Film Photography Lust: Pentax 17

Every once in a while, a camera comes along that reminds me why film photography continues to attract new photographers while keeping longtime shooters interested. The Pentax 17 is one of those cameras.

A friend recently loaned me a Pentax 17, and after putting a couple of rolls through it, I came away with a generally positive impression.

First Impressions

The first thing I noticed was just how enjoyable the camera is to carry. It’s remarkably lightweight and compact enough to slip into a pocket, purse, or backpack. That helps it compete with the cellphone, which has the obvious advantage of almost always being with you.

The Pentax 17 is also extremely quiet. Its shutter produces a soft, unobtrusive sound that makes the camera comfortable to use in museums, restaurants, for street photography, or anywhere else you don’t want to call attention to yourself. The camera even includes a dedicated food-photography zone setting, reflecting the way many people now photograph and share their daily experiences.

The camera has a fixed 25mm f/3.5 lens, which gives a field of view roughly comparable to a 37mm lens on full-frame 35mm. That is consistent with many compact point-and-shoot film cameras I’ve used. Modern lens design has obvious advantages, and the Pentax produced negatives with good sharpness and pleasing contrast.

It’s a simple detail, but I liked the film reminder holder on the back. I also appreciated the ISO range of 50 to 3200, which covers nearly all commonly available films. The dial has marked settings for ISO 50, 100, 200, 800, and 3200, along with intermediate settings for 125, 160, 400, and 1600. The ISO dial also has a locking mechanism, which is a thoughtful feature.

I was surprised by how much I liked the zone-focusing system compared with manual focus or autofocus. During my test, I used the mountain setting most often. I missed focus on only one or two images, and those were the result of my own errors rather than the camera.

Kodak Aerocolor 100

A Familiar Experience with a Modern Twist

Although the Pentax 17 is a new camera, it doesn’t try to imitate a modern digital camera. Instead, it embraces the slower, more deliberate pace that many of us enjoy about film photography.

If you’ve used classic half-frame cameras such as the Olympus PEN series or Canon Demi models, much of the shooting experience will feel familiar. At the same time, the Pentax benefits from modern manufacturing, a dependable exposure system, and a newly designed lens.

For photographers discovering half-frame for the first time, the format offers several advantages. First, it effectively doubles the number of exposures on a roll of film, reducing the cost per image for both film and processing.

Second, the default half-frame image is vertical, which feels familiar to anyone accustomed to viewing photographs on a phone or social media. Turn the camera vertically, however, and it produces a horizontal composition closer to the traditional 35mm format.

What I Didn’t Like

My initial impression also identified several features that I think could be improved.

The first issue is the maximum shutter speed of only 1/350 second. That can be limiting in bright sunlight, particularly with faster film or when the camera selects a wider aperture than desired. The camera provides exposure compensation from –2 to +2 stops, but that does not eliminate the underlying shutter-speed limitation.

Since most of my photography is outdoors, including street and landscape photography, I would generally pair the Pentax 17 with ISO 100 or 200 film.

The mode dial and zone-focus ring both felt looser than I expected. Although each has click stops, both were easy to move inadvertently. I found myself regularly checking the settings to confirm that nothing had changed, particularly after pulling the camera from a pocket or camera bag. A lock on at least the mode dial would be a welcome improvement.

The film advance lever also left me wondering about long-term durability. It functioned properly throughout my time with the camera, but compared with many classic mechanical cameras, it felt somewhat delicate. Time will ultimately tell whether that concern is justified.

Finally, the shutter release seemed to have a very slight lag in all modes and very little travel. This wasn’t an issue for most of my photographs, but there were a few occasions when the shutter did not seem to react immediately.

Is the Price Fair?

One criticism I’ve seen online concerns the camera’s price.

Personally, I think Pentax priced it reasonably. This is a newly designed and manufactured film camera that, overall, feels well built. Its image quality is substantially better than that of readily available disposable cameras, and it offers nearly all the features a casual photographer would need.

More importantly, buying a new camera means getting a warranty, modern electronics, available service and support, and the confidence that everything should work as intended. That is worth something.

If we want companies to continue investing in new film cameras, we also have to recognize that they cannot be priced like used equipment manufactured fifty years ago.

Final Thoughts

After spending a couple of rolls with the Pentax 17, my overall impression is quite positive.

It is lightweight, compact, quiet, and equipped with a very good lens. More importantly, it is simply enjoyable to use.

Would I change a few details? Certainly. I would like firmer controls and a more substantial-feeling film advance lever. Those refinements would make an already good camera feel even better.

The Pentax 17 isn’t trying to replace anyone’s favorite vintage camera, nor should it. Instead, it offers something increasingly rare: a thoughtfully designed, newly manufactured film camera that encourages people to slow down and enjoy the process of making photographs.

For me, that is a welcome addition to today’s film-photography landscape.

Here are a few examples of images I took during my test.