So… That Pentax K-1 Mark III. Carrying The DSLR Torch. (OG Pentax K-1 product pic I took above for attention.)
I have long been a fan of Pentax. Have always owned at least one Pentax. Currently have a few film cameras. One was released/bought recently.
Have owned many digital ones. Some briefly. The ones below stayed around for a while.
A lovely camera. Owned twice. Sold twice. Would buy one again if they did not hold their value so well. A great continuation of the Pentax legacy that started with my Father’s Pentax ME Super that he taught me to use as a child.
The best value in Pentax DSLR-dome in my humble opinion. Lacks the bridge girder build of the K-3 and K-1 line but offers Pentax’s first (I believe) camera that can continually focus during video (with compatible lenses) and with a tilty-flippy screen and specs that pretty much match the more expensive brand options.
The best DSLR I have ever used. And it had all of the things.
- IBIS.
- No one ever seems to mention this but Pentax was the only company to put IBIS in their DSLRs years before it became almost required in modern day mirrorless cameras.
- The tilty-flippiest of DSLR screens ever.
- Built like a melee weapon.
- Once dropped it. Saw a minuscule hairline crack. Called Pentax. They said I should not have been able to crack it. Not only did they fix it, but put a whole new top on the cameras a refreshed the rest. For free.
- Over 40MP.
- Just lovely images.
- Build in GPS.
- Astrotracer feature.
- Lighted doors and ports.
- Other things.
It also helped me through the toughest time of my life. Which is also why I eventually sold the last copy I had. It turned from a coping distraction to a painful reminder eventually.
So. The topic of this post. The Pentax K-1 Mark III.
First off I am glad that Pentax is still at the DSLR thing. Outside of my fantasy that they may join the mirrorless L mount alliance, along with an L Mount to K adapter and some Pentax L Mount lenses please (Hey. It’s my fantasy I said. I know it will never happen. But investing in a new Pentax mirrorless mount makes no fiscal sense this late in the game.), I appreciate that they are still releasing new bodies. I wrote about the K-3 III and K-3 III Monochrome in this space. Short version is that I would own both if I could find my elusive money tree.
Sidebar: Lord help me I want a K-01. Why? It is so weird. A mirrorless Pentax where they simply… <checks notes again> …ripped out the mirror and viewfinder, got some design dude to give it a go, and sold it all looking as if Tupperware dipped a toe into the interchangeable lens camera market? Yes, please. Anyhoo. Looked them up again and stood down. Survived another day.
So what of the K-1 III?
Of course, I want one. How could I not?
From a quick read of the specs it combines the best of two cameras I genuinely like. It takes the K-1 and gives it the sensor from my A7RV. The best mirrorless camera I have ever used. It does many things astonishingly well and is quite capable at the rest. So good that I put it on a pedestal. No camera I have owned threatens to dethrone it. And there is some strong competition out there. It does everything I ask of it well. Often better than I expect. Now that I think about it when I look at the capabilities, high resolution, innovative screen, and other features, all similar to the K-1, I look at the A7RV as the best mirrorless camera for my purposes.
Will I get one? No.
As talented as my inner GAS lobbying firm is at making an argument for any manner of foolishness even they had to admit defeat. I can not make a case for it. Would have better luck trying to convince myself to get another OG K-1… which I am always at risk of doing by the way. But a few years on from selling it the last time I have fought the urge.
So this post is yet another coping mechanism. Notes I can refer to when GAS flares up on the release date.
But I am still glad that Pentax is keeping the DSLR flame alive.
Side note: Years of watching Spongebob with my now grown kids (and becoming a fan myself) and I can quote a ridiculous number of lines verbatim. My favorite is Plankton’s ramble at a bar attempting to recruit patrons for a criminal scheme. At any moment I can belt it out in character. <ahem> Anyhoo.
Happy capturing.
-ELW
Eric L. Woods 
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