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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
03-20-2019, 11:18 AM
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I think AggieDad has a point. There are usually trial versions, pick some and check if they suit your needs.
I've been using DxO for many years and in my opinion it does a fantastic job. It's straightforward to use (at least for me), the noise reduction algorithm is very good, and you can fine tune almost every part of the digital darkroom process. In addition, the default settings are a very good starting point.
As always, your mileage may vary. A digital darkroom program is a very personal choice.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
06-05-2018, 01:12 PM
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Hello,
Which lens are you using? Which shooting mode have you selected (TAV, P, M, Green/Auto, etc)?
If you know how to use manual mode, set shutter speed and aperture value. The number in the view finder should change. What do you see?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-22-2018, 10:41 AM
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Indeed. Very.
Following Not a Number's link I've found Pentaxforums Lens Search. Searching for full frame auto-focus primes between 50mm and 85mm yields to:
1) all the 50's
2) the 77mm limited
3) the 85mm star*, and
4) the 85mm soft lenses.
Just the 77mm Ltd. and the 85mm star* between the range limits, two fantastic lenses, but quite expensive.
I'm not gonna sell my 70mm Ltd, I'm very fond of it; so I guess I will have to save to get the 77mm.
Following Uncle Vanya's suggestion , as I often shoot with wide apertures, the softer parts of the frame can get masked by the bokeh. Meanwhile, I'm gonna save money for the 77mm, I will skip the 43mm/50mm until I get the 77mm.
BTW, I know the 70mm in crop sensor is a bit longer (actually 1.5x), but I prefer the 70mm in full frame.
... and when you get used to minimalist fast sharp lenses, like the DA 35mm or 70mm Ltd, it's really difficult to go back to big slow lenses. As always this is just a personal preference.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-21-2018, 03:49 PM
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Thank you very much to all of you. There are a lot of great suggestions.
First, let me answer some questions:
No, I still have it, but I seldom use it now, just for milky-way shots or very low light photography.
I thought some time ago (I have a question posted somewhere), about a flash for my camera. However, at the end I bought a small continuous led light. It's much less powerful than the flash, though, but what you see is what you get
They are quite good, this lens has one of the best price/performance ratio I've seen. Optically it's fast and very sharp, and it also has good contrast and saturation. Unfortunately, I usually shot with relatively wide apertures, and when it's not completely wide open the aperture blades are quite apparent. On the other hand, with the Z-1p and Z-20 I tend to fine tune the focus manually but this lens does not have quick-shift. I also miss a depth of field scale. But I'm not complaining, for its price this lens is superb, competing with much more expensive glasses.
It might work, yes. The ideal scenario would be to get the 77mm, if not, the 50mm. Keeping the 35mm. The 100mm FOV is very close to my 135mm and the lens is much bigger than the 70mm, so I am not very inclined to get the 100mm.
Thanks for the suggestion, but I think zooms do not match well with my way of working, I feel clumsy, I prefer fast sharp minimalist primes. On the other hand, I also favor fast primes because I cannot change the ISO mid-roll, and although I can push a Portra 400 a stop, or even two, the film gets more contrasty and grainy; I prefer my photos with less contrast and subtle grain, and a good creamy bokeh when needed.
I think this is the summary the proposed approaches that might solve the dilemma:
Keeping the SMC Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4 AL for the moment:
- Get a SMC Pentax-FA 77mm F1.8 Limited
- Get a SMC Pentax-D FA 100mm F2.8 Macro WR
- Get a SMC Pentax-FA 50mm F1.7 / F1.4
Or get the SMC Pentax-FA 35mm F2 AL and the SMC Pentax-FA 50mm F1.7/F1.4.
Regarding other suggestions, about manual focusing lenses, I think it will be better with autofocus, to minimize the probability of missed shots (to shot as fast as possible). Regarding the SMC Pentax-FA 35mm F2 AL, it seems too similar to my SMC Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4 AL (6 blades/regular bokeh, no quick shift, but it is faster). It seems that the only upgrade around this focal length would be the very expensive 43mm limited.
I am still thinking, but in the mean time, I made some quick numbers about the field of view of the various focal lengths and a graph.
I prefer 70mm over 50mm, but if I get a 100mm, then the 50mm is a solid candidate. I think I need over 17 degrees of difference in FOV to justify a new lens, or else, they will be too similar.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-20-2018, 03:09 PM
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Hello,
I have a sort of dilemma that perhaps you already went through, and I would really appreciate some advice: I "upgraded" from APS-C to full frame. What happened is that I felt in love with film photography and a year ago I bought a Pentax Z-20 and a Pentax Z-1p. So the full frame I am talking about is actually 35mm film.
My original system was a K-S2, a SMC Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4 AL, aHD Pentax-DA 70mm F2.4 Limited, and aSMC Pentax-A 135mm F2.8.
My kind of photography is mostly portraits and "family-journalism" (and some street photography when I have the time). I've found that I feel most comfortable with small and fast primes.
The problem is that the 70mm, my main lens, doesn't work as well in full frame (the outer part of the frame is softer and vignettes a bit). Interestingly, the 35mm holds much better.My intention was to eventually upgrade the 35mm to something better (bokeh and optics), but as in film it's still a decent performer perhaps it is better to tackle the problem of the 70mm first.
I am thinking on adding a new lens to my collection, or substituting the 70mm, or substituting the 70mm and the 35mm. My budget is not defined yet, but I think I will need more than 500$ (it would be a pity to sell such a lovely lens, the 70mm limited).
Ideally I would like to cover a similar focal range: a normal / normal-wide lens and a short telephoto.
Any suggestion will be very much appreciated. Thanks!
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-10-2018, 01:22 PM
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That's a fantastic reference, very useful!
I know I said zooms will be more flexible, but I am a prime guy, I really love big apertures, lots of light and good separation between subject and background. So I think the two final candidates would be the Pentax-A 135mm f/2.8 and Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm Komine/Cosina.
I am dumping here autofocus in favor of big apertures, I hope I'm not making a mistake. If I do, well, it would be the perfect excuse for getting a Tamron 70-200/2.8 :)
Thank you very much to all of you. All are great suggestions. For such a tight budget there are actually many possibilities.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-09-2018, 02:00 PM
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Thank you very much to all of you, all great suggestions.
Reading your posts I've been thinking that although the 135mm and 200mm primes are very appealing, in a real match I will not be able to move too much from my seat (or from the court borders if I'm allowed). So I guess I will need some zoom.
I am a bit worried that the 55-300 will cause some vignetting.
So, I will have to decide: either go for autofocus and a slow lens, or embrace manual and a fast lens.
The Vivitar is really appealing, version 4 has an "A" position (I know version 3 is better, but having to press the "green button" in the K-S2 is not ideal). Vivitar is faster than the Pentax-F 70-210mm, but the later has autofocus.
A very difficult decision... :)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-08-2018, 06:31 AM
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Hello,
Suddenly, I am in the need of a telephoto lens. My son is growing up and he's starting to play sports (indoor and outdoor), but my longest lens is a 70mm, which is too short. Until now, I've been mostly covering family events, family portraits, and the sort; so a telephoto lens was not in my wish list.
About my current equipment:
- Pentax Z-1p (main camera)
- Pentax K-S2
- SMC Pentax-DA 35mm F2.4 AL
- HD Pentax-DA 70mm F2.4 Limited
Although I suffer a bit of "prime-bias" (I've been shooting prime-only for many years, and I really love my two primes), I am open to zooms and manual focusing lenses. I think I need at least "A" aperture setting for Hyper-Manual and Hyper-Program modes. Regarding budget, no more than $250. The only real limitation is that the lens has to work in both cameras.
I am not a professional photographer, but I like to have good tools, when possible. I would really appreciate any suggestion you could give me.
Many thanks :)
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-06-2018, 12:34 PM
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I have the Z-1p as main camera, superb.
The Z-20 as a my second camera, smaller, lighter and easier to handle; this is a fantastic "little" camera (little compared to the Z-1p).
Both set lens aperture from the body, very useful for lenses without aperture ring.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-04-2018, 01:35 PM
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Another vote for the Z-20, an underrated gem.
I have both, the Z-1p and the Z-20, sure the Z-1p is a better camera (actually it's my main camera), but Z-20 is lighter, handling is very good, very user friendly, it's auto-focus, and it sets the lens aperture from the body.
I use the Z-20 when I need a smaller camera, and when I don't need advanced functions (which is most of the time).
Last but not least, Z-20 is cheaper.
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
06-28-2017, 09:44 AM
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Thank you very much for the warm welcome and for commenting each photo, I really appreciate it.
Wow. Second place... Thank you so much!!!. I also want to thank all of you for all those fantastic photos. They are great!
Congratulations to the winner!!! and the awarded!!
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-27-2017, 10:14 AM
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Very good explanation Johnny Rod. BTW, I forgot to say that the film was ISO400 [emoji23]
After your dissertation, fill-in flash does not seem to be as attractive as I previously thought, at least for high speed moving subjects a.k.a kids [emoji1]
I will use it for portraits with an ND filter and take advantage of the ISO50 film. For the rest, no flash.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-26-2017, 05:41 PM
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Thank you very much Johnny Rod! your advice is really helpful. I am taking notes.
The flash I will be using is the built-in one.
I totally forgot that as soon as you pop-up the flash, the shutter speed is reduced to 1/100... luckily the roll I loaded is just for testing, because yesterday I probably ruined a couple of photos (max aperture in a sunny day and 1/100).
Fill flash is not as straight forward in the Z-20 than in the K-S2. I am thinking on using Aperture Priority and modify the exposure compensation according to the incident light meter.
Thanks!
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
06-25-2017, 09:40 AM
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Wow!. It is so calm...
Congrats!! Excellent work.
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
06-25-2017, 09:24 AM
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Outside my town, in the countryside, between miles and miles of wheat and barley crops...
Pentax K-S2, ISO 2500, f/2.8, 20s, Samyang 10mm f/2.8 ED AS NCS CS Lens.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-24-2017, 03:14 PM
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Thanks for the suggestion! Unfortunately, I loaded a fresh roll yesterday [emoji28]
But I will try the results with manual mode, AP and program mode. Let's see what happens.
Thanks!
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
06-24-2017, 03:06 PM
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You have a very good organization scheme indeed!.
Aperture was a very good tool, it's a pity Apple retired it.
BTW, great photo! and fantastic subject.
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
06-24-2017, 07:33 AM
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My two cents, in case you find them useful.
I know you are looking after an application that is more than just a photo editing SW, a sort of all-in-one. But anyway, I am going to share my current setup. I was in the same quest than you some years ago, when apple decided to retire Aperture, at the end I settled up with the following:
1) I use a plain old folder structure in which the folders are named "year-month-day_name of event". In Mac OS, I consider this is the most stable long-term organizing scheme, you don't rely in any third party sw or database that can be retired from market at any moment. Mac OS has fantastic preview capabilities. If you want a more dedicated preview SW, there are several good alternatives, I find Pixa a fair alternative in a budget.
2) DxO Optics. This is my digital darkroom of choice, and I am really happy with it, I consider it delivers superb results. It has modules for my all my Pentax lenses and I can browse all the photos in the folder structure nicely.
3) I usually don't process any further. But in those occasions that I need to have full control over the development process I open the TIFFs generated by DxO with Affinity.
There is one caveat, though, that I haven't solved satisfactorily yet. For archival purposes, all my photos are in JPEG2000, this format is very resilient to bit corruption, which is not easily prevented by backup techniques. Lightroom and Photoshop can save directly to JPEG2000, neither Affinity nor DxO save to this format; I have to use preview, automator or the terminal.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-21-2017, 02:01 PM
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Thank you very much.
The user manual is not clear for the Manual Metering Mode. In Aperture Priority it seems doable, but I would need to use exposure compensation for the sand and sky. May be I can translate the light-meter reading into an exposure compensation value... +1 or +2 stops.
It seems that there is no shortcut, I would need to sacrifice a roll.
Thanks!
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-21-2017, 12:17 PM
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Hello everyone,
I will be going to the beach with my family this summer and I will bring my Z-20 / PZ-20 camera.
As you can imagine, the good moments with kids, grandpa, grandma and all in-laws will be most probable when the light is worst :lol:. So most of the time I will be shooting under the bright harsh sun.
I was planning to bring a pocket size light meter (Sekonic L-208), take a couple of incident measurements every now and then in the shadow, rely on film exposure latitude, and shoot in manual metering mode. I hope, in this way, to prevent that the sand and sky fool the camera exposure meter.
I think fill flash will be an invaluable tool in those moments, but I don't know how to make sure it will be mild enough with this camera; I fear the flash will fire at full power and ruin the shot. I checked the user manual but it is not clear to me how the flash behaves in manual metering mode. I really don't know if AP would be doable at the beach, neither how the flash will behave.
Any help is welcomed. I would not like to miss the moment... and with all the kids running, the moment will pass quite fast. :lol:
Thanks a lot.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
06-15-2017, 01:56 PM
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I've just received the developed negatives from the tests I did. The source of the leak was... the door's window.
It was just a matter of covering the window with a black insulating tape.
Thank you very much to all of you, I really appreciate it.
Now I need to buy some serious film for my summer vacations on the beach :-)
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
05-30-2017, 02:40 PM
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Wow, yes, but I was too young. Never did it myself. I know of a lab that can do the job in just 3 days, but I would need to drive 70Km... or send the rolls by mail. Still many days if you take into account the post.
Thank you very much MarkJerling! Now I can replace the seals, and just in the right position. The felt I have is quite thin, 1mm uncompressed.
Finally, I've found the position of the film in the camera. On the left side it is still in the same position, between the pressure plate and the cartridge; on the other side, it goes far to the right of the take-up spool.
Tomorrow I'll receive a fresh roll for the test. I'll post the results. I hope someone could find it useful. Let's see how it goes. BTW, is Amazon a reliable place to buy the films? I've read that it is important to ensure the rolls don't go through the cargo x-rays. Any surprises?.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
05-29-2017, 06:29 AM
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Thanks! Suzhouren and MarkJerling. Ok. The first test would be then: no felt and film window covered.
What I could not find was a position of the film inside the camera in which the image is upside down, facing the curtains, and the first frame being the one getting first into the take-up spool.
I will do the test and see what happens.
Thanks again!
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
05-28-2017, 03:43 PM
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Thank you very much for all your help!
I tried Photoptimist suggestion and put the film against the back of the opened camera, and it supports the hypothesis of Alex654: on the side of the film canister, the burn has the same width as the space between the pressure plate and the canister border. There is a figure below.
I also tried RuiC suggestion, with a flashlight from the lens mount side in a dark room, and the only place I could see light was from the window. Nowhere else.
BigDave, I don't feel the door hard to close, the difference is subtle though. Without the felt, the door moves sideways a little bit, with the felt it doesn't. I can take the felt out and make a test, it is not glued.
Tomorrow I will load a 400 ISO film and take the camera out, under the bright sun. With the lens cap on I will try:
1) Window uncovered.
2) Window covered.
3) A couple of quick shots.
4) Leave one frame in place for a long time.
5) Shooting with different parts of the door taped.
Unfortunately, the film development takes 10 days, but as soon as I receive the photos I will let you know.
Thank you very much!.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
05-28-2017, 08:50 AM
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Hello everyone,
I am in a bit of a Sherlock Holmes case of light leak, and I hope you can help me find the source of it.
I belong to the digital generation but I decided to embrace film and learn the origins and heart of the art. So, I bought a fine PZ-20 / Z-20 camera, second hand of course, but it's in very good conditions. I wanted to use my 35mm DAL and 70mm Limited primes and I needed a camera capable of handling them.
First thing I did when I received the camera was to check for the light seal, it had none. I'm still not completely sure whether the camera needs one or not, but anyway, I bought 1mm thick felt fabric and carefully cut a seal to match the door pattern. Now the door closes snugly and without forcing the hinge. There are a couple of pictures below.
The next thing I did was to load an AGFA CT Precisa 100 color reversal film, that I know is very picky with the exposure and checked all my shots against my light meter. I took some test shoots in a sunny day and it seems that the camera does not have problems nailing the exposure.
Finally I received the developed film, but almost all the photos had these vertical burns. There is also a small rectangular burn between frames 9 and 10 that I think might be the door window. There are some pictures below.
I bought another roll of film, so I have to think carefully on a set of tests that can solve the mystery.
Any help or suggestion is really appreciated.
Thanks!
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