FF Pentax anyone?

As I said before, imo, I think that APS-C will be the starting point, FF will be semi-pro, pro level and studio work will be medium-larger format. Any reduction in size is there with Olympus and I dont see too many people jumping on board with them.

It may well be that some new developments arrive, but that would mean yet more lenses surely?

If smaller and cheaper is enough reason now, what 110 format film system would you have or did use, over 35mm? I ask that question genuinely as I do not see any benefit in smaller than APS-C sensors. As per the link, Pentax don't agree either.

Regards

That's just a rumour isn't it?

It is but the second link for the translation seems to back it up?

regards

Not noticed that Olympus and Panny can't make enough EP1's and GF1's quickly enough then?

As for the question, I'm not going to go through all my reasoning again (as this subject has been covered many times) but it boils down to:

No I don't want Pentax to make a "full frame" camera because I sincerely believe it would be the death-knell for them as a company and I'm rather fond of Pentax. If they did make one and it did, as I suspect, drag them under then I'd be jumping ship to Oly.

Somehow I still think it's unlikely Pentax will get a FF camera.
Pentax need to maintain 3 lens series then (DA, DFA & DFA645) and I don't see them do that, since they even haven't got the DA range fully in order, still missing some tele lenses. Also they need to fully build the DFA and the DFA645 series at the same time....

I didn't say we would need to go smaller as APS-C, at least not at the moment. I was trying to say that making things smaller, lighter and cheaper is also an advancement, and one that is seen with a lot of technology today without degrading quality of course!

Mobile phones are a good example, they have only become smaller and smaller and now they fit inside the pockets of your pants with ease but the quality has remain the same or did the older mobile phones call better?

Over 10 years we will probable have the APS-C sensor quality of today in our phones and who knows how the DSLR looks like then?
APS-C sensors will probable be also more then good enough for most so why use FF if APS-C is good enough?

I firmly believe that Pentax cannot afford to ignore FF as the main contenders are already making cheaper versions of the original models.
Pentax would not have to produce a whole range of lenses themselves as they could be made by another manufacturer and re- badged in the same way as the Tokina made DA* 16-50 and 50-135. there is no reason to believe that APSC will disappear any time soon as it will retain a strong following for a long while yet.
But FF has to be the way forward, I came close to defecting after 35 years with Pentax, Many have already done so.
Kodak developed the Bayer pattern Sensor 30 years ago which is used under license by the majority of Sensors today. but a year ago they released the first of a brand new Sensor with each photosite 50% smaller and instead of two green, one red and one blue sensitive sites, One of the green ones was replaced by a site that is sensitive to all colours thus making it more sensitive in low light as it does not have to block out the other wavelengths as a normal photosite would do.
Its only a matter of time!!!

Regards - Pete

Pentax has to make a full-frame at some point if it wants to stay relevant to the hand camera market. Coloured plastic for the brainless masses will not save them.

Their problem is that the full-frame market is hotting up and getting cheaper, while pentax has doubled the price of it's topflight model,...so now, there is not much differential between their APS-C (k7) at £1000+ and some of the FF (Sony a850) at £1500. Just five hundred quid between an also ran APS and a 24 megpixel Full frame with superb image qulaity and Zeiss lens range, for pentax to exploit the market.....

Are you a closet Oly fan?????

My wife wants the white EP 1 and that has nothing to do with image quality. It just looks nice.

IF Pentax do go FF, I also hope that they will stay around. Time will tell. Minolta was here, then gone.

Regards

Really guys, we are now only going for the name tag here.

I remember some post ago of a new canon with amazing ISO performance, everyone thinks it was a FF sensor but it was an APS-H so really guys do we need FF?

Also nobody answered my question, do you think Pentax can build a DFA & DFA645 complete lens series in 2 years?
Because most of you are serious thinking they can since they will bring out the 645D for sure and that one need lenses also an "upcoming" FF camera should need new lenses so do you think they can do that?

I knew it was not FF actually. If the Oly is a name issue, that's only on my wife's part, it is of no use to me. As for the lenses, I don't honestly know. I would be happy with most of the lenses I use now, especially the 70-200 Sigma and if they do the needful, it will crop frame to work with the APS-C glass?

Regards

Well, I'm torn. FF, yes, but not at the cost of a bigger body. A digital MX or LX would be just perfect.
Having said that, I'm perfectly happy with my K20 and I think APS-C sensors are more than adequate for 99% of photogtaphic needs. However I would like to see better low light performance and less noise and I'm sure in time this will come. (Probably only a couple of years away.)
FF sensors generally offer that low light performance and lower noise and can offer that now. It's no accident that photojournalists largely use FF cameras. If Pentax want to play with the big boys again, they probably need a FF presence in the market. That along with the 645D would make them very serious contenders indeed. (Although it is uncertain where they are pitching that in the medium format world.)
However, Pentax or whoever owns them at the time will need to pour a lot of R&D money into beefing up the lens stock for all three ranges. Pentax are sadly lacking in the fast lens department. They could largely fix that by rolling out the old film lenses again but things have moved on and fast autofocus is a must for pro cameras. With the right backers Pentax could do it as they have consistantly proven themselves to be one of the great innovators in the photographic world. Without it they would seriously overstretch themselves, financially. In any case a concerted professional marketing campaign would help enormously as their current products are more than a match for the opposition.

Personally, I feel this is going to be the key factor. At the moment they make lovely kit but 'Joe Public' doesn't really know about it, in the UK at least.

K.

and equivalent to a 400mm on a Pentax crop sensor.

if they do produce a FF camera, that sensor is a good choice. Keep the resolution at around 14MP and give us big pixels, deeper well depths, more dynamic range and higher sensitivities!