[Gerard_Dirks]

Hello

I am now using Pentax since 1975 as small boy. Now I have DSLR and still uses some lenses form the beginning.

When of the items that I missing is that the Management of Ricoh isn't able to find companies that support for the Pentax Brand.
Most companies like Sigma & Tamron make only very few lenses or the Pentax Series. But their is nearly enough glass on the market.

More issues I have with flashes. The Metz is the only company which support Pentax but for the 1 1/2 year old K-1 we are still not able to master/slave with only Metz flashes. I am waiting now for months but their is still no fix, because they have no K-1 in their labor (why can Ricoh can't send them a K-1). The master/slave will only work with an Pentax Flash on the top of the K-1 and the Metz run as remotes :-(

With Studio Flashes it is a really pain. It is more an "trail & error" experiment. When using triggers with only the middle contact in X-Mode (manual mode) it works, bit when the triggers has more integellience or even TTL, HSS, SuperSync it doesn't work.

So an Einstein 640 with its CyberCommander works great as stupid flash in manual mode.
But professionals want also work in HSS/SuperSync/TTL Modes
The Triggers, like Elinchrome SkyPort, Profoto AirRemote, Broncolor RFS 2.2, PocketWizard, Yongnue, Cactus can't fire any "Professional Flashes" like Elinchrome, Profoto, Hensel, Broncolor, Priolite or even the semiprofessionell, Godox and Jinbei, when connected to a K-1 or K-3.
You can only work with this equipment if you flash in manual mode. HSS & TTL you can only use with the Pentax Speedlights.

I think this is a reason that many photographer worldwide have no interest in do the swap to the K-1. Their are more issues that a professional do not want to swap from NiCan to Pentax K-1, maybe a K-1ii will better the situation but by lack of support for Professional Light Equipment most professionals will last on Nikon or Canon. For that Cameras are more then a dozen Professional tools available!

Why can't Ricoh/Pentax lobbying this Third/Party Companies? Even Sony/Fiji has done a lot of efforts to get Support for their cameras, but Pentax is one to the Brands who can't use these techniques :-(

[surfar]

Ricoh have done some "bad" marketing?...hey its at least a start!

I'd suggest contacting them directly,maybe that will prompt a response?

[Alex645]

More issues I have with flashes. The Metz is the only company which support Pentax but for the 1 1/2 year old K-1 we are still not able to master/slave with only Metz flashes.

Other than Pentax and Metz, both Bolt and Yongnuo make Pentax dedicated P-TTL wireless (master/slave) flash units.

Bolt VS-510P Wireless TTL Shoe Mount Flash for Pentax VS-510P

Yongnuo YN585EX Speedlite for Pentax Cameras YN585EX/PENTAX B&H

The Pentax flash units are uniquely ideal for Pentax weather-sealed cameras in that they too are weather-sealed. I just bought a Metz mecablitz 44 AF-2 (because I don't need weather-sealing when I use flash) and I love it.

In a time when over 90% of all images are taken on cell/mobile phones, and where Canon sells as much of the remaining less than 10% than Nikon, Sony, Lumix, Pentax, Olympus, Leica, Hasselblad, etc, combined, it's is sadly unrealistic to expect more from Ricoh. To me, every year Ricoh continue to produce new Pentax cameras and lenses, is a good year that the brand hasn't gone the way of Minolta and Konica. When was the last time you saw new products for Alpa or Sinar from a third-party?

[Adam]

I'm far from a lighting expert, though AFAIK there are options out there if you ask the right people and look in the right places. Pentax is a smaller brand so third-party support won't be the same as what others have. But, say you got a K-1 or 645Z and saved thousands compared to a Canon or Hassy setup. Those savings could be worth a bit of trouble to find the right accessories, especially if your main goal is to turn a profit.

This thread is an interesting read along these lines:
645z Profoto B1 HSS working - PentaxForums.com

Priolite actually supports Pentax HSS out of the box, and there are other brands of flashes and triggers with a growing feature list (including Cactus). Perhaps we can do an article on this as a resource for those on the hunt for such accessories, and maybe our resident Cactus expert @Class A; can chime in here

If you are looking for specific help or advice, don't hesitate to ask on the forum- this is one great resource that owners of other brands don't have

As for why Metz hasn't gotten a K-1: Ricoh seems them as a competitor and would probably rather sell their own flashes than help them (this would make a lot of sense if Ricoh's budget is tight). Plus, perhaps Metz has other priorities for its more profitable models, as reverse-engineering can be very time-consuming.

To conclude, while third-party support is nice, it's understandable why it's lacking for Pentax compared to other brands. Hopefully we will see things improve over time!

Adam
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[PJ1]

There are economics of scale issues for a third party manufacturer to turn out AF lenses for Pentax. But there are lots of choices from Samyang. Mitakon ZhongYi and Laowa. They may not be AF but they seem to be very good at what they are designed for. Also there are all the backwards compatible Pentax lenses and all the old M42 lenses kicking around. Because Pentax has in-body SR, you get SR with any lens. Also, for what they can do, Pentax bodies stack up well against the competition. They are probably not reasons for a professional photographer to switch to Pentax but I think they are part of the reason that people don't leave!

[clackers]

Cactus can't fire any "Professional Flashes" like Elinchrome, Profoto, Hensel, Broncolor, Priolite or even the semiprofessionell, Godox and Jinbei, when connected to a K-1 or K-3.
You can only work with this equipment if you flash in manual mode. HSS & TTL you can only use with the Pentax Speedlights.

I currently use HSS with the Cactus and Godox Wistro (Nikon version), Gerard.

You could have found this by browsing through our forum.

[pathdoc]

To me, every year Ricoh continue to produce new Pentax cameras and lenses, is a good year that the brand hasn't gone the way of Minolta and Konica.

Strictly speaking, Minolta sort of morphed into Sony... but the special something which made them a viable alternative to Pentax for me has been lost.

Konica to me were always a film brand and manufacturers of business machines of various kinds (does this remind you of anyone?); I never actually knew they made cameras until after they were gone.

If you really want a company that clawed its way back from the very edge of death, try Fuji. They are probably more successful now than they ever were in the past, but I wouldn't like Pentax to have to go through that just to score big.

[WPRESTO]

To pose a slightly different "why can't we purchase from a third party" question. Quantum Instruments makes very useful, time-proven external batteries primarily for on-camera strobes, secondarily for camera bodies. For new model strobes, all QI needs to supply is a cord with a different plug design, yet as far as I can see, they've offered no new Pentax-compatible flash cords since back into the 1990's. They still list a cord for the 280T, but none for any current Pentax strobe.

[Alex645]

Strictly speaking, Minolta sort of morphed into Sony... but the special something which made them a viable alternative to Pentax for me has been lost.

Konica to me were always a film brand and manufacturers of business machines of various kinds (does this remind you of anyone?); I never actually knew they made cameras until after they were gone.

Yes, Sony purchased Konica-Minolta, but immediately when I tried to get a Minolta light meter or film scanner fixed, Sony said they wouldn't be repairing them and didn't support those products.

And the first 35mm SLR that I used was a Konica. The parent company, Konishiroku, and made film that was rebranded by others in competition to Fujifilm. (3M/Scotch did the same in the US as a cheap alternative to Kodak.) They even produced an alternative to daylight and tungsten balanced film; baby balanced film for newborns!

CAMERA - What Is This Thing Called Baby Film? - NYTimes.com

[Bophoto]

Metz is / wants to be the big 3rd party manufacturer of camera flashes.
Do they know the problems or have received enough mail about the problems with K1?

Alex, we who have Pentax equipment have been lucky ....
Did Sony just buy Konica / Minolta DSLR or the entire camera part?

[Gerard_Dirks]

Other than Pentax and Metz, both Bolt and Yongnuo make Pentax dedicated P-TTL wireless (master/slave) flash units.

Bolt VS-510P Wireless TTL Shoe Mount Flash for Pentax VS-510P

Yongnuo YN585EX Speedlite for Pentax Cameras YN585EX/PENTAX B&H

The Pentax flash units are uniquely ideal for Pentax weather-sealed cameras in that they too are weather-sealed. I just bought a Metz mecablitz 44 AF-2 (because I don't need weather-sealing when I use flash) and I love it.

In a time when over 90% of all images are taken on cell/mobile phones, and where Canon sells as much of the remaining less than 10% than Nikon, Sony, Lumix, Pentax, Olympus, Leica, Hasselblad, etc, combined, it's is sadly unrealistic to expect more from Ricoh. To me, every year Ricoh continue to produce new Pentax cameras and lenses, is a good year that the brand hasn't gone the way of Minolta and Konica. When was the last time you saw new products for Alpa or Sinar from a third-party?

The Yongnuo has some Issues! It doesn't zoom the flash with non DA lenses, ferther it has no HSS funktion. Since 10 months their is no firmware update. I contacted them twice. They have also no K-1 to test!

---------- Post added 10-31-17 at 11:12 AM ----------

I currently use HSS with the Cactus and Godox Wistro (Nikon version), Gerard.

You could have found this by browsing through our forum.

Strange ?!? You use HSS with the cactus? Cactus told me I need to wait a couple of months before the pentax compatible firmware for HSS will be availible? Do you have a Beta-Version of the Pentax Firmware?

[pathdoc]

Did Sony just buy Konica / Minolta DSLR or the entire camera part?

As far as I am aware, Minolta basically committed seppuku; they handed Sony the entire camera division and said "Never use the Minolta name on a camera ever again." And that was the end of Minolta cameras.

[clackers]

Strange ?!? You use HSS with the cactus? Cactus told me I need to wait a couple of months before the pentax compatible firmware for HSS will be availible? Do you have a Beta-Version of the Pentax Firmware?

No, you have to wait a couple of months before you can use P-TTL with the Cactus, you heard it wrong or they said it wrong.

[Alex645]

The Yongnuo has some Issues! It doesn't zoom the flash with non DA lenses, ferther it has no HSS funktion. Since 10 months their is no firmware update. I contacted them twice. They have also no K-1 to test!

I am not surprised; you get what you pay for. The Yongnuo is less than half the price of the Bolt which is half the price of a Metz which is 20-25% less than an equivalent Pentax flash unit.

In my youth, I wasted money buying the cheap stuff, and then replacing it with less cheap stuff, and then eventually getting the best. If I had just saved up to get the best from the start, I would have saved a lot of hassle, missed shots, frustration, and ultimately money.

[Class A]

You can only work with this equipment if you flash in manual mode. HSS & TTL you can only use with the Pentax Speedlights.

That's not true.

You can use an HSS-capable trigger like the Cactus V6II or the Acon R930 and trigger other flashes/strobes with them.
There are two main approaches:

1. use the native receiver and connect it to your flash/strobe (sometimes via a trigger cable).
2. use the trigger of your flash/strobe system on top of the camera-mounted HSS-capable trigger.

Not all combinations in scenario 2. are supported but many are.

For 1. to work when using a cabled connection between receiver and flash/strobe, the latter needs the ability to be switched to HSS mode manually. There are a number of flashes/strobes that support that.

BTW, you don't need to wait for the X-TTL update for the above to work for the Cactus V6II. In any event, the P-TTL-capable firmware version for the V6II has been released (apparently today).

BTW, in a pleasant bit of other news Conomark is now offering a Pentax-dedicated version of their strobe trigger. This is on top of the PrioLite option Adam already mentioned.