Pentax ME Super SLR camera: lenses compatible with new cameras????

[BlogOnTheTyne]

Thirty yrs ago, I bought a much loved Pentax ME Super SLR camera and several lenses and accessories that go with this. I haven't had time to do any photography for several yrs now and the digital age has passed me by so far.

Does anyone know if the accessories would be compatible with modern, digital SLR cameras or would I need to start again with a whole new set up? What's the quality like with SLR digital cameras with integral lenses of different types?

ME Super has a faulty battery cover now and not sure it could be repaired and also it's very heavy to carry around, whereas I presume modern cameras are not. But I liked the fact that you could do anything from close up shots to telescopic shots and use various types of lens.

Seems a shame to abandon the ME Super and all the lenses acquired over the years - and what a waste! But would it be foolish to revive it's use in the current market of high quality digital cameras?

Finally, what would today's equivalent camera now be? The Pentax ME Super was the best quality cheap SLR I could afford at the age of 18 but it was a basic model, not a top quality SLR. However, it did the job.

The lenses are Pentax K mount which can be used with a large number of camera bodies. Current Pentax dSLRs use the K mount so you could get one of those. You can also get adapters to fit other manufacturers' bodies, Canon EF being one of them.

Obviously if the lenses are manual focus then a camera autofocus system won't work; they also may not work with the camera's metering system, depending on how it (and the lenses) dealt with metering. It shouldn't be a problem using them in full manual mode.

Pentax have always been really good with backwards compatibility so you should find any lens will fit, although you have to do stop-down metering with older (KA) lenses as the aperture coupling doesn't work.

Current budget Pentax DSLR is the K-r, mid-range the K-5. Kits with one or two lenses are almost as cheap as bodies for instance this is a steal, so you could compare the performance with your older lenses.

If you are going to be shooting video, you really want the K-5 or another 1080px video model, otherwise if your budget is limited the K-r is fine.

The current best value DSLRs in the UK are probably Canon, but then your lenses would only be good for ebay.

"The current best value DSLRs in the UK are probably Canon, but then your lenses would only be good for ebay."

Or buy a K to EF adapter

www.google.co.uk/#hl=en&safe=off&sclient=psy-ab&q=k+mount+ef+adapter&oq=k+mount+ef+&aq=1K&aqi=g-K4&aql=&gs_l=hp.3.1.0i30l4.0.0.1.63.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0.juZ75Nwebpk&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&fp=4b91874361174931&biw=1280&bih=830

link linkified

The current best value DSLRs in the UK are probably Canon...

I respectfully disagree. For me Canon are probably the most expensive. If you want value for money then I would suggest Sony are the best. They pack a lot of punch for the same price as Canon/Nikon.

But if you are after all round flexibility as well as value then I'd say Nikon.

If you pick up a Canon 1100D, it's the cheapest piece of tack I've had the misfortune of holding. If you compare the 60D to say the D7000 or A77 it's incredibly poor value IMO.

My father was told that all his old lenses (and I think they were pentax but may have been Canon) were incompatible with digital SLRs.

I will be watching this thread with interest.

I know he wasn't fussed about autofocus as he prefers manual focus.

Yes niceguy2, I am not a fan of Canons either so I'm not sure why I said that, but the 1100D is cheap for the spec, as are its lenses.

One thing to note with your old lenses is that the sensor in a (consumer) DSLR is smaller than the image area of 35mm film. This means that (i) in terms of magnification, a lens in a DSLR is effectively 1.5x the focal length of the same lens in a 35mm and (ii) some lens aberrations (vignetting and pin-cushion/barreling) are reduced or eliminated.

Note that in the consumer SLR market, Pentax and Nikon have always preserved backwards lens compatibility whereas Canon and Minolta (now Sony) changed their mounts in the mid-80s.

@SoupDragon

If your dad prefers manual focus (and tbh I've no idea why you would!) then he may want to try out a Sony camera. Something like the A57. The reason is that it has a feature called focus peaking when in manual focus. Basically it will highlight the in focus parts in bright red (or any colour you choose). Makes it a doddle to focus.

That said if your dad is old fashioned then he may not like the electronic viewfinder.

@MrA. The 1100D is same price roughly as the Nikon D3100 so it isn't much cheaper. I guess it's ok as a starter camera but it does look/feel incredibly cheap even when compared to the 3100.

I think it's because he is old and likes to be in control :o I don't understand it either.

He bought a Panasonic Lumix a year or so back - one of the ones that looks like an SLR but isn't. He still laments the amount of SLR lenses he has for his old film camera though.

I think I may have had a thread on MN about it a few years ago now I cast my mind back. The general consensus was that it wasn't possible.

I'm now thinking wistfully of my old Pentax ME Super and the satisfying clunk of the shutter button and tactile nature of winding the film on. [sigh]

I still have an ME super, I bought it when I started my photography A level. It is a lovely camera. I miss proper photography.

@MrA. The 1100D is same price roughly as the Nikon D3100 so it isn't much cheaper.

Really? Is that because the new D3200 has meant extra discount on the D3100? It is a better camera with a much better kit lens than the Canon I agree.

The general consensus was that it wasn't possible.

Don't believe anything you read online, including this

If your dad prefers manual focus (and tbh I've no idea why you would!)

Pre-focussing, hyperfocussing, combating shutter lag/focus hunting. Modern autofocus systems are good, but by no means infallible.