Pentax ME Super 35mm SLR Camera Package

Product Information

Definitely a product from the 80s, with an interesting mix of electronic and mechanical components. It is fun to use within its limits. This camera is very compact, but the two-piece plastic grip makes it easy to hold. Feels solid and nice to use, and for the most part it gets out of your way. Not like a work of art, just functional but well built. The bottom of the Pentax Super Program is equipped to accept a power winder, which enables the camera to shoot at a whopping 3.5 FPS. there’s also a button to release the film for rewinding, a standard tripod mount, and the cover for two A76 (or similar) batteries. I shot my test roll while we were all hunkered down at home thanks to COVID-19. Knowing I’d want to shoot some things indoors handheld, I loaded speedy Kodak T-Max 400 into the ME Super. I developed it in Rodinal 1+50. This is a mug our son often uses for his tea. This first image is a general landscape scene, probably around F/8-11. The golden Bougainvillea was shot at close focus, F/2.8. The forest tree scene probably at F/8-11, I turned it on the side to make the slide show work better. Another general landscape scene around F/8-11. A flare control shot here, originally taken vertically. The last picture I’m testing distortion; I see a very flat signature, almost nothing.

Jacob and I went walking down the beach. I was looking for the elusive sand dollar, he was playing with his new camera. PEI the ME is a great camera! i learned photography on it, and for that i’m actually thankful it has ‘only’ aparture priority mode, as this tought me to care about aparture. to this day, even on current digital cameras i never let the camera choose the aparture – control over depth of field, sharpness, form of bokeh balls i would never leave to chance. Finally, I stopped each lens all the way down to f/5.6, letting the camera decide on the shutter speed, before swapping out lenses. This resulted in a varying number of shots with each lens: Three shots with the 40/2.8, five shots with the 50/1.4 and four shots with everything else. I reach for my Pentax ME all the time because it’s small (for a 35mm SLR), light, and easy to use. It is an aperture-priority camera, meaning that after you set the aperture, the camera reads the light and sets the shutter speed. I recommend the ME because they are inexpensive and fun to use. If you want that but you simply must have full control over exposure, then the 1979-84 Pentax ME Super is for you.For a trip I would bring the MX (fully mechanical joy to use) and the ME along with me. Together with some fixed lenses. The Pentax ME Super uses the K mount, which offers a wealth of quality lenses to choose from (Image credit: Gareth Bevan) Pentax ME Super Features

But, as well as working like this, the aperture priority mode still works when using older M42 screw mount lenses with an adapter or lenses like the Meyer 100mm Trioplan and Lydith I have recently been playing with. Unfortunately, only manual stop down or lenses with a manual stop down switch can be used, and they can only be used in manual stop down mode. In simple terms, with a manually stopping down lens attached, when you adjust the aperture and the view through the finder gets darker, the meter in the camera responds accordingly and therefore the camera will automatically shoot at an appropriate shutter speed. The Missing Piece of the Puzzle

Pentax ME Super – Final Thoughts

If you’re looking to buy some film but you’re not sure what to get or where from, then this link will solve all of your problems! How To Use The Pentax ME Super? Mine was my Christmas present in 1982, replacing my Zenit EM. It came with an excellent SMC 50mm f1.7 lens and a free book!

At its intended purpose, the ME is pretty fabulous. It’s one of those rare values in the world of vintage cameras that offers a near perfect balance of assets; excellent form factor, robust construction, technical prowess, and low cost. There are similar cameras in its category that may be just as good (Nikon’s EM springs to mind), but no camera in its segment is decidedly superior to the ME.

Notes and Features

As most of my lenses are K Series I mostly use the aperture priority and manual modes. The Program mode leans towards DOF, so the shutter speed selected is usually around 1/60. If you want faster shutter speeds then use shutter priority or manual modes. A good deal of these top performers were released with the Vivitar brand name. Any zoom featuring the Vivitar Series 1 branding on it is going to have the best optics you can expect to see from an older zoom lens.