Need help choosing other lens

Pendo · 02-08-2016, 08:30 PM

Hi I currently have K-3 ii and DA 12-24mm lens. I love the lens the picture quality is great but when I shoot videos at night the image gets dark even though I set the lowest shutter speed and aperture (set to 1/30 and f/4) but when I turn up ISO over 1600 the image got brighter but there are lots of noise. Anyway I'm not going to refund but I'm planning to buy other lens but I'm not sure what lens should I get? Especially when walking around while recording and sitting in the car front seat with bokeh effects as well I want to take photos with my family in full body/length at home and outside with bokeh effects in the background, from this distance to zoom in (shown in image attachments below and this image was shot using my phone) with clean, crisp & sharp HD image quality without flash needed when using handheld and weather & cold resistant. Thanks

Attached Images

View Picture EXIF

View Picture EXIF

Adam · 02-08-2016, 08:37 PM

(edit: this info pertains to still)

The noise is not the lens's fault.

If you disable noise in-camera reduction entirely and shoot at ISO 1600 or 3200, then reduce in noise in post, you should get much better image quality than with in-camera processing. Shooting in RAW will let you bring out even more detail, and I'd recommend always using it at night.

See:
Pentax K-3 Review - Low-Light High-ISO | PentaxForums.com Reviews

ISO 1600 100% crop raw

ISO 1600 100% crop jpeg

Pretty big difference, right?

bertwert · 02-08-2016, 08:40 PM

Welcome to the forum!
Are you trying to take videos or photos?
At night time a tripod can help with photos to help get a longer shutter speed, as at night it is hard to get good photos without a long shutter speed.

Originally posted by Adam

EXIF says this is a cell phone photo?

I think he is saying that he is trying to take videos with his K-3ii.
Then he took screenshots of the video with his cellphone on the camera screen?

Adam · 02-08-2016, 08:46 PM

Ah, missed that because the cell phone pics threw me off.

You can't expect to get very good video image quality at night, unfortunately. Current Pentax bodies have fairly low video detail to begin with due to compression. Shooting with a tele lens (rather than cropping the video file) will help, but unless it's a very fast lens (F2 for instance) you'll still be pushing the limits of the ISO range. Remember that videos require a shutter speed of at least 1/30s - notice how the still from your phone enjoyed the luxury of being captured at 1/9s, and with a rather fast lens

Adam
PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide | Site Help | My Photography)

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Kozlok · 02-09-2016, 08:54 AM

Video at night is very difficult. You really need an entirely different system. Not another dslr, but a real no-kidding professional cinematic camera. Probably a $50,000 prospect.

A faster lens will help some, though. If you want a wide-ish to normal lens, I like the Sigma 24mm/1.8 or Sigma 30mm 1.4.

Aksel · 02-09-2016, 11:30 AM

Originally posted by Kozlok

Video at night is very difficult. You really need an entirely different system. Not another dslr, but a real no-kidding professional cinematic camera. Probably a $50,000 prospect.
...

Maybe A7S (II) can help you in this. (2-3000 $ not 50 000).

02-08-2016, 08:37 PM	#2
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,595	(edit: this info pertains to still) The noise is not the lens's fault. If you disable noise in-camera reduction entirely and shoot at ISO 1600 or 3200, then reduce in noise in post, you should get much better image quality than with in-camera processing. Shooting in RAW will let you bring out even more detail, and I'd recommend always using it at night. See: Pentax K-3 Review - Low-Light High-ISO \| PentaxForums.com Reviews ISO 1600 100% crop raw ISO 1600 100% crop jpeg Pretty big difference, right? Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

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02-08-2016, 08:40 PM	#3
bertwert Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Golden, BC Posts: 15,173	Welcome to the forum! Are you trying to take videos or photos? At night time a tripod can help with photos to help get a longer shutter speed, as at night it is hard to get good photos without a long shutter speed. Originally posted by Adam EXIF says this is a cell phone photo? I think he is saying that he is trying to take videos with his K-3ii. Then he took screenshots of the video with his cellphone on the camera screen?

02-08-2016, 08:46 PM	#4
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,595	Ah, missed that because the cell phone pics threw me off. You can't expect to get very good video image quality at night, unfortunately. Current Pentax bodies have fairly low video detail to begin with due to compression. Shooting with a tele lens (rather than cropping the video file) will help, but unless it's a very fast lens (F2 for instance) you'll still be pushing the limits of the ISO range. Remember that videos require a shutter speed of at least 1/30s - notice how the still from your phone enjoyed the luxury of being captured at 1/9s, and with a rather fast lens Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

02-09-2016, 08:54 AM	#5
Kozlok Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Albuquerque Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,148	Video at night is very difficult. You really need an entirely different system. Not another dslr, but a real no-kidding professional cinematic camera. Probably a $50,000 prospect. A faster lens will help some, though. If you want a wide-ish to normal lens, I like the Sigma 24mm/1.8 or Sigma 30mm 1.4.

02-09-2016, 11:30 AM	#6
Aksel Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Posts: 224	Originally posted by Kozlok Video at night is very difficult. You really need an entirely different system. Not another dslr, but a real no-kidding professional cinematic camera. Probably a $50,000 prospect. ... Maybe A7S (II) can help you in this. (2-3000 $ not 50 000).