All Forum Comments
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on K1ii for sale - £1200 at 24/09/2026 - 08:59
From the sounds of it it's amazing it lasted as long as it did!
Good luck replacing it with something.
Good luck replacing it with something.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on Ricoh GRii - RIP - HELP! at 21/09/2026 - 08:58
My 16-85mm did have occasional problems focusing at 16mm. It would appear to focus and then confirm with a beep but I could see in the viewfinder it was out of focus, but that doesn't sound like what the user is experiencing here.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on Pentax HD DA 16-85mm F3.5-5.6 ED DC - Autofocus failing at most focal lengths at 16/09/2026 - 11:30
For anyone tempted, I bought another excellent copy of this lens from Lennybloke on this forum and have been using it since the end of March. In that time it has become my favourite manual lens ever, and I've tried quite a few so it's saying something. It really is superb and a absolute pleasure to use.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on For sale: Super Multi Coated Takumar 85mm f1.8 at 15/09/2026 - 13:47
The replacement tripod foot is also available on Amazon here.
I have the Tamron one in EF mount and have considered buying the tripod foot but so far not done it.
I have the Tamron one in EF mount and have considered buying the tripod foot but so far not done it.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on Where's the Serial Number? at 15/09/2026 - 13:39
If it does the same on several bodies then it's definitely a problem with the lens itself and it sounds like it will need a qualified repairer.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on Pentax HD DA 16-85mm F3.5-5.6 ED DC - Autofocus failing at most focal lengths at 15/09/2026 - 13:36
Flan wrote:
Love all the comments, I think that the Pentax 17 half frame was a disastrous move.
500 smackers for a film point an shoot, they even had Thomas Heaton to promote it on his channel.
Ricoh will move on and Pentax are over is the feeling.
The K mount is at an end
I am happy though that i have a perfectly working K1ii and K70 to see me through an a few lenses to booth.
Won't be selling anytime soon, there's no point, I'm an amateur
I don't know if the 17 made any money but it certainly wasn't the film camera that people were looking for - half-frame image quality, manual/guess focus and massively over-priced. Fujifilm's X-half came along a little later and is basically a digital version of the 17 and went right down the toilet.Love all the comments, I think that the Pentax 17 half frame was a disastrous move.
500 smackers for a film point an shoot, they even had Thomas Heaton to promote it on his channel.
Ricoh will move on and Pentax are over is the feeling.
The K mount is at an end
I am happy though that i have a perfectly working K1ii and K70 to see me through an a few lenses to booth.
Won't be selling anytime soon, there's no point, I'm an amateur
I took my K-3 and DA 35mm and 70mm Limiteds out yesterday for some photos as they've been neglected all summer.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on The Distinctive Enjoyment of SLR Photography at 14/09/2026 - 09:06
In my view Pentax really missed a trick when they updated the DA and FA Limited lines to HD coatings and rounded aperture blades. They should have also re-designed them to include in-lens focus motors and bring them fully into the 21st century. Even in 2013 screw-drive AF was very old-fashioned and not what one would expect from a premium lens.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on New DSLR Rumour Mill at 11/09/2026 - 10:28
robbiec wrote:
Practically, if you've got K-mount glass: it isn't stranded, they've gone out of their way to say so, and nothing here touches lens production, the GR line, or the film cameras. But if you were ever going to want a spare or a second body, the new stock of K-1 II and K-3 III is now finite, and the used market for both will firm up over the next few months.
The big question is of course "should I get an extra camera body now while they're still available or should I wait and save the money to see what this new concept is?".Practically, if you've got K-mount glass: it isn't stranded, they've gone out of their way to say so, and nothing here touches lens production, the GR line, or the film cameras. But if you were ever going to want a spare or a second body, the new stock of K-1 II and K-3 III is now finite, and the used market for both will firm up over the next few months.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on New DSLR Rumour Mill at 10/09/2026 - 09:56
davidwozhere wrote:
We are the traditional camera users. We are useless as far as a modern manufacturer is concerned. Today's audience wants instant results without fiddling of any sort and will amass thousands of images to our hundreds in any given period. We demand quality. They demand quantity and they certainly don't want to change lenses in the middle of doing it. We are happy(?) to lug a K1 around - and even a tripod to support it with our K mount 400 - 600mm zoom mirror lens or a 50mm macro on a bellows. They want it to fit in their designer jeans back pocket and be capable of doing all those things "whip it out quick and shove it back". They want their faces in front of everything; we want to capture subtle nuances of (to them) boring things. Sorry folks. we are yesterday's business models and we won't make corporate postage stamp money against the megabucks demanded by today's big businesses. Once upon a time, you saw single lenses being offered on Ebay. Today, with the writing on the wall, you see piles of them (literally) and piles of old cameras too. Stack em up and get shut of them while you can. It's a gloomy prospect but I tell myself, "act your age (75) and accept what you can't change."
I don't think that's really true of modern photographers. People just using their phones, influencers, yes, but not photographers. Look at the film resurgence (despite the cost) for evidence that not everyone demands instant results. Look at the huge number of primes available today for evidence that people don't mind changing lenses. Look at the size of modern FF cameras and lenses for evidence that gear doesn't have to fit in a pocket. Look at some of the rubbish produced by some people with big, expensive cameras for evidence that not everyone with a big, expensive camera is out for quality.We are the traditional camera users. We are useless as far as a modern manufacturer is concerned. Today's audience wants instant results without fiddling of any sort and will amass thousands of images to our hundreds in any given period. We demand quality. They demand quantity and they certainly don't want to change lenses in the middle of doing it. We are happy(?) to lug a K1 around - and even a tripod to support it with our K mount 400 - 600mm zoom mirror lens or a 50mm macro on a bellows. They want it to fit in their designer jeans back pocket and be capable of doing all those things "whip it out quick and shove it back". They want their faces in front of everything; we want to capture subtle nuances of (to them) boring things. Sorry folks. we are yesterday's business models and we won't make corporate postage stamp money against the megabucks demanded by today's big businesses. Once upon a time, you saw single lenses being offered on Ebay. Today, with the writing on the wall, you see piles of them (literally) and piles of old cameras too. Stack em up and get shut of them while you can. It's a gloomy prospect but I tell myself, "act your age (75) and accept what you can't change."
There are still plenty of people who take quality photography seriously but they're not all old and these days they're not all using SLR.
Comment by Jonathan-Mac posted on The Distinctive Enjoyment of SLR Photography at 10/09/2026 - 09:18
If you're genuinely sure that you will not need anything more capable in some particular way then it makes sense to have two copies of the camera you most like, at least until Ricoh reveals what, if anything, they're bringing out as their "new concept" DSLR.
But if you have two copies of a camera then I'd say it's better to use both of them. I don't think sitting doing nothing for years on end is good for a camera.