What is an equivalent camera to the Pentax K1000 35mm SLR?

Question

I'm taking a photography class and the class recommends a Pentax K1000 35mm SLR or equivalent. What are some equivalent models, particularly any that I could possibly get for less than $100 (a bit of a long shot it seems)? Also listed were Ricoh KR5-3 and Yashica FX3 Super 2000. Also, do anyone know of some places to buy quality used cameras for a good price?

Answer 1

Buy either a Nikon or Canon camera, such as a Nikon F-80 or N-80 (autofocus), Nikon FM-10 (manual focus), Canon EOS Elan 7N (autofocus), or one of the Canon Rebel cameras.

My reasons for suggesting Nikon or Canon is so that you can have the widest possibile selection of high quality lenses available to you. Once you have really gotten into photography, you will have a few lenses and then you can keep your top quality lenses and upgrade to a more expensive camera in the same line. Pentax is another fine camera with a huge line of lenses and I always owned Pentax film cameras, but I think you have even more to choose from in Nikon and Canon, so these are the brands I have recommended to my own children.

Get one "general purpose lens" of a wide-to-tele zoom of the same brand as your camera in the 35-70 or 35-105 range.

The Nikon FM10 35mm SLR Manual Focus Camera Kit with Nikon 35-70mm f3.5-4.8 AIS Lens is a good student kit which is available for about $250.

The Nikon F80 35mm SLR Autofocus Camera Kit with Nikon 28-80mm f/3.3-5.6 G-AF Lens is an autofocus camera and lens which is available for about $370.

The Pentax K1000 is certainly a proven student camera that would serve you well, but you'll have to shop used, as it is not a current model. It has been replaced by the ZX-M, which looks like a good student camera. It is a manual focus only camera with four exposure modes: Program AE, Aperture priority, Shutter priority and full manual. The camera body sells for about $160. A Pentax lens worth owning is the Pentax Zoom Wide Angle SMCP-FA 28-105mm f/3.2-4.5 AL IF Autofocus Lens which sells for about $210. This makes the Pentax "kit" cost about $370. You might also consider a "normal" Pentax 50 mm f/1.4 lens instead of the zoom, but that costs slightly more money. Personally, I prefer the 50 mm lens for a student, but that's just my vintage taste.

Here are a couple of suggestions:

Canon EOS Elan 7N 35mm SLR Autofocus Camera Kit with Canon 28-105mm f/4-5.6 EF Lens

Nikon N80 35mm SLR Autofocus Camera Body with Nikon Zoom Wide Angle-Telephoto AF Zoom Nikkor 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5D IF Autofocus Lens

See kehkohjones's answer http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AhTCVUQ3G2q8KUh2Ixuq6APsy6IX?qid=20061126151644AA2H1VE

B&H Photo has a used camera section and they are available on-line. You can also do well at eBay if you read the seller's feedback score and remarks.

Answer 2

The reason they want you to get a K1000 is that it is cheap and completely manual (no auto modes to cheat with!). You can find used ones on eBay but I would check KEH.com which is an Atlanta company that I buy used equipment from all the time (they no longer make the K1000). The K1000 was my first SLR camera back in the 70s. While I normally shoot Canon 1 series digital pro bodies now, I still keep a roll of Tri-X black and white film in my K1000 and use it once in awhile. It is built like a tank and still works great after all these years.

Other manual SLR film cameras in the same price range would include:

Olympus OM1 and OM2
Nikon FTN, F2, FG and FM
Minolta SRT
Canon FT, AE1

You can't go wrong with the Pentax and if you decide photography is not your thing, you can sell it for what you pay for it assuming you take care of it.

Answer 3

If you're talking rock bottom, Ritz photo had a 35mm called a Dakota that will do a serviceable job for a beginner. Pentax also used to have an updated model called the ZX-M that was pretty much a manual 35mm camera. Look at some of the photo mags. Some of the larger camera stores have a used equipment section. Then there's always E-bay. The k-1000 was a very common camera. They produced buckets of them. It shouldn't be too hard to find one in serviceable condition.

Answer 4

Insofar as cameras, if you choose to learn with a film camera, I suggest that you get the best for the money and the most VERSATILE film camera: the Nikon N80; and the most versatile lens, Nikkor AF 28-105mm f/3.5-5.6D (or the cheaper version, Nikkor AF 35-105 f/3.5-5.6D-macro), and one of the best places to get this camera and lens at a great price is: www.keh.com

All all-manual cameras are limited in features and versatility. While the Nikon N80 has many automatic features, it also provides you the opportunity to override them when you want/need to. That’s the advantage of the N80; it affords you the option of shooting totally MANUAL or with automatic features that you can override as the need arises, that’s something that totally manual cameras cannot offer.

The N80 is NOT a camera that will confuse you. It is designed to help you get the most out of photography, which is why it is such a popular cameras for those taking BEGINNER Classes as well as ADAVANCED classes. Also, the N80 has two other metering systems for very difficult lighting situations...

I propose that you get the Nikon N80 which can be used totally manual with or without auto focus, or semi auto (aperture priority OR shutter speed priority) with or without auto focus and full automatic with or without auto focus. Additionally, it has 3 metering modes (Average or Center-Weighted like common manual cameras; 3D Matrix with a chip that contains over 10,000 similar lighting situations to match your present scene and provide you with the best exposure setting; and Spot Metering which concentrates the metering area to a tiny spot during difficult lighting situations). It has a built-in strobe (good up to about 5-6 feet), great for fill-in light if your subject is standing in the way of the light to keep you from getting a silhouette. And it has on-command gridlines to help you keep the horizon level when shooting landscapes and seascapes. It will set the film’s ISO for you automatically, and advance the film as you take photos and rewind the film as you take the last photo. It is a solidly built camera that is ergonomically designed and constructed. It is considered the Poor Man’s Pro Level Camera because of the many features it shares with its big brother, the Nikon F100, and it is considered the best camera to learn with by the vast majority of photography instructors that I know. It is a camera that you can grow with but NOT outgrow anytime soon. Many of the features of the N80 are also found in digital cameras.

The recommended lenses (either the Nikkor AF 28-105mm or the 35-105mm) can be used as a wide angle lens (28-35mm), an “average” lens (45-55mm), a portrait lens (80-90mm), a short telephoto lens (105mm) and as a macro lens! The lenses have great optics because of the superior glass formulas used, and because they’re made by NIKON, well-known for the superior quality of their lenses and the great variety of lenses offered, new and used; the lens mount has not changed since 1959!

In time, you will want to get the lens that has saved the day for many of us who’ve been caught in unexpected low-light situations, the Nikkor AF 50mm f/1.8D lens! It is small enough for you to easily carry in a belt pouch or in a small corner of your camera bag. You can find a used one in great conditions for about $75-$85 at www.keh.com or at www.bhphotovideo.com or any other long established and reputable camera stores.

You can also find the best prices for the N80 batteries, with a 10-year shelf life and will last you a very long time at: http://www.surefire.com/maxexp/main/co_disp/displ/carfnbr/97/prrfnbr/685 and the final cost is about $1.05 each!

Answer 5

Several Canons, several Nikons, several Olympus models, Ricoh made a very good camera, but they did not sell many.

Look up www.keh.com and call them, they have them all.

Answer 6

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