*ist maybe?

Currently I have MZ5n which is very nice little camera but there are a few things missing that bother me.

1) no MLU
2) no continuous AF
3) no mid roll rewind leaving the leader out

Looking at other brands and about £130 gets me a Canon EOS 3 which covers the above but as I already have some Pentax glass and a GX-20 It would be nice to stay put.

Been searching around for a while now and not finding a great deal of information on the *ist other than some basic info. I realize the MZ-S would probably do the trick but this is more like £300 so kinda out the question. The MZ-3 I don't think make's a difference really from my MZ5n.

All my glass I care about is either 'F' or 'A' series, I wouldn't be buy anything older.

So really I guess it just comes down to whether the *ist has the above things or whether I'm missing something else.

There is the thought of selling the GX-20 which could fund a MZ-S but I don't think its worth the extra £170 against the EOS 3.

Any thoughts, link or advice would be appreciated.

*ist was the last of the film cameras, so works with the later variants of the AF lens - the so called crippled KAF2 ie the FAJs and DA's (most will vignette though) as well as the F & FAs (and the M/F lenses).

It's a nice body - although mine developed a fault which lost me about a third of everything taken in Aus/NZ (had 2 other bodies with me, so not a total disaster ). I can't find my handbook, but it will do 2.5 frames/sec in continuous, has 17 customisable functions (one of which is probably to leave the leader out - F12 on an MZ-S). They aren't that common on fleebay, so usually fetch good money.

For info on bodies - try here - absolute mine of info on everything Pentax from the start of the K mount era,

link


Steve

Go for an MZ-6, it's an outstanding camera.

Interestingly (perhaps) I have been shooting increasing levels of film and was keen to be able to use my Pentax lenses (I have been using a medium format Fuji rangefinder for film recently) so I actually bought a *ist (I have no idea how it is pronounced) on saturday - i have to admit I was lusting after a Pentax MZ-S but the *ist was (a) in my local camera shop window and (b) about one tenth the price of a MZ-S (according to the typical ebay listings for MZ-S). I have to say I am very pleased with it (accepting I have only had it a couple of days).

It is tiny! really small and unbelievably light - I would say maybe half the weight or less of my K-7 and noticeably smaller. The reason I think is because it is (and feels) plastic (although with a metal mount) - but don't get me wrong it doesn't feel as if it is going to fall apart. The functionality is pretty impressive for such a small package and everything is very familiar from my experience with Pentax DSLRs (just as well as there were no instructions!).

I have only run one roll of film through it which as yet is undeveloped so I haven't seen any actual results yet but I shall post some when I have some developed negs (assuming they're not all horrendous).

The *ist certainly has continuous AF (AF-C) and it has the mid roll rewind header out function (according to the link here: link
although I must confess I don't (yet) know how to activate the function.

Not sure what MLU is (maybe I am being dense (?)). Overall I would say the *ist looks like good value for money given that it can be picked up for a handful of tenners and enables functionality familiar to DSLR users (although not SDM focussing I guess).

Don't know if that helps at all?

Regards

What about a Z-1p?

The *ist is the most likely to cover what you need, although ironically I personally prefer the shutter speed dial of the MZ5 and MZ3 cameras.

I presume you want mid-roll rewind to change film types, so have you considered adding a second film body and having two types of film loaded? It would cost you a lot less than changing all your lenses, plus you would have a back-up.

Thank you for all the replies.

MLU = Mirror lock up, for the reduction of mirror shake during slower and long exposures.

John - Yes I love the body and functioning of the MZ5n with the old school dials, shame it doesn't forefil my wants/needs. Two bodies would be an option but that would mean two with MLU and CAF.

Giofi - Thanks for the suggestion I will have a look at the Z-1P details.

Mannesty - Again thank you and I will check, I think I bypassed the MZ6 before as I preferred the MZ5n body.

Steve - Sorry to here you lost so many shots, cant decided if that or forgetting film is worst

The problem with faults with film bodies is you don't always know you got a problem until your rolls come back from being developed. My *ist had a sticky shutter which wasn't evident in use. Probably came with it but I didn't run a check roll through it before going "down under", so can't be sure either way. Anyway, what came out was fine, and the MZ50 covered the slide record without a hitch. The third body was a bridge camera, but I can't discuss it on this forum....



Steve

Having re-read your requirements, the MZ-6 fails to meet them on 2 counts. As far as I can tell from the manual, it has no mirror lockup function, neither does it offer continuous AF.

You can set the film leader to remain out when rewinding a film though.

Aside from those shortcomings, it's still a very good piece of kit and even allows the use of P-TTL flashes, and Pentax wireless flash.

Thanks Mannesty, shame.

From what I can see the Z-1P doesn't have continuous AF. Again a shame as a nice looking package.

I used to own a Z-1p, and it definitely does have continuous AF, though it only has one central AF point (though this was never a problem for me).

Jonathan

Mirror lock-up seems pretty rare on Pentax film bodies in general. I know the KX and K2 had it but I'm not sure which others? I would guess LX and MZ-S but I've never handled either so can't be sure. I do suspect it makes more of a difference on medium format as the mirror has much more mass, so will cause more shake when it flips.

The DSLRs do have it (sort of) in that the mirror flips up as soon as you start the self timer, then the shutter is triggered when the timer runs out.

Thanks Jonathan, single point isn't a bother at all so the Z-1P could still be a contender.

If you filter the film cameras category on E-bay with Pentax and then AF, you might just find a couple or 3 *ist up for sale at the mo.

HTH


Steve