[othar]

With that many cheap but working vintage cameras around it wouldn't make much sense economically to produce a new SLR at this point.
Assuming Pentax isn't doomed and still around in 10 - 20 years the production of a new SLR could become profitable again (when working SLRs - AF cameras beeing most likely the first to fail - get harder to find on the used marked)

[Belnan]

I guess I shouldnt be to surprise by these results so far, there are certainly no shortage of used cameras out there.

[LittleSkink]

my guess is Ricoh have been focused (sic) hard on getting K3 iii out recently - if there was niche film body on someones agenda would it have been part of the 100th Anniversary, which is now passed.

I wonder - maybe for at 125 years . . . but it still a no from me

[Michail_P]

Absolutely no. Part of the analog experience is the quiet, meticulous and fully manual approach to shooting. You sacrifice the easiness, bursting rates, the capacity of hundreds and thousands of photos, flipping screens, imho even AF, to fully understand and enjoy the process. Modern photo development looks exactly the opposite way. Any jiggling spec, every automation you could use, any mp count you can afford. A modern film slr would be a waste of resources and money. And if that can be considered an argument, nostalgia plays a big part. I like shooting with a camera older than me. I appreciate the technology and accept the limitations. I find it very creative and challenging.

That was an interesting poll btw

[EssJayEff]

The time to do it would have been their 100th anniversary. That ship has sailed . . . more times than once.

---------- Post added 04-21-21 at 10:43 AM ----------

100th Anniversary, which is now passed.

Sorry LittleSkink! I saw your post after I posted mine. Nice to know, though, we are thinking alike!

[AfterPentax Mark II]

"Are you out of your mind!" my father would have said to me if I proposed such a thing. I think it is the stupidest thing to do for a company like Ricoh and you yourself wrote why: "even though I would likely not buy one".

[womble]

If Pentax were a rich, prosperous company that could afford a punt on something that in the short term would lose money, I would say yes. But they aren't, and the survival of the brand in any form worries me.

As many people have said, there are, at the moment, plenty of cheap older cameras. BUT, that will change. Unless someone starts making new spares (LX water resistant seal kits anyone?), the pool of film cameras will slowly decrease. At the moment, that pool is large, but it won't always be. And of course, other manufacturers (film, paper, chemicals) rely on there being working cameras. Unless we see the future of analogue never being anything more than lofi light-leak splashed images or pinholes, eventually someone, somewhere will need either to start making spares or start making cameras.

A friend of mine who is a design engineer, regularly gets parts 3D printed in brass. Perhaps for some of the cogs and levers, that might be a solution if someone can come-up with the detailed specs needed? I suspect electronics will remain unfixable, which leads to the ironic situation that older all manual cameras are going to outlast the all singing all dancing electronic marvels built from the 1980s until today.

Kris.

[Bob 256]

Giving a friend bad advice is not good. I consider Pentax as a "friend", and with the very niche market for film cameras and many used film cameras available for those who want to shoot film while it's still available, I would not advise Pentax to put money and time into developing a new film camera which would probably see abysmal sales and return on their investment. I still have my fantastic Pentax film cameras from the past and personally wouldn't be a new customer to anyone offering a film camera (though I still do shoot an occasional film roll).

[Denver]

When you step back and look at the overall photography scene there is a place for film photography. The sad fact is that the number of film SLRs is in a downward spiral. This has several outcomes. The young and newest photographers have a limited and in many cases high price to join in the film world. Using film is an art and expression that I have used but I started when the only film was the game. A search on eBay for film cameras shows a long list of parts-only offerings. The price of usable cameras is only going higher especially with the brands that the public knows well. We need to foster the people coming into the world of photography. For many of the brightest, the cost of Digital is a high hurdle and film offers a great stage to create and learn on. We need to nurture and support photography artistic expression. Mentoring is not easy. I see a need for film SLRs to be made. It was predicted that Vinyl records would disappear yet today they outsell CDs. Turntables were always produced and the ones today have great features that are moderately priced for what would have been high-end and price in the 80s. If we do not produce film cameras then film will disappear, yet today the offering in film is more than the heyday of Kodak. There is a strong interest in using film. So I think that Pentax should revive a film camera. I would suggest the Super Program as the KA lens move well to the digital line when a user wants to move that way.

[EssJayEff]

In a workshop I teach, I use the following quote describing a "limitation" listed in a Nikon F6 review in Popular Photography:

“Recording medium requires chemical processing before it can be read.”

[MrclSchprs]

I have already seen the Pentax announcement of the new LX. The new LX is exactly like the old LX, just new. My dreams are soo sweat .... :-)

[wstruth]

It would be interesting, but I would never buy it.

[TwoUptons]

One challenge is that vintage film bodies are not the only part of the equation getting old.

Lenses are in the same boat.

So a new film camera would presumably need to be able to work with new lenses.

That means a KAF4-compatible mount, etc. and that implies lots of electronics. That means no K1000 refresh...

But it could allow a Super Program (or P3) refresh, which could be cool. But would it still have a crippled K-mount?

Whatever came out of that would be expensive... I think the turntable analogy is probably spot on.

-Eric

[pschlute]

Since Pentax may be the last company to make a SLR seems only fitting they should make another film camera

It would be wonderful if they did......but, I can just imagine now the rolling eyes reaction in the board room when it was suggested

[Huss]

I have already seen the Pentax announcement of the new LX. The new LX is exactly like the old LX, just new. My dreams are soo sweat .... :-)

So still no AE lock? C'mon, dream big.
(And I didn't even ask for multi metering modes)