Shooting food with the K20D + DA Limiteds

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 01:50 AM

I've been doing food photography for the past few months now and I've been VERY happy with the K20D and the DA Limited lenses so far.

GREAT optics. I mean fantastic optics. Helluva sharp and my shooting partner (who uses Canon) is always astonished at how good these tiny lenses are. I started out with the DA40 and eventually got the DA21 and DA70. I also have the DA35 but somehow I don't find myself using it much, I keep forgetting to put it out.

The light weight and compact size of these lenses have been great. Mounted on my Manfrotto 055 + Markins M10 is quite overkill (coming from a Nikon f/2.8 system) but my whole setup is rock solid and really easy to adjust.

The K20D's body has been fantastic. I love the viewfinder paired with the KPS U-13C 1.3x viewfinder magnifying eyepiece. Bigger than the viewfinder of a 5D

Only gripes so far are the relatively crappy computer tethered shooting, and also the slow flash sync speed (max 1/180). Other than that, very happy with the system.

I actually use the Live View a LOT! Once you figure out its weaknesses and quirks, it's helluva useful. I hook up my camera to a portable screen/DVD player and set my camera on a tripod, then carry around the screen while tweaking/fixing the table setting using Live View. I can instantly see what I move on the table setup, instead of (1) adjusting stuff on the table and (2) going back to the camera to look through the viewfinder AGAIN and AGAIN.

I can't stress how excited I am should Pentax improve the Live View with a better LCD screen on the body (zooming in for focus checking would be so much better) and implement HDMI.

Shooting food has been such a great experience so far and a REAL challenge in lighting. My lighting knowledge has been really growing with shooting food. So is my attention to detail! I can't say how many times such a little detail could make or break a photo, little things like a tiny ingredient out of place, the way a glass is positioned (rotation-wise), how adding a tiny splash of light using a tiny reflector could really enhance the shot, and so much more.

I'm relatively new to food photography (started November 08) and here are some of the photos I'd like to share

**roentarre** · 04-01-2009, 02:26 AM

Great series. All of them captured vividly. The colour is stunning and you have some very good set up yourself!

*Andi Lo* · 04-01-2009, 02:47 AM

They're all great Diego. Can't pick a fave. Did you resolve your problem with tethered shooting, btw?

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 02:54 AM

Originally Posted by Andi Lo

They're all great Diego. Can't pick a fave. Did you resolve your problem with tethered shooting, btw?

Thank you Andi!

Right now I'm using a portable DVD player connected to the camera. Works pretty well but not as sharp as a regular CRT TV. The ability to use it without it being plugged is real useful too.

Originally Posted by roentarre

Great series. All of them captured vividly. The colour is stunning and you have some very good set up yourself!

Thank you!

creampuff · 04-01-2009, 02:55 AM

Excellent execution and results.

octavmandru · 04-01-2009, 04:03 AM

excellent series.
This is one more proof that one can see the opportunity where another can't find the purpose.

ll_coffee_lP · 04-01-2009, 04:43 AM

Some great comments about Pentax gear and their lenses. Excellent photos to follow. A great post all around.

Thank you

c[_]

P.S. That sandwich shot is my favourite of the bunch. Very well done!

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 04:47 AM

Originally Posted by creampuff

Excellent execution and results.

Many thanks.

Originally Posted by octavmandru

excellent series.
This is one more proof that one can see the opportunity where another can't find the purpose.

Thank you!

Originally Posted by ll_coffee_lP

Some great comments about Pentax gear and their lenses. Excellent photos to follow. A great post all around.

Thank you

c[_]

P.S. That sandwich shot is my favourite of the bunch. Very well done!

Thanks! That sandwich shot was a challenge to light. I wanted the right amount of highlights on the tomatoes and cheese.

**Buddha Jones** · 04-01-2009, 05:54 AM

MAGNIFICIENT!!! I am going to be shooting cheesecakes sometime this year for a site that I am going to be doing and I can hardly wait. I only hope that I can come close to your results. The DA21LTD wasn't on my radar until I saw your shots, now I may have to reconsider...

I am curious about your lighting, do you mainly use strobes or contiuous lighting?

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 06:01 AM

Originally Posted by Buddha Jones

MAGNIFICIENT!!! I am going to be shooting cheesecakes sometime this year for a site that I am going to be doing and I can hardly wait. I only hope that I can come close to your results. The DA21LTD wasn't on my radar until I saw your shots, now I may have to reconsider...

I am curious about your lighting, do you mainly use strobes or contiuous lighting?

Many thanks!

Ooh that's great! Cheesecake can be challenging to shoot, you've got to bring out its texture. Well, you don't NEED the DA21 since you've got the 16-50 already

About the lighting, it depends! I use strobes but they've got modeling lamps in them with tracking. So when using really shallow DOF I just use the modeling light. When I need lots of DOF I pop em!

Maffer · 04-01-2009, 06:20 AM

You made me hungry with those photos. Well done. About the lightning, I wouldn't use large continuous lights near some chocolate cakes for example. The heat might cause a meltdown of the subject.

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 06:23 AM

Originally Posted by Maffer

You made me hungry with those photos. Well done. About the lightning, I wouldn't use large continuous lights near some chocolate cakes for example. The heat might cause a meltdown of the subject.

Thanks!

Yup! Unless you've got compact flourescent bulbs in them which produce very little heat.

axl · 04-01-2009, 07:35 AM

man, you made me really hungry,you'relucky I've just finished cooking my lunch

great shots Diego. Well done

BR

soccerjoe5 · 04-01-2009, 07:56 AM

Originally Posted by axl

man, you made me really hungry,you'relucky I've just finished cooking my lunch
great shots Diego. Well done

BR

Haha thanks Peter

*HermanLee* · 04-01-2009, 09:04 AM

Diego,

Wonderful and tempting photos!
You've made me drooled on my desk and it's not even lunch time yet.
Gosh..this is what happen when people take such a good picture, almost like real..

How do you connect to portable DVD?
Do you just use the AV cable or using Pentax remote control software also?