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Comment by simonarron posted on Why did you choose Pentax? at 09/01/2012 - 10:42
My father is a professional photographer (now retired) and during rhe 1970s he allowed me to use a hand-me-down Spotmatic, usually with a Takumar 250mm lens, to complement my obsession with motorsport.
In 1978, Pentax sponsored a BMW 530 in the British Saloon Car Championship and launched a photographic competition by way of accompaniment: best shot of the car won a BMW 316 and there was a fair bit of camera kit on offer for six runners-up. I was lucky enough to make the final seven... and came away with a K1000 rather than a 3-series. More than 20 years passed before my mum let slip that Pentax had called to see whether I had a full licence: I had just failed my test and attempt number two was a few months away, which apparently cost me the main prize (probably just as well, as I was 17).
I was none the wiser at the time and perfectly happy with the K1000, which replaced the Spotmatic as my weekend companion. A few years later I began working as a motorsport journalist and continued taking photos, some of which were published, but by 1984 I was starting to cover overseas events and felt trying to do two things was too much of a compromise. I put my cameras down and for the next 24 years took hardly any photos, SureShot-type family snaps apart.
My interest was rekindled in 2008, when I began scanning some old negatives and realised I'd been travelling extensively for more than two decades and had hardly anything to prove as much. I subsequently went to a grass-roots race meeting at Oulton Park, with some of my old kit, to see whether I still knew what the buttons did, then dashed off to Jessops to get the films processed.
Suitably encouraged, I headed for London's Tottenham Court Road with an open mind in pursuit of a DSLR. I found a store that stocked most brands and explained that I wanted something that was suitable for motorsport and wildlife without costing the earth. I was shown Canon and Nikon kit, then the salesman produced a K200D. "You probably won't know about Pentax," the salesman said, "but I'd buy one of these..." A short demo later, I departed with that and a Tamron 18-250.
I have since been trying to make up for lost time, albeit with more enthusiasm than skill. I upgraded to a K-7 shortly after it came out, handing the K200D to my son, and bought a second-hand K20D as back-up when the K-7 was damaged (my fault: dropped it at Brands Hatch). Once the K-7 was fixed, of course, I became accustomed to having two bodies... I later part-exchanged the K20D (plus some film camera odds and sods) for a K-5, when prices dropped to a reasonable level, and have since acquired a second K-5 and given the K-7 to my son.
I have no regrets about any of the above (apart, possibly, from not passing my driving test at the first time of asking). When I walked out of the shop with that K200D a few years back, I felt as though I had renewed acquaintance with a familiar, long-lost friend.
In 1978, Pentax sponsored a BMW 530 in the British Saloon Car Championship and launched a photographic competition by way of accompaniment: best shot of the car won a BMW 316 and there was a fair bit of camera kit on offer for six runners-up. I was lucky enough to make the final seven... and came away with a K1000 rather than a 3-series. More than 20 years passed before my mum let slip that Pentax had called to see whether I had a full licence: I had just failed my test and attempt number two was a few months away, which apparently cost me the main prize (probably just as well, as I was 17).
I was none the wiser at the time and perfectly happy with the K1000, which replaced the Spotmatic as my weekend companion. A few years later I began working as a motorsport journalist and continued taking photos, some of which were published, but by 1984 I was starting to cover overseas events and felt trying to do two things was too much of a compromise. I put my cameras down and for the next 24 years took hardly any photos, SureShot-type family snaps apart.
My interest was rekindled in 2008, when I began scanning some old negatives and realised I'd been travelling extensively for more than two decades and had hardly anything to prove as much. I subsequently went to a grass-roots race meeting at Oulton Park, with some of my old kit, to see whether I still knew what the buttons did, then dashed off to Jessops to get the films processed.
Suitably encouraged, I headed for London's Tottenham Court Road with an open mind in pursuit of a DSLR. I found a store that stocked most brands and explained that I wanted something that was suitable for motorsport and wildlife without costing the earth. I was shown Canon and Nikon kit, then the salesman produced a K200D. "You probably won't know about Pentax," the salesman said, "but I'd buy one of these..." A short demo later, I departed with that and a Tamron 18-250.
I have since been trying to make up for lost time, albeit with more enthusiasm than skill. I upgraded to a K-7 shortly after it came out, handing the K200D to my son, and bought a second-hand K20D as back-up when the K-7 was damaged (my fault: dropped it at Brands Hatch). Once the K-7 was fixed, of course, I became accustomed to having two bodies... I later part-exchanged the K20D (plus some film camera odds and sods) for a K-5, when prices dropped to a reasonable level, and have since acquired a second K-5 and given the K-7 to my son.
I have no regrets about any of the above (apart, possibly, from not passing my driving test at the first time of asking). When I walked out of the shop with that K200D a few years back, I felt as though I had renewed acquaintance with a familiar, long-lost friend.
Comment by simonarron posted on Why did you choose Pentax? at 08/01/2012 - 15:31
Not sure this qualifies as a great pic, but it's the shot that won me a K1000 (plus a couple of lenses) in the tale related a few posts earlier. This was taken with Spotmatic and Takumar 250mm prime, from quite a long way back in the crowd at Paddock Hill Bend, Brands Hatch. It was a support race at the 1978 British GP, so the circuit was absolutely packed. Getting shots was a matter of pot luck, trying to find a gap between other spectators' heads.
The chap who won the BMW 316 submitted a capture from Lodge Corner, Oulton Park, which was also my regular haunt. I took this shortly after disembarking from an overnight coach trip between Cheshire and Kent...