Pentax MZ-60 Date

I've taken some awesome photos with my Pentax MZ-60 Date camera, but I don't know whats going on with my camera. I had a whole film come out in an orange colour and fuzzy, all of it! It's happened again in the occasional pic, since then too. Also when taking a pic, it blinks slowly. I have taken it in to the camera shop and asked them about it but the girls knew nothing. Ummm....rewinding of film has become louder. Seriously I haven't used this camera much, it's basically brand new. I don't want to sell it, it's my first SLR Pro Camera, so I'm just going to work out how to use it professionally and buy some attachments at eBay. Woohoo!

It's just a material thing though you know, as long as it takes pics you want to last the benefit! Unlike the digital cameras, you can transfer straight to the computer and never bother to print them out, plus with those digital cameras, unless you have an expensive camera, expect your photos to be fuzzy.

The Pentax MZ-60 Date 35mm SLR camera is reasonably priced, but it can be a bit too clever for its own good! It has 9 exposure modes, coupled with a controllable built in flash with red eye reduction. When used with a fully dedicated flash unit it will control all aspects of the flash settings. These functions are all fine until you want to get creative! It will let you take full control, but using it in manual or aperture priority mode can be a bit of a long winded affair. The auto focus is fine in most situations where there is good light, however, it completely loses the plot in low light or very high contrast situations. It also has to be said that its auto focus is slow, so it's not the best camera if you intend to take fast action shots. In its favour it does have an easy to use auto exposure lock button, and an easily reachable manual focus button.

Overall, this camera won't change the world, become a classic or last a lifetime, but it will give high quality photographs and provide a sound basis or back up to an SLR system. It is ideal for those who occasionally want to do an arty type shot, but most of the time just want a reliable camera to record their holidays, family, or days out with.

The Pentax MZ-60 was my first SLR kit, which came with a 35-80mm f4/5.6 FA lens. I have been using it for two years, but have recently relegated it to back-up camera.

The camera is quite good value for money and an ideal starter SLR, with plenty of features. It has nine modes, including automatic, as well as aperture mode (Av), shutter-mode (TV) and metered manual mode (M) for the enthusiasts. Exposure ranges from 1/2000 second to 30 seconds, although in bulb-mode the exposure can be set for up to 32 minutes.

On the down side, the buttons are often small and fiddly and the overall feel is cheap and plasticky. However, I can testify that it is more than capable of surviving the usual wear and tear. I dropped my camera from a height of 2 meters and it survived with only superficial damage to the lense's outer casing. The camera relies heavily on the LCD display for displaying information, which some might find awkward. The major gripe I have about this camera is the AV button next to the lens, which has to be depressed while rotating the dial in order to adjust the aperture in metered manual mode. The camera also feels heavy with a telephoto lens.

Picture wise, I have tried this with black-and-white, slide and regular film, and does take quite good pictures, though not as good as my Nikon F-80. All in all, this is quite a good starter camera for the money, and easy to use However, I would caution against buying this camera if you are planning to upgrade, as you may decide to plump for a different manufacturer.