A lifetime ago I used a Mamyia 645 100S with motor drive and CDS pentaprism viewfinder. (also used an RB67, but liked the 645 as it was easier to use in more settings)

It was not much more trouble than the Konicas and Nikon 35mm, and gave great pics. Used it for portraiture, weddings, air shows and shortly after, quit carrying all the 35mm gear. (limited to one 35mm for backup with two lenses.)

Last (film) camera I purchased was a Pentax 6x7 with pentaprism viewfinder, but it did not get much use, as digital stuff was gaining ground, and running a homebuilding business ate up all my time.

Boy howdy can building a business, running a family, and working a bread and butter job take up time.

I try to get out every couple months with my camera as a fun thing for landscape and wildlife (the occasional hot air balloon rally),and am starting to get more portrait business.

The Pentax lenses can all be interchanged with all of the bodies (it just takes adapters) so I can use my old screw mount lenses on the full frame bodies, and the medium format lenses on the full frame 35mm equivalent bodies; I can use the 6x7 lenses on the 645 with an adapter (manual focus and f-stop settings).

I stayed with film until 2009 as digital was nice but not up to the large enlargements one could get with low ISO film.... Now I can print my photos as large as a garage door without image degradation, but I usually have my work printed 16 x 24 inches on metal.

I remember when digital first came out and (we) serious film folk, said it would never beat film. Boy was that ever a silly statement.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
I remember when digital first came out and (we) serious film folk, said it would never beat film. Boy was that ever a silly statement.

I held off on digital until 2009 when playing with my wife's little Kodak point and shoot.... I figured at that time I had lenses, and bought a digital body (Pentax K20d, and APS-C or crop sensor body). I had to relearn a couple things like how to shoot a sunrise or sunset as the exposure we used with film just blows out the photo so you end up with hot spots or nothing, but by shooting in RAW and underexposing I can get all the colors and detail.

It is amazing the low light capabilities of these cameras now days.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
I remember when digital first came out and (we) serious film folk, said it would never beat film. Boy was that ever a silly statement.

I still have Canon T90 with a f1.4 lens. Always thought i would convert a small bedroom into a darkroom.

Camera is in the safe and the spare bedroom still has white walls and a twin bed.

It is a good feeling not to have to write that check every month.

Paid mine off last year...I was getting close as it was, and used the stimulus money to finish it off. Figured that was a better use for it than blowing it on stupid stuff. Sure is nice to not have to make that payment every month!

Funny, I'm a Pentax guy, too. Maybe there's a pattern here . I got an ME Super in college, then switched to digital around 2010-ish with a K100D. I ended up selling that one and got a K5, which I still have. Haven't done much photography in recent years, though...most of my trips are backpacking now, and that camera setup is just too much weight.