The SLR that Outsold Canon & Nikon COMBINED 

In the late 1960's two of my mates ( brothers ) earned very healthy incomes as 'glamour' photographers shooting photo sets for soft-porn men's magazines. Their cameras of choice were Pentax Spotmatics. Between the two of them they had five or six bodies and a whole collection of 55, 85, and 105mm Takumar lenses. It was on their recommendation I bought my first Spotmatic, a decision I never regretted.

I have a Pentax Spotmatic SPII, and after having it overhauled & lubed, it performs very well. In the post WWII Era, the company went in a different direction than Nikon or Canon, which first made imitation Leica rangefinders. Sense Pentax always desired a reflex design and by 1964, the Spotmatic was introduced. Timed well with the 1964 Tokyo Olympic games, visitors got the experience w the Spotmatic and film kiosks in the Olympic Village made it so convenient. Spotmatic is a true classic. Bravo. 😊

Thanks man - I find these „legendary camera / lens“ videos really great

Excellent show, a pleasure to watch. Gorgeous music, deep and clear voice, a beautifull Spotmatic example, and everything to know about this very important camera. I have several old slr, Nikon, Canon, Leica and, the Spotmatic (mine is the II) is always a pleasure to shoot with, giving excellent results in all 36 exposures.

A great homage to the Spotmatic. I took my first picture with one around 1967, it belonged to my Father, a forensic photographer. I still have it and use it, with an adaptor to take a modern battery. I think it just looks right. I have had to replace the light seals and mirror buffer, but apart from that it just keeps going.

I've recently fallen in love with the Pentax MX.

An enjoyable presentation, thanks! A Spotmatic F was my first SLR and I wish I still owned it. The Pentax M42 lenses are absolute gems.They still offer image quality with fabulous character which I love (also used on my Fujifilm digital bodies).

Got mine in and loaded it with TRI-X 400 film. Waiting for a battery and the ring adapter for it. Shooting sunny 16 until then. But wow this is a gorgeous little camera. Lighter and better looking design wise than my Nikon F2 and F3hp.

Thousands of us talk about them. 😀 They are extremely popular and very collectable. As you say the one you have there is a second version SP Model 23102. The first batch only produced for 1 year was Model 231 and had 4 differences, a taller cover on the frame counter, a screw holding cover was on the side not the top, the stop down lever was very slim . I am lucky and have one of these rare first edition Spotmatics in full working order in my collection.👍

I just ordered a Spotmatic SP. in EX condition from KEH for $100. I don’t know the model differences. But I already have the 55mm. 1.8 lens. And I think I might want to buy the 24mm Pentax lens. My camera will arrive this next week. And I am excited to shoot with it.

My 2nd camera was the Spotmatic II. I don't think I ever saw the Topcon camera other than in camera magazines. I had my Pentax from 1971-1999. The only thing that broke was the plastic meter switch.

My first SLR camera was in the 1970’s and it was a Pentax Spotmatic. It was a beautiful looking camera and 50 mm lens. It was not quite as sturdy as my later Nikon F3-HP. But both cameras take great pictures. RS. Canada

The Spotmatic was, for its time, really compact. It's not Olympus OM-1 small, but the Minolta SRTs, Nikkormats, and various Canon SLR bodies were bricks compared to it. I suspect that played a big role in its success. You could put the kit 55mm f/1.8 on it, and you had something that was not much bigger or heavier or harder to use than the fixed lens rangefinders that were all the rage in the 60's.

Went to the original Woodstock 1969 site and went to the museum they had. They happen to had multiple different props and items from the original festival including this exact model of Pentax

I collect film cameras, including leicas and I have two Nikon F types too. The two Pentax Spotmatics I have are the Spotmatic, which was a used acquisition some time back plus a black bodied SP II which I bought brand new in the early seventies. They are beautiful to look at beautiful to use, everything falls to hand so easily and have that undefinable feel of quality. the Takumar lenses are a joy to use with focus mechanisms that are a smooth as a hot knife through butter.

I had many Pentax cameras. They are really beautiful compared to other classic cameras. But Pentax broke easily so I switched to Nikon F3 HP which never seems to break Wonderful video and thank you. RS. Canada

Really nice camera, great feel to holding it! I hate using the metering switch. I know, it was designed a long time ago and it was revolutionary for a long time but owning newer old school analog cameras I forget to switch the meter off very often!

As an owner of one of the first generation of this camera, I can tell you that another difference is that unlike the orange colour paint used for the shutter speed dial, the original colour was green.

I love your choice of music. not that lofi bullshit that all the other channels use.

The vintage camera collecting bug bit me a while back, and I now have an extensive collection of mechanical SLRs. Of them all, the Spotmatic is probably my second favourite "user" camera, with the budget SP500 being my favourite. They just feel so right in the hands, being an optimal size with nothing to get in the way. The controls are light and precise. In particular, the shutter speed dial can easily be turned with a single finger. No point in having lots of fancy features if you hate holding it.

Enjoyable story of a great camera. I have a couple of the later version ES II models. Stunning and all these cameras have the fun of using the Takumar lenses.

Got my first Spotmatic in 1967, and a second, black body one, in 1975. Beautifully made, easy to use, great lenses. Only downside was M42 screw mount made changing lenses slow.

Lovely review! 🤩 I allways remove any accessory shoes from any camera if it is possible because they make beautiful cameras ugly. I store them with my flash units, so I’ll find them if I need them. Keep it up! 😊👍🏻

Really cool video. Love Spotmatics (almost as much as the K1000 😅). Really mint condition SP you have.

Bought mine in 1975. Took thousands of pictures with it. Repaired shutter after many years and use it today. Prefer it to my digital cameras because of the heft and feel. So solid. Looks like I just took it out of the box. People still comment on it.

My first SLR was a Mamiya/Sekor 500 that I got in about 1970. It's somewhat similar to the spotmatic in many respects and it's equipped with a 5 degree spot meter. Unfortunately the camera isn't functional right now so I need to find a good repairman......soon.

This was my first SLR film camera(SP2). I started my wedding photography career in 1975 with this camera. Thanks for your post. Geoff

I loved my Asahi Pentax Spotmatic. It was my first ever SLR camera, and I had a collection of nearly a dozen lenses. The camera and lenses never disappointed me, but I was always aware of how inappropriate the name was. It had no spot meter, and there was absolutely nothing automatic about the camera!

I imported the black model from japan and it is my everyday shooter, I love that camera

Great review of a camera I recently just purchased! Outside of the spotmatic, I have my eyes on the Nikon fm2n next.

My older sister had the Honeywell pentax spotmatic 101, that thing lasted through many hiking and backpacking trips and went through many rolls of color slide film. I wanted that camera when she was working at a big camera chain, but she sold it, and she doesn't even know why! I had my eye on the K1000 after, but eventually drifted away from my interest in photography and more into other things. I see them at thrift stores or antique shop booths once in a great while, and maybe when i see another I'll grab it if the price is right.

Why are there no videos on the asahi Pentax SP500. Have one in mint condition but would like more info on it pls x

Fantastic camera. All of the liabilities and missing functionalities were later on eliminated by the Pentax KX, in my view one of the best mechanical SLR 35mm cameras.

amazing video and info, thanks a lot. what battery you personally suggest?

I love your channel’s name!

Do you have recommendations for alternative batteries?

Those Takumar lenses used Thorium in the coating too. Feeling radioactive?

I have the Honeywell branded version, which you didn’t mention in your video. Do you have any stats on how many and the serial number range/dates? I’d like to know when mine was made. No SP marking on mine. Thanks! Informative video!👍🏻

Is this any different from Spotmatic F?

Why did you put sound on video of someone tuning up a trumpet ?

Although having been stucking on Nikon since 1971, I love the Asahi Pentax Spotmatic. It was a very social camera because of the M42 screw thread, which also made it possible to attach very inexpensive lenses - best suited for beginners who switched to Pentax and first of all wanted to try out a certain range of lenses from wide angle to telephoto. And in 2023, my very early dream of the Spotmatic finally came true: 80 euros for a 'black beauty' incl. SMC-Takumar 1.4/50;-)) @philosimot