p.6 #3 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
sorpa wrote:
Too sharp.
Not to be used on women.
These images are raw processed in camera so we can expect much better once the usual suspects support the raws from the 645Z. These samples are likely very indicative of what out of camera jpegs would look like. Not bad for MF!
This camera is basically a Pentax K3 on steroids with a larger sensor and articulating LCD. Technically, it pretty much blows away every other MF camera spec/ performance wise.
p.6 #4 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
They look great. I'd get murdered if I even considered looking at this in a serious manner lol. I thought about renting the older version from lens rentals.
p.6 #5 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
Dpedraza wrote:
They look great. I'd get murdered if I even considered looking at this in a serious manner lol. I thought about renting the older version from lens rentals.
I'm actually glad it's not going to be available until June as I would be very tempted to do something stupid otherwise - that eventually would end up getting me kicked out of the house!
p.6 #6 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
I would be interested to see some of the higher iso shots... Not that people will use it for high ISO but don't put a max of 200k and not expect people to play around with it.
p.6 #8 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
What is the widest Pentax lens for the 645 Mount?
It seems to be the Pentax SMC DA 645 25mm f/4 AL? (Equivalent to ~19mm in '35mm' format)
I may review the new 645Z along the some lenses covering my most used FL.
That would be the 25mm f/4 AL and new 33-55 f/4.5 AL zoom. (19mm to 45mm '35mm' equiv.)
This set-up is cheap when comparing to the MF competition but still would cost about $16k.
p.6 #9 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
Fred Miranda wrote:
What is the widest Pentax lens for the 645 Mount?
It seems to be the Pentax SMC DA 645 25mm f/4 AL? (Equivalent to ~19mm in '35mm' format)
I may review the new 645Z along the some lenses covering my most used FL.
That would be the 25mm f/4 AL and new 33-55 f/4.5 AL zoom. (19mm to 45mm '35mm' equiv.)
This set-up is cheap when comparing to the MF competition but still would cost about $16k.
The 25 is the widest...and among the most expensive Pentax lenses! I'm not sure how good that 33-55 zoom will be. The 45-85 is highly rated (as well as the 80-160) but not so the 33-55 from what I can tell. Ricoh has a newer wide angle zoom on their lens roadmap due soonish so I would expect the existing primes (particularly the FA 35mm and of course the 25mm, which is a newer lens) to be better until then.
My "dream" lens system would probably consist of the 25, 35, 55 and 90 or 120 Macro lens.
p.6 #11 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
I have the 35mm and 45-85mm and both are excellent on the 645D, although the zoom gets weaker at the 85mm end. I wanted a 33-55mm, but the generally poor reviews from 645D users have persuaded me to avoid that lens. The new zoom will likely replace the 33-55mm.
p.6 #15 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
H.Lux wrote:
The 45/2.8 is the worst optic I know for that system. At least wide open. Maybe I'll try it at f8, or smaller aperture.
Stefan
I believe none of the Pentax 645 lenses are good wide open (at least that is my experience with the 35mm A, 35mm FA, 75mm FA, 45-85mm FA, 120mm A and the 67 lenses). They are all good at f11.
The 35mm A (manual focus) is the best wide angle by far. Small, light, sharp and easy to filter (77mm). Great for landscapes since it is sharp at infinity. The 35mm FA is not.
Look at the price list now, get the lenses used while used prices are low. I suspect they will rise significantly in the coming days and weeks.
p.6 #17 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
Fred Miranda wrote:
What is the widest Pentax lens for the 645 Mount?
It seems to be the Pentax SMC DA 645 25mm f/4 AL? (Equivalent to ~19mm in '35mm' format)
I may review the new 645Z along the some lenses covering my most used FL.
That would be the 25mm f/4 AL and new 33-55 f/4.5 AL zoom. (19mm to 45mm '35mm' equiv.)
This set-up is cheap when comparing to the MF competition but still would cost about $16k.
p.6 #18 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
Wow! Looks like a good stab at reviving MF to a larger audience. Good sensor, good features, sane price.
On the other hand, for a landscape photographer it is hard to see what the benefits are compared to a D800E or A7r. Crop factor of 0.79x and linear pixel count increase of only 20% compared to the FF options. Neglecting the price just the system weight and bulk in comparison is very significant for the marginal gains. Are the optics available really that much more outstanding than what can be had or adapted on a A7R or D800E?
p.6 #19 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
kwalsh wrote:
On the other hand, for a landscape photographer it is hard to see what the benefits are compared to a D800E or A7r. Crop factor of 0.79x and linear pixel count increase of only 20% compared to the FF options.
At least you don't have to crop every single image to 4:3.
p.6 #20 · Official: Pentax 645Z Medium Format priced at $8,499
Makten wrote:
At least you don't have to crop every single image to 4:3.
Actually a good point - I often output to a 5:4 aspect ratio. I've been shooting m43 for so long I keep forgetting FF is that annoying 3:2 aspect ratio So for me at least the crop factor of the 645Z compared to the FF cameras is even better.
Conversely, for those who actually like 3:2 (is that possible ) when they crop the 645Z down to 3:2 they'll have even less of a crop factor advantage.
