a total newbie needs help with actuations and lenses

kwonjustin · 02-11-2009, 02:10 PM

so... im a complete newbie with dslr...

i've spent some time wit a pentax film slr that my dad bought me
when i was in high school... but i never had dslr.....

anyways... the question is

how much do actuations/shutter count matter???
i know its like the car mileage and stuff...
i should judge the camera by just the actuation..
but i have no frame of reference or anything like that.....

since im just trying to get into dslr, i was thinking of getting a used one...
(of course a PENTAX!!! woot woot!)
but the actuations kinda got me worried/confused at same time...

what's the good/decent actuation count for a used dslr for a newbie like me???

also i have these glasses that my dad bought me with the film slr

SMC Pentax-FAJ 1:3.5(22) - 5.6(38) 28-80mm AL
SMC Pentax-FA 80-200mm 1:4.7-5.6

since i have the 28-80mm...
would it make more sense for me to just use that lens wit the dslr im gonna get,
or should i get the DA 18-55mm that are usually bundled???

any advice/recommendation would be great.

thanks guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

codiac2600 · 02-11-2009, 02:40 PM

Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad.

Anything in the 20,000 range is good because with normal use it shouldn't reach anything too crazy for a couple of years.

I'm an odd case and pretty much abused that camera

ftpaddict · 02-11-2009, 03:00 PM

Originally posted by kwonjustin

also i have these glasses that my dad bought me with the film slr

SMC Pentax-FAJ 1:3.5(22) - 5.6(38) 28-80mm AL
SMC Pentax-FA 80-200mm 1:4.7-5.6

since i have the 28-80mm...
would it make more sense for me to just use that lens wit the dslr im gonna get,
or should i get the DA 18-55mm that are usually bundled???

any advice/recommendation would be great.

Chris has you covered on the actuation part, so I'll tackle the lenses:

The FA J 28-80 doesn't go as wide as you might like on a digital SLR, so I would recommend that, if at all possible, you get the 18-55 with your camera, or buy one separately afterwards. It outperforms the 28-80 both in wide-angle coverage and optical performance. I own both, and I've used both extensively.

falconeye · 02-11-2009, 03:13 PM

Originally posted by codiac2600

Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad.

codiac, I think you have the highest actuation count of all which have been documented.

BTW, what went bad, eventually?

kwonjustin · 02-11-2009, 03:59 PM

Originally posted by codiac2600

Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad.

Anything in the 20,000 range is good because with normal use it shouldn't reach anything too crazy for a couple of years.

I'm an odd case and pretty much abused that camera

dang... 102k actuation???!!!! wow... i've never seen any actuation count as remotely as high as that. haha

thanks for the replies..
i was leaning toward buying the 18-55... and this settles it. haha

and oh yea... Chris, what did go bad??? just curious... haha

and ftpaddict, do you use the FAJ one much??? or do you just mostly use the 18-55?
i was thinking about giving my film slr to my sis.. so just wondering.

ftpaddict · 02-12-2009, 03:40 AM

Originally posted by kwonjustin

and ftpaddict, do you use the FAJ one much??? or do you just mostly use the 18-55?
i was thinking about giving my film slr to my sis.. so just wondering.

I use the 18-55 on digital and the 28-80 with my film camera. The 28-80 exhibits strange ghosting artefacts on digital if it is not stopped down, but I see no such problem on film.

**Kerrowdown** · 02-12-2009, 05:52 AM

Welcome to the forum, don't get too wrapped around the axle with actuations and stuff, just get out there with a newly acquired Pentax camera, your fathers lenses and enjoy your photography.

Then later on you can start plotting to feed your LBA.

AndrewG NY · 02-17-2009, 01:06 PM

The 80-200 4.7-5.6 (at least the 'F' version) telezoom is actually pretty good optically even if it is kind of low-rent plastic construction. It is internal-zoom (doesn't extend while zooming) which is a nice design feature. I'd say hang onto this rather than upgrading to a DA50-200 and save your pennies for a DA55-300 later.

You'll probably find that the FA-J 28-80 isn't worth much on the used market. You might want to play with it a bit though...sometimes film-friendly focal length ranges like that are handy because they extend from 'normal' to 'short telephoto'/portrait range--nice for taking head & shoulders portraits across a room. The 18-55 is kind of short for something like that...plus your telezoom doesn't start until 80mm so it helps fill that gap.

Both the FA 80-200/4.7-5.6 and the FA-J 28-80 are criticized for their plastic lens mounts. I wouldn't worry about this too much. Before you wear those out you'll probably want to upgrade them anyway.

02-11-2009, 02:10 PM	#1
kwonjustin Inactive Account Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Berkeley, CA Posts: 33	a total newbie needs help with actuations and lenses so... im a complete newbie with dslr... i've spent some time wit a pentax film slr that my dad bought me when i was in high school... but i never had dslr..... anyways... the question is how much do actuations/shutter count matter??? i know its like the car mileage and stuff... i should judge the camera by just the actuation.. but i have no frame of reference or anything like that..... since im just trying to get into dslr, i was thinking of getting a used one... (of course a PENTAX!!! woot woot!) but the actuations kinda got me worried/confused at same time... what's the good/decent actuation count for a used dslr for a newbie like me??? also i have these glasses that my dad bought me with the film slr SMC Pentax-FAJ 1:3.5(22) - 5.6(38) 28-80mm AL SMC Pentax-FA 80-200mm 1:4.7-5.6 since i have the 28-80mm... would it make more sense for me to just use that lens wit the dslr im gonna get, or should i get the DA 18-55mm that are usually bundled??? any advice/recommendation would be great. thanks guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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02-11-2009, 02:40 PM	#2
codiac2600 Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Rockford, Illinois Posts: 2,027	Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad. Anything in the 20,000 range is good because with normal use it shouldn't reach anything too crazy for a couple of years. I'm an odd case and pretty much abused that camera

02-11-2009, 03:00 PM	#3
ftpaddict Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Yurp Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,666	Originally posted by kwonjustin also i have these glasses that my dad bought me with the film slr SMC Pentax-FAJ 1:3.5(22) - 5.6(38) 28-80mm AL SMC Pentax-FA 80-200mm 1:4.7-5.6 since i have the 28-80mm... would it make more sense for me to just use that lens wit the dslr im gonna get, or should i get the DA 18-55mm that are usually bundled??? any advice/recommendation would be great. Chris has you covered on the actuation part, so I'll tackle the lenses: The FA J 28-80 doesn't go as wide as you might like on a digital SLR, so I would recommend that, if at all possible, you get the 18-55 with your camera, or buy one separately afterwards. It outperforms the 28-80 both in wide-angle coverage and optical performance. I own both, and I've used both extensively.

02-11-2009, 03:13 PM	#4
falconeye Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Munich, Alps, Germany Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,871	Originally posted by codiac2600 Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad. codiac, I think you have the highest actuation count of all which have been documented. BTW, what went bad, eventually?

02-11-2009, 03:59 PM	#5
kwonjustin Inactive Account Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Berkeley, CA Posts: 33 Original Poster	Originally posted by codiac2600 Well my K10D just went into the shop last week with aprox. 102,000 actuations and it wasn't the shutter that went bad. Anything in the 20,000 range is good because with normal use it shouldn't reach anything too crazy for a couple of years. I'm an odd case and pretty much abused that camera dang... 102k actuation???!!!! wow... i've never seen any actuation count as remotely as high as that. haha thanks for the replies.. i was leaning toward buying the 18-55... and this settles it. haha and oh yea... Chris, what did go bad??? just curious... haha and ftpaddict, do you use the FAJ one much??? or do you just mostly use the 18-55? i was thinking about giving my film slr to my sis.. so just wondering.

02-12-2009, 03:40 AM	#6
ftpaddict Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Yurp Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,666	Originally posted by kwonjustin and ftpaddict, do you use the FAJ one much??? or do you just mostly use the 18-55? i was thinking about giving my film slr to my sis.. so just wondering. I use the 18-55 on digital and the 28-80 with my film camera. The 28-80 exhibits strange ghosting artefacts on digital if it is not stopped down, but I see no such problem on film.

02-12-2009, 05:52 AM	#7
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,864	Welcome to the forum, don't get too wrapped around the axle with actuations and stuff, just get out there with a newly acquired Pentax camera, your fathers lenses and enjoy your photography. Then later on you can start plotting to feed your LBA.

02-17-2009, 01:06 PM	#8
AndrewG NY Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Chappaqua, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 688	The 80-200 4.7-5.6 (at least the 'F' version) telezoom is actually pretty good optically even if it is kind of low-rent plastic construction. It is internal-zoom (doesn't extend while zooming) which is a nice design feature. I'd say hang onto this rather than upgrading to a DA50-200 and save your pennies for a DA55-300 later. You'll probably find that the FA-J 28-80 isn't worth much on the used market. You might want to play with it a bit though...sometimes film-friendly focal length ranges like that are handy because they extend from 'normal' to 'short telephoto'/portrait range--nice for taking head & shoulders portraits across a room. The 18-55 is kind of short for something like that...plus your telezoom doesn't start until 80mm so it helps fill that gap. Both the FA 80-200/4.7-5.6 and the FA-J 28-80 are criticized for their plastic lens mounts. I wouldn't worry about this too much. Before you wear those out you'll probably want to upgrade them anyway.