[paulh]

mxpentaxian: great story & welcome to the forums!

[RioRico]

Yesterday during a tourist influx here in Bisbee Arizona on the Sonora border, I spied an old gal with what looked like a black K7, but she moved into the Miners and Minerals Museum too fast for me to be sure.

Most people in Mexico buy point and shoot cameras; except maybe for journalists or professional photographers...

I must say that in my drives across Mexico and Central America, most SLRs I've seen have been in the hands of obvious foreign tourists.

3.5 years ago I rode the Copper Canyon (Barrancas del Cobre) train from Creel to Los Mochis and back. On both runs, I was constantly on the passenger-car platforms with my K20D and DA18-250, leaning into the wind and shooting the spectacular terrain. An older Mexican gentleman in an immaculate white suit rode on the downhill run. He wore a big Canon FF dSLR around his neck. He sat in a comfortable seat the whole way, never moving, never pointing the camera out the window, nothing. I assume his Canon was merely symbolic.

So here I am, using two 27 year old lenses and the one that came with the Kx; shooting the one that is probably the only BLUE DSLR in all of Mexico. Good thing if some one steals it and tries to resell it, I can track it right away, since it's almost unique around here.

Until tourism resumes, or Ricoh-Pentax ramps-up their marketing, you're likely to have the only blue dSLR in Mexico for some years to come. Too bad you can't get blue lenses to match it, ?si?

[kadajawi]

No, obviously the gentleman just had sore arms from holding up the heavy Canon, so he had to rest for a while.

Recently I've been in KSL City Mall in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, where I spotted a camera shop that had a big Pentax section and ads for Pentax outside (they also sold Canikon, but Pentax took just as much space). Someone there tried a K-5 with a SA assisting him, and there was something displaying the rich history of Pentax dating back to the 50s. If felt quite comfortable there.

Sometimes you do see a Pentax here, which is quite odd since they sell them almost nowhere (and if they sell them the display set is usually in the most ridiculous color offered by Pentax... or white). Impossible to find a K-5.

Favorite sighting of a Pentax ever was a very attractive Japanese (?) girl carefully taking lots of photos in the Cologne Cathedral. Didn't dare speaking to her.

Love that story mxpentaxian, thanks for sharing.

[mxpentaxian68]

Thank you kadajawi, RioRico and paulh for commenting. I will try to scan some old pics taken with the k1000 and post them here.
I also have some photos taken with the Kx on flickr where my name is "NO EFFECTS".
Greetings

Attached Images

 

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Last edited by mxpentaxian68; 03-02-2012 at 07:31 AM. Reason: typos

[ticoun]

I went to the zoo today, and out of 4 DSLRs spotted, there was an Olympus, a Canon and two Pentaxes. Ok, ok, the pentaxes were mine and my friend's... But we still had the majority!

[Barcel36]

Thank you kadajawi, RioRico and paulh for commenting. I will try to scan some old pics taken with the k1000 and post them here.
I also have some photos taken with the Kx on flickr where my name is "NO EFFECTS".
Greetings

Welcome mxpentaxian68. Yes we are very few Mexicans even in Pentaxforums. Sometimes I think we have to be crazy to be so loyal to a brand that is not sold in our country and that not offer any support. But here we are, making what we like most and enjoying it.

[SaikouShadou]

I'm pretty sure our beloved pentax name is getting to peoples hears, because again visiting a local camera store the other day, someone asked for try out the K-r than after asked if they could try out the K-5.

Few weeks back three people were also looking at the K-5, but one was looking more at the K-r.

This was at a store where it's pretty much shelved with CaNikons. My ears perked up when I heard one person said "I'd like to take a look at a K-5", whilst I browsing in the tripod section.

[Verglace]

In Melbourne, theres plenty of Pentax owners, most of the ones I see are ladies with white or red cameras. Good to know that at least the color strategy works. While testing my 16-50 for the first time I also saw some dude with a k-x with a DA35 ltd, the first time I've seen another Pentax user that didn't have a kit-lens on.

[trevinon]

mxpentaxian68 and Barcel36:
I do not know how many Mexicans as us are listed here at this forum, but it seems we share much of the experiences. I sure hope that more Pentax loving Mexicans would post here.

As some might recall from one of my first posts I also started many years ago first with a Spotmatic F that stolen from me and later a Pentax ME I bought directly from Honeywell de Mexico, the company that owned or distributed that brand of cameras. I still own the ME with the f/1.4 less.

Pentax really had a big following here, specially the Spotmatics and later the K1000 in the hands of professional photographers. My father-in-law used to work this profession many years ago and used K1000s that he regarded as excellent workhorses.

As happened with you mxpentaxian68, when my ME broke down I migrated first to a nondescript Canon film camera that expired on me. Later I bought the demonstration unit at a Best Buy in Laredo of the Nikon Coolpix 950. It is a good camera by the way. Then in 2006 I had the chance to buy an Canon Ixus 50 point & shoot that has also been a good workhorse. I finally got an upgrade that took me again to the level of my beloved ME. I bought the K-x on January of last year. I believe I must have around 13500 on it by now. It has been a great experience to use it. I bought the K-x because it is a Pentax, because the cost of entry is quite reasonable, because it had the two DAL zoom lenses at a great price, and finally because I can use my old f/1.4 50mm lens on it. This lens has a great bokeh effect, if only I can master better the K-x / 50mm f/1.4 combination.

I am sure that many in this forum will share stories like ours, not only Mexicans. Hope to hear from you soon.

[trevinon]

This past week I had the fortune to travel through Central America on business. While not particularly in census mode actually I didn't see any dSRL in the wild. I was not carrying mine either preferring to travel light. I did take my Canon Ixus 50.

But I did see in every airport the duty free shops carrying cameras. Basically, they had the canikons plus Sonys no Pentax . They were all very expensive. So much for duty free.

[BigDave]

took a side trip to scout out some new shooting venues and came across a camera club out on an excursion. 10 photogs shooting in the same area! I had my K7 out to shoot and besides the canikons, there was one K5er! I mentioned I liked his choice of gear and we got into a nice discussion about the improvements of the 5 over the 7. If pentax does not release a ff this year I think I'm going to get a back up body with the k5!

regards,

[kadajawi]

Yesterday I met someone from Malaysia who owns a K-5. 16-50 2.8, 14, 44 Limited, 77 Limited, 50-200 (kit), 100 macro, 50 1.4, and I guess a few more that I have forgotten already. All from Pentax. Uhm... want. All of that. The only thing he didn't seem to have was the 18-55 kit.

[minahasa]

I will be seeing more Pentaxian..in the past month I've seen plenty of Pentax DSLRs hit my local internet marketplace. These are cameras sold by owners who take advantage of the newer bodies price cuts and the arrival of K-01. These used cameras will find themselves a new owner, usually newbies. I know this because two years ago I'm one of them newbies..

[Tonto]

A good point, and the small problem with selling bodies on the marketplace- it doesn't often grow new Pentax users.
Hopefully there are some donated old bodies doing the rounds in schools- get them while they are young! lol

[mxpentaxian68]

Bueno, ya somos dos!