1.
Quote: Stopped at the Sigma booth at the PPA convention in Nashville TN last month and asked about any plans for more Art lenses to fit my K1. He was quite blunt
If you spent anytime reading the forum you wouldn't have wasted your time.
2.
Quote: Tamron has stopped as well.
Tamron is licensing lenses to Pentax.
3.
Quote: Economies of scale dictate that according to market share it isn't wise to shift focus away from the strongest brands.
That's nonsense. If you don't see the results of economies of scale on the sticker price, they mean nothing to you. What he's saying is buy the brands we (Sigma) makes lenses for so we can make money. That's nothing more than a sales pitch.
If I'd been there i would have brought my Sigma 18-250 put his hands and said "I paid $400 for this lens, it worked correctly for 18 months was sent to fix the decentering and then returned no better than it was when I sent it in, and you didn't even acknowledge my request for it to be repaired,nor did you even mention the images I sent you showing how inoperable the lens was. WTF is wrong with you people?" $275 a year to own a lens is the most I've ever paid for a lens. Even my most expensive glass is cheaper than that." I paid $1200 for my DA* 60-250 almost 10 years ago and it's still going and it's less than half the cost per year of the Sigma 18-250. And you are taking advice from that guy?
4.
Quote: It was disappointing that my gear wasn't even an afterthought with thousands of photographers crowding the aisles of the trade show floor.
You were looking for Pentax, how do you know no one else was?
You're getting into some serious hyperbole here.
5.
Quote: They could talk your ears off about their Sony or Canon or how they switched to mirrorless APS-C cameras. Fuji had their impressive array of medium format cameras on display...priced similarly to the Pentax stalwart 645Z. I just feel like Ricoh needs to crap or get off the pot. I actually started researching what it would take to switch to another system.
Yawn, that is so 10 years ago. All these people saying what Pentax has to do, Pentax doesn't do it, they cut back even more to fit the downturn in the camera industry and then just keep rolling along. Everyone can talk your ears off
about their camera. Why would you care if they can't talk their ears off about yours. (My apologies if you're newbie looking for advice. In that case, buy what you friends use.)
Quote: If they aren't going to support me ....
Go take some pictures.
If there is something you want that Pentax doesn't make, for sure switch brands, no one has an issue with that.
But if you want to take advice from Pentax's competitors (1.) choose to ignore the relationship between Tamron and Pentax (2.)
Want to use a brand which spends lots of money on advertising, which you ultimately pay for "As a side note, Pentax/Ricoh products and or accessories had no place at the convention."
Swallow the sales pitches of competitors hook line and sinker. (3.)
Want to be seen using the same brands as everyone else so you can feel part of crowd. (4.)
Or are waiting for Pentax to be "not Pentax" , ("I just feel like Ricoh needs to crap or get off the pot."
And it looks like you fall into all those categories, Pentax isn't for you. One of the characteristics of modern Pentax users is, they ignore the squawking of the unwashed hoards, and just keep shooting.
For myself, I won't be switching until I need to do something my Pentax's won't do. I don't care which way the rest of the world is going, if I can get top quality results from my gear, and I have what I want, everything you point to is fluff. Perhaps in your case, there's something you want that isn't available in Pentax and you're missing shots because of it. Then switch. It's not rocket science, but we've been reading posts like this for years, even the sales pitch of the Sigma rep pretending to be your friend.
But, if you are a a guy who thinks he's safer in the middle of the herd, Pentax isn't for you. I consider that a social issue, not a camera issue.
All of my Pentax gear bought over the last 10 years still does what I bought it to do. And so far I've found everything I was looking for. If you can't find what you're looking for, switching may solve your problem, it may also create new problems you didn't anticipate. We've had a few switchers return after a few years with other systems. I bet the Sigma guy didn't tell you that.
Seriously, you walked into a Ford dealership and asked what they think of GM.
I guess it never occurred that other Pentax users might have stayed away, just because there was no Pentax booth? Personally I look for the Pentax booth, before I attend.