[offertonhatter]

I have used the FA50 on a photo shoot, and the result were rubbish, mainly due to flare, but also softness. However, I took the UV filter off, and the difference was immediate. No problems at all.

I would say the 50-135 will be excellent for the 100 super, just don't use it with the UV on.

[Lance B]

I'm not trying to pick a fight Lance. I'm just debating my point of view in a lens forum. I admire your photographic talent and your input on these boards.

I thank you for your kind words.

Sorry if I came across a little testy, but it just seemed that your points were debating something that I was not talking about.

I just posted a new thread as a result of some things that were said here. https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-dslr-discussion/37485-k20d-vs-k100ds.html

[laissezfaire]

I'm the original poster and appreciate all of the different points of view. Here are a few shots I took.

1) Kit lens, bright natural light - I think this is about as good as I can get with the kit lens

2) 50mm 1.4, w/o flash and some natural light - I'm unhappy with the white balance and softness. Light bounced off of the gold blankets leading to the WB problem.

3) 50mm 1.4, with flash - even a fast lens needs help in a dark room

I am giving up on aperture priority mode for shooting kids. The shutter speed defaults to a lower setting than appropriate for fast moving kids.

[Marc Sabatella]

2) 50mm 1.4, w/o flash and some natural light - I'm unhappy with the white balance and softness. Light bounced off of the gold blankets leading to the WB problem.

WB is one reason why in my opinion it's just silly to shoot JPEG indoors.

As for softness, EXIF is gone, so hard to say what the specific aperture and shutter speed were. At f/1.4, the lens is going to be softer than at f/4 - that's just the nature of most lenses. And depending on what ISO you were at, there is no guarantee that even f/1.4 will be fast enough to get shutter speed fast enough to give you better than a 50/50 chance of getting a sharp picture of a moving person. Any chance of posting what the specific settings actually were?

Of course, at the size posted, it's hard to say how sharp the image is or isn't. Looks pretty good at that size, but I can certainly believe it would be noticeably softer when viewed larger.

I am giving up on aperture priority mode for shooting kids. The shutter speed defaults to a lower setting than appropriate for fast moving kids.

As I've said before, what mode you are in is *irrelevant*. Either you have enough light to get a fast enough shutter speed or you don't. If you aren't getting fast enough shutter speed shooting wide open in Av mode, switching to another mode won't give you faster shutter speeds without underexposing the picture, and if you want an underexposed picture, you can get that in Av mode too, using exposure compensation. Of course, increasing ISO is always your other option to get faster shutter at a given aperture.

[Gilou06]

My opinion is that if your money can buy the excellent DA*50-135, do not hesitate. Keep in mind that you will not use the SDM on the K100, but perhaps you will come to the K10D or K20D (or K30D ?) in a couple of years.
If you don't plane to become a "pro" and print 20'x30' pictures, the DA 50-200 gives very good pictures for about the third of the price. With (only a part of) the difference, you can get a very good flash as AF-540FGZ with swivell capability, so you can solve the low light problem with indirect flash.
About filters, I use Hoya UV pro on the DA* to protect it. Perhaps a cheaper filter is enough but I prefer to have the best quality filter on this outstanding lens.

Gilles

PS : Note that on your 2nd picture, your baby is wondering if we are quite mad to spend so a long time on the subject

[egordon99]

I'm the original poster and appreciate all of the different points of view.

I am giving up on aperture priority mode for shooting kids. The shutter speed defaults to a lower setting than appropriate for fast moving kids.

If you need a faster shutter speed, simply switching from Av mode to another mode will NOT get you there. Av mode is my default mode and it works great for low-light no flash shots. I just open up my lens as wide as it goes and up the ISO. Starting around ISO800, I keep an eye on my shutter speed. If it's too slow, I up the ISO. If it's fast enough, I might even stop down the lens a bit.

In Tv mode, you run the risk of underexposure.


EDIT - Work on your bounce technique. In the last shot, you want to avoid those shadows. Although they do look much better than using the direct pop-up flash. Ditto the WB getting tricky when you bounce off of non-neutral surfaces. Our family room has "tan" walls, and I always have trouble getting it just right.

[laissezfaire]

Keep in mind that you will not use the SDM on the K100, but perhaps you will come to the K10D or K20D (or K30D ?) in a couple of years.

I have a K100D Super, so it's SDM compatible according to the spec sheet:

"Compatibility With SDM System For Smoother, Quieter Autofocus Operation
The K100D Super’s camera body is compatible with a new SDM system, which assures smoother, quieter autofocusing operation using a built in supersonic motor. When a lens equipped with the SDM system is mounted on the PENTAX K100D Super camera body, the focus mode is automatically switched to SDM-assisted autofocusing."

I am tempted more and more to get this. And the couple of years may be couple of months... I'm already checking out the K20D b/c of my poor experience turning up the ISO.

[laissezfaire]

If you need a faster shutter speed, simply switching from Av mode to another mode will NOT get you there. Av mode is my default mode and it works great for low-light no flash shots. I just open up my lens as wide as it goes and up the ISO. Starting around ISO800, I keep an eye on my shutter speed. If it's too slow, I up the ISO. If it's fast enough, I might even stop down the lens a bit.

In Tv mode, you run the risk of underexposure.

This is good advice... I would love to turn up the ISO, but I get so much noise, especially in the shadows and bokeh. It starts at ISO800!