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Forum: Post Your Photos!
12-05-2022, 03:36 AM
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Composite of several images for long exposure effect. Added sky.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-15-2019, 05:01 PM
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Forum: Photographic Technique
03-17-2018, 05:52 AM
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Brilliant! I've thought of how to diffuse my Sigma ring-flash....
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-06-2017, 01:48 PM
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Hello forum!
Thought I would share my experience with my "new" F and FA lenses....
I bought a couple of F and one FA lens together with an old Pentax SFX camera and some other Pentax gear.
The lenses are:
SMC Pentax-F 24-50mm F4
SMC Pentax-F 35-70mm F3.5-4.5
SMC Pentax-FA 35-80mm F4-5.6
All appearing to be in good condition ( apart from the 35-70mm which has some sort of "tiny smearing" inside the front lens elements)
Prior to buying the package, I read about the lenses in the magnificent reviews here on this forum, and the F lenses did receive quite good reviews. So I had my hopes up when they arrived. In particular for the the F 24-50mm, which just by the touch of it felt like a good quality lens, and the reviews were OK aswell.
The Pentax FA-35-80 on the other hand felt like a toy-lens, all plastic and flimsy handling....so I thought that lens would be the least useful.
So I attached them to my Pentax K-50 and quickly compared them to my DA50mm prime for reference, and just for fun, my DA18-135mm @50mm.
As I mentioned, I had big hopes for the 24-50, and I was a bit baffled when it came out as the softest of the trio, and even more astonished when the "junk" FA 35-80 was the best of them, not far behind my modern lenses IQ wise.
I compared the lenses at 50mm, f5,6, iso100, and 1/20s. Camera on tripod, and 2s delay. I focused on the white sign attached to the fence/barrier, pics are heavily center cropped, but otherwise unedited.
I will perhaps check them more thoroughly later, trough the aperture and fl range, but it seems the 24-50 really is not the best of them....
In particular it lacks contrast...or something...it looks just a bit soft.
Just look at the pics: , the F24-50 @50mm on top, and my DA18-135 @50mm middle and FA35-80 @50mm bottom
Any thoughts:)?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-04-2017, 08:37 AM
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Thank you all for commenting! :-)
It seems my testing was a bit flawed....
I quickly took some new pics today, and this time the distance is approx 20meters to my focuspoint. It is a small sticker on a lightpost across the street.
This time things behave as expected, a bit soft wide open, and sharper when stopped down.... and most important consistent sharpness on same settings!
I even cropped it same size, and untouched jpegs from raw...
2 pics of each f-stop....Settings: f5,6 -f8 - f11
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-03-2017, 01:52 PM
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Yes, I chose those two pairs of pics (f5,6 and f11) because the difference in sharpness was most visible.
I did not shoot at f8, but at f7.1 and f9.
I thought those would be the sharpest, but they are not...in fact far from it. I shot between 30-35 pics and only a few are so sharp that I almost can read the telephonenumber on the reg. plate. (like pic no. 3 above is among the sharpest at f11). Most are OK'ish, and some are really soft.
So the softness/ sharpness is not dependent of f-number, which I supposed they would be, but is inconsistent through the whole aperture range. I even took some f18 which are among the best.
So varying air density is possibly the best explanation so far :-)
However I read about "shutter shock" or vibrations due to the shutter movement...can it potentially be a problem?
Attached f7,1, Iso250, 1/500s
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-03-2017, 12:09 PM
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That is because of cropping in lightroom :-)
The files are "untouched" (apart from cropping and anonymisation) jpegs from camera raw.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-03-2017, 11:26 AM
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It may have been changing air density, as the sun was shining at the moment...
There is no traffic, and albeit some wind, the shots were taken from inside our house and out through an open window. It may have been vibrations from my kitchen floor, but I was sitting perfecftly still...even held my breath while I took them ;-)
Don't know why I mix them up, but it is a Induro AT 213 tripod, with ballhead, not velbon...and mounted on the lensmount.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-03-2017, 09:35 AM
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Recently bought a Sigma 120-400mm paired with my K50, and tested longest sharpness from wide open throughout the f-stops today... So I took some shots of a numberplate on a parked car, approx 115 meters away.
I had the camera on my velbon tripod, SR off , and remote shutter with 3 sek. delay. Focus is not changed between shots (backbutton). I took 2 shots on the same settings, a couple of seconds between shots.
What I found was somewhat inconsistent sharpness on the same settings. While I think the sharpness is OK on some of the pics, most of them seem quite soft... So the question is what is causing this softness? I think I have ruled out camera shake and autofocus...perhaps not good enough?
What else can be the culprit? ... "Shutter shock"? ...Earthquake?
The first pair of pics is at 400mm: F5,6, Iso 160, 1/500s
second pair at 400mm: F11, iso 200, 1/160
Edit: Number is blurred out...
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-24-2017, 09:07 AM
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Great! Thanks a lot! :)
What is the difference between the two? The "OS" is in brackets...does it have anything to do with that?
'8 255.2' = Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG APO [OS] HSM
'8 15' = Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-24-2017, 07:54 AM
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I found it...using verbose command in the exif tool.
So if I get a picture from the seller, taken with the lens, and it says lens ID is 8.255, it most likely will not work with an K1 (without an firmare update to 8 16)?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-24-2017, 06:18 AM
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Thank you all for responding! :)
But where do I find the lens ID numbers exactly? :o
When I drop images onto exif tool,... There is no numbers under lens ID. Just stating the name of which lens is used.
Is it possible the lens will work without problems on a K1, or does all 150-500 have these lens ID issues?
Can I check the lens ID on that particular lens prior to buying it?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-23-2017, 07:35 AM
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Hello fellow pentaxians!
I'm in the market for a telezoom, and have the possibility to buy two Sigma zooms....the 120-400mm F4.5-5.6, or 150-500mm F5-6.3.
However i'm reading about some having problems with autofocus and camera freezing on newer Pentax camera bodies....and that is worrying me a bit.
I'm planning someday to get myself a new camera, preferably a K1 body, but if any of these lenses has compatibility issues I will not buy either of them.
Does anyone use one of these lenses with a K1 without problems?
Appreciate any advice! :)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-23-2017, 08:25 AM
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Nice pic, thanks for showing!:)
While looking at the other samyang pics, I start to think perhaps my expectations were a bit too high....I took some shots right now from the same location my first test shot with the samyang were taken. And I remeber that I was a bit disappointed that I couldn't zoom in and read the letters on the container and signs on the construction site....
Perhaps the details and sharpness isn't so bad after all...what do you think?
These are shot handheld f5,6 and a bit higher iso...Also jpegs straight from camera.
and my 18-135
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-23-2017, 07:14 AM
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Thanks for all replies! :-)
Perhaps I need a K1 too...I am saving for one, so in the near future perhaps :-)
I am curious, how do you all,who say their samyang is sharp...how do you know that? Do you measure the sharpness objectively somehow, or is it a "feeling" when you look at the images it produces?
No matter what I do, it is at best, equal sharpness to my18mm zooms, and it produces OK pictures without any obvious faults... so I doubt I can return it without any hard facts of it beeing a bad copy.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-22-2017, 04:30 PM
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I'll try the newspaper test later :-)..
I also think your first point is at least part of the answer...will it be more comparable if i move the camera some further distance from the focused area? So that the framing inside the viewfinder is the same with 14 and 18mm?
Any way, i tried that and the results are a bit better in favour of the samyang, but I still think its sharper with the 18mm when I "pixel peep"...
...and I also changed to 12mm.
(Samyang on top and kitlens at bottom)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-22-2017, 03:22 PM
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I tried live-view and focus peaking, and its a bit hard at a distance especially since the k50 only magnifies x6. I have also shot through the entire range from 0.28m to infinity, and the lens produces as far as I can see the sharpest images from +3meters , exactly at the infinity mark.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-22-2017, 03:07 PM
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Hello fellow pentaxians:)
Read a lot about the Samyang 14mm lens and that it should be very sharp, so when it arrived and my first shot was a bit soft, I was a bit disappointed. I then compared it to my DA18-135 and DAL18-55 kit lens and I find it softer than these. However I'm not sure if I can compare them like this since I shoot with aps-c (K50) and the samyang is full frame? ...And also that the 18mm lenses are focused exactly at at the sheet, and the samyang only set manually focus...?
I shot, quick and dirty, at an A4 printed calibration sheet from 4 meters distance...(mounted on a tripod of course). Used AF on my 18mm lenses, and set manually infinity on the Samyang. (I checked earlier today that the lens is without doubt at its sharpest exactly at the infinity mark) Used same settings and aperture (F8) on all shots.
Shouldnt the samyang be at least as sharp as my two other lenses?:confused:
Here is my shots, heavily cropped:
DAL18-55 kit lens
14mm samyang
DA18-135
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
10-05-2016, 12:31 PM
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Hello Forum!
I'm quite new to flashphotography and photography in general, so please bear that in mind :o . Anyway...I got an used Sigma EF-140dg flash for my Pentax K50, and so far it has produced some nice macros.
I have encountered some minor "problems" with it...firstly it doesnt fire everytime I want it to, even if it is ready to fire. I also see the flash symbol in the viewfinder is "flickering" when its attached to the hot shoe, as if its losing contact intermittently.
Is it possible for it to work as master in wireless mode with my 2 other Pentax flashes (360fgz +360fgz ii)? It sets of my pentax flashes in controller mode, but I would like it to contribute in the exposure as a master.... :confused:
Please share your thoughts! :)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-28-2016, 03:05 AM
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-28-2016, 02:11 AM
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Thanks for quick reply! Here is a short video with the sound, and as you can hopefully hear, its not particularly loud. Attachment 327050
Even posted the video to youtube
Youtu.be
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src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zo3HbQsLPkU?controls=1" allowfullscreen>
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-28-2016, 01:12 AM
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Hello fellow pentaxians!
Bought my costly DFA 100 WR macro about a month ago, and noticed right away a sort of low "mechanical" sound when twisting the focusring a bit rapidly to one side (to left)....like the sound of moving gears. It doesnt matter if the lens is on or off camera. Ill guess its the screwdrive gears, and its perhaps normal, but none of my other lenses make that sound.
Anyway everything works perfect so I didtnt think much about it at that moment....focus ring is smooth to operate, and autofocus works as expected
Then I read in the lens reviews about a lens which had focusring problem, and I started to wonder if my lens is some sort of fault aswell.
Can anyone with the same lens confirm if their lens has this gear twisting sound?
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
09-18-2016, 03:06 AM
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Aspiring pentaxian from Norway. Love photos and photography, but until recently, mostly phone and compact cameras. Bought my first DSLR, a K50 with 2 kit lenses, a year ago and are now wearing it out!:D As a curiosity...my first compact as a 14yr old: A Pentax 35AF-m with date feature:)
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