direction, that in the future—whether it’s three years or five years out—that there will be three dominant imaging companies on a global basis and it will be Canon, Nikon, and Pentax/Ricoh"

[RonHendriks1966]

When Ricoh faquired Pentax they were making such statements for a while (about becoming n3) ... for example in one interview Jim Malcom said "No doubt about it. I have no hesitation, in my mind and in my business direction, that in the future—whether it’s three years or five years out—that there will be three dominant imaging companies on a global basis and it will be Canon, Nikon, and Pentax/Ricoh"

That turns out to be Canon, Nikon and Sony.


(But who knows 5 years from now?)