slow to respond, even by 1976 standards. The K1000 is a completely manual camera, requiring more expertise in use than some of its contemporaries. The K1000 gained popularity because of its low cost, and then for the reputation it won for ruggedness and reliability. Its spartan lack of certain features are regarded by some as a good feature in itself. In addition, for many years it was the camera recommended or mandated to students starting art or photography courses, because its manual controls forced users to learn about exposure - even after better (and even cheaper) manual cameras came along. Today, good used versions fetch higher prices than its originally more costly and better featured K Series siblings, partly because those others, made in far fewer numbers, are overlooked or have been forgotten. Design history In 1975, Asahi Optical replaced its Spotmatic series of 35mm SLR cameras with three cameras of the K-series, the Pentax K2, KM and KX. They continued the successful Spotmatics' general style and handling but with the use of a new bayonet mount, the K Mount, in place of the previous M42 screw mount. The KM in particular was otherwise identical to the old Spotmatic F model apart from some top plate styling. The top of the range K2 had an aperture priority auto and manual modes, while the KX and KM were metered manual only, but the K2 and KX were more technically advanced than the KM. A range of SMC Pentax K mount lenses were introduced at the same time. These three original K-Series cameras had relatively short production lives, because at that time the market trend was towards much smaller cameras, led by the Olympus OM-1, and away from heavy mechanical cameras - robust and reliable though they were. At the same time electronics was beginning to revolutionise camera design, and buyers were increasingly expecting automation in place of (or in addition to) manual metering. In 1976 Asahi therefore introduced the first of its small M-Series of 35mm SLRs and soon the M-Series had become the Pentax mid-range cameras. But, to salvage something from the K-Series, Asahi added features to the K2 to create the professional grade K2-DMD, and removed features from the KM to create the K1000 aimed at the lower end of the market; in both these markets the fashion for smallness was of less concern. The K1000 was thus a