K-3 III and GR T-shirts (by UNIQLO)

by UNIQLO..

The LA-KE1 Monster Adapter is now Put On Sale

The Chinese Taobao website has already had the Chinese made LA-KE1 adapter put on sale (click here for one of the product links).

B&H also accepts pre-orders for this product and I think it will be available in the US very soon.

However, it can be seen in the comment section of the above Taobao product link from the users who have already purchased the adapter about the various issues such as its power hungriness and overheating, not supporting quite some Pentax AF lenses including the film FA50/1.4 and the digital DA17-70 and DA*200, as well as some noticeable delay in AF with the FA Limited lenses (and the AF is not quite smooth, too) and etc.

I hope this adapter will be improved later for better performance and compatibility, by means of firmware update and/or hardware revision. Not until that I shall consider to buy one for playing and use of my existing Pentax glass with my Sony FF mirrorless body.

K-3 III to be Released Shortly?

Mr Nokishita has just twitted that three new Pentax accessories have been added to the list of goods for domestic dealers, namely, "Battery Grip D-BG8", "Hot Shoe Cover O-HC177" and "Eye Cup FU" which are the exclusive accessories for the upcoming K-3 III.

In view of this, should the K-3 III be released and launched into the market very soon?

The LA-KE1 is Delayed

See this previous announcement made by the manufacturer, the LA-KE1 is delayed:

https://m.weibo.cn/status/4587145295306882

(in Simplified Chinese)

The reason of the delay is about the shortage of chipset used in the adapter. It was promised that the first batch of the adapters should be shipped by 1 Feb.

Let's wait and see how it works and performs.

DC Watch's Hands-on of the K-3 III

https://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/1296875.html (Google English translation here)

https://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/1297078.html (Pentax' brand statement with the K-3 III, Google English translation here)

And, the below video recorded the shutter sound and demonstrates the burst modes of the K-3 III:

 

(https://youtu.be/Pmfrk038Go4)

Monster Adaptor (Pentax K to Sony E) Pre-production Reviews

 1. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/4ekKr7wJePbjEOcf01lWaA

(in Simplified Chinese, Google English translated page here - but there will be no picture nor video as the Weixin server has disabled hot-linking from other websites)

The video clips for the AF tests with the FA31 are dead links anyway.

2. The below YouTube video tested the Monster Adaptor with the DFA*85/1.4 lens, it seems that the new SDM motor as well as the KAF4 electromagnetic aperture are both well supported by this version of the adaptor:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz_5huMytRo)

The AF speed and response of the combo looks good.

Ultimate Savior for Pentaxians who Had been Hoping for a True K-mount Mirrorless (with Eye-AF etc.)

 A Chinese adaptor manufacturer has announced (Google translated English here) the world first full function K-mount to Sony E-mount adaptor, which will be made available by the end of this year 2020 (and is earlier than the launch date of the upcoming K-3 III)!

This adaptor will have screw-driving AF motor and aperture motor built-in and will support full auto functions of all K-mount lenses (possibly without any aperture block problem ;-P). The manufacturer states that the adaptor will first support A/F/FA/DA/DFA lenses which are screw-driven for the AF and will support SDM/DC/PLM AF function at a later stage via firmware upgrade.

They also mounted the three FA limited onto a Sony A7 III body via their adoptor, of which the combos look really tempting! :-D

And, their also shown a "video" to show the AF in action with the FA77 Limited, which the AF speed seems reasonably good enough, as long as the animated gif was not accelerated. ;-)

After all, I will almost certainly buy this adaptor (as I bought my A7 III two years ago) and still own more than three dozens of the Pentax or K-mount lenses (and most of them are AF ones). Possibly I shall skip and not buy the K-3 III as I found my KP is actually better for my use and shooting style. :-(

Related:  My Pentax Lenses are Given Completely New Lives!

The Quickly De-coloured 100th Anniversary Hotshoe Cover

A Xitek Pentax user complains about his brand new O-HC171, which was purchased from official Ricoh channel, has turned its colour from silver to black just within two days after he removed the protective film of it:

https://forum.xitek.com/thread-1896215-1-1-1.html
(in Simplified Chinese, Google translation to English here)

And, another Pentaxian in the above forum thread reported that his O-HC171 had also turned dark.

Seems like oxidation took place. What a Quality of Ricoh! :-o

Who Will Buy This?

Metabones Devil's Speed Booster Q666 0.50x

Any market? I just wonder.. :-o

[Fanboyism] Pentax History and Cameras 1952-2017 (Official)

http://www.pentax.com/en/pentaxhistory/archives/

http://s1.media.ricoh-imaging.de/media/7542ab0e4610697f54bd87b2ce2c343e/poster_A1_slr_cameras1952_2017.pdf

Amongst the above, I bought 15 models over years.

So, for my 15 Pentax interchangeable-lens bodies, they can be further categorised as follows:

- 4 Film and 11 Digital
- 2 Medium Format, 4 135 Full Frame, 8 APS-C, 1 Tiny Sensor Format
- 14 Reflex and 1 Mirrorless
- 1 Silver, 1 Oliver, 1 Blue, 1 Gold and 1 White, all Others are Black in Colour
- 10 models can take AA batteries, 4 with adaptors or with grips (which were bought separately at high prices)
- Total cost of these cameras when bought new was huge, present value is minimal! :-(

After all, I must admit that I am a true Pentax fanboy, who bought and supported the brand blindly, over decades! :-((

Photos of the KP All Leaked

http://www.nokishita-camera.com/2017/01/blog-post_24.html
(Pictures are now removed in the source link)

Image Sync Version 1.1.2 is Up

It seems that Ricoh is reading my Blog, now there is a new version of the Image Sync, which can be updated at the Google Play, for Android only. The official website has not yet been updated, though. (Edit: The official website has just been updated and it indicates that the update is only available for Android only.)

Newly added feature on version 1.1.2
･Android 6.0.1 support
･Connection performance improved.

【Feature】
1.View and Copy Images
You can view images taken with your camera and copy them to your mobile device.
You can also upload them to SNS sites.

2.Remote Shooting
You can monitor the live view image on your mobile device. Various camera operations including EV compensation and shutter release are possible from a mobile device.

I will try and see if it improves.

Souvenir: Metal K-1 Hotshoe Cover

Official K-1 Promotional Video (11 Clips)

New K-s2 Firmware V1.11

http://www.ricoh-imaging.co.jp/english/support/digital/ks2_s.html

Improved tracking performance for ASTRO TRACER of O-GPS1.

K-3 II

Official announced and specs:

http://www.ricoh-imaging.co.jp/english/products/k-3-2/

DPR hands-on:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/7238180077/hands-on-with-the-pentax-k-3-ii

The "Ricoh" name printed on the back is gone! Good! :)

New Ricoh WG-M1

http://www.us.ricoh-imaging.com/digital-camera/WG-M1_orange

The monitor is way too small IMHO, it is of the same size of my ancient Optio 330, i.e., in 1.5"?! :-o

It *seems* to have built-in WiFi connectivitiy, though, as the specifications does not mention this but just in the product highlights. That is, the first camera of Ricoh Pentax that have this useful and handy function, and a Fuck-card should not be required anymore! :-D

K-50 Big Price Cut at Adorama

See what Photocritic refers:

http://photocritic.org/deals-on-the-pentax-k-50-with-adorama/

A free 200FG flash and a 16GB SD card will be complimented. Note that the code you enter during checkout could be either "PENTAXJUNE" or "SUMMERSALE".

Btw, it seems that something new is coming, or the K-mount line is to be discontinued! ;-P

Ricoh Pentax has Got a New Colour!

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/1093365305/ricoh-announces-pentax-k-3-prestige-edition

"Note: The camera body’s features and specifications are identical with those of the standard model, except for the firmware"

Well done, Ricoh! Bravo, great job!! Please keep it up and give us more colours of the K-3!!! >:-(

Pentax DA 1.4X TC Review by PF

http://www.pentaxforums.com/reviews/pentax-da-14x-aw-af-rear-converter/introduction.html

As usual, those test images by PF guys are somewhat crappy as photos. However, these are good enough for the readers to judge on the image quality and all the differences, if any, when compared with other products. Do bear in mind to judge on the test samples yourself but not rely totally on the words made with their comments nor even with the ridiculous high marks given by them, which should be the better way to go for getting more meaningful conclusions of yours. :-D