I've been on a journey through SLRs over the last few years. It all starts with my black Spotmatic F. It was my Dad's, and it's been mine for decades. It's a handsome beast, with a history. It was a photojournalist's camera and saw time in the Vietnam war. For me, it defines what an SLR should look like and feel like.
Unfortunately, the F sometimes get's finicky -- the meter doesn't come to life reliably. Plus, it's not the world's most responsive meter. The needle is always a little sluggish. Plus there is no actual information displayed in the viewfinder... just a needle that wanders up and down indicating over and under exposure. The mirror is a little dark too, making slow lenses tough to use. Of course, K-mount lenses start to pile up as I bought into Pentax DSLRs as well.
My journey has really been to find an SLR that gives me the Spotmatic F experience, but fixes the things I wasn't crazy about. It's a journey that even took me into Nikon-land. After all, when I came of age, photographic books and education emphasized that the REAL king of the hill was the Nikon F3.
In order of exploration, my journey took me through manual focus SLRs:
(God bless the rise of digital; this was a cheap journey and I could sell everything for what I paid.)
- Nikon F3HP -- an amazingly built camera with the best viewfinder I've ever experienced. But flash sync was just as slow as the Spotmatic. And no Pentax lenses!
- Nikon FM2n -- I fixed the flash sync problem with an FM2n. Seriously good camera, and 1/250th is as good as it gets. It's the right size camera too. But somehow it felt flimsy. Not solid like the Spottie or the F3HP. Lack of Pentax lenses killed this one too.
- Contax 159 MM -- I decided to try out the legendary Contax line. I was encouraged by having adapters for M42 lenses (yay!) Handsome camera, but the build quality was definitely plastic. Didn't fall in love, so this one went out too.
- Pentax Program Plus -- available in black, just like my Spotmatic F. Never fell in love with the push-button shutter speeds though. Build quality was good, but not great. Probably similar to the FM2n. Gone.
- Pentax P3n -- an ugly camera, but really solid. Electronics are rock solid, the viewfinder display is good. Metal shutter is reliable, flash sync is reasonable. Wish I could set my own ISO, especially now that I develop my own film. Keeping this one.
- Pentax MG, MV -- nice solid little cameras for aperture priority use. A bit small, and limiting. Gone.
- Pentax MX -- I really wanted to like this little guy. Many people's favourite SLR. Sturdy and simple LED metering, but I wished it covered more range and was easier to read in daylight. Hated adjusting shutter speeds, because the controls were jammed together -- too small. Gone.
- Pentax KX -- getting closer. Right size, right feel, but a little bit plasticky with the trim and judas window. Good viewfinder display. Silver though... and not in great shape. Gone.
- Pentax LX -- I went through two of these. The first one was essentially mint. I found I didn't want to carry it because it was too pristine. I also wished the sync speed was a little higher. Sold the first one, and missed it. The viewfinder is great, the best of the Pentaxen. Bought a second one, in "user" condition, and this one gets lots of use. But somehow... the proportions aren't quite right. And it's got a lot of plastic on it compared to the Spotmatic F. I'm keeping the LX, just not loving it with all my heart.
And finally the Pentax K2. Wow. It's like the friendly girl from high school who comes home from college looking great. All the awkwardness and flaws of the Spotmatic F have been smooth out. The viewfinder display is perfect. The shutter sounds great, sync speed is good. Aperture priority automatic is very accurate, and easy to use, just like the LX. It takes readily available (cheap) batteries, and it even had a handy battery check light. It's a black K2, just as handsome as my Spotmatic F.
This example is in user condition, not bad. It's got a bit of funky smell, so I've ordered a new set of camera leathers and the whole thing will get a thorough cleaning. It will be a labour of love.