The camera used a Seiko MFC-E2 vertical travel, metal bladed focal plane shutter with a speed range of 4 to 1/2000th second plus Bulb and flash X-sync of 1/125th second. It was high, wide, deep and weighed . It was finished in satin crome or black. Although the ME F was an interchangeable lens camera (the photographer could remove and exchange its lens for another), its AF function required the unique SMC Pentax AF 35 mm–70 mm f/2.8 Zoom Lens autofocus lens using a special Pentax K-F lens mount. Unlike all later Pentax AF SLRs, the ME F did not have the focusing drive motor and keying shaft built into the camera body. The drive motor was in the lens instead. This lens also had a bulky underslung battery compartment that held four 1.5 Volt AAA alkaline batteries (1.2 Volt rechargeables not compatible) to power the motor. It had 7 elements in 7 groups, was 76.5 mm long, 73 mm in diameter, 87 mm high through the battery compartment, weighed 580 g, had a minimum focusing distance of 1.2 m and was threaded for 58 mm accessories. This lens was also one of the earliest attempts to supersede the heretofore standard 50 mm "normal" lens with today's ubiquitous zoom lens.