|
Forum: Pentax K-r
01-17-2011, 11:58 AM
|
| |
Hi there. I've got a K-x and a friend has the K-r and we've been going back and forth a bit about this too lately. I've read allot on the forums trying to find similar info and haven't found allot. Prevailing advice is to try them all out whic is good advise - but I'm with you - I like also a little guidance and to hear what other folks are doing 8-) I find I can't notice huge differences in some settings. Here's what I have so far. (I'm no expert by the way)
It's similar to Sekul.
Also enabled iso 100
Also set iso steps as Ev steps
Steps themselves are set at 1/3 increments
noise reduction: Starts at 1600 - medium. I am not sure I notice that much difference from low - see overall comment below.
auto iso: 100 - 1600 (or switch to more if needed)
Slow Shutter speed ISO: off
auto WB
Focus Point: Centre
Metering: switch between matrix and centre
Autofucus:AF-S (single autofucus).
My green button is set to switch between JPEG and RAW. My wife doesnt' want to shoot in RAW.
I have highlight correction off and shadow correction on. My house is dimely lit. Not too sure how these features affect the image other than the obvious yet.
colour scheme (?): Vibrant but have contrast +1 and Fine Sharpness + 2 (recently). Also adjusted the saturation down by one. I love the Pentax vibrant colours but I find sometimes the colours can look a little too cartoonish (for my taste) if they are bright colours to begin with - especially pink (whic my 20 month old daughter wears allot of 8-)
Of course, this is just what I have set to try to capture most situations I usign the camera in. I also play around with things like ISO and metering.
Most of the time the camera is in Av mode.
As for my comment. Recently I did switch to the medium noise reduction level starting at ISO 1600 and also Fine Sharpening +2. However, my images do seem to have a bit more noise. Haven't had allot of time to do more testing but looks like Sekul is suggesting the FSharpening is sacrificing on the noise side. May just try going back to low noise reduction at 1600 and\or try regular sharpening or only +1.
Hope this helps.
D
|
|
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-19-2010, 11:34 AM
|
| |
Hi Everyone. Thanks for the great hardware and technique advice. Much appreciated. There are definitely some things I can be doing better like anticipating movement, pre-focusing, setting up a batch process in photoshop (I tend to want to do each picture seperately - I need to let go a bit 8-) . Still lots to learn! I'll be trying those out with the K100 to see if I can milk some better results out of it\me.
I do have a flash - the 540. I need to look into some sort of diffuser on it so I don't accidentally blind my daughter 8-) I love it and it's opened up a whole new world but I think there's definitely still some experimenting I need to do on that front too.
All that being said, like many I still have a bit of a gear adiction 8-) We want to have two (camera) bodies eventually for my wife and I....but I think I may take a step back and re-evaluate. Try some of the suggestions here and look into the K-x and K-7 again. The points about the higher ISO capabilites on the K-x potentially offsetting any difference in the SR funtion and the awesome side-by side of the K-7 vs K100D in relation to noise (thanks a ton) are great points which address two of the major concerns I've seen with those particular cameras. The AF-focus assist lamp on the K-7 is also nice. Idea of some video capabilty on hand is nice too - as dlacouture has suggested. We have a video camera but it's not always within reach when the DSLR is in-hand. With the K-x I'll have to go try one out and see if I'd miss the top LCD and the visible AF points.
Once again, the forum has answered some questions while also reminding me it's not always the next camera that'll fix the issues I'm having 8-)
Thanks all,
D
|
|
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-19-2010, 06:05 AM
|
| |
Hi There, Had posted a few days ago with some questions (https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-dslr-discussion/93998-need-help-next-pentax-body.html) but didn't get a response. I suspect my rambling message wasn't to the point. My fault. Thought I would try again but more focused - sorry for the double post.
My main questions are:
1) How fast is the focusing? I've read some folks think it's plenty fast, some think it's slow. I guess it's all relative. I do know that I seem to miss allot of shots of my moving 11 month old daughter in-doors with the K100D. Not sure how much this has to do with the lenses (50mm 1.4, 35mm 2.0, Sigma 17-70)? Would the K20 help significantly in this dept?
2) How is the low-light performance (noise). Our place tends to be dark. Any point and shoot (Panasonic Zs3, Canon s90) is almost unuseable. I'd love to keep the ISO down and have a longer exposure but my daughter is a mover! K100D is great noise-wise...but again, has the slower focussing issue. What should I expect to see with the 14mp sensor of the K20 compared to the 6mp sensor of the K100 noise-wise?
3) The K100D preset white balance isn't great and the manual options are fairly basic. You lose the user setting on the K100 as soon as you switch to a preset. I know shooting raw is best but it means I am less likely to take as many shots since I don't always have the time to sit down to do the post-processing. Still trying to figure out babies at the moment 8-). Can the "user" setting on the K20 (or any of the most recent Pentax bodies) be saved for recall?
Would also consider a different body (K-x, K7, etc) if anyone feels those may be better suited to our main needs but it seemed to me that the K20 was the best mix of the above main concerns for our family. Some of the others seemed to excel at many things...but didn't do well with one of our main concerns. ex. K-7 seems to suffer in the noise dept, k-x seems to have low headroom and a less efficient shake reduction (again - moving baby, low light 8-).
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Devin
|
|
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-17-2010, 08:16 AM
|
| |
Hi All, Been following the forums for a couple years. Think I've only ever posted once but I've learned allot from just reading 8-) I would like to request your assistance in upgrading my current camera body - the K100D.
I've looked at the k-x, K200D, K20, K10, K-7, etc and can't seem to a) find one that has the main things I really want and b) answer a couple questions about the features - in particular manual white balance.
So here's what I love about the K100D (which I'll be keeping as a second body).
Low light performance
Sensor. This puppy takes great photos - still a gem even in the current market 6MP is fine for most of my needs.
Size
AA Batteries - yes...I am one that likes this 8-) Although - the lack of this is not a deal-breaker.
What I don't like - ie why I am looking to upgrade:
Slow focussing (not sure if this is a result of my lenses)
Poor White Balance (although there's a user setting there's no memory to save\recall it)
Missing one or two key physical buttons I'd like for ease of access
Sticking to it doesn't allow me to feed my need to buy something new 8-)
I'd consider myself a casual enthusiast 8-) Lately most of my pictures revolve around my 11 month old daughter. Also like to take pics while on vacation - not so much lanscape as relatively close up interesting objects\people. The rest of my gear consists of:
Lenses:
50mm 1.4
35mm 2.0
Sigma 17-70
Pentax 540 flash
Most of the time the 50mm or 17-70 is on the camera.
So at the top of my wishlist is:
1) Excellent low ligh performance
2) Excellent white balance performance (or and easy way around poor performance like a "user" white balance or two. At least one static\saveable user setting for inside my house). Although I'd love to shoot RAW always, I don't always have the time I'd like t to fix the white balance via post-precessing. So it makes me less likely to take pictures during busier times.
3) Dedicated RAW button (or a button I can assign to RAW like the GREEN button).
4) Easy way to change ISO and White balance - ie - not sub menus. I think most of the new crop of Pentax cameras have this.
I thought I'd narrowed it down to the K-x but have seen a few comments that concern me. These are the ones posted in DPreview but seem to be common comments:
# Tendency to clip highlights in high-contrast scenes
# Relatively little RAW headroom means it is difficult to pull back blown detail even when shooting RAW
# Shake-reduction not too efficient
# Unreliable Auto White Balance in artificial light (but very good presets and WB fine tuning) -can I save these fine tunings to recall later?
As for the K-7, it seems that the consistent comment is that it's not as good at low light - but does everything else I would like. Low light is very important to me. I have a Panasonic Zs3 and a Canon S90 that are aweful in our house. We don't have allot of windows. The K100 is the best in terms of noise in our place (the prime lens and bounced flash help with this) but I miss allot of shots cause it won't focus fast enough on my moving daughter 8-)
So...just wondering if I'm reading to much into the "reviews". Perhaps the concerns about some of the bodies are concerns in todays market - but all still at least as good as the K100? Anything else come closer to meeting my needs better than the K-x from your experiences? Sorry for the long ramble 8-)
Your help is greatly appreciated.
|
|
Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-29-2009, 09:06 PM
|
| |
Thanks for the info. Checked out the sites and there is allot of great info there. I'll have to sit down with the camera\flash and work through some of it (just had our first baby girl so finding the time and staying awake is the hard part!).
the "Light: Science and Magic: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting" and "The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos" books were a couple of the ones I saw on Amazon. I may treat myself to one (or both) of those 8-).
FYI - it's not flash related but I've also heard great things about the book "Learning to See Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography (Updated Edition) by Bryan Peterson.
Thanks again for the tips!
Devin
|
|
Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-29-2009, 08:28 AM
|
| |
Hello all,
Been reading the forum for a couple years now and have found it to be a wealth of information. Thanks! First time posting. I've searched the forum for a reccomendation on a book about flash or lighting basics but haven't been able to find anything. I just picked up a Pentax 540 flash here in Canada (amazing price from prodigital2000 which I read about in the forums). I've read the manual and played around a bit over the last 24 hours but I feel I need to learn a bit about the fundamentals of lighting\flash photography. I've checked Amazon and there are quite a few books. Thought I would see if the Pentax users have any that they highly reccomend to a someone who is an enthusiast (ie...no studio or pro shooting going on here). FYI - already have "Understanding Exposure".
Any help is greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Devin
|
