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07-12-2010, 08:13 AM   #16
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QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
I don't see mention here of an external flash. I've yet to get my first DSLR, am favoring the K-x at the moment, but have it in mind that I need an external flash early on based on the heavy recommendation by Scott Kelby in his Digital Photography Book (Volumes one and two), which I purchased. He says that portraiture without external flash is a disgrace, essentially (and explains why). I understand that the high ISO performance of the K-x is exceptional, however figure that under certain conditions an external flash can be instrumental in achieving great results. What external flash possibilities are there with the K-x?
Here is THE definitive site on comparing all flashes compatible with Pentax DSLRs. Site is made and maintained by a Pentax Forums member too.

I think the statement about portraiture and external flash ought to be clarified a bit. If you use the onboard pop-up flash as-is, yes, this will yield pretty poor results almost all the time. This is because the light is direct and harsh. If you can find a way to re-direct the light elsewhere, you will have indirect and softer lighting.

You can make or buy flash diffusers for your onboard pop-up flash that will yield much better results than just using a pop-up flash as-is. If money is tight, this would be a good option. I myself just angled a white index card in front of my pop-up flash for about a month before I convinced my wife that we needed an external flash

If money is not tight, then yes, an external flash is a great thing to have. Make sure it has tilt/swivel capabilities, which will let you direct the light upwards/backwards/sideways.

QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
Beyond these things I figure I'll need a bag, a UV filter or two (to protect the lenses, more than anything), a polarizing filter maybe, 2 sets of Eneloops. I have a couple of 4GB SDHC cards, but they were a bargain purchase a couple of years ago, nothing special. Are they apt to function OK or will I not be satisfied with them?
The jury is out on UV filters. There are people on both sides of that issue. From the opinions I see on these forums (not scientifically rigorously determined), it seems like a slight majority of people here are against UV filters to protect the lens, unless you are in a harsh environment like seaside or Afghanistan or something.

Polarizing filter is good, especially if you are shooting outdoors. Make sure you get high quality filters if you are going to use them.

Eneloops are the best AAs you will ever put in your DSLR.

Your old SDHC cards will probably work, but the speed might be lacking. Would be good to purchase some ones that you know are fast. Sandisk Ultras are good, Sandisk Extremes are better. I think Lexar is a good brand too, just make sure you are getting a fast one. Of course, if you have absolutely no need for ever doing continuous shooting, you can stay with your old ones.


Last edited by ChooseAName; 07-12-2010 at 08:15 AM. Reason: re: eneloops
07-12-2010, 10:40 AM   #17
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QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
I don't see mention here of an external flash. I've yet to get my first DSLR, am favoring the K-x at the moment, but have it in mind that I need an external flash early on based on the heavy recommendation by Scott Kelby in his Digital Photography Book (Volumes one and two), which I purchased.
You have to realize that this is almost a religious issue - as is the UV filter question (see the many previous discussion of this to see why so many recommend *not* using them). Some are insistent that you must use these things, others are equally insistent on not using them. Well, in the case of flash, I don't know that anyone would say it has no place in photography, but there are plenty who are happier shooting without it most of the time. I tend to be in that camp myself, but I'm not a portrait photographer primarily.

Not having read Kelby's book, I can't say what his particular biases might be, but it seems possible to me you are taking his advice a *bit* out of context. I can easily imagine him saying a few things that sort of sound like what you said, but are a bit different. *If* you take portraits using flash, then using the onboard flash only would be mistake. You want light not to come from directly in front of your subject, and there's no way to make the onboard flash not do that (well, there are bounce devices that can be used, but they only get you so far). So *if* you use flash in portraiture, it should be off-camera. But that's not to say you have to use flash at all - you just need some way of controlling the direction of the light you are using. There's no reason you can't shoot effective portraits using constant lighting (eg, lamps, skylight coming through a window, sunlight bounced off a reflector), and plenty of professional portraits are done this way.

Still, those alternate lighting methods aren't always as convenient as flash, and probably almost all serious portrait photographers use flash at least some if not most of the time. And again, *if* you use flash in portraiture, having it not come directly from the camera is practically a necessity. Bouncing an on-camera flash (whether the built-in flash or an external flash mounted to the camera) is OK for casual portraiture, but if you are going to get serious about portraiture, you will want to get your flash off camera. But note much serious portraiture is not done with handheld flash units at all, but larger/heavier flash units mounted to a stand
07-24-2010, 10:41 AM   #18
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I made my post (my first in these forums) on July 11, about two weeks ago, when I was leaning to the K-x. I ordered my K-x 6 days ago and it should arrive in a couple of days. It's the 2 lens kit including the 55-300mm.

Realizing (well, by virtue of reading online only) that the K-x has exceptional high ISO performance, I'm thinking that external flash may not be the high priority I thought just by virtue of reading Scott Kelby's books. Also, I'll hold off on getting UV filters for the time being, anyway. I ordered an Op/Tech Pro strap and a couple of 3rd party lens hoods. Need to get a case/bag of some kind. Maybe I'll order a Lowepro, saw one recommended in a customer report at Amazon.

I believe my memory cards are actually not SDHC but are SD, 2 of them, 2GB. I suppose they'll be really slow. Yes, continuous shooting will be important to me at times. I doubt I need the fastest card for that but I will also want to try out and probably occasionally use the 720p video, and I read some posts that suggested that for best results I'll want a class 10 SDHC card, and a big one to if I want long videos. I've seen 16GB class 10 cards selling for as little as $32 shipped, but also reports of people having very aggravating experiences with them including losing all their data! However, a 16GB Sandisk Extreme II class 10 card on Amazon is over $90 right now. I'm wondering what's the best bang for the buck in storage for me.

Last edited by Muse; 07-24-2010 at 10:47 AM.
07-24-2010, 10:50 AM   #19
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someone already said a cleaning kit but I say most importantly get a blower. better have one before you'll need it, and you will.

the second thing I would recommend is to get a flash, which was also mentioned. my take on this is, go out, shoot a lot of photographs, and see for yourself what you're missing.

07-24-2010, 12:14 PM   #20
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QuoteOriginally posted by Pablom Quote
someone already said a cleaning kit but I say most importantly get a blower. better have one before you'll need it, and you will.

the second thing I would recommend is to get a flash, which was also mentioned. my take on this is, go out, shoot a lot of photographs, and see for yourself what you're missing.
Do you think this blower is adequate?

NEW Rocket Air Dust Blower Camera Lens Filter Cleaner - eBay (item 200499473861 end time Jul-29-10 09:22:57 PDT)
07-24-2010, 12:24 PM   #21
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QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
Realizing (well, by virtue of reading online only) that the K-x has exceptional high ISO performance, I'm thinking that external flash may not be the high priority I thought just by virtue of reading Scott Kelby's books. Also, I'll hold off on getting UV filters for the time being, anyway. I ordered an Op/Tech Pro strap and a couple of 3rd party lens hoods. Need to get a case/bag of some kind. Maybe I'll order a Lowepro, saw one recommended in a customer report at Amazon.
For me, it was quite obvious that a flash would greatly increase my keeper rate. You'll see if you need it or not.

QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
I believe my memory cards are actually not SDHC but are SD, 2 of them, 2GB. I suppose they'll be really slow. Yes, continuous shooting will be important to me at times. I doubt I need the fastest card for that but I will also want to try out and probably occasionally use the 720p video, and I read some posts that suggested that for best results I'll want a class 10 SDHC card, and a big one to if I want long videos. I've seen 16GB class 10 cards selling for as little as $32 shipped, but also reports of people having very aggravating experiences with them including losing all their data! However, a 16GB Sandisk Extreme II class 10 card on Amazon is over $90 right now. I'm wondering what's the best bang for the buck in storage for me.
I think the consensus for memory cards is that you need to go with the best brand names, like Sandisk and Lexar. Many people use 4GB cards in order to mitigate against losing 16 GB worth of pictures if the card goes bad. If I were in the market for another card, I'd get a Sandisk Extreme that was capable of 30MB/s write speed. Currently on B&H, those are $32.50 after rebate.

I currently have a Sandisk Ultra II with a write speed of 15 MB/s. I'm not quite sure if it's the K200D buffer or the card itself, but I have been a bit less than pleased about the rapid fire limitations of my system. I don't think I have missed many perfect moments because of that though, thank goodness.
07-24-2010, 01:49 PM   #22
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I didn't encounter a "bad" blower yet. it's just a piece of rubber with a hole in each side that blows air when you squeeze it. simple but very useful, I use it to clean everything.
never heard of a blower dismantling inside a camera while cleaning, but I might be misinformed.
I'd buy it if that's what your asking.

07-24-2010, 02:12 PM   #23
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QuoteOriginally posted by shakeresistant Quote
Hi Everyone,

I just bought a Pentax K-x with the standard 18-55mm lens. I am still on a learning curve but I wanted to know what basic accessories do I need to possess to get that (additonal) extra edge when taking photographs.

Thanks.
SR
O-ME53 + MF screen
AF540FGZ (* 2 + umbrellas, softboxes, etc to have a decent light)
good raw converter
IPS-type monitor + something to calibrate it
07-24-2010, 09:57 PM   #24
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QuoteOriginally posted by deejjjaaaa Quote
O-ME53 + MF screen
AF540FGZ (* 2 + umbrellas, softboxes, etc to have a decent light)
good raw converter
IPS-type monitor + something to calibrate it
Could you elaborate on these ideas some? This is all pretty much newspeak to me.
07-24-2010, 10:02 PM   #25
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QuoteOriginally posted by Pablom Quote
I didn't encounter a "bad" blower yet. it's just a piece of rubber with a hole in each side that blows air when you squeeze it. simple but very useful, I use it to clean everything.
never heard of a blower dismantling inside a camera while cleaning, but I might be misinformed.
I'd buy it if that's what your asking.
Isn't there just one hole?

I was think that a blower was just to blow dust off lenses, but I get the idea now that you can also stick it inside the camera body to blow out particles of dust or whatever. This is considered safer than canned air? I suppose that canned air would exert too much force in there, is the idea, right?
07-25-2010, 11:22 AM   #26
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QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
Isn't there just one hole?

I was think that a blower was just to blow dust off lenses, but I get the idea now that you can also stick it inside the camera body to blow out particles of dust or whatever. This is considered safer than canned air? I suppose that canned air would exert too much force in there, is the idea, right?
canned air may blow other things rather than air into your camera, or so I've been told

my rubber blower has a little hole in the back too
07-25-2010, 01:15 PM   #27
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Sounds like sound advice so far. I been shooting a K200D for over a year and agree with most stuff. No way I'd trust my camera & lens to a cheap tripod. B&H had good deals. Try shooting different styles, landscape, people, animals, b&w, etc. to decide what you enjoy. I'm still doing that. As to SD cards, I buy name brand and several smaller cards. I a card dies while shooting, you can use another one ! As to the topic of, speed faster is better for RAW. I find JEPG if done well is as good as RAW whitout all that time spent on postprocessing. A good strap is helpful on a long shoot. I got a Blackrapid sling strap and love it . A Tragus monpod is fun too ($20).
07-25-2010, 02:11 PM   #28
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QuoteOriginally posted by Muse Quote
Could you elaborate on these ideas some? This is all pretty much newspeak to me.
O-ME53(A magnifying eyecup) + MF screen (A split lens screen to help with manual focus)

AF540FGZ (A Pentax Flash)

* 2 + umbrellas, softboxes, etc to have a decent light (Studio/portrait lighting equipment)

good raw converter (Software to process raw format images - Plenty of threads on this subject) You do get adequate software with the camera.

IPS-type monitor + something to calibrate it. (A good quality monitor and a monitor calibration kit - Spyder or X-Rite calibration tool and software)

IMO, none of this is essential gear, though many of us end up with most of it or the equivalent. The camera gear is specialty stuff. If you end up doing studio work then you will need lighting kit. If you end up with manual focus lenses or do macro work then the eye cup and focusing screen are helpful. I would wait until you decide what area of photography interests you before getting these things.

Your present monitor is okay for electronic photos. If you end up doing large prints, you will want to to look into upgrading to a better monitor and getting calibration equipment. Most people start without these and are fine. You'll know when you are no longer happy with basic computer and printing hardware.

The same is true for processing software. The Pentax software that comes with the camera is capable. Many folks are happy with Picasa or iPhoto for editing photos. When you hit the limits of those, search for threads on raw processing software.

I'd I'd consider as essential more basic stuff, like a tripod, cleaning kit, lens hood, camera bag, and other gear mentioned earlier.
07-25-2010, 09:18 PM   #29
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I just bought a remote control for mine. $.99 + $1.99 shipping each on the bay. That's less than $3 for a remote. I got 4 of them. If they work it could save me some blurry photos.
07-26-2010, 06:26 AM   #30
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QuoteOriginally posted by SelfEmployedDebtFree Quote
I just bought a remote control for mine. $.99 + $1.99 shipping each on the bay. That's less than $3 for a remote. I got 4 of them. If they work it could save me some blurry photos.
Could you link me/us? Thanks.

I was wondering, I saw a post from a guy who said he programmed or used one of the pre-programmed codes on his TV remote to work with his K-x. Anyone know about this? I have a universal programmable TV remote that would maybe work. I'd just have to find the code.
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