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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
10-07-2021, 05:19 PM
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This trigger will not control your AF360GZ flashes. It is meant to control Godox / Flashpoint units from your K-1 and there is no point to buying one unless you plan on also buying a Godox/Flashpoint flash. This unit communicates with Godox flashes using radio frequencies close to the same frequency as your home WiFi network.
The AF360s do not use RF to communicate, rather flash to flash communication is done with pulses of light.
If you want to use PTTL functionality your choices using AF360s are pretty limited. A hotshoe adapter with one AF360 mounted on it plus another Pentax flash connected by the cable. Or one Pentax flash mounted on the camera configured as master and the other configured as slave "connected" optically/
If you want to use manual flash settings there are a number of RF transmitter/receiver combinations that are much cheaper. I bought a bunch of NPT-04 sets directly from China. They were cheaper than the batteries they came with. But the old saying, you get what you pay for applies with them. They work most of the time, the range is about 10 feet and they will let you down someday.
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
09-16-2021, 12:48 PM
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Thanks for the great review by the way. I'm waiting on UPS right now for a Flashpoint AD200/R2T2 combination.
Trailing curtain has always interested me, strangely in portrait work, because models tend to move as soon as they detect a flash. When I'm dragging the shutter I need to say - "don't move" in my best bank robber voice.
But later you said you never got trailing curtain to work. Did you get it to work in manual but not TTL. That would be fine with me.
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
09-13-2021, 08:48 AM
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Going back in time, the in camera flash menus have changed substantially, however from my rather limited use of HSS and Second curtain sync, the in camera menus never seemed to do much other than control the pop-up flash (pre-K-3ii).
On the K-1ii the in camera menu has been dumbed down to provide only Flash on / Flash on + red eye and a flash compensation adjustment that goes from -1EV to +1EV. What that means in any conversation where the Godox/Flashpoint specs say "In Camera", methinks it ain't gonna work. You may have more luck with the K-3i and K-5 where the flash menus are richer - but I think Pentax always intended flash control to be handled by the flash itself. A good strategy to sell $500 Pentax branded flashes, but a PITA for users. Besides that, if memory serves me correctly, I had to choose between wireless operation and HSS, so the only way I ever got HSS to work was hardwired with the hotshoe cable, one Pentax flash mounted on top of that and another a good metre apart (thanks to the miserably short cable that comes with the hotshoe adapter).
And then there is the infamous Pentax sync wall whose only passage was by way of a Pentax flash mounted on camera.
What Godox uses to trick the system is curious, but I fear that what might work with a K-3i or K-5 might not work with a K-1i/ii, KP or K-3ii/iii
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
07-12-2021, 10:48 AM
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K-1ii: 28-105. It is not a particularly great lens but it is versatile. I hate the vignette on the full frame body, the f/5.6 max aperture at pretty well every focal length other than 28 and I jones for something like the Canon 24-105 f/4.
K-3i: DA16 - 85. I have read that many people don't think much of this lens, but as a portrait shooter, I think it is great at f/8 or f/11 on the crop sensor camera. When I'm just on a walkabout taking snapshots, it is "satisfactory".
In the studio I still like the 77 ltd. I can shoot with that puppy all day.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
12-19-2014, 06:26 PM
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The Metz overcomes a problem with the camera, much like the digi-adapt. The trouble with that is from there on you are triggering optically. A radio trigger works fine on the digi-adapt but only after the digi-adapt "sees" the series of flashes from the popup. I don't have a high end radio trigger like a pocket wizard, but maybe they have some smarts similar to the Metz. I use Elinchrom Skyports which have pretty basic functionality. The camera doesn't recognize the Skyport so no direct rear curtain.
From what I have found, the K5 will only send a rear curtain "signal" to the pop-up flash, or when if finds or think it finds a Pentax 360 / 540 mounted on the camera or via a PTTL cable.
The cactus v6 looks interesting but I couldn't find anything in the literature that would suggest it will solve the problem. It does claim to have Pentax profiles which hopefully means the K5 will think it is a Pentax flash.
Let us know if the V6 works.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
09-26-2014, 07:16 AM
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Don't forget my "test" was not a typical shooting situation. Even the "analysis" technique was meant to find noise. In most cases we optimize the shooting situation as best we can to avoid noise. The values on the graph can be a bit frightening when you notice that the RGB values of a pure black space are nearly white (200,200,200) at ISO 51200. This would imply that an image at 51200 would have nearly zero contrast
but we know from experience that even at 51200 although grainy, we can make an image with a recognizable subject. I think the problem with the test technique is that I cannot select a threshold level of less than 1. That means the slightest non black pixel (even if its RGB value is 1, 1, 1) is going to be forced to white (255, 255, 255). In reality the fact that there are still some purely black pixels at 51,200 is remarkable.
So don't get too concerned how the slope increases so severely at ISO 3200 As others have posted, real life photographs can be excellent even at high ISO.
---------- Post added 09-26-2014 at 07:55 AM ----------
And after seeing Dave's car photos (my K-7 experience was similar), I want to design some simple controlled environment test for dynamic range.
I did a luminosity studio test with a friend who has a Canon 5D MKIII. I need to study up on the meaning of dynamic range vs. what I think we tested which I will call static' range.
Basically a continuous light setup and a photovision 3 bar calibration target with pieces of white and black lace stretched over the target to provide some texture. We balanced the lights (Videolux 5600K) as evenly as possible and used the target to get perfect exposures which we both set at f/5.6 ISO 100 for 2 seconds. Then we made shots from 30 seconds to 1/8000 sec. Then we imported all the images into Photoshop, zoomed in, and looked for details in the white and the black lace. Bottom line was the K-5 shots showed details in the black lace over the dark section of the target 3 stops stops faster (darker) than did the 5D. On the other hand, we could detect details in the white lace over the light section of the target 1/3 stop slower (brighter) from the 5D than we did the K-5 .
Conclusion: The K5 has a static range 2.7 stops larger than the Canon 5D MKIII, therefore is a better choice of camera when shooting in caves ... I guess.
I like doing simple repeatable experiments like this. I know the reviewers have all kinds of fancy measurement gear, but these tests can be done in my basement with gear that is commonly available. I would be very interested in anybody else's results doing similar experiments.
Oh and I'll post the graph when I get the chance.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
09-11-2014, 08:21 PM
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I think you are pretty safe up to ISO 800 for most lighting situations. The average amount of white in the samples is only 25. You could probably see an RGB value of 25, 25, 25 on a pure black background, but since this is just an average of 101x101 pixels the actual noise would be distributed and not clustered in any one place. If you are shooting a fairly bright scene you wouldn't see it at all. Based on what kh mentioned though I'd keep even bright shots to a max of 1600. The last thing I want to sacrifice is dynamic range.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
09-10-2014, 06:00 AM
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Ahha. That makes sense. I was wondering if it was truly an anomaly. It did that quite consistently from trial to trial. Thank you.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
09-09-2014, 09:21 PM
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Musings on a few topics ...
The K5 has an ISO 80 setting. What does that really mean? Just my opinion but I would think it goes something like this. ISO is an abbreviation for International Standards Organization. In olden days we used to talk about ASA which I think stood for American Standards Association. Now some cameras have sensitivity settings like L1, L2, H1, H2, but the K5 has ISO 80. Perhaps that is because Pentax is able to use the ISO trademark since the K5 does comply with the complete definition of ISO 80. That means, within some tolerance, it is equivalent to an ISO standard for film grain and sensitivity documented as standard number 80. Other manufacturers use things like L1, L2 simply because these sensitivities do not comply with an ISO standard, therefore they are unable to use the ISO trademark.
Noise: Our camera club had a discussion about "native ISO". To me this makes no sense. Now my electronics education was when the vacuum tube was king, but pretty well in any amplification system, the more gain, the more noise. With semi-conductor sensors I expect the least noise occurs when the amplification gain is lowest and in the K5 that is at ISO 80. If that is what is meant by native, OK.
This discussion went on to claim what I think is another misconception; that mid ISO settings are interpolated and it is better to shoot 1/3 stop lower than an integer multiplier of native than it is to shoot 1/3 stop higher. In other words. since the native ISO of the K5 is 80 and the next integer multiplier is 160, it less noisy to shoot at ISO 125 than ISO 100 etc. This rumor may have come from some video/Technicolor issue, but IMO I call it Kazunga when it comes to still shot cameras. So I did a test...
Completely dark room, lens and viewfinder caps on, and the camera covered by a black lightproof blanket. Let's say about -8ev (who knows, it was too dark to see). The process is shoot, increase sensitivity by 1/3 stop, shoot again. Then take all those files (in DNG format) and import them into photoshop as layers. Apply a threshold adjustment layer (set at level 1) at the top of the layer stack, and make 4 101x101 pixel samples around the middle of the frame. Then average the RGB levels from all 4 samples and plot the graph.
This is what I got. A couple of "shelves" in the curve, but nothing other than what I would call a sample anomaly. The results I got, are pretty much what I expected.
Thoughts? Comments? By the way, although I don't have the curve to show, a friend did the same thing with his Nikon D7100. The K5 was less noisy by far.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
09-01-2014, 07:43 PM
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Well good news for those who are hoping for a 35mm DSLR. You are more likely to get your wish than am I.
Please a flash and firmware that comes even close to the Nikon SB910. Oh and a new hotshoe adapter that has the cable exiting on the left side instead of across the shutter button. Honestly RIcoh, I promise I will learn to love P-TTL.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
08-31-2014, 03:27 PM
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I haven't jumped into this cat fight for a while, but it would appear that Photokina 2014 will come and go without a 36mm x 24mm sensor in a Pentax camera. Frankly I am glad, because I hope Ricoh R&D dollars are going into solving other problems, notably (for me) is fixing a flash system that is mired in the 1980s (at least). The R&D spent for the K-S1 has me scratching my head however.
But I did want to share this unscientific test conducted with a friend when the subject of low light performance came up.
FF sensors need bigger glass to 'cover' the sensor. An 82mm diameter lens will capture more light than a 62 mm diameter lens. I yield on this point. That 82mm diameter glass is also much heavier and is more likely to be in my bag than on my camera, but that is a different argument. In the end, does it matter? A friend has a Canon 5d MKIII and I have a lowly Pentax K5. We decided to argue our respective cases in the studio (copious amounts of beer and much shouting hadn't seemed to get us anywhere).
We set up a Photovision calibration target and draped one piece of black lace and one piece of white lace over top of it. Then we set up 4 video-lux 5600K CFL lamps to light the set as evenly as possible.
The Canon had a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. My closest comparable was a Sigma 17-50 f/2.8. We both made a custom white balance and set the ISO to the 'native' 100 of the Canon. (The Pentax is ISO certified at 80 but since the Canon can't do that we gave it a bit of a break and both used 100). Then we metered the light at +4 ev, and set apertures to f/5.6 (theoretical sweet spot 2 stops less than full open). We both got nearly perfect and similar exposure histograms off the Photovision target at 2 seconds. From there we changed shutter speeds up and down in 1/3 stop increments.
The result: We could discern details in the black lace 3 stops darker with the Pentax than we did with the Canon. The Canon was slightly better on the whites where it had a 1/3 stop advantage. So we concluded the K5 has a 2.7 stop wider range at +4 ev than the 5dmkIII. We didn't bother trying lower or higher continuous light setups (maybe too much beer by then) but although there may be some differences, I don't think it would matter very much. But to the subject at hand ...
Capturing detail in the blacks 2.7 stops darker with the crop sensor camera tells me that the idea of FF cameras having better low light performance is a myth or at least a very broad assumption that my friend and I could not prove with the gear we had available.
OK, this may not have been a completely scientific test but it seemed practical to us, and applicable in the real world. I don't see myself making many photographs at +4 ev, but if I do, I am quite comfortable knowing I will get a decent image at 1/15th, f/2.8 and ISO 800. With the Pentax anti-shake on, I might even get away with hand holding it. The test is pretty simple. Try it yourself and post what you learn. I would also be very interested in opinions about the test and if it is flawed in any way.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
11-01-2013, 12:51 PM
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Well after spending many years in product marketing, the LAST people we would tell about real products in development is our own salesforce. Their job is to sell what we have to sell, not futures. We don't want that guy to say, "pssst, don't buy that K-3. There's a full frame camera coming out in 9 months or so."
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
10-05-2013, 07:35 PM
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My K-5 is good enough ... almost. I will preorder a K-3 if:
1. significantly improved AF
2. tethering
3. workable rear curtain sync and 1/200+ sync
4. did I mention significantly improved AF?
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
03-26-2013, 06:15 AM
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Yeah, even the Pentax grip can be finicky. I can only imagine what a 3rd party grip would be like. I don't think it was the same issue you describe, but I did have some weirdness when I was using the grip, and the camera was set for auto battery selection mode. Decided that the best use of the grip for the battery was storage..
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
03-25-2013, 07:09 AM
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Ha!
If history is any indicator, there may also be a new lens cap series with holes in them.
But if I am allowed to let my imagination roam in warm green fields of spring wildflowers for a while, Pentax will announce a radically new lens technology (sans lead) which will cause chins to drop around the world and will be of a hydrid design to be ready for a FF camera later this year. Maybe that could explain the current backorder situation for Pentax lenses.
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
03-25-2013, 06:54 AM
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By any chance are you using a third party battery? Batteries are still the bane of cold weather shooters. Just for an experiment, keep a spare brand named Pentax battery in your shirt pocket. When the problem happens change the cold battery for the warm one (open the camera only in the cold outdoor dry air). I found that even if the battery indicator shows sufficient charge, the voltage may have dropped enough to cause odd behavior. Also switch to manual focus when this happens. Cold weather = sluggish AF motors. Sluggish motors = high current / high battery drain. If the motor is not sucking all the current the battery can deliver, there may be enough to power the less demanding electricals (like shutter).
Yes about the cold to warm transition. WR or not, keep a "Space Bag" with your gear. These are big enough to hold the camera and lenses you have been using in the cold and will keep warm most air away from the camera until it has warmed up. Another option: warm up your vehicle with defroster on full until you can't stand it anymore and your gear is warm to the touch before bringin it into a warm humid environment. I would suggest not breathing while waiting in the vehicle, but that would be poor advise.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
02-09-2013, 02:51 PM
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Obviously this project is more involved than I appreciate. After all scanners are made for scanning books and that would be my first choice. In any event, how about a different tactic. Set Live View on the cameras and use video capture software on the pc to grab the images.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-06-2013, 07:08 AM
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Nope. Just too much experience in business and seeing what happens to rudderless ships.
- hp retiree
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-05-2013, 09:43 AM
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I think I mostly agree with you, although I'm not crazy about 29 minute video cameras in an DSLR package.
The Apple comparison is interesting, however Apple is about to go swirling down a sinkhole. It had one asset - an arrogant despotic visionary genius. That is gone,
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-05-2013, 09:30 AM
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I had to check the signature line under your post to make sure I hadn't posted it. Alas, my version would not have been so eloquent. My instructor's words were, "The camera is just a light proof box that holds film - first, find that lens that brings your vision to life."
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-05-2013, 08:49 AM
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-05-2013, 08:46 AM
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+1. For that matter +1,000. When leaders of this forum claim to speak for members of this forum and imply its members are demanding FF, that is untrue.
As a devotee to the concept of continuous improvement, leapfrog jumps are seldom a good idea. They should continue to 'Pareto' the line's technical, marketing, and sales barriers, and starting at the top, address them. I doubt if lack of a full frame system is anywhere near the top 5 on that list.
The example of the Honda Civic comes to mind. Some of you might remember the 1970s something version - a rust bucket glorified motorcycle. But one step at a time Honda knocked off the Civic's issues to become one of the most highly demanded cars available today.
Many were disappointed when the K-5 II was 'big' Pentax announcement. I was overjoyed. It told me that the Ricoh influence was one that supported continuous improvement. They took the top problems with the K-5 and they made significant improvements. More of the same please Pentax.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-03-2013, 03:34 PM
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Frankly I'm tired of hearing about FF vaporware. The K-5 II / S are exactly the kind of incremental improvements Pentax should concentrate on - and there are many more. I won't be jumping on any FF bandwagon (if, not when it happens), however if the speculators on this forum are right that old Pentax glass will become extremely valuable should Pentax release a FF version, well I'll keep my K-5 and make a fortune selling off my 30 year old lenses.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
02-03-2013, 08:00 AM
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Really? How about getting new tech right in the APS-C body and only after that spend time and money on FF. Let it trickle up instead.
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Forum: Pentax Full Frame
10-08-2012, 06:14 PM
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Yawn. So many more things for Pentax to work on than waste R&D on FF... that is if they really are doing any R&D on FF.
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