[dlacouture]

1) AF portraits (auto-iso set to "slow", P mode set on shallow dof, continuous on "low")
2) MF portraits (same as above, with red squares disabled)
3) Action (Auto-iso set to "normal", P mode set on Sport, continuous on "fast")
4) Fast Action (same as above, with auto-iso set to "fast")
5) Manual Jpeg for Brenizer method (Daylight WB without fine-tune, AF on rear button only)

My only real gripe with this camera is that you cannot assign the Movie mode to a USER, and the movie mode thus shares its settings with the usual PSAM modes...

[rockyram]

drougge ,can you please post those settings if possible.That would be very helpful.

[drougge]

drougge ,can you please post those settings if possible.That would be very helpful.

Not so sure it would be helpful really. It's pretty much just P with default settings. (Not that I remember exactly. But it doesn't reproduce the impossibility of changing things, obviously. I wouldn't need it at all if I didn't normally disable AF on half press.)

[doc.mark.dimo]

The USER mode looks really useful to me, however I have not thought of a really good use for it yet!

I am wondering about:
1) a dedicated setup for flash (to get around the over exposure)


What else are other people doing with USER mode please?

That is exactly how I use my "user" mode.

I have it set at: iso 640, 1/160, f4.5 and I keep my AF 540 FGZ in auto mode (not p-ttl)

For some reason, with the K7 onward, my AF 540 FGZ pttl mode in bounce and swivel have become useless.

This setup gives me reliable results for indoor event photography or spot news type coverage using a stofen type diffuser while indoors.

I am hoping by the K3, pentax will come up with a new heavy duty flash replacement for the AF 540, and all the exposure kinks are worked out.

happy shooting!

[Anvh]

No problem with the K5 and p-ttl bounce.
I use the camera on manual with fix iso, maybe that's the trick?

With the K10D i always had the flash set to overexpose but the K5 exposure is better and doesn't need compensation.

I've heard though that Auto ISO (maybe other auto modes) really can mess up the flash settings.

[doc.mark.dimo]

No problem with the K5 and p-ttl bounce.
I use the camera on manual with fix iso, maybe that's the trick?

With the K10D i always had the flash set to overexpose but the K5 exposure is better and doesn't need compensation.

I've heard though that Auto ISO (maybe other auto modes) really can mess up the flash settings.

My flash performance during bounce has been so inconsistent that I cannot rely on the p-ttl feature. You are fortunate to get the results you desire. However that is one thing about being a photographer, since it didnt work for me, I'm glad there were options on the flash for me to get the performance I needed.

cheers!

[BETLOG]

My K-5 is not exhibiting this problem. But perhaps I don't understand the difficulty.

Try this:

Phase 1
Set Manual mode.
Ensure that Memory settings (item 5 on the fifth page of the first tab of the menu) include a check to remember ISO. - default setting iirc
Ensure that 'Auto Power Off' (item3 on page 3 of the 3rd tab of the menu) is set to 1 minute.
Set ISO to 800.
Allow camera to go into standby and LCD screen to go blank (usually 60 seconds).
Wake camera up (usually i half depress shutter).
Note that ISO is still set to 800.

Phase 2
Set Manual mode.
Set ISO to 800.
* save settings as a user mode *
* set mode dial to 'user' and select the one you just saved - press ok *
* change ISO to 6400 *
Allow camera to go into standby and LCD screen to go blank (usually 60 seconds).
Wake camera up (usually i half depress shutter).
* Note that ISO is no longer set to 6400, but rather the same value as when you saved the user profile.*

Expected behavior:
Camera remembers ISO setting after recovering from standby mode (Auto Power Off), regardless of what mode it is in.

Actual behavior:
When in a user mode, after recovering from standby mode, camera forgets current ISO setting, and imposes ISO setting as originally saved in user mode.
This makes sense when recovering from a hard power down (main switch set to off, or battery removal), because user mode selection screen is presented when main power switch is activated to power up again.
But this does not make sense when the camera is sleeping to conserve power and no mode change/selection has been made.

Workaround:
Set 'Auto Power Off' to a much higher number or 'off'.
Caveats include higher battery use and increased likelihood of accidental button/dial activation during user inactivity.

[pentup]

Allow camera to go into standby and LCD screen to go blank (usually 60 seconds). Wake camera up (usually i half depress shutter). * Note that ISO is no longer set to 6400, but rather the same value as when you saved the user profile.*

I see now. You're right; that should be considered a bug, and Pentax should fix that in a firmware update.

This makes sense when recovering from a hard power down (main switch set to off, or battery removal), because user mode selection screen is presented when main power switch is activated to power up again.

Actually, it doesn't show this behavior with a hard power off; the ISO you last set is retained. This is why I didn't notice the anomaly: I very rarely let the camera go into standby.

[BETLOG]

Actually, it doesn't show this behavior with a hard power off; the ISO you last set is retained.

Not in user mode. When i turn mine back on I am presented with focallength selection, and then user mode (1-5) selection, but even before I push ok or change the selection the ISO has been reset.
I'm on firmware v1.10

[pentup]

Not in user mode.

My apologies -- you're correct. I thought I had checked this meticulously, but apparently I hadn't. With the latest firmware, it's still behaving as you describe.

[BETLOG]

I am not familiar with the bug reporting process, but this certainly would be an improvement if rectified.
Could you report it, or point me at the right place to do so myself?