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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 03-10-2024, 09:41 PM  
Ricoh want your feedback
Posted By JPT
Replies: 182
Views: 9,207
I think to some extent some things happen in Japan exclusively just because Pentax is so small that they don’t have the staff overseas to replicate it. I think the J-Limited cameras are a good example of a product that wasn’t offered overseas. In fairness, looking at the dismissive reaction to that camera from the international camera press, you can understand why they concluded it wouldn’t work in other countries.

In fact, there are a few cases of it working the other way. I remember wanting the silver version of the K-01, but it was never released in Japan. Also, the MX-1 camera was released in silver and black versions overseas, but only one was ever sold here. I think it was the black one. But generally the special items are available in Japan first and sometimes exclusively.

As for Grad ND, I think that is very odd. At first I thought they were just testing the concept of paid upgrades in Japan, and concluded it wasn’t viable. But now the OM Systems OM-1 Mark II has come out with a very similar feature, and I’m wondering whether there is some patent issue going on behind the scenes.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 03-10-2024, 04:50 PM  
Ricoh want your feedback
Posted By JPT
Replies: 182
Views: 9,207
Just to be clear, the comment about an FA35 Classic was nothing more than a speculation by me. I’m not aware of any rumor of this from any source.

And I’m not sure why you think the Classic was for “Japanese” artists. It’s available worldwide, and there is no reason to believe Pentax is targeting Japanese photographers specifically. Chris’s Nicholls (YouTube guy) is most definitely not Japanese and he gave it a very positive review.

---------- Post added 03-11-24 at 12:02 AM ----------



I think it’s good that Pentax upgraded the coatings on the FA lenses and retained them in the lineup. Those lenses are the almighty ones in terms of compatibility.
- They cover full frame and APS-C
- When used on APS-C, they are reasonably sized
- Aperture works on digital cameras before the K-3
- Focus works on any Pentax AF camera
- They can be used on all past film K-mount cameras in manual
- If Pentax makes a film SLR, the lenses will be compatible with that
- They can be easily adapted to Mirrorless cameras with a simple adapter because of the aperture ring

Add to this that they are some of the best value lenses you can get for any system now.

If they were “upgraded” to the spec of say the DFA 21/2.4 Ltd, they would lose most of this compatibility, probably get bigger and certainly more expensive.

And as for them not showing the potential of current cameras, I certainly don’t believe that. I was able to borrow a K-1 II and the SMC FA 35 and FA77 lenses produced results every bit as good as the latest lenses on that body.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 03-02-2024, 04:34 PM  
Film camera news
Posted By JPT
Replies: 275
Views: 11,578
This camera is quite elusive. Even though I've been aware of it from seeing images online, I've never seen an MF-1 in any second hand stores. Perhaps it was not very popular or too prone to failure. I didn't know about the sensor behind the filter, which is a nice trick.

I remember soon after coming to Japan I was looking for a camera. I ended up getting a Pentax Espio 140M because the GR-1 at JPY 90,000+ was way more than I could afford at the time. If this camera had been out at that price, I would have gone for it.

It seems to have cost just JPY 35,000, which is very reasonable.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 03-02-2024, 08:35 AM  
Film camera news
Posted By JPT
Replies: 275
Views: 11,578
Ever since TKO first announced the project, he has talked about an affordable compact, a high-end compact and then possibly SLR models. I've been very curious to see what would be the compromises on the affordable model.

Given the information in the video and other recent communications, it seems they have not compromised on the amount of manual control or the lens. Rather, the compromises seem to be the fact that it's half frame and the lack of electronic sophistication.

There are plenty of unknowns left. We don't know what material the body is made of, whether it has a flash and the price. If they haven't changed their minds since last summer, the mechanism inside should be metal.

Actually, the camera they are describing sounds higher end than I was expecting. I'm very intrigued. If you were hoping for a full frame model, I'm pretty sure that is one of the principle ways in which the high-end model will differentiate itself.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 03-02-2024, 04:40 AM  
PENTAX Film Photography - A new challange by PENTAX
Posted By JPT
Replies: 73
Views: 3,982
My camera has a vertical frame orientation, but I want to shoot a horizontal shot. What on earth could be the solution?

If anyone can post the solution to this intractable problem, I'd be forever grateful.

Really . . .
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-29-2024, 02:56 PM  
Ricoh want your feedback
Posted By JPT
Replies: 182
Views: 9,207
It looks legitimate to me. It uses a survey tool Ricoh has used numerous times before. It is the same question set they used two weeks ago in Japan for a survey via their online store login. The questions don’t ask for much personal information, just age range. It has been promoted on official social media channels.

As for whether it’s a Ricoh Imaging or specifically Pentax survey, I think this comes from the Pentax side and will be seen by Pentax staff. I say that because the Japanese survey has “About Pentax products” in the title.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-28-2024, 03:49 PM  
Ricoh want your feedback
Posted By JPT
Replies: 182
Views: 9,207
I had a quick look at the questions. It’s basically the same survey Ricoh has been doing in Japan over the past couple of weeks. Good that they are asking internationally this time.

Actually, they had a previous survey in Japan just about the WG series a year or so ago. It seems like they are really considering an upscale model.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-24-2024, 09:23 PM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
So as I mentioned, I attended the GR Live event on Friday. I was hoping to get some inspiration, because despite loving the GR III, I have not been using it a lot recently. I wanted to see what kind of work more experienced photographers and what I should aspire to myself.

The event was very well attended. I think there must have been at least 200 people there. There were a few non-Japanese like me, but I assume they are residents who speak Japanese. There was quite a nice cross-section of ages and more women that at most typical photography events. They have done this kind of event before, but this specific “Live” event was last done a couple of years ago.

The program consisted of some music, presentations from photographers and the amateur “fan” presentations. I won’t go into the fan presentations, but they were actually quite well done. Some of them were really humorous in the way they presented. Most of these fans were chosen after attending one of the GR Meet events around the country.

The pro photographers were as follows. They each spoke for about 10 minutes. I personally liked Suzuki-san’s, Ohwada-san’s and Adachi-san’s best.

Kyosuke Hamao ?GRist?Vol.63 Kyosuke Hamao | GR official | RICOH official community site
A former actor who quit to pursue design as a career.

Tatsuo Suzuki tatsuosuzuki – VoidTokyo
A street photographer, who shares some ground with Daido Moriyama, but his work contains more of an element of portraiture.

Ryo Ohwada ? ???
Seems to have a lot of snap photography in his portfolio, but this time he was showing mainly snow landscapes taken with the GR IIIx.

Robert Adachi Robert Adachi Official Website
Seems to do abstract, still life, cityscapes and landscapes. He is also a musician and was the MC and DJ for the event.

Yusuke Okawa YUSUKE OKAWA - Portfolio
A Youtuber who uses a GR III for stills.

Takahiko Nakafuji TAKEHIKO NAKAFUJI | photographer
A seasoned street photographer. This time he was presenting images of a rock band which seems to be where his career started.

After that there was a discussion between photographer Satoru Watanabe and two other people who work related to the animation house Studio Ghibli. One of them worked with the famous anime director Hayao Miyazaki on his latest film “The Boy and the Heron”. He had used the GR to take candid shots of Miyazaki-san at work during production, some of which he showed.

In addition to this, at various points, there were comments from Ricoh staff. It does seem that the cameras are genuinely very popular at the moment, and the main challenge is just meeting demand. They were quite clear that no new products would be release at the event.

One interesting part was the global marketing guy who showed the scale of events being done outside Japan. In particular, they have tons of events in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Korea. They also showed photos of well-attended events in the US and Europe.

It seems that the way they decide where to hold events based on the number of GR photos tagged with the specified city hashtag. That would be (for example) #shootGR_Helsinki . So if you are interested in having Ricoh events in your city, that is a way to register your interest in a way Ricoh will notice.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-23-2024, 06:23 AM  
Latest news on film project
Posted By JPT
Replies: 263
Views: 18,800
Just to avoid misquoting, here is what was actually said about the lens.

Iikawa: I can’t go into details (laughs). We wanted to make it a little different from the lenses that have been designed to maximize performance. This is because that is what we learned from looking at the photos of the young people. The point is how to use the tools, and what is available at the time is used well. And the person’s personality comes out in the way he or she uses it. So rather than just making a lens that takes beautiful pictures, we would like to make one that has a certain flavor.

So as you said, if it were to be a lens shared with a GR model, it would have to be something different from the current models. However. I’m skeptical that there is any collaboration between Pentax and the GR team on this. I think designing a lens with flaws in it would be against the GR’s philosophy.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-23-2024, 05:43 AM  
Latest news on film project
Posted By JPT
Replies: 263
Views: 18,800
Pentax said they would have a low end compact and then a high end compact. After that they would do an SLR. They also said in one of the interviews that the lens on the first one would be a one geared towards character not precision (don’t remember the exact words). They said the winding mechanism they have developed for the first camera was designed in such a way that it could be applied to an SLR in future. And the interviewee who saw the prototype said there was a lot of manual control.

So when I think about what would differentiate the cheap compact from the high end compact, I come back to the lens and the half frame distinction makes sense too.

I think the first camera may be half frame with mostly manual control of all shooting parameters. It’ll have a relatively slow lens.

The second camera will share a lot with the first, but be full frame and have a much better lens. It might be built of better materials.

The third camera will be an SLR with a the same film winding mechanism as the compact cameras.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-23-2024, 02:41 AM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
Not broadcast on the internet. I think ooku means brand promotion. I’m there now at the intermission. It’s quite a big event with lots of attendees. The photographer presentations have been really interesting so far. They specifically said at the beginning the rumors of a product announcement are wrong. I don’t think anyone here was really expecting that.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-19-2024, 06:40 AM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
It might not be the most obvious choice with an APS-C sensor. It would probably be too bulky. However, Ricoh did use to have the GX series, which was quite a nice camera. An updated version of that would be welcome, but it probably couldn't be described as a variant of the GR III.

I don't know if anyone remembers the DL18-50 that Nikon started marketing and then never released. It has an 18-50mm equivalent lens and an aperture range of f1.8-2.8 on a "one-inch" sensor with excellent ergonomics.



This was shown at CP+ one year and I was lucky enough to be able to try it out. It was really nice and I think they were short-sighted to cancel it. I guess they did so because the trend at the time was away from compact cameras. But now we have a situation where the priced of such cameras new and used are rising, so such a camera might work.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-18-2024, 07:57 PM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
If it’s based on the GR III, the options would be:
- Another focal length, such 21mm equivalent (they had the GR 21 in the film days)
- A GR with a zoom lens (it would be big, but they did a very sharp APS-C zoom unit for GXR)
- A GR with an M-Mount (they did an M-Mount unit for GXR too)
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-18-2024, 04:22 PM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
I’m a bit concerned that false hype is building up around this event. Ricoh has held this event (same venue and similar program) few times and it was not related to any specific product announcement.

In terms of rumors of products, I haven’t seen any specific rumors. There was just a vague comment at the end of video on an official GR YouTube channel that implied something was coming. I tend to believe this because otherwise why would they even release the video without cutting that. But no particular information to suggest what or when.

I can say that two wishful rumors are highly unlikely to happen.
1. The Pentax film camera will be a GR. The whole project is under the auspices of Pentax not Ricoh and these days they are separate divisions.
2. A monochrome GR. A recent magazine interview with Ricoh made this sound almost impossible. The problem is that a monochrome sensor, if available, is much more expensive. The GR’s sensor doesn’t have a monochrome variant. But even if it did, there would be another problem. The GR’s sensor is heavily customized anyway to work with the lens. So to develop a GR monochrome work would involve customization on top of customizations and be ridiculously expensive.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-18-2024, 05:09 AM  
New GR live event
Posted By JPT
Replies: 29
Views: 5,203
I would be pretty surprised if a new camera was released next Friday because it's a national holiday, so not a working day for most news outlets. On top of that, it's one of the days of CP+, so any journalists working are likely to be there.

I guess it's possible that Ricoh could release something during next week, and then this event would be a kind of showcase. There was a big hint that some GR-related release is coming from the interview last year, but I still think it's a bit of a long shot for next week.
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion 02-13-2024, 05:36 AM  
Pentax KF, colossal failure, or viable upgrade?
Posted By JPT
Replies: 43
Views: 2,088
Isn't this almost exactly what the KP was? Weren't you tempted by that camera?

I think the problem is that Pentax doesn't have the capacity to produce a huge range of cameras at the same time, like Nikon or Canon have done. That means that sometimes a camera will come and go and there won't be a direct replacement for a while. We've seen that a number of times in the past few years. In fact, I can't remember a time since 2007 (my entry to Pentax) when Pentax had more than three K-mount models in production at a time.

The KF is good for what it is - the cheapest way to get a foot into the K-mount world. And I bet the choice of components is a key factor in keeping the price low.
Forum: Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands 02-11-2024, 05:45 PM  
Nikon DX DSLRs dead, says Amateur Photographer
Posted By JPT
Replies: 74
Views: 1,971
Just to add some perspective to this, I don't see any evidence that the D7500 is discontinued in Japan. The D7500 18-140 kit is available at 52 online retailers, the D7500 body at 45, the D850 at 45 and the D780 at 42. These are all consistent with a Nikon body that is not yet discontinued.

Normally, Japan is a good canary in the coal mine for discontinuations. For example, the other DX DSLRs were gone from the stores in Japan months before other countries were reporting it. I guess this is a local supply situation in the UK or just a decision from Nikon UK to stop ordering more.

Having said that, the Nikon DX lens line-up lens is almost completely gone now (like the Canon crop lenses), so I guess that DX will disappear somewhat ahead of FX for Nikon.
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing 02-05-2024, 05:31 PM  
Advice on buying a monitor - what should I be looking concerned about?
Posted By JPT
Replies: 45
Views: 1,812
I have had the 24 inch model of this same Asus Pro Art monitor for a few years. I mainly bought it as a work-from-home monitor, but it’s really nice for photo work too. It comes pre-calibrated, and I like the way it looks, so I leave it like that. I’m not really one for heavy post processing, so mine is not an expert opinion.

I use it with an M1 Mac and some low end HP thing my company gave me called an “EliteBook”. Given the latter can run this monitor with a very weak spec, I don’t think such a monitor will tax your computer much.

Anyway, another positive experience with Asus.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-05-2024, 12:21 AM  
A new Pentax camera at last (or is it?): Pentax WG-90
Posted By JPT
Replies: 161
Views: 10,283
The OM System TG-7 and the Olympus TG-6 before it are both made in Vietnam. So not the same factory as Pentax.

Interestingly, at the time of the MX-1, there was also an Olympus XZ-2 (Also Indonesia) and a Casio EX-10 (China) with a lens unit with the exact same specification and appearance. All these had very different specs and body designs.

So obviously these cameras have some shared parts and may well be made in the same factories (or different factories of the same company). But the companies that commission them have a lot of say in how they are made.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 02-02-2024, 06:19 AM  
A new Pentax camera at last (or is it?): Pentax WG-90
Posted By JPT
Replies: 161
Views: 10,283
I think the WG series has been made in Indonesia for a long time. Here's an image of a WG-10, showing the label.



Also, the MX-1 compact was made in Indonesia.



So I don't know the name of the company they use to manufacture these cameras, but it certainly isn't a new development.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 01-31-2024, 05:58 AM  
K1iii talked about as being under development......maybe
Posted By JPT
Replies: 368
Views: 25,000
I think that Pentax has had their fiasco with the SDM debacle. Ricoh is quite conservative, and will delay a product rather than releasing something that doesn’t work.

So my thought is that even if Ricoh has been working on a very ambitious K-1 III, it will not be released until it’s ready. Whether this is in progress and at what stage of progress it is is something we can’t know. But when it comes, I’m confident it’ll be a mature product.

One interpretation of the gap since the K-3 III is that the developers have been sitting around doing nothing for a few years, but do you really think that is characteristic of Japanese employees? Another interpretation is that they have been working on an ambitious update that will really raise the bar from past DSLR models.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 01-29-2024, 01:48 AM  
Latest news on film project
Posted By JPT
Replies: 263
Views: 18,800
Uncharacteristic and good news if this is true. Kodak has reduced the price of a film.

Kodak announces PRICE CUT on Tri-X 400 film ? is the world turning black & white? | Digital Camera World

Actually, I was in the Pentax Club House the other day and they have a few films on sale there, including some I hadn't seen in the Ricoh online store. They had some basic Fujicolor and Fomapan. I think the prices were pretty good.
Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion 01-28-2024, 09:07 PM  
Primary Travel Lens - Japan
Posted By JPT
Replies: 18
Views: 947
I live in Japan and do a lot of domestic sightseeing trips. My basic kit is the DA15, the DA20-40 and either the FA77 or the DA55-300 PLM. That covers me for most cases. Whether I go for the prime or zoom for telephoto depends on whether I see more of a case for night photos or some wildlife. To be honest, the FA is usually the better choice for me.

So I think what you are considering will serve you well.

Another approach would be to go for something like a DA16-85 to cover all focal lenses in the daytime, and a fast prime to use when the sun goes down. I sometimes use the combination of DA18-135 and FA35 for this.

My only other comment would be to echo the other poster who said to pack light. For the bag you carry with you during the day, I would try to keep it down to a shoulder bag or a small rucksack. It isn’t just a question of public transport. It’s also difficult to move through the narrow aisles of shops and tightly packed seating in restaurants and cafes.

Another thing is that big rucksacks worn on your back will really annoy people in busy places. On trains and in stations you are supposed to wear rucksacks at your front to be space efficient. There have been terrible cases of backpackers turning round suddenly on platforms and unwittingly whacking people into the path of oncoming trains with their backpack.
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion 01-27-2024, 01:11 AM  
Should Pentax make a Pentax K1 retro monochrome?
Posted By JPT
Replies: 50
Views: 1,848
I a recent magazine interview, Pentax made some comments about the Monochrome and it seems clear that we should not expect a sudden rush of other monochrome models from Pentax.

The K-3 III was only feasible because there happened to be a monochrome version of the same camera they could order. Even then, the monochrome sensor was a lot more expensive to procure than the standard color filter version. So it seems that a suitable sensor for a K-1 II would not be available, since the only monochrome full frae sensor tat Sony seems to make is a 60mp one.

On top of this, I think the success of the monochrome K-3 III may be a bit overstated. Pentax says the camera has been better received overseas than in Japan because monochrome photography is popular in more genres overseas. Pentax knew this from their marker research before making the camera, is it is not a surprise to them. However, I think it does indicate that monochrome sensors are not a huge cash cow for Pentax, and that they would not expend a lot of resources on making a deviated monochrome body.

The other thing they said was that a monochrome sensor GR is unfeasible for a couple of reasons. One is the one mentioned above - the 24mp sensor has no monochrome version. The other one is more fundamental, and would imply that even of they moved to a 26mp señor in a hypothetical "GR IV", using the monochrome version would not be feasible at any reasonable cost.

So the best hope would be if the K-1 III was made with the 60mp sensor. That would enable them to pull off the same trick they did with the K-3 III and the 26mp sensor.
Forum: Pentax News and Rumors 01-27-2024, 12:52 AM  
K1iii talked about as being under development......maybe
Posted By JPT
Replies: 368
Views: 25,000
The Nikon D850 and the Canon 5D Mark IV are the end of the upgrade path for other brand DSLR users. They will mostly move over to a mirrorless system. But there are small percentage who are devoted to the OVF and refuse to move over. Right now the K-1 II doesn't look like much of an upgrade to them but there is an opportunity there for Pentax. D850s will start to reach the end of their life soon, forcing choices on their users. So my feeling is the spec Pentax needs to target for the K-1 III is advanced enough to be seen as an upgrade to the D850. The other thing is that this will probably be a camera that is on the market until 2030 and beyond, so it has to be a big generatonal leap. Just adding the K-3 III advancements to a K-1 will not be enough. In fact, I think they somehow need to get the camera to use on sensor AF while keeping the OVF. Otherwise they will be forever paying extra for components that DSLRs need, which are only seen as inferior to what is built in to the sensor.
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