I had not used my Pentax K10D for over a year. The Olympus E-P2 does everything I need, taking less space and weight. The only reason why I still considered using the Pentax was to enjoy my beloved Zeiss Planar 85/1.4, which I had converted from C/Y to M42 mount.
So recently I took the Pentax and the Zeiss out of the closet and took them on a weekend family trip. The K10D has excellent ergonomics and it was nice to feel it in my hands again. But after a while I became aware of the reasons why I am now enjoying a mirrorless camera system so much: small size/weight combined with a good electronic viewfinder with large image size and the possibility of magnification and live histogram display.
But the Zeiss Planar continues to produce beautiful images on the K10D. And yes, a 5 year old digital camera (with a decent sensor) is able to create images as good as last week’s model. It might have fewer pixels, no video mode, no live view, painfully slow frame rate, and awful noise above 400 ISO. But it takes nice pictures if you point it in the right direction and set the aperture properly. What else is really necessary?...
Pentax K10D + Zeiss Planar 85/1.4
5 comments:
I have a K-7 and an LX-5 and I find myself reaching for the LX-5 about 80% of the time. Seriously considering selling my K-7 for an EP-3 but like you, I'll have a hard time letting go of my FA50/1.4.
Dolan
The new Olympus Zuiko 45 mm f/1.8 (equivalent to 60 mm on an APS-C sensor) has been getting excellent reviews and might be a good replacement for your FA 50...
Although SMCP DA* 16-50/2.8 is on its way to me, I am seriously considering keeping Pentax system only for semi-official shoots whereas I haven't yet decided in which compact camera with big sensor system to invest my money. M43 seems like a well developed system, but Ricoh GXR is very enticing too...
Boris
The GXR is a radical concept that I haven't quite grasped. Switching lens AND sensor does not make much sense to me. But I'm curious about the reasons or your interest on the Ricoh system.
Frank, what GXR potentially offers is far more flexibility and modularity. As I wrote in my blog - the main problem today is that in order to get certain new features and/or advantages in body design I am forced by the manufacturers to upgrade the sensor as well. I have more than just one reason to not to want to upgrade from my Pentax K-5's sensor. By decoupling sensor from the camera body Ricoh did an excellent thing.
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