Pentax announces that they're working on new film cameras!

[Cholentpot]

Frankly, I do not care about selfies. I for one know what I look like and so does my friends and family.

Of course you don't. I'll get off your lawn.

Yes, I don't care for them 99% of the time either but it's a nice feature to have.

Yashica T4 / T5 have a close focussing distance of only 35cm for example.
But I can ensure you that the selfie-mirror on the SQ6 is really very helpful as you can position the camera precisely so that your face is exactly in the middle of the frame (or at any other position in the frame you want it to be ).
If you only hold the camera in front of you without any control option (like the mirror), it can happen quite easily that you tilt or shift the camera and your face won't be anymore in the position of the frame you want it to be.

The Wide 300 has a closeup filter with a mirror for selfies. Very useful.

 

[Huss]

I picked this up for $100 in like new condition. If Pentax made something like this - small, simple to use w/ a killer lens - then it will go down well. Again, like their old Espio Mini.
I have a feeling though that once they go through all the number crunching that nothing will come of this. Right now this video is talking about a plan about a plan.

 

[Film-Niko]

The Wide 300 has a closeup filter with a mirror for selfies. Very useful.

Good to know that this feature is also on the Instax Wide 300.
The Instax Wide 210 - the former model - already had it.

 

[Huss]

I never understood the need for a selfie mirror. We would hold the cameras at arms' length and make sure we looked into the lens.

 

[Cholentpot]

I picked this up for $100 in like new condition. If Pentax made something like this - small, simple to use w/ a killer lens - then it will go down well. Again, like their old Espio Mini.
I have a feeling though that once they go through all the number crunching that nothing will come of this. Right now this video is talking about a plan about a plan.

These are nice, but they feel a little cheap. I looked at one a little while back. Felt kind of flimsy.

Good to know that this feature is also on the Instax Wide 300.
The Instax Wide 210 - the former model - already had it.

Wide 210 was the better camera all around.

 

[Huss]

These are nice, but they feel a little cheap. I looked at one a little while back. Felt kind of flimsy.

They definitely are not solidly built. But the lens is killer, and the camera is very easy to use. Just make sure to be gentle with it!

 

[KerrKid]

Yashica T4 / T5 have a close focussing distance of only 35cm for example.
But I can ensure you that the selfie-mirror on the SQ6 is really very helpful as you can position the camera precisely so that your face is exactly in the middle of the frame (or at any other position in the frame you want it to be ).
If you only hold the camera in front of you without any control option (like the mirror), it can happen quite easily that you tilt or shift the camera and your face won't be anymore in the position of the frame you want it to be.

I'll have to get my Yashica T4 out and see how difficult it is to hold facing back. I'll also need to check out the SQ6 because I admit I haven't heard of that camera before this thread.

 

[KerrKid]

Frankly, I do not care about selfies. I for one know what I look like and so does my friends and family.

It's not a question of vanity. It's nice to be able to take a picture of yourself or yourselves at times in different settings where/when it's not practical to lug around a tripod.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Of course you don't. I'll get off your lawn.

Yes, I don't care for them 99% of the time either but it's a nice feature to have.



The Wide 300 has a closeup filter with a mirror for selfies. Very useful.

I do not have a gun, so if you do not get off my lawn, I will not shoot you.

 

[KerrKid]

I picked this up for $100 in like new condition. If Pentax made something like this - small, simple to use w/ a killer lens - then it will go down well. Again, like their old Espio Mini.
I have a feeling though that once they go through all the number crunching that nothing will come of this. Right now this video is talking about a plan about a plan.

Yeh, that would be perfect. I priced those, though, and don't want to pay what they're asking for them these days. Maybe Pentax could copy it.

I've been holding various cameras to see if I could take selfies with them. The Pentax 928M is one of them. I think it would be decent with it's 28-90mm lens. As much as I don't bond with it, it does seem to check all the boxes for a good P&S. No macro, though, and it's a chunky monkey compared to that Lite Touch.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I never understood the need for a selfie mirror. We would hold the cameras at arms' length and make sure we looked into the lens.

The purpose of the selfie stick is to hit other people on the head when one is in a crowd.

 

[Sirius Glass]

It's not a question of vanity. It's nice to be able to take a picture of yourself or yourselves at times in different settings where/when it's not practical to lug around a tripod.

Just ask someone near by to take the photograph. Most people will agree and the photograph will be much better.

 

[MattKing]

A selfie is usually not taken to show you. It is taken to:
1) show you at a particular location;
2) show you with particular people; or
3) both of the above.
So if Sirius took a selfie, I expect either or both of a Hasselblad and an off road vehicle would be there with him.
Selfies look terrible to me. But that comes from years of trying to make people look attractive in a photo -- to flatter them. People like selfies because instead of making people look nice, they make people look fun and engaging and social and involved in life.
The capability to take selfies is probably just as useful when someone is taking a photo of their lunch - also a strange-to-me preference of many people, but still something that many potential users like to do.
So I would suggest designing a camera that does all these things that don't necessarily appeal to many of us here, while ensuring that the camera can still do things that do appeal to many of us here - as cameras like the better P&S cameras always did.

 

[Cholentpot]

They definitely are not solidly built. But the lens is killer, and the camera is very easy to use. Just make sure to be gentle with it!

Yeh, that would be perfect. I priced those, though, and don't want to pay what they're asking for them these days. Maybe Pentax could copy it.

I've been holding various cameras to see if I could take selfies with them. The Pentax 928M is one of them. I think it would be decent with it's 28-90mm lens. As much as I don't bond with it, it does seem to check all the boxes for a good P&S. No macro, though, and it's a chunky monkey compared to that Lite Touch.

If Pentax made something like this new I would buy it. They don't feel reliable to buy used. Also, no zoom please. Just keep it at a fixed length. Look at the prices compared between a fixed focal and a zoom. The fixed are much more desirable.

 

[Huss]

If Pentax made something like this new I would buy it. They don't feel reliable to buy used. Also, no zoom please. Just keep it at a fixed length. Look at the prices compared between a fixed focal and a zoom. The fixed are much more desirable.

The fixed focal length P&S are more desirable because they are smaller, have faster lenses, usually have better lenses, are simpler to use.

 

[Cholentpot]

The fixed focal length P&S are more desirable because they are smaller, have faster lenses, usually have better lenses, are simpler to use.

They're generally more responsive, some of these P&S cameras you mush the shutter and aren't sure if anything happened. No feedback.

 

[Huss]

They're generally more responsive, some of these P&S cameras you mush the shutter and aren't sure if anything happened. No feedback.

That's how my Mju (version 1) was. No feedback, I'd mash on the shutter and it would take a pic when it decided it was good n ready. Hated that camera. I assume the v2 with the 2.8 lens was better.

 

[KerrKid]

Just ask someone near by to take the photograph. Most people will agree and the photograph will be much better.

Uh……the whole point of a selfie is to take it yourself which is why it’s called a selfie.

 

[KerrKid]

The fixed focal length P&S are more desirable because they are smaller, have faster lenses, usually have better lenses, are simpler to use.

My Fuji FZ6 TELE is a decent concept with two fixed lens - a 35mm and a 55mm. Maybe switch the focal lengths to 28mm and 50mm and add af, built-in flash, timer, etc. in a well-built package the size of that Lite Touch.

 

[Cholentpot]

That's how my Mju (version 1) was. No feedback, I'd mash on the shutter and it would take a pic when it decided it was good n ready. Hated that camera. I assume the v2 with the 2.8 lens was better.

I didn't get that feeling my my MJU. I thought it was pretty snappy. However it tends to miss about a quarter of all the shots so it's nearly useless to me.

 

[Agulliver]

The fixed focal length P&S are more desirable because they are smaller, have faster lenses, usually have better lenses, are simpler to use.

That's how my Mju (version 1) was. No feedback, I'd mash on the shutter and it would take a pic when it decided it was good n ready. Hated that camera. I assume the v2 with the 2.8 lens was better.

I attended a friend's 50th birthday party yesterday at a swanky resort/hotel/spa. For the occasion I selected my Olympus Mju (first version with the 35mm f3.5). I shot Ilford HP5+ at box speed, so made a lot of use of the flash. Others used phones though one guest had a Go Pro and a DSLR. We're yet to see any of his pictures, but the photos from the little Mju really look better than anyone's phone pics including my own. It also gives a reassuring mechanical noise as it focusses, you can hear the shutter fire and then it whirs some more as it winds the film on. Shutter "lag" from the AF is no worse than a digital compact camera or phone 9 times out of 10. I shot 19 photos on a roll of 24, finishing it off this morning in the hotel grounds. 14 of those ended up being what I'd consider "good".

So...my B&W photos and phone photos have already been shared in a chat group less than 24 hours after the party begun. And result is that the party girl wants all the B&W photos printed. I also had an approving look from the young waitress who cannot have been a day over 21.

That's the sort of product Pentax seem to be looking at for the first round....possibly more like the later Mjus or Pentax products of the past but something simple yet high quality. The lens on that Olympus is very sharp, the AF and exposure work reliably and the battery was full despite me not having used the camera in about 25 months.

 

[Film-Niko]

I attended a friend's 50th birthday party yesterday at a swanky resort/hotel/spa. For the occasion I selected my Olympus Mju (first version with the 35mm f3.5). I shot Ilford HP5+ at box speed, so made a lot of use of the flash. Others used phones though one guest had a Go Pro and a DSLR. We're yet to see any of his pictures, but the photos from the little Mju really look better than anyone's phone pics including my own. It also gives a reassuring mechanical noise as it focusses, you can hear the shutter fire and then it whirs some more as it winds the film on. Shutter "lag" from the AF is no worse than a digital compact camera or phone 9 times out of 10. I shot 19 photos on a roll of 24, finishing it off this morning in the hotel grounds. 14 of those ended up being what I'd consider "good".

So...my B&W photos and phone photos have already been shared in a chat group less than 24 hours after the party begun. And result is that the party girl wants all the B&W photos printed. I also had an approving look from the young waitress who cannot have been a day over 21.

That's the sort of product Pentax seem to be looking at for the first round....possibly more like the later Mjus or Pentax products of the past but something simple yet high quality. The lens on that Olympus is very sharp, the AF and exposure work reliably and the battery was full despite me not having used the camera in about 25 months.

Thanks for the report!
Very interesting.

 

[Helge]

A selfie is usually not taken to show you. It is taken to:
1) show you at a particular location;
2) show you with particular people; or
3) both of the above.
So if Sirius took a selfie, I expect either or both of a Hasselblad and an off road vehicle would be there with him.
Selfies look terrible to me. But that comes from years of trying to make people look attractive in a photo -- to flatter them. People like selfies because instead of making people look nice, they make people look fun and engaging and social and involved in life.
The capability to take selfies is probably just as useful when someone is taking a photo of their lunch - also a strange-to-me preference of many people, but still something that many potential users like to do.
So I would suggest designing a camera that does all these things that don't necessarily appeal to many of us here, while ensuring that the camera can still do things that do appeal to many of us here - as cameras like the better P&S cameras always did.

A selfie is almost exclusively a narcissistic trophy and as such is a very low form of photography. At least to the extent it is being currently practiced.
Not what I feel people really want from film. IE something that reminds them of the shallowness of phones.

 

[Sirius Glass]

A selfie is a narcissistic trophy and as such is a very low form of photography. At least to the extent it is being currently practiced.

Nailed it!

 

[cmacd123]

For the occasion I selected my Olympus Mju (first version with the 35mm f3.5). I shot Ilford HP5+ at box speed, so made a lot of use of the flash. Others used phones though one guest had a Go Pro and a DSLR. We're yet to see any of his pictures, but the photos from the little Mju really look better than anyone's phone pics including my own.

That's the sort of product Pentax seem to be looking at for the first round....possibly more like the later Mjus or Pentax products of the past but something simple yet high quality. The lens on that Olympus is very sharp, the AF and exposure work reliably and the battery was full despite me not having used the camera in about 25 months.

Yes, those little Olympus print and shoots were VERY good. (I belive the series was also sold as the "Stylus Zoom")

I kept one on the itchen table for several years, with a roll of 400 C-41 film in it Got many great family shots. the lens on those has a light seal that started to fade, resulting in shadows on every frame. I set the Camera asside, but understand that replecing the light seals is a job for those with more camera dismataling expertise than I have at the moment.