Pentax K1000 Review - The Phoblographer

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I’ve been scooping nearly any and all old film cameras that I spot at garage sales and thrift stores for a few years now, but one of my very first finds was the Pentax K1000. I picked it up for a few dollars because I loved the look of it and figured, if it didn’t work, I could still use it to decorate my office. Sometime later, I spotted another K1000 and grabbed that one too, largely because it had a different lens attached and even came with the original instruction manual.

I’m a bit embarrassed, however, that the Pentax K1000 sat on a shelf for a few years, unused. But, as we enter the age of AI and computer-generated “photographs,” I’ve been increasingly disenchanted with the Photoshopped perfection that I’m seeing in my feeds. I wanted to fully embrace the imperfections that come with real photography — and I couldn’t think of a better way to do that than with real film.

After trying out Pentax’s new camera, the 17, I wanted to try an SLR with full manual controls. I wanted not just film grain but real dust marks and light leaks. I dusted off the K1000 and, with the help of a YouTube video, loaded the film and then brought it along on two portrait shoots as an experiment.

When I opened the film scans I immediately felt that creative tickle, that feeling that maybe this is what I’ve been missing, that maybe the film is meant to exist besides digital, that maybe I should make some room in my camera bag for film. Yes, some of that enchantment could come from several different vintage film cameras. But for me, the Pentax K1000 feels like the ideal gateway to film for digital-first photographers.

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The Big Picture

Manufactured between 1976 and 1997, the Pentax K1000 is a charming vintage film SLR that’s still widely available secondhand. The camera is fully manual, yet has a built-in light meter and simplistic design that will ease digital photographers’ trepidation significantly. The design is simple, yet lovely.

The metal build is part of the reason there are still so many K1000s available to buy used. Despite manufacturing discontinuing in the late 90s, the model that I have is near perfect, with only some minor scratches and slight dust build-up inside the lens.

The simple design, manual controls, and reasonable price of secondhand models make the Pentax K1000 an ideal camera for photographers who know their way around a professional digital camera, yet want to ease into film for the first time. The only feature I really wish the K1000 had is a double exposure mode (though it is possible to trick the camera into exposing the same frame twice by pressing the rewind button while pulling the film advance lever forward).

I’m giving the Pentax K1000 five out of five stars.

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Pentax K1000 Pros

Affordable and readily available
Fully manual operation (excluding battery-powered light meter)
Simple operation for digital-first photographers learning film
Durable metal build
Lots of flexibility in image quality by using different films and lenses

Pentax K1000 Cons

No double exposure mode
Only available secondhand

Gear Used

I used the Pentax K1000 with the Pentax-M 50mm f1.7 lens and Illford HP5 Plus 400 film. The film was developed and scanned by Blue Moon Camera.

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Ergonomics

The Pentax K1000 embodies the look that comes to mind when I think of a film SLR — a metallic silver body, black textured wrap, and an assortment of dials.

The controls on the Pentax K1000 are simple. At the top, there’s the film wind crank, the shutter speed dial, a window within the shutter dial to set the film’s ISO, the film count, and the shutter release. The top also houses the optical viewfinder, as well as a hot shoe mount for using flash. The X on the hot shoe flash and at 1/60th of a second serves as a reminder for the camera’s required 1/60th sync speed to use flash.

The bottom houses a film rewind button, tripod mount, and battery door for a small LR44 or SR44 button battery.

The metal build gives the K1000 a bit of heft, but it feels good in the hands without being overly heavy. The camera weighs around 21.9 ounces.

Build Quality

The Pentax K1000 puts modern digital cameras attempt to replicate that metal style to shame. The camera has the heft that tells me it’s not a thin metal and it’s certainly not plastic. The K1000 feels like what a camera should feel like.

The Pentax K1000 was manufactured between 1976 and 1997, so the model that I used is anywhere from 48 to 27 years old. I picked it up at a garage sale, so who knows how many photographers have held this camera in the past. Still, despite all that, it’s not only fully functioning, but also looks great. The metal has a few minor scratches but otherwise looks close to how it did when it first came out of the box.

As a film camera from 1976, of course, there’s no weather sealing, so I didn’t try this film camera out in any rain. There were some dust specs on some of the resulting images, which I not only expected for the age and condition but actually loved. It ads a bit to the character of using a vintage camera in the first place. That said, I’m glad I’ve been displaying this camera on a glass-enclosed shelf to limit dust rather than out in the open.

Ease of Use

The Pentax K1000 is regularly touted as a camera made for beginners. In fact, I’ve heard that a lot of college classes list the K1000 among the recommended options. While I’ve used several Instax cameras, disposable 35mms, and the Pentax 17, the K1000 was my first real brush with a retro SLR. Despite that, I found it fairly easy to learn. The only thing that I had to look up were the basics of loading and winding film. Because the K1000 is a popular model, there are tons of YouTube tutorials on using the camera. The learning curve here is more of a gentle slope than an excruciating mountain climb.

The Pentax K1000 is a fully manual camera. The exposure control is manual, but if you put a fresh battery in, you’ll see a light meter on the side of the viewfinder, so you don’t need to buy a meter or memorize the Sunny 16 rule unless you want to. There is no off button, so storing the camera without a lens cap will wear out the battery faster. The manual exposure means it’s much easier to learn if you already know how to use manual mode on a digital camera.

Focus on the Pentax K1000 is also fully manual. I was surprised, however, at the number of shots that were sharply focused. The viewfinder is fairly clear and easy to see if the focus is on track or at least close to what you need. Note, though, that the viewfinder is rated to cover 92 percent of the image, so the edges of the final images won’t be quite exact on the view from the viewfinder, but close enough.

Winding the film is also a fully manual process, turning the lever at the top to advance to the next frame. If you forget this step, the shutter won’t release if you press it, alerting you to the fact that the camera hasn’t yet been advanced. This is great for beginners who may accidentally skip this step.

However, that does limit the possibility of creating double exposures. The K1000 doesn’t have a double exposure mode. You can try to trick the camera into exposing the same part of the film twice by pressing the rewind button as you advance the film lever, but this method can be prone to errors in getting the images to align perfectly.

Metering

I was incredibly happy to see the light meter at the side of the viewfinder move after putting a fresh battery in the K1000. As a fully manual camera, you can still shoot with the K1000 if the battery runs out, you’ll just need to use the Sunny 16 rule or an external light meter. But having the light meter built in was a big help.

I relied on the built-in light meter entirely during my time with the camera, and I didn’t find any of the resulting images to be terribly over or under-exposed.

Image Quality

A film SLR is really just a box that has all the tools for taking a picture — it doesn’t have much impact on the image quality itself. Instead, the image quality is going to come from the type of film simulation that you load and the lens that you twist onto the front.

Unlike a digital camera, the body of the K1000 itself doesn’t have much impact on the images at all. I did have an image that appeared to have a light leak on it and some dust specks from the old lens that I used. But, I feel that these are all things that just add to the character of using film in the first place.

The first thing that I think of when thinking of film is black and white with a bit of grain, so I tested the K1000 with the Illford 400 HP5 Plus 400, which also is a fairly affordable film type to try as well. I loved the grain and contrast from this emulsion. And, while I know haze is a lens effect and not the cameras, I also loved the bit of glow around the sun when I directed the camera towards the light. But, again, you can really customize the look that you want by experimenting with different film emulsions and lenses.

The only feature I really wish the K1000 offered for image quality is the ability to take a double exposure. There’s a workaround, and it’s a basic camera designed for beginners, but it did dash my hopes of experimenting with some double exposures a bit.

Who Should Buy the Pentax K1000?

The Pentax K1000 is a great camera for photographers who know their way around a digital camera but want to try a film SLR for the first time without a major investment. Photographers who don’t yet understand manual mode will be more comfortable with a film camera with more automatic settings. But, seasoned digital artists can ease into film with the K1000 with less trepidation. The model’s popularity means there are plenty of YouTube tutorials if you run into a snag, but short of learning how to load and wind the film, I found the K1000 a seamless transition.

A used model can often be found for under $200 on Amazon, or even less if you’re lucky enough to find one at a garage sale, thrift store, or Facebook Marketplace. That also makes the K1000 an excellent option for photographers wanting to learn film without a huge investment.

Avoid the K1000 if you’re itching to try double exposure or want more automated exposure and focusing options, however.