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Forum: General Photography
04-04-2024, 09:12 AM
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Don't make me dream of such things.
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Forum: General Photography
04-04-2024, 09:11 AM
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I hear the autofocus is really slow and it has really poor close focusing abilities.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
04-02-2024, 07:59 AM
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
04-01-2024, 07:55 AM
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The general answer to your questions is yes as others have said. I really like using the built in intervolometer with astrotracer type 3 as the camera will do the pre-image step and processing once and then take a series of shots. I will usually have it set for 6 or 7 shots 40s each when I am using my 400mm lens and then reframe. For big things like the Great Orion Nebula or Andromeda I can keep them in the frame over the course of the series and then reframe so that it can drift across the frame for the next series. I will also position the object so that it might not be entirely in the frame for the pre-image step as that takes 30s so that gives it time to actually get in the frame.
When doing astro the shutter speeds are really the ones that you set in astrotracer +/- a fraction of a second so a 30s shutter speed actually means 30s when doing interval shooting with type 3 astrotracer.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-27-2024, 12:29 PM
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Well I'm late to the game as always but no using a rear drop in one is a bad idea. Looks like most have already given advise on why it is bad. I would think the most likely and probably least damaging effect would be cooking/melting the aperture blades. Beyond that there is likely all sorts of things that could get cooked or damaged.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
03-26-2024, 09:56 AM
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I think the most likely cases have been covered here already. I would also make sure the battery is good as I didn't see that mentioned but I may have missed it if already stated. Letting it get a good fix and updated with the latest satellite info is one of the things that gets missed if a GPS unit has been off for a while or has been moved a large distance since last used.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-22-2024, 10:51 AM
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Sort of. More physical aperture will show more stars but the lower F number will show more of the gas clouds and the like.
This is really a consideration so if you want to avoid problems with the really wide stuff just shoot at 200/(focal length) for you exposure time and take several shots then stack.
As far as general advise to the original question my view would be 2 parts. First are you going for some part of the milky way over some thing or are you going for the milky way arch over everything? Once you know that things become easier. if going for the milky way arch you will be stitching images regardless of what lens you use. If going for part of the milky way over something then you need to decide how you want the frame to look. Lots of milky way with a small object, lot of milky way with the object fairly big. , small object, etc. Ideally I would be going for a lens that gets the general framing right without having to stitch as it makes your life easier and there are some added benefits one can get if you stack with program like Sequator which will freeze the ground and sky and give you the framing of a reference frame. If you have been doing things for a while then use multiple shots with a stack for the sky and one for the foreground (bulb).
When I have done milky way shots I like going pretty wide and will use my Laowa 12/2.8 Zero-D, however the last time I was screwing around by the car in the WPA parking area nearby and got a really nice framing with a 50mm (SMC A 50/1.2 at f/2) on my K-3iii with the barn smaller in frame. So I would say use any of them up to a 50mm but go for the framing you want.
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Forum: Photographic Technique
03-18-2024, 07:49 AM
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Forum: Photographic Technique
03-15-2024, 12:26 PM
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For a general piece of advise learn the mechanics used for shooting a long gun. Shooting photos and shooting a rifle aren't all that different in the mechanics. When I really want to shoot handheld in low light I will even use my camera strap like I use the sling on my deer rifle which helps a lot. Elbows in at your sides (no chicken wings), pause your breathing halfway in or out, a strong wide stance with your feed, gently squeeze the release button, if kneeling rest an elbow on your thigh (don't use the knee). Those are just a few of the methods used but you need to practice them to get good. I state this and show these techniques when I do photography merit badge as a lot of the scouts have already done them when they did rifle and/or shotgun merit badge. The big difference is with shotgun shooting you slap the trigger instead of gently squeeze it so I make sure they understand that you don't just rapidly mash the shutter release button.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
03-13-2024, 09:21 AM
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I went with option 1 as there really are cases where it absolutely matters. One of those is the special case of astrophotography where throwing huge physical apertures at the problem is a very good and valid solution. I do have some huge physical aperture lenses and the SMC A* 400/2.8 ED [IF] is by far the biggest I have but I also have lots of fast glass like the dual 200/2.8 lenses, dual 50/1.2 lenses, a 12/2.8, a 135/2 etc. the slowest I regularly use is the 15/4 limited and old Sigma 300/4. So now having lots of really great super fast glass means that is what I have to use other times so I just use it. If I wasn't into one of the special edge cases there is a very good argument to be made that lenses have a lot less effect on the final output than some people thing they would. That doen't mean that a really bad lens has no effect but those are pretty rare now days with new glass.
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Forum: General Photography
03-13-2024, 09:11 AM
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I have seen some recent shots of it taken with an 85mm on FF that will show the comet with a long tail and Andromeda with something in the foreground that looks nice. On APS-C something like a 200mm would probably have the comet with its tail filling the frame and maybe even a 135mm doing this but you would need dark skies to really see the really long faint parts of the tail. If I can find some time I want to go see about running a 50mm on the K-3iii on it early some morning. I really want to head out to a nice dark bortle 2 location but that is a long drive and would make for a brutal day.
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Forum: General Photography
03-12-2024, 10:50 AM
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I've been trying to find a night to go shoot it since November as it has been camera visible since then. With its current location in the general area of M31 (the Andromeda galaxy) one should be able to get some good shots of it early in the morning in the northern hemisphere. I know some over in the astro group got some shots of it when it was up by cygnus a while back.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-07-2024, 12:18 PM
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I tried a while back to create the great astro lens test thread over in the astrophotography group and after a bit it just kind of fell by the wayside like so many things do but there is probably some useful information in there for you. I know that I posted a number of things showing how they performed with various settings. I too like tinkering and did post a bunch of tinker results.
That sounds lke me. I have a good number of lenses of the same or nearly the same focal length and a few that I own multiple copies of the same lens. Like the 3 28mm lenses I have (S-M-C 28/3.5 takumar, A 28/2.8, and Vivitar Series 1 28/1.9), the K 30/2 because what is 2mm between friends, then there are the 3 35mm lenses I own (DA 35/2.8 limited macro, K 35/2, and Enna Werk Munchen 35/3.5). I also have 2 300mm F/4 lenses, 2 200mm F/2.8 lenses with a 200/4 for good measure, 3 135mm lenes two of which are the same lens because I like it so much I bought a second copy incase something happens, more 50mm lenes than I know what to do with 2 of which are the A 50/1.2 (yes I have 2 copies of that lens as well).
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-07-2024, 07:28 AM
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What I have found is with astro shooting it does provide a very good method of showing deither design or manufacturing flaws with lenses. If every thing is symmetric and the changes are gradual going out from the center it is a a design flaw because making a true optically perfect lens is really hard. When you get asymmetry it is usually a manufacturing problem. So with that aberrations like fringing, coma, or bloat will look different in one corner or side when compared to the others as those bright point light sources against a very dark background are really hard for optics to render perfectly. With astrophotography I have found that there are some lenses that while great during more normal shooting are absolute stinkers for astro. A couple that come tom mind are the previous 100/2.8 WR macro which I find to be a turd of an astro lens and then there is the 135/2.5 bayonet takumar that is a cheap lens that everyone loves during the day but is also a stinker for astro but was still better than the 100/2.8 WR macro.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-06-2024, 09:18 AM
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For determining something like this I would go and use a truly punishing shot. Spend some time on a clear night and take a fairly high ISO (3200-6400) shot of some stars. Spend the time to get a really good infinity focus in the center use a tripod and use an exposure time of 15 seconds. that should show how bad the issue is as well as any other issues with the lens.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-21-2024, 09:13 AM
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Another to consider but is still expensive is the Laowa 12mm F/2.8 Zero-D. I use that for my ultrawide astro stuff where I want to put something big in the foreground.
That siad what kind of astrophotography do you want to do. You said stars and milky way but is that some constellations, bigger messier objects like the Pleiades cluster (M45), landscapes with a partial milky way, a landscape with the whole milky way arch, chase deep sky objects, there is a lot of options and you will want/need different lenses for them. I have gotten some good shots of the milky way and that same barn from a larger distance using a 50mm on my K-3iii.
Yes aperture matters and throwing more at the problem solves a lot of problems in astro the easiest way. However with the O-GPS unit enabling astrotracer (or type 3 for those of us lucky enough to have a camera with it) it means you don't have to have the fastest lens possible but even there that helps immensely. I would suggest using what you have for now and if you don't really know what you want to do in astro hold off buying lenses as you can go down a very expensive road.
An old pentas 200/4 (any of them going all the way back to the S-M-C 200/4 takumar) will be a good starter lens for the bigger deep sky objects and messier objects, just run them at f/5.6. For a fair amount of time that was my big astro glass on APS-C and you can get some great shots of things once you know what you are doing. A 50mm lens on APS-C will allow you to frame up the entireity of Orion's body so offers a pretty wide field of view. The Pentax 50mm lenses basically all want to be run at f/2.8 for astro and will produce good results. Of all of the Pentax 28mm lenses I have used for astro the best one is the old S-M-C 28mm F/3.5 Takumar and it gets as good as it is going to be at f/4 and is better there than the newer A 28/2.8 is when it is at f/4. The suggestion of the Samyang/Rokinon 135/2 UMC is a good one and with a good copy it is a very good astro lens but wide open it vignetts hard for astro and bloats stars, at f/2.8 the star bloat is gone but the vignetting is still pretty bad until you get to f/4 but that is correctable if you take flat frames.I really like the old K 35/2 for astro and the last time I used it got good results at f/2.8 and found that is did better for astro than newer 35s but there I have had only a limited selection (Da 35/2.4 plastif fantastic and DA 35/2.8 limited macro). If you want to throw money at things there is always the DA * 200/2.8 which with the limited astro used I have with it is fantastic but I haven't figured how wide open I can run it so have treated it like the A* 200/2.8 which I run at f/4 for outstanding results, or for even more money the A* 400/2.8 ED [IF] which is perfect when run at f/3.5. Years back I did stumble upon the old Sigma 300mm F/4 APO Tele Macro which is really good for astro on APS-C and is great when run at f/5.6. Recently I did try the HD DA 15/4 limited for some wider astro attempting to get some northern lights through the light pollution of the cities and it performed well enough but I didn't put it through its paces as I was in a really bad location and was not planning on doing astro as it was a scout campout.
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Forum: General Photography
02-16-2024, 01:58 PM
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This is something I want to try so I am keeping my eyes out for info on shooting this but it will be a drive for me as it looks like the closest place for me will be somewhere outside of St. Louis so that will burn an entire day. I will probably run 2 maybe 3 cameras but I may end up on the other side of the world during it so my planning might be for naught. If I find out anything useful I will drop it here for others.
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Forum: General Photography
02-15-2024, 09:07 AM
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I have thought about doing a similar setup. Go buy suitable composite stock, a couple of buttons, and a 2.5mm audio cable and then spend some time modifying it so it isn't a frankenstein looking mess with the cable running everywhere and so that it can support the camera and lens. Then go do some handheld shots with the big glass because using something like the A* 400/2.8 handheld would then mean that the people who have told me that I should be able to do handheld shots with a 400mm are finally right. Add in that the stock would have connection points for a sling and I do know how to use a sling for better shooting accuracy and I could probably get some good shots with that setup.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-09-2024, 08:50 AM
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I haven't gotten that monster but I did investigate it for one area where I would likely make good use of it. That was for astrophotography where things get a bit strange. For doing astro the HD DFA* 50/1.4 is basically just like all other Pentax 50s where for astro it basically gets as good as it is going to get at f/2.8. It does do better with purple fringing and star bloat wide open than the older ones but has the same coma problem in the corners and edges to the same degree as the others.
That said it likely is a stellar lens for more normal shooting and it does sound like the glow wide open has been brought under control. My general view on fast 50s is that they have been a solved problem for a very long time (see the 8 element 50/1.4 Super Tak) so improvements to them as time has progressed have been incremental not revolutionary. Better coatings, tweaked optical design, different glass, etc. giving that little bit of improvement over time. The current one has a lot more elements and a lot bigger glass and I don't think anyone would say it is out performed by the old FA 50/1.4 but one would have a very hard time telling an image shot with the FA 50/1.4 @ f/5.6 from the same image shot with the HD DFA * 50/1.4 also at F/5.6
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
02-07-2024, 08:59 AM
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For lens elements I will often use distilled water and a mirco fiber cloth, however some lenses I have acquired over the years came from a smoking household and the denatured water didn't remove that residue so there I use the nice denatured alcohol from the hardware store (the one that is shellac thinner/remover) and that does the trick. Ethanol with a splash or methanol is a pretty mild solvent and a nice clean microfiber cloth provide good results.
For cases where the grease has migrated to places it shouldn't be naphtha and a q-tip work wonders. For those who don't know zippo fluid is also naphtha but more expensive and in a smaller container. One of my A 50/1.2 lenses had an almost stuck and exceptionally slow aperture because the grease had migrated so much so I got it a a huge discount and aftre opening cleaning the migrated grease and re-lubing sparingly it is a great use of $200. It is much more aggressive of a solvent than ethanol is so I use is very sparingly when I might get it on things I don't want it on. I generally steer clear of the really strong solvents when cleaning things as those might strip coatings and/or damage plastic. Even something like mineral spirits or turpentine might be too aggressive and things like toluene, xylylene, or acetone are right out.
For trying to minimize dust I assemble things upside down as much as I can so that falling dust doesn't fall in things. Use the squeeze blower with the object upside down to blow anything that may have fallen in out and when putting the next thing in it wait until the last second to fip it right side up to prevent any dust from landing on it while putting it in. It is slow and arduous but I have had great results.
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
02-02-2024, 11:43 AM
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I do miss the swivel ability that my first flash had. I get that functionality now by using 2 old Vivitar 285HV units and will point the one on camera straight up at 1/16 power and use it to optically trigger the other one that I point what ever direction I want for a bounce or swivel effect, or even to throw more light. If I could find another 285HV with the optical trigger I would be really happy, or just another optical trigger or 3 as those are easy to come by locally for not much money.
I will use one on camera pointed at a subject as a fill flash when outdoors and/or with heavy backlighting but like others generally avoid direct illumination with it so as to not get the prison photo look.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-01-2024, 03:57 PM
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A monster 400/2.8 is really a specialty piece of glass. I was actually pleased that I didn't some giant monster lens of questionable quality early on as I really didn't have a need for such a lens and would have likely had a very bad experience with it. For the longest time the biggest I had was a 200/4 on my old film camera and at the time that was likely more than I needed. Similar to the widest I owned for a long time was a 28/3.5 on full frame, but there I got the 17/4 before I really understood why one uses an ultrawide like that.
Recently I got the DA * 200/2.8 and it is a stellar lens and at least as good as my A* 200/2.8 is and likely better. Adding a HD FA * 300/2.8 would likely be the biggest fast prime that we might see from Pentax because even though that is a big lens it is still something that would have a reasonable market for a niche player like Pentax. Hoping for a 400/2.8, 600/4, or 800/5.6 is just a pipe dream although if Pentax wanted to get me to empty an account they could create a 400/2 that can be run wide open for astro and not fringe or have coma.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-01-2024, 09:23 AM
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The big heavy glass is fun. For monster glass I typically use it for astrophotography and love the A* 400/2.8 (there is big and heavy and then there is BIG and HEAVY). I also run the older Sigma 300/4 APO Tele Macro which also falls in that category of a big heavy lens and that is actually one of my favorites for walking around with. It is fairly close focusing and will get to 1:3 magnification so there are a lot of things that works for. I found that my general shooting style is best suited to a longer telephoto (typically 100mm but a 200 or 300 I like better) because that shallow DoF and big falloff when they are fast is nice. Add in the low light capabilities of a long fast lens and I have a good number with all of the 135mm and longer lenses I use regularly having a physical aperture of at least (based off of filter size) 77mm.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
01-31-2024, 09:53 AM
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My stuff is either WR or so old it doesn't care. Some of the more extreme conditions I have used it in were in a November gale on superior a couple years ago and got some great shots of waves crashing up the cliffs. And last year had a number of soaking events in Iceland when getting up near and under waterfalls as well as one day of surprisingly hard all day rain there. Then there is the cold weather shooting I have done but this year has been surprisingly warm so I haven't had to deal with that extreme.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-30-2024, 02:51 PM
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Unless you want to get into very specialized macro stuff you are probably good for now with lenses. Depending on how you use the reversed 50 you might be getting close to 2:1. Personally for getting to about 2:1 macro I like reversing my S-M-C 28/3.5 Takumar and can got bigger with extension tubes/focusing helicoid. I would say if you want to improve your abilities look for other accessories like a good ring light if you don't have one and a focusing rail. Then get use to focus stacking and sorting out the oddities that come from that.
For macro stuff I have the older D FA 100/2.8 macro, DA 35/2.8 limited macro, some crazy reverse mounted setup (laowa 12/2.8 reversed inside the hood of the Rokinon 135/2 UMC), and what I really like for a longer macro the Lester A. Dine 105/2.8 dental macro (rebranded Kron 105/2.8 macro). I still dream of finding a FA* 200/4 macro but I think my wife would kill me if I bought it.
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