Having been today I didn’t feel it was quite up to the same standard as before. Admittedly last time I went on a Sunday so maybe a bit more busy, but driving in there were no clear Photography Show signs pointing to car parks, just “photography” on an illuminated sign with Bear Grylls Photography given equal prominence so a bit ambiguous. Before you could buy a car park ticket in a booth on the way in, now just ticket machines in the main building - £16.00 on the day! A bit less online beforehand. Stands were manned or womanned by sales staff with scant knowledge of their products - Loupedeck by a guy who knew absolutely nothing about Lightroom, Hasselblad by a woman who didn’t know the basics, and so on. Notable absentees apart from Pentax were Leica and SRB who usually have good deals on filters.

On the plus side was the opportunity to compare products, I was interested in a Benro 3-way head but didn’t like what I saw and came away with a really dinky Sirui 4-way head. Also plenty of special show deals so can be worth the outlay if you spend a bit.

I tried a couple of mirrorless bodies but still cannot warm to the overbright unrealistic viewfinders with minds of their own, in manual focus on a LUMIX a centre part has a zoom frame which came and went at random, ditto with focus points randomly jumping all over the place. And a lightweight mirrorless FF body felt very unbalanced by an average weight lens. How anyone can swop a decent DSLR for one of these is beyond me, they must be carried away by the tidal wave of pressure from Sony publicity and magazines.

I also stopped by Samyang, the guy gave the impression that Pentax mount lenses are on the way out, pointedly saying they had older lenses only in K mount. Mirrorless is where their future lies I guess.

Unless I have in mind a major purchase next year this may be my last visit.

Oh that’s even better then.

I remember now why I opted for the Marumi screw on option, it fits on the Pentax 100mm macro lens but at 49mm that’s too small for the Raynox. Good to hear other’s experience of the Raynox and Mike’s examples really sell it. Neat idea to just clip onto the lens but it’s size limits the lens choice.

And gives a nice warm glow!

Nearly isn’t quite enough!

The new HD-FA 35mm f2.0, see separate thread here somewhere. Who knows what I will bring back from The Photography Show, it certainly won't be anything Pentax as they have bailed out. Unfortunately Leica won't be there either as I am keen on the D-Lux 7 due next month.

So the strategy is to spend money on fan events instead. That says to me they have given up trying to attract new customers and are focusing on retaining the ones they have; laudable to support loyal users but a last ditch defensive move which will inevitably lead to a dwindling market share. If I hadn’t booked into an event I wouldn’t bother now but while I am at TPS I may as well look at the Nikon stand. And maybe Fuji.

If that’s true it’s a b****y disgrace. What message is that sending out? I have been a staunch defender of this brand in the face of all those saying Pentax is dying on its feet but if they cannot attend the most important show in the U.K. with thousands of potential customers then I give up.

I cannot comment on this one but I have a Marumi close-up filter which gives excellent results, the difference being it has a conventional thread so for different size lenses needs an adaptor ring. Handy and small enough to keep in the bag for when an opportunity arises.

I have been asked the question, and pointed out that it functions like it’s been designed by photographers and essential controls can be accessed without needing to go into the menu. On top of that the unique (for dslr) IBIS means all lenses have anti-shake and the moveable sensor so recently adopted by others has several more features than they have. Just describe astrotracer and watch their eyes widen in disbelief.

True pro photographers always express respect for Pentax from their experience in film days, but maybe pick other brands for easy access to lenses and customer support.