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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-29-2009, 01:40 AM
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Very good underrated lens, versatile, excellent value. I use it more than any other len. A lot more. I think it's better than the 16-50, actually, which IMO is highly overrated. The 16-45 is a surprisingly good "macro" lens, too, as high as 1/4x. My copy has no issues with focus or with anything else.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
04-25-2009, 04:37 PM
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Hi, I have three tripods, a 055xpro b, a Gitzo Explorer (carbon fiber), and a FEISOL CT-3342. The Gitzo is built better than the Feisol but the Feisol, without center column, is the lightest (just 1 kg) and steadiest and it costs only a little more than the 055, which is just trash compared to the other two. The problem with the trick center column on the Explorer is it can't dampen vibrations or balance your equipment as well as a regular tripod without a center column like the Feisol. I usually take the Feisol with me, sometimes the Gitzo, never the 055. To go low on the ground I pack a small section of tarp to lie on and a saddle beanbag filled with hulled buckwheat to support the camera. Weighs nothing and is easier to position than the Explorer. Sometimes you have to improvise with the beanbag and a found object. No big deal. Still, if you must get a macro tripod, then get the Explorer. It's an excellent tripod, not nearly as bad as I made it sound, and fact is ground level shooting is not particularly challenging. Much more common in the field are objects out of reach at impossible angles that only the Explorer can pull off.
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Forum: Photographic Technique
04-25-2009, 12:36 PM
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An artist friend take pictures of his work on the roof on overcast days. Works brilliantly for him, ideal for pp, no special lighting or filters.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-24-2009, 04:10 PM
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A great lens is sharp all over wide open. A very good lens gives excellent results stopped down to f4 - f5.6. A lens that's soft at f4 - f5.6 is very common for around $150.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
04-14-2009, 05:36 PM
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Both.
I often use a film camera when I know what I want to shoot[*]; film's just too rich for me for snapshots. Typically I revist a place with a film camera after I've shot it extensively with the K20d and thought about the results. I suppose you can say I use the K20d to take photographs (i.e. document) and film (or digital!) to make them, but that would be pretentious and not exactly jive with the results.
[*] Unless it's action, macro, or an event.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
02-14-2009, 05:17 PM
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Well, FWIW, Silverfast also recentlty claimed that Nikon was discontinuing the F6, which Nikon subsequently denied.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
02-14-2009, 01:53 PM
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I have an MZ-S and I don't like it. It's two most serious liabilities, aside from the extravagent price, is construction --- compared to other serious amateur cameras like the K10/20 and F100, it's cheap & flimsy --- and ergonomics. Although it's very nice to hold and shoot in automatic, and is just the cutest little thing to look at, in manual mode the camera immediately runs out of space and is impossible to operate deftly.
Try the MZ-S to before you buy it. And consider that for less money you can get an LX instead, which really is the bomb.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
12-21-2008, 01:41 PM
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I don't get the popularity of really close up shots, typically of flowers and insect eyes. I love macro but barely differentiated tissue is not interesting, IMO.
I don't like unsubtle, artsy-fartsy pictures, especially nudes, that scream at me "I am art!" I don't dislike all such pretentious artless photos, many are unintentionally funny, in their pathetic earnestness.
I like browsing other people's family snapshots. I like the fact that they are somehow more "real", even real bad, but also it's fun to discover those that are accidentally good craft.
Sometimes I wish photoshop had no unsharp mask.
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Forum: Sold Items
12-05-2008, 05:09 PM
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Do you have photos online that you've taken with the camera? Also, is there a lens cap for this camera?
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