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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-23-2021, 01:32 PM
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The 18-270mm would probably cover everything but I can't afford new lenses at the moment unfortunately.
I currently have the 16-85mm and the 55-300mm lenses, and due to the slight overlap in focal range I normally leave my 1.4x teleconverter so it's effectively 77-420mm. The narrower maximum aperture won't really be a problem as it will be very bright and sunny.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-23-2021, 01:14 PM
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Has anyone got any good tips for quickly changing lenses on a K3ii?
I'm (hopefully) young to Egypt later this year and will be visiting Giza and Luxor as part of a guided tour group. My wife, and I'm sure other people in the tour, won't like hanging around for me to mess around with lenses and take loads of photos!
I'm very careful with my lenses so don't like to rush and when changing them I always make an effort to keep the camera itself and camera end of the lens pointing down to prevent any dust or debris getting in.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
05-03-2019, 03:15 AM
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Hello,
I have a K3ii, 16-85mm lens, 55-300mm lens (the newest one with the retractable barrel) and AF540FGZ flash - can anyone recommend a decent camera bag (not a backpack) to accommodate all these plus a few little extras like additional SD cards, lens cleaning pen, wipes etc.?
Not sure if this helps but I always leave the 16-85mm lens attached to my camera.
The brand doesn't matter to me as long as it's good quality :)
Thanks in advance!
Sam
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
08-06-2018, 04:10 AM
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Thanks everyone for your comments and advice!
The Flipbac looks like a good option but it's not quite the same size as the LCD screen so I'm going to see how I get on with my current setup for a while and maybe get one later on.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
07-30-2018, 07:41 AM
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Hi Everyone,
I have a Pentax K-3II and literally the only thing that irritates me is that the LCD screen is fixed. I was wondering if there is some sort of accessory (probably mirror based I assume) that will allow me to view the screen from above or below?
This didn't seem like an issue to me before I bought my camera but I've since become interested in macro photography so being able to view the screen from another angle would be really useful!
Thanks,
Sam
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Forum: Photographic Technique
07-11-2018, 07:38 AM
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Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this, especially the marriage based ones!
I should have mentioned in my original post that of course I intend on spending most of the time with my fiancée / wife - having re-read the post it does come across like I intend on abandoning her for hours on end! About 15 people are coming to Mexico with us and will be staying for various lengths of time during our first 2 weeks there so we will both be busy with family and friends, we have planned it so we will be left alone for a whole week at the end so we can just relax and enjoy the honeymoon together :)
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Forum: Photographic Technique
07-11-2018, 04:53 AM
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Hello!
I am going to Riviera Maya in Mexico next April with my fiancée / wife (we are getting married there!) and I'm trying to learn how to make the most of my time there and get some really good photos. I've always taken lots of photos on holiday and I would even say that a few are very good, but the vast majority of them are quite standard "look at this nice beach/town square/animal" sort of photos.
We will be there for 3 weeks but due to the cost of everything I will be in the hotel for all but a few days. The hotel is Grand Palladium Colonial Resort and whilst in Mexico we will be going on trips to: Coba, Izamal and Merida. We are doing a couple more trips as well but I doubt I will use my camera much as they are pretty full on - ziplines, snorkelling and cliff diving!
I'm only mentioning the hotel and the trips we are doing in case anyone who reads this has actually been to those places themselves and has any location-specific pointers :)
The biggest concern for me is how I can go on day trips to places I have never been and still be able to take creative and unique photos. On these sorts of trips there's usually the unmentioned protocol of keeping up with the rest of the group and obviously whilst taking photos I also want to be able to listen to our tour guide and enjoy the surroundings.
I will be taking my K-3II, AF201 FG, 16-85mm, 55-300mm, 100mm macro lens (all Pentax) and a circular polarising filter.
Any help will be greatly appreciated!
Sam
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
07-05-2018, 04:06 AM
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Two damselflies having some fun together!
Taken at Rodley Nature Reserve: Moss Bridge Road, Rodley, Leeds LS13 1HP. Definitely worth a visit if you enjoy bird watching and insects, but due to the prolonged hot weather in the UK recently a lot of the ponds have dried out so there were not many birds when I visited at the weekend.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-27-2018, 12:26 PM
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Here's a few macro photos from the weekend - not quite as in focus as I thought but I haven't got used to the focus peaking in live view yet. All taken with my Pentax-A f/2.8 50mm Macro lens.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
06-27-2018, 08:16 AM
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What aperture setting you use really depends on what effect you want your photos to have.
A small aperture will produce a large depth of field, i.e. foreground and background will be sharp. This is good for landscapes. A wide aperture will produce a shallow depth of field, i.e. only the selected focal point will be sharp and the foreground and background will be out of focus. This is good for portraits.
Aperture, shutter speed and ISO are all linked and it's a matter of trading off between them until you find an exposure setup that works best for what you're after. There's no right or wrong settings to use which is why photography is creative!
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-27-2018, 07:56 AM
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beachgardener, Mikesul,
I'm so happy with my new camera! I took it for a spin at the weekend but only took my Pentax-A f/2.8 50mm Macro lens. I got some really nice macro shots of flowers and some insects, I'll post some in this thread when I get home later.
I think I'm going to get into macro photography a lot more now I have a DSLR as the manual focus is a lot more intuitive and nicer to use than on the bridge cameras I've owned before. My Fuji has macro and super-macro modes (focusing at a minimum of 1cm) but it doesn't have a manual focus ring - the older ones did have this but they stopped making them like that... - as manual focusing is done by rotating the e-dial.
I got another bargain on a used 16-85mm F3.5-5.6 lens which I am collecting on my way home from work this evening. The cheapest second-hand one I found online was over £400 but I came across one at CEX (it's an electronics exchange retailer for those outside the UK) for £280 and they provide a 2 year warranty. There was no image of it online so I am a bit apprehensive but they will give me a full refund if I'm not happy with it :)
Sam
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
06-24-2018, 02:07 AM
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Thanks everyone for your quick help!
I had the camera set to enable use of the aperture ring but I was in auto mode and just expected it to work. Tried it in manual and it's fine now! I've decided to programme the U1 and U2 profiles to be for specific manual lenses (Pentax-A F2.8 Macro 50mm and Tamron SP F3.5-4.2 35mm-210mm) I have so can just get on with using them next time.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
06-23-2018, 12:05 PM
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Hello,
I have just got a K-3II and it's fantastic but I'm having a problem with my manual Pentax lenses which have aperture rings. I have tried a few lenses and I'm getting the same problem so I'm fairly certain there's nothing wrong with the lenses.
I can see the aperture blades opening and closing when the lens is off camera, but as soon as they get attached to the camera they open fully up and will not change despite what the aperture ring is set to.
My new 18-55mm WR kit lens works perfectly and after reading lots of reviews for my old manual lenses I thought they would work perfectly too.
Does anyone have experience of this problem? If so then is there a solution?
Thanks in advance!
Sam
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-20-2018, 11:55 AM
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Hello again,
Please can someone tell me what the most up-to-date firmware version is for the K-3II? Mine already has 1.10 out of the box but this is also the latest version I can find mention of anywhere, even though it was released over 2 years ago now! If this is the newest one then great but I just thought there would be a more recent version.
TIA!
Sam
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-18-2018, 09:26 AM
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Lew Dite - I've come to the same conclusion. £100 is too much for what functionality it adds to the camera but if I see a bargain I might be tempted. Another thing which has put me off is that I realised it would mean taking my phone out with me when I go on holiday; with the exception my camera and camcorder I hate using tech on holiday, too many notifications and messages!
If I do get a Flucard then I might see about picking up a cheap second (or even third!) hand iPhone or iPod touch then I can use that solely as my remote camera display.
On another note, I took my K-3II out for a spin at the weekend and it's made me so glad I didn't go mainstream with a Nikon or Canon! It's going to take a while for me to get used to all the controls and settings it has but there's so much creative control with it that I know it will last me a good few years. Can't wait to get a decent telephoto lens to pair with it now! The Sigma 75-300mm I have is from the late 80's / early 90's so it's early autofocus is slow and very loud!
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-14-2018, 12:10 AM
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Thanks for the tips about updating the firmware (I've never had a camera that gets updates so I wouldn't have thought of that!) and the e-book. I've got a big trip to Mexico planned for next Easter so I'm hoping to learn everything about the camera this summer so I can just get on with taking photos when I get there!
I've been looking at maybe getting a Flucard so I can pair the camera to the app. My Fuji bridge camera can do this but the connection is hit and miss, is the Flucard any better? I didn't expect it to be about £100 so don't really want to spend this much on WiFi connectivity unless it works flawlessly.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
06-13-2018, 04:31 AM
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Hi Everyone,
I've just got a bargain on a Pentax K-3II with an 18-55mm WR lens - are there any useful tips you can share to help me get the most out of the camera?
I plan on swapping the lens for an 18-135mm for general use and buying a 55-300mm as well. I have a few old manual focus Pentax lenses which I hope to get some use out of as well (Pentax-M f1/1.7 50mm, Pentax-A Macro f/2.8 50mm, Tamron SP f/3.5-4.2 35-210mm).
Thanks,
Sam
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-21-2018, 09:13 AM
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I've just been testing my Sigma reflex 600m f/8 lens on my K100D and it's too much hassle for me to bother with so I will probably sell it and hopefully get a decent amount to go towards new lenses :)
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-20-2018, 09:04 AM
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Not sure if you can advise on this but... The camera I am mainly using at the moment is a Fuji S1 bridge camera and I'm very happy with it; I am considering buying these Pentax lenses:
Pentax SMC DA 18-135mm F/3.5-5.6 ED AL (IF) DC WR
Pentax HD Pentax DA 55-300mm F4.5-6.3ED PLM WR RE
I have seen mixed reviews about these but do you think they would be an improvement over the built-in lens in my Fuji?
TIA!
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-20-2018, 07:57 AM
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CharLac - until I discovered the K-3II I've never had to think about how often I use the flash on my camera, so I have no idea how much I should invest in one at the moment!
I've got used to having a screen that rotates etc. so that might take a bit of getting used to. It might encourage me to be more like a proper photographer and use the viewfinder haha
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-20-2018, 07:40 AM
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Thank you everyone for your input, it's helped me decide on saving up for a K-3II. I have a Pentax AF280T flash (I know it's old and only TTL) but it should work to some extent without causing any problems, and will be enough until I can afford a more modern flash.
Now I just need to decide on some lenses!
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-17-2018, 02:18 AM
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Thanks Mike!
I've had a look at the K-3II and I can get one secondhand for a reasonable price, but my only concern is that it doesn't have a built-in flash. I do have a Pentax AF400FTZ, but I know this is quite old now - would this still be compatible?
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-16-2018, 10:27 AM
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I've got a Tamron SP f/3.5-4.6 35-210mm lens from the 80's that produces really sharp and vibrant photos still, and it can be had on eBay for about £30 at the moment. They're completely manual but if you don't mind that then I would definitely recommend it.
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-16-2018, 10:21 AM
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I did consider a Nikon but I didn't like how they're more affordable lenses omit image stabilisation - I tend to zoom quite often so to get a decent telephoto lens was going to be too expensive for me just now. Plus, I have a few lenses for Pentax already and after researching them online they seem pretty good.
The main difference I can see between the K-S2 and K-70 is the former has 20mp and the latter has 24mp. My way of thinking is the 20mp would produce better low light photos due to have larger pixels on the sensor, but obviously the 24mp produces higher resolution. Am I correct? Also, are there any other significant differences between these two cameras?
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
04-16-2018, 08:19 AM
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Hi All,
I have been enthusiastic about photography for a long time and until very recently have only been using Fuji bridge cameras. Over the last year or so I have inherited quite a lot of photography equipment from my Grandad, most of which is Pentax or K-Mount based; in addition to a few 35mm film SLRs I now have a Pentax K100D, a modest selection of vintage lenses and a couple of autofocus lenses.
Having played around with the K100D I've realised how much more creative I can get than with my Fuji bridge camera. Although the K100D is 15 years old it can still snap some really nice photos, but there is a temperamental fault whereby the camera turns off because it thinks the batteries are depleted (even with brand new batteries), yet once it's turned back on it will say the batteries are full and might last another 15 minutes or so if I'm lucky... Anyway, I'm looking to upgrade to a more up-to-date Pentax DSLR and currently weighing up the K-S2 or K-70, any recommendations or advice either way would be greatly appreciated!
Sam
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