Me with my Pentax MZ-S and Sigma EX300 f/2.8 APO I started using Pentax cameras and lenses in high school, beginning with the famous K-1000 and a 55mm lens. After falling out of photography for many years, I began my comeback with a second-hand ME-Super. At that point I was buying Pentax gear mostly out of habit, because that's what I had always known, so it was really just a coincidence when Pentax, coming relatively late to the digital game, produced a camera better suited to my personal needs than anything else on the market.

The ist-D 6-megapixel DSLR could almost have been designed for me. It's small and light by DSLR standards. Its 6-megapixel resolution was standard for the day and its image quality is still more than good enough for most applications. Given my love of mountains and hiking, its ruggendess is a necessity for my photography, and its use of ubiquitous AA batteries for power has saved me on many an occasion. (For example, when my rechargable NiMH batteries died in the middle of a bicycling trip in France I was able to pick up some AA lithium batteries at the first village shop I came to — way out in the countryside with nothing but farms around.)

Now I'm using the K20D as my main camera, with 14.7-megapixel resolution and built in image stabilization (or shake reduction, as Pentax calls their version) that works even on my 30-year-old manual-focus lenses.

Click here to find out more about Pentax products Most of my cameras and lenses are Pentax. Their lenses are of the highest optical quality though I do use a couple of third-party lenses for specific needs.

Pentax's compatibility of new and old cameras and lenses is unequalled in the photo industry: My 15mm f/3.5 lens from 1975 works on the latest digital cameras and I often use the legendary 43mm f/1.9 and 31mm f/1.8 Limited lenses (two of the finest lenses made for any 35mm camera) on my ~1978 Pentax MX.

Cameras

35mm Digital: Pentax K20D

35mm Digital: Pentax K10D

Medium Format Film: Pentax 67

Medium Format Film: Pentax 645

35mm Film: Pentax MX

Lenses

My general philosophy with lenses is, "use primes when you can and zooms when you have to". This is as much about thought process and shooting style as about optical quality, because computer design technology has improved the image quality obtainable from zoom lenses drastically in the past 10 years or so. Regardless, I still enjoy shooting with primes more. The zooms come out when I'm shooting for a paying client and therefore have time constraints, and when I'm hiking and can't carry as many lenses as I'd like.

Zooms

Pentax FA*80-200 f/2.8

Pentax DA*16-50 f/2.8

Pentax FA*28-70 f/2.8

Pentax FA 24-90/3.5-4.5

Pentax DA10-17 f/3.5-4.5 Fisheye

Vivitar 70-210 f/2.8-4 Series 1

Primes

Pentax FA*300mm f/2.8

Sigma 180mm f/3.5 Macro

Pentax 77mm f/1.8 Limited

Pentax FA 50 f/1.4

Pentax 43mm f/1.9 Limited

Pentax FA 31mm f/1.8 Limited

Pentax FA*24 f/2.0

Pentax 21mm f/3.2 Limited

Pentax FA20 f/2.8

Pentax 15 f/3.5

Flash

Pentax AF540 FGZ

Sigma EF-500 DG Super

Pentax AF280-T

Tripods

Filters, etc.

You Can Take it With You

Small and Light

Computer Gear

Back to top of page

Photo Archives:

 Online photography exhibit

Vintage Motorcycles

Loire Valley

Panoramas

Grandfather Mountain

Wales

Bolinas Lagoon

Flora

Dolly Sods Wilderness

Superbike Racing

Fungus & Lichen

Print prices.


Many photographs licensed under
Creative Commons licensing
Creative Commons
Attribution-Noncommercial License
(See individual image page)

Copyright © 2007 Mark Roberts

1683 Beacon Street #2, Brookline MA 02445

Contact