[Michael Piziak]

Do all Pentax DSLR's use the same remote control?

[Adam]

Do all Pentax DSLR's use the same remote control?

Yup.

[Michael Piziak]

Cool.
One can use the remote to take long exposures I hear. Do you have to hold down the remote button for the length of time you want to take a long exposure ?
I'm thinking I might take some sky photos at night that have exposures longer than 30 seconds.

[fgaudet]

Do you have to hold down the remote button for the length of time you want to take a long exposure ?

Yes and No, you can choose how the long exposure with remote behaves in the settings. You can either go one push to open shutter, second push to close it or you can do the push and hold thingy

[interested_observer]

Pentax and Canon use the same connector, therefore essentially the same remotes (and Intervalometer) can be used. I have used my current one on the K100D, K20D and now the K5...
____________________

On the remotes there is a lip that when you press the button, you can slide the depressed button under the lip, and then when you are "done" with the exposure you can slide the button out and it will pop back out thus closing the shutter.

• Camera Remote Control Switch Shutter Release for Canon RS-60E3 - Rakuten.com Shopping

The remotes run abut $2 to $15, but you can get a Intervalometer that runs about $20 to $50 that will give you the ability to externally control the camera - any number of images, with whatever shutter length, where they are each whatever time apart ( i.e., 19 shots at 62 seconds long and 12 minutes 32 seconds apart). where you can set it up to take 1 image up to 99 hours in length. This is how you get around the 30 second shutter length in an automated manner.

• Vello Shutterboss Version II Timer Remote Switch RC-C1II B&H

[stevebrot]

Cool.
One can use the remote to take long exposures I hear. Do you have to hold down the remote button for the length of time you want to take a long exposure ?
I'm thinking I might take some sky photos at night that have exposures longer than 30 seconds.

It depends on the remote. My third-party unit has a button lock for use in B mode. It also allows for timed exposures.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/accessoryreviews/bower-lcd-timer-remote-shutter-...el-rclc1r.html

It also depends on the camera. My K-3 allows the shutter release to operate in two modes, standard B and T. In T mode a shutter press opens the shutter and a second press closes it.


Steve

[Michael Piziak]

I bought one of those cheap China ones to play with that says "for Pentax" on evilBay.

I'm curious, when people do long exposures of the night sky, do they use any filters on the lens to get that swirling star affect. Also, it must take hours do do that, eh?

example: https://s3.amazonaws.com/masters.galleries.dpreview.com/2923204.jpg?X-Amz-Ex...f7a9a5c634eb3c

[boriscleto]

The K-x & K-r lack a remote control port. They can only use the wireless remote, and only from the front of the camera.

Star trail pics are usually done with many short exposures that are then combined in post processing.

[Michael Piziak]

The K-x & K-r lack a remote control port. They can only use the wireless remote, and only from the front of the camera.

Star trail pics are usually done with many short exposures that are then combined in post processing.

I'm referring to the wireless remote control when I said remote control.
Sorry for the confusion.

[jmerchant]

Too bad about the lack of remote port, Triggertrap | Creative ways of triggering your camera does a cord that connects to your mobile phone and has all kinds of shutter release options...I bought one on a whim and can be quite useful... (especially if you have a spare device to set up a master/slave)

[stevebrot]

do they use any filters on the lens to get that swirling star affect

Nope, that comes for free courtesy of the rotation of the earth.


Steve

[JimJohnson]

Too bad about the lack of remote port, Triggertrap | Creative ways of triggering your camera does a cord that connects to your mobile phone and has all kinds of shutter release options...I bought one on a whim and can be quite useful... (especially if you have a spare device to set up a master/slave)

You CAN use a TriggerTrap with a K-x or K-r - so long as you are willing to tackle an inexpensive D-I-Y project:
Make a wired release for any Pentax IR camera - PentaxForums.com

Technically speaking, this modification would work for any Pentax camera that can be released via IR, but if you have a wired port, it's hard to imagine why you would bother.

By the way - I have a TriggerTrap. Cute little bugger and with far more versatility than the built in intervalometer.

[Michael Piziak]

You CAN use a TriggerTrap with a K-x or K-r - so long as you are willing to tackle an inexpensive D-I-Y project:
Make a wired release for any Pentax IR camera - PentaxForums.com

Technically speaking, this modification would work for any Pentax camera that can be released via IR, but if you have a wired port, it's hard to imagine why you would bother.

By the way - I have a TriggerTrap. Cute little bugger and with far more versatility than the built in intervalometer.

I'm not sure what's wrong with just using a wireless remote to open and then later shut the shutter. Why do people want a wired remote ?

[JimJohnson]

I'm not sure what's wrong with just using a wireless remote to open and then later shut the shutter. Why do people want a wired remote ?

The biggest problem with an IR remote release is interference from the IR produced by the sun. Which of course you are unlikely to encounter if you are using the Bulb shutter setting. And setting up a simple reflector made out of a piece of aluminum foil will allow you use the IR release from the sides or behind the camera.

However, a wired release can still do something I have yet to see with a Pentax compatible IR release. And that is to attach more sophisticated release mechanisms to the camera - like a TriggerTrap.

[jmerchant]

The biggest problem with an IR remote release is interference from the IR produced by the sun. Which of course you are unlikely to encounter if you are using the Bulb shutter setting. And setting up a simple reflector made out of a piece of aluminum foil will allow you use the IR release from the sides or behind the camera.

However, a wired release can still do something I have yet to see with a Pentax compatible IR release. And that is to attach more sophisticated release mechanisms to the camera - like a TriggerTrap.

Seriously, you've got like 5 timelapse modes, a sound mode, remote trigger mode (2 devices linked up so you can basically be IR, except not IR, a small little wifi network), 4 cable release modes, and 2 hdr mode - seems like long exposure modes...I don't think your typical IR remote is gonna do all that...