[Trickortreat]

Where are all those people who claimed how FF body will smash the market and bring many customers? All I can see is exactly the opposite thing.

FF isnt the holy grail and Pentax users are still mostly APS-C shooters. APS-C will always be its bread and butter.
K1 came into market in a point when the market started to plummet so no surprises there. Besides, K1 didnt have a lens sellection to attract users. Anyone wanting a FF was better suited with other established options. K1 was for existing pentax who have accumulated FA glass.

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Last edited by Trickortreat; 08-21-2019 at 12:03 AM.

[BigMackCam]

Thats surprising given the niche nature of Pentax itself...

Not really... The number of folks shooting Pentax is way lower than those using Nikon, Canon etc., so the total potential market for K-mount lenses is much smaller. The market for third-party K-mount is smaller still, since most folks will buy a Pentax branded lens if one is available in their required focal lengths. And the market for niche third-party lenses - those with specialist applications - is just a fraction of that

[Trickortreat]

Not really... The number of folks shooting Pentax is way lower than those using Nikon, Canon etc., so the total potential market for K-mount lenses is much smaller. The market for third-party K-mount is smaller still, since most folks will buy a Pentax branded lens if one is available in their required focal lengths. And the market for niche third-party lenses - those with specialist applications - is just a fraction of that

I might misunderstood your post. I thought you were talking about percentages not absolute numbers...

[clackers]

Sigma still futures 11 lenses for K-mount on their own site overhere.



https://www.sigmabenelux.com/nl/objectieven

Of course. If you can't sell the last ones after many years you have to aak the board permission to incur a writedown.

[dstar]

Sigma still futures 11 lenses for K-mount on their own site overhere.

https://www.sigmabenelux.com/nl/objectieven

And three for FF camera but price......

[victormeldrew]

Thats surprising given the niche nature of Pentax itself...

Pentax isn't niche because it does things that nobody else does. It's niche because it is a high value proposition, with inconveniences to suffer. I think it's similar to phones...yes, you can buy an Apple or a Samsung or a Huawei or Google and everything will be very convenient...for a price. But get yourself a Doogee from China and you can get all of the same features for half the price - but if you want a case for it, or to use Google Pay, you'll suffer for your choice.


Lensbaby is niche because they offer 'out-there' products with a highly creative focus, that no other lens offers. I think that the people who want a system that does quality photography at the cheapest price are not the same people who are willing to drop $500 on a single-purpose bonkers lens that they might use for one project and then move on. Those people are not interested in saving a few hundred dollars, they just need a tool that will achieve their vision for the minimum of time and effort...and that is not Pentax. They want a big-three and be done with it - knowing that whatever they want to do, there will be a suitable tool available for their system, from stock, today.

The good news is that Pentax people still exist. I think that there are a lot more potential Pentax people out there with Canikon + Kit Lens combos round their neck that would be very happy with a Pentax and some change, if they had known it existed.

[Trickortreat]

The good news is that Pentax people still exist. I think that there are a lot more potential Pentax people out there with Canikon + Kit Lens combos round their neck that would be very happy with a Pentax and some change, if they had known it existed.

Yes but are also the existing Pentax users that for various reasons would go Nikon/Canon/Sony/Fuji or whatever…
Pentax is niche because of previous business models of its parent companies forced it to be there.

[ehrwien]

The market for third-party K-mount is smaller still, since most folks will buy a Pentax branded lens if one is available in their required focal lengths.

I wouldn't be so sure there... sure, most people with a DSLR will not buy more than the kit lens(es), but I guess that statistic is probably skewed a little towards Canikon people, just because most of the entry level cameras sold will have been from either of those (I think the statement about people not buying much more than the kit lens is from a time when Sony hadn't caught up to the top). People who buy an entry level Pentax do so out of a variety of reasons, but I think most will do so because of value per dollar (ruggedness/WR being just one of the valued features). Just looking at perceived value per dollar from a beginner's perspective, quite some third party lenses will be ahead of original Pentax lenses.

[stevebrot]

If a Pentax chief asked Ricoh to buy Sigma outright as a company, the board would say they already own one business in a declining market, they certainly don't want two.

So true...don't know whether to cry or grin. This may explain why the release of the new 70-210/4 and D FA* 85/1.4 has been delayed.


Steve

[stevebrot]

The market for third-party K-mount is smaller still, since most folks will buy a Pentax branded lens if one is available in their required focal lengths.

Strangely, this tends to be true despite attractive (may I suggest better?) options from third-party vendors at similar price points. I won't give examples except to say that I own one.


Steve

[RonHendriks1966]

Of course. If you can't sell the last ones after many years you have to aak the board permission to incur a writedown.

I have never seen the 50-100mm for K-mount (wich came in 2016).

All other lenses are from 2013 or older. You think they never made a new batch of any of those lenses since then?

I find that hard to believe, but we don't know.

[BigMackCam]

Strangely, this tends to be true despite attractive (may I suggest better?) options from third-party vendors at similar price points. I won't give examples except to say that I own one.

I'm a fan of third party lenses, but I know numerous folks that will only buy OEM.

Honestly, I haven't had great luck with earlier Tamron models (all bought brand new) so far as quality control and calibration tolerances are concerned... Enough to suggest (to me, at least) that its earlier production methods weren't as precise and consistent as OEM - possibly because film photographers weren't pixel-peeping like we digital folk. But once I've had them sorted by the service centre, they've been great. My K-mount 28-75 f/2.8 is probably my all-round favourite and most-used lenses on APS-C, for its combination of constant aperture, decent performance, nice rendering, light weight and compact dimensions. And on A-mount, I really like the Tamron 90 f/2.8 Macro. The 150-600 (1st gen) is extremely good considering the price... and my 70-200 f/2.8 USM (also 1st gen) is simply outstanding in every respect - a phenomenal lens. Tamron has upped its game hugely in recent years.

With Sigma, I've had no such problems... my K-mount 17-50 f/2.8 is optically excellent and serves me well, while the somewhat-maligned 30 f/1.4 Art has become possibly my favourite K-mount APS-C prime in terms of rendering character. The AF motors in both are fantastic. Same with the 18-300, which is - IMHO - far better optically than the Pentax 18-270 I previously owned. Even the cheap and cheerful A-mount 28-80mm F3.5-5.6 Aspherical I recently picked up new for pocket money is surprisingly decent optically. But I do believe Sigma's AF performance on K-mount to be a little compromised due to the reverse engineered AF protocols. I'm not unhappy with the performance, but I find it less consistent on the first AF attempt.

Even OEM lenses aren't perfect, though. I had problems with two new HD DA16-85's in succession (which led to me buying the Sigma 17-50 f/2.8), a DA*16-50 that was outside the +/-10 AF adjustment of my K-3, and a few kit-level zooms (new and used) that were de-centered. But, most of the Pentax lenses I've bought have been perfect...

[disconnekt]

As someone who shoots Sony A-mount (with my Hasselblad HV), I can honestly say that it's in a very similar position to K-mount, but even worse. On one hand, it does have a few lenses that are currently missing from the Pentax line-up - specifcally, fast, high quality 24mm, 35mm and 85mm primes. But, so far as I can tell, no new lenses are being developed by either Sony or third parties (LensBaby, btw, no longer offers A-mount - I am, as you might guess, crestfallen )... It seems to be a case of selling off existing stocks. Of course, there's all the vintage Minolta AF glass to choose from, but I'm not all that impressed by much of it (there are some gems, but not that many). Thankfully, I'm more or less kitted out with the lenses I need, so it's not a problem...

$ony's A-mount is pretty much dead in the water (they just wont say it), since they're pretty much dumping all their money into their E-mount lenses & various mirrorless camera's.

[BigMackCam]

$ony's A-mount is pretty much dead in the water (they just wont say it), since they're pretty much dumping all their money into their E-mount lenses & various mirrorless camera's.

The death of A-mount has been the worst kept secret for years Even when I bought my HV (back in early 2016, I think?), most folks thought the mount was finished, and they were basically correct. The A99 MkII was the A-mount's "Last Hurrah!", IMHO.

It's a shame, really, as the later SLT cameras were actually very good, let down only by the loss of light due to the semi-translucent mirror. AF performance from the dedicated off-sensor phase detect system on my HV is stunningly good...

[clackers]

I have never seen the 50-100mm for K-mount (wich came in 2016).



All other lenses are from 2013 or older. You think they never made a new batch of any of those lenses since then?



I find that hard to believe, but we don't know.

I can't prove it.

But I think it's true.

My guess is if you buy one of the remaining models they have to wipe a thick layer of dust off the box.