Originally posted by Tony Belding Personally, I think it looks perfect. Every design decision seems to have come right out of my wish list. It definitely looks like a more serious tool than the Hasselblad. Will I buy one? No. It just doesn't fit into my personal photographic roadmap, and I don't feel compelled to own everything that I admire.
As for all the hype. . . "gamer changer!" "revolutionary!" Yeah, yeah, I've heard all that before. There was similar talk when the Sony Alpha A7 series debuted. It was a revolutionary game-changer, and all the other companies would have to scramble to get their own mirrorless full-frame cameras on the market. Except somehow that didn't happen. And I think the A7 series is doing OK, but even with a full court press by Sony's marketing, it hasn't really set the world on fire the way some imagined it would.
Sony suffers from a lack of professional infrastructure. The designs have often created problems with overheating. They have fantastic potential but to get close to Canon or, Nikon they will need to be beyond criticism, robust, perfectly made, designed and engineered and have true worldwide, all day, instant everyday professional back-up.
Sony have a way to go.
Fujifilm have a history of high end professional tools and have laid down a series of models that are attracting attention from serious professionals.
Pentax have done well and have the potential to do hugely better. Their problems are that they mainly want niche appeal. They have Image quality, robustness, value for money, outdoor field cameras.
The attention to detail needed to be as compelling as Fujifilm has been missing. I love picking up Pentaxes. Compare the Pentax SV with the Leica M3. Both were amazing. The SV was the better photographer's tool. It is such a zen statement. The reductionism it contains creates a platform for the superb Takumars and made the camera an extension of the photographer's body.
Pentax can do better. The key is in the K-01. Make that camera. Take away the stand off distance needed for dSLR lenses. Make optics that put the lenses close to the focal plane. An adaptor for DSLR lenses is all that is needed if you want legacy glass. The brand new lenses you could design can be ridiculously good if they are designed to be close to the sensor. Add a classy evf. The camera can have the cool K1 screen. A full frame sensor. This could be a supercapable studio and field camera especially with fast memory media. Give it wifi to link in bigger screens and allow wireless control. Pixel shift and sensor tilt and shift.
Pentax however, still needs the pro back-up infrastructure to be a serious contender. Fuji have overturned the whole professional market with their new medium format offering and, whilst there is a redrawing of the market as companies assess their responses, Ricoh/Pentax must get ready to lay out their professional stall with compelling products and services that change minds like Fujifilm have.