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04-13-2011, 12:24 PM - 4 Likes   #1
Mr_Canuck
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Going from full-frame back to apsc: a short story

I guess this is more of a Facebook type post, just talking out loud.

I'm switching from full-frame back to apsc. Everybody talks about going the other way. I must be some deranged salmon from British Columbia.

A bunch of my Sony/Minolta gear is in transit to new owners and I am awaiting delivery of a Pentax setup. K5 plus some limited primes and zooms. Somewhat of a replacement of my Sony/Minolta gear in focal lengths. And yes, I'm getting an 18-135 to have a go-anywhere, get-anything travel/hiking/ keep in the car setup.

Why did I go full-frame in the first place? I already had all this great Minolta glass. It was fine on apsc, but it really performed on full-frame, especially at the wide end. So I picked up an a850 when a good deal came along.

The Sony a850 is a marvelous camera, as are the Canikon counterparts. Its main appeal for me was the viewfinder. And of course using the great Minolta full-frame lenses that are available for it. But it's a big beast of a thing for an enthusiast/generalist like me. When I'd hand it to my wife to take a shot (she's pretty good) she'd buckle under the brick in her hand. And it caused me sometimes to hesitate just taking it along. Some people would say full-frame is compact compared with their medium-format gear. I understand that. But for someone who does a bit of everything with their camera from family events to travel to landscapes to creative to some paid gigs – and particularly wanting portability and having it with me as much as possible – compactness is important, among other things.

I'm really looking forward to the K5 and some of the pancakes I've purchased. The K5's resolution is perfectly adequate as well. You have to want huge file sizes with the 24mp sensor.

So I'm going from a FF 20mm to the DA15; from FF 35mm to the DA21 and from FF 100mm and 50mm to the FA43. I was looking at a DA70 but decided to get a 50-135 when a used one came up here on the forum (I see the 50-135 as a wonderfully small/light version of a 70-200, so everything's relative). And then the 18-135 which there really isn't a counterpart for in full-frame, unless you want another big brick in your bag (which you might, but I don't). One lens type I won't have is macro yet, but I'll see as I don't think I'm a true microscopic macro shooter. That 100WR looks nice.

I've always liked Pentax. They have a similar ethos to Minolta with in-camera stabilization, their "natural" approach to jpg processing, and some special lenses. With the K5, I really like Pentax, so I can't wait for it to arrive. And those limited primes. My. Doesn't get any smaller with such good quality. Live-view appeals to me for a lot of still shots. Video for creative shooting will come in handy. Being an available light enthusiast, I like the high ISO. And after a minute, I forget about the smaller viewfinder, honestly. Finally, that shutter sound! What shutter sound?

So, I'll post some more personal reflections you didn't ask for once I get this stuff in my hands and take it out for a spin! Just had to share my excitement.

Oh, a sideline, I really like this forum. Interestingly, that was part of the appeal of Pentax. I'm a small-town guy and 2 gazzillion people on a Canikon forum just doesn't appeal to me. This one is smaller and you begin to recognize names, a lot like dyxum for the sonyminolta crowd. And it's riddled with fellow Canadians. Go Riders. The end.

04-13-2011, 12:42 PM   #2
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Great read, I look forward to your impressions coming from full frame!

I never dabbled with Pentax primes, mostly just old vintage primes, but I'm starting to wonder if I should.
04-13-2011, 01:00 PM   #3
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Hi Canuk, really nice to hear someone on the "other side of the fence" wanting to move down sizewise. Sometimes someone like you comes along, and just gives the arguments an opposing view.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, I guess the obvious question though, is why not go the Sony route withe the A55 or something, but hey, hope you really enjoy your K5, and I for one, look forward ro reading more of your "personal reflections", please do post more.

woody
04-13-2011, 01:28 PM   #4
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Good luck Canuk and welcome to Pentax land. I think you will really like your new gear especially the 43ltd and the DA 15. Please do let us know what your impressions are and post some shots.

NaCl(small and light is the way to go)H2O

04-13-2011, 02:08 PM   #5
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Welcome, I hope you really enjoy and get good use out of your new gear.
04-13-2011, 02:21 PM   #6
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Hehehe, you will enjoy Pentax K-5 and all those lovely limited lens.
Go Canucks Go!!!
04-13-2011, 03:21 PM   #7
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Welcome and thanks for sharing your story. I think the size and weight advantage of APS-C bodies and pentax limited primes is easily underestimated. I take my camera with me a lot of places, usually with a prime attached and maybe another in my pocket. I tend to use zooms only at home or at a family event.

I have the 15, 21 & 50-135 that you've selected. I'm sure you'll enjoy them a lot, they are all terrific, and I hear the 43 isn't bad either

04-13-2011, 04:05 PM   #8
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Welcome, and thanks for a great read! I've just ordered a DA 40 ltd and feel just as excited as you about the size of those things.
04-13-2011, 04:08 PM   #9
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Thanks for the write up. I think it's nice that technology has reached a point where there are a lot of good options for quality cameras depending on what you need and what look you are going for. There are now good options in M4/3, APS-C, FF and MF sensor sizes. Full frame has some advantages, but that doesn't necessarily mean it is better in all cases.
04-13-2011, 04:12 PM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mr_Canuck Quote
Oh, a sideline, I really like this forum. Interestingly, that was part of the appeal of Pentax. I'm a small-town guy and 2 gazzillion people on a Canikon forum just doesn't appeal to me. This one is smaller and you begin to recognize names, a lot like dyxum for the sonyminolta crowd. And it's riddled with fellow Canadians. Go Riders. The end.
Ah how true that is. I'm a newbie and I think this is the most welcoming and friendly internet forum I've been on for some time now. Other photography forums (esp. the brand oriented ones) seem from time to time to be nothing more than arguing, flaming and 'mine's bigger/better/longer than yours'. I saw a good cartoon only recently of a wife calling her husband to bed.. His reply was "Sorry dear, I can't come just now - someone on the internet is wrong

Not so here - I wonder if it's reflective of the type of person that choses a Pentax in the first place.. perhaps we just enjoy taking pictures and discussing them more than winning an argument. I know I certainly do.

Oh, I came from FF too - my shoulder feels much better for it now
04-13-2011, 06:39 PM   #11
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A sobering read - and makes perfect sense when considering going out anywhere with photographic equipment. The fidelity of limited Pentax glass with the K-5 would provide results suitable for most photographers - all in a compact and light package.
04-13-2011, 06:49 PM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mr_Canuck Quote
And it's riddled with fellow Canadians. Go Riders.
Welcome... but Riders?
Go... uh... lemme see here... um... Argos?

(Gotcha! I'm just a Yank in T.O... Go Bears.)
04-13-2011, 07:33 PM   #13
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If you're looking for macro.. the Tamron90 macro is an amazing lens. it's not WR but apart from that it's everything the 100 macro is and more. I lucked out and got mine second hand for a quarter of what the 100 WR would have cost me. Now I just have to get it away from my wife.

Hey panoguy.. I was born in Chicago.. Cook County Hospital..( last time I wrote that to a fellow Chicagoan he said "you're lucky you even got out." ) But I grew up in Columbus, so I used to like the Browns before that turncoat Model moved them to Baltimore. Now I'm officially teamless. That new team.. they aren''t the Browns. Friggin impostors. Get a defence for grief sake.
04-13-2011, 09:03 PM   #14
Mr_Canuck
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Thanks for the kind comments, everyone. RE not getting a Sony a55, I didn't like the EVF finder. I like having an optical finder with a live-view LCD. And with Minolta/Sony, you still don't have the beautiful, tiny limited pancake primes.
04-13-2011, 09:20 PM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Mr_Canuck Quote
Thanks for the kind comments, everyone. RE not getting a Sony a55, I didn't like the EVF finder. I like having an optical finder with a live-view LCD. And with Minolta/Sony, you still don't have the beautiful, tiny limited pancake primes.
I agree with you on that one. I gave the Samsung NX-series a try, but didn't like the EVF.

That's why I got myself the K-r. But the K-5 is on my wish list for later this year.
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