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Whatever happened to Pentax?
Got left behind somewhat in the rush to get digiSLRs to market....Canon and Nikon have virtual dominance of the pro market and this gloss effect rubs on the amateur market, so good old Pentax gets forgotten....
If you're in the market for a sub-1000 SLR with 10 MP, then you can't go wrong with the new K10D. The Pentax Lens Roadmap for 2007 promises some optical beauties
If you're in the market for a sub-1000 SLR with 10 MP, then you can't go wrong with the new K10D. The Pentax Lens Roadmap for 2007 promises some optical beauties
Quote:Got left behind somewhat in the rush to get digiSLRs to market....
In the 35mm SLR market Pentax were falling behind even before the digital revolution. The problemPentax had is that the digital revolution really hurt their niche - the medium format market.
Mattw
I have owned (and still used) several 35mm pentax slr's over the years, and found their lack of auto this auto that a joy as it taught me about creating and controlling images. When I had my camera kit stolen last summer the pentax kit was amongst the stuff taken (also lost a full bronnie kit which really hurt) and despite looking at the pentax digital slr's on offer I opted for the d70s - why? because the marketing was better, the camera felt better and the price i got the d70s body for meant that i could buy better lenses!
Pentax produced a quality product, one day I hope it will do so again.
Martin
Pentax produced a quality product, one day I hope it will do so again.
Martin
The fame of Pentax came in part from the bayonet mount for lenses and third parties that made them in the hundreds. The Spotmatic led the way in camera metering.
Canon and Nikon are indeed the leaders who have given the professional what they want. Pentax had a pro spec 35mm SLR that fell by the wayside amidst the competition, the LX.
Others have slipped off the podium such as Rollieflex and Leica who still hold the beleif that the rangefinder has a life in digital form, the M8. Remember the Leicaflex that wobbled around for a few years.
Who knows what Pentax may have in hand by joining forces with Hoya.
Some years back I saw a latge poster with all the cameras Canon had made along with the year of introduction. I could hardly beleive they had made so many different models and their variants. You may be able too find them with the help of Google but the impact of seeing them on a huge poster has a much greater impact.
Ken
Canon and Nikon are indeed the leaders who have given the professional what they want. Pentax had a pro spec 35mm SLR that fell by the wayside amidst the competition, the LX.
Others have slipped off the podium such as Rollieflex and Leica who still hold the beleif that the rangefinder has a life in digital form, the M8. Remember the Leicaflex that wobbled around for a few years.
Who knows what Pentax may have in hand by joining forces with Hoya.
Some years back I saw a latge poster with all the cameras Canon had made along with the year of introduction. I could hardly beleive they had made so many different models and their variants. You may be able too find them with the help of Google but the impact of seeing them on a huge poster has a much greater impact.
Ken
Quote:Whatever happened to Pentax?
Such a good question Woody. Many (many!) moons ago when I was a working 'Stringer', I used two LX's with drives and a 'Billingham' full of prime lenses.
I moved on elsewhere and then came back to Photography - and things had changed...
Quote:Others have slipped off the podium such as Rollieflex and Leica who still hold the beleif that the rangefinder has a life in digital form
I can't afford to splash out on a Leica, but I think that the rangefinder format has plenty of mileage in it still. It offers extremely important things that SLRs can't match. I say that as a D2X user and as a Contax G2 owner.
When I have a bit of spare dosh, and I am happy that there is a rangefinder that provides D2X-like quality (or the equivalent at that future time), I would love to spend it on a digital rangefinder like the M8.
The Leica M8 isn't the only company trying digital rangefinders. The Epson RD1 looks (looked?) interesting.
Not really sure what the actual difference is between a rangefinder and a dslr in terms of actually what it captures. Are rangefinders much smaller than dslrs?
Not really sure what the actual difference is between a rangefinder and a dslr in terms of actually what it captures. Are rangefinders much smaller than dslrs?
Quote:Not really sure what the actual difference is between a rangefinder and a dslr in terms of actually what it captures. Are rangefinders much smaller than dslrs
Yes, they tend to be smaller, because they don't need a mirror box area, and the lens can be closer to the sensor which means smaller lighter lenses.
The lack of the need for a gap between the rear element of the lens and the sensor means that lenses can be designed without that limitation, which leads to better wide angle lens performance than SLRs.
There is less delay when you fire the shutter, because no need for the camera to pause while the mirror flips up.
Perhaps most importantly of all for candid/street photography, they can be very quiet in operation since there is no noise of mirror flapping up and down. Even where the subject is aware of you, the near-silent operation can be less intimidating for a nervous subject.
Finally, they just look sexy!
They do look sexy - IMO the silver ones more sexy than the black (opposite to the SLR's).
I love the kind of street photos taken with them too.
*However* over on another forum I was really taken by a couple of photos by a bloke who claimed they were taken with an M8. After a few weeks somebody pointed out that he'd posted the same photos a few years ago and claimed they were taken with a Canon 10D
I think the M8's have had a lot of technical problems.
Back on the thread's subject my mate at work was a good photographer (film) and it considering getting back into it by buying a digital slr. I asked her what she was going to buy and she immediately said "PENTAX, got to be a PENTAX".
Personally I said she should skip the piddly K10D and go buy a proper one!
I love the kind of street photos taken with them too.
*However* over on another forum I was really taken by a couple of photos by a bloke who claimed they were taken with an M8. After a few weeks somebody pointed out that he'd posted the same photos a few years ago and claimed they were taken with a Canon 10D
I think the M8's have had a lot of technical problems.
Back on the thread's subject my mate at work was a good photographer (film) and it considering getting back into it by buying a digital slr. I asked her what she was going to buy and she immediately said "PENTAX, got to be a PENTAX".
Personally I said she should skip the piddly K10D and go buy a proper one!
