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Question on the Pentax 17 future

As Kosmo Photo reports that the main designer left Pentax, people are questioning the Pentax 17 future, or more realistically future Pentax film cameras.

Ricoh Imaging has said the Pentax Film Project – which led to the release of the Pentax 17 last summer – is now on hold while it investigates whether there is demand for further new film models.

If the main person behind the Pentax 17, driving the effort of film camera design, left Pentax, is there a possible future for further film cameras?

In the run-up to its release, Ricoh Imaging had said that it was investigating a raft of camera releases that could include a film SLR in due course.

I’m still not convinced that the Pentax 17 is for me. I would love to give it a try, but if I don’t enjoy shooting it, what’s the point? What I feel I might not like with the Pentax 17 is both the scale focusing and the lack of control on the exposure in general. On the other hand what I do like as a differentiator is the half frame vertical aspect ratio (but not its marketing). I do understand the constraints in the design and Pentax commitment, and this is why I hoped that they would develop further film cameras.

My ideal film camera design might be a difficult one in the current market. If it’s a reflex, a choice of mount might need to prevail to have an interchangeable lens camera. If not a reflex, it probably would have to be a fixed lens and have to be a rangefinder; otherwise a coupled rangefinder might mean Leica M mount, which mean relatively expensive glass. It’s one thing to build a camera, it’s another to build a lens system, or rely on out of production lenses. Right now film photography is on borrowed time.

Previously: Pentax 17, Reflex, a new 35mm film camera design

Canon V-Series

“V-Series”: I just made up that name. On March 26, for their video-first cameras line, Canon announced the global availability of the PowerShot V1, hoping that they sorted their manufacturing capacity. They also announced the Canon EOS R50V, a reworked version of the entry level APS-C sensor EOS R50, stripped of the viewfinder, and with improvements to the video mode. It comes (optionally) with a kit lens 14-30mm f/4-6.3 PZ. Body only, its cost is barely less than the R50, and with the kit lens it is still cheaper than the PowerShot V1:

The Canadian prices are:

PowerShot V1 CA$1,349.00
EOS R50V w/ 14-30mm CA$1,279.00

This is supposed to compete with Sony ZV line of cameras. The Sony ZV-1 II is CA$1,199.00, while the ZV-E10 II without lens a 16-50 is CA$1,499 and would compete with the V1 and R50V respectively.

This is more than the PowerShot G7X MarkIII (CA$1,069.00), or even the Fujifilm X-M5 (CA$1,199.00 with the 15-45mm).

News: GFX 100RF

The long rumored medium format fixed lens camera from Fujifilm was just announced.

It is called the GFX 100RF. RF stands for Rangefinder style, Fixed lens.

This camera will naturally compare with the Leica Q3 that is in a similar market segment.

The GFX 100RF has a 102 Megapixel sensor, larger than full frame (43.8mm x 32.9mm) like the one on the GFX 100II, and a newly developed fixed 35mm f/4 that is a 28mm equivalent FoV with a leaf shutter, and built-in ND filter. The lens can focus as close as 20cm front the front. The electronic viewfinder has a x0.84 magnification and 5.76 Megapixels, and it is complemented by a 3.15 in 2.1 Megapixel tilting LCD.

It has a dial that allows selecting 9 differwent aspect-ratios that, in addition to the usual ones, feature crops like 17:6 and 65:24 which are the Fujifilm G617 and T-X1 panoramic cameras respectively. There is also a vertical 3:4, that would allow taking a cropped picture in the portrait orientation. The aspect ratio dial will change the viewfinder to offer proper framing guides but the raw file will contain it all.

The digital teleconverter is a digital zoom similar to the one found on the Leica Q3 that will crop to any of 43mm, 63mm or 80mm field of view (in 35mm equivalent these are about 36mm, 50mm and 63mm respectively). The crop is done at the cost of less pixels, but since you start at 102 Megapixels, there is plenty of room to work with. Like with the aspect ratio crop, if you shoot raw, the whole image is still captured but it will be marked as cropped by default in your photo processing software (if it supports it).

There is no image stabilisation whether it is lens or in body. High speed flash sync is possible with the leaf shutter, up to 1/500 sec. There is also a dual SD-card slots and the camera is weather sealed if you install the included protective filter PRF-49.

And of course, all the usual film simulations are available.

Video

It wouldn’t be a Fujifilm without video. It doesn’t offer everything but you can shoot 4K in 30 fps, in 10 bits 4:2:2 and F-log2 with a digital images stabiliser, and there are both a headphone and a microphone jack.

Availability

The GFX 100RF is to the GFX-series what the X100 is to the X-series, albeit the latter showed up first.

MSRP is €5,499 / US$4,899 / CA$6,999, less than the Leica Q3 and available in April 2025.

Afterword

Please Fujifilm, bring these crops to the X-series. No need for a dial. Just allow assigning to a button. I want the frames in the EVF of my X-T3.

News: Hard to get Canon PowerShot V1

To the surprise of no one, DPReview tells us Hard to get: Canon delays orders of new V1 compact amid high demand:

Canon Announced its PowerShot V1 compact just a few weeks ago, with pre-orders only recently opening for those in Asia. Despite that, DCWatch reported that Canon has already warned that demand is high and delivery may be delayed as a result, potentially delaying its availability to the rest of the world.

Also

The PowerShot G7 X III, despite being six years old, has such high demand that Canon is suspending orders indefinitely to catch up.

And rumors are that Fujifilm is suspending order for the X-M5 as well as they can’t keep up with the demand.

I might have to get a Sony to replace my non-longer-working G7 X II I use for video.

News: TTArtisan to release an Instax camera

TTArtisan is known to produce more budget friendly lenses for a variety of camera, including Fujifilm XF mount and Leica M rangefinder.

Now they are entering the market of the Instax cameras. Since the announcement is blocked by the Instagram wall, I’ll link to Kosmophoto: TTArtisan announces Folding Instant Camera which shoots Instax film:

Lens maker TTArtisan has launched a new folding camera which shoots Instax film.

It’s shooting Instax mini, it seems to be based on the Chinese Seagull 203 folding camera, and the shutter is mechanical.

Price is not available at the time.

News: Canon PowerShot V1

Well…

The PowerShot G7X Mk3 has been unobtainium for a while (over a year) as my G7X MkII has been malfunctioning/breaking down, and I couldn’t replace it unless I got a Sony.

There was rumors, and they are true. Canon unveiled the PowerShot V1. This video-first camera is their answer to the Sony ZV-1, the “vlogging” camera. One big caveat: you can only get it in major Asian markets, in April 2025.

A few bits: the sensor is roughly the size of a m4/3 sensor, but in 3:2 aspect ratio, which is larger than on the G7X, it has IS, audio jack for input and output, articulated screen, 4K, and a 16-50mm equivalent.

From the picture it looks more bulky, with a bigger grip than the G7X.

To be determined is the price, and the availability in Canada (and the rest of the world).

For reference the G7X MkIII has a MSRP of CA$1,069.00, and the MarkII was about CA$100 less, the Fujfilm X-M5 with the kit lens is CA$1,199.00, and the Sony Z-V1 II is CA$999.00

To be continued.

Update: The price would be ¥148,500 which is about CA$1,400 (incl. 10% VAT)

New Harman Red

Harman Technologies announced the Harman Red 125.

It’s a 35mm “redscale” negative film in the standard C-41 process. It’s a new emulsion based of the Phoenix colour film. Rated at 125 ISO it can be shot between 50 and 400 ISO for different effect. It comes in a 36 exposure roll.

DPReview has some more info.

Glad to see Harman investing in new films.

Kodak to clamp down on bulk loading

Apparently Kodak Alaris decided to restrict the sale of colour film in bulk, unless you are a movie production.

No more respooling to save on costs, which is what a lot of reseller were doing. Paying US$8-9 for a roll of Ektachrome instead of US$22 from Kodak was a significant saving.

As Kosmofoto reports, Reflx Lab says that its respooled colour film might not last long including the Cine film.

All of this coincide with them being sold to a private equity. Correlation is not causation, but coincidences are rare.

Previously: Kodak price updates and Kodak pauses film production for factory upgrades.

News: Kodak price updates

Kosmophoto tells us Kodak Alaris announces price rises for January 2025 – but Tri-X is getting cheaper:

In contrast to previous price increases, the majority of price increases will under 10%, with most falling between 5% and 8%.

It’s a mixed bag, some film raising in prices and some falling, with 120 rolls rising more than 135.

To be continued…

Previously: Kodak pauses film production for factory upgrades, Fujifilm film price increase, Price hike on Kodak film

News: Kodak pauses film production for factory upgrades

The Verge signals us that Kodak pauses film production for factory upgrades to help meet demand:

Eastman Kodak has temporarily paused all film production. The news comes as part of a shutdown in November allowing the company to upgrade and modernize its Rochester, New York factory,

I tried to not make the headline click-bait, like the bits I saw earlier this week.
This is actually a good news in which Kodak need to pause production to better produce, due to increased demand. Increased demand is good, as it means film is alive.

From Kosmo Photo:

In 2020, Eastman Kodak said demand for film had doubled between 2015 and 2019, after a decade-long period of decline following the start of consumer digital photography.

Let’s hope this is a positive signal from the previous news of Kodak photo businesses being sold to private equity.