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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-28-2010, 04:14 PM
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
06-28-2010, 04:11 PM
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I'm posting this here as it's really a continuation of another discussion in which I've been getting some very good advice. Someone asked me to post a 1:1 detail from a larger image which "missed the mark" for me, so this is it. The attachment is the detail, cropped in iPhoto, and then the full image in picasa.
Picasa Web Albums - 11655009367975848...
So... the area that appeared to be in focus when I shot this is the central area of the seed pod, where the most prominent open pod is. But, the area which appears to be in the best focus here is the area just to the left and slightly above, where the edge of the seed pod is.
So, to continue the discussion, is this because of the diopter not being accurately set? Or was I just not paying attention as I thought I was? I wear glasses, and wonder if there's a problem there.
For those who weren't participating in the other discussion, it's here:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/105867-lens-recommendations.html
And we've already talked about ISO, and a few other things.
Thanks once again for all your helpful advice.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-28-2010, 01:36 PM
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So much helpful advice here; thank you all!
Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to take a bit of time in my back yard to get some shots-- hand held at lower ISO-- and then see what I have. I'll post something in a more appropriate forum after I do that, to see if I can get feedback on what, if anything, improves (or not). I think part of the problem so far is that I do not trust the SR, since it's new to me. But that's just part of the problem.
The focus thing is bothering me a bit as I did do the exercise last night of looking close-up at one of my "slightly missing the mark" photos, and I could see that the point of clearest focus is not where I thought it was when I took the picture. I wear glasses and have adjusted the diopter to correct, but if the adjustment isn't right, would that be possibly causing a problem? If so, how do I know if it's right? Is it just trial and error?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-27-2010, 10:23 PM
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Ah, okay. Maybe this isn't a lens thing, then. I set the ISO high so that I wouldn't be too hindered by the lack of a tripod, and what I hear you saying is that this is probably the best quality I can expect from that configuration, even in digital format. I'm still figuring out the differences and similarities between my old Nikon with film and the digital here. So, maybe next outing I should pack along at least a monopod for stability, and use a lower ISO setting.
It's been a really long time since I had my last SLR and I appreciate all of you taking the time to provide some guidance!
As for the images themselves, that seems to be the best I can do with my current hosting service as far as size goes, so perhaps I should put a thread in the critiques forum with some full-size attachments straight out of iPhoto, since that seems to be the better place for this discussion.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-27-2010, 10:06 PM
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Thanks, I think that's still a good recommendation, as I often go out to just look for good composition, and a nice lens that works for that would be helpful. The macro stuff is undoubtedly more involved, so I'll follow your advice and take a look around for more info.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-27-2010, 03:43 PM
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Thank you all for the recommendations; I will take them all into consideration.
For macro work, I have found some images which represent what I'd like someday to achieve in terms of quality and clarity. Take a look at the tightest and clearest images here:
Pixdaus, page 1 of tagged as insect photos
And let me know what I need (be it lens or otherwise) to do to aspire to this.
Thanks again!
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-26-2010, 04:14 PM
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Thanks, Marc. That makes it easy; I posted several pictures in this thread: https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/mini-challenges-games-photo-stories/10525...ne-27-a-2.html
And I think that link will take you to page two, where you should find them.
Guilty of all of the above on this trip; well, I don't know about the DOF, but most of these were on auto or macro mode, all handheld. I don't generally take a tripod with me when I do a hike like this, so most of these were with me holding the camera as still as I could manage. I'm thinking from this that I should experiment with a tripod vs. no tripod in the same setting, to see what I get from each.
It's been something like 25 years since I was seriously into photography the first time, so I'm still at the stage of remembering and testing a lot. I think your suggestion about 100mm/bugs might be good. And, just so you know, I'm not above spending $500 or more if the results would be worth it, but I do understand that it's good to rule out operator error first :)
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-26-2010, 02:32 PM
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Hello all,
Sorry, but wading through this forum to try to get the information I need is pretty daunting. I'm sure this is one of those questions that gets asked over and over, but short of reading every post in this forum, I'm not sure how to get the answers I need. So I'm going to ask (I can hear the collective sighs from the old-timers here).
Here's my need: I have a K-x with the stock lens that came with it and I don't really know a whole lot about lenses. I like to do macro work, I also like to do nature photography and I like to take artsy shots which are usually close-ups, but not necessarily macro.
My photos with the stock lens are never sharp and crisp the way I want them. Given the things I'm most interested in doing, please point me toward threads/reviews here or name a few lenses I can read up on which might improve my results.
Thanks in advance!
edited to add: Mods, please feel free to move this if it's not in the right place!
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
06-25-2010, 09:39 AM
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Hello everyone,
I'm kinda new here but wanted to get acquainted and share some things from this week's vacation trip. Went to La Jolla, CA outside San Diego and got these shots at Torrey Pines State Reserve. Looking at the pictures in this thread, I am jonesing for new lenses (still using the stock lens that came with my k-x.
Here are a few shots from along the trails:
And a couple of random shots from the day before in La Jolla:
Is that too many? I hope not. Love seeing everyone's pictures here.
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
05-31-2010, 10:17 AM
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Thanks! It's looking a little grainy; I did a quick and dirty size conversion to get it to attach and I guess I need to fire up some decent tools if I'm going to participate here in earnest :)
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
05-31-2010, 10:05 AM
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Thanks; I just posted a picture there. I know I have a lot to learn, but am very eager to do so. I've only been in California for a few years but, aside from the bankrupt state government, it's not a bad place to be. Lots of interesting things to shoot here.
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Forum: Weekly Photo Challenges
05-31-2010, 10:01 AM
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
05-23-2010, 01:34 PM
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Thanks for the welcome! I forgot to add that I've been working with digital graphics and image manipulation for the past 11 years, mainly in Photoshop, so I won't have such a steep learning curve in the processing area. However, my goal for now is to create photos that require as little processing as possible.
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
05-23-2010, 09:08 AM
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Hello everyone! I just joined here last night and have been reading many posts; I appreciate that you all are here.
Short intro: I'm a real newbie. Used to shoot many years ago with a Nikon SLR that had auto and manual modes; gave it up due to the expense of film and processing after using my camera for about two years, so I never learned a whole lot, but still managed to get some decent shots with it.
Fast forward about thirty years and I've been searching for a new hobby, remember my old Nikon and decide to look into getting a DSLR. Read a bunch of reviews and purchased the Pentax k-x a few weeks ago. Still working out how to get it to do what I want and I'll be looking for some advice over the next few weeks on lenses, tripods, and technique. My main interest is nature photography, and I like to frame unusual shots, sometimes with extreme close-ups of small things, like insects.
So there you have it. A real newbie, and very glad to be here.
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