[BigMackCam]

An interesting thing happended to me today...

One of our members posted in the Pentax "Price Watch" forum regarding a truly excellent price on a new Pentax K-1 with two years warranty from one of the UK's most reputable suppliers.

Now, I could actually afford to buy this camera. It would be a big purchase for me, as I've limited funds and can't just buy whatever I fancy all of the time... but I could afford it. And there's no doubt that I'd love to own the K-1. I have other (to some extent, lesser) full frame digital cameras - my much-loved (Sony A99-based) Hasselblad HV, and my Sony A7 MkII, both with 24MP sensors and both excellent cameras (if not beloved of members here) - but Pentax is my favourite and main brand... the one I enjoy shooting most. So a 36MP full frame K-1 would be a welcome and fitting addition to my kit. And I could offset the cost of it by selling lesser-used equipment - surplus lenses, for example - and other non-photography-related items that I'm just not using.

I was really very tempted to take advantage of this excellent deal on the K-1... but I didn't, and that's the interesting part...

In thinking about this potential purchase, I've finally and unambiguously confirmed something I've suspected for some time... and that is, I'm actually happy with the gear I already own and I don't need, or even want, more.

Now, I'm far from "making do"... I'm fortunate enough to own a wide range of equipment, both old and somewhat new(er). The most recent camera I own is the excellent K-3II (bought new, my copy is lightly and only occasionally used); my main day-to-day do-it-all camera is the K-3; plus, I have my full frame Sony gear which I really enjoy, none of which is more than five years old right now. I also have my much loved pair of "K10D" Samsung GX-10s, a "*ist DL2" Samsung GX-1L, and a Pentax *ist DL. And I have lenses for all - several, quite excellent - that cover most eventualities.

The older cameras I've mentioned, it seems, are quite key to my post. I love shooting my K-3, and I'm well aware of the benefits it offers in general performance and high ISO image quality. If I need to shoot at ISO 800 and above, the K-3 is my camera of choice. But, the rest of the time, I prefer to shoot one of my old GX-10s, because I enjoy the relative simplicity of operation and I love the image quality within the confines of my requirements and expectations. I have a few A-mount lenses that, with my full frame Sony gear, allow me to achieve better subject separation at certain fields of view than I could produce with my APS-C Pentax gear, but otherwise, I get much the same utility and satisfaction from all of my gear.

I'm not a professional photographer, nor even an especially demanding amateur. I shoot a wide range of subjects and styles covering most non-specialist interests. I capture raw exclusively and process the files in a number of different applications, such that I'm no longer tied to, or dependent upon, any one piece of software - and I'm reasonably capable with each of them. My photos are processed to look good on colour-managed displays up to 24", and I have a few wall-mounted prints (just three, currently, but I may add to that over time). Nothing that I view on my screens, or have printed for wall mounting, is significantly limited (to my eyes, admittedly) by the equipment I use.

And so, that K-1 will stay on the supplier's shelf until some other lucky photographer decides to buy it I hope it's someone from these forums, and I hope they'll tell us all about it and show us wonderful photographs taken with it. But it won't, alas, be me - however much I may like the idea of owning such a wonderful camera.

I know there are many, many photographers here with genuinely greater demands and requirements (or, simply, deeper pockets ) than mine - and for them, I can of course see the benefit of newer, better, larger format equipment. But I wonder what proportion of our membership (and the wider market) that is, and how many more are - whether they realise it or not - like me, already served so very well by their existing gear that "upgrading" simply isn't necessary or justifiable...

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Last edited by BigMackCam; 07-28-2019 at 02:48 AM.

[Wheatfield]

I’m so disappointed with you.....

[Larrymc]

An interesting thing happended to me today...

One of our members posted in the Pentax "Price Watch" forum regarding a truly excellent price on a new Pentax K-1 with two years warranty from one of the UK's most reputable suppliers.

Now, I could actually afford to buy this camera. It would be a big purchase for me, as I've limited funds and can't just buy whatever I fancy all of the time... but I could afford it. And there's no doubt that I'd love to own the K-1. I have other (to some extent, lesser) full frame digital cameras - my much-loved (Sony A99-based) Hasselblad HV, and my Sony A7 MkII, both with 24MP sensors and excellent (if not beloved of members here) - but Pentax is my favourite and main brand... the one I enjoy shooting most. So a 36MP full frame K-1 would be a welcome and fitting addition to my kit. And I could offset the cost of it by selling lesser-used equipment - surplus lenses, for example - and other non-photography-related items that I'm just not using.

I was really very tempted to take advantage of this excellent deal on the K-1... but I didn't, and that's the interesting part...

In thinking about this potential purchase, I've finally and unambiguously confirmed something I've suspected for some time... and that is, I'm actually happy with the gear I already own and I don't need, or even want, more.

Now, I'm far from "making do"... I'm fortunate enough to own a wide range of equipment, both old and somewhat new(er). The most recent camera I own is the excellent K-3II (bought new, my copy is lightly and only occasionally used); my main day-to-day do-it-all camera is the K-3; plus, I have my full frame Sony gear which I really enjoy, none of which is more than five years old right now. I also have my much loved pair of "K10D" Samsung GX-10s, a "*ist DL2" Samsung GX-1L, and a Pentax *ist DL. And I have lenses for all - several, quite excellent - that cover most eventualities.

The older cameras I've mentioned, it seems, are quite key to my post. I love shooting my K-3, and I'm well aware of the benefits it offers in general performance and high ISO image quality. If I need to shoot at ISO 800 and above, the K-3 is my camera of choice. But, the rest of the time, I prefer to shoot one of my old GX-10s, because I enjoy the relative simplicity of operation and I love the image quality within the confines of my requirements and expectations. I have a few A-mount lenses that, with my full frame Sony gear, allow me to achieve better subject separation at certain fields of view that I couldn't get with my APS-C Pentax gear, but otherwise, I get much the same utility and satisfaction from all of my gear.

I'm not a professional photographer, nor even an especially demanding amateur. I shoot a wide range of subjects and styles covering most non-specialist interests. I capture raw exclusively and process the files in a number of different applications, such that I'm no longer tied to, or dependent upon, any one piece of software - and I'm reasonably capable with each of them. My photos are processed to look good on colour-managed displays up to 24", and I have a few wall-mounted prints (just three, currently, but I may add to that over time). Nothing that I view on my screens, or have printed for wall mounting, is significantly limited (to my eyes, admittedly) by the equipment I use.

And so, that K-1 will stay on the supplier's shelf until some other lucky photographer decides to buy it. I hope it's someone from these forums, and I hope they'll tell us all about it and show us wonderful photographs taken with it. But it won't, alas, be me - however much I may like the idea of owning such a wonderful camera.

I know there are many, many photographers here with genuinely greater demands and requirements (or, simply, deeper pockets ) than mine - and for them, I can of course see the benefit of newer, better, larger format equipment. But I wonder what proportion that is, and how many more are - whether they realise it or not - like me... already served so very well by their existing gear that "upgrading" simply isn't necessary or justifiable - at present...

Now we know who to blame......Yep you're the one.

[Sandy Hancock]

I've finally and unambiguously confirmed something I've suspected for some time... and that is, I'm actually happy with the gear I already own and I don't need, or even want, more.

That's just crazy talk Mike. Get help.

[Wheatfield]

That's just crazy talk Mike. Get help.

^^^^^^^^this^^^^^^^^

[thazooo]

I'll agree with you I'm Multi Branded also , Pentax, m4/3, Sigma ; I've got more choice than I need and haven't seen anything 'New' that's an improvement.

[c.a.m]

I wonder what proportion of our membership (and the wider market) that is, and how many more are - whether they realise it or not - like me, already served so very well by their existing gear that "upgrading" simply isn't necessary or justifiable...

I might also be a reason for the declining sales. Your thoughtful post resonates with my own perspective.

I've been taking a local summer photography course entitled Beyond the Basics. We're a small group of four students, so there is plenty of time to share and discuss our selected pictures each week. Our gear is varied: my K-3 II and DA Limited lenses; a fairly recent Olympus MILC; a Nikon D40; and a new Canon Rebel T6i. The instructor uses a recent Nikon APS-C and also a Sigma Merrill DP-something. And guess what? All of the images that we've presented appear to reflect our skills -- or lack of skills -- not the vintage, format or performance of the gear. All of our cameras are capable of producing images that are commensurate with our skill levels and preferred subject matter.

The instructor's review and critique of our images has been a learning experience. He's never once reflected negatively on our respective gear -- although he can be quite direct (yet polite) on things such as choice of subject, lighting, composition and perspective, cropping, post-processing, etc. In his introductory session, he cautioned to be careful to not get caught in the upgrade 'squirrel cage'.

Like you, I've dabbled with the idea of 'upgrading' to a K-1, and I've even gone so far as costing out a Fuji MILC kit that would be equivalent to my K-3 II and select lenses. Changing to Fuji would be cost-prohibitive (e.g., plus $3-6,000 after selling the Pentax gear) for little practical gain for me in the real-world.

I find myself quite happy with my current kit. The K-3 II works well for my shooting style, and I'm blessed with sufficient lenses. The DA Limiteds and DA-stars are marvelous, and my low-cost vintage glass is fun to use. I can pack a versatile kit that is relatively lightweight and compact. I use a couple of post-processing programs that allow me to tease out pretty good results from high-iso (3200-6400) shots.

As the course instructor gently implies, it's not my gear that is the limiting element.

- Craig

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Last edited by c.a.m; 07-27-2019 at 07:52 PM.

[stevebrot]

All of us Luddites who continue to use vintage gear and who actually put many tens of thousands of exposures on our cameras are to blame. It is a shameful thing for me to admit that I have contributed less than $3500 to the sellers of new Pentax-brand product since Spring of 2007. Even adding in non-Pentax lenses purchased new, my additional contribution is less than $1000 more.

One of my friends, a more responsible photographer, has enriched Canon and, more recently, Panasonic tens of thousands of dollars during the same period of time with the outlay being funded by sale of cards and prints and senior portfolios. If I were more forthright in marketing my output, I too might be a productive member of the photographic fraternity, but instead I feed from discards and create only for myself.


Steve

[LaurenOE]

Well...the folks that don't spend money on cameras, and Pentax ones, must be doing something right because folks like me...who spend THOUSANDS each year, and do it professionally...can't seem to get Pentax/Ricoh to give me a camera with decent video! I've asked and waited and can show how much I have in Sony gear...but folks that don't spend money must have a magic about them, since Pentax/Ricoh ignore me.

[biz-engineer]

.can't seem to get Pentax/Ricoh to give me a camera with decent video!

That (video), I think is a distraction for camera/sensor makers to deliver on the photography side.

Sometimes, I feel like I don't need anything more than what I have. But other times I find digital cameras rather clunky, half finished devices in general (all brands), that would have a lot of room for improvements. Nearly every digital camera is designed in Japan/Tokyo area, so except the overpriced Leica, the Japanese own the market and impose their design approach/style to the rest of the world. We would need some non Japanese startups to challenge camera designs. Just looking at Sony MILC cameras, their design is a shame, and digital sensors are still no match for analog, and camera software implementations are mostly unfinished always with some issues. Just look at pixel shift: software processing is almost left open to do by customers, and foveon technology seems to have been a lab experiment. So, am I in hurry to buy yet another cameras that will give me images like 99% of what I currently get: digital look of images.

---------- Post added 28-07-19 at 08:11 ----------

I can already predict what the next camera model is going to be like:
- designed in Japan by the sames camera designers who study design from the same schools in Tokyo
- produced in the Philippines, China, Vietnam or Malaysia
- color will be black
- outer layer of the camera will be synthetic rubber
- sensor will be 14bit Bayer type RGB from Sony
- sensor will eventually have more megapixels (more = better right?)
- auto-focus will have more focus points (more = better right?)
- it'll have a 3" or 3.2" display
- firmware will have bugs, camera freezing at times
- bugs will be solved by multiple firmware updates
- some bugs will never be fixed because no time left while designing the next model (same design style again).
- and it's cost only a few thousands $

It's been a while that digital camera do the exact same thing, except doing it faster and/or with more megapixels and more AF points. The new thing is video recording seems to be the future of still cameras. In the same way, will farming be the future of cars? I hope not.

[jimr-pdx]

My last new camera was a Lumix G85 that I owned for less than 4 months. I found it too complex for me as its new 4k and other features were not getting used & its ergonomics sounded ideal ..but somehow weren't. After drifting past a used gx85 for even less time I find myself back with a used K-5. For me it's a combination of simplicity, budget, K-lenses in hand and life circumstances that divert my time/energy elsewhere. I too would enjoy a K-1 but other than joy of ownership little would change. I believe my imaging results would not make any great leaps that better aps.c lenses and more shooting time would not also provide.

You won't hear me say I'm happy with my gear though: I have said that aloud twice and within 3 months got back on the merry-go-round for what must have been good reasons at the time.
Or not

[Rondec]

You're probably right, Mike.

I would say that while people may not be totally satisfied with their current cameras, they aren't "dissatisfied enough" to want to buy something new. There will probably always be wealthy amateurs who can buy whatever pops into their heads to buy, but for the rest of us, a new camera isn't just a whim purchase.

At the same time, Pentax hasn't released a whole lot of new gear lately (I don't count selfie sticks and camera wraps) and that makes it less hard to avoid buying new k mount gear.

[ffking]

I had to buy a few new lenses when I got the K-1 - the old FF lenses I had have had hard use and didn't cover the hole range of needs as I used 35mm mostly for wildlife and MF for the rest. Since I got up to speed (with the help of a bequest), I've really felt no need for anything else most of the time (perhaps a modern macro for the K-3 as mine has AF issues and a 150-450 for wildlife, also on the K-3). I definitely belong to the camp that says that spare photography money is best spent going new places and doing new things - it's the inspiration to take more and different pictures that most of us need far more than more megapixels or AF points

[Rondec]

The two lenses I'm looking for from a full frame standpoint are the DFA *85 and a DA 15 limited substitute (20-ish mm f2.8-4 prime with excellent flare control). Do I need those? Probably not. I have the FA 77 which is excellent, but suffers from pretty bad purple fringing at times and the DFA 15-30 which is also excellent, but quite large. Those will cover my needs till Pentax releases new gear. But maybe Pentax is just looking out for my family's finances by not releasing too much gear, too often.

Pentax, helping families balance their budgets since 2016.

[iheiramo]

Now we know who to blame......Yep you're the one.

Yes yes, everyone blame BigMackCam and don't look at me. After all I've already put 2500€ to new Pentax gear in my lifetime

For last 3 months I've been completely happy with what I've got and haven't felt any pressure get more stuff. I've even given up on following local used gear sale channels.