Why so expensive!

Want to get a Pentax medium format camera to shoot some film but dang they're so expensive!

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Gareth
Welsh Photographer

My outfit: K1 gripped - K3ii - two Z-1P - Pentax D FA 24-70mm - Sigma 70-200mm OS HSM - Pentax modified DA* 60-250mm f4 - Irix 15mm Firefly - Pentax FA 35mm - FA 50mm - Sigma EX 20mm - FA 28-70mm f4 - Tamron SP 90mm macro - Pentax AF 540 FGZ II

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Film camera prices have rocketed in the last few years, especially medium format, and medium format lenses. Even crappy compacts that you couldn't give away three years ago now sell for fifty quid or more.

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Pentax hybrid user - Digital K3, film 645 and 35mm SLR and Pentax (&other) lenses adapted to Fuji X and Panasonic L digital
Fan of DA limited and old manual lenses

I really wish I bought a 6x7 ten years ago. The prices now are a bit eye watering.

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Kris Lockyear
It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera… they are made with the eye, heart and head. Henri Cartier-Bresson
Lots of film bodies, a couple of digital ones, too many lenses (mainly older glass) and a Horseman LE 5x4.
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Sadly, I think the price/fixability argument doesn't stack up with Pentax MF gear any more. The cameras are far too expensive for 30-40+ year old gear, especially given repair options are very limited worldwide and almost non-existent in UK/Europe. The US forum regularly gets posts regarding faults with newly acquired 6x7 cameras (mostly film winding, shutter cocking, mirror problems). Many of the ones that 'work' have their own minor issues. Many are damaged by clueless operators fiddling with things they don't understand.

Even the 645Nii and 67ii cameras are now very old, complex beasts (both astronomically priced for 20+ year old cameras). Both are essentially un-repairable with no spare parts except those scavenged from donor bodies. However, for comparison take a look at Contax 645 body prices...

Medium format film is still viable if you look at either mechanical cameras or component SLRs (where you can more easily replace a body/back/meter prism than a whole camera) - but all are on borrowed time. Older cameras are better built (more metal - before the quest for lighter MF cameras appeared in the '90s) but apart from Hasselblads, repair facilities are limited.

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The proliferation of blogs and vlogs raising the awareness of film photography, especially during the last few years, has encouraged more people to try the format (120 or 135) leading to a steady increase in prices.

I could not afford the prices being asked today for a medium format camera and I am thankful I bought my Pentax 6x7 when I did. Checking the sold prices on eBay suggests I could reasonably easily sell my camera for many times more than I paid for it.

Three of my 6x7 lenses I paid less than £100 each and they are in either excellent or mint condition.

Robin at Harrow Technical performed a CLA on my KX and the camera is a joy to use. It should last me many more years. I am debating with myself whether or not to get a CLA done on the 6x7 by Asahi Photo before repairs are stymied through the lack of parts.

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Nigel.

Getting older and grumpier. Taking longer to decide which lens to use today.

K5 with auto-everything lenses
A collection of manual primes to keep me in touch with the pleasures of doing it old-school.

Think I may have to look at another brand like Bronica or Mamiya then as they seem a bit more reasonable. Gutted as I wanted to shoot with the Pentax medium format and post the pics here

Example of crazy price
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154173516013

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Gareth
Welsh Photographer

My outfit: K1 gripped - K3ii - two Z-1P - Pentax D FA 24-70mm - Sigma 70-200mm OS HSM - Pentax modified DA* 60-250mm f4 - Irix 15mm Firefly - Pentax FA 35mm - FA 50mm - Sigma EX 20mm - FA 28-70mm f4 - Tamron SP 90mm macro - Pentax AF 540 FGZ II

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The 105/2.4 lenses go for anything up to £800 on their own - the 67ii has been known to have problems with an unrepairable circuit board failing. This example has the older 'Asahi Pentax' 6x7/67 left hand grip - it should be 'Pentax' and have a dedicated hotshoe for the 67ii (Umm blimey: link).

Update: I've just seen some prices of Mamiya C330's - one of the more mechanical, easier to fix, less to go wrong cameras.

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Be patient, I picked up a 67 in good used condition earlier in the year for £600 with box. Lenses aren’t super expensive (unless you want that 75mm f2. so it’s easy to add a wide and a tele to round out a kit.

I always wanted a Pentax 67. The original 6x7 may not be such a good idea as the shutter has quite a bit of vibration and repairs may be difficult, but the later 67 might be an option. As mentioned above, sometimes uninformed users ruin these mechanical cameras by not understanding what they are doing, so checking them thoroughly is a good idea.

How about trying the Real Camera Company in Manchester? They have a huge stock of older and newer used kit and understand what they are selling. A good friend of mine buys and sells to them all the time and has had some great deals.

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Best regards, John

I'd love a 67 of some sort with the 105mm lens but sadly I suspect I wouldn't even be able to replace my 645 if it broke.

There's a camera shop here in Madrid that I believe still has 67 IIs for sale new. I don't know what their price is but they're probably not too much higher than some of the used ones around these days.

Other than the 645 I have two Yashica Mat 124Gs which are nice but less flexible due to their lack of changeable lenses and the slightly slow f/3.5 lens, but they're smaller and lighter so are easier to travel with. I paid €75 for one and £100 for the other, though it came with seven rolls of Portra 160NC in 220 format, which were worth almost that on their own. There's no way you'd find a deal like that these days I think. I paid £125 for the 645 body and considered that a little high at the time, again, there's no way you'd get it for that now.

MF folding cameras are still relatively cheap as the younger folk getting interested in film photography aren't interested enough to want a camera that manual.

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Pentax hybrid user - Digital K3, film 645 and 35mm SLR and Pentax (&other) lenses adapted to Fuji X and Panasonic L digital
Fan of DA limited and old manual lenses

I owned a Pentax 67 with a 55, 105 and 150 (and the wooden handle) back in the 1980's and although it was impractical for hiking and long walks the quality was absolutely superb.

I still have a few slides taken with it that I look at every couple of years, each time I am amazed at how good they are. I wouldn't buy one now, for the reliability reasons mentioned already, but if you're prepared to put the time and effort into using one I doubt you'd regret it

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LennyBloke

Gareth
This any good
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pentax-645-120mm-camera-45mm-f2-8-lens-75mm-f2-8-lens...
Neil

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cheers Neil
pentax k3
DA* 300 f4 DA* 50-135 f 2.8 smc DA* 16-50 f2.8 50mm f1.7 pentax1.4xhd converter





Panasonic Dmc Fz200

It's very nice and ideally what I want but it's £700

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Gareth
Welsh Photographer

My outfit: K1 gripped - K3ii - two Z-1P - Pentax D FA 24-70mm - Sigma 70-200mm OS HSM - Pentax modified DA* 60-250mm f4 - Irix 15mm Firefly - Pentax FA 35mm - FA 50mm - Sigma EX 20mm - FA 28-70mm f4 - Tamron SP 90mm macro - Pentax AF 540 FGZ II

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Yes I know but it’s cheaper than the one you linked
At £2500
Neil

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cheers Neil
pentax k3
DA* 300 f4 DA* 50-135 f 2.8 smc DA* 16-50 f2.8 50mm f1.7 pentax1.4xhd converter





Panasonic Dmc Fz200

Camera Rescue are pretty good but are based in Finland and thus a bit pricey. They are training-up a new generation of camera repair techs and aim to have rescued 100,000 film cameras by the end of the year. Amazing bunch.

I have two 6x6 folders I use regularly (an Agfa Isolette II and a Zeiss Ikon Nettar) and I have a Kershaw Raven 6x9 folder being serviced as we speak (including being fitted with new custom made bellows). My Moscow 5 6x9 folder is a bit soft and I rarely use it. My Yashica Mat 124G sees some use, more since I had it serviced, and I have had some lovely shots from my Lubitel II (if slightly random due to the inability to see much through the viewfinder. Perhaps my most used medium format camera is my Ondu multiformat pinhole camera. Not much to go wrong with that other than user error (mostly accidental double exposures).

If you want eye-watering, look at the prices a Kershaw Peregrine sells for...

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Kris Lockyear
It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera… they are made with the eye, heart and head. Henri Cartier-Bresson
Lots of film bodies, a couple of digital ones, too many lenses (mainly older glass) and a Horseman LE 5x4.
My website