Monochrome

    I rarely talk about new cameras, I leave that up to the gear heads. I use a camera until it breaks or no longer serves a purpose and for the last 5 years I've been using a Fuji for 75% of my photography and a 22 year old Canon point and shoot for the other 25%. But every once in a while a camera manufacture releases something that really interests me and the last time that happened was almost 12 years ago when Leica introduced the Leica Monochrom camera ( there's no "e" in their Monochrom). 

  As a mostly black and white photographer I the idea of a monochrome camera quickly grabbed my attention. Back then I guess I was still someone in the world of photography because Leica quickly shipped me the camera and a lens to use for a few months. I freaking loved using that camera and I hated to give it back but the cost with lens was around $11,000 and I wasn't comfortable carrying it around in the rain or at night down alleys. I never stopped thinking about that camera and not having to edit a color photo into black and white which is something that still irks me today. 

   The latest edition of the Leica Monochrom was released a few weeks ago and besides it's very high megapixel count the camera body alone costs $9000. Add a lens, a couple spare batteries, sd cards, and filters for the front and the price easily reaches $13,000 ! A few years ago Leica did release a more 'affordable" fixed lens monochrom camera called the "Q" but is $6200 really affordable for a camera where you can't change the lens.

   Well last week another camera manufacture that was considered circling the drain release their own monochrome camera of the low price of $2200 ! You can easily add a lens, batteries, etc and still keep the overall price below $3000. The Pentax Monochrome has a respectable 26 megapixels which is more than you need for a monochrome only camera and the smaller than full frame sensor also keeps the price down. Pentax decided to use the same DSLR body that they have been using for a while which is a much more versatile camera body than the Leica which is more for street and some documentary photography. With the Pentax you can attach any lens from a tiny pancake lens to a huge zoom lens without issue. The pre-sales of this camera have been huge to the point it keeps selling out before even reaching the stores. Sadly I'm sure many of these sales are from gear heads who will end up selling the camera after couple months and profiteers who will list them on Ebay for double or triple the price.