[aleonx3]

For the OP, I feel for you, however, based on what you described, you and the k-x need to catchup with each other. As to whether the k-x failed you or you failed the k-x, you are the only who can tell. On a bright sunny day at high noon.. do you have a polarizer or ND filter on the lens? Have you thought about trying the same shoot with her in the shade?

[twitch]

It's an interesting mentality that develops when using auto modes without understanding camera basics, if the photos don't turn out it must be the cameras fault The K-x is actually a superb camera capable of excellent pictures.

[wildman]

You say nothing about post processing.

Shooting backlit subjects under these conditions and no camera is going to do all the work for you. No machine is that smart.

Any PP and do you shot in raw?


Ran through ACR and brought up the fill light a bit and that's all.
A high res RAW and some PP and you would have done much better.

[TOUGEFC]

From what Ive seen and read here, you have a long way to go yet before you out grow the K-X.

You really needto pay attention to light, during the midday the light is so harsh and uneven, its the worst time to shoot.

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Last edited by TOUGEFC; 07-27-2011 at 06:23 PM.

[johnmflores]

Sucks that you had a hard/challenging shoot, man. Those are always really stressful times. But the video looks pretty good and there's a lot of good tips being offered here. Here's a couple more:

- If you haven't already, think about taking a class to learn more about your K-x. Check out your local community colleges or the International Center for Photography or other places around NYC. The K-x may be an entry-level dSLR, but it's very capable and in many ways a huuuge step up from a point-and-shoot

- Practice. A challenging photo session like yours can make you nervous about the next one. So before your next shoot, scout the location the day before, choose possible places to shoot, and bring a couple of friends - one to be your test subject and the other to help with any umbrellas or reflectors or other things your might bring along. Have them swap roles after a while and pay them with a couple of slices of pizza and some photos they can use on Facebook. Get comfortable and confident with your gear. You'll be ready for the next day and your model will pick up your confident vibe.

Best of luck and let us know how it goes....

[rawr]

i guess the moral of the story is that i need more accessories

Not necessarily. About the only extra accessory I would suggest you get would be a reflector. But gear isn't the main issue. Even if you had a $10000 Hasselblad the results would have been the same.

You just need more practice and experience. You made a lot of basic mistakes in that shoot.

I'd suggest going out to the beach again with a friend and the same gear and just doing a practice shoot to learn how to shoot in that environment (under less pressure) and figure out how to get better results. I'd also suggest you tune into one of the many videos around on YouTube where they describe beach shoots - eg some of those 'the making of sports illustrated cover' bikini shoots - to see what the pros do with reflectors, spot metering and arranging the model.

[agsy]

I'm sure most of us went through a disappointment after switching from a P&S to a DSLR. I had the FZ 35 Panasonic P&S before purchasing my k-x. Once I switched to the K-x, I realized that Auto mode on a DSLR is very disappointing. My FZ35 was doing a better job in auto mode; however with a little research and perseverance, I got the results I wanted and finally proved to my wife that it was worth the upgrade . In your situation I would definitely use manual mode (I am not sure why would your Kx change the settings on it's own set to manual), and as many pointed it out already, a high speed sync flash. And of course, practice, practice, practice . The K-x is a capable camera, even in your shooting situation.

[BigDave]

Your biggest problem is you do not have enough light on the subject. I have found that dark skin needs one stop more light than light skin, so a bright day at noon like this is going to be the worst time to shoot.

For more light, use a reflector as suggested to bounce light into the face, etc., or use the flash. However, a large reflector on the beach, with the wind, may require more than one assistant! I have used the on-camera flash quite effectively in close in situations, but I shoot in manual mode, not any of the auto settings. With my K7 I can dial in the ambient light exposure and then use the flash compensation to increase or decrease the flash exposure. It works quite well. Add a nice dedicated flash for more power, it will be worth the price. Using an ND filter to reduce the overall light because of the need to use 1/180th sec due to the flash, yes, may also be necessary.

Noon light sucks, especially for work as you have done. It creates harsh shadows from overhead, provides no real accentuation options and is usually extra bright. Do an early morning shoot, when no one is on the beach! You had some unattractive/distracting people in the B/G. And shooting in the 104 Degree heat? SHE was fine as she had the water. You're lucky you did not get heat stroke!

[excanonfd]

Normally flash outputs all light in one big blast. For ordinary flash, sensor must be fully visible (completely open shutter) at this time.
HSS outputs in a longer, continuous but weaker ripple output, that results in the same total light amount. The start and end of the output is synchronized with the beginning and end of shutter action the sensor is not lighted all at once, but trough the slit that travels across the shutter. Thats the short story...

Hi-speed (FP) Flash Synchronization

Thanks for that but which flash for Pentax DSLR can sync at 1/1000 sec and higher, there is no specific flash mentioned at photozone.

[BrianR]

...for one thing the KX was always changing the exposure automatically even when i had the camera in manual mode....

You need to look into this carefully. If the exposure is changing on its own in manual mode, then something is faulty and your k-x did in fact fail you.

If it's not faulty...well then you failed your k-x. It's capable of much better. Things I'd suggest you look into-

1. What metering mode are you in? Spot?
2. Consider including the exif in the images you post, it will help in the trouble shooting.
3. IMO, forget any of the auto exposure modes, they are too unreliable in situations like this unless you know how to adjust the exposure bias to compensate for the scene you've framed. Manual exposure is your friend here ('course if your camera really is busted...).
4. When shooting in territory you aren't familiar with (like a sunny beach here), you should go beforehand and practice, practice, practice until you can get the results you will be happy with before bringing in the model with the tight schedule.
5. You should be able to manual focus in the bright sun using your viewfinder. Seriously, if you want to use manual focus lenses, you might want to practice this. Actually using the viewfinder as opposed to the lcd to compose is generally recommended when hand holding for a more stable platform.
6. A cheap reflector+ assistant will go a long way in the backlit situation you have here. Cheaper than a flash, easier for you to use than a flash (you can see the results of moving the reflector around), and no futzing about trying to stay within sync limits. (not that it can't be done with flash(es), just my vote is for a reflector in your case here for these reasons)

Good luck!

[twitch]

Thanks for that but which flash for Pentax DSLR can sync at 1/1000 sec and higher, there is no specific flash mentioned at photozone.

Pentax 360, 540, Metz 48, 50, 58, Sigma line of "super" flashes.

[unixrevolution]

I agree with the above comments that this was an extremely difficult subject to get right, and if it was me shooting it, I'd have an assistant, a reflector, and a camera on Manual mode.

Or at least, I'd have realized once I got there that I SHOULD have had an assistant and a reflector, but i'd still be shooting on manual.

If my camera was changing my settings in manual, I'd also be looking for a camera repair shop. But the big thing is: Automatic modes, especially so-called "Scene" modes, are pretty much rubbish. One doesn't buy a DSLR for automation. One buys a DSLR to be able to over-ride the automation when the automatic modes are too stupid to know what to do.

[agsy]

But the big thing is: Automatic modes, especially so-called "Scene" modes, are pretty much rubbish. One doesn't buy a DSLR for automation. One buys a DSLR to be able to over-ride the automation when the automatic modes are too stupid to know what to do.

Exactly.

Pentax 360, 540, Metz 48, 50, 58, Sigma line of "super" flashes.

I have recently acquired a Sigma 530 DG Super and WOW, high speed sync is awesome! The only thing is that you cannot use HSS in wireless mode. Any of the mentioned flashes would make a big difference in those shooting situations. If you buy two or more of them, you could probably use them all in HSS with one of them on your camera as a trigger and the others in wireless that way you set them up in locations best suited for your desired lighting.

[adwb]

I would suggest hat the op should have been using raw for the extra head room
the op should have used exposure bracketing
the op should combine the bracketed images and problem would be solved
if you look at the images the back grounds are well exposed [with the exception of that last one ]
if the op had shot 1 stop over and used even something as basic as auto exposure in PS elements the exposures combined would have been fine.

OP try this take your first image and correct the exposure to get the subject correctly exposed save it and then combine it with the original and see what you get.

I don't think it's a camera problem, I think [and I am not being rude] the op just does not know how to operate his camera in a high dynamic situation.

[adwb]

I would suggest hat the op should have been using raw for the extra head room
the op should have used exposure bracketing
the op should combine the bracketed images and problem would be solved
if you look at the images the back grounds are well exposed [with the exception of that last one ]
if the op had shot 1 stop over and used even something as basic as auto exposure in PS elements the exposures combined would have been fine.

OP try this take your first image and correct the exposure to get the subject correctly exposed save it and then combine it with the original and see what you get.

I don't think it's a camera problem, I think [and I am not being rude] the op just does not know how to operate his camera in a high dynamic situation.

here you are 0 seconds work in ps/ from a screen capture