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why oh why pick pentax ?

cabstar
Posted 14/06/2013 - 15:53 Link
On leaving school i owned a canon ae1 program and a 50mm 1.7 i think. Stopped using it in my twenties and went digitsl in 2000 with a fuji mx1300, later i upgrded to a fuji 2600 before going to bridge cameras and buying the fuji s602 which was a very nice camera. I then decided to go to college in 2007 to learn more about photography and decided i needed a digital slr. Whilst shopping in Asda i saw the k100d with kit lens for sale for around £200 a bargain so i bought it. Not long after i shot my first gig assignment for reviews website, reverend and the makers at Skegness Embassy theatre.

Having gotten a taste for a career in photography i stuck with the brand as it worked for me. I keep bugging Pentax to become a brand ambassador but they just ignore me
PPG Wedding photography Flickr
Concert photography

Currently on a Pentax hiatus until an FF Pentax is released
robbiec
Posted 14/06/2013 - 22:40 Link
I started my research into a dslr in 2007 time I think it was and remember reading an AP article about the K10D.. "Pentax strikes back!" was the tagline I remember, there was an other sentence that stuck with me as well, which they used to sum it up, "a photographers camera"

K20D then came out while I was still researching and again the sum up contained the "a photographers camera designed by people who use cameras" or something to that effect. Add in the fact that most of the forums for Pentax generally seemed well behaved (at the time) and discussed photos rather than upgrade this or you need to have the model 2 rungs up for the other brands pushed me to think Pentax and I bought a K20D sight unseen in 2008 along with a DA16-45 (you can't buy Pentax in Ireland you see) from SRS. I still have the first shots I took the following Saturday morning, all underexposed, kinda blurry in some instances but I was hooked.

I skipped the K-7, got the K-5 when it first came out and will probably get the successor to the K-5II when it eventually appears.
Glass wise, I've had a ball, Auto Takumars, Super Takumars, K's, M's (to be fair not many as the others) A's, never touched an F series lens, have had some FA's and DA's, some Russian stuff, even tried a Tamron once briefly before gifting it to my father in law. I am currently indulging myself with some Zeiss and Voigtlander but you know what? the FA Limiteds actually have them covered which secretly I knew was going to be the case because Pentax have always known how to design great lenses. The fun is finding the top 3 in each series

If I have one regret with my 4 or 5 years with Pentax, it is that I sold on my original K20D, I bonded with that camera more so than I have ever done with the K-5. It took an idiot with absolutely no idea whatsoever about even the basics of photography and at the end of 2 years had outputted a user that could probably pass a college course. That to me is the real testament to Pentax's design philosophy, ease of use, common sense and a design that can cover fully automatic green mode to pure M mode, all in all, a photographers camera designed by photographers
My Gallery
[url=http://pentaxphotogallery.com/Robbie Corrigan]ppg[/url]
davidstorm
Posted 14/06/2013 - 23:27 Link
My formative years in photography were spent teaching myself on a vintage Petri SLR bought from a second hand shop for £20, and later a Chinon CP7M, mostly with slide film.

I took a break for nearly 20 years before taking the plunge with digital. I never considered anything but Pentax, maybe because I had a few lenses that would fit, but more because of the VFM that Pentax offered and because I like to be different.

I have never regretted this decision; the cameras are superb and the people I have met as a result of this website have inspired me. I have become good friends with some of them and my life has been enriched as a result. I feel that my photography has come on in leaps and bounds in past couple of years, so much so that I'm now comfortable shooting weddings, something I would not have dreamed about two years ago.

Thank you Pentax and thank you PU.

Best wishes
David
Flickr

Nicola's Apartments, Kassiopi, Corfu

Some cameras, some lenses, some bits 'n' bobs
Posted 14/06/2013 - 23:39 Link
Because when I decided I was going to go DSLR I researched, researched then done a little research, I narrowed to 3 models all within £xx amount then went and held them in the end pentax filled the bill with some change to boot.
Pint o' rough & a game o' darts anyone
davidstorm
Posted 14/06/2013 - 23:51 Link
InFESTation wrote:
Because when I decided I was going to go DSLR I researched, researched then done a little research, I narrowed to 3 models all within £xx amount then went and held them in the end pentax filled the bill with some change to boot.

Where do you live? I used to be quite handy at darts, had a fair few 180's in my time!

Cheers
David
Flickr

Nicola's Apartments, Kassiopi, Corfu

Some cameras, some lenses, some bits 'n' bobs
DrOrloff
Posted 15/06/2013 - 01:11 Link
Maximum respect there. I'm delighted with a bed and breakfast even though my beer gut suggests more prowess.
gwing
Posted 15/06/2013 - 09:48 Link
Why Pentax? When I was a student I had no money and no camera although a friend there was seriously into photography and used Pentax as well as having his own darkroom so I was already a little sold on the brand. Then I started work and had my first pay cheque - which went on an engagement ring, and my second - which went on a camera.

I had had to wait three years for that camera and had specific requirements for it. It was to be an SLR fit to take on the mountains banging around in a rucksack so had to be rugged and as small and light as possible. It also had to feel right in the hand and give the same sort of tactile feedback my Dad's old Voigtlander rangefinder did (for me this was, and remains, an important part of photography).

I didn't like the Canon offering although it had the extra of an automatic exposure mode, the Olympus OM1 was a little jewel but not quite right in the hand, the Yashica was good value and tempting. I chose the MX. I chose well. That MX stayed with me for 25 years service, I did at one point succomb to the blandishments of the LX but didn't actually like even that as much as the MX and so stayed with the old'un until digital dawned and I bought a *1stD.

The *1stD I loved as well. It was stolen and I replaced it with another, I still have shots I treasure from it and 6MP is enough really, I won't ever sell it, nor the MX. I stayed with this a long time as I didn't like the direction of the larger bodies that followed but did eventually get a K7 which I have to admit is a much more capable camera and equally good to use.

I have been tempted with the K5 range but resisted. I needed something for some indoor low light work I was doing and bought a K01 for that which, even for me who absolutely detests anything without an optical viewfinder, is a nice camera to use. I'll probably change the K7 when something like the K5II comes out with the focus peaking from the K01 but not until then - the cameras I have are already more capable than the photographer behind them.

I'll probably stay with Pentax until the day I die. The way they look and work suits me down to the ground, we have grown up together and its now sort of part of my soul. That's more important than the practical aspect of all the glass I've accumulated over the years and couldn't replace. Even if Pentax never made another camera I (probably) still wouldn't change. The cameras I have are good enough, I only take photographs for pleasure, and over the years I've learned a higher spec camera doesn't always provide more pleasure - sometimes quite the opposite.
Edited by gwing: 15/06/2013 - 09:52
Posted 15/06/2013 - 10:53 Link
davidstorm wrote:


Where do you live? I used to be quite handy at darts, had a fair few 180's in my time!

Cheers
David

Living in Brampton, Cumbria at the minute, don't think we'll leave Cumbria for a while anyway, it is a nice feeling hitting a maximum

DrOrloff wrote:
Maximum respect there. I'm delighted with a bed and breakfast even though my beer gut suggests more prowess.

Likewise I still hit ALOT of these and the belly is quite well developed
Pint o' rough & a game o' darts anyone
stigg
Posted 15/06/2013 - 11:05 Link
I had an old Ricoh and still had some lenses so I thought it would be handy if I could use them on a new camera so popped into Jessops and the assistant tried very hard to sell me a Nikon but when I tried them I preferred the Pentax anyway. Must say I,m really impressed with the Kr and love it!
All the best
Brian

And come him slow or come him fast it is but death who comes at last.
Algernon
Posted 15/06/2013 - 11:17 Link
I was born with a Pentax in my hand!
Half Man... Half Pentax ... Half Cucumber

Pentax K-1 + K-5 and some other stuff

Algi
ronniemac
Posted 15/06/2013 - 14:42 Link
Similar story to mine, Gwing; Started with an MX which lasted until my first digital, the K-5. Weather sealing, compactness, movie capability, and being able to use my old lenses were all key factors, but there was also a hint of nostalgia about it.

More recently kitted out daughter with *ist, son with K-r, and partner with white K-x, so we can share lenses - all of them excellent digital SLR's. Didn't want Canikon darkening my doorstep!

Most recent acquisition is a return to film with the 645N, the workings and output of which are fantastic! I have found that sticking with Pentax since a student has kept life uncomplicated - and in a relative way, affordable.
Edited by ronniemac: 15/06/2013 - 14:44
cedricd
Posted 16/06/2013 - 21:19 Link
Only dead fish go with the flow. In my opinion, image quality, ergonomics and Pentax were the innovators.
Enjoy life
macabee
Posted 17/06/2013 - 18:40 Link
I picked my Pentax K5 because, It felt right, good ergonomics, It is weather sealed, I particularly liked the display on the rear screen and it is tough.

I used a Pentax MX & K1000 for a while years ago, then I used Nikon [analogue] for a long time till I went to Canon for digital. But the spec on the K5 impressed me, it also gives me far better value for money compared to Canon.
ilovesaabs
Posted 17/06/2013 - 22:50 Link
Poverty mode student meant the CP7m Chinon was a better deal than a T70 or P50. Got me into K-mount in 1987.

Dad also owned a Chinon camera - a CE-4.

So hooked that way - got my first Bone Fide Pentax in 1992 - Z-10. Stayed with the system through various ups and downs.

Strayed in 2010. Got the Nikon D3 - just finished adding to my lens arsenal. What it does is superb. You'd expect that I'd drift into the Nikkor system by default but I've actually added to my Pentax gear.

Why? Pentax has MOJO. There is something inherent into each Pentax camera that makes it scream 'Pick me up!'
AKA Welshwizard/PWynneJ
Assorted Pentax/Nikon/Mamiya stuff
hoopsontoast
Posted 18/06/2013 - 11:48 Link
I picked Pentax due to the K-7/K-5 Body/Grip and the range of compact DA/FA Limited Primes.
D-FA28-105 | FA43 | K55 | DA100 Macro | DA*300
Pentax K1 | Pentax K-01 | Pentax MZ-S | Pentax MZ-5n
Flickr Photostream

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