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**Pål Jensen** · 10-24-2020, 01:52 PM - **1 Like**

Just been out shooting auroras with my K-3. It was constant struggle. It kept changing shutter speed and/or aperture constantly in Manual(M) mode. Sometimes (more often than not) I was not allowed to choose a certain apertures (like larger than F:4 ) and/or not allowed to choose shutter speeds longer than 20s (30s is max manual shutter speed). After I had shot an image the camera would have changed shutter speed and/or aperture for the next exposure. I thought the whole idea with manual mode is that you set the shutter speed/aperture combination you want and that's it until you change it.
Have to use Bulb mode and the watch.
Is there some sort of weird custom function (can't find it) that cause this behaviour or is the camera bonkers?

Shot this 1.5 hours ago (and plenty of others)....
Pentax K-3 + DA* 11-18/2.8, at 11mm F.2.8, 30s 800ISO

(The rather unfortunate red light at right corner is the landing light for the airport, It is behind a hill and not visible to me but it obviously light up the landscape surrounding it)

Last edited by Pål Jensen; 10-24-2020 at 02:01 PM.

C_Jones · 10-24-2020, 02:01 PM

You may want to do a reset if you can not discover the specific setting or someone else does not point it out to you. I was going to mention that you were possibly in an auto mode and did not know it, but it sounds like you are well aware that you are in Manual mode. You may want to try some of the auto modes and see if their functions are behaving normally just to know if they are affected.

**ramseybuckeye** · 10-24-2020, 02:08 PM

Any chance the dial was actually not locked into a mode? But even if that was the case I would think it would go to an adjoining mode; which shouldn’t do that.

**Pål Jensen** · 10-24-2020, 02:09 PM

Yes, the camera behaves as if it was in some sort of program mode but the mode dial was set to M. Right now the camera will not let me set an aperture wider than F:3.5 in M mode in spite of the fact that it is it is a 2.8 lens.
The camera seems to work fine in other exposure modes as far as I can tell....

stevebrot · 10-24-2020, 02:40 PM - **4 Likes**

Originally posted by Pål Jensen

Yes, the camera behaves as if it was in some sort of program mode but the mode dial was set to M. Right now the camera will not let me set an aperture wider than F:3.5 in M mode in spite of the fact that it is it is a 2.8 lens.
The camera seems to work fine in other exposure modes as far as I can tell....

Any chance you are set to bracket?

Steve

**UncleVanya** · 10-24-2020, 02:43 PM

If you have already tried these my apologies. I suggest you:

1) try a fresh battery and try using a different lens.

2) reset as suggested and clean the lens contacts.

3) update firmware if not already up to date.

**UncleVanya** · 10-24-2020, 02:43 PM

Originally posted by stevebrot

Any chance you are set to bracket?

Steve

That's a great question. That's bit me in the butt before.

hcc · 10-24-2020, 03:17 PM

+1 for a complete reset.

Take off the battery for at least 24 h. Recharge it 100% in the mean time. (PS: I tend to use genuine Pentax battery to get the best cahrge.)

I had once a weird pb with my K-3, and a complete reset was the solution.

Hope that you will solve your issue, The k-3 is a great camera body and it is rare to have much issues.

swanlefitte · 10-24-2020, 03:56 PM

It was like program mode so maybe the green button had something happening like a strap pressed across it?

Paul the Sunman · 10-24-2020, 04:27 PM

What was the temperature?

C_Jones · 10-24-2020, 05:23 PM

You may want to make sure the lens is locked into position also. Or remove it and then put it on the camera again, fully mounted.

**Pål Jensen** · 10-25-2020, 03:45 AM

Originally posted by stevebrot

Any chance you are set to bracket?

Aaargh..that solved it

But there's no indication on the top panel that bracketing is engaged. The single frame shooting symbol is on. And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode?

**Larrymc** · 10-25-2020, 05:01 AM

Originally posted by Pål Jensen

Aaargh..that solved it

But there's no indication on the top panel that bracketing is engaged. The single frame shooting symbol is on. And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode?

The Bracketing Symbol should show up centered under the exposure meter, just to the left and above the battery indicator. The number of shots depends upon how you have configured bracketing. The single frame shooting symbol is in the smaller box in the bottom left of the top panel. Or at least mine is.

Larry

Paul the Sunman · 10-25-2020, 05:13 AM

Originally posted by Pål Jensen

And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode?

Not unless you have "One-Push Bracketing" set in the C2 menu.

**Madaboutpix** · 10-25-2020, 05:14 AM

Originally posted by Pål Jensen

And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode?

If you want your K-3 II to behave that way, you would indeed have to activate One-Push Bracketing in Item #9 of the C2 Menue. The default value is Off, i.e. one bracketing exposure per shutter actuation. While this seems intuitive enough to me, given that I usually want to decide when to expose the separate shots, I sure dig how easy one can be thrown off by this if you expect otherwise.

P.S. It seems I take too long to phrase my posts - Paul has beaten me to it.

10-24-2020, 01:52 PM - 1 Like	#1
Pål Jensen Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Norway Photos: Albums Posts: 4,371	My K-3 is acting weirdly in manual mode Just been out shooting auroras with my K-3. It was constant struggle. It kept changing shutter speed and/or aperture constantly in Manual(M) mode. Sometimes (more often than not) I was not allowed to choose a certain apertures (like larger than F:4 ) and/or not allowed to choose shutter speeds longer than 20s (30s is max manual shutter speed). After I had shot an image the camera would have changed shutter speed and/or aperture for the next exposure. I thought the whole idea with manual mode is that you set the shutter speed/aperture combination you want and that's it until you change it. Have to use Bulb mode and the watch. Is there some sort of weird custom function (can't find it) that cause this behaviour or is the camera bonkers? Shot this 1.5 hours ago (and plenty of others).... Pentax K-3 + DA* 11-18/2.8, at 11mm F.2.8, 30s 800ISO (The rather unfortunate red light at right corner is the landing light for the airport, It is behind a hill and not visible to me but it obviously light up the landscape surrounding it) Last edited by Pål Jensen; 10-24-2020 at 02:01 PM.

10-25-2020, 05:01 AM	#13
Larrymc Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Mississippi, USA Posts: 5,252	Originally posted by Pål Jensen Aaargh..that solved it But there's no indication on the top panel that bracketing is engaged. The single frame shooting symbol is on. And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode? The Bracketing Symbol should show up centered under the exposure meter, just to the left and above the battery indicator. The number of shots depends upon how you have configured bracketing. The single frame shooting symbol is in the smaller box in the bottom left of the top panel. Or at least mine is. Larry Last edited by Larrymc; 10-25-2020 at 05:13 AM.

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10-24-2020, 02:01 PM	#2
C_Jones Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: NY Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,084	You may want to do a reset if you can not discover the specific setting or someone else does not point it out to you. I was going to mention that you were possibly in an auto mode and did not know it, but it sounds like you are well aware that you are in Manual mode. You may want to try some of the auto modes and see if their functions are behaving normally just to know if they are affected.

10-24-2020, 02:08 PM	#3
ramseybuckeye Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hampstead, NC Photos: Gallery Posts: 17,295	Any chance the dial was actually not locked into a mode? But even if that was the case I would think it would go to an adjoining mode; which shouldn’t do that.

10-24-2020, 02:09 PM	#4
Pål Jensen Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Norway Photos: Albums Posts: 4,371 Original Poster	Yes, the camera behaves as if it was in some sort of program mode but the mode dial was set to M. Right now the camera will not let me set an aperture wider than F:3.5 in M mode in spite of the fact that it is it is a 2.8 lens. The camera seems to work fine in other exposure modes as far as I can tell....

10-24-2020, 02:40 PM - 4 Likes	#5
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by Pål Jensen Yes, the camera behaves as if it was in some sort of program mode but the mode dial was set to M. Right now the camera will not let me set an aperture wider than F:3.5 in M mode in spite of the fact that it is it is a 2.8 lens. The camera seems to work fine in other exposure modes as far as I can tell.... Any chance you are set to bracket? Steve

10-24-2020, 02:43 PM	#6
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,460	If you have already tried these my apologies. I suggest you: 1) try a fresh battery and try using a different lens. 2) reset as suggested and clean the lens contacts. 3) update firmware if not already up to date.

10-24-2020, 02:43 PM	#7
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,460	Originally posted by stevebrot Any chance you are set to bracket? Steve That's a great question. That's bit me in the butt before.

10-24-2020, 03:17 PM	#8
hcc Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Brisbane, Australia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,005	+1 for a complete reset. Take off the battery for at least 24 h. Recharge it 100% in the mean time. (PS: I tend to use genuine Pentax battery to get the best cahrge.) I had once a weird pb with my K-3, and a complete reset was the solution. Hope that you will solve your issue, The k-3 is a great camera body and it is rare to have much issues.

10-24-2020, 03:56 PM	#9
swanlefitte Pentaxian Join Date: May 2015 Location: Minneapolis Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,068	It was like program mode so maybe the green button had something happening like a strap pressed across it?

10-24-2020, 04:27 PM	#10
Paul the Sunman Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,847	What was the temperature?

10-24-2020, 05:23 PM	#11
C_Jones Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: NY Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,084	You may want to make sure the lens is locked into position also. Or remove it and then put it on the camera again, fully mounted.

10-25-2020, 03:45 AM	#12
Pål Jensen Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Norway Photos: Albums Posts: 4,371 Original Poster	Originally posted by stevebrot Any chance you are set to bracket? Aaargh..that solved it But there's no indication on the top panel that bracketing is engaged. The single frame shooting symbol is on. And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode?

10-25-2020, 05:13 AM	#14
Paul the Sunman Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Melbourne Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,847	Originally posted by Pål Jensen And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode? Not unless you have "One-Push Bracketing" set in the C2 menu.

10-25-2020, 05:14 AM	#15
Madaboutpix Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: North Rhine-Westphalia Posts: 1,446	Originally posted by Pål Jensen And isn't it supposed to take all images (5 in this case) when you press the shutter release in bracketing mode? If you want your K-3 II to behave that way, you would indeed have to activate One-Push Bracketing in Item #9 of the C2 Menue. The default value is Off, i.e. one bracketing exposure per shutter actuation. While this seems intuitive enough to me, given that I usually want to decide when to expose the separate shots, I sure dig how easy one can be thrown off by this if you expect otherwise. P.S. It seems I take too long to phrase my posts - Paul has beaten me to it.

My K-3 is acting weirdly in manual mode

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