Going to back to DSLR
No, I'm not pivoting back to DSLR. At least not professionally. The benefits of modern mirrorless digital cameras are just too great. The ability to shoot any vintage lens system is too important to me. I can adapt my Leica M and R, Pentax K, Nikon F, and even M42 lenses with my mirrorless cameras. But while there are myriad benefits to shooting mirrorless professionally, there's something that is missing for my personal shooting.
When I shoot for myself its usually on film. There is something about an analog camera that just clicks with me. Be it a rangefinder or an SLR, I love the experience of being so connected with the artistic tool. So when I started thinking that it was time I got a digital camera for fun, I was between getting a digital rangefinder and a digital SLR.
Initially I was thinking of getting a Leica M8 or Epson RD-1. If I had to pick one focusing system, it would be rangefinder. But the prices were out of hand for such old cameras, especially considering that I likely wouldn't be shooting them nearly as often as the analog counterpart. So, that left me with DSLR options. And when it comes to SLR cameras and lenses, I have a clear preference: Pentax!
I already have a great collection of Pentax lenses and decided on the K-3. I picked one up for cheap (relative, of course), direct from Japan, and was able to start shooting right away.
My favorite Pentax lens is the FA 43mm f/1.9 Limited. This is equal parts its Sonnar design and rendering, and its focal length. With the K-3's crop sensor, however, the FA 31mm f/1.8 Limited's roughly 45mm angle of view has become my go-to lens.
Optical Viewfinder
This optical viewfinder is, without question, what brings me back to the K-3. For the last month, over and over I reached for the K-3 when I was just heading out of the house. When I was shooting professionally I was still using the same set up, but for those days when we were running out for a bite to eat, or taking a leisurely walk? Yeah, it was always the K-3. In fact, I added a new Leica M lens to my collection recently, a lovely Elmarit-M 90mm f/2.8. But I haven't used it much simply because I've been shooting on the K-3.
There is something "right" about looking through an optical viewfinder. A photographer may have a preference between rangefinders and SLRs, but just about every photographer I know prefers looking through a real optical viewfinder.
My Leica SL has an amazingly bright electronic viewfinder. The ability to punch in x10 and nail focus precisely is critical for me on professional work, and that cannot be overstated. But when I'm just shooting around and having fun? I'd rather not be looking into another screen. Between phone calls, text messages, emails, social media, advertising, culling, and editing, everything I do is on a screen. So if I can disconnect from the screen for even a little while, I'll take it.
It also feels more real to me. Especially since so much of my photography is linked to the emotional response and relationships that are built with the moment, not having a digital screen impede the process is great.
The day I got the K-3, I mounted the 31mm Limited and we hit the pool. The thing is so rugged and robust that I felt like even if I dropped it into the water it would survive. No, the 31mm is not a weather-proof lens - I should pick up at least one weather proof lens for occasions as such is needed - but the point remains. I enjoyed the ability to look into a real viewfinder and make some photos of my family. I never worried about the camera. Not quite as rugged as my current favorite adventure camera, the Nikon Nikonos IV (which I wrote about here), but the K-3 can definitely take a beating. Wes and Link have enjoyed making photographs of their own even! Not sure I'd feel comfortable with Wes handling my Leica SL.
Mirror Madness
The viewfinder is an important aspect of why I've enjoyed going back to a DSLR. But the mirror is a big part of it too.
On a mirrorless camera, all information is communicated digitally. Many of the most current offerings from the biggest camera makers don't even offer mechanical shutters. Granted, the professional cameras from the likes of Nikon, Canon, Sony, etc. all offer mechanical shutters. But my point is that many of the cameras we can find today communicate nothing to us in a real, physical way.
The mirror on a DSLR, and the K-3 specifically, helps the analog process along. The mirror physically sends the scene up into the pentaprism, which in turn sends that scene through the viewfinder. Additionally, the satisfying slap of the mirror feels quite lovely. Maybe its all the SLR shooting I did when I was younger, the DSLR shooting I did in my twenties, and then, once again, SLR shooting I do currently as a film forward photographer.
Being able to feel affirmatively that the I have made an exposure is quite nice. And as this is a camera that I'm using for my own enjoyment, that's a huge plus. It also slaps with a depth that is reminiscent of the my favorite film SLR, the Pentax MX. In many ways, with its size, ergonomics, and analog feel, this K-3 is very much my digital analog for the MX.
While the mirror contributes in a big way, it isn't everything in this. It really boils down to the feel. I could see myself shooting the K-3 side-by-side with the MX and enjoying film and digital photography in tandem. Last July, I spent a week in the mountains of the Dominican Republic documenting a humanitarian aid mission. I took the MX with me because of how rugged and tank like its build quality is. I would have no hesitation in taking the K-3 with me should I find myself on a similar assignment.
Professional Feel and More
I got the K-3 as a fun to use camera for personal photos. There's no mistake about that. But, here's the thing: it's a professional quality camera. This is as well built as my Leica cameras. And I've had no qualms with using it professionally either. This happened by accident as one of my associates found himself without a camera on the day of an event. I gave him my K-3 and told him to do his best. And wouldn't you know it, but he made some beautiful photos that night.
About a week later, I found myself doing a maternity shoot for a woman who had been a film photography student in college. Her mother had given her a Pentax SLR for that class and so she was really tied to that analog feel. So I packed two cameras, my Pentax MX with 43mm and K-3 with 31mm.
While my bias sees me preferring the MX shots made with Kodak Tri-X (greatest of all time), the K-3 shots are not only beautiful, they are nearly indistinguishable from the Tri-X shots. After editing this set of photos, I have since started packing the K-3 in my camera bag every time I leave for a shoot. While its purpose in the bag is to be a reliable backup in an unforeseeable situation, I could see myself using a Pentax K-3 kit on a wedding day.
Final Focus
If it hasn't been made clear, I love this camera. I love the way I can use my vintage Pentax lenses with it. I love the image quality I get from it. I love how fun it is. I love how bad ass it is.
It has made me WANT to go back to a digital camera. That's no small feat as I tend to live in the film world in my personal life.
I have taken it with me every day for every occasion since it arrived. It's small enough to take with me anywhere, so it comes with me everywhere. It's a simple principal. It's big part of why I bonded so much with my Leica M3 and Pentax MX. They are compact and light and capable of coming with me in any situation.
That it also manages to make amazing photos? Well, that's a plus.
It has both sated my desire for a digital camera with an optical viewfinder, and whetted my appetite for a Leica M8. If I can enjoy digital this much with a DSLR, would a digital rangefinder not give me that experience I love so much about my M3 in a digital package?
I don't know. And it's still a lot of money to spend on a camera I may not use very much.
Right now, I'm using the K-3 a ton. I don't want to stop using it. And as wedding season cranks up, I may find that I leave my Leicas in my bag and pull this K-3 out to get the job done.
All images © 2020-2025 David Ulloa Studio. All rights reserved.
