hesh1950 Loc: P.A.

You may want to check out
https://www.pentaxforums.com/

Mitzis

I have the Pentax K10 and the K3 and a number of film era K mont lens which work fine. Only twice did I have issues with any of the old lenses. Those two, though K-mount, were for other cameras (possibly old film Vivitars) and had pins that were not designed to retract. the others work well, though almost always as manual lines including focusing. I now Google a len's compatibility before I use it the first time.

Big advantage of the Pentax DSLR system is that the image stabilization is built into the camera body, so still is available for these old lenses. The old lenses often have higher quality glass than I might expect. I love my Pentax cameras, especially considering how much they gave me on my limited budget.

Alex A

The Pentax brand lenses of old were very high quality.

If you get a long lens with image stabilisation built into it, don't forget to disable the camera image stabilisation, or they will fight against each other.

James Slick Loc: Pittsburgh,PA

solomonv

You can still find 35mm film, just not in retail brick & mortar stores. That being said - why?

I started out with a Pentax K1000 35mm back in the late 1980's and when I moved to digital I stayed with Pentax because the lenses were compatible - they are all K-mount. Yea for standardization!!
Just recently, I debated and debated about moving to Nikon (I had decided on the D3300) but in the end I stayed with Pentax, bought the K70, and I'm very happy with it. It's probably just personal preference but I find the Pentax menu system much more intuitive and Nikon although admittedly, it's probably just because that's what I'm most familiar with.

In my book, the only advantage in moving to either Nikon or Canon is the availability of lenses - both Nikon and Canon have a much larger variety. BUT, that opinion is also based on how I use my camera.

Kingman

Like you I have a fairly full library of Pentax Takumar and SMC, SMCT lenses from the Pentax ME days and earlier. While I admit, I still have the older film cameras, I now use the Pentax DSLR's with my older legacy Pentax/Takumar lenses. Most are very good at what they were intended to do. Some older lenses are not as useful especially if you get hooked on some of the newer DFA Auto focus lenses. I find I was accumulating many of the older lenses for bargain prices on eBay, but soon concentrated on the fine older examples of the FA 85mm/1.4, or the FA 20mm/2.8. I currently have a K20D (recently retired), K3 and recently added the Full Frame K1 (I love it) with a couple of DFA 24-70/2.8 and DFA 70-200/2.8 zooms. You will get spoiled with the new autofocus capabilities of the new DSLR bodies. Depending on your shooting needs, getting the still current, but dated Pentax FA31mm/1.8, FA 43mm/1.9, and the FA77mm/1.8 primes will give you excellent performance in a lightweight rig. Note that the newer DFA zoom lenses are a bit hefty pieces of glass. If budget is an issue, perhaps starting with the latest K3 body would get your feet wet or even rent a Pentax K3 or K1 DSLR from LensRental to test the Pentax DSLR waters with your library of legacy lenses. In the end, yes some of my older Pentax Takumar lenses are fond paperweights and will probably sell off on eBay. Best of luck. I did almost give up on Pentax until they came out with the K1. For now I am very satisfied with Pentax in their rich feature oriented bodies and all weather sealing at economical pricing. All cameras have limitations and does Pentax have the all the latest and greatest compared to Canon, Nikon or Sony? No, but it is a bargain and you have potentially an inventory of library of lenses that demonstrates why the faithful followers that Pentax have enjoyed for years!

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

The only lenses which give problems on Pentax were made by Ricoh(*), which added a pin that will get stuck in the very spot where Pentax later added the drive connection for an in-body-AF-motor.

(*) ironic since Ricoh now owns Pentax

James Slick Loc: Pittsburgh,PA

I know, Right, Lol!👍

Dond

You can use Pentax lenses, both screw and K mount, on current Canon DSLR cameras with adapters that are available. They will only work in the manual mode (both for focus and exposure), which makes them inconvenient to use and hard to focus because the digital cameras don't have focusing aids like pentaprisms. Depending upon the Canon camera that you use, there may be an interference between the camera's mirror and the linkage that's on the lens that stops down the lens. I had that problem with my Canon 6D (full frame) but not my T2i (cropped sensor). I modified my Pentax fisheye lens to work with my 6D (cut the linkage off) and successfully used it for several years, but I had difficulties focusing it.

royden Loc: Decatur, GA

hesh, you beat be to it. There is a wealth of info there. Your ME is a semi auto and your lens are probably the A series. One of my best lens is a A50/1.7. The A lens communicate with modern DSLRs but you have to manually focus. Pentax..best bang for the buck.

Alex A

the K1 spec is brilliant.

cuckoobob

I used to shoot with three Pentax K1000, and have a few lenses. Since the K1000 is an entry-level camera, when I decided to get into digital photoraphy, I found on Ebay, I got a good buy on a slightly-used K10D, which is the digital entry-level. Most Pentax cameras will fit the same lenses, so my 200 and 500 mm lenses fit. Of course, the auto-focus doesn't work on the old lenses, but manual works just fine.

Reinaldokool Loc: San Rafael, CA

While it is still possible to shoot film, there are many good reasons to make the jump. Do check out the Pentax forums for compatibility questions. The thing that finally made me jump was a technical article on the negative effects of film manufacture and processing. I shudder to remember the poisons I put out in processing film. It was not the only reason, but it was an important reason.

GeneB Loc: Chattanooga Tennessee

These lenses you describe do work with my Pentax DSLR. The bayonet or K lenses as they were once called work great.

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

film is as easy to get as ever, just order any you like online (its just a click away)!