My Last Pentax Wedding... For now.

**montman** · 03-10-2011, 09:15 PM

This is the last wedding I shot with my Pentax k-x and k20d. I miss the small perfectly designed economical body and beautiful primes. However I love the exra DOF I get out of my 5D Mark II. Whenever Pentax goes FF perhaps I can make the jump back.

In Memory of my k-x and k20d

Sometimes my Sigma 30 1.4 surprised me

Again

And again...

50-135 Things you could do for under $1000

43 1.9 you are the reason I will one day return.

Winder · 03-10-2011, 10:52 PM

I have been shooting with my Canon 5D (classic) and the 85L for many years now. I find that the shallow DOF is not as much of an issue as some people make it out to be. At f/1.2 the 85L is very tricky to master and the slightest movement from the subject ruins the shot. In a studio with a tripod there are a lot of cool things you can do with that narrow DOF, but at an event with people moving around and kids playing there will be a lot of missed shots because the DOF was too narrow.

rawr · 03-11-2011, 06:34 AM

Originally posted by montman

I love the exra DOF I get out of my 5D Mark II

Don't you mean the exact opposite of what you have said - the LESS (narrower) DOF you get out of FF, viz:
Depth of Field Table
Understanding Depth of Field in Photography

azimuthal · 03-11-2011, 09:06 AM

nice shots!

**montman** · 03-11-2011, 10:28 AM

Winder- I agree shooting moving subjects with the 85 1.2 on a FF you are going to get lots of out of focus shots. The difference seems pretty huge to me. I feel like when I am shooting at 2.8 on a FF it’s like shooting F2 on a cropped body. But I totally see where you are coming from.
Rawr- It depends if you are looking from the inside or the outside.
Azimuthal- Thanks!

RyanW · 03-11-2011, 01:39 PM

Originally posted by montman

I feel like when I am shooting at 2.8 on a FF it’s like shooting F2 on a cropped body. !

That's because basically you are. The larger sensor means a smaller DOF at any given aperture than smaller sensor. F8 on a large format camera can give you nice bokeh. F1.9 on a small sensor camera gives you lots of DOF.

The larger sensor is one of the advantages of full frame if you are after bokeh. You can shoot stopped down a bit where the lens usually is a bit sharper compared to a crop factor where you have to have a really good lens and shoot wide open.

I'm totally on board with your thinking and if I end up with full frame someday, this is exactly why. I can always shoot a smaller aperture if I need a larger DOF, but it's harder to go the other way.

Now on the other hand, a larger aperture on a crop will get you the same DOF, but a little more shutter speed, though it might be a wash because on full frame you can up the ISO on stop and make up for the difference in many cases as full frame usually has lower noise.

**montman** · 03-12-2011, 07:59 AM

Ryan- That is the main reason I switched. However the ISO on my k-x was about on par with my 5D MarkII I just like the grain or noise a little bit better in the 5D, it’s a little more film like. Though it would not surprise me at all if the K-5 surpasses the 5D in the ISO department.

JohnBee · 03-12-2011, 08:36 AM

Originally posted by montman

Sometimes my Sigma 30 1.4 surprised me

Oh my!... that rendering rivals FF imo.

Arpe · 03-13-2011, 02:50 PM

Once you get down to f1.4 I would have thought (without experience to back it up of course) the difference was minimal between cropped and FF, but I can see that when using a 2.8 zoom the FF would help.

C-Factor · 03-17-2011, 09:32 PM

Wonderful shots! You have awesome skills, regardless of which tool you are using.

03-10-2011, 09:15 PM	#1
montman Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Kansas City Photos: Gallery Posts: 576	My Last Pentax Wedding... For now. This is the last wedding I shot with my Pentax k-x and k20d. I miss the small perfectly designed economical body and beautiful primes. However I love the exra DOF I get out of my 5D Mark II. Whenever Pentax goes FF perhaps I can make the jump back. In Memory of my k-x and k20d Sometimes my Sigma 30 1.4 surprised me Again And again... 50-135 Things you could do for under $1000 43 1.9 you are the reason I will one day return.

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03-10-2011, 10:52 PM	#2
Winder Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tennessee Posts: 6,617	I have been shooting with my Canon 5D (classic) and the 85L for many years now. I find that the shallow DOF is not as much of an issue as some people make it out to be. At f/1.2 the 85L is very tricky to master and the slightest movement from the subject ruins the shot. In a studio with a tripod there are a lot of cool things you can do with that narrow DOF, but at an event with people moving around and kids playing there will be a lot of missed shots because the DOF was too narrow.

03-11-2011, 06:34 AM	#3
rawr Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 11,913	Originally posted by montman I love the exra DOF I get out of my 5D Mark II Don't you mean the exact opposite of what you have said - the LESS (narrower) DOF you get out of FF, viz: Depth of Field Table Understanding Depth of Field in Photography

03-11-2011, 09:06 AM	#4
azimuthal Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: reno Posts: 70	nice shots!

03-11-2011, 10:28 AM	#5
montman Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Kansas City Photos: Gallery Posts: 576 Original Poster	Winder- I agree shooting moving subjects with the 85 1.2 on a FF you are going to get lots of out of focus shots. The difference seems pretty huge to me. I feel like when I am shooting at 2.8 on a FF it’s like shooting F2 on a cropped body. But I totally see where you are coming from. Rawr- It depends if you are looking from the inside or the outside. Azimuthal- Thanks!

03-11-2011, 01:39 PM	#6
RyanW Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 583	Originally posted by montman I feel like when I am shooting at 2.8 on a FF it’s like shooting F2 on a cropped body. ! That's because basically you are. The larger sensor means a smaller DOF at any given aperture than smaller sensor. F8 on a large format camera can give you nice bokeh. F1.9 on a small sensor camera gives you lots of DOF. The larger sensor is one of the advantages of full frame if you are after bokeh. You can shoot stopped down a bit where the lens usually is a bit sharper compared to a crop factor where you have to have a really good lens and shoot wide open. I'm totally on board with your thinking and if I end up with full frame someday, this is exactly why. I can always shoot a smaller aperture if I need a larger DOF, but it's harder to go the other way. Now on the other hand, a larger aperture on a crop will get you the same DOF, but a little more shutter speed, though it might be a wash because on full frame you can up the ISO on stop and make up for the difference in many cases as full frame usually has lower noise.

03-12-2011, 07:59 AM	#7
montman Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Kansas City Photos: Gallery Posts: 576 Original Poster	Ryan- That is the main reason I switched. However the ISO on my k-x was about on par with my 5D MarkII I just like the grain or noise a little bit better in the 5D, it’s a little more film like. Though it would not surprise me at all if the K-5 surpasses the 5D in the ISO department.

03-12-2011, 08:36 AM	#8
JohnBee Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Newrfoundland Photos: Albums Posts: 4,667	Originally posted by montman Sometimes my Sigma 30 1.4 surprised me Oh my!... that rendering rivals FF imo.

03-13-2011, 02:50 PM	#9
Arpe Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: New Zealand Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,452	Once you get down to f1.4 I would have thought (without experience to back it up of course) the difference was minimal between cropped and FF, but I can see that when using a 2.8 zoom the FF would help.

03-17-2011, 09:32 PM	#10
C-Factor Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico Posts: 113	Wonderful shots! You have awesome skills, regardless of which tool you are using.

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