[gofour3]

The design of the RZ67 is basically like taking a cinder block and mounting a 2 lbs lens on to it. If there was ever a camera that said don't touch me, this was it! I have never had the desire to use it because of it being so heavy (13 lbs)

The manual indicates the Mamiya RZ67 and the 110mm f2.8 lens weight 2.4kg or 5lbs 5oz. That's a long way from 13-15 lbs.

Phil.

[justinr]

Exactly, and by the way the D3X is a 24.5 megapixel camera, not a 12 megapixel like a D3.

The post had good points and the nasty response from normhead was rude at best considering the justinr was simply explaining why he switched to FF.

Thank you ennacac, and to be honest it's not the first time that less than considered responses have been posted against those who are thought to have stepped out of the box to comment upon Pentax from a less than slavishly devout angle.

What I find frustrating is that the company is capable of doing so much more than it does now but they seem almost scared of challenging the current hegemony in the market. My first digital was the ist and what a brilliant little camera that was for its size and cost, yet even then Pentax didn't really go anywhere with their range so I bought into Canon but soon concluded they were better at selling cameras than making them. Back then to the K10 followed by the K5 but the K3 was little more than an update it seems and Pentax didn't seem at all interested in looking after their dealers here.

The D3 has many advantages, the chief of which is that it has a large comfort zone, it's not easily flummoxed by weird or poor lighting and holds the image together well in tricky conditions. I'm not a pro photographer as such but most of my photography is done on a pro basis so I need something that can be relied upon to get it right first time and without fuss. Maybe the K3 does this as competently as the Nikon, alas, Pentax didn't seem at all interested in letting me find out.

Here's a sequence taken with the K5 - www.inkplusimages.com

[PJay]

Or maybe the camera just sucks.

No..he's a hobbyist and probably has no need for a FF. Bit like he no longer has the need for a DA*50-135 and is now looking for a 'Tammy 70-200'.

[Lurch]

Wow - 4 pages??
Teaches me for starting a FF thread on PF...

If anyone is interested, I love the K3 and have zero regrets.
And the Tamron is fantastic too...

[raphtze]

hehe the only thing holding me back from a nikon FF.......is $$$. to be honest if pentax released a camera today, i'd be hard pressed to even justify buying that. my K-5 has been serving me quite well since i got it (a replacement since the first one i got had the dreaded spots). i'm no means a pro...i just like taking pics. also in my bag is a D200 generously gifted to me from my boss when his wife switched to the D7000. i use it every now and then, even using it with my FGZ 540 (in A mode, and the D200 in manual). works quite well. nikon capture nx2 software is so much easier to use than the silkypix.....but i'm sure y'all mostly use lightroom.

one thing i absolutely love about shooting with a nikon.......their creative lighting system. CLS is just really fool proof lighting. used my D200 with a SB-800 awhile ago for a birthday party for my friend, and all i did was just snap away. it really amounted to point-n-shoot--but with continuous AF, hi-speed shooting and the fantastic CLS. my wife used that to help me (i of course shot with the K-5 and 540).

kinda tangential...if and when i do switch to full frame, my computer will be ready. just got the following: 960gb SSD, core i7-4930K, 32Gb of ram hehe.

[justinr]

I had a reader of this thread PM me the other day to which I replied but I'm not at all sure that he got it as my sent box remains empty. I can be contacted via my website if the system isn't working P.

Inkplusimages home page

[starjedi]

hehe the only thing holding me back from a nikon FF.......is $$$. to be honest if pentax released a camera today, i'd be hard pressed to even justify buying that. my K-5 has been serving me quite well since i got it (a replacement since the first one i got had the dreaded spots). i'm no means a pro...i just like taking pics. also in my bag is a D200 generously gifted to me from my boss when his wife switched to the D7000. i use it every now and then, even using it with my FGZ 540 (in A mode, and the D200 in manual). works quite well. nikon capture nx2 software is so much easier to use than the silkypix.....but i'm sure y'all mostly use lightroom.

one thing i absolutely love about shooting with a nikon.......their creative lighting system. CLS is just really fool proof lighting. used my D200 with a SB-800 awhile ago for a birthday party for my friend, and all i did was just snap away. it really amounted to point-n-shoot--but with continuous AF, hi-speed shooting and the fantastic CLS. my wife used that to help me (i of course shot with the K-5 and 540).

kinda tangential...if and when i do switch to full frame, my computer will be ready. just got the following: 960gb SSD, core i7-4930K, 32Gb of ram hehe.

Very interesting... Pentax K5 beats Nikon D200 from every aspect.... Do not understand why you use D200 more frequently than K-5...

[PJay]

I had a reader of this thread PM me the other day to which I replied but I'm not at all sure that he got it as my sent box remains empty. I can be contacted via my website if the system isn't working P.

Inkplusimages home page

Yep...and you know the rest.

I went and tested the K3 and about 4 different FF cameras. Instead of being one of those people bagging out Pentax for not having a FF (instead..I bagged them about a lack of TC, which has now been addressed...at double the price of Canikon/Sigma TC's!!) - I decided to purchase a FF camera.

Even just looking through the viewfinder blew me away. Using a 50mm prime that is actually a 50mm prime is amazing in my opinion.

Here's the thing, Sure...a FF costs a little more, but for a $500 difference (or less) between a K3 or a canon 6d, or Nikon d610 - all of a sudden, you're in the system and the options are LIMITLESS. It's a no brainer if you're using your kit everyday like I do. It doesn't have to be expensive as there are a multitude of 2nd hand lenses available from either the primary manufacturer or 3rd party lenses. How many times I've seen lenses not available in the Pentax mount is depressing and not only that - trying to find a stockist is like pulling teeth.

I'll be keeping my K5-ii for my kids to learn with. But as I said, rather than whinge about it...I decided to make the move. I know that someone will pick apart my comments and good luck to you. But if someone is reading this thread for the first time and they are wondering about investing in Pentax, I'd say look at what's available...is their a multitude of options...which brand provides CHOICE? That's very important and dependant on your photographic needs, Pentax choices are very limited. I hope that Pentax under Ricoh move forward, because I don't know if any of you realise this...but the younger generation of photographers know only Canon and Nikon. They will continue to be strong.

[Rondec]

Yep...and you know the rest.

I went and tested the K3 and about 4 different FF cameras. Instead of being one of those people bagging out Pentax for not having a FF (instead..I bagged them about a lack of TC, which has now been addressed...at double the price of Canikon/Sigma TC's!!) - I decided to purchase a FF camera.

Even just looking through the viewfinder blew me away. Using a 50mm prime that is actually a 50mm prime is amazing in my opinion.

Here's the thing, Sure...a FF costs a little more, but for a $500 difference (or less) between a K3 or a canon 6d, or Nikon d610 - all of a sudden, you're in the system and the options are LIMITLESS. It's a no brainer if you're using your kit everyday like I do. It doesn't have to be expensive as there are a multitude of 2nd hand lenses available from either the primary manufacturer or 3rd party lenses. How many times I've seen lenses not available in the Pentax mount is depressing and not only that - trying to find a stockist is like pulling teeth.

I'll be keeping my K5-ii for my kids to learn with. But as I said, rather than whinge about it...I decided to make the move. I know that someone will pick apart my comments and good luck to you. But if someone is reading this thread for the first time and they are wondering about investing in Pentax, I'd say look at what's available...is their a multitude of options...which brand provides CHOICE? That's very important and dependant on your photographic needs, Pentax choices are very limited. I hope that Pentax under Ricoh move forward, because I don't know if any of you realise this...but the younger generation of photographers know only Canon and Nikon. They will continue to be strong.

I'm not quite sure about your prices. I looked on line and Pentax K3 is available for 1000, while I couldn't find a D610 for less than 1900. That's a little more than 500 dollars...

Anyway, good luck to you and good shooting.

[Dariusz]

Pentax choices are very limited.

Couldn't agree more - I love my limited lenses of Pentax! When it comes to those, mentioned by you, entry level full frame cameras, I, personally, wouldn't touch them with a barge pole. Equivalents to our K5/K-3 in a FF world are at least D800 or 5D, if not D4/1D series - after taking into account features like shutter speed and durability, weather sealing/used building materials (magnesium alloy), FPS or percentage of frame covered through the viewfinder. Now, there is a difference in price bigger than $500. For me, if I had a choice of top-specs/high quality half frame camera and limited/poor quality full frame one in similar prices, I would certainly go for the half frame. But it's only what I would do, others might not

[normhead]

Yep...and you know the rest.

I went and tested the K3 and about 4 different FF cameras. Instead of being one of those people bagging out Pentax for not having a FF (instead..I bagged them about a lack of TC, which has now been addressed...at double the price of Canikon/Sigma TC's!!) - I decided to purchase a FF camera.

Even just looking through the viewfinder blew me away. Using a 50mm prime that is actually a 50mm prime is amazing in my opinion.

Here's the thing, Sure...a FF costs a little more, but for a $500 difference (or less) between a K3 or a canon 6d, or Nikon d610 - all of a sudden, you're in the system and the options are LIMITLESS. It's a no brainer if you're using your kit everyday like I do. It doesn't have to be expensive as there are a multitude of 2nd hand lenses available from either the primary manufacturer or 3rd party lenses. How many times I've seen lenses not available in the Pentax mount is depressing and not only that - trying to find a stockist is like pulling teeth.

I'll be keeping my K5-ii for my kids to learn with. But as I said, rather than whinge about it...I decided to make the move. I know that someone will pick apart my comments and good luck to you. But if someone is reading this thread for the first time and they are wondering about investing in Pentax, I'd say look at what's available...is their a multitude of options...which brand provides CHOICE? That's very important and dependant on your photographic needs, Pentax choices are very limited. I hope that Pentax under Ricoh move forward, because I don't know if any of you realise this...but the younger generation of photographers know only Canon and Nikon. They will continue to be strong.

Good luck, in the future. Not listening to the advice on the forum is it's own punishment, so no need to say anymore. But good you're keeping you KIIs, if you're like many posters, you'll be using it a lot more than you think.

An FF is a great choice as a second camera... for those of us who only want to run one system, things in Pentax land are just fine.

[FrankC]

The manual indicates the Mamiya RZ67 and the 110mm f2.8 lens weight 2.4kg or 5lbs 5oz. That's a long way from 13-15 lbs.

Phil.

That is because the weight in the manual doesn't include the AE Finder, an auto winder or a film back. Additionally, I have a 150mm lens, not the 110. It doesn't even include the weight of the hood, strap or battery - but that's peanuts.

[Wired]

Even just looking through the viewfinder blew me away.

This is the greatest part of FF ownership is the view finder. The bigger brighter view finder is so much more enjoyable for composition .

I'm not so fixated on 50mm being 50mm... because I also shoot medium format (film) and a 50mm is not a 50mm on it. The compression is different, which does make a difference. But if you enjoy 50mm compression but the working distance and FOV of an 85mm lens then APS-C is a pretty good compromise. One reason I still love my K3 is the compression vs FOV. I love 50mm rendering, but don't mind the extra reach.

I think the second biggest thing about 35mm format for me is the wide angle aspect! Being able to go ultra wide is quite exciting, even though I don't do it very much, I am more of a tele guy. Hauling around a DA*50-135mm lens vs a 70-200mm f2.8 with a K3 vs a D800... yea... I'll save my back and still get awesome image quality. thanks.

[Rondec]

I really wonder what folks are shooting that the limited options of Pentax aren't adequate. Is it low light photography -- rock bands at iso 12,800? Because I have seen decent shots with Pentax gear in those situations. Is it just all narrow depth of field stuff? Is it that current lenses aren't sharp enough for what you are shooting or auto focus can't keep up?

Honestly, I don't need "limitless" lenses. I need a 15mm and a 55mm (on APS-C) or 20mm and 85mm (full frame). Even if Pentax had a 300mm f2.8 or a 600mm f4, I wouldn't be able to afford it and it would not make the least difference in my shooting. I wish people would post more photos demonstrating the improvement their photography has under gone with the transition to full frame, because I would understand it better.

[Wired]

I wish people would post more photos demonstrating the improvement their photography has under gone with the transition to full frame, because I would understand it better.

Any benefits you should see out of your 35mm camera should theoretically translate to your APSC, compact, FF, smartphone... m4/3

I've met three highly skilled photographers with m4/3 producing amazing fashion photography. They ditched FF for the weight and nimbleness they get from m4/3 and still get beautiful images.

FF is not the end all be all.it's just a different tool in the bag. Like a surgeon has many different blades... we have that option as photographers. right tool. right job. thats what it comes down too.