Is it just me?

I just got back from a 2 week vacation on the west coast of Vancouver Island, the most westerly point of Canada. Even though it was September, I was surprised to see so many tourists there. Equally surprised was the encouraging sight of a resurgence of SLR cameras which has to be a good thing for photography. However, I don't think I saw one other Pentax SLR in the whole time I was there. Mind you, I am not real sure about that because I was not actively looking at brands myself as I really don't care what kind of camera people use or if their brand also makes copiers or surveying equipment. But every SLR I did see was so honking BIG that I just knew it couldn't possibly be a Pentax. I did however notice that each and every SLR owner just HAD to slyly sneak a peak to see what brand I had around my neck and I must say, some of them were very good at it. Their reaction was usually a poorly disguised look of disgust or a feeble smile of sympathy when they identified my little *IST Ds. It got real funny though when I purposely turned my neck strap over and held my camera facing the ground to hide the Pentax names on both. I was having a lot of fun with these people but then realized... I have seen this similar behaviour somewhere else before. At first I couldn't remember where but then it came to me. When I was younger (it never happens now BTW) once in a while an insecure jerk from the next urinal would try to sneak a peak just to see "how he measures up". Now come to think of it, I used to get the same responses then as I did last week. Size doesn't really matter...does it? I hope not because I love my little Ds and I love my little 50-200 DA. Hell, I love ALL my little equipment. Maybe I could just get a 2 size bigger camera case and use it kind of as a Pentax codpiece.

Cheers

Drew Peabody

Size doesn't matter - it's how you use it

....it's always people with small equipment that say that...

Sorry but as a woman, and a Ds owner, I know what I'm talking about!!!!!!

Rock on Gwyn!

Drew,

Leaf watching season has begun here in the Eastern part of Canada. The highways will be jammed with folks - hopefully with cameras - more hopefully with a good showing of SLRs!

I'll try your trick(s) and see if what you observered is more than a west coast thing.

I wonder if it has anything to do with the average age of the tourist crowd... (I feel very comfortable using gear that is 40 yrs old and still 20 years younger than me - Spotmatics. My daughters on the other hand, don't even want to be seen with me as they walk around with digital zooms smaller than my cigarette lighter).

Funny, very funny.

I was and still am a PROUD Pentax owner and user. Never hid my equipment (camera that is) and never will.

I don't give a hoot what equipment ANYONE uses. It's not the camera that makes the pickchore is it.

Are some of us turning into elete *ist as well!

That's not news but that too is reality.

At 5'6" 155 lbs I was probably the smallest bouncer most people had ever seen.
didn't stop me from getting the job done.
I don't mind a smaller lighter cheaper camera, as long as the final image is sellable.
Gwyn, as for the first few posts and thier subject matter, I'd love to go into detail about getting the best of both worlds...having your cake and eating it...blah blah blah...but I got six kids running amok right now and don't have time....

@don