[Dartmoor Dave]

At Venford waterfall, on one of those rare occasions when I wished I'd had a tripod with me. I normally prefer chance shots of nice things that I happen to see, but I think this place actually would be worth the effort of pre-planning to get the best light, and doing the whole tripod and misty water routine. Super Takumar 20mm, of course.

[goatsNdonkey]

Switched the lens on the K10D to my Tamron Adaptall-2 13A 24-48mm zoom. I got it in late winter and, after some initial testing, I haven't used it for most of the time since. It benefits from a hood, but I don't have the original hood, and wanted to try out a different one, but just before going out on a short drive to do some picture taking the camera's battery went down, and had to delay until it was mostly recharged. While checking to see if I still had camera setting I wanted after the battery was replaced, I must have unknowingly changed the picture resolution to 2 megapixel. I didn't realize it until noticed the file sizes being so small after copying this morning's pictures into a folder on my computer. Still, for low resolution pictures, they look pretty good. Here's a sample:



Interesting clouds, in this revist to the old grain elevator in Lewistown.

[rayallen]

At Venford waterfall, on one of those rare occasions when I wished I'd had a tripod with me. I normally prefer chance shots of nice things that I happen to see, but I think this place actually would be worth the effort of pre-planning to get the best light, and doing the whole tripod and misty water routine. Super Takumar 20mm, of course.

That is a really beautiful image, Dave. Superbly composed with the benefit of the 20mm. Lots to look at and explore and very easy on the eye. I'm sure there are many more scenes to capture there. Please go back with your tripod.

[woodenbits]

Yesterday received Komine version of Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm f2.8 to replace/supplement Tokina version of the same lens, and just had to get a bit wet today and snap some 'macros'...

[Dartmoor Dave]

I must have unknowingly changed the picture resolution to 2 megapixel. I didn't realize it until noticed the file sizes being so small after copying this morning's pictures into a folder on my computer. Still, for low resolution pictures, they look pretty good. Here's a sample:

Looks good in colour, with a great sense of texture in the rust and corrugated metal, and I bet it would make a beautiful B&W. And 2 megapixels is just about enough to fill a 1920x1080 computer screen. You've made me wonder if maybe I should just set the camera to a lower resolution when I'm shooting jpeg only for web use. Would that help to reduce the noise at higher ISO settings? I think I feel a testing session coming on. . .

That is a really beautiful image, Dave. Superbly composed with the benefit of the 20mm. Lots to look at and explore and very easy on the eye. I'm sure there are many more scenes to capture there. Please go back with your tripod.

Thanks Ray. I've been consulting the Photographer's Ephemeris, and I think a return visit to the waterfall on a sunny evening soon is in order. . . with tripod.

Yesterday received Komine version of Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm f2.8 to replace/supplement Tokina version of the same lens, and just had to get a bit wet today and snap some 'macros'...

The lens looks sharp, sharp, sharp. And I'm wondering about the valve (tube) in the third photo. Judging by (presumed) volume pot also in the photo, I'm guessing it's an amp of some kind. More photos, please!

[paulh]

At Venford waterfall, on one of those rare occasions when I wished I'd had a tripod with me. I normally prefer chance shots of nice things that I happen to see, but I think this place actually would be worth the effort of pre-planning to get the best light, and doing the whole tripod and misty water routine. Super Takumar 20mm, of course.

Gorgeous photo Dave. You take photos the same way I do - stumbling upon chance opportunities to grab a nice shot. I have a rarely-used tripod, but I'm considering a monopod to take on those dogwalks in the woods. It might give me a better chance for some stability, but I'm not too sure about its effectiveness. I hesitate to give up some mobility by lugging a tripod around, but I'm sure I'd get some better images as a result.

[woodenbits]

The lens looks sharp, sharp, sharp. And I'm wondering about the valve (tube) in the third photo. Judging by (presumed) volume pot also in the photo, I'm guessing it's an amp of some kind. More photos, please!

I have to admit to a bit of cheating - I applied some extra sharpening it Darktable to first 2 photos, something I never do; those water droplets were just begging for sharper lines. Being total novice with sharpening tool, have I overdone it?

Still, got to use same lens to shoot at our friends house today and I am very pleased with it - that lens is quite sharp for its focusing distance (and being an old zoom!), and have distinct way of rendering reality that suits me. Got some indoor shots that looked a bit like oil painting, soft gentle pastel colors, sorry, can't post those online. But, there was a cat there, and those I can share





It is a keeper, I think. Sharper than Tokina version of same lens that I got before, with better contrast, and I like its color rendering more. It is not 'tack' sharp, and photos taken with this lens are not amenable to much cropping, but it is sharp enough, and it is the best tele-lens that I have tried so far on Pentax.

As for the tube in a photo, you are right, Dave. It is a headphone amp that I have built from the kit offered by Bottlehead, amp model name is 'Crack', and it has upgrade named 'Speedball' installed. I am not sure what they were smoking when those names were invented but that amp is a really good one. I was just looking to snap a 'disposable' photo when I was pairing EyeFi card with my tablet, and amp was nearby on a table, making it a convenient subject. And later I just could not bring myself to delete this photo, it turned out way better than expected (well, expectation was essentially zero).

[ChristianRock]

One day someone will put the Vivitar/Komine 70-210 f/2.8-4 head to head with the SMC Pentax-A 70-210mm f4 for the ultimate battle of the manual focus zoom teles

Great results with that lens, woodenbits, very pleasing. I personally stick with the aforementioned Pentax 70-210 but that Komine made lens does impress.

[Dartmoor Dave]

Gorgeous photo Dave. You take photos the same way I do - stumbling upon chance opportunities to grab a nice shot. I have a rarely-used tripod, but I'm considering a monopod to take on those dogwalks in the woods. It might give me a better chance for some stability, but I'm not too sure about its effectiveness. I hesitate to give up some mobility by lugging a tripod around, but I'm sure I'd get some better images as a result.

It's those days when you get home with a completely different photo than the one you were expecting to take that makes it so much fun. I tried a monopod a couple of years ago for a while, which was basically a walking pole with a ball head on top, and it did work well in combination with shake reduction to allow some very slow shutter speeds without the hassle of using a tripod. I can't really remember why I gradually stopped using it. Just my general laziness and technical sloppiness, I guess. I think I'll give it another try, if I can ever remember where I put it.

I have to admit to a bit of cheating - I applied some extra sharpening it Darktable to first 2 photos, something I never do; those water droplets were just begging for sharper lines. Being total novice with sharpening tool, have I overdone it?

I don't think it's over-sharpened at all, just a good sharp-looking lens, and I think you're right that it's those water droplets that really make the photos work. I love the second cat photo, with those ears and whiskers on the alert. And thanks for the info about the Bottlehead Crack (plus Speedball). A good tube headphone amp is exactly what I've been looking for recently, so that I can listen to my collection of early classical vinyl with the sort of equipment it was intended for.

[goatsNdonkey]

Looks good in colour, with a great sense of texture in the rust and corrugated metal, and I bet it would make a beautiful B&W. And 2 megapixels is just about enough to fill a 1920x1080 computer screen. You've made me wonder if maybe I should just set the camera to a lower resolution when I'm shooting jpeg only for web use. Would that help to reduce the noise at higher ISO settings? I think I feel a testing session coming on. . .

The 2mpx shots do look good at screen enlargement size, though the rusty grain elevator siding textures don't strike me as being shown as distinctly as they were at 10mpx recently, though shot with a different lens. Dave, it would make an interesting test, however, to shoot a subject such as that one with a particular lens on a K10D at each of the camera's resolutions -- 2mpx, 6mpx, and 10mpx -- just to see how hard it is to tell them apart in online postings, such as here at the forum. it might make an interesting quiz to mix the examples up and see if people could tell, just by looking at the forum posting, which images were shot at which reslolution. I suspect that some of the 6 and 10 mpx examples might be difficult to distinguish, depending on the subject matter.

[woodenbits]

... so that I can listen to my collection of early classical vinyl with the sort of equipment it was intended for.

Yes, that amp will do just that. Contact me in private if you want to chat more about it, do not want to clutter this K10D corner with other (irrelevant) hobbies of mine

Also, very happy to see another person that appreciates early classical vinyl, I am afraid there are not that many of us now. I have probably about 7 linear feet of classical vinyl records, and that is what I mostly listen to those days (usually digitizing it to temporary copies in dsd128 format as I listen, so that I can play them multiple times without extra wear and tear, but digital copies do not sound quite as good despite all my efforts).

Ooops, I am cluttering this place already. Mea culpa.

A little bit back on topic. Tokina version of that Vivitar 70-210mm lens (2nd version) produced softer and gentler images for me. I am sure that in hands of real master of understated pictures (I am looking at you, Dartmoor Dave) it would be great lens, but I just do not have the touch for it. Here is an example, that I think displays both strengths and weaknesses of that lens.



Non-K10D example of same lens: https://flic.kr/p/Xbr7DV

ChristianRock, if you happened to have a picture made with Pentax-A 70-210mm, I would love to see it.

[Dartmoor Dave]

Also, very happy to see another person that appreciates early classical vinyl, I am afraid there are not that many of us now. I have probably about 7 linear feet of classical vinyl records, and that is what I mostly listen to those days (usually digitizing it to temporary copies in dsd128 format as I listen, so that I can play them multiple times without extra wear and tear, but digital copies do not sound quite as good despite all my efforts). Ooops, I am cluttering this place already. Mea culpa.

You're way ahead of me with 7 feet of vinyl. I had actually gone completely digital for about twenty years, but then I started doing some volunteer work for a charity books and records shop and noticed a dusty 4 foot shelf of long-neglected classical vinyl in the back room. So I took the job on, got myself my first turntable for two decades (Pro-Ject RPM 3 to start with, but looking for a used LP12 to go with my Linn LK85 and Kans), and it's now a thriving little operation in-store and on-line that brings in a nice amount of money for good causes.

And of course along the way I've got completely hooked on the sound of vinyl again, and my collection is growing rapidly. Nowadays I feel the same way about digital music as I do about CMOS camera sensors: technically fine, but with no soul. It's sad that pretty much every classical vinyl donation that comes in is the lifetime's collection of a music lover who has passed away, but the excitement of seeing what treasures might come out of the boxes is addictive.

Apologies to the K10D Club for this brief excursion off-topic. Normal pony photo service will be resumed as soon as possible.

[goatsNdonkey]

You're way ahead of me with 7 feet of vinyl. I had actually gone completely digital for about twenty years, but then I started doing some volunteer work for a charity books and records shop and noticed a dusty 4 foot shelf of long-neglected classical vinyl in the back room. ...

Apologies to the K10D Club for this brief excursion off-topic. Normal pony photo service will be resumed as soon as possible.

I'd like to point out that it wouldn't be a digression from photography if this branch of the K10D discussion were illustrated with more photos of phono equipment and records, such as:



ELAC Miracord 50H Turntable, with Stanton E680.V3 Cartridge, playing album shown, certainly a thrift (charity) shop find.
Unseen system components: Mid-1970s vintage Kenwood 5150 solid state receiver, with Kenwood K777-A speakers.
The record collection is very eclectic: Classical to jugband, blues to pre-disco rock, folk, international, lots of Crosby, Armstrong, & Tony Bennet.



K10D in Green Mode, with flip-up flash + Tamron Adaptall-2 13A SP f/3.5-3.8 24-48mm.
Out-of-camera jpeg; sat, cont, & sharp zeroed in settings.

[paulh]

ELAC Miracord 50H Turntable, with Stanton E680.V3 Cartridge

I see you have not one, but three Discwashers in use! I still have mine, from the mid-70s, along with a BIC 940 turntable and Shure (can't remember which model) cartridge. Unfortunately, I have no equipment to connect it to, so it sits in the closet waiting. At one time I had an Advent receiver with the full size Advent speakers, Pioneer EQ and Technics cassette deck. I'm still dragging my boxes of vinyl around - about 300 albums of 70's & 80s rock, blues & jazz. One of these days....

Back on topic, and old one from autumn 2014 with a Sigma 17-70:

[35mmfilmfan]

I tried a monopod a couple of years ago for a while, which was basically a walking pole with a ball head on top, and it did work well in combination with shake reduction to allow some very slow shutter speeds without the hassle of using a tripod.

I normally have to walk with the aid of a stick, but on photo expeditions, my monopod serves the same purpose, which is helpful. I have a Manfrotto 804RC head on it (as on both of my tripods), since ball heads and I don't get on - I need each adjustment lockable individually. I've never been sure whether to leave SR on or off when using it - I suppose I should do some comparison shots and make up my own mind, but has anyone any suggestions, please ?