[stevebrot]

Has anyone else felt this frustration with the Pentax eco-system?

Nope...

If was wanting to build a system from scratch today, I might be frustrated, but to tell the truth, I have never been able to afford the premium offerings, much less a full spread of "sport" glass. (I'm not sure what that means, but it sounds expensive.)


Steve

(...all this time, I thought the K-3iii was just a Pentax dSLR with competent AF...)

[Kozlok]

I have the K-3iii and 55-300 PLM. Focus is almost instantaneous. If I wanted to shoot sports, this seems like it would do the trick. The high-ISO performance of the K-3iii really negates the need for large aperture to a great extent. The upcoming 16-50 PLM seems to be the other end of the instant focus duo you’d need.

[mtkeller]

I have the K-3iii and 55-300 PLM. Focus is almost instantaneous. If I wanted to shoot sports, this seems like it would do the trick. The high-ISO performance of the K-3iii really negates the need for large aperture to a great extent. The upcoming 16-50 PLM seems to be the other end of the instant focus duo you’d need.

It works well until you try to do something like shoot a college baseball came where the background is sufficiently close to the baselines that the f/9 you get with the HD DA 1.4x TC added into the mix gives you too much depth of field to have proper separation between the action and the background.

[lesmore49]

It is sorta nice if you ask me. No crazy year upon year of releasing stuff that makes little difference to anything but your wallet. Generally, I see a camera as a 5 year thing and the higher end lenses as a 2 to 4 camera model thing...the world does not need another sony, canon, nikon etc.

When I got my first Pentax, a new S1a in 1969 , camera companies weren't introducing multitude of products each year. Back in '69 there was the S1a, SV, Spotmatic and had been that way for much of the '60's. Similar thing with Nikon, Minolta, Konica, Canon, etc.

From 1969 to 2007 I had bought two slr cameras. My S1a and a ES ll, bought new in '74. Got married in '83 and my wife had a K1000, which we used mostly from '83 to 2007. That is around 38 years and if Pentax had brought out the K1000 bayonet body in ' 69....I wouldn't of needed any other slr in that period. The K1000 was really a Spotmatic, with a bayonet mount.

With digital it seems as if you could phone the Canon factory at 10 am one morning, ask them what camera body models are in their entire line...and the answer might be...now, or by 4 pm ?

Yes, I'm exaggerating, but maybe not by a lot.

I have a K10D, Km, K5 and K1. I got the K1 as I wanted a bigger sensor. But if Pentax had not brought out a full frame, I'm not sure if I would want/need any more or newer camera than my K5, which I bought new in 2011. It does everything I want and I would probably only have replaced it, if it broke down, too expensive to fix and bought whatever it's newest equivalence was in the Pentax line at that time.

[UlrichSchiegg]

Hi All,[...]Has anyone else felt this frustration with the Pentax eco-system?

No, I don't feel any frustration. If you are with a small maker, you can expect things to go slower. If you are not happy with the speed, move to one of the big makers. Carmeras are multi-purpose devices (there is not just the long end in APSC that you mentioned). They have 3 line-ups APSC, FF, MF.

Currently they updated the APSC top end body, then the normal lens, next may be the 50-135. On the long end, volume is never very high. I don't really see that the long zoom will see an update soon. Also see the 560mm discussion.

I would expect that sooner or later, Ricoh will move on to update the FF line. There is an updated body missing, a compact tele-zoom lens and some other elements.

[lesmore49]

From my perspective, Ricoh is really sailing along the average fan-customer. And that’s what I would have done. If you release a $2000 camera and hope that it sells, you cannot expect customers to invest another 4-digit soon to support the system. On the other hand, if you create expectations, maybe some will start putting aside some $$ to spend in the near future. It’s more sustainable for us.
That being said, this kind of system development only appeals to dedicated pentaxians. In a 2-3-5 -year period many would prefer to migrate to other systems. If you got the money, how much would you be willing to wait for a lens release?

If I were to add up all I've spent on buying new digital Pentax equipment since 2007, it would be enough bucks to have bought a new Leica digital M rangefinder with 28, 50 and 90 mm lenses. But I didn't.

I didn't buy Nikon, Canon, Fuji, Sony, Leica M rangefinder. I bought Pentax as they make excellent, durable, reliable camera equipment that does what I want. Also I like the ergonomics...the 'feel' of the equipment.

If my equipment was stolen. I would probably buy Pentax equipment again, through my insurance coverage. For the above reasons.

But that's me.

[UlrichSchiegg]

[...]What is confusing is releasing this body then releasing the 16-50mm update. Great lens but not the kind of lens you would expect with this body?[...]

Multi-Purpose devices is what a camera today stands for.You look for sports and the long end, and belong to a small group of photographers within a system then.A standard zoom like the 16-50 F2.8 will see many more users, than any long lens.

Ultimately this is the reason, why I believe the 50mm F1.4 got prioritized over the 85mm F1.4 at some point in the development plan of the FF system. The 50mm has many more potential customers (more attractive for APSC) than a 85mm, even thought it is a mandatory lens for a FF eco-system.

[Lowell Goudge]

Not many guys are ready (or able) to spend $2k for a body and $2k(or more) for a superfastfocus long tele at the same time. JMHO.

One size does not fit all "users".

no, you acquire these items over time, and to be honest lenses generally out live camera bodies. case in point, my original fast tele zoom was a vivitar Series 1 70-210/3.5 (version 1), which i used for a long time starting with a KX and Ricoh XR2s, and then coupled it with the F 1.7x AF converter to shoot sports and wild life with my PZ-1 and up to and including use on my * istD.

in early 2004 i bought a Sigma APO 70-200/2.8 EX and 1.4x TC and later added as well a 2x TC. i used that pair through *istD, K10D, K7D k5D and K1MKii

for wild life i have acquired lately a DA560 and plan to use it a similarly long time over yet to be purchased cameras.

you need to take a system view over the long haul, it is not as if pentax showed up out of no where with the K1 and a complete line up of lenses. people have shot pentax cameras over many years, adding to the system as their needs , expectations and or budgets changed

[Oldbayrunner]

I agree. I bought a new Sigma 150-500...on my K5 ASPC the 35mm equivalent is somewhere around 775 mm. I have a K1, but I use my smaller ASPC sensor K5...for the extra reach...some 275mm.

????????? you could put your K1 in crop mode and get the same reach and virtually the same MP output as a K5... If it were a k3 or k3ll then it wouldn't have the same as their 24 MP... That's the only reason I still keep my k3ll.

[VSTAR]

What got me into Pentax all those years ago was the affordability of lenses compared to Canon and Nikon

Exactly.

High quality lenses for Nikon and Canon are now priced close to or higher than the cost of their camera bodies. In medium frame the Fuji series can be purchased used for a reasonable price. But that is the cheap part of the kit. The lenses will set u back how much? So when I saw the K1, it’s features, unbiased reviews, the price, and then the price of adding lenses to it, it was a no brainer for me.

[lesmore49]

????????? you could put your K1 in crop mode and get the same reach and virtually the same MP output as a K5... If it were a k3 or k3ll then it wouldn't have the same as their 24 MP... That's the only reason I still keep my k3ll.

I don't use my K1 with my Sigma 150-500 as the K1 is heavier than the K5...and the Bigma is one heavy lens and I never had the 150-500 modified to take the K1...as the K1 get's scratched if the Sigma is unmodified.

I never use crop mode in my full frame K1, as I figure why would I want to do that...also the Sigma is a full frame lens.

[dbs]

Hi Gordon

I don't understand what your worry is actually.


Dave

[AfterPentax Mark II]

Not many guys are ready (or able) to spend $2k for a body and $2k(or more) for a superfastfocus long tele at the same time. JMHO.

One size does not fit all "users".

Why then do men always complain that their wives hold them back when buying new gear?

[normhead]

The thing with Pentax is patience. When the next K-1 iteration comes out it will be sporting the same internals as the K-3iii. There just isn' enough difference between 20 -24 MP action cameras that are FF and 24 MP APS_c cameras to warrant this kind of criticism.

Once you get into, I want an action camera but it has to be FF you're into a whole new level of specification and specialization then you are ever going to see from Pentax. From my perspective, if you want an action camera but it has to be FF, you're more concerned about other issues than an actual action camera. Especially with the new accelerator chip in the K-3iii which brings it up to FF noise levels.

There will always be more specialized products in the larger brands. If you want that go to a larger brand. For myself I find my old K-3, the original, does action just fine for my needs. Does anything match the 1Ds? No, but 99% of Canon, Nikon or Sony cameras don't either.

For me personally, the K-1 is my landscape camera, the K-3 is my action camera. But when I use the K-1 for action, I do just fine.

K-1 and DA 55-300




So it seems to me you're asking, why doesn't Pentax with it's sub 4% market share compete in every aspect of photography with the larger brands? And if you ask it that way, the question pretty much answers itself. I know very few people with high end action cameras. It's niche market. Professionals, and your rich uncle who thinks he needs the best.

[DWS1]

IMO, Ricoh has just now (last couple of years) gotten the Pentax brand on the path they envisioned when they got the dumpster fire that Hoya created.