Pentax?

[Peacemaker636]

Okay, so I've decided that once I get the money, I'm going to get a dSLR :mrgreen:. Right now I've got an old film Pentax ME Super SE that my dad gave me when I got into photography. I've got two lenses for it, but I'll go over that later.

I'm looking at the Pentax K100D, for several reasons. Namely, the compatibility of lenses. I was thinking I'd just buy the body and then be able to use the lenses with it.

Here's my problem. I'm not sure of how great the lenses are. I mean, what's the point of getting a camera that's compatible with crummy lenses? I'll just end up buying better lenses, in which case I might look at Canon and Nikon, seeing as that's the main advantage of the Pentax in my mind (that being that I have compatible lenses).

I have the standard lense that came with the Pentax. It seems good and clear judging by some of the prints I've made with it. It has aperture settings from 1.7 to 22.

Then I have a telephoto that I got for Christmas the year of receiving the ME Super. This is the main one I'm unsure of. When I look through the viewfinder on the camera, the image looks kind of fuzzy, but I haven't really noticed anything in prints. It seems to be made by a company called Underground, but I couldn't find anything in a search. It goes from 4.5 to 22 stops. 80-200 mm.

(Sorry 'bout the flash, only way to get a clear handheld shot)


Does anyone know about this company or lense? Would it be worth it to keep these lenses and stay with Pentax or should I just ditch the setup and go with a Canon/Nikon/Sony with a good kit lense? Could someone please help?

 

[seanberry]

Well, the first appears to be a Pentax 50mm (M, A, FA?). I'm guessing pre-FA and no autofocus due to the camera you have listed. I have never heard of the other lens or the company that makes it.

The 50mm are all pretty good but the 1.4's are liked a little better. I don't think that either of these lenses should force you to go with Pentax but would both be a nice addition to one.

I can tell you, there is nothing wrong with going with Pentax. They produce cameras and lenses of just as high a quality as any other maker. They do however lack large production plants (One in Japan; recently expanded in Japan and a new one in Vietnam), and fast zooms. For quality lenses, just look at the FA Limiteds (as well as the new DA Limiteds), any Star lens, the FA 85, DA 14 etc. The Pentax kit lens (18-55 f/3.5-5.6) is also good quality but experiences some vignetting at 18mm.

Do not feel as if you have to stick with Pentax, but do not feel you should have to switch to another company.

 

[usayit]

Most of the Takumar/Pentax Kmounts are pretty good. There is an abundance of them for sale used at great prices. On the other hand, many other manufacturers adopted the Kmount and many of them produced subpar quality lenses. Never heard of the 200mm lens brand....


I wouldn't let those two lenses influence your decision on a DSLR. Go out and hold all of he choices out there and choose as if those two lenses were not at your disposal. Choose a camera that fits you and build a system around it. If you like that 50mm f1.7 so much, you can easily obtain 50mm standard lenses for any brand of DSLR you choose for not too much cash. For example, the Canon 50mm f1.8 lens is under $100 brand new.

 

[Peacemaker636]

Alright, I'll look into it.

 

[ShutteredEye]

In a few weeks I'll have a Samsung GX-10 (Pentax K10D with samsung logos, identical in every other way,) for sale. I won it in a photo contest, and since I'm set up with Canon I'll have no use for it. It's brand new, 10.2 MP, has anti-shake built into the body, and is weather sealed. Dpreview has reviewed it and given it pretty high scores. It retails for $900, I'll sell for $850 shipped. Saves you tax and shipping, plus $50 off. Let me know.

http://dpreview.com/reviews/pentaxk10d/

 

[JIP]

Personally I would not buy a camera just for it's compatibility with those lenses. It looks like the brand of the zoom is "underground" wich is a brand I have never heard of not that that reall matters. If you had some good fast lenses that were at least Pentax I would say stick with what you have but really at ths point with what you have it's best to just start fresh. I would say Nikon or Canon other people will take this personal but if you are going to star a new setup it's best to start with one of those 2 now I will wait to hear from Jeremy Z and of course others whom I'm sure will jump in here and say "Pentax".

 

[Don Simon]

If you had some good fast lenses that were at least Pentax I would say stick with what you have but really at ths point with what you have it's best to just start fresh. I would say Nikon or Canon other people will take this personal but if you are going to star a new setup it's best to start with one of those 2 now I will wait to hear from Jeremy Z and of course others whom I'm sure will jump in here and say "Pentax".

Not at all... I'm going to jump in here and say Pentax, Nikon, Canon, Sony, and Olympus. Because those are the options for a dSLR system. Maybe Sigma too but I have never handled one of their dSLRs so couldn't comment. The others I know all offer an excellent range of available cameras, lenses, flashes and other accessories, plus all provide for compatibility with other companies' (Tamron, Tokina, Sigma, Metz etc) products. So why is it best to start fresh with one of those two? Yes I will ask this every time someone says it, because I've yet to hear a convincing answer (which does not include "because pros use them" or because a beginner might suddenly decide they want a top-end pro camera). When I decided on Pentax it was not only for compatibility - the lenses I had for it weren't that great and in fact I had better ones for other systems - but because I felt their "entry-level" dSLR was better for me than the alternatives, because I generally liked the design of their products, and because their next model was going to include features like weather sealing at a good price, which was something no-one else had thought to offer consumers. That told me that the system was right for me, and I went for it. Not everyone will feel the same, and they will decide on one of the other systems. The difference is I'm not going to tell anyone their best choice is to go with Pentax when I have no idea whether that's actually true, and it would be nice if those who prefer other brands did the same.

 

[JIP]

Sorry I was wrong just go buy a Minolta.

 

[usayit]

Sorry I was wrong just go buy a Minolta.

... which is Sony now.

 

[JIP]

I think that was my point

 

[Jeremy Z]

The 50mm f/1.7 is a great lens.

The Underground is probably not so hot. However, don't throw it out just yet. It will serve you well until you upgrade to the Pentax 50-200. You'd be surprised at how good even a junky lens can be.

One thing about your 50mm lens is that it isn't an 'A' lens. (referring to the 'A' setting past f/22) It isn't compatible with any of the auto exposure features in the Pentax K100D, K110D, or K10D. (except maybe aperture priority?) You would have to focus manually, and set the exposure manually as well.

From experience, I can tell you that the Pentax K100D is a great camera. The body integral anti-shake really works well. You would not be settling to get this instead of a Canon, Nikon, Sony, or Olympus; it is in the same league.

Although I wouldn't base my camera decision solely on those two lenses, it is definitely worthy of a little bias. You would have a fast portrait lens and a 100-300 telephoto zoom to start you off with, in addition to the kit lens. Yes, they will be manual focus & exposure, but they will surely tide you over until you've saved up some dough for the more modern equivalents. You would probably replace the Underground lens, and end up keeping the 50mm for quite a long time. The 50mm will be very easy to focus, and it has a nice feel to it compared to the newer, plastic lenses.

If you're like me and you go out and try the Canon Rebels, the Nikon D40, & D50, you will find that the Pentax is more comfortable than the Rebels (they're a bit too small) and about the same as the Nikons. Also, neither of them have that fantastic anti-shake built-in. You need to spend big bucks to get that in the lens later on.

Search for threads started by me. Some contain pix, and while they're not award-winners, they give an idea of what the K100D is capable of with the kit lens.

Now that I look at that Underground lens, it may be somewhat fast. (having a 62mm filter) What is the range of apertures marked on the front of it, underneath the skylight filter? f/3.5~4.5? If it is a fixed-aperture f/3.5, it may indeed be worth saving.

 

[Jeremy Z]

Oh, another cool thing about staying with Pentax is that the ME Super could be a back-up camera body. If you sell the Pentax stuff on ebay, you will really take a beating.

If you do decide to sell it, give me a shout, I may be interested, hehehe.

 

[Don Simon]

I think that was my point

I'm sorry, it was me that was wrong. You're right, Pentax will also collapse, and obviously Sony will too because they don't know how to make cameras and have no resources... obviously Nikon will survive and remain standing with Canon because they both have full-frame sensors....

Never try to out-sarcasm me :mrgreen:

 

[Peacemaker636]

Oh, another cool thing about staying with Pentax is that the ME Super could be a back-up camera body. If you sell the Pentax stuff on ebay, you will really take a beating.

If you do decide to sell it, give me a shout, I may be interested, hehehe.

I was actually thinking of that myself.

I'm still a far way off from having the money to buy a camera, but right now I'm leaning towards the Pentax. I think that just having two lenses right off the bat is a good starting place. I'm going to go out and hold the Nikon D40, Pentax K100D, and the Canon Rebel XTi, and decide which one's best for me. But I'll keep everything said here in mind.

 

[Thebuzu]

I was actually thinking of that myself.

I'm still a far way off from having the money to buy a camera, but right now I'm leaning towards the Pentax. I think that just having two lenses right off the bat is a good starting place. I'm going to go out and hold the Nikon D40, Pentax K100D, and the Canon Rebel XTi, and decide which one's best for me. But I'll keep everything said here in mind.

Why don't you try and get hold of the new Pentax K10? It seems to be an interesting camera which I might be replacing it instead of the ist*DL I currently have...

About the lens fitting or not, I don't know about the K100 but I had a Pentax Z50P before with an old 20mm-90mm Pentax lens and even a Tamron 178 (70-210mm) that fitted perfectly into my body... These lenses are like 1- years old now because the Z50P was bought from the UK in 1997...

Ruben