I would love to put my hands on one if there's anywhere to do so. Do any of you Atlanta Pentaxians know of a store around here that has one available to play with?

Have you checked Showcase? It is unlikely they have it, but if there is a K-3 in an Atlanta store they are the most likely to have.


Keep in mind that online retails like B&H have liberal return polices for the first 30 days, so if you do not like it you can return it.


In any event, if you are thinking of getting a K-3, you will not be disappointed; it is a spectacular camera. I have mine since last November and moving from a K-7 to K-3 is like day and night.

Well, I went ahead and ordered from B&H as I had planned. Still would've liked to actually play with one first. Such is the Pentax way of life. Monday should be a happy day around here though! I guess I can wait that long...

Hope you enjoy it! I love my K 5 and I imagine the K 3 handles in like manner.

Good to see that there are some Pentaxians in the area. In my trips to the Zoo with grandkids I recall seeing only ONE Pentax! We should get whatever group there is together and plan and execute a photo op at the Zoo, the Botanical Gardens, or whatever.

Spring is coming.....

Showcase must have had some issue with Pentax in the past - there's absolutely no mention of the Pentax or Ricoh name on their website, even when you do a search by brand and there's hundreds of companies, everyone you can think of... except Pentax.
Oh well, just a reason for me to never put my foot in there...

By the way, I just saw that there's a store in Atlanta called Wings Camera that basically sells used stuff... anyone been there?

A Showcase staffer told me that Pentax reps just didn't come by, so Showcase stopped stocking the marque. Can't say I really blame them. The same guy had owned a 645n like mine and spoke highly of it. They are basically nice folks, but their prices are pretty high.

Wings Camera has been in business, for IIRC, 100 years! It is a family business. Mike, the Main Man, is very knowledgeable and friendly. Since they are mainly a consignment dealer for used gear the stock varies widely; Pentax is not well represented, sad to say. They have a sidewalk sale twice a year, spring and fall, with lots of interesting stuff. A good place to go to set up a darkroom. I've bought several things from them most recently a dry mount press and a lovely Rodenstock Retina IIIc with WA and Tele lenses, and the viewfinder for both.

And of course there is KEH. While they don't have a showroom they are an excellent, reliable source of used gear of all varieties. Wolf Camera is but a shadow of its former self. Their large store on 14th Street, which once had a good selection of new and used gear and darkroom goodies is gone. And so it goes....

I miss that 14th street store. It was the biggest and best store I've ever been in.
Wings might be an interesting place if I find a bag of money with a new Fuji X body inside. the old-lens compatibility of these mirrorless systems has me wondering how to figure out what old CanNik lenses are good. etc.

Anybody been in the Wolf main store recently? Last time I was in there (years ago now) they had some Pentax stuff. Honestly though, you'd be a fool to buy a new body or an expensive lens in a local store and pay the tax. If, like the old days, you got better service from someone you knew and they'd take care of you if something went pear-shaped, it might be worth paying more ... but those days are long gone.

I assume that the Wolf main store is the one on Piedmont? It is a shadow of the 14th street store. No film section, no pro section, no used gear. No classes, really not much of anything. No longer worth the bother in my opinion.