I'd like to say that you all inspire me, these have been some of the best posts I've read anywhere
Originally posted by luftfluss One of the big benefits of shooting old glass is you're free... free from self-important online reviews, free from some mathematics-based ideal of perfection, free from nerd-raging AF battles where the loser is cast down into the ninth circle of Hell... you're free to accept and embrace imperfection in your gear and in yourself, and focus on the subject and the moment.
Yes... and the interesting thing is, none of the ultra-fast AF guys make fun of the other guys with a Leica or with a Zeiss Otus... just because it's expensive doesn't mean the owner is a better photographer.
Originally posted by iheiramo Modern lenses don't really offer anything I want or need in this point of my hobby. I like the challenge of doing it all manually. I know who to blame, if I don't get results I want. Back then when I was shooting full auto jpeg's with modern zoom I only shot when I had something interesting to shoot. Since I moved to old manual primes I have started to enjoy photography a lot more and also realized I need to practise to learn to use my gear properly. And I have learned so much. Lately I have kept on shooting daily just for the joy of using my gear.
Somewhere along I turned to be a control freak. I don't want to let go of M mode anymore even when I shoot the little AF gear I have. I know what kind of exposure I want for PP and easiest way to get it is to set it all manually. And for manual focus manual lenses are much more enjoyable.
I don't even have the best available vintage lenses. I have the cheapest and yet they are good enough to provide beautiful pictures.
I've been following your pictures for quite a while and I'm always amazed at what you come up with. But let me quote this one thing again:
Originally posted by iheiramo Lately I have kept on shooting daily just for the joy of using my gear.
And that makes all the difference in the world, and I think it shows in the quality of your pictures as well.
Originally posted by Dartmoor Dave There isn't any wrong or right, and we're each free to do things in the way that gives us the most personal enjoyment.
And indeed there is absolutely no joy in the game of "my lens MTF charts are better than your lens MTF charts" or "my camera specs are superior to your camera specs" that gets implied in so many conversations elsewhere.
If it brings one joy in taking pictures, then why not persist
Originally posted by RookieGuy I was just about ready to ask Pepperberry if I could come sit at his feet and learn. But then it hit me, he's been doing this way longer than I have. The jpeg revelation helped me because I shoot in jpeg (it's good enough for now while I'm still learning) so it's nice to know raw isn't 100% necessary. But then I see his pics and think why [swearing] can't I do that?!
Now I'm not at Dave (Pepperberry)'s level, even if I do now own the camera he learned a lot of his trade with
But I have to say that the Pentax JPEG engine isn't nearly as bad as people make it out to be. Especially from the K-3 on, I find it quite good (the K-S1 having a similar JPEG engine to the K-3, so I'm very familiar with that - and I see it got even better in the K-1/K-70/KP generation). Things I've learned:
. The Natural setting can take PP well and you can take the picture in different directions
. I like the Portrait setting a lot because there's frequently people in my pictures. It's a bit more "alive" than the Natural setting and skin tones are well represented, usually.
. The Reversal Film inspires me.
. The Monochrome is excellent. Maybe here's an area where Pentax benefited from Ricoh, Ricoh being of course the street photography legend and street photography is still very focused on black and white.
. The Muted Colors setting is surprisingly good, especially at night. I recommend it to everyone to try this setting for night photography.
You just have to remember that with JPEG photography, like with slide film, you have to remember to expose well, even if it means that you might pass on some shots because the dynamic range is just too large. NAH-don't pass on it! With the exposure button (+/-), you can immediately save the RAW file and use it up later
Lonve live manual lenses. Long live the OVF. Long live Pentax. (I should put that as my new signature...)