I Shoot Pentax

I learned to use an SLR camera the old fashioned way: I bought a used film SLR and signed up to take an evening class at the local art center.  I recommend it.  I didn’t learn anything I couldn’t read in a book, but it forced me to take pictures every week and most importantly, I got weekly feedback from the instructor and the other students.

For a year, I continued to use my film SLR.  Or, more accurately, I didn’t.  I meant to, but it was inconvenient to buy film and then get it developed.  I finally did what I should have done from the start: I bought a digital SLR.

One of the first pictures I took with my K100D and kit lens

I walked into Penn Camera in downtown DC and walked out with a Pentax K100D and a kit lens.  Why Pentax?  I wish I could say that I thought it over, but really, I bought a K100D because that’s what the man behind the counter wanted to sell me.

I hadn’t had my new toy long when I realized Pentax isn’t a standard choice.  Most people approach SLR cameras as a dichotomy.  Canon or Nikon?  Nikon or Canon?  Shooting Pentax is like taking German in high school.

I like Pentax.  I’ve come to appreciate its outsider status.  Since I haven’t used Canon or Nikon, I can’t say how it compares to them, but I’ve never been anything but satisfied with my K100D.

The Christmas card photo from 2009, taken with my Tamron 90mm f/2.8

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