Category: Pentax

Pentax MZ-50 This camera does not belong here, it is too young to be considered a vintage and was not a classic model. I have it, so it is added. It was bought in the late 1990s when digital models began to pop up, low resolution and more of a novelty. The MZ-50 can do all; see specs below. All...

Pentax K Pentax K current price Tower 29 current price Pentax k user manual The first of the Pentax classic-looking SLR was the 1957 ‘AP’, sold in the US as ‘Tower 26’. It was quickly renamed Pentax S, different only by some cosmetic changes and speed settings – 125 vs. 100 and 250 vs. 200. At the heels of the...

Pentax S3 / H3 In the late 1950s and early 60s, Pentax introduced a camera plethora, hardly distinguished from each other. One model stands out, the S3. Introduced in 1959 and came to market a year later, the S3 is not a single model but a handful of variants. The overall appearance is similar, but there are slight modifications. The...

Pentax S1a / H1a Pentax S1a  user manual Pentax S1a current value In the early post-war years, the Japanese camera industry navigated its way into the mainstream. The market was going towards a single-lens reflex in a rangefinder size body. The Germans led the way, with the Japanese in tow: Canon after Leica, Nikon after Contax, and Pentax chose Praktina....

Pentax ES II Pentax ES II current value Pentax ES II user manual In the early 1970s the (Japanese) camera industry came to a level field, where save for the name most cameras offered similar specs. Some manufacturers such as Petri, Miranda, Topcon, and so just gave up, will not know if it was quality or marketing. Others were looking...

Pentax Super Program / Super A Not to be left behind in the electronic cameras race, in 1983 Pentax introduced the Super Program, also sold as Super A. A neat camera, but one needs to speak Pentaxian or read the manual which is rarely done. It carried over the ME Super control panel, rather than using civilized selector dials. New...

Pentax ME / ME Super In 1976, alongside the quintessential  K1000, Pentax had lined itself with the electronic era by presenting the ME and thereafter the ME Super. Petite SLR cameras, with a futuristic-looking control panel on top. Not sure what was the rationale behind it, as it made a simple shooting complex. The Pentax ME camera is a tiny...

Pentax Spotmatic / SP / SP 500 / SP 1000 The three Pentax cameras on my desk are Spotmatic SP, SP 1000, and SP 500. All look the same save for top speed variations on the SP 1000 and SP 500, being the top speeds, respectively, and the self-timer on the Spotmatic. The Spotmatic, introduced in the ’60s, and the...