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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
05-14-2014, 10:16 AM
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I have a Pentax K-7. I feel as though many of my outdoor pictures are not as vibrant as they should be...in fact they look a little washed out.
If I post process in PSE and adjust the levels (even using auto adjust the levels) and then brighten each one up, they look much better. What settings on my camera should I use to try and improve this out of camera? I have played around, but not found anything that seemed to work well.
I've attached an example photo...mainly I notice the difference in the skin tone and the grass. Some photos are much more dramatic than this one, but I could find this one quickly. (My son is the main kid in the picture....I intentionally blurred the other kids faces.)
Thank you all so much.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-29-2014, 05:26 PM
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I am thinking of upgrading my K-7. Truly, I have never been happy with it's low light performance / noise at any ISO over 800 and I do not feel the pictures are very sharp. Originally, I had a *istDS and overall, I did like it quite well, and the pictures seemed sharp. Should I look at the K-5II or K-3? I am mainly take portraits of my kids and many action shots (basketball and baseball).
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-22-2013, 04:36 AM
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I hadn't been back on here recently, but I wanted to let you all know about my K-7 camera. I kept messing with it and trying various things, but the pictures were never as sharp as I thought they should be. I didn't think it was me, because I had never had an issue with my *istDS. I finally shipped it off to be checked out / repaired and they found that it has a severe back focusing issue. The camera store had to send it back to Pentax for repair. I am relieved to find out that I am not going crazy, but bummed that it is out of warranty and I am going to have to pay for the repair. I believe it has been like this since I purchased it, however, it *is* out of warranty. I am thankful I kept my *istDS :) so I'm not relegated to using my camera phone or point and shoot all the time because they thought it would take 3-4 weeks for repair. :(
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
08-14-2012, 07:27 AM
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Has anyone found any issues with the sharpness of the photos on the K-7? I found this thread, but didn't see any resolution. I am an amateur, but I am pretty good at composition and understand how the camera works (I've taken several classes) but I've had my K-7 for about 2 years and overall I don't really like the photo quality. In some ways, I think my *istDS was better. I am using the same lens on both cameras (it's a 28-90 I got with a film camera years ago...actually the original broke and I got a new one a couple years ago.) I guess I just assumed that if I put it on autofocus and allowed it to focus it would come out clean and sharp, but it rarely does. I also am having trouble with low light situations. I would really like to improve in this area if anyone can help. I don't need the super high tech information...just a nice, bright, clear shot.
I have tried attaching three pictures...which I have resized to match fairly closely on pixel count. One of my kids on the first day of school which I think looks terrible. I set the camera on "P" since I was in a hurry and didn't want to be late. It was an overcast day. Here is the picture info:
Color Representation: sRGB
No flash
Focal Length: 31mm
F/3.5
Exposure 1/80 sec.
Metering Mode: Spot
Exposure Compensation: 0
The baseball picture with the white jersey is a picture I took at a baseball game (within a day or so of the last baseball picture same time of day, etc.)
Color Representation: sRGB
No flash
Focal Length: 240mm (I used my Pentax film lens 100-300mm)
F/7.1
Exposure 1/640 sec.
Metering Mode: Spot
Exposure Compensation: 0
The last picture is a picture I bought from a professional shooter at a baseball game. (I bought the digital download rights....it is copyright SonicPhotos David Cox...not mine.) However, I really admire how this picture looks...it is very bright and crisp and it is how I would like my pictures to look. I have no ideas of the camera properties or even what camera he used.
Anyway, I really need some help here. I assume the problems are me...not the camera, but overall I have not been happy with these pictures at all. I am wondering if I need to get a new camera actually.
Finally, I mentioned I had problems with low light. If I raise the ISO about 400 or 800...the pictures looks very grainy and I really dislike that also.
I really, really appreciate any help in these areas.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
11-03-2011, 06:18 AM
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Forgive me if I am repeating something that has been discussed (I am fairly new at reading the boards), but so far, I have not found an answer to my question. I have a K-7 I bought a little over a year ago, and before that I had the *istDS.
I recently took some pictures at ISO 400, and to me they seem to have a lot of noise. I had the High-ISO noise reduction set to high and for it to start at 400 ISO. However, to me, they look very noisy compared to some ISO 200 pictures I took on my *istDS. I am really not happy with them at all.
Neither picture has been post processed or anything (although normally I would brighten the first one a bit). The first one of the boy and girl is from the K7 and I did slightly crop it and then resize for uploading using PSE6. The second one was not cropped and was resized for uploading the same way.
Obviously, I am feel quite inexperienced in this area and I am wondering what the difference is? I really dislike pictures that aren't crisp and clear.
Thank you!!
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
10-19-2010, 04:24 PM
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I was trying to take some portraits of my boys a few evenings ago. It was around 6pm and quite heavy shade. The pictures really did not turn out well at all. I have a new K7 and I am still learning it a bit (my former camera was the *istDS). I tried some more experiments tonight, but they weren't much better.
On "green" mode, it upped the ISO to 3200, and while the brightness was okay, I did not like the graininess of the pictures. (I do have the camera set on the highest resolution.) I have since read the manual to find out how to prevent it going to ISO 3200.
If I used the flash, I had a nice fast shutter speed and the subject was well lit (sometimes even over lit) however the background was nearly black. If I do not use the flash (and the ISO is high enough) then the light looks good across the picture. However, then the shutter speed is so slow that it turns out blurry, due to my subject moving and of course me holding the camera.
Is there some sort of manual compensation I can use to use a low ISO and fast shutter speed without turning the background black?
I am feeling quite frustrated! I've used it mainly indoors and in bright sunlight prior to this and I've been very pleased with all the pictures.
Thanks so much!
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
08-22-2010, 06:28 PM
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Thanks for all the info! I'm definitely going to check out Transcend and Kingston also. Newegg is out of the one I'm interested in, so I signed up for the e-mail alerts.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
08-22-2010, 09:08 AM
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I am planning to purchase a new Sandisk SD card for my K7:) I just got last week. I've had two 512 Mb cards for over 6 years with no problems. However, I am really worried about where to purchase them.
I'll probably get a couple 8Mb Class 6 cards, and I noticed that they are around $70 at Best Buy (or similar stores) but around $35 on Amazon, from many different retailers (none of which I have heard of.)
Are the cards the same? I've heard there are issues with fakes, and I don't want to purchase a fake, but it seems crazy to pay $70 if I can get the same card for $35.
Does anyone have any experience in this area?
Thanks!!
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
08-06-2010, 08:25 AM
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Thanks for all the replies. I'm pleased to hear that I will be thrilled with the performance of my new K7! I was planning to order it this morning, and now I see that Amazon (which had the best price) has gone up $100! I guess I need to search around for a better price from a reputable seller. :-(
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
08-06-2010, 04:52 AM
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Thanks for all the feedback. I think I will definitely go with a card that is Class 10 and at least 8 Mb to ensure I can take video when I want. I still have a nice video camera, but it really stinks to take both of them to certain events. It sounds like there is lots of opinions on brands of cards. I was planning to stick with Sandisk simply because I have not had any problem with the two I have in 5.5 years. Thanks!
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
08-04-2010, 05:35 AM
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I purchased a lens from them online last year and it arrived quickly and well packaged. It was a replacement for my FA 28-90 and Abe's of Maine was the only place I could find it actually. I didn't get any phone calls or upsells. I would definitely purchase from them again if the price was right.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
08-04-2010, 05:24 AM
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I have owned a *istDS for 5.5 years and I've used the same SD cards the whole time, the Sandisk Ultra II 512 Mb cards. (Now they seem so small, but were large at the time I bought them!)
Anyway, I am planning to purchase a K7 within the next week, and I was wondering what card to purchase for it, since I doubt these will cut it on size and possibly write speed.
I will be using the HD video feature of the K7 in addition to just taking pictures.
I'd like to stick with Sandisk since it seems to be working really well for me. What size and speed do I need? Should I get the 16 Mb Extreme III Class 10 card (about $90) or is that overkill?
I do not know how to figure out how much video a card will hold, nor how fast the write speed needs to be.
I hope someone more knowledgeable in that area would be kind enough to help me out.:)
Thanks!!
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
08-04-2010, 05:11 AM
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I am new to posting on the forums, although I have been lurking for a bit. I have a *ist DS that I've had for about 5.5 years. I have not had any problem with it at all, and overall, I have really enjoyed it.
I am wondering how the AF speed compares on the K7 to the *istDS? Sometimes it seems to take a long time to focus, especially in low light. I am generally trying to catch a picture of fast moving or impatient children, and it is painful for all of us.
I don't know if possibly it has gotten slower over time (does it need cleaned?) or have I just gotten higher expectations?
I have been reading reviews and information, and I've read that the K7 is slower than a comparable Nikon? Is it noticeable? I guess I just want to really love my new camera, so I'm trying to do as much research as possible before I purchase it.
Thanks!!
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
08-04-2010, 04:46 AM
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Hello, everyone!
I've been reading the forums for quite awhile and finally joined so I could post. I've owned Pentax cameras for about 8 years now. First the ZX-L film camera and then the *ist DS. I've had it for about 5.5 years now, and I am thinking of upgrading to the K7 very soon.
I'm a mom, so I shoot lots of pictures of my kiddos and of course the "required" shots of baseball, soccer, swimming, school, cub scouts, and vacation photos. I also enjoy taking portraits for my friends and I use many of my pictures in digital scrapbook layouts.
I'm always looking to improve my photography!
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