Use a lens cap. With a lens cap on the lens the light meter circuit draws exceedingly little current - about the same order of magnitude as just letting the cell sit unconnected.
Pentax: Two new compact film cameras planned - Pentax 17 announced June 2024
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Use a lens cap. With a lens cap on the lens the light meter circuit draws exceedingly little current - about the same order of magnitude as just letting the cell sit unconnected.
Yes. The meter draws very little current as it is and then by using a lens cap to cover the lens the battery will last me over a year. If I am not going to use the camera for awhile, say a month or more, I just remove the battery. Of course the battery only powers the meter so you can still shoot film without a battery if you want.
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I don't like capping and uncapping throughout the day. I want my camera ready to go when I carry it.
You don't have to. The meter will not draw enough current to cause any problems throughout the day. However I suspect that if capping your lens at the end of a day causes you distress you will have not problem another camera that works more to your liking.
The point was to document a trip he took with friends, not to take artistically excellent photos. He himself said as much in the video. Not all photos are or have to be meant to hang on a gallery wall. They can be snapshots of experiences, family, and friends. I think that will be the vast majority of photos taken with the Pentax 17.
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Then you need a Nikon.
I have a few of those too. Nice cameras. I love how the F2's lever pokes me in the eye when the meter is on.
Beauty of today is I can find just about any SLR I'd like to try out for a fraction of what they cost a few decades ago.
My first roll from Pentax 17, and started a new thread for sharing images
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Pentax 17: first few snapshots
First roll from Pentax 17, the new half frame camera. Nothing artistic, just going through all modes, all distances, indoors and outdoors, flash and no flash. Fujicolor C200 film (Made in Japan), Bellini C41 home processed. Just straight scan from Nikon Coolscan V, no adjustment other than...
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I know -- it's so much trouble and effort. I have cameras with ON/OFF switches for the meters, but they are a PITA too. But it's not a big deal for me, because when I'm not taking pictures I have the lens cap on to protect the lens.
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Companies eventually solved it with the half press. It's the best way.
Yep, he stated in his video that the expected use of the 17 is that the demographic it's aimed at will be posting photos to social media. And that's the kind of photo he actually shot....documenting the trip with his storm chaser buddies....photos of what they saw on the trip, pics of his friends and their gear. High art? Probably not. But exactly the sort of thing the 17 was designed for.
I recently lent a much younger friend (22 or 23) a vintage compact 35mm camera with "guess the focus" for Pride in London. I haven't developed her film yet but it struck me that if she had the money, the Pentax 17 would have suited her perfectly for that occasion. It would also have suited me the weekend before where I attended two BBQ/parties in the same weekend.
Now you get it.
When I was that age and I decided I wanted an SRT-101 I somehow managed to come up with the money for a brand new one. But, maybe kids are different today.
Not only kids. Also typical wage/cost of living relation, and what expenses one might prioritise. For you the SRT would have been your only picture taking device, yes? For most people today the 17 would be a secondary (to either a phone or a mmore serious camera) one.
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I think that Pentax's challenge isn't necessarily the price, so much as convincing their target demographic that they're going to get real value for their money. Because that audience already has access to not-cheap mobile devices, game consoles and various subscription services. But compared to a mobile device or game console, a film camera is a one-trick pony, so that one trick needs to be compelling.
Not really. I end up taking endless pictures that I didn't want to. They are a bigger PITA -- and costly.
The Minolta SRT and XE had power switches. After those, the XD has no power switch but half-press. And after that, the X-series (X700, X570,...) and all AF cameras had power switches again. So the half press seems to me, at least for Minolta SLR (which I know the best), an in-between step. Of course a camera can have a power switch, but most power drain is off when there is no half press (that's how it is with the X-series and AF, I guess).
I guess I'm a little confused. I must be missing something here but my Pentax PZ1p and Pentax 645Nii, as well as the digital cameras I own, use the shutter button half press for auto focus, not as a power switch. They all have a power switch as well as the shutter switch.
If you must know, she's a trans woman being kicked out of the family home who's qualifications and work experience are in television and film prop making and handling.....which is a sector where there aren't exactly many jobs going right now. She's got more on her plate than buying a camera.
I think every other person of similar age that I know carries round in their pocket a device costing 3-4x what the Pentax 17 costs.
No I really don’t. None of us do. That was totally inappropriate (and irrelevant). You should have kept her personal situation private.
Yes, and that hand-held, battery operated, network connected, pocket super computer is infinitely more useful than this frivolous film camera. The comparison is meaningless.
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Sure…and in 1978, I spent my life savings to buy a Pentax KX and a 55mm f/1.8 SMC Pentax lens. But surely you’re not suggesting that the new Pentax 17 in 2024 is comparable to the SRT101 or Pentax KX in the 1970’s??? I think the market for film and film cameras is a little different today than it was in the 1970’s.
I still have the camera
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I can tell that your background is not in social statistics. Even adjusting for inflation, I've never spent that much for a camera -- especially for a half-frame.
I like half-frames, FYI. I must admit, I paid a lot for my Minolta-to-Pen adapter -- hard to find.
I have to say the amount and quality of criticism this camera project is receiving from a certain cohort of film aficionados is absolutely fascinating, possibly even more so than the product itself. I'm enthralled.
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People say frivolous like it's a bad thing!
My entire collection of photography doodads are frivolous when compared to an iPhone.
So why is something like this nifty new camera bashed?
I think it's cool!
My entire collection of photography doodads are frivolous when compared to an iPhone.
So why is something like this nifty new camera bashed?
I think it's cool!
Frivolous as in fun...not to be taken too seriously. I did not mean it in a negative way. Certainly not bashing it. Quite the contrary.
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