What's your history with Pentax cameras?

welshwizard645

welshwizard645

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We've had a Nikon thread and a Canon thread... now we should have a Pentax thread. No 'digital' in title as I suspect a lot of people who use Nikon and Canon started off with Pentax before 'upgrading':rolleyes:

My Pentax history starts with C**non. I could only afford a Chinon CP7m in 1987. I'd hankered after a T70 or P50 but my grant couldn't go as far as Canon/Pentax at the time. Besides my Dad had a CE4 which gave me access to K-mount glass.

Went to AF in 1992 when I had the means to buy a Z-10 I did and not long after I bought a Z-1p (which I still have)...bought and sold an MZ-S (gorgeous thing).....

Pentax's late start into digital meant I was nearly seduced by the Nikon D100, and even 15+ years ago there were reports of Pentax's imminent demise, there were some reports during the advent of AF and yet they still persist.

Film history is Z-10, Z-20, Z-1p, Z-1 and MZ-S - more to come later
Digital history...

waited for price of *istD to come down after the launch £1400 > £600, broke it and then bought an *ist DL, K10D, K20D, K-5, K-3 and K-1. Currently own the 3 and 1. When I am out and about I prefer taking the K-3 and K-1 above the D500/D810, they are more enjoyable to use......

I never gave up on P50 ownership - I now have a pre-AF Pentax camera. So that is 4 very different cameras. Same mount.
 
Not Pentax per se but K mount.

Ricoh KR10 then a Ricoh XR-X. Brilliant camera.

Missus still has a Chinon CE-4 in the loft.
 
My first 2 SLRs were Pentax - an S1 followed by a spotty.
 
My first proper camera was the Pentax ME given to me around my 20th birthday. I added a few lenses over the next 5-10 years before getting a P50 to allow me to control shutter speed direct. These were still my main cameras when I eventually went digital about 10 years ago, but the amount of shooting I did had dropped drastically.
Of course Pentax were the system of choice here too - My first DSLR was the K100d which very much got me back into photography, within a couple of years I'd switched this to a backup camera & got a K7. I now have a K5ii too.

Being the family photo nut I've inherited all the SLRs from the remainder of the family so now have a MX, ME super, (Miranda MS1, Cosina C1 also PK mount)... and a couple of Optios as well as a few more lenses to add to the stockpile I've built up myself. I'm now down to 9 PK mount cameras having given away a spare ME, and sadly trashed another example of the MX.

The most recent addition to my Pentax collection has been an Auto110 & lenses (18mm, 24mm & 50mm) this was brought for the lenses, the body is unlikely to get any use given the availability of 110 film.
My PK lenses far outweigh any other mount I have 56 now (ranging from the 10-17 fisheye to a 600mm) with M42 being the next most represented mount (26 of those).

My most used camera system has now switched to MFT as I can carry 2 bodies & 10 lenses relatively easily and can adapt any of my collection of lenses to add variety if required. The DSLRs do occasionally still see some use :)
 
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When in the British Army in 1957 I was in Berlin and bought a pre-war Contax III with un-coated 50mm f1.5 Sonnar-- thought it was the 'Bees-Nees having a f1.5 lens -- then when i started work with a local Studio in about 1961 one of the partners had been to Singapore in the RAF and brought back these 2 weird Japanese cameras called Asahi Pentax-- a 'K' and an 'S'-- nobody had heard of them especially the weird-sounding LENSES -' Takumars'-- we knew only Zeiss and Leitz and British Ross lenses but the results were far superior to my un-coated Zeiss Sonnar ! one day in Barking, Essex, a small crowd of Camera-Starved Brits were seen pressing their noses to the window of the local Camera Dealers -- inside in pride of place was ONE ONLY JAPANESE Asahi Pentax S3 --- i rushed in,offered Contax in part exchange and rushed out the proud owner of an Asahi Pentax -- and THAT so they say is where to story really begins as years later I SOLD that S3 then even many years later to Bloke contacted me and asked " Would you like that Old Camera back you sold me as it isn't working? " -- So he delivered my original S3 from 1961 ! K had a look -- it was filthy-- took off base-plate and lubricated all the Cogs and levers with a very small amount of Sewing Machine oil then carefully tried the winder and LO! and BEHOLD !! It 'creaked into action' -- gingerly pressing the shutter it creaked and fired up and has been going ever since again !!! I made a VIDEO about my Old Friend the S3 wich you can see here :

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5GYIlVvg_s
 
Bought a Pentax 67 + 105mm lens a few years back, love that camera despite its weight. I've since added a 45/4, 55/4, 75/4.5, 165/2.8, 200/4, and finally a 55-100/4.5 zoom over the years since you can usually find good deals on lenses if you're patient. I've also got a 67II body on loan to me so I've got a pretty comprehensive setup for medium format now.

Don't own any digital Pentax bodies but I will be picking up a Ricoh GR3 (who now own Pentax) once they're released.
 
I've had one couple of years back and I have nothing but good things to say about it and good memories!
Legit stuff.
 
My first "proper" camera was a Pentax ME supper in the mid 80's When I moved to auto focus I moved to Canon. But loved them I ended up with 2 bodies silver and black. The sliver had B&W film and the other slide. Took over my Dad's MX sometimes too.
 
Had a Chinon K mount camera, a mix of K mount and modified M42 lenses.

When the Chinon died I bought a Pentax AF body (don’t remember the model) because it was ‘compatible’ with my K mount kit....

Was it hell. Took it back and picked up a Canon EOS 300 instead, because they never tried to bodge an AF mount with ‘compatibility’ been a happy Canon user ever since :)
 
I had a K20d. Superb robust camera producing excellent pictures. My first SLR was a Praktica because Asahi Pentax was out of my price reach. Many folk aspired to be Pentax owners with their fast Takumar lenses.
I can never understand how Pentax have worked themselves down to hold only a very small part of the market. They should have managed to hold a place up beside Nikon and Canon.
 
First ever camera was an ME Super in 1984 with a 50mm lens.
Used it until I bought a Minolta 9000 in 1986.
 
When I first got seriously interested in photography, I so wanted a Spotmatic. Unfortunately, they cost around ten weeks wages so I bought a Zenit E instead.

Subsequently, I bought a Pentax SV - still have it, it is an excellent camera. Then I bought a SP1000 followed by an S1. Bought a non-working ME Super in London Camera Exchange for a couple of quid. Used my standard technique of giving it a good shake and it was a reliable worker for several years until some idiot stuck their thumb through the shutter while I was loading a film. I was whining about this to an acquaintance who then offered me his ME-F for £20 - even better than the ME Super!

I also have a Honeywell Spotmatic - does that count as a Pentax?
 
During a stop=over in Hong Kong Airport on way to Cebu, Philippines I found a Camera Shop open -- I had a look-- NO PENTAX to be seen . I asked the assistant " Why do you not have any PENTAX" and he replied " PENTAX is out of favour now"
 
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