Disappointed by the K-m photos :-(

**mikesbike** · 01-17-2019, 07:09 PM

Originally posted by billdotjr

Bright made the dark part darker, but for example the tree was just black then
-

The "Bright" setting has contrast up by default to +1, as well as sharpening up by the same figure. It also has a richer color palette. You can go into the menu of the "Bright" category and reduce contrast back to mid-point if desired. Or you could use another category as you did. I don't know the K-m controls, so I cannot be sure enough to help you open the Custom Image category menu to implement adjustments. Maybe via the info button? when you bring up the links to various adjustments, the 4 buttons surrounding the ok button will serve for navigation in making and selecting adjustments.

This contrast change would only be for high-contrast scenes, of course. For most scenes, return to the standard setting. It is also here where you can increase sharpening level, adding another notch to +2, and also adding "Fine sharpening" by using your thumb dial, also putting an "F" by the "S". In fact, you might just leave the sharpening level as is, just adding the "Fine sharpening" I remember now, with the K200D's design the camera needed no further sharpening than default- just the "Fine Sharpening" aspect did the trick. Test reviews revealed any higher level would overdo a good thing with the K200D.

This will improve the camera's JPEG output yet more.

Last edited by mikesbike; 01-17-2019 at 07:21 PM.

billdotjr · 01-19-2019, 02:40 AM

Yes, the Sonnar can take photos. :-)

Left Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3, shot at ~180mm 1/250s f/9.5 ISO100 AF
Right Sonnar 180mm f/2.8, shot at 1/750s ~f/7.1 ISO100 MF

The Sonnar is as sharp as the Sigma or even little bit sharper when zooming extremely at the antennas. Contrast seems to be better on the Sigma. The benefit of the Sonnar seems to be in it being faster and sharper sooner allowing for shorter shutter speed.

ZombieArmy · 01-19-2019, 02:52 AM

Originally posted by normhead

A good point for anyone who wasn't brought up with manual focus. Those of us who did that because we had to (because there was nothing else) might find old glass nothing more than tedious. There is value in learning old school discipline, especially for macro or narrow depth of field images. But those skills aren't always applicable. Learning how to select a focus point that keeps your whole image in focus without the benefit of a distance scale /DoF guide is probably more relevant these days than shooting with one of my super taks.

As someone who didn't own a film camera until far after my first digital camera (and thus not being "forced" to use manual lenses), I find the process of taking pictures with my legacy glass to be extremely satisfying. I think modern lenses are great tools, but forcing yourself to slow down with a completely manual approach really helps you grasp the underlying concepts.

Sure my Tak 50 1.4 isn't the sharpest thing in the world but I still can get great shots out of it. And there's really nothing today that can compare to the magic of something like an old Russian biotar copy.

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01-17-2019, 07:09 PM	#46
mikesbike Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Southeastern Michigan Posts: 4,562	Originally posted by billdotjr Bright made the dark part darker, but for example the tree was just black then - The "Bright" setting has contrast up by default to +1, as well as sharpening up by the same figure. It also has a richer color palette. You can go into the menu of the "Bright" category and reduce contrast back to mid-point if desired. Or you could use another category as you did. I don't know the K-m controls, so I cannot be sure enough to help you open the Custom Image category menu to implement adjustments. Maybe via the info button? when you bring up the links to various adjustments, the 4 buttons surrounding the ok button will serve for navigation in making and selecting adjustments. This contrast change would only be for high-contrast scenes, of course. For most scenes, return to the standard setting. It is also here where you can increase sharpening level, adding another notch to +2, and also adding "Fine sharpening" by using your thumb dial, also putting an "F" by the "S". In fact, you might just leave the sharpening level as is, just adding the "Fine sharpening" I remember now, with the K200D's design the camera needed no further sharpening than default- just the "Fine Sharpening" aspect did the trick. Test reviews revealed any higher level would overdo a good thing with the K200D. This will improve the camera's JPEG output yet more. Last edited by mikesbike; 01-17-2019 at 07:21 PM.

01-19-2019, 02:40 AM	#47
billdotjr Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2019 Posts: 25 Original Poster	Yes, the Sonnar can take photos. :-) Left Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3, shot at ~180mm 1/250s f/9.5 ISO100 AF Right Sonnar 180mm f/2.8, shot at 1/750s ~f/7.1 ISO100 MF The Sonnar is as sharp as the Sigma or even little bit sharper when zooming extremely at the antennas. Contrast seems to be better on the Sigma. The benefit of the Sonnar seems to be in it being faster and sharper sooner allowing for shorter shutter speed.

01-19-2019, 02:52 AM	#48
ZombieArmy Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Florida Posts: 3,210	Originally posted by normhead A good point for anyone who wasn't brought up with manual focus. Those of us who did that because we had to (because there was nothing else) might find old glass nothing more than tedious. There is value in learning old school discipline, especially for macro or narrow depth of field images. But those skills aren't always applicable. Learning how to select a focus point that keeps your whole image in focus without the benefit of a distance scale /DoF guide is probably more relevant these days than shooting with one of my super taks. As someone who didn't own a film camera until far after my first digital camera (and thus not being "forced" to use manual lenses), I find the process of taking pictures with my legacy glass to be extremely satisfying. I think modern lenses are great tools, but forcing yourself to slow down with a completely manual approach really helps you grasp the underlying concepts. Sure my Tak 50 1.4 isn't the sharpest thing in the world but I still can get great shots out of it. And there's really nothing today that can compare to the magic of something like an old Russian biotar copy.