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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-15-2009, 05:59 PM
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thanks to all, but especially to roentarre. that perspective on the 31 limited was the kind of distilled, practical insight i was hoping to hear.
seriously thinking of putting a 31 limited on the 40D. it'll be manual focus, but with focus confirmation. i just don't think i can sacrifice the option of focus speed and accuracy (on other lenses of course). and sometimes, 6.5 frames per second has it's place, especially when you're trying to catch a key shot where everyone in a group needs to be looking good.
using Lightroom 2.2 with the new Adobe colour profiles for the 40D, set to Faithful. Zero sharpening and zero noise reduction, gives a decent starting point. but DPP (canon speak for their free software) gives the best results. but the tif output from DPP is really restricted as far as recovery in CS4 goes, which is weird.
there's never a perfect compromise is there? guess that's why they call it a compromise ;-)
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-15-2009, 02:53 AM
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my baby was a K10D with a sharp Tammy 28-75 2.8. sweeeet. needed a break, so gave it to my daughter.
then i played with a 40D and some nice glass. SOLD! so now i've got two 40Ds (i hate changing lenses), Tammy 70-200 2.8 - the 'cream' machine, 18-55 IS kit lens (freaking sharp everywhere, with great bokeh?? go figure) and a jewel of a lens, the 60 2.8 USM macro - no CA, no distortion, the match in sharpness for a 43 limited and bokeh, god, the bokeh and this thing is, well, it's perfect, everywhere - check photozone.de for their take on it as well, it makes everything 'art'.
and this is the tough bit, all lenses focus perfectly, not front, not back, but right on the money, super fast, every time. close to silently, and in any light. and they're perfectly centred.
and... the free software that comes with the cameras will correct CA, distortion and vignetting, even incorporating focus distance as well, to get dang near perfect correction.
now the 'but'... did a wedding, and my daughter backed up with the K10D and the tammy 28-75 2.8. and sh*t, her photo's colour and presence, straight out of Lightroom took some serious work to match with the 40D shots. had to use Contrast Colour Range in Nik Efex at 50% opacity and some brightness to get even remotely close... but it was depressing just how good the K10D did. and the K10D exposures had at least as much shadow detail available (so much for canons 14bit difference).
but... the one thing where the canon bagged the pentax. focus accuracy. shooting at ISO1600 (both cameras), in poor light, catching the bridal party leaving, there were about 30 shots each taken by the K10D and, one of the 40Ds. not one 40D shot was out of focus. the pentax on the other had got maybe 30% in focus. not user error, my daughter knows that camera better than anyone i've seen.
at this point. i'm thinking - do i get a K20D and a 31 limited? anyone else use this combo?
if i could get a guaranteed sharp, not front/back focusing, centred DA*16-50 2.8, i'd consider that instead. even though i also own DXO, i hate the CA issue, having been spoilt by lenses that just don't do CA no matter how stupid the user is.
in the end, i just miss the way the Pentax DSLR renders colours. really, really hard to put your finger on. and the prints are more film like, like an SD14 to some extent. i'd get an SD14 with a 30 1.4 Sigma lens, but ALL the Sigmas are such a lottery, that your chances of getting a sharp DA*16-50 look good. no offence to lucky sigma lens owners. but once you've bought four copies each, of two different expensive, premium grade sigma lenses, and they ALL suck, it colours you for life.
this is what a canon renders like, and it's still not right :-(
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
08-19-2008, 12:52 AM
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People, places, plants and pets. Got a great sponsor (yay!), just got to work out what's in and what's out. If you've got a favourite, feel free to name it. These all go to monsterous enlargements (and sharp as). So I've also got to work out if less is more in print sizes. CC welcome.
Home (Street Candids) |
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Forum: Sold Items
04-26-2008, 11:56 PM
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rather than relist this, give me a pm. this is my dream kit, will pay accordingly.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
04-24-2008, 09:17 PM
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I pretty much hated kodak, their papers and films. the other day though, thought i'd try their primo porta 400vc - just incredible results - with a fineness of grain i've never seen in a 400 film. doesn't saturate caucasian skin tone, but all others get a subtle boost.
get it pro developed - and check some other reviews.
here's a simple example of what i mean, 11am in the shade at the park.
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Forum: Pentax News and Rumors
04-24-2008, 08:54 PM
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glad you're not officially part of pentax anymore, because it makes me appreciate the fact that at one point, you were.
regardless, you're an insightful photog, professionally generous, often very funny & self deprecating - and week in/week out, you create 1st class art - somehow... and do it in a commercial environment?
no small feat.
but... it had to be a ticking timebomb... 'personality' and 'art' are both so subjective. and given the mob mentality and effect of committees (and boards), it was never going to last.
bet you learned a ton from the experiences though.
thanks for sharing.
Cheers!
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Forum: Sold Items
04-23-2008, 07:54 PM
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Payment sent. Woohoo baby! Can't wait.
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Forum: Sold Items
04-22-2008, 01:14 AM
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PM Sent for:
Tokina AT-X 35-70/2.8 - "A" type (auto exposure) - Nice, fast zoom, super smooth focusing. Includes Ricoh pin, but I had no problems mounting/dismounting this lens on my K10D - $60
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
04-19-2008, 11:16 PM
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User Photo Gallery - Uploads Posted By 123K10D
to name but a few :-)
criticisms welcome. btw, does anyone else here sign their photos (dodge/burn)?
and if you're wondering why they seem overexposed, it's because they're set for print output - which darkens them a stop and a half (around these parts).
Cheers.
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Forum: Sold Items
04-15-2008, 12:41 AM
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PM sent for the Promaster Spectrum7 A 28-70mm f/3.9-4.8 Multicoated
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Forum: Sold Items
04-14-2008, 01:45 AM
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PM for both film cameras sent. Looking forward to them.
Cheers.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-28-2008, 01:44 AM
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It's based on the 28-75 f2.8? It's about damn time. I'd been wondering why they never made this thing before. Better late than never :D Easiest purchasing decision ever for me.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-21-2008, 12:14 AM
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Short answer - 'no'.
So, my deal with my partner - I won't sell any more lenses.
So whatever I buy, I have to be dang sure I'm going to be happy keeping. And the sight of lenses rarely used is a great discouragement from other buys.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-21-2008, 12:09 AM
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Did a sky shot today and crap, there's dust on the sensor. Tons of it. Well about 8 specs.
So I took Ken Rockwells advice (I know, I know!!)... and flipped the mirror and used a vacuum cleaner, level with the lens mount. For 30 seconds.
Result? Perfect. 0 dust particles. Beats sending it in for a service. And as long as you're careful (ie: clean the vacuum nozzle first) and don't shove it into the body, what's there to lose?
Just an FYI and of course, YMMV.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-21-2008, 12:04 AM
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I'll track down the article tomorrow, but it was from a paragraph from an interview with the head engineer of Pentax, during a discussion about the demise of the full frame project and just prior to the release of the K20D.
He specifically stated that PEF contains marginally more information from the sensor, than DNG. Flies in the face of everything else around, but it's a direct statement from the man who actually would know.
For the record, I shoot DNG, for Adobe compatability.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-17-2008, 02:31 AM
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Rough guide: the 135mm 2.8, while a beautiful lens, even in mint condition, won't go for more than $200, because the 135mm 2.5 was even better, and thus is still the more desirable item.
The 50mm 1.7 will go for around $70 if mint and an M, ie: SMC-M or around $90 if it's an A, ie: SMC-A. Which is crap, because the SMC-M is far nicer to use, and is of higher quality all round... go figure?
BTW, these are ebay prices that a seller with a very good reputation for honesty would get. You'd need to adjust your expectations if that isn't the case with you.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-11-2008, 01:22 AM
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Ello! Got a brand new (yep, actually brand new, even though they were made from 1980-85) SMC-M 75-150/4. Some fluke of nature had a collector buy it and never use it. And it just r.o.c.k.s. I can't believe nobody has every raved about these on the forum before?
Mine cost US$110 delivered and many others go for peanuts. Unless I got a lucky copy or something - seeing as how I was lucky enough to get a great Tamron 28-75.
Will post pics after the weekend, but the incidental shots are something else.
And as for weird, after a week of using Tamron 28-75, it doesn't back focus at 28mm anymore - just faultless at all lenghts. I'm thinking this isn't normal?... hope it doesn't revert :confused: I'll have to do the newspaper thing and post some shots, it's just sharp all over, from 2.8, and focus is f.a.s.t and spot on. It makes the grade as the 'if you could only have one lens' lens. And if you need to go wide, throw it on a Pentax film SLR!
Just an FYI.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-22-2008, 04:38 AM
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Well, I have respect for the focusing silence of the DA*16-50 now, having had a play with a very nice copy today. One thing that creeped me out totally though, the CA. Dang! It was pretty fierce.
For comparison, I swapped it out for my Tamron 28-75 2.8, and you'd need a microscope to find any CA. (both sets of shots seen later in Lightroom at 100%, but the CA from the DA* was visible at zero magnification).
The DA*16-50 is a very nicely built item. And at first I thought, oooooh! :cool:
But at twice the price of the Tamron, I was hoping to see something better in the results. Rendering wise, it's great, but then so is the Tamron. Wide open, it was great... yep, so is my Tamron. Gets very sharp when stopped down, which everyone knows I guess, but I reckon the Tamron had the edge wide open, and matched it all the way down to f11.
These were all real world outdoors stuff, with the odd quick portrait. No, I don't keep copies of test shots, but if you pop over to photozone.de, you'll see they're results mirror what I saw today. Tell you though, if they could get rid of the CA, I don't think you could want for more in a zoom than the DA* - really like the 16mm wide end - but find I'm using the 50-70mm range mostly these days (from the profiling done on the exifs from last year).
The lady whose DA* tried, got a good one first time. She said two friends also got great copies on the first go, as well - which is encouraging (these were all bought in 2008 though).
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-22-2008, 04:22 AM
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To be fair, I just broke one, getting the fungus off the centre lens group, when a spider bit me, and I dropped it - man! the glass must be brittle, I swear there's no less than 1000 pieces of separate glass fragments - what an explosion. :hmm:
The other two are minty mint. So no servicing required. And I wouldn't part with them for anything. Only because they're just such an immense pleasure to manually focus, and they deliver such lush photos.
Just thought I'd post this as I read in someone's signature that "you know you've got lba when you buy the same lens twice", so I wondered who's got the most good copies of the same lens? 3 minus 1 = 2, so I guess I'm in the running. :confused:
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-19-2008, 10:18 PM
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Go here, follow the instructions.
Vietzon.com Forums
I've just left mine at (the Pentax version of) v1.10, seeing as how I don't have any SDM lenses.
If you can't figure it out, you really shouldn't be playing around with the debug menu in the first place. :eek:
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-19-2008, 03:39 AM
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The plot got a little thicker...
My K10D was actually back focusing (not front focusing) the lens at 28mm, at F2.8. From 30mm onwards, all was well. Mines always been a bit funny with lenses wide open, focusing close, so I got brave.
I retrograded my firmware to v1.10, adjusted the focus offset in the debug menu, then reinstalled v.1.30. Had to set it to +0.6. Now it's 100% perfect at all focusing distances, all apetures and all focal lengths. Just took some more portrait shots just then... dang! just like a real pentax lens. forget what you hear about nervous bokeh, it's as creamy as an SMC M 85mm at the same f stop. Just nothing but great surprises.
Like I said, I think my K10d had been needing the focus adjustment since the get go, but I've always worked around it before. This lens is like having three nice primes. Mind you, I'd always go for the 55mm 1.8 M42, m 50 1.7, or 85 1.8 when I need extra, extra thick bokeh that you just can't quite match in a f2.8 lens.
And it's made in Japan (not China!!). Cool!
So it's all good.. :D
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-18-2008, 09:14 PM
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How the image looks straight from the camera. The contrast and colours combined... I guess?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-18-2008, 07:30 PM
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Ordered a DA*16-50, which got lost in the mail... UPS were about as unhelpful as you could be if you were being payed to be horrible. So, I considered it a 'sign', and second time around, I got Adorama to send me a Tamron 28-75 f2.8.
When first used, (as in, first couple of shots) it had a front focus issue wide open at the wide end, on close focusing. After focusing on close distances, then far distances, a couple of times, that's gone for good. Now it's just OMG! The rendering and sharpness of this thing is far beyond what I could have wished for, even wide open.
Gives a real Pentax SMC-M 50 1.7 kind of rendering, which I wasn't expecting. Fantastic colours and contrast. And man, this thing slices pumpkins when you close it down to f4 and onward. Such a different experience, redering wise, to the 18-250. Dare I say, night and day.
Just thought I'd pass on another positive experience.
Cheers.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
02-03-2008, 02:18 PM
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was trolling around looking for a replacement for a whole bunch of primes on the shorter end of things. had written this lens off, then came across this link (from the lens review database).
James Wei :: Photography
to my eye, those pics, for rendition, have the same gorgeous look that my friends SMC-A 35-105 3.5 give on film. my favourite kind.
the second picture on this page whispered to me, "jeez! have some balls, get the thing, haven't you always been lucky?". :o
aaaa, i can always send it back if i get a dud, which when taken in balance, should be extremely unlikely at this point in the production cycle. still, hey, wish me luck, it can't hurt.
fleabayed some old primes and, go me! got $1200. so the lens is more than just free, it's already making a profit for itself - with a little help from Adorama and fleebay :lol:
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-31-2008, 06:45 PM
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Could you please post the name of the store you deal with?
And do they ship overseas?
About to order a DA*16-50 and the idea of getting a guaranteed good copy is very appealing.
Thanks very much.
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