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03-28-2021, 01:00 AM - 6 Likes   #1
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Good Bye K5, Welcome Back MX

After 5 years and a lot of trying to get it, I have given the trusty K5 and lenses to my daughter who is just getting into photography, showing more talent than I. Out from darkness comes the tried and true, world traveled MX circa 1979 model. Just unable to appreciate the complexity of the digital realm and all the wonder it brings.
Will be expensive going back to film. Won't have instant results available, either, but it is all good with me as I started in film and will end with film. Life repeats itself.

03-28-2021, 01:43 AM   #2
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Wise words indeed. I'm feeling like I'm right on the brink of going back to film photography myself, with maybe just a digital compact for family snaps. I've been shooting with my K1000 again lately, and it's giving me a level of satisfaction that I've never had from any digital camera.
03-28-2021, 02:05 AM   #3
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QuoteOriginally posted by Dartmoor Dave Quote
.....I've been shooting with my K1000 again lately, and it's giving me a level of satisfaction that I've never had from any digital camera.
That's an interesting and intriguing comment, Dave. Is this a personal subjective feeling, and/or is it something that you are able to explain?

Philip
03-28-2021, 02:44 AM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by MrB1 Quote
That's an interesting and intriguing comment, Dave. Is this a personal subjective feeling, and/or is it something that you are able to explain?

Philip
I agree that it's a purely subjective thing, but I guess that for me picking up my old K1000 again feels like coming home. I've been shooting with that camera since 1980, mostly with Kodachrome for as long as it still existed, and all my efforts with digital photography have been about trying (and never succeeding) to recreate the sensation of shooting K64 with a K1000. I've always done my digital shooting almost exclusively with Takumars on the GX-10 version of the K10D, which at least gave me some of level of direct tactile contact with the picture taking process. But then last year I gave away all my Taks during a period of personal crisis, and now my GX-10 has been broken in an accident, and I'm feeling absolutely no desire whatever to get myself a replacement DSLR. It doesn't help that the characteristic look of modern CMOS sensors makes me want to barf.

So I've been running film through the K1000 again and it just feels so. . . right. That huge viewfinder in which I can examine every corner of the frame before I press the button. The feeling of that shutter trigger that lets me poise my finger just on the edge of it firing, allowing me a level of split-second timing that's never been possible on any DSLR I've ever handled. The ability to hit focus instantly with the fresnel ring, with the crossed microprism there in the middle just in case I want to check that too. Heck, even the pleasure of throwing the thumb wind.

Like I said, I'm planning to pick up a digital compact for my more casual snaps, and I haven't fully committed myself to any final decisions yet, but the fact that I'm spending a lot of time online looking for replacements for my favourite M series lenses for the K1000 says it all.

03-28-2021, 03:14 AM   #5
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It is easy to become spoiled, but then have to go back to making every shot count, so as to not waste film. I still have my MF compact, silver/black Super Program, PZ-1p, two of MZ-S (1 silver/black, 1 all black) with a battery grip, a ZX-5n, and the ZX-L, and battery grip for the ZX series. I've had several rolls of film in the fridge for a few years- longer than planned, so I should shoot these up on my next vacation, along with my digital shooting. I was occasionally shooting film as my FF means of using some very fine FF lenses I've had from years of film use, which due to the difference in FOV have not been as useful on APS-C digital bodies. But now I also have my K-1 II on which to employ these fine lenses, so I see my film use diminishing even more.

That said, there is a certain satisfaction in shooting film with confidence in what qualities will be returned with the film processing, then opening the package to discover your expectations have been met, and sometimes are even better than expected.
03-28-2021, 03:54 AM - 1 Like   #6
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Travelling backwards on a train

If you travel by train and go backwards it is safer than do so forwards. In case of an emergency you are pushed to the back of your seat. If you travel forward you are propelled from your seat. But the safer option makes you always looking to the past. I have still all my film era camera's and I will not get rid of them. A little while back I took them out and walked around with them and took pictures, had them processed and felt sorry that I did not take my DSLR with me after seeing the results. I have many many pictures from the film era that I consider good or a bit better than that. But if I compare the quality of the "digital" pictures with those from the past I am much more content with the digital ones. Because what I could not do then I can do in this modern age: a little bit of post-processing, so it takes my creativity a little bit further and I feel more creative. I can see the results straight away instead of waiting till the roll is full and then have them processed. But I do look a bit to the past with my digital camera's too. My recently died camera and the GX-10 both have CCD-sensors and again I took out my GX-10 and walked around in the new area where I am living now and took pictures just like I did with my K-3 II of some spots and if I compare these pictures I was again amazed by the results the GX-10 gave me. And then I looked again at the pictures of the camera that died and I experienced a feeling that the results with that camera were also more pleasing. And I have taken pictures with film SLR's longer than with digital camera's. I started out with a Russian Zenit so I leaned all about the settings, I know what an aperture is and what a shutter does and how you can influence the results by working with those settings. If I look at how I do it now, I still do the same, and all those automatic settings I leave them for what they are. I just have a very modern manual camera. And as I do not like making video's the GX-10 fits the bill perfectly, it is a bit of a Spartan camera of the modern age. I can understand that people turn back to the film camera, but the problem for me is that what I could achieve then with the film camera I cannot do anymore because everything around me has changed so much that I cannot get that feeling I had with the possibilities around me then. That is why I realised I am better off with the digital camera's and the possibilities in this time and age. Film camera's made me very happy in the past, digital camera's do it now!
03-28-2021, 04:22 AM - 2 Likes   #7
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Worst thing about the MX? The film memo holder on the back that my brain keeps thinking is a screen...

I get the feeling, though. I took my K1000 out a couple weeks ago (newer than Dave’s... 1982...). It was great fun, and I got a lot of keepers.

I went out yesterday doing the same thing, but I took the KP instead. It’s a different flow, that’s for sure, more like a Super Program than a K1000, but it clicked yesterday, despite having way more parameters available to use to ruin a photo

So it is possible to get the film feeling with digital, when the stars align...

-Eric

03-28-2021, 05:32 AM   #8
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Thank you for your reply in Post #4, Dave. I'm sure that many members will find it interesting - it has already prompted several good contributions. Just as a further matter of interest, which film are you using now?

Cheers.
Philip
03-28-2021, 05:44 AM - 1 Like   #9
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QuoteOriginally posted by TwoUptons Quote
Worst thing about the MX? The film memo holder on the back that my brain keeps thinking is a screen......

-Eric
I get that feeling all the time when I mix my PZ-1 with any of my DSLRs, when you look at the back of the modern DSLRs and get instant gratification, (or not as the case may be) the *istD is painfully slow but eventually an image appears, but I will stand for what seems like minutes waiting and staring at the blank back of the PZ-1 wondering where my image is
03-28-2021, 06:22 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
After 5 years and a lot of trying to get it, I have given the trusty K5 and lenses to my daughter who is just getting into photography, showing more talent than I. Out from darkness comes the tried and true, world traveled MX circa 1979 model. Just unable to appreciate the complexity of the digital realm and all the wonder it brings.
Will be expensive going back to film. Won't have instant results available, either, but it is all good with me as I started in film and will end with film. Life repeats itself.
I have sold my K30 and K20 and now have the K-1ii and an IR converted K100D. However, every now and then I go back and use film with the Pentax 67 and the K1000 (also a Bronica SQ A1, Rolliflex and Brownie cameras) I love the challenge of film cameras and having to think more instead of taking 10 images and hoping one will be OK. I use ND filters my digital cameras but just a piece of card with the film cameras instead of ND filters. It's fun using film and developing your own prints. I love digital cameras but I just have more fun with film!!.....and more frustration sometimes :-)
03-28-2021, 06:36 AM - 1 Like   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Lowell Goudge Quote
I get that feeling all the time when I mix my PZ-1 with any of my DSLRs, when you look at the back of the modern DSLRs and get instant gratification, (or not as the case may be) the *istD is painfully slow but eventually an image appears, but I will stand for what seems like minutes waiting and staring at the blank back of the PZ-1 wondering where my image is
You need a quartz date back. Then you can pretend you were checking the time while it reminds you you have at least a one hour wait to see your image

I try to chimp with the MX way more often than with the ZX-£qd

-Eric
03-28-2021, 07:19 AM   #12
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Dartmoor Dave, I appreciate your ability to understand where I am coming from. "level of satisfaction" may be part of the equation, however it really boils down to complexity. My brain is unable to appreciate all the features of the camera, however my daughter does and it makes more sense for her to have it than me, so I sent it to her, and she absolutely loves it.
I mostly used the K5 in manual mode as I have lots of manual lenses. Add to that manual focus with the MX is superior to the K5 mainly due to the split screen. Not to pile on, but worthy of mention is the semi-pressed shutter button feature of the MX which makes quick clicks possible. The K5 does not do that as far as I was able to determine.
As it is the K5 is too much camera for me. Good thing I have a creative and smart daughter!
03-28-2021, 07:25 AM   #13
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QuoteOriginally posted by pichur Quote
Dartmoor Dave, I appreciate your ability to understand where I am coming from. "level of satisfaction" may be part of the equation, however it really boils down to complexity. My brain is unable to appreciate all the features of the camera, however my daughter does and it makes more sense for her to have it than me, so I sent it to her, and she absolutely loves it.
I mostly used the K5 in manual mode as I have lots of manual lenses. Add to that manual focus with the MX is superior to the K5 mainly due to the split screen. Not to pile on, but worthy of mention is the semi-pressed shutter button feature of the MX which makes quick clicks possible. The K5 does not do that as far as I was able to determine.
As it is the K5 is too much camera for me. Good thing I have a creative and smart daughter!
The ideal camera for you would be an *istD. Install a split image and use it as a manual body. My K10 and *istD both have split image finders, and I use them as fully manual bodies.

I went with diagonal split image focusing screens so they appear similar to my Ricoh XR2s
03-28-2021, 07:26 AM   #14
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QuoteOriginally posted by TwoUptons Quote
Worst thing about the MX? The film memo holder on the back that my brain keeps thinking is a screen...
You should get one of those Fuji credit card sized instant print cameras. Just take a quick snap of the scene with the Fuji and slide the instant print into the film box end holder on the MX, then when you've taken the shot with the MX and you look at the back of the camera it'll feel just like chimping.


QuoteOriginally posted by MrB1 Quote
Just as a further matter of interest, which film are you using now?
That's the real challenge right now, in the absence of the grandeur that was Kodachrome. I'm trying out different films but I haven't really hit on the right one just yet. Meanwhile I've been scanning colour negatives on Kodak VR stock from back in the eighties and nineties and I'm loving the nicely saturated low grain look. Sadly, the biggest obstacle to shooting more film is the general horrible-ness of most of the film stocks available these days. And I'm not sure if I'm willing to pay a total of £1 per frame after processing for Velvia 50, although I have had some lovely results from it. The colours from Velvia 100 are disgusting though.
03-28-2021, 07:44 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Dartmoor Dave Quote
Wise words indeed. I'm feeling like I'm right on the brink of going back to film photography myself, with maybe just a digital compact for family snaps. I've been shooting with my K1000 again lately, and it's giving me a level of satisfaction that I've never had from any digital camera.
To me digital cameras are tools and a means to an end while film more embodies a hobby. I substantially enjoy just the process of using my spotmatic even if sometimes I don't get my film developed till a year later.

Plus looking at developed film a while later makes it feel like a discovery.


PS I still have like 10 rolls to develop, so be on the lookout in the takumar thread eventually.
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