Pentax MX in Japan

A few months ago I took a trip to Japan, a place I've dreamed of going for many years. The photographic opportunities there are essentially endless - it's a beautiful and very interesting country. I could have quite happily spent double the amount of time there and not run out of things to photograph.

I took my K3 and DA limited lenses but also shot four rolls of Ilford Delta 400 B&W film, and a roll of Fuji colour film which I haven't had developed yet, in my MX. I had the A 28/2.8, M 50/1.7 and M 120/2.8 with me but I'm not sure I used the 120mm at all on film and the 50mm was used for 90% of the shots.

This was my first time using Delta 400 and I like the results a lot. Good tones (not quite as good as Tri-X but close), fine grain and it dries exceptionally flat, which means scanned results are as sharp as my Epson V500 can manage.

Here are my favourite film shots from the trip, you can see more in my Flickr stream if you like.



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 018a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 149a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 146a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 141a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 137a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 125a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 120a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 116a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 115a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 093a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 079a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 075a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 068a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 056a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 037a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 073a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 036a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 032a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr



Japan Pentax MX Ilford Delta 400 017a by Jonathan MacDonald, on Flickr

These are great, really like them all.

Nice, my fave is the restaurant interior shot.

MX goes home !

Really like this set

They tell me what I think Japan is, either crowded chaos or tranquil spaces!

These two images I especially liked

Lovely limited DOF that draws you into the scene and makes you wonder what's happening, it tells a story.



Love the dark to light in this image, it has great depth and the eye naturally is drawn to the building

great series and some fantastic results on film..

I too favour those with the bigger contrast range, and the favourite is the Sushi bar, plus also the one in the Temple. Generally I like the outdoors ones where you've got a long zoom and some DOF effects.

The mono film gives a timeless sense (I know that's a real cliche, but seems true here) ...they are images of the modern world but also convey a sense of the longevity of the subjects and places.

I find some of the building ones a little overexposed, perhaps 1/2 a stop?.

Looking forward to seeing your digital take on Japan as well!

A lovely set of images in glorious mono. I used to love my MX, it was such a delight to work with. Now I'm looking forward to seeing your colour pictures, both film and digital perhaps?
David

Love this set - and admire your dedication to film. The MX really is a great little camera, and your skills with it translate well though the scanning process, the tonal range you exhibit isn't easy to get - always enjoy your posts

Easy to forget the joys of B&W. These show it off very well.

Many thanks everyone. It's a shame I couldn't take the 645 (too much weight) for better quality but the little MX performed very well and some shots I wouldn't have been able to get on medium format.

Lovely set and Gareth picked out exactly the same two photos I did. Both are super images.

On my round the world trip five years back (owch... is it really that long ago?) I took my LX for colour film and MX for BW. I never regretted the extra weight and although I shot a fair bit on my K20D, I also got through a lot of film.

Cheers, Kris.

Many thanks.

I think the same film gear (MX, M 50/1.7, A 28mm) will be going with me to Italy next week as I really enjoyed using them in Japan I think Rome could be great for B&W film too. I'm tempted to take a 6x6 folder for medium format too, but I think it might be too much weight.

Those are great, very expressive shots and a fabulous use of film (I can imagine some of them difficult to get). I also like the varied subjects and general moods of the sequence.

When I travel I take a 135 (usually an M135/3.5 as it's more compact/lighter than the K135/2.5 and has a built in hood). I don't get to use it often, but it doubles up as a 200mm on the K-5 - which can be handy.