camera advice

If you have K10/20/5 or 7.... then there is only one (maybe 2) option...

the Z-1 (Z-1p) - it's not too large

Why do you suggest this one?

Davem, if you want the 1992 Practical Photography review on the Z-1 pm me your email address. its 2.37Mb so quite a big file, 6 colour pages

done, cheers

Twin dials, so you can control aperture and shutter speed in the same way as you do on the current 'top-line' K-series cameras (since the original *ist D in fact).

I can't understand why, considering the low price, more
people aren't using the Z-1, Z-1p The Hyper manual facility
is amazing and the two dials make it similar to the digitals.

They're a great series, the pz / z cameras. Mine's probably bottom of the range but it's got some great features. I like the lcd on top of the viewfinder.

I'm actually looking forward to using mine next week in Austria.

Decided the D3 and K20D stay at home, huge order with 7dayshop, so it's all colour slide on the 645 and Z-1 (taking the 24, 50 and 77 with me).

I agree - wonderful camera. Best handling film camera I ever had, and often wish I hadn't sold it

I new it - all the cameras that Pentax ever produced are ideal in one way or another. I moved straight from an Olympus OM2 to a 1st DS so i missed all the developments in between.

I am currently thinking Super A or Z-1 but that will probably change. It seems that I need to spend betwen £60 - £100 fo the body but at least i get 6 months warranty with SRS or Ffordes.

Are batteries easy to come by?

I think I was told the 2cr5 batteries do 40 or so rolls of film. I got mine off ebay ( a while back) and have a stock of 10 or so. Being lithium they have a long shelf life and should be good well past their use by dates.

I remember having a wild goose chase for the grip strap which you can convert to an 4AA holder. Also rechargeables seem to be over voltage (2cr5 = 6v, li-ion = 7.2) and I reckon I blew a camera with a battery hot off the charger.

I was going to sell my Z-1 but have re-thunk and am keeping it

Hmm, see, the advice on the Dimitrov K mount site is that the grip for the Z series bodies is just a bit of moulded plastic (it doesn't enable the use of other batteries).

There are AA grips for the MZ series and the SFX/SFXn. The former bolts to the base of the camera with a plastic rod holding the contacts which pokes up into the camera's battery holder, the latter simply screws on in place of the standard battery holder.

If you do go for the Super A then you can use TTL flash (any flashgun with "T" on the end, generally) and the Winder ME II will also fit. There was a special faster motor drive for this body but they're a bit hard to find, the ME II works perfectly and runs from 4x AAs. You do have to remove the finger grip from the camera to fit the winder but that's just a matter of turning the securing screw with a coin and sliding the grip upwards to unhook it.

The Super A has one huge advantage amongst Pentax bodies that only a handful share: It can meter for ISO 3200 film. Handy if you fancy experimenting with Ilford Delta 3200 for low light work, where the LCD display is more visible than that of most of the other bodies able to use said film.

7dayshop stock them, about two quid each for the 2CR5 batts IIRC.

Precisely! If the experience is the same as using my digital camera but only with film, what's the point?

Not quite true. I haven't seen anyone trying to persuade you to buy a A3. Now if there was ever an ugly duckling, that model is it!

K.

It's known as progress

One of my favourite TV progs is American Pickers on the History channel. It's amusing seeing them climbing over all sort of rusty old junk saying this is really old it's from the 70's, I always laugh because I know people still using camera's from that period..... says me with 3 x MX, 1 x KM, 1 x MF, 2 x Super-A

Sounds similar to my collection although I also have a late 50s FED2, and various pre-Spotmatic bodies too. I was intrigued by the article about Sanderson field cameras in AP this week. I wonder where one gets 1/4 plate film...

K.