{"id":68003,"date":"2017-10-29T09:02:35","date_gmt":"2017-10-29T16:02:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=68003"},"modified":"2017-10-29T09:13:23","modified_gmt":"2017-10-29T16:13:23","slug":"review-of-the-pentax-645z-and-digital-medium-format-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2017\/10\/29\/review-of-the-pentax-645z-and-digital-medium-format-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"Review of the Pentax 645Z and Digital Medium Format Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Eric
Selfie in mirror with Pentax 645Z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I shot with the Pentax 645Z and Pentax 55mm f2.8 lens for a month, and here are my thoughts on digital medium format: yes, it is worth the hype.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

HAPTIC INDUSTRIES: Creative Tools to Empower You<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
Suede Brooks fashion shoot. Pentax 645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

First of all, whoever says that you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t tell a difference between digital medium format and other cameras is lying to you (or blind). I personally cannot tell a huge difference between crop sensor and full frame digital cameras, but for digital medium format \u00e2\u20ac\u201d it is a completely different beast.<\/p>\n

\"eric
Suede Brooks fashion shoot. Pentax 645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

First of all, when you shoot with a flash, the skin tones are phenomenal. It looks hyper-real, not in terms of the sharpness, but the softness and suppleness of the skin.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Downtown LA, 2016 #pentax645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also, I see an interesting three-dimensional (3D) effect with digital medium format which I cannot replicate with any other sensor. The people just seem to pop out of the frame, and it makes people look more real.<\/p>\n

\"street
ELEVATOR STREET PORTRAIT with Pentax 645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also, you see more detail. Like in this street portrait I shot of this woman, you can see all the text in the newspaper, you can see the detail in her jewelry, which makes the picture more interesting to look at:<\/p>\n

\"Street
Street portrait. Downtown LA, 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Massive optical viewfinder<\/h2>\n
\"Shirt
Shirt by window. Pentax 645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One thing I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t expect to enjoy so much\u00e2\u20ac\u201d the massive optical viewfinder.<\/p>\n

I have been shooting mostly with RICOH GR II<\/a> and the lcd screen, which I enjoy for street photography<\/a>. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think an optical viewfinder is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153better\u00e2\u20ac\u009d than an lcd screen \u00e2\u20ac\u201d just different.<\/p>\n

Shooting with an optical viewfinder that massive in the Pentax 645Z blew me away. The optical viewfinder is so massive, that it actually looks and feels like you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re looking at reality.<\/p>\n

For example, when I use a small DSLR, I hate how the optical viewfinder makes everything look smaller than it actually is. But with the massive optical viewfinder of the Pentax 645Z, everything looks \u00e2\u20ac\u0153as big as it really is in real life\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. That is why the Pentax 645Z is so big\u00e2\u20ac\u201d not for the sensor, but for the boxing or casing to hold the single mirror lens reflex (SLR) mechanism.<\/p>\n

\"Cindy
Cindy in Alexander\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s apartment. Pentax 645Z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now, the benefit of using a massive optical viewfinder: you get lost inside it. You get lost inside the photo shooting process. You get more \u00e2\u20ac\u0153in the zone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. Once you raise your viewfinder to your eye, the outside world goes quiet. No more distractions. Only you exist, and what you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re looking at through the viewfinder. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s as if reality slows down.<\/p>\n

\"Woman
Woman in airplane. Sunset over NYC. Pentax 645Z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Weight and size<\/h2>\n

\"Mad<\/p>\n

To be frank, I recommend most photographers NOT to shoot with such a big and heavy camera. Why? It is big and heavy, and will discourage you from carrying it around, and taking pictures. To be honest, most photographers I know already have an issue of not shooting enough. And the general maxim, which holds true is:<\/p>\n

\n The bigger, heavier, and bulkier your camera is \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the less often you will carry it with you, thus taking fewer pictures.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I think true happiness in photography is the joy of shooting new, and more exciting pictures. Anything that prevents you from shooting new pictures is bad. Therefore, if you have a problem carrying around a heavy and big camera, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t buy anything bigger than a RICOH GR II or small mirrorless camera. Or just use your phone.<\/p>\n

\"Red
Woman with red nails. Nyc, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But, because I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m a masochist and was curious about the experience of shooting digital medium format, I just carried it with me everyday, wherever I went. I generally clutched it under my left armpit, like holding a football (or a small child). This was much easier than holding it around my neck (I would get neck and shoulder pain). And much easier than holding it in my hands all day (which caused wrist pain).<\/p>\n

\"Family
Family in front of H&M. NYC, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Colors and textures<\/h2>\n

I shot the Pentax 645Z on small JPEG, with the color film simulation JPEG mode. Why? RAW files too big which means too much time to load on the computer, and slows me down. And I preferred the look of the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153out of camera\u00e2\u20ac\u009d JPEG images, compared to when I processed them in RAW.<\/p>\n

\"Cadillac
Cadillac logo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To start, the colors are truly phenomenal. I can honestly say, after seeing digital medium format colors and textures, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really personally see a reason for me to prefer color film \u00e2\u20ac\u201d if my desire is to get aesthetically pleasing colors (for myself).<\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve always been dissatisfied with the way color pictures rendered in digital. Color digital pictures, on crop sensor cameras I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve used, and full frame digital cameras I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve used\u00e2\u20ac\u201d never looked \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good enough\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to me. For me, digital medium format color looks \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good enough\u00e2\u20ac\u009d for myself\u00e2\u20ac\u201d even just the JPEG images.<\/p>\n

\"Pink
Pink texture in wall. NYC, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like to post process color pictures on the computer. To me, it is too much stress and time trying to make the colors look the way I want them to look. With these Pentax 645Z JPEG images, I was very happy with the way they looked… so no need for screwing with them in post processing.<\/p>\n

\"Blue
Blue and green urban landscape. Nyc, Pentax 645z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Therefore my picture-selection process was easy. I used the Pentax 645z LCD screen to review my images, I copied the pictures I liked from SD CARD 1 to SD CARD 2, then I stuck the SD card 2 to my iPad SD card reader to my iPad, then I imported the pictures to my iPad (using the default Apple \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Photos\u00e2\u20ac\u009d app). Then from the iPad, directly uploading to Dropbox, and the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153media library\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of this blog. If I wanted to adjust the exposure, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d use the default Apple photos app. I never needed to add contrast or saturation \u00e2\u20ac\u201dalready looked good. As a side note, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been experimenting with the new Lightroom CC app on iPad, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s pretty good \u00e2\u20ac\u201dwill review that in a future post.<\/p>\n

I am not one who likes sunset pictures, but damn\u00e2\u20ac\u201d look at this sunset picture I shot from my cousins apartment in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Straight out of camera JPEG picture. If this isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t good colors or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153image quality\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know what is:<\/p>\n

\"Sunset.
Sunset. Fort Lee, New Jersey 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Loudness, size, and stealthiness<\/h2>\n

Now, the funny thing \u00e2\u20ac\u201d a lot of people are afraid of shooting street photography with big and loud cameras. Personally, I had no issues. Why? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve discovered \u00e2\u20ac\u201d *&it really doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t matter what size camera you shoot with, it is all about your own courage and confidence.** I think by shooting street photography with the Pentax 645Z<\/a>, I was able to prove to myself, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I am a damn confident street photographer.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

\"Woman
Woman in New York Metro. NYC, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The camera is really loud. It goes CLACK CLACK! Whenever you shoot two pictures.<\/p>\n

The camera is also very big, and attracts attention. When you hold it, it does make you look \u00e2\u20ac\u0153very pro\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201d because nowadays, it is common to see small DSLRS on tourists. But the size of the Pentax 645Z attracts attention from EVERYONE \u00e2\u20ac\u201d including photographers (I had at least 3 photographers approach me asking if it were a medium format camera), and other people just staring at it like, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Damn, that is a HUGE camera\u00e2\u20ac\u009d).<\/p>\n

Anyways, you are not gonna be stealth with this camera. The sheer size attracts eyeballs.<\/p>\n

But in real life, I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have any issues making pictures. Nobody stopped me because my camera looked \u00e2\u20ac\u0153too professional\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. Also when shooting street photography, I had no issues of people yelling at me or whatever. Funny enough, I probably had fewer<\/em> upset people shooting with this camera\u00e2\u20ac\u201d to be precise, ZERO people got angry at me shooting street photos of them with the Pentax. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure whether it is because:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Because the camera is so big and professional looking, people leave me alone (because people respect professionals and leave them alone). Or,<\/li>\n
  2. The camera is so big and massive, it makes me look more like a random Asian tourist, therefore people leave me alone. Or,<\/li>\n
  3. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m just a more confident street photographer, and therefore people just leave me alone.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I did all my shooting with the Pentax 55mm f2.8, which is roughly a 35mm \u00e2\u20ac\u0153full frame equivalent\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. Which means, I got close to my subjects. These pictures were shot around .7-1 meters, or 1 arm length away:<\/p>\n

    \"NYC,<\/p>\n

    \"Suits.
    Suits. NYC, 2017. Pentax 645Z<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    \"Two<\/p>\n

    The secret to being stealth: when you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re shooting pictures, keep shooting. Each of these scenes and people (done candidly without permission), I shot 10-15 pictures of them. After shooting a picture, I kept the viewfinder up to my eye, and kept clicking. And then afterwards, I pretended like I was just shooting something behind<\/em> them.<\/p>\n

    \"Man<\/p>\n

    Dynamic range<\/h2>\n

    \"Ceiling<\/p>\n

    \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Dynamic range\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is the ability of the camera sensor to capture the gradient between the dark (shadows) of a scene to the bright (highlights) of a scene.<\/p>\n

    The benefit of a digital medium format sensor: more dynamic range.<\/p>\n

    For example, if you photograph a person, with the light behind<\/em> them\u00e2\u20ac\u201d can you see the light on their face? Or will their face be totally dark?<\/p>\n

    I think these two pictures show the power for digital medium format sensors to capture more dynamic range, in challenging lighting situations:<\/p>\n

    \"Street
    Street portrait. Woman with chain necklace. NYC, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \"Korean
    Korean War veteran. NYC, 2017<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Also, I like shooting digital medium format because it is more difficult to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153blow out\u00e2\u20ac\u009d the white highlights of a scene. I hate the look of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153blown highlights\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. With digital medium format, you can point your camera at very bright lights, and still capture the detail in the bright or white highlights:<\/p>\n

    \"Red<\/p>\n

    \"Lamp<\/p>\n

    \"Red<\/p>\n

    \"Red,<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"Eric<\/p>\n

    The benefit: I was able to shoot natural light pictures, where the light was a bit harsh… yet, I was still able to make pictures which looked aesthetically pleasing to me. It also meant that I was able to shoot pictures and not sorry about having to fix the pictures in post processing. Often with smaller sensors (APS-C and full-frame) requires me to always pull back the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153highlights\u00e2\u20ac\u009d slider to recover detail in the highlights. Not necessary for digital medium format, with then Pentax 645Z:<\/p>\n

    \"Cindy<\/p>\n

    \"Cindy<\/p>\n

    \"Blue<\/p>\n

    \"Blue<\/p>\n

    \"Cindy<\/p>\n

    \n

    \"Man<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"New<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"Cindy<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Conclusion: Is digital medium format worth it?<\/h2>\n

    I think digital medium format, and especially the Pentax 645Z is the best \u00e2\u20ac\u0153bang for the buck\u00e2\u20ac\u009d system out there.<\/p>\n

    I think Fujifilm is genius\u00e2\u20ac\u201d they bet on avoiding<\/em> the already-saturated full-frame market, by focusing on smaller sensor (APS-C, like Fujifilm X100-series<\/a> and XT-series<\/a>) and the digital medium format (their Fujifilm GFX<\/a>).<\/p>\n

    My idea of the future of photography: either buy a digital medium format camera<\/a>, or just use your phone<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    \"Cindy<\/p>\n

    Personally, I find the biggest benefit of digital medium format is having to spend less time post-processing your pictures, and more time and effort shooting pictures. I personally prefer the aesthetics of digital medium format color pictures over any other digital sensor. I also personally don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t see myself shooting that much more color film pictures, seeing how awesome digital medium format photography is.<\/p>\n

    \"ERICKIM
    ERICKIM x RICOH GR II x ERICKIMSTRAP<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    I still have found the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153holy grail\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of digital black and white photography in the RICOH GR II<\/a> and ERIC KIM MONOCHROME 1600 preset<\/a> (shooting in RAW). Also, in terms of a daily shooter, I prefer carrying around my RICOH GR II and ERIC KIM STRAP<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    I returned the Pentax 645Z after a month with it, and I really enjoyed the camera, experience, and learning more about digital medium format. I plan on doing more testing and experimentation with digital medium format photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201d I see a lot of exciting new futures with it. The new Fujifilm GFX series<\/a> is exciting, as well as the new compact Hasselblad digital medium format X-D series.<\/p>\n

    \"Poetry,<\/p>\n

    The price for digital medium format is still quite high and out of reach for most folks. The best value digital medium format body is the older Pentax 645D system, which is quite affordable compared to other new digital medium format bodies. But as time goes on, digital medium format will keep getting cheaper and cheaper, and be more accessible \u00e2\u20ac\u201d just like the prices of digital slr cameras keep going down, and the price of full frame digital cameras have gone down.<\/p>\n

    Is digital medium format right for you?<\/h2>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    But to be very clear, several things to note about digital medium format photography:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Megapixels are overrated:<\/strong> The average photographer will NOT need that many megapixels. Personally, I prefer having smaller image sizes and files. Less stress of backing up, and uploading pictures. And unfortunately, internet speeds haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t grown as exponentially fast as file sizes in digital technology. More megapixels, more problems<\/a>.<\/li>\n
    2. Digital medium format won’t \u00e2\u20ac\u0153inspire\u00e2\u20ac\u009d you to make new pictures.<\/strong> Buying a new digital camera \u00e2\u20ac\u201d or whatever camera or system, or format, won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t inspire you to make new pictures, or be more \u00e2\u20ac\u0153creative\u00e2\u20ac\u009d as a photographer. It will certainly change how your pictures look and perhaps your aesthetic pleasure from looking at your own pictures.<\/li>\n
    3. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on a budget, always better to invest your money in experiences, travel<\/a>, workshops<\/a>, books<\/a>, education, learning, seminars, and anything that will motivate you to make new pictures.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Remember, the point of life isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t to be a good photographer. The point of photography is for you to life a better life.<\/p>\n

      BE CREATIVE EVERY DAY,
      \nERIC<\/p>\n

      HAPTIC INDUSTRIES: Creative Tools to Empower You<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n

      Digital Medium Format Photography<\/a><\/h1>\n
      \"ERIC
      ERIC KIM x FUJIFILM GFX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n