PENTAX CELEBRATES 100 YEARS
Our bulging archive of Pentax press photos provides a dramatic indication of just how prolific the camera maker was, particularly in the latter half of the 20th century. Pentax is, of course, best known for successfully commercialising the 35mm SLR – and for creating the basic design configuration which has been in use ever since – but it was a pioneer in a number of other key areas; most notably the 35mm zoom compact. While its successes in the 35mm format were numerous, Pentax was also a forward thinker in medium format photography – 6x4.5cm and 6x7cm – and in the miniature categories too; the remarkable Auto 110 SLR system being a case in point. Not surprisingly then, Pentax was a powerful member of the ‘big five’ leading Japanese camera makers – along with Canon, Nikon, Minolta and Olympus – for many decades. Arguably, it was the most productive of them all and, at the peak of its powers, was involved in more categories of camera at any one time (well, for starters, none of the others ever got involved with medium format).
In contrast, there’s been much slimmer pickings under the stewardship of current owner Ricoh, but the loyalty of Pentax users appears to have remained exceptionally strong. With the possible exception of Olympus, the Pentax brand is unmatched for the unswerving dedication (and optimism) of its followers. Let’s hope there will be rewards for them ahead, as well as a strong future for one of the most significant brands in the history of photography.
It all began back in November 1919 in Tokyo when a small company was established to make high-quality glass lenses for spectacles (incidentally, a business area Pentax is still in today).
Similar to the evolutions of many Japanese camera companies, Asahi Kogaku Goshi Kaisha slowly expanded into other related areas; notably film projector lenses (1923), lenses for both still and movie cameras (1929), binoculars and telescopes. In 1938, the company name was changed to Asahi Optical Company to reflect its widening operations. In the early 1930s, the company was making lenses for Konishiroku (which later became Konica) and Chiyoda Kögaku Seikö (which subsequently became Minolta). During WWII, Asahi Optical produced various products for the Japanese military which resulted in the company being dissolved in 1945
