[TomB_tx]

I agree, I much prefer it to my K-7 . The main problem for people on the PENTAX full frame forum with the 12,24 and 36mp A7's is that it does not say PENTAX.

Agreed. My collection of SMC-M lenses are great on my A7 - I doubt if I would bother with a FF Pentax now if they came out with one.

[rawr]

The main problem for people on the PENTAX full frame forum with the 12,24 and 36mp A7's is that it does not say PENTAX.

And they don't autofocus my K-mount lenses. I have several Sony's already (NEX-F3, RX-100) so don't have any problem with Sony per se. But the A7 family is simply not a full substitute for a Pentax FF.

The A7 family also don't work well for NEX users wanting to upgrade either, for that matter. My existing Sigma and Sony NEX lenses would vignette horribly on a A7. The A7 series isn't a miracle gift from God that cures all camera problems.

[clackers]

You could mount your Pentax glass on NEX easily enough before, of course, but the A7 family adds Pentax lens friendly options with FF sensor performance.

What's been changed to make a difference, Rawr? It uses the same adapter as I use now on the NEX7, AFAIK.

[rawr]

What's been changed to make a difference

Nothing, except the sensor. The PK-NEX adapters around eBay and everywhere else are 'full-frame' already, of course.

The 'Pentax lens friendly options' I mentioned was just a comment for those who may not already have experience with NEX and Pentax. It just refers to the relative ease of using Pentax lenses on the A7's due to the lack of a requirement for adapters with correction lenses in them with Pentax glass (compared to some other mounts), and how stuff like focus peaking and continuous exposure metering makes using even fully manual glass quite tolerable on NEX and the new A7's.

[philbaum]

Best to get over it I've had OCD for nearly all my adult life anyway and frankly I don't give much of a d about it anymore. In the meantime, has anyone seen this article? It makes me wonder whether the issue here is that the K-mount is really two mounts now, on the basis that the market may be bifurcating a bit. The majority of FF may likely stay as traditional mirror and, for now, OVF because it is controlled by Canon and Nikon who have a huge advantage in their installed base of lenses (i.e. mounts); APS-C or smaller sensors could be moving towards mirrorless. This poses one for Ricoh: if they make a serious go into mirrorless, which is the better long-term bet for their business: APS-C and/or smaller, or FF?

Thanks for sharing the article, its the best one i've read on the issue facing Canikon and Pentax. written back in Nov 2013, still spot on. Although there will probably be niche areas for some time, the interesting question is where the majority of sales will move to, both in aps and FF.

[Big Dave]

I think I might like and EVF with a sensor twice the size of a 645, and a 4x5 inch screen, for live view, and about 100 Mp, but I sure wouldn't want to pay for it at today's prices.

You would need a car battery to run it.

---------- Post added 07-17-14 at 02:42 AM ----------

And they don't autofocus my K-mount lenses. I have several Sony's already (NEX-F3, RX-100) so don't have any problem with Sony per se. But the A7 family is simply not a full substitute for a Pentax FF.

The A7 family also don't work well for NEX users wanting to upgrade either, for that matter. My existing Sigma and Sony NEX lenses would vignette horribly on a A7. The A7 series isn't a miracle gift from God that cures all camera problems.

The A7 does asp-c crop automatically or you can override it to use FF. I use my DA 16-45 on my A7 in FF mode with fantastic results from 20-45mm. It fives me an extra ten degrees horizontal view. You need an adapter with aperture control for DA lenses though. You really have to use one to know its capabilities as with any thing as complicated as a digital camera. The DA 55-300 is a FF lens from 55-300. Surprise.

---------- Post added 07-17-14 at 02:58 AM ----------

A The A7 series isn't a miracle gift from God that cures all camera problems.

The A7 is the most versatile camera to come along in decades. It breaks all of the rules of the old school camera manufacturers. It is hi-res FF and you can mount any lens made on it. Totally manual lenses are easier to use then they where on the original cameras. It does have a few weaknesses, such as a short battery life,less then ideal ergonomics and limited/expensive native lens selection, but it exists, unlike the Pentax FF which is only an idea.

[Poit]

Best to get over it I've had OCD for nearly all my adult life anyway and frankly I don't give much of a d about it anymore. In the meantime, has anyone seen this article? It makes me wonder whether the issue here is that the K-mount is really two mounts now, on the basis that the market may be bifurcating a bit. The majority of FF may likely stay as traditional mirror and, for now, OVF because it is controlled by Canon and Nikon who have a huge advantage in their installed base of lenses (i.e. mounts); APS-C or smaller sensors could be moving towards mirrorless. This poses one for Ricoh: if they make a serious go into mirrorless, which is the better long-term bet for their business: APS-C and/or smaller, or FF?

Interesting article. It actually makes me wonder if the advance of mirrorless technology is the reason for Pentax's hesitation in releasing a FF.

Why invest loads in development of lenses etc etc if the technological way of the future is mirrorless? They probably can't afford to develop two new ranges in parallel, so which one do they go with? Having read the article, I now understand why the real opportunity for innovation and breaking new ground is with mirrorless.

Maybe they are waiting for the right time to release a mirrorless FF (and still be taken seriously).....

[rawr]

The DA 55-300 is a FF lens from 55-300. Surprise

That's very good to hear, but a little surprising if it is fully OK wide-open, and from 55mm onwards:
DA lens on Full Frame: Test Shots thread
specifically:
http://vjacesslav.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/smc-pentax-da-55-300mm-f4-56-vs-full.html

[Clavius]

Interesting article. It actually makes me wonder if the advance of mirrorless technology is the reason for Pentax's hesitation in releasing a FF.

Why invest loads in development of lenses etc etc if the technological way of the future is mirrorless? They probably can't afford to develop two new ranges in parallel, so which one do they go with? Having read the article, I now understand why the real opportunity for innovation and breaking new ground is with mirrorless.

Maybe they are waiting for the right time to release a mirrorless FF (and still be taken seriously).....

You are 100% correct, I think. An autofocus adapter would ensure backwards compatibility with older lenses and earn them some money to boot. Win/win. They can do that now. They could have done that years ago. Why wait? They might realise exactly how their old fashioned current userbase would react to such innovation. They have to wait for their userbase to catch up first. So yes, untill the time is right.

[clackers]

It does have a few weaknesses, such as a short battery life,less then ideal ergonomics and limited/expensive native lens selection, but it exists, unlike the Pentax FF which is only an idea.

Dave, you're forgetting to mention the Sony turns all your Pentax glass into manual focus, manual aperture - whether they were to begin with, or not.

The A7 isn't a replacement for a Pentax FF.

[jogiba]

Dave, you're forgetting to mention the Sony turns all your Pentax glass into manual focus, manual aperture - whether they were to begin with, or not.

The A7 isn't a replacement for a Pentax FF.

What Pentax FF ?

[Kunzite]

Interesting article. It actually makes me wonder if the advance of mirrorless technology is the reason for Pentax's hesitation in releasing a FF.

That's a nice example of bias.

[philbaum]

The ironic situation is that those companies that don't have legacy lenses to support, have an advantageous reason to get a FF mirrorless camera out there. I'm thinking of Fuji and Samsung. Not sure if Sony would sell FF sensors to Samsung, or whether Samsung is in a position to make a FF sensor of their own.

While other manufacturers keep mulling this over, Sony keeps refining their products, like the AF on the A6000. There's a term for this: "Analysis paralysis" Rather than make no decision on FF mirrorless, i would think larger companies, like Nikon and Canon, could produce at least one FF mirrorless, along with their numerous OVF FF, and let the customers decide which they want to buy. I think its called capitalism Let the market decide.

[lytrytyr]

In the meantime, has anyone seen this article?

For a Pentaxian, perhaps the most amusing feature of the article
is item 2 in "Nikon's Mirrorless Future" on "DX", i.e., APS-C:

"Keep the F mount, but get rid of the mirror"

In other words, the author is suggesting that Nikon should make a K-01!

[And my apologies for talking about APS-C in a Full Frame thread. ]

[philbaum]

For a Pentaxian, perhaps the most amusing feature of the article
is item 2 in "Nikon's Mirrorless Future" on "DX", i.e., APS-C:

"Keep the F mount, but get rid of the mirror"

In other words, the author is suggesting that Nikon should make a K-01!

[And my apologies for talking about APS-C in a Full Frame thread. ]

Thats an astute observation. I can imagine the ads from Canikon - "We made our cameras better by throwing unneeded parts out"

This would make a great play