RiceHigh's Pentax Blog: Two New Unboxings: Ricoh AF540FGZ II and HD DA15/4 Limited

Sunday, December 01, 2013

Two New Unboxings: Ricoh AF540FGZ II and HD DA15/4 Limited

1. http://blog.xuite.net/falconkimo/blog/167284100
(in Traditional Chinese, but pictures are all self-explanatory.)

Damn now the user manual marks it is a Ricoh flashgun, but not a Pentax! >:-(

2. http://blog.xuite.net/falconkimo/blog/167298828

Frankly, the added phone-out jack under the K-3 logo looks like a Tumour! :-o

And, the used-to-have lovely 14-stroke star-burst (of the original DA15 Ltd.) exists no more with the new "improved" Ricoh HD version of the "same" lens! :-((

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+3 Vote up Vote down

Jean · 588 weeks ago

K3 is not beutiful but worked very well when I tried it.

But the beautiful silver looking lens becomes very ugly when it is put on a black DSLR.

-2 Vote up Vote down

Milan · 588 weeks ago

Frankly I won't miss the 14-stroke star-burst of the original DA15 Ltd.

How long before Ricoh realizes they bought a lemon when they acquired Pentax. Used DA lenses are now at an all time low. The 40mm pancake can be picked up used for $180. The DA14mm can be purchased used for around $400. These are lenses that sell new for $499. and and $949.95 at the Ricoh webstore right now. Pentax glass, especially for aspc , is just not a smart investment anymore.

1 reply · active 588 weeks ago

+2 Vote up Vote down

Yoku2 · 588 weeks ago

Ricoh bought Pentax and they could do all they want. Like Sony had bought Minolta.

0 Vote up Vote down

Dan Johnson · 588 weeks ago

I pre-ordered (1 of 2000) silver K-3 cameras to make sure I got one and because I could always cancel, return, or sell it at no cost to me. I'm one of the few that doesn't make home movies and 16mp makes Super-B (13 inch by 19 inch) photo prints. Much like finding out what Ricoh/Pentax will offer, in the 11th. hour I found out how the K-3 stacks-up against my K-5IIS and returned it. Silver K-3 cameras are still for sale and the K-3 ain't selling as good as expected, prices ebb and flow with supply and demand. Soon Ricoh/Pentax will be best known for the K-500 and K-50 as well as the lenses priced to match them, then used lenses of the same quality will go up, making buyers unhappy again. I have a Samsung 360 flash and Samsung had lenses.

10 replies · active 588 weeks ago

+7 Vote up Vote down

Bzrkd · 588 weeks ago

A holding company is DUE — according to international trade law — to have BOTH its name and the trading brand name stamped on packaging. How that is done is left to the design, but must be visible. I admit that old packaging had a better impact because it was simpler and bolder, as new one is not quite yet polished up. We could say same for the K-3 manual: worst one so far for any Pentax camera.

3 replies · active 588 weeks ago

0 Vote up Vote down

bigdaz668 1p · 588 weeks ago

I think the IIs is the last pentax built by a pentaxian for pentaxia, yes I know his wage was paid by the company, but....well you see what I mean.

1 reply · active 588 weeks ago

+9 Vote up Vote down

zosX · 588 weeks ago

Its amazing. Pentax/Ricoh comes out with a camera that addresses nearly every complaint lodged against Pentax dsrls asides from sensor size and you are all up in arms because it says Ricoh on the box. If it were hoya it would be a warmed over K-5 III with a new sony sensor. I'm pretty pleasantly surprised at how much new technology Ricoh put into the K-3, and you think its no better than a K-5? Wow. Do all you people do all day is bicker and whine about the most insignificant differences in DR? If 13.5 EV of DR is not enough (?!) then its time to learn how to expose properly. I'm just astounded at how negative so many of you are. The K-3 is just about the best APS-C DSLR out there and is easily one of the best handling cameras out there.

+4 Vote up Vote down

Yoku2 · 588 weeks ago

Canon has the worst data of low-end and middle-end DSLR under DXO tests...But it means nothing. Canon sells a lot of cameras.
Canon cameras are far behind K-3, but it can't prevent to sell cameras.

5 replies · active 588 weeks ago

+6 Vote up Vote down

Sam · 588 weeks ago

It is really a case of a poor workman, blaming his tools.

I don't see any dealbreaker in the K3 seriously. I'm not too sure if I mentioned it before but I do own a m43 camera, Canon 5d and 6d, Pentax K3, a fujifilm x100 plus some more film cameras that I won't bother to mention. Just in case someone accuses me of being a Pentax fanboy.

If there was a slight reduction in DR, I don't feel it in any of the real world shots that I did. In fact, I recently did a closed fashion runway shoot using the K3 and I can honestly say that the AF is much better, it locks on fast. If previously I was hesitant about using the K5 for those dim lighting shots, moving subjects and white balance control, I had none using the K3.

In fact I would probably start using it more for commercial events that I do. The full-frame cameras with their lenses are getting too heavy for me and I sometimes have to cover 12-14 hour events.

In fact I'm looking forward to pair the K3 with the new flash and see how it performs. Honestly, I think the K3 is Pentax finally delivering on the promise for a semi-pro camera. It is not the best camera (subjective anyway) but it is there. The k10d was inkling of what Pentax can do and the subsequent models was an exercise of almost but failing just. But the K3, I'd say is pretty much there, now for more Sigma and Pentax lenses.

7 replies · active 588 weeks ago

+5 Vote up Vote down

Chris · 588 weeks ago

On another thought: WHAT, do you think, would have been the reaction of Rice High and the comment folks in this blog, if Pentax/Ricoh has launched a manual-focus-full-frame camera for the K-mount?

I think I don't have to elaborate this, but a tiny hint: the reaction would not have been favorable. But if Sony does it, it is "magic".

7 replies · active 588 weeks ago

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pentaxfools · 588 weeks ago

Chrissy,
What makes you think Pentax could have come out with a FF? Pentax could not and did not produce a FF that is why there is no Pentax FF. Pentax has indicated more times then not that they sell APCS gear, not main stream photography gear & will not produce a FF. A this point Pentax would not be able to compete on the first tier. Those days are gone and Pentax knows this.
My Sony A7r will be here Friday! Oh yea this is not the Sony thread but you just can't stop talking about the Sony.

+2 Vote up Vote down

fred Jones · 588 weeks ago

I do not know how my experience stacks up against other commentators but after quite a few years developing digital imaging systems I can see through the nonsense pretty quickly. I started with a K10-D. It can take some good pictures but you are forever having to watch low light noise and lack of dynamic range in landscapes with bright sky. For its time this was a good buy. I bought a K-7 and was never happy with it so when I heard about the K-3 I PXd it for a K-3. The dealer offered a further discount and Pentax added a bit more. The deal was so good I even bought a new 18-55mm.

The K-3 is just wow! I have just taken a series of pictures in a folk museum to record their Christmas displays. Its dim an dark so I started with flash. Then I just put the camera on a tripod, left the flash off and let the camera do its own thing in green mode. It was amazing. The tree lights came out well, everything was correctly focused and exposed, colour balance was just about perfect and the noise was only detectable with some severe pixel peeping. This is the camera I have dreamed of for many years. I even dare to say that an FF camera would offer little extra for most photographers. Next job is to read the manual and see what it really can do.

+1 Vote up Vote down

Sharafat1111 82p · 526 weeks ago

Ricoh bought Pentax and they could do all they want. Like Sony had bought Minolta.

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RiceHigh's Pentax Blog

Sunday, December 01, 2013

Two New Unboxings: Ricoh AF540FGZ II and HD DA15/4 Limited

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