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11-24-2009, 04:00 PM   #16
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QuoteOriginally posted by opiedog Quote
jason,

how is your kx? any battery issues? what's your starting serial # ?

have fun!

jordan
No problems so far. Still on the first charge of the first set of rechargeables I've tried. Serial 3436xxx.

11-24-2009, 05:52 PM   #17
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Definitely mixed opinions on the AF speed and 50/1.4. It's been a while, but I did have it for a short time when I had a K10D. My recollection is that it wasn't "slow", but certainly wasn't quick either.

Does anyone have this lens with the K-x? Curious to know how much of a difference the faster AF speed of the K-x makes with the 50/1.4.
11-24-2009, 06:58 PM   #18
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QuoteOriginally posted by switters Quote
Definitely mixed opinions on the AF speed and 50/1.4. It's been a while, but I did have it for a short time when I had a K10D. My recollection is that it wasn't "slow", but certainly wasn't quick either.

Does anyone have this lens with the K-x? Curious to know how much of a difference the faster AF speed of the K-x makes with the 50/1.4.
i have and it is fast combo , no issues that i could think of.
11-24-2009, 10:19 PM   #19
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The 50/1.4 might be a good option for me. I found one on eBay for $308 US + 8% Bing cash back = $283 shipped. That's much closer to what I'd like to spend. I'd prefer the FOV of a 40-43mm, but I like the faster aperture of the 50 and can't afford the 43/1.9 right now

11-24-2009, 11:02 PM   #20
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QuoteOriginally posted by switters Quote
The 40/2.8 is definitely under consideration, but I wish it was a bit faster...Also, I shoot a lot indoors in low light. I know I could use a flash but I just don't like to (I got into the Strobist stuff for a while, but too much gear for me).
.
You'll be surprised, but DA40 is not only a fast-focusing lens, as Mark has pointed out, it can focus in near darkness too! All it needs is the faintest of contrast, that's all. Take a look at the the first pic -- only available light was the flame from the fire, which wasn't much at all. The second pic, of the dancing girl, had hardly any light at all -- a good 15-20 feet away from the fire; just enough contrast between the pitch-black Volvo and the 3-yr old blond. FYI, the flash used was a non P-TTL, AF220T flash, meaning there was no pre-flash available to aid focus nor exposure. (I was at 1/180s, f6.3). Not too mention, the kids were zipping around fast too, wired on all those Halloween candy. I used AF-C, but released shutter only after the green AF confirmation lit up.

You'll need a flash to get good exposure and freeze motion for this kind of shots, even with a faster lens. So it's most likely not a fair comparison for your needs. But what's important is the ability to focus in low light conditions, which the faster, shallower DOF lenses may not be able to do like the DA40.

As I write this, I'm beginning to realize that I'd actually decided on the lens (DA40) before settling on a camera. And then, inevitably, came the DA70 ..
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12-14-2009, 06:44 AM   #21
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50/1.4 much faster, and way more decisive on my K-x than my (still missed) K100D.
12-14-2009, 07:55 AM   #22
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Yeah, I got my K-x and 50/1.4 a week ago and I've been pleased overall with the AF speed. Not as fast as my old Canon 5D and 50/1.4 combo, but close enough.

12-14-2009, 03:01 PM   #23
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QuoteOriginally posted by Marc Sabatella Quote
20% on average is not HUGE, especially when one considers that this is also about the amount by which the US dollar has slid against the yen - almost certainly the cause of the increase.



It is true that this is one specific where Pentax doesn't have anything current to compare. Although you should be able to find an FA35/2 for under $500.



And you're sure you want a normal prime for this? Seems you'd be better off with something a bit longer unless you are quite close to them while they are moving, and for the most part, apertures beyond f/2.8 would yield such a shallow DOF that you'd have a lot of trouble getting an in-focus shot of a moving subject. I think most people would probably be looking at something like the Tamron 28-75/2.8 for this kind of task, and even assuming you are one of those who (like me) just has a preference for primes, something like the FA50/1.4 could make more sense (and not using it much at f/1.4, but keeping it to f/2.8). Actually, the lens I'm mentally reaching for as I think about this is the DA40/2.8 - a very nice focal length in general, and in the cases where it is too short, one case always crop. But just as importantly, it's about the fastest-focusing lens Pentx has ever made, which will help a lot with moving subjects, and its small enough (especially when combined with the K-x) to really stand in contrast to a zoom.

Anyhow, while the Nikon 35/1.8 is by all accounts a very nice lens, I'd think hard about whether that's really the right spec to be looking for. If you're sure it is, the FA35 is your answer, and unfortunately, it does cost a bit more since it is in short supply after having apparently been discontinued (and used prices have gone up in response). But I'd really thinking DA40.
A great reply as always, Marc.


For the OP, here is a link to evaluation of some Pentax and Nikon products :
Falk Lumo: Lumolabs: Sensors of Nikon D700, D5000 and Pentax K-x


QuoteOriginally posted by wasim_altaf Quote
You'll be surprised, but DA40 is not only a fast-focusing lens, as Mark has pointed out, it can focus in near darkness too! All it needs is the faintest of contrast, that's all. Take a look at the the first pic -- only available light was the flame from the fire, which wasn't much at all. The second pic, of the dancing girl, had hardly any light at all -- a good 15-20 feet away from the fire; just enough contrast between the pitch-black Volvo and the 3-yr old blond. FYI, the flash used was a non P-TTL, AF220T flash, meaning there was no pre-flash available to aid focus nor exposure. (I was at 1/180s, f6.3). Not too mention, the kids were zipping around fast too, wired on all those Halloween candy. I used AF-C, but released shutter only after the green AF confirmation lit up.

You'll need a flash to get good exposure and freeze motion for this kind of shots, even with a faster lens. So it's most likely not a fair comparison for your needs. But what's important is the ability to focus in low light conditions, which the faster, shallower DOF lenses may not be able to do like the DA40.

As I write this, I'm beginning to realize that I'd actually decided on the lens (DA40) before settling on a camera. And then, inevitably, came the DA70 ..
Thanks for the info on the DA 40 lmt.
12-14-2009, 03:21 PM   #24
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I posted basically this in another thread -
Pantax k7 compared with Nikon D90
but thought it might be helpful here -

Using the standardized sample test images at Imaging-Resource for the Pentax Kx and Nikon D90

all at ISO 3200 -

Shadow noise -


Details -


Face -


Texture details -
12-14-2009, 03:22 PM   #25
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Well the D90 is a mid-level DSLR and the K-x is a entry-level, so the D90 packs a bit more features for more professional use. But in high ISO, they are both very good; though the K-x may have a slight upper-hand.
12-14-2009, 06:44 PM   #26
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Forget the D90. Try comparing with the DX3 at $7000 more. THe Kx holds its own and more. Kx and then DX3 at ISO 3200. I shoot the KX at 3200 IOS without a thought and 6400 with very little PP for a newspaper. This camera is an incredible value for the money. Fast AF and no battery problems.
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12-14-2009, 08:02 PM   #27
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QuoteOriginally posted by tarsus Quote
Forget the D90. Try comparing with the DX3 at $7000 more. THe Kx holds its own and more. Kx and then DX3 at ISO 3200.
You had me going there for a moment.....

Yes, indeed the Kx JPG images are very (very) good at ISO3200 - but when it comes down to it unfortunately 12Mp spread over a full-frame (36x24mm) has much larger pixel sites than the same 12Mp over an APS-C die.

Using the same Imaging-Resource sample test images for the Pentax Kx and the Nikon D3S

again all at ISO3200 -

Shadow noise:


Detail:


these show pretty clearly that the Nikon D3S is better at both noise (with much less processing artifacts), as well as detail than the Kx. Not surprising -
even so, the Kx remains very impressive when compared this way......

However this actually surprised me -

Textural detail:
12-14-2009, 10:09 PM   #28
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QuoteOriginally posted by UnknownVT Quote

However this actually surprised me -

Textural detail:
Keep in mind that the D3s is a full-frame DSLR and may display different DOF in the test images. As much as I like the IR samples, they've been plagued by inconsistent focus, to the degree that people have often pointed to crops of areas where focus was missed in one sample as evidence that NR was blurring out all the detail. This may be at play here, since it seems inconsistent with the performance of the D3s in other samples.
12-14-2009, 11:34 PM   #29
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QuoteOriginally posted by er1kksen Quote
Keep in mind that the D3s is a full-frame DSLR and may display different DOF in the test images. As much as I like the IR samples, they've been plagued by inconsistent focus, to the degree that people have often pointed to crops of areas where focus was missed in one sample as evidence that NR was blurring out all the detail. This may be at play here, since it seems inconsistent with the performance of the D3s in other samples.
That's a really good point - however the aperture used is f/4
which I would have thought would take account of some reasonable DoF?

also the other parts of the image seemed to be in good focus -
eg: the all important face

I don't think either show any focusing problems.
the Nikon D3S image looks better to my eyes here too

That's why I was surprised at the comparison between what I called the textural details from the same shot -
both the focusing markers (to the right, above and below the crop) seem to be in very good focus on the full-res D3S sample (link opens the full-res image which is 5.6Mb)
12-15-2009, 09:45 PM   #30
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f4 is a lot shallower on FF than you think (given the same perspective). There have been APS-C test shots where the focus was far enough off to throw some parts OOF while the face and focus target remained sharp. I really think focus is the main factor in those crops.
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