[barefootdesigns]

I have always wanted to comment on this thread, but I never have because I have never had a sighting

While I do hear that we should restrict our conversation to "Pentax users in the wild", it's nice to hear from members who have not been heard from. I apologize for running off the rails, but with Covid around, this thread might suffocate from lack of input. That would be a shame.

[Serkevan]

Oh, I forgot to mention. Some time ago I went for a photo walk around the city and the bridge was packed with photographers around sunset. I wasn't planning for long exposure so I didn't bring the actual tripod (my belt holder's quick release plate flips out and turns into a tabletop tripod, super handy). A guy shooting an A7iii saw me holding the camera steady and lent me his backup Manfrotto Pixi... and asked if the K-1 was the "medium format from Pentax, it looks great" . So, not a Pentaxian, but he had some knowledge!


Had a nice chat with him, he was using the new Tamron 28-75/2.8 for mirrorless and got some very nice long exposures of the cloudy sky. Should edit the pictures from that outing.

[Mooncatt]

That's nice to read. Sigrid, our eldest, is also taking an interest and regularly borrows my camera. She likes the manual lenses a lot.

Mine aren't at that point yet. For now, they are just happy running around pressing the shutter button at random objects. Lol

[HoutHans]

Mine aren't at that point yet. For now, they are just happy running around pressing the shutter button at random objects. Lol

Well, you can't start practising early enough and soon we'll have another few pentaxians in the wild

[Cerebum]

Students in Lancaster seem to be a reasonable source of pentaxians. I met my latest just before lockdown. The conversation went
"K70?"
"Yeah, KP?"
"Certainly is "

And that was it! Sparkling, I know

[Lord Lucan]

they [the children] are just happy running around pressing the shutter button at random objects. Lol

Plenty of grown-ups do that

[seagas]

I have 7 kids and the ones old enough to be involved are taking interest. Currently they share my old Olympus, but I'll be doing my part to increase the Pentaxian numbers when time to get their own cameras.

Good one you! I have two sons, a daughter-in-law and a grandson all using Pentax cameras.

[Photos-by-Chas]

Good one you! I have two sons, a daughter-in-law and a grandson all using Pentax cameras.

I have three sons, two daughter's-in-law and two grandsons. Only one son and his wife have made the purchase of a DSLR. the others seem to be perfectly happy with their cell phone cameras. Maybe it is because I was taking many photos of them when they were younger. Who knows. Oh, and the youngest is a millennial.

[Alex645]

Only one son and his wife have made the purchase of a DSLR. the others seem to be perfectly happy with their cell phone cameras. Oh, and the youngest is a millennial.

I have more millennials (students) shooting film SLRs and DSLRs than I did 20 years ago. If anything, I think my fellow boomers have gone to cell phones only out of ease and convenience.

I would not say SLRs are rare; they are uncommon. And among SLRs, I'd say Pentax is not rare; they are uncommon

[cometguy]

I have more millennials (students) shooting film SLRs and DSLRs than I did 20 years ago. If anything, I think my fellow boomers have gone to cell phones only out of ease and convenience.

I would not say SLRs are rare; they are uncommon. And among SLRs, I'd say Pentax is not rare; they are uncommon

I know that DSLR sales have been falling for years now, but I suspect that they will bottom out soon and even rise again as younger people yearn for something more than their smartphones can do, camera-wise. Unfortunately, Pentax doesn't seem to get the exposure that Canon/Nikon/Fuji/Sony get, but maybe there's a way that Pentax could get more prominent placement in searches for cameras online (whether regular search-engine searches like Google or shopping searches like at Amazon, B&H, etc.)... Pentax needs to get noticed by the younger generations...

[Liney]

I have more millennials (students) shooting film SLRs and DSLRs than I did 20 years ago. If anything, I think my fellow boomers have gone to cell phones only out of ease and convenience.

I would not say SLRs are rare; they are uncommon. And among SLRs, I'd say Pentax is not rare; they are uncommon

Is this the same phenomenon as the revival of good old fashioned vinyl records?

[Alex645]

Is this the same phenomenon as the revival of good old fashioned vinyl records?

Good question. I'm not sure what exactly is fueling the revival of vinyl, but in Honolulu we do have a film camera and vinyl store that attracts a lot of young adults...so they do seem to go hand in hand.

At our local film/vinyl store, Nikon and Canon still dominate, but the Pentax K1000, KM, KX, K2, and the 67 are NOT rare. I believe the owner works with someone (pre-pandemic) that would pick up cameras in Tokyo.

I don't miss scratched records that skip but I do miss the cover and inside art and lyrics, and the analog linear way of listening to an entire album, or at least the sense of Side A being the first half of a journey. I also miss big speakers with a fullness that gives you goosebumps.

The last time I think I felt that way about a photo, just really sort of speechless, was putting fresh Kodachrome slides into a carousel, waiting till dark, and then the hum of the fan, the smell of burnt dust, and the saturated color and discovery of new shots taken a week or two ago.

[Cerebum]

There are loads of film era Pentax cameras out there and many people fondly remember their first K1000 or spotmatic. If young people are getting into film, because it is cool, maybe kids with their dad's S1a might start looking into Pentax a bit more.

[Lord Lucan]

Unfortunately, Pentax doesn't seem to get the exposure that Canon/Nikon/Fuji/Sony get, but maybe there's a way that Pentax could get more prominent placement in searches for cameras online

I do my bit. I sometimes edit Wikipedia articles to add Pentax cameras into the narrative. For example there was a table in an article (can't remember which) giving examples of DSLR sensor sizes (or something like that). Needless to say, as found, it only included Canon/Nikon/Sony/Fuji/Olympus. I added Pentax to the table.

But something to avoid is "evangelising" for which for some reason Pentaxians have a reputation. I don't see it myself, no more than for any other brand; in fact it is evangalisers of the other brands who dominate the Youtube photographic channels. Mostly when I look lately they are banging on like stuck records about how marvellous mirrorless cameras are, as if it makes any difference to image quality.

PS : I forgot about the Youtube K1000 "evangelisers". There are loads of those extolling its virtues and there are probably more hours on Youtube about the K1000 than on all other Pentax cameras put together, let alone the current models. I would not dispute the quality of the K1000 for its type and its time (and there were equivalents in other brands), but I don't feel that so much spotlighting of the thing is helpful for the image of Pentax today. An outsider can get the impression that Pentax was a brand of the past, and if not now defunct, still belongs there.

[totsmuyco]

I do my bit. I sometimes edit Wikipedia articles to add Pentax cameras into the narrative. For example there was a table in an article (can't remember which) giving examples of DSLR sensor sizes (or something like that). Needless to say, as found, it only included Canon/Nikon/Sony/Fuji/Olympus. I added Pentax to the table.

But something to avoid is "evangelising" for which for some reason Pentaxians have a reputation. I don't see it myself, no more than for any other brand; in fact it is evangalisers of the other brands who dominate the Youtube photographic channels. Mostly when I look lately they are banging on like stuck records about how marvellous mirrorless cameras are, as if it makes any difference to image quality.

PS : I forgot about the Youtube K1000 "evangelisers". There are loads of those extolling its virtues and there are probably more hours on Youtube about the K1000 than on all other Pentax cameras put together, let alone the current models. I would not dispute the quality of the K1000 for its type and its time (and there were equivalents in other brands), but I don't feel that so much spotlighting of the thing is helpful for the image of Pentax today. An outsider can get the impression that Pentax was a brand of the past, and if not now defunct, still belongs there.

I guess Pentax will be having difficulty in attracting the younger generation. Everybody now fashions MILC. That's the problem with too much marketing. Companies keep on pushing consumers to upgrade their gears despite the fact that sometimes the upgrade features are not even that much. Unfortunately, what people are getting in to taking pictures are their cellphones. Just my point of view, sooner the demand for all ILC will be lesser and lesser. Only those with the passion for photography will buy ILC.