Pentax 17, Testing 'New' Films, and Falling More In Love With The Holga
Let's chat about what's been happening lately in film photography...
Hey Film Photographers!
My last letter here on substack was sent out in March, but there’s not much to report since then…oh wait…except for PENTAX FINALLY LAUNCHING THEIR NEW FILM CAMERA!!!!!
The PENTAX 17 is the hottest thing to happen to the film photography industry this year. Not to downplay all the rest of the news that has come out (proving that this industry is alive and well), but gosh darn it, this is exciting.
What do you think of the adorable new half-frame camera?
I’m in love and I haven’t even tried it. Though I wish the price was a teensy bit lower, maybe by $100. The company does have to recuperate their R&D spend though so I understand the price tag. Hopefully, there will be plenty of folks with extra disposable income who can support Pentax, pick up the 17, and keep the ball rolling so they can produce additional models for the market.
It certainly has curb appeal.
It’s giving Fujifilm X100 series meets Minolta GF meets Voigtländer Bessa L…
The Pentax 17 is a camera I’d love to shoot. Firstly, I adore the manual zone focus settings that it has. This system is quick and easy to use. The exposure compensation dial is a nice touch. I’m happy to see the ISO dial also featured on top of the camera. Thank you, Pentax for the flash and the fixed lens.
My only doubt is if I would like the shutter sound, will it satisfy my soft shutter clunk-loving soul?????
Anyway, it’s not in my budget at the moment, but there’s a good chance I’d invest in the near future…
Check out Hamish’s review of the Pentax 17 on 35mmc for an excellent discussion of the camera. Link here!
Read Ricoh’s press release here.
To see more reviews of the Pentax 17, check out these creators here:
Samuel Streetlife (Linhoff Taro)
Pushing Film & Alex Munoz - Live Stream
Even B&H is saying it’s gonna be a ‘half-frame summer’ :)
We’ll see more content trickle out over the next few months on the 17 since some folks got the camera right before the launch and didn’t have much time to properly review it. I can’t wait to see more. :)
In Other News
There have been a few other news items such as Analogue Wonderland’s BIG FILM PHOTOWALK happening on JUNE 29, 2024, Revolog releasing a new film ECHO, Thypoch’s new Simera lenses, etc.
Check out those news articles here. (Revolog covered by Peta Pixel)
Fujifilm has also FINALLY released a new INSTAX WIDE (THE 400) so check out Ben’s video about it here:
Are you an Instax wide fan? What do you think?
Frugal Film Project Update - April & May 2024
For April & May’s Frugal Film Project, I experimented with more double exposures with the Holga GCFN. Here are my favorites:
Each month, I fall more in love with the Holga GCFN. I don’t tape it up anymore and there haven’t been any light leaks yet! The shooting experience and results keep pulling me deeper in to the Holgaverse, and I can’t seem to climb out of it, not that I want to...
I’ve long been enthralled with Myles Katherine’s Holga images (aka Cameras & Cats aka The Traveling Holga). They are ethereal, creative, clever, and draw me in to want to see more. How can this camera inspire me to reach for it over my Rolleiflex and even the PERFECT SLR, the Nikon FM2n??
It’s thrilling to see what I can make with it, and there’s something more…the images feel very ‘me’ at the moment (if images can evoke such a feeling).
Chaotic, spontaneous, wild, unconcerned with perfection…
It’s swiftly becoming my favorite camera to use this year (if I haven’t said this already)!
Holga Week 2024…here we come :) :)
Film Reviews - Candido 400, Aurora 800, Street Candy Psychedelic, Ferrania P33, Lisboa from CINEMOT
I’ve shot a fair few “new” films this year and here are the videos I made about them! It’s always exciting shooting a “new” film and not knowing what I might get. Not one of these I didn’t enjoy :)
Some are more pricey than others which means it might not be a regular film for many. However, to try it out is always worth it!
Lisboa 1999 from CINEMOT is likely the most affordable of the bunch. CINEMOT has done a great job with their films and they are super friendly to boot.
While I want to like and support Candido Collective, being based now in the US, their films are expensive for me, ringing in at around $17 - $18 for the 400 version. It’s great that they are now up to 36 frames but I struggle with the pricetag. Especially when there are comparable films for lower amounts.
I enjoyed Aurora 800 and Street Candy Psychedelic from Flic Film and hope to see their continued success as a company. It’s a tight ship up there in Longview and the team is fantastic.
Ferrania P33 is a lovely film and I’m excited to see where they go next. They’ve brought us quite a few new black-and-white products recently although I still hear several grumbles in the wind about their unfulfilled promise to make color film. But let’s have hope…
THE END
I’ll leave it on that note for now…until next time, happy shooting!
~MK
Thank you for the post! I'd pay up to about $250 for the 17 -- $500 is a little too rich for my blood, but I understand the cost. And it would be fun to use as one of my cornucopia of cameras -- but not an everyday shooter. I think that Pentax did a good job of taking a lot of the nostalgic/traditional features, updating some of them with modern tech (the lens actually moves via motor to match the focus setting, right when you shoot), to appeal to a newer consumer. Much like the 1984 Mustang - throwback design but amazing engineering compared to the models that it harkened back to. So younger shooters can get into 'film camera stuff' with this camera that are not there in the modern reusable cameras, and are often quirky on the 30+ year-old vintage cameras. Hopefully they sell enough to add some more models higher/lower in price/features -- and to tweak competitors (are you listening Nikon? Canon?) into producing their own. And maybe even keep the film industry going (much like the microbrew renaissance of 10-20 years ago). All good things! And Holgas are OK too!!!! :-) Cheers!!!
Thanks for the overview of the '17, Molly. It's always good to hear when a big player in the field puts out a genuinely new analogue product.
As an 'old guy', comfortable shooting full manual, my concern has been focused on the few suppliers of film stocks. The ice still feels thin on that front. If demand for roll film were to shrink much more...then, well, why would a company continue to produce our beloved stock?
So, when I see that the '17 is marketed towards a new generation of film shooters, it gives me hope that the recent increase in demand for roll film will remain robust.
But....on the other hand.....half frame means half sales and half demand for the film companies.
Still, it is certainly conceivable that the '17 will be a *gateway camera* for new shooters. And, perhaps Pentax will be able to draw them into full-frame, 120 and beyond?