Pentax 645N, Competing with the Giants

[@jackkelley890]

Excellent video! Thank you for your hard work and dedication in putting this together.

[@frozenf8]

Thank you 🙏

[@randallstewart175]

I elected to invest into the Pentax 67 world around 1985, after giving a lot of thought to whether to go 6x7 or 645. I probably would have gone with the 645 if it had interchangeable backs. IMO this design omission has kept the Pentax 645 from dominating the 645 camera world over the years. The build and design otherwise is exceptional. The lenses are as good, mostly better, than other makers, particularly Mamiya. At one point I was burgled of all of my Nikon 35mm gear, and I initially planned to replace it with a Pentax 645 system. even though I was already onto Pentax 67. The police recovered all of my stuff, so that option vanished. Today, if I were to buy into a 645 SLR system, the lack of film back interchangeability in the Pentax would cause me to buy Bronica Etrsi.

[@frozenf8]

Bronica is also a very good option. But I went with Pentax 645 mostly because of the lenses. I believe Pentax has better and also more lenses compared to Mamiya and other rivals

[@randallstewart175]

@@frozenf8 There may be one or two specialty lenses Pentax offered and Bronica did not, hiowever both lines are fully equipped. Early in its existence, The Bronica 645 had a line of lenses which were comparable to the better Mamiya. however, at some point they re-designed the whole line up to generally improve the 645 lenses. Those were the equal of the Pentax 645 lenses, which I agree set the standard of reference.

[@acecreates]

Oh what a great find! A beautiful camera. Great video!!

[@frozenf8]

It’s a very good camera, specially if you’re new to medium format. And if you don’t need to change film in the middle of the roll, I say go tor it!

[@mikejankowski6321]

Nice review. Thoughtful and addressing multiple aspects regarding ownership and use. Good comparison to competitors, evaluation of pros and cons of lenses and body, and lots of good photos. Not only did you demonstrate how the lenses performed, you have some really nice work there (particularly that colorful log). I always liked the Pentax 645, but I ended up choosing a Bronica ETRSi in large part for the removable back. But the Pentax is still a sweet camera.

[@frozenf8]

Thank you very much for the kind words. I’m really glad that you liked the video and the photos. About the Pentax 645B, it is one of my favorite cameras ever, and I think the only thing that it lacks is the interchangable back, which is not a deal breaker for me. I’m sure your Bronica is awesome too. I think 645 is such a versatile format and there are many cameras to choose from, but for now I’m really happy with this Pentax.

[@waawaaweewaa2045]

Its actually a light system compared to larger medium format and considering that it has a grip and viewfinder built in. Also some of the prime lenses weigh under 200 grams.

[@frozenf8]

Agree! Specially with that 75mm f2.8 (that I don't have right now)

[@HalidesAndHollowness]

Good review! I recently picked up a Pentax 645 (first version) with a 75mm F2.8, And I am blown away by how sharp that lens is! Highly recommended! If you were to pick up the 75mm and the 45mm lenses that would cover your 45-85 focal range in primes and be at least 250g lighter. Very cool to see another Canadian Pentax 645 shooter, There can't be very many of us XD. Ohh, Since you bought the 645N I'm assuming you're mostly going to be looking for the FA autofocus glass, but if you don't mind manual focusing you can find some crazy deals on the A versions. I managed to snag a 645-A 55mm F2.8 for $80 the other day. Looking forward to more content!

[@frozenf8]

Thanks very much for your comment. I handled both 645 and 645N before buying and fell in love with 645N immediately. I know about the 75mm A version, but I think I’m gonna wait to find a good deal on a 75 FA. My go to lens for now is still the 45-85mm FA, which is a good lens, only a little heavy. But I’ve used it a lot, and kind of got used to its weight.

[@jimpurcell]

Nice video! Thanks for sharing.

[@frozenf8]

Thanks for your comment, glad you liked it

[@andrevaudrin3164]

right to the point: i do appreciate your excellent review 08:20 what is the moderne lens you talk about? (to avoid flare)

[@frozenf8]

@@andrevaudrin3164 Glad you found it useful. That modern lens is only my fuji 18-55 mm f2.8-4 lens and a Pentax 645

[@STANDRDUSER]

I have the 645N, I purchased it alongside both 55mm (34) and a 150mm (93). At the moment I’ve been having fun with Ilford’s Delta 400 and 3200. A month ago a friend suggested that I purchase a 35mm to 120 film adapter on eBay so I can have the sprockets shown on the film, the effect is jarring. If you ever intend to use this adapter, I suggest using a 220 backing as I was having issues with the 120 backing. I’m guessing you use the Pro Slide by Peak Design, I’m using that too. It’s loud in public places, a real challenge for street photography. The film load is indeed satisfying.

[@frozenf8]

It's a very nice camera! Definitely very loud for street photography, but with the right lens, it makes for a very good travel/landscape camera, and thanks for mentioning that 35mm adapter, if it works for panoramic shots, I'm gonna have to find it and give it a try

[@PhilTaylorPhotog]

Best overall review I've seen. Exactly why I've bought my P645 system..one day I'll upgrade the body and keep lenses.

[@frozenf8]

Thank you so much for the kind words. You’re right, Pentax 645 is such a great system. Definitely keep your lenses and if you want that 50MP Pentax 645Z maybe wait for a cheap one to surface.

[@PhilTaylorPhotog]

@@frozenf8 I just rewatched your review and noticed something...when you loaded your film insert, you pushed it straight in. With the 645 at least, you are meant to twist the knob anti-clockwise slightly to seat the insert first (just like when opening, just not as far), then twist it clockwise to lock it off. Just thought it might help preserve your lovely camera.

[@frozenf8]

@@PhilTaylorPhotog Thanks 🙏

[@RewDowns]

when you adapt the lens to the digital camera why can’t you adjust the aperture with the ring?

[@frozenf8]

Pentax 645 lenses have a lever on the lens mount (similar to Nikon F lenses) for aperture control. It means that if you want to control the aperture when the lens is adapted it's not enough to only set it on the aperture ring, you need to push that lever too. My adapter was cheap and simply a metal ring with the right diameter and thickness and didn't have the mechanism to push that lever

[@monsieurgolem3392]

How well does it do indoors in low light?

[@frozenf8]

I usually don't use this indoor, maybe only a handfull of times. Also used it with manual flash maybe 3 times, so can't much say about using flash. But I've used it handheld for several night shots, and I can get acceptable results upto 1/8 of a second. It's a SLR and has a big mirror, but nowhere as bad as Pentax 67

[@monsieurgolem3392]

@@frozenf8 how did those 3 shots come out?, and does a bigger mirror make the photo worse?

[@frozenf8]

@@monsieurgolem3392 Those photos with flash turned out fine. The flash sync speed is 60 and there is no risk of blur. The mirror is of course bigger than typical 35mm SLR, but I've never had blurry images because of mirror shake

[@monsieurgolem3392]

@@frozenf8 ok, thanks

[@WhoIsSerafin]

What a cool old camera that would be fun to try.

[@frozenf8]

It's a very good camera if you want to get to 645 film photography

[@bernstyles]

Is the lens you reccomend? Do you know if it an autofocus lens? Im looking for a fixed, light autofocus lens, but dont know which pentax 645 lenses have autofocus. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mGrXknegmKqYhsk

[@frozenf8]

The 3 lenses you see in this video (45-85, 80-160 and 400) are all AF. They are very good lenses but not light weight at all!! In general when a Pentax 646 lens has FA in the name means it's autofocus. One good recommendation is the famous 75mm FA f2.8, which is relatively expensive these days, there is also the manual focus version of it which is much cheaper.

[@basukisugito3275]

They couldn't make it bigger

[@frozenf8]

It’s a medium format SLR. They are usually big 😬