Forum: General Talk
12 Hours Ago
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Sad news indeed. I enjoyed seeing his photographic journey progress.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-09-2024, 05:28 PM
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Give one of these a whirl. I'd even say if you feel really bold, go for a couple. I might just have to grab a few too, because you can never have too many vintage lenses ready to go. ;) K&F Concept Lens Adapter for M42 42mm Screw Mount Lens to PK Pentax K Camera US | eBay
I was thinking I'd find a box for one of my generic ones, but no luck. I think I have some K&F Concept in the mix, and they're just fine. Fotodiox is another name you'll see in adapters and specialty items that makes some surprisingly nice stuff for the price point.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-08-2024, 07:52 PM
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I have a variety of adapters ranging from original to aftermarket, and I like removing the springs and leaving them permanently on the lenses. I basically have an adapter for every lens that just lives on the lens. I don't even use thread locker. I find just a nice snug tightening is all that is really needed. I don't have any issues with the lenses coming off or rotating in use, and it makes them very easy to use mixed in with K mount lenses and switch to whatever without really thinking about it.
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Forum: General Talk
03-08-2024, 02:43 PM
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It's a nice lens. Mine is at arms length. It's one of those lenses that never makes it back into the cabinet, because it's used so much.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
03-07-2024, 04:11 PM
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Given some of the new AI powered software out there, you might want to have a go with what you've got and then enlarging it in post. I've been pretty impressed with what Topaz Gigapixel can do, and there are others out there. Most seem to give a free 30 day trial too. I would not be surprised if you get better results for less money. Gigapixel AI |
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-07-2024, 02:19 PM
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-07-2024, 01:56 PM
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Yep, we're on the same page! Right off the top I think of my pair of Limited 15mm lenses. I have the SMC version for starbursts and then the HD version for everything else. I too have an A 50/1.2, not to mention an A 50/1.4, an 8 element Takumar 50/1.4, A Voightlander 58/1.4, Biotar 58/2 and on it goes. Lots of fun, and it's always entertaining to pull something out you haven't played with for awhile.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-07-2024, 10:36 AM
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Always enjoy some wide angle bokeh. It's not what they are known for, so fun to get some.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-07-2024, 08:52 AM
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I suffer from LBA, but I also suffer from just enjoying digging into things from a technical standpoint. I have the Irix 11mm and one of the aspherical Pentax 3.5/15mm lenses, and I know the Rokinon may be a bit redundant, but I've read so much about it over the years, it became too hard to resist grabbing a copy to play with. I'm really interested in the differences in these lenses and how they perform for something like astrophotography. I'm under the impression that the Rokinon may be the best due to its low coma. My recollection from what I've read is the aspherical 3.5/15mm is not very good from that angle, and I'm not sure that the Irix is known for astrophotography either.
I feel like I need to dig back through the astro threads here again. It would be neat if we had an astrophotography lens database that had some summaries of what was what and ranked how they performed. I also have the DFA 15-30, but it is a monster to lug around with a bunch of other equipment in tow. My back isn't what it used to be.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
03-06-2024, 08:20 PM
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Nice to see this article. I got my kids going with Pentax gear years ago, and they are now starting to dabble in film. I'm urging them to go shoot in B&W and have been telling them it's a completely different experience than shooting color.
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Forum: Repairs and Warranty Service
03-06-2024, 06:56 PM
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Any recommendations for the east coast? It would be nice to find someone closer. Just figure less time in transit reduces the chance of it getting kicked around.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-06-2024, 05:15 PM
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You can leave your Y2 filter home then. :)
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-06-2024, 03:42 PM
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If the item is offered new, I will almost always just wait and save and purchase new versus looking for a used one for less. I like getting the warranty, and I like knowing that the purchase helps keep Pentax chugging along. If there aren't any sales, there won't be any new offerings, so no need to make the "Pentax is doomed" prophecy real by behaving that way. And even though I order online (B&H mostly), I am ordering from a store with a brick and mortar presence. I like that too. If I had a local camera shop, I'd buy there, but they all went out of business, because not enough people showed up and made a purchase....
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Forum: General Talk
03-06-2024, 02:30 PM
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That lens on the K2DMD is making my mouth water. Sweet!
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-06-2024, 09:43 AM
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I need a weather break, but this sounds like a good idea too. I haven't done any astro-photography, but I've always been interested, and that was part of why I decided to buy this lens. Thanks for the thoughts.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-06-2024, 08:55 AM
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And at 5.6. Not sure why the color difference between the shots, but no changes other than aperture. It does sharpen up pretty quickly.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-06-2024, 08:46 AM
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Really appreciate the feedback! I've been going back and forth on this, and started to think I'm nuts, which some would probably agree with. ;) It certainly isn't an issue on APS-C, and I got sucked into that pixel peeping insanity looking at the extreme top left versus the extreme top right. I can see it if I go looking, but that's the pixel disease creeping in. I got stuck in the insanity loop looking at the tree in the very top left corner and then details elsewhere, and comparing wide open to stopped down, and well, thanks for the sanity check - needed some common sense beat into me. :) One last pic of the whole thing. No cropping, wide open at 2.8, but did resize it for uploading.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-05-2024, 10:34 PM
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Here it is stopped down to 5.6. Sharpness is improving, but the top left corner is still lagging. The sequence is top left, top right, bottom left, and bottom right. Also, for clarity, the center shot where the camera is level is also a crop from an overall larger photo.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-05-2024, 10:28 PM
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These are crops. No resizing. I was actually attempting to follow the article you linked to as close as possible e.g. focusing on the center point with the camera squared up best I could, and then adjusting the tripod head to put the same part of the chimney into the extreme corners without changing the focus. The only thing I did change was some EV adjustments, as they were getting pretty underexposed if I didn't. If you look at the chips in the bricks, you can start to pick out the same bricks in the different corners of the frame.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-05-2024, 10:15 PM
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I know that the Samyang/Rokinon lenses are infamous for their sample variation, and I'm trying to figure out if this Rokinon 14/2.8 is what would be considered a "good" copy, or if I should return it for another one?
These shots were taken on a tripod about 30 feet from the chimney, and I squared the camera up as best I could - level side to side and fore and aft based on the levels in the viewfinder. Shooting was done in Live View with a remote. Shots were at 2.8. Seems like the top left is a bit off to me, but is it bad enough? The lens did improve stopping down, but at 5.6, the left is still not on par with the other corners. Thoughts?
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-01-2024, 07:37 PM
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Congrats, and this is a nice setup. My first Pentax was a K1000 that I bought new in the late '70s. That and the standard 50/2 and an M series 28/2.8 gave me a ton of mileage. As others have said, I'd add a telephoto. My 3rd lens was the 75-150/4. I still have it today. That is another versatile option in a nice size I'd check out.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-01-2024, 07:13 PM
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Just take it in the shower and see what happens. :cool:
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
03-01-2024, 05:39 PM
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The curved monitor is much more comfortable to use, and the left and right extremes don't feel far off or awkward to view, but on the flat one, they are. I'm really amazed at how different they are to sit behind. I arrange my icons around the edge of the desktop on all sides, and with the curved screen, looking over to them in any direction feels normal. On the flat one, they seem way off to the side. Same when arranging multiple windows. On the curve, I use the entire desktop, and it doesn't really matter where I look, and I will have multiple windows side by side and jump between them. On the flat one, I really feel like I want the window I'm working in to be centered and not too wide. When I first got the curved monitor, I was worried that the curve was going to mess with straight lines and make them look like they were bending when they weren't. That has not been the case in practice. I honestly find the flat one feels too wide to fully use comfortably, but I work all day (literally) on the curved, and it's great.
Regarding brands, the curved one I have is a Samsung VA panel, and I've been very pleased with everything I've done. I think the colors are good, visual quality is very good, and it's refresh has been good for gaming too. The flat one that was given to me is an LG IPS display. It's also a very nice unit, but no doubt in my mind I'll take the curved one over it for anything I'm doing. I would definitely look at buying a Samsung again, and I'd also see what LG had to offer. I think I prefer Samsung, but as always, check what's out there. Tom's Hardware can be a good source of reviews. Also, B&H has some great deals on these throughout the year. Definitely shop the sales.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-01-2024, 05:23 PM
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Good job.
I have a lens that I recently discovered has fungus in it. Going to try to hit it tomorrow.
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
02-28-2024, 08:07 PM
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I have a curved 34" display running at 3440x1440. I don't think I can ever go back to a smaller screen now that I'm used to this. A friend gave me a flat 34" display, and I much prefer the curved one.
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