Really? A new hand-winding film camera from Pentax?

[KenElevenShadows]

Really? A new hand-winding film camera from Pentax?

https://photofocus.com/editorial/really-a-new-hand-winding-film-camera-from-pentax/

 

[KuruPrionz]

Long ago and far away I had all sorts of film cameras. 35mm cameras were cheap and plentiful. 35mm is not a format I miss though. My favorite was a Nikon F, you could beat a box full of Pentax cameras into rubble with it and it would still work. For that matter, just about any camera would die if beaten by that heavy, cast body. Those were made for war, literally. 

 

I used to have a Voigtlander Bessa folding camera that shot 120 roll film - 6cm by 9cm, seriously large roll film. It had a rangefinder that told you the distance and then you set the lens to that distance - the Bessa II had a coupled rangefinder but they were really expensive even back then and a bit fiddly so I made do with the lesser model. 

The old folders shot large film and folded up thin, easy to carry one around in your pocket. 

 

Of course, I should have kept it. But I didn't and now I just shoot digital. 

I do have a couple of Pentax lenses, a 28 2.8 that is ridiculously sharp and 50 1.4 that has beautiful, soft and smooth bokeh. I have adapters for my Canon 6d but you have to cut a tab off the Pentax lenses or it will foul the mirror. I did that, thrift store finds and not expensive. I will admit I don't use them much, still looking the right type of hood for the screen on the back of the Canon, I had one for my T2i but nobody seems to make one for full frame that I like. 

 

You can get great focus using Live View, better than the old split center screen thingie we used back in the day. Too hard to use in bright light, that's why I want a hood. Maybe I'll have to make something...

[Lou Gehrig Charles]

Hmmm, a new film camera with manual-winding film advance?  Seems an interesting feature to emphasize, the tactile feel of it, etc.  I wonder if it will have auto exposure, and what kind, or even if it will have a meter (built-in light meters didn't become commonplace until the 1960s).  Maybe it will be a re-make of the old Spotmatic?

 

In a related note: Leica makes an accessory for their M9 and M10 digital cameras - it's a "thumb rest" thing that snaps onto the camera and is of exactly the same size and shape of the film advance lever of days gone by.  It's supposedly to help aid in gripping the camera but the cynic in me knows it's just there to mimic the feel of the old classic film Leicas (and B&H Photo has it for the low low price of just $290).  They probably need to go the extra mile and make the thumb rest a functional, geared lever that "ratchets" the shutter in preparation for the next photo.  With a little effort on their part they can faithfully replicate the sound and feel of the classic M6 film advance....

 

I'm in a crabby mood this morning so I apologize if it sounds like I'm ranting!

 

 

[KenElevenShadows]

I don't know what Pentax has up their sleeve! Looking forward to finding out!

 

Interesting about Leica.

 

No, I didn't get the "ranting" vibe. You'll need to try a little harder.