The eagerly awaited Pentax full frame camera is now officially scheduled for release early in 2016. The Pentax brand of cameras are truly flourishing under the stewardship of Ricoh Imaging, with the brand new Pentax K-3II DSLR turning heads at the APS-C level, and the medium format 645Z an absolute winner, receiving nothing but outstanding reviews. I would expect the upcoming full frame model to be in the same league, and wait with baited breath for some official specs on what the camera will offer.

This teaser image appears on the new pentax full frame dedicated site. Interestingly, the new site makes use of the “pentax.com” domain, which was used prior to the Ricoh takeover recently.

Pentax Full Frame – New Lenses

The full frame was first announced in February 2015 at the CP+ electronics show in Yokohama, Japan. No detailed information accompanied the announcement and to this day the specs, and even the name of the camera, remain the subject of pure speculation. What we do know is that 3 substantial new lenses have been announced, one of which – the Pentax HD D FA 150-450mm f4.5-5.6 is now available. A 70-200mm f2.8 is due for release in the months ahead, and a 24-70mm f2.8 was announced only a couple of days ago and will be available in October.

Pentax Full Frame – The Wish List

Speculation abounds, and who am I to not join in the fun 🙂

* 42 MP? Sony have supplied Pentax sensors in the past, and given that the original late 2015 release has been delayed until early 2016, perhaps this brand new sensor will feature?

* Pixel shift resolution. The FF was announced in Feb 2015. Shortly after, and rather suddenly, an upgrade to the popular K3 model was released. This new model, the K3II, incorporated for the first time in the Pentax family of cameras, a pixel-shift “super resolution” feature. For more info on pixel shift resolution visit this site.

* In built GPS and Astro Tracing. Again, this appeared on the K3ii and for me it would be a massive plus if it were included on the new full frame model too.

* In built wi-fi – without the need for a flucard, and a swivel screen could make an appearance too.

* The usual top quality features which have made the APS-C range of cameras so attractive thus far are of course a given 🙂

All in all it is an exciting time to be in the Pentax camp, and 2016 promises to be a big year for the little guys on the block. All announcements will no doubt be made on the brand new full frame website at pentax.com.

Another teaser image from the pentax.com full frame site