[bspn]

Nope!!! No way, no how.

When first announced for special order the Japan market, I posted that I want one, so now that it's available from Pentax US, I just ordered one. Only wish I could have got the black lens with it, too.

[gatorguy]

Jet black camera would change the light falling on the subject if Jet black camera shape doesn't emit the same light as in absence of camera and photographer, a phenomenon also known as the observer effect (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observer_effect_(physics)).
If you want to photograph a subject as the subject is when you are not there, you need to paint the camera and yourself with the same color as the surroundings (which could be funny).

---------- Post added 22-09-22 at 17:25 ----------


He would have bought the camera incognito, also known as the furtive customer problem.

I use black draping in my studio specifically to avoid extraneous reflected light which can lead to color casts. Non-glossy black absorbs light rather than adding color to a scene as I would guess you already knew but hadn't considered. A "Lord Vader" camera body would avoid contributing to that observer effect you mention as far as the camera body itself is concerned, correct?

At the same time thanks for posting the link to an explanation of the observer effect.

[biz-engineer]

Non-glossy black absorbs light rather than adding color to a scene as I would guess you already knew but hadn't considered.

I once shot my x-rite color passport, white balance side, to set a manual white balance for the camera, while wearing a red jacket. I had some doubts, so I took off my jacket and shot the white balance card again. And I could confirm on computer that the light bouncing off my jacket was enough to skew the while balance metering. Something to be aware of.

[gatorguy]

I once shot my x-rite color passport, white balance side, to set a manual white balance for the camera, while wearing a red jacket. I had some doubts, so I took off my jacket and shot the white balance card again. And I could confirm on computer that the light bouncing off my jacket was enough to skew the while balance metering. Something to be aware of.

Ummm... OK. that's not unexpected. Red can emit a red color cast. So can blue project a blue cast or green a green one.

It was this quote of yours I was questioning the accuracy of: "Jet black camera would change the light falling on the subject if Jet black camera shape doesn't emit the same light as in absence of camera and photographer..."

So how does the color emitted by a jet black camera effect the white balance? Black reflects what?

Just pokin' at ya' Biz. We all have those duh moments.

---

Last edited by gatorguy; 09-22-2022 at 04:19 PM.

[Mistral75]

I guess you wouldn't have been in the market for this if they had decided to put it into production then.

Somebody's following TKO's Twitter account...

[JPT]

Somebody's following TKO's Twitter account...

Yes. I like TKO because he posts such a lot of random stuff about Pentax-related history and experiments. He won't post anything about future products though because he is an employee and responsible about that kind of thing.

[biz-engineer]

So how does the color emitted by a jet black camera effect the white balance? Black reflects what?

Introducing a black camera creates a shadow that wasn't there before you introduced the black camera. Sucks photons like a black hole.

[panonski]

Does it shoot in monochrome?

yes, and the Light Swords have the same "color"

[Rondec]

I wonder if they should have used the blackest paint out there. Not quite as black as Vantablack, but that requires nanotubes to work and I doubt it would work on a camera shell.

Stuart Semple launches Black 3.0 to "obliterate" Anish Kapoor's Vantablack

[StiffLegged]

Introducing a black camera creates a shadow that wasn't there before you introduced the black camera. Sucks photons like a black hole.

I’m sure we all make sucky photos from time to time, regardless of the camera’s colour.

[texandrews]

Introducing a black camera creates a shadow that wasn't there before you introduced the black camera. Sucks photons like a black hole.

In all of my critical color work at a museum doing color critical fine arts repro photography, I have never encountered such a problem. This is with draped and taped cameras...

[biz-engineer]

In all of my critical color work at a museum doing color critical fine arts repro photography, I have never encountered such a problem. This is with draped and taped cameras...

That's normal because you made sure active lighting is dominant source of light, and mat black camera would bounce that light as little as possible, minimizing observer effect. Everything being relative.

[gatorguy]

That's normal because you made sure active lighting is dominant source of light, and mat black camera would bounce that light as little as possible, minimizing observer effect. Everything being relative.

LOL! That's our BizEngineer. Of course you were right all along.

Gotta love ya buddy.

[bspn]

Pentax K3iii Jet Black body arrived today, bw shot with K3iii and K1 in background. Guess it's time to part with my original K3 that I used take this picture... but that one does have the pop-up flash, GPS... Saw someone ask, the Jet Black version has the same hot shoe cover as my black K3iii.

[texandrews]

Yeah,

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