Has Pentax hit pause on film cameras? Designer of Pentax 17 retires, Ricoh takes stock of future analog projects

Lead designer of the Pentax 17, Takeo ‘TKO’ Suzuki, AKA @tkocamera, has announced his retirement on Instagram, the same day that Kosmo Foto reported that Pentax parent company, Ricoh Imaging, is "pausing" the Pentax Film Project. Kosmo published a statement from Ricoh, regarding the future of the company's voyage into modern film photography, which said: “we need time to gather feedback, meet with customers, and learn what they appreciated – or felt was missing – before making decisions on future film products.”

But the company has made it clear that it's not ruling out new film cameras. “So, while TKO played a significant role in the Pentax Film Project, his departure does not affect the possibility of future film models”, which is certainly promising news for analog fanatics.

As to why TKO decided to step down, it sounds like he’s simply due a well-deserved rest. He said: “I have been involved in the design and planning of many digital cameras, and especially in the past few years, in the world of analog cameras (...) so I would like to take a break for a while.” And with plans to travel, draw, and – obviously – take photos, he’s got plenty to look forward to.

The Pentax 17 was released in June of last year. It is the first and, to date, only camera to be released as part of the Pentax Film Project, which Ricoh launched in a bid to capitalize on the growing interest in film photography. It’s a half-frame 35mm film camera, meaning it captures two vertical images per cell of 35mm film.

This was obviously intended to boost the camera’s appeal for social media users and also helps to mitigate one of the biggest turnoffs of modern film photography – the expense – by essentially turning each roll into a two-for-one deal. Digital Camera World praised the Pentax 17’s stylish design, great image quality, and simple point-and-shoot nature.

I for one, sincerely hope the excellent Pentax 17 is the first of many film cameras from Pentax. And while it's a shame TKO won’t be at the helm, hopefully, he’ll be on a beach with his camera instead.

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