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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
01-25-2014, 03:33 AM
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I used the ME Super for years with that loading system and never had any problems, neither with loading nor rewinding. There should not be any need for a film changing bag when loading films, although you probably want to do it in the shade if there is strong sunlight. Pentax used this system for several cameras in that period but then switched to a different system that automatically picks up the end of the film, so younger Pentax film cameras will have a different system. The last film models, with auto-focus and built in auto-winders are however much bulkier and heavier than the M series - in addition to being louder and using up their big batteries much faster. The LX might be an option for you, it has a different film loading system than the M series (personally I find it neither better nor worse). A used LX is of course much more expensive than one of the M series cameras and a bit larger.
[Oops. I checked and the LX has the same setup as the M series, so you either need an earlier or later camera model if you don't like the film loading system from that era]
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
08-04-2023, 01:36 PM
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The MX is pretty sturdy, although by now any copy you can find will be something like 40-50 years old. It is fully manual but simple to use and certainly has no problem using M series lenses. There are many other options though and all Pentax SLRs with a K mount should work fine with M series lenses. The film cameras will actually work better than Pentax DSLRs from one perspective, that is being able to figure out what aperture the lens is set to use.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-05-2023, 04:23 AM
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The Sigma 17-50 2.8 is excellent. Image quality stellar, rapid focus and good build quality. Not WR and no macro capabilities though if that is important to you.
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Forum: Product Suggestions and Feedback
01-12-2023, 01:52 AM
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Pentax (Ricoh) could of course produce another mirrorless camera based on the K mount but this seems highly unlikely. One of the main advantages of mirrorless cameras is the fact that due to the absence of the mirror the lens can be much closer to the sensor. That calls for a new mount and a new lens series. That is what other camera manufacturers have done and abandonded their old mounts and lens series although old lenses can still be used with an adaptor, not a neat solution. The K-01 did not go down this route and maybe that was part of the reason why it was not a huge success. It was a nice camera though but Pentax released it before they had done enough work on the contrast detect based focusing system. Even if that system eventually got much better with firmware upgrades the camera never really took off. The design was not to everybody's liking but it was certainly bold and in my view quite well done. There were other questionable decisions made in marketing the K-01, it was quite expensive and the kit lens made little sense, its only advantage being how small it was. Introducing a new lens mount at this stage would be very expensive for Pentax and hard to see it selling in the volume needed. If they wanted to do something in the mirrorless market they could of course resurrect the Q mount. There are several nice lenses available for that mount already so they would only need an updated camera body. The Q series uses a fairly small sensor of course so it would not take the place of an APS-C or fullframe mirrorless camera, it is closer to phone cameras in that respect.
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Forum: Pentax K-70 & KF
12-21-2022, 01:50 AM
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The Northrups have a fine Youtube channel and certainly know what they are talking about. In this case they are right, the Kf was a very minor upgrade to an old camera while the change of name indicated something more dramatic. That was a disappointment and pointing that out is hardly an indication of bias against the brand. If Ricoh had made a real effort they would have brought out something like a cheaper version of the K3-iii to replace the K-70 with a regular viewfinder, simpler controls and focus system, less rugged but with the same sensor and thus similar or the same image quality (resolution, noise, dynamic range etc.) and 4K video at a significantly lower price than the K3-iii.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
11-09-2022, 04:14 PM
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Marketing this as a new camera is a bit dodgy. It is basically a K70 with a new screen. Calling it K70ii or K70s or something like that would have been more appropriate. This is a bit like when Pentax started issuing 'new' models in the *istD range, that were more or less all the same basic camera with only minor differences. So in 2004-2006 we got *ist DS, DS2, DL, DL2 and as if that was not enough, also K100D and K110D. The only substantial difference between these models was that the K100D introduced shake reduction.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
01-18-2022, 03:07 AM
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The buyer in cross-border transactions outside a customs union should not pay double VAT. Generally this is accomplished by the seller (exporter) not charging VAT but then the VAT is added (using the rate of the importing country) when the goods pass through customs in the country of the buyer (importer). There may sometimes of course also be tariffs or excise duties and processing fees added to the bill when goods cross a border (and shipping charges). The EU has the same external tariffs for all countries in the EU but the rates may differ depending on the type of goods and their origin. VAT is added last, on top of everything else. To complicate things a bit more most sellers will list prices with the local VAT included, so this will have to be subtracted from the price before shipping. There are other options though, sometimes an exporter will take care of getting goods through customs in the land of the buyer, pay VAT etc. and have all this included in the price (or invoice) that the buyer sees. The effects of different currencies and exchange rates should be easy to figure out but retail transactions that involve different currencies generally get a rather dismal exchange rate, with intermediaries (banks, credit card companies etc.) taking a hefty cut.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
09-06-2021, 02:21 PM
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I have had problems with memory cards after reading them using a card reader attached to a Mac and errors similar to the ones you got. The Mac writes all sorts of hidden files to the card as part of its file management and my guess is that is the source of the problem. On one occasion the only way for me to get a card to be usable again was to format it on a Windows machine, the camera refused to do it (I tried 3 Pentax cameras). After I did that all was back to normal. After that experience I always lock memory cards before putting them into the card reader. Have had no problems since I started doing that.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
05-24-2021, 04:36 AM
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Since the only body that Ricoh has released under the Pentax name in recent years is a high end APS-C camera, the obvious questions are something like: Are you working on anything for the Q series? 645 series? Full frame K mount (K-1 mark iii or entry level)? Entry level APS-C? Answers to those questions would be quite revealing for what kind of future Ricoh plans for the Pentax brand.
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Forum: Pentax K-1 & K-1 II
03-02-2021, 08:19 AM
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Camera size and weight has gone through various cycles. When I bought my first Pentax camera, the ME Super, some forty years ago one of the main selling points was how light and compact it was, at 460 grams. Indeed that was one of the strengths of the M series from Pentax, even the semi-professional MX (LX came out a bit later and was somewhat bigger and heavier at 565 grams). The M series lenses were also quite compact. SLR film cameras did not get much lighter than the ME/ME Super/MX etc. as they started adding built in auto-focus and autowinders towards the end of the film era. The K-1 at 1.010 grams is more than twice as heavy as the ME Super. The 28-105 kit lens is also much heavier (440 grams) than the typical kit lens for the film camera, the M50 1.7 at 185 grams. So the K-1 with its kit lens at 1.450 grams weighs 125% more than the ME Super with its kit lens. This is of course comparing apples to oranges. A more relevant comparison would be between the K-1 and a semi-professional fullframe mirrorless (since that is where the competition is headed) camera from a competitor. The Canon R6 weighs about as much as the LX, at 600 grams, so considerably less than the Pentax K-1. Given that Pentax is sticking with DSLRs it will have to compete on something else than weight and bulk in the future. The most obvious differentiating feature will of course be the optical viewfinder, so Pentax or Ricoh had better hope that enough buyers don't want to give that up.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-28-2021, 10:05 AM
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If Pentax wants to stay in the FF field then a successor to the K-1 with a sensor with roughly 50 megapixel or more would make sense. A fullframe camera with fewer megapixels than K-1 makes little sense unless it is a considerably less expensive model aimed at a different audience. Pentax has seemingly all but abandoned the 645 series (and certainly abandoned the Q series) so competing with the 645z is hardly an issue. Of course Pentax could reenter the 645 market but it would take quite an effort since Fuji has spent a ton of money on developing medium format lenses and bodies since the 645z came out. It would actually be easier to resurrect the Q series since nobody else is competing in that niche (except smartphones indirectly of course). They would really only need to put a modern sensor into the Q-S1 for that.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-11-2020, 01:51 PM
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Part of the beauty of the LX exposure system is that in auto mode (aperture priority) it does not matter if the camera can determine pre-exposure whether the lens is stopped down. The TTL system measures the light being reflected off the film during exposure and closes the shutter when the film is correctly exposed. This was state-of-the-art when the LX was introduced and basicallyl still is.
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Forum: Pentax K-01
04-29-2019, 03:43 PM
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You should be able to find a used DA 16-45 for fairly little. I have not used it myself but it got quite reasonable reviews. It is an f4 lens. For a little more you could get a Sigma 17-50 f2.8. An excellent lens, my favourite for the K-01. One stop brighter than the DA lens and with a more modern focusing system. Slightly less wide and bulkier though.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
09-30-2018, 12:48 PM
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Whatever Pentax releases to celebrate the first 100 years should obviously not be called Pentax LX. That was how they celebrated the 60th anniversary (released in 1980 even if the anniversary was in 1979!). The appropriate model name for the 100th anniversary would be Pentax C.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-28-2018, 08:38 AM
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The DFA 28-105 is a very nice lens, good IQ and far less bulky than any 24-70 f2.8 lens for Pentax. If you need something a bit wider and brighter there are a few options, including Pentax's own 24-70 f2.8 and two from Sigma. The Pentax lens is apparently quite good but the most expensive option. I have the older of the two Sigma lenses, with screw-drive rather than HSM. Bought it used for roughly one third of what a brand new copy of the Pentax lens would have cost me. It is a very nice lens and frankly I don't notice any obvious difference in image quality between it and the DFA 28-105. The main drawback compared to the DFA is that the Sigma lens is considerably bigger and heavier. It also does not have WR. The screw drive works well enough and even if the more modern focusing systems, like the one in the DFA 28-105, may be a bit faster, in practice it is easily fast enough on a K-1 body. So, I use both lenses a lot, pick the Pentax one when I want a light package (still something like 1.5 kg, camera+lens) or need WR but the Sigma for low light or when I need 24 mm. There is a considerable difference between the field of view at 24mm and 28mm. Another option is to buy something like the FA 35 to complement the DFA 28-105. That gives you a moderately wide lens with an f2.0 maximum aperture which helps a lot in low light, when the relatively slow maximum aperture of the DFA lens is a problem. I find that duo quite practical. The FA 35 is a very nice lens and quite light and compact and not too expensive (plenty available used as it has been sold since the film era).
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
07-16-2018, 04:55 PM
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The D FA 28-105 is optically fine and it is probably hard to tell the difference between a photo taken with it and most Pentax prime lenses (at least when you correct for vignetting which is its only real weakness, but that is easily dealt with in post-processing). It has WR, a practical zoom range and is not all that bulky. So, if one does not need the wider apertures that primes can offer I see no reason not to buy and use this zoom lens on a K-1. I use it quite a bit and if I am only taking one lens with me it is quite likely my choice. Replacing it with several primes to cover a similar range is just not very practical in many cases - and for that matter, Pentax does not currently offer any prime lens that is wider than 31 mm (and that lens is 17 years old) so to get to 28 mm one would need a third party lens or a discontinued Pentax lens. That said, an APS-c body with a comparable zoom lens will be considerably smaller and lighter. The K-1 (both versions) with a battery and the the D FA 28-105 is close to 1.5 kg, a KP with the 17-70 is about 400 g less (and of course also costs less). So, the APS-c option has some advantages over the full frame option while the latter wins on image quality - although the KP and other recent APS-c Pentax camera will certainly deliver excellent images as well and probably good enough for most purposes. The compactness of many Pentax primes (certainly not the new D FA 50 though!) is not a huge advantage when the camera itself weighs 1 kg so for that reason primes may even be a better match for the smaller and lighter APS-c bodies than the K-1.
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Forum: Pentax Q
02-04-2017, 07:32 AM
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A normal lens has a focal length that is equal to the diagonal of the sensor. For full frame that is 43.3mm and for APS-C 28.2mm. For the Q-S1 and Q7 it is 9.3mm, for the Q and Q10 normal would be 7.7mm. So 8.5mm is pretty close to normal and certainly not ultra-wide. A normal focal length lens is generally the simplest one to produce and thus they are usually inexpensive and perform well optically.
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Forum: Photographic Technique
01-15-2017, 08:46 AM
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The course that the original post refers to is hosted at Alison. It is videotaped in 2009 and some of it is pretty dated, especially the discussion of the latest equipment (mainly Canon btw.). You can watch the videos from the 2015 version of the course on the course website at http://digitalphotography.exposed/ Although it seems to be more or less the same material with the same instructor the 2015 videos are of much better quality and you can watch them directly on Youtube instead of the Alison system (which is full of ads and frankly not very nice).
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
05-20-2014, 12:28 PM
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Welcome (from even further up north)!
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Forum: Pentax K-01
12-02-2012, 04:25 PM
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Got my K-01 last week. Finally upgraded my aging *ist DL. I was going to get a K-30 but the price reduction on the K-01 made me change my mind.
Some early observations. More or less in line with what others have found, I reckon.
The image quality is excellent. High iso performance much better than the first generation of Pentax DSLRs. Probably at least a 3 stop difference, with iso 6400 being similar to iso 800 on the DL. Dynamic range also much improved. 16 megapixels is however far more than is needed for most practical purposes, 6 megapixels are plenty.
Video is surprisingly good. It will take some practice to get focusing under control though (no continuous AF). Audio quality is not terrible, the built-in microphone being fairly reasonable. I only had a problem when videoing a scene in a quiet room, then you could clearly hear that the camera produces a fair amount of white noise on the audio track. Annoying but can be filtered out in software. This is apparently not a fault of the built-in microphone as I got the same result with a good external microphone.
The camera handles very well and feels quite solid. The buttons are easily accessed (I don't see the problem some have with the green button) and the menu system fairly logical. The right hand side door or flap is not an example of brilliant engineering but once you figure out that to close it you have to slide it in it works well enough. Has not caused any problems for me.
The rubber texture of the camera helps provide a good grip. It is actually a better solution, being less slippery, than the hard plastic that is usually used for DSLRs.
Pentax apparently rushed the camera to market as the initial firmware was simply not good enough when it came to controlling focusing. With 1.01 focusing is however fairly fast and trouble free. Certainly much faster than my old DL. Don't understand why they still ship cameras with the initial firmware.
The 40mm kit lens is an interesting one but mainly due to its small size. Optically it is fine but that's about it. The focal length is a bit too long for a normal lens, the 2.8 aperture not very impressive for a normal prime and it makes a very loud noise when focusing. I see myself using my FA 35 far more than this one (brighter, wider, less noisy, similar IQ and not terribly large).
The camera is fairly fast and responsive. Taking raw photos I never have to wait for the buffer to clear to take the next photo. Burst mode may be rather limited when taking raw photos but when taking jpegs it is fine. The jpeg engine also seems fairly good although I'll probably not use it much.
The camera is somewhat large for a MILC but I don't see that as a problem. Compared to most DSLRs it is quite compact.
Finally - the viewfinder. Having used various Pentax viewfinders for the last 30+ years I don't miss having one that much on the K-01. The LCD is good and usable even from a steep angle. Haven't tried using the camera in bright sunlight or snow though.
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