Pentax k10d in space

[PentaxPoke]

Pentax is getting the word out!

NED BUNNELL: K10D: "Camera Not Lost in Space"

imaginginfo.com - Pentax Pentax K10d

Go Pentax!

Next flight we'll see how the Pentax SMCP-DA14mm fares...

[Peter Zack]

That is great and I hope they give you a K20D with a 16-50 for the next flight. Then they can use it in an ad campaign.

[m8o]

Originally Posted by PentaxPoke

Thanks. Next flight will be with the Pentax SMCP-DA 14/2.8 at hopefully, an even slightly higher altitude. I don't have any experience with that lens, but the kit lens worked so well, I want to try a quality wide angle prime on the next flight. If my calculations are correct, it should give about 83 degrees of lateral angle of view, compared to the 67 degrees we got from the 18mm. I thought about going wider, but I want to stay away from the "fisheye" look. The 14 apparently has less distortion than the small amount of the 18mm DA II! Look for the sequel sometime in September...

Fantastic. Big congrats!

My opinion? As Ned is sharing your story & Pentax is benefiting from it, they need to give you their widest angle DA*, even if not yet released, to benefit from the lens sealing if not the superior optics. The former, to safeguard against condensation. Tho Hm... I wonder if the fact that the other lenses are more 'leaky', it actually works to their advantage in near vacuum, for pressure equalization. (pardon if that was already discussed... I read the 1st page and past page of the thread, and looked @ the great posted pictures of course! )

[flyer]

Congrats from me, too. Maybe you should ask Pentax to supply you with a K20D for future flights. At that height, you can always tell them you need the increased resolution to record fine details down on planet Earth.

[lesmore49]

Very impressed to see the K10D perform under such adverse conditions, with little protection, which was the way it had to be, in order to do the experiment.

Thank you for posting. I look forward to seeing whatever other pictures you can publicly post. Really enjoyed the flicker pix.

I live on the Canadian Prairies, where it gets to maybe -40 C (140 F the same) temps in the winter. I had the K10D out last Feb. for about an hour or so in -25 C and the camera and 16-45 Pentax lens worked flawlessly.

I have also used my old (bought 1984) Pentax 'A' 35-105 Macro Zoom is similar cold temps. Also flawless in extreme cold.

[weaponx525]

Your pics and experiments are truly, truly amazing. Everytime I consider a new lens. someone else shows me how good the kit lens can really be. Out of curiosity though, what size memory card did you use? For over 300 pics in PEF raw, the SDHC card must have been over 8 GB?

[Mark Castleman]

8GB would be enough. I can get over 400 RAW files on a 8GB Sandisk card.

[throndor]

God, my life is boring..

[bt*ist]

Absolutely brilliant stuff - thank you so much for sharing!!

A couple of weeks ago I took my K10D plus kit lens into the midst of a rock concert where the increasingly drunk fans were cheerfully throwing half-full plastic cups of beer around, splashing people and things alike. I thought I was being brave...

Obviously the K10D survived such conditions also.

But this is a magnificent achievement, quite independently of brand (though that it's Pentax is so much sweeter) I think it's fantastic that such an accessible camera (and a Kit Lens) can accomplish such amazing feats, and that you can have confidence in its construction and durability.

Can't wait to see what you've planned next! Quite honestly, I'd almost be DISINCLINED to go one up in camera and lens construction : I'd take the K200D up next time to show that the durability goes throughout the range!

Congratulations again - this thread was a fantastic read!

[marlon]

Originally Posted by skid2964

I am impressed...

I don't get that way very often.

Im with this guy.
/me rubs his K20D

[Venturi]

So, PentaxPoke, where are the new pics? We need a debriefing on the DA14 performance!

[PentaxPoke]

Originally Posted by Venturi

So, PentaxPoke, where are the new pics? We need a debriefing on the DA14 performance!

Patience! Thanks for the interest. We were scheduled to launch this week but you being from Tulsa can see the weather has been less than optimal lately. The other issue is that the high-altitude winds have been strong and south, and our predicted landing would be near OKC. I'd rather not have the system land near a major city for a variety of reasons.

For more info, and if you would like to track when we do launch, here is the website:

ASTRO

We are rebuilding the graphics, but you can at least find the links to ASTRO 10 which will be the flight with the DA 14mm on the k10d.

On a related matter, they will be discussing the ASTRO09 flight on Shutterbug radio today. If you are interested you can download the podcast later today. It will probably be nothing new to you though, because I have given all the details to my Pentax Forum friends here first.

[PentaxPoke]

For those interested, the Shutterbug Magazine Radio show dealing with this is here:
Shutterbug Magazine Radio

After a week, it will be in the 10/24 archives. It is a 30min interview.

Hopefully some good PR for Pentax!

[PentaxPoke]

Just an update for those that were interested in the second flight of the k10d. We flew today, but unfortunately the new remote cut-down system we were testing malfunctioned after the balloon reached only 2990 ft, and the whole system came down in an apartment complex. The lens side hit first on concrete, and the hood bent the filter ring. The camera is fine, and I think the lens is fine optically as well, but will be tested before we fly again. It may be anywhere from a week to two weeks before schedules and weather are favorable to test the system again.

It is disappointing, but these things happen in experiments. I think the Pentax 14mm will work out very nicely in the end.

If you want to see a few pictures from the short flight, I have posted them here. To save bandwidth on the site, they have been reduced in size.
ASTRO-10 Post Flight

[vagrant10]

thanks for the update! hope all is well w/ the hardware... it's been fun following this: the story is great and the pictures are amazing!