Episode 38 of the Camerosity Podcast delivers on a long-standing listener request by devoting nearly the entire show to Pentax, specifically Asahi Pentax, covering the brand's history from the earliest Asahiflex cameras through the M42 screw mount era. The hosts note that there was simply too much ground to cover in one sitting, so the Ricoh-era digital Pentaxes will have to wait for another time. Returning callers Robert Rotoloni, Hong Joon Lee, Miles Libak, and Mario Paper join first-time caller Dave Roberts to dig into the details, though the episode actually opens with a lengthy detour into 127 format cameras, including recent pickups and favorite shooters, before the group refocuses on Pentax.
The Pentax discussion spans a wide range of topics: Asahi's origins as primarily a lens maker before it ever built a rangefinder (the company went straight to SLRs), Saburo Matsumoto's creation of the first Asahiflex, and the technical distinction between "quick return" and "instant return" mirrors as used in Asahiflex M37 lenses. The group debates whether the Takumar 58mm f/2.4 is essentially a Heliar design, compares Auto Takumars to Super Takumars, and notes how early Yashinon M42 lenses closely resembled Takumar optics. They trace how Asahi had to license the "Pentax" name from Zeiss-Ikon, discuss differences between the Pentax S and H models, clarify that Spotmatics don't actually have a spot meter despite the name, and touch on build quality debates around plastic versus metal gears. Historical context includes 1963 Pentax pricing versus competitors and the anecdotal breakdown of the era's user base—journalists favored Nikon, sports photographers used Canon, and artists gravitated toward Pentax. Personal favorites also come up, with Mike naming the Pentax K as his favorite and Anthony citing the Pentax ES II.
The episode closes with the usual round of recent gear acquisitions, including a Nikon S2 and Contax IIa purchase, gifted Canon FTb and Miranda Auto Sensorex EE cameras, and a Mamiya lens and Steky camera pickup, alongside a tangent on using 16mm microfilm to bulk load film. Overall, the episode serves as an enthusiastic, detail-rich deep dive into Pentax's screw-mount era history and lens lineage, promising that there's still more Pentax material left to explore in a future episode.
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When it comes to camera brands that we hear listeners of this show want to hear about, Pentax seems to come up more often than any other brand. As the world’s number one open source film photography podcast, the guys and I are never ones to deprive the world of what you want to hear, so for episode 38 we devote almost the entire time to everyone’s favorite makers of quick return SLRs, Asahi Pentax!
Joining us on this episode are returning callers, Robert Rotoloni, Hong Joon Lee, Miles Libak, and Mario Paper, and also first time caller, Dave Roberts. From the earliest Asahiflexes all the way to the Ricoh Digital Pentaxes… Okay, we never actually made it that far, as it turns out there is far more Pentax talk we could fit into a single episode, so we had to stop at the end of the M42 era. But for the hour plus we talk about Pentax, there is quite a large amount of Takumar and Pentax love!
Listen to this episode to learn about one of the coolest Pentax prototypes ever made, where did the Pentax name come from, and what the element layouts of many early Takumar lenses.
Although there is a great deal of Pentax info in this episode, we get off track at the very beginning episode talking about 127 cameras, including some of our recent 127 camera pickups and what our favorite recent shooters have been. No worries though, we eventually pull ourselves out of the 127 rabbit hole and get back on topic.
As always, the topics we discuss on the Camerosity Podcast are decided by you. The guys and I rarely know where each episode is going to go until it happens, so if you’d like to join us on a future episode, be sure to look out for our show announcements on our Camerosity Podcast Facebook page, and right here on mikeeckman.com. We record every other Monday and announcements, along with the Zoom link are typically shared 2-3 days in advance.
If you want to join us for our next episode, we will record Episode 39 on Monday, December 19th. Be sure to stay tuned for the official announcement!
This Week’s Episode
- Curing COVID-19 With Lens Fungus and Radioactive Takumars / Miles Picks Up a Late Double Stroke Leica M3
Who is Shooting 127 on 127 Day? / Mario Loves the Toa Koki Gelto DIII / KW Pilot TLR / KW Pilot Six / KW Patent Etui / KW Praktina- Can You Bulk Roll 127 Film? / Bulk 46mm Portrait Film / Zeiss-Ikon Kolibri / Vest Pocket Exakta
- Was 127 A German Film? / Kodak Created the first Vest Pocket Kodak in 1912 / 127 Eventually Became the Format for Cheap Cameras
- Pentax Never Made a Rangefinder Camera, They Started with SLRs / Asahi’s Early History / They Were Primarily a Lens Maker
- Some Takane Mine Six Cameras Have Asahi Lenses / Saburo Matsumoto Created the first Asahiflex
- Quick Return vs Instant Return Mirrors / Asahiflex M37 Lenses
- Takumar 58mm f/2.4 Lens, Is It a Heliar?
** College Football Intermission **- Gerjan van Oosten’s Ultimate Asahi Pentax Screw Mount Guide / Other f/2 and f/2.2 Takumars
- Auto Takumars vs Super Takumars / Early Yashinon M42 Lenses are Very Similar to Takumar M42s
- The Birth of the Pentax / Asahi Had to License the name Pentax from Zeiss-Ikon
- Mike’s Favorite Pentax is the Pentax K / Only the AP, S, and K Pentaxes Came in Brown Leather Cases
- Photo Books Are Hard to Find Today / The Cost of Printing is Sky High
- Differences in the Pentax S and H Models / The Spotmatics Do Not Have a Spot Meter
- \m/ The Pentax Metalica! \m/ / Coming Up with a Bayonet Mount in the M42 Era
- The Spotmatics are the Honda Accord of Cameras / You Bought a Pentax to Get the Lenses
Anthony Loves the Pentax ES II / More Pentaxes Are Engraved with Social Security and ID Numbers Than Any Other Camera- How Good Was the Build Quality of the Spotmatics? / Plastic vs Metal Gears
- 1963 Pentax Prices Compared to Everyone Else / Journalists Used Nikon, Sports Photographers Used Canon, and Artists Used Pentaxes
- Mike Get’s Paul in Trouble and Convinces Him to Buy a Nikon S2 at 8:25am / He Then Buys a Contax IIa From the Same Seller
- Hong Doesn’t Like the Contax IIa / Christopher May Gifts a Black Canon FTb and a Miranda Auto Sensorex EE to Mike
- Theo Gets a Mamiya 43mm Lens, Viewfinder, and Polarizing Filters / Mario Gets a Steky
- Use 16mm Microfilm to Bulk Load Films for 16mm Cameras
Show Notes
If you would like to offer feedback or contact us with questions or ideas for future episodes, please contact us in the Comments Section below, our Camerosity Facebook Group or Instagram page, or email us at [email protected].
The Official Camerosity Facebook Group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/camerositypodcast
Camerosity Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/camerosity_podcast/
Camerosity Twitter – https://twitter.com/CamerosityPod
Episode 12: The Pentax Episode – https://mikeeckman.com/2021/11/episode-12-the-pentax-episode/
Mario Piper – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gen-x-photography/id1494585131
Theo Panagopoulos – https://www.photothinking.com/
Paul Rybolt – https://www.ebay.com/usr/paulkris and https://www.etsy.com/shop/Camerasandpictures
Anthony Rue – https://www.instagram.com/kino_pravda/ and https://www.facebook.com/VoltaGNV/
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https://open.spotify.com/show/480rHfCyC9psgmn7uXGah
Asahi never made a rangefinder camera … but the Suzuki Press Van medium format rangefinder camera had an Asahi lens.
Yep, and the Mine Six, which is one of the images I used in the show notes. Great lenses!
You still mention my first book of 1999, while there is a new version as of May 2021.