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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
08-05-2023, 09:39 AM
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My few months with the K3iii have proved to be a bit of a roller coaster. The camera itself is wonderful and I love the color output. I think this camera bests my D850 in terms of color and ISO is pretty comparable. Not bad for an APS-C camera. However, I found that AF is just not consistent. My use largely consists of single point AF on non-moving objects-- urban landscapes. Active area to XS and have it set to emphasize focus over taking a picture. I've tried a variety of shutter speeds and have also tried shake reduction on and off. I'm on the newest firmware. I find that it misses focus a decent portion of the time, even in fairly decent light. Doesn't seem to be an AF-fine tune issue since this is using f/5.6 and f/8 and pointing at building walls and other street scenes. I try to aim for high-contrast lines etc mostly with center point. Switching to live view focus increases focus consistency considerably. It doesn't really miss in LV.
Lenses used are DA21 and DFA21 (I love that 28mm equivalent focal length). Seems to be slightly worse with the DFA21.
Focus behavior between the D850 and K3iii is kind of interesting. If the D850 can't nail the focus, the focus motor will travel in and out and fail to take a picture, rather than giving me an OOF shot. The K3iii seems to just take the shot anyway, even with the focus emphasis settings on prioritizing an in-focus image.
Any thoughts? I'm wondering if I should send the camera in. I was kind of hoping to be able to sell the D850, but AF inconsistency is frustrating. Thanks!
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Forum: General Photography
07-15-2023, 06:44 AM
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What are your photo needs and goals? Honestly unless you are printing big the K3iii is excellent. It’s not far from my D850 in terms of dynamic range and high ISO performance. Just outclassed a bit by the 850’s AF.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
07-12-2023, 06:31 PM
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Pentax as a brand feels like it's in a weird position with Ricoh. On one hand, Ricoh seems interested in keeping the brand alive, when others might have tossed it by the wayside as it's not much of a profit generator. Maybe they're in it as a prestige or hobby project. On the other hand, they don't seem interested in giving it a lot of R&D funding. Pentax is doing its best at this point with the money it has. Mirrorless would be a big investment and probably a poor one given that space is probably full.
In my view, there are probably enough folks out there that are interested in OVFs that Pentax has a nice little niche going forward. Photography is one of those things in which appeal to human senses means a lot. Just look at the resurgence of vinyl records which seems to be more than a passing fad. I think there will continue to be a segment of the community that likes looking at the actual world through a viewfinder instead of a computer screen. Or hearing the slap of a mirror and shutter. Developing a film camera even more so.
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
07-08-2023, 03:42 PM
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It depends on how tight your budget is, but I don’t think the Adobe Photography subscription is that bad of a deal if you edit fairly often and use it for cataloging. It’s like 8 or 9 bucks a month and you get Photoshop and Lightroom and the newest updates.
I hardly touch photoshop anymore. I use Lightroom for pretty much everything.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
07-06-2023, 09:17 PM
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Hi all, I’m finding that my K3iii occasionally refuses to autofocus. This is maybe once every 100 shots. I’m on the latest firmware (v 2.0), AF-single, mostly with the DFA 21, OEM battery with at least 75% charge, settings set to drive lens if focus cannot be achieved.
Turning the camera off and on again fixes the problem, but kind of annoying. I saw some reports from a year ago on this forum that people were having issues: anyone ever resolve them?
I don’t think it’s a buffer issue: it’s not related to a burst. I’m using reasonably fast memory cards (writing raws to both cards).
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Forum: Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands
07-05-2023, 08:07 AM
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I would have a hard time buying a rebel when some of the older prosumer to pro cameras are cheap.You can get an older full frame with a large viewfinder for not a lot. I would probably look at a 5Dii/iii, Nikon D700/750/610/810, or Pentax K1 and then put a 50mm or 35mm prime on it (for me, carrying a prime really worked when I tried 35 or 28 instead of 50). Or Pentax K5ii/s/K3 and a nice APS-C prime.
The Nikon and Canon systems might be sorta dead but you can pretty easily adapt much of the glass over to mirrorless.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
07-01-2023, 06:58 AM
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Probably more than anything they need to work on marketing a bit. They’ve got some great cameras that engage with people’s senses more than MILC, and they really aren’t capitalizing on that as much as they could. Get more of them into the hands of professional photographers and showcase their work on their online blog, YouTube, etc. They are doing this to a degree, but a lot of it is just for Japanese audiences. I really like the photo blog on their Japan website.
As far as gear goes:
K-1iii that meets or exceeds the Nikon D850 in features seems like the big obvious one.
Ricoh GR IV probably next.
Updated PLM DA 50-135 and launch of the DFA 35 1.4 would be good additions. Personally, I’d like a small, sharp DFA 28 or updated FA31 with WR and DC to match the DFA 21.
A new and updated MX film camera would be cool.
Keep throwing firmware updates at the K3iii. AF is getting there, I wonder how much more it could be improved through firmware.
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
06-26-2023, 04:03 PM
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Sorry for your loss; that is terrible and scary to have your home broken into. That is an amazing group of friends. I like the photos, you could do a whole series of jet-at-the-edge-of-the-frame pictures!
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
06-25-2023, 10:20 AM
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I think they were being facetious but still— “all weather” and “weather resistant” doesn’t mean they are underwater cameras…
Impressive performance, as always, from Pentax cameras.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
06-24-2023, 12:05 PM
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Omaha, NE, with the K3iii and DFA 21.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-24-2023, 11:57 AM
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First walkabout with the DFA 21 on the K3iii. Omaha, NE.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-24-2023, 08:04 AM
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Thanks, I'll try putting it on a tripod later. Focus was by moving the focus point (no focus and recompose).
Edit: I put it on a tripod and shot a number of shots at f/5.6, center point AF-S, aimed at some high contrast lettering from a distance that simulates a lot of my photography (urban landscape work). I couldn't find a discernible difference in focus between shots in live view and standard. I also tried a few manual focus using LV. There was a little variation but all were acceptably in focus in my book. I then took the camera off the tripod and shot a number of shots and they were all good, too. So, I'm not sure quite what to think. It wasn't a stress test by any means: decent light, centerpoint, high contrast area. Maybe I just need to be a bit more careful when I'm out.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-24-2023, 07:38 AM
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I went for the DFA 21. The lens is awesome on the K3iii! However, I'm finding that so far the DFA misses focus more often than the DA21, even shooting at f/5.6 or f/8. It's occasional, but it's happening enough that I'm losing confidence about getting crisp shots. When it's spot on, the results are stunning and I love the rendering. A bit worrisome and I'm wondering if I have a faulty lens. Would a lens potentially need AF fine tuning on the camera if it is not missing focus all the time? Like I can take a shot of the same subject several times, same settings, and some will be in focus and others a bit soft-- like the focus plane was just behind or in front of the subject.
Edit to include an example. Somewhat cropped shot of a wall, f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/400s, AF-S set to emphasize focus instead of release, SR on. Focus was on the wall.
I can open a new thread if this is getting too far off the original subject.
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Forum: Photographic Technique
06-23-2023, 04:39 PM
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I stumbled across a number of Steve McCurry photos once in a gallery. Stunning stuff. His older work stands out to me more when he was still using film. Those colors.
That all being said, I have learned some things about him since that have given me some trepidation. First, the already mentioned photo manipulation. It's a grey area, but to me he crossed the line. His work was has always struck me as landing in the photojournalism/documentary genre and some of the edits are definitely a bridge to far for me. Second, there are reportedly some consent issues surrounding the famous Afghan girl photo that rubbed me the wrong way. Frankly, there are more interesting photographers out there that don't have the same baggage, so I don't give him too much attention these days. But certainly he has some stunning work that can photographers can take inspiration from.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-20-2023, 11:23 AM
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-19-2023, 01:27 PM
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Thanks! Is the DFA noticeably heavier/bigger than the 20-40? It’s a little hard to tell online. The DFA comes in as heavier/longer but I assume some of the length is the built in hood?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-19-2023, 07:43 AM
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Thanks for the input, everyone. Perhaps I should try to rent the DA 20-40 and DFA 21 and see which I like more. I believe Lens Rentals in the US has both. They def have the DFA 21.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-18-2023, 08:11 AM
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Thanks for sharing your work and the diversity of shots this lens is capable of. Do you post to Instagram or elsewhere?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-18-2023, 07:43 AM
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20-40ltd or 16-50plm? I suppose my thinking with the DFA is that I love 21mm on crop, I’m just looking for a bit more performance out of it.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-18-2023, 07:13 AM
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Hi all, has anyone done any comparisons with these two lenses? I'm enjoying the DA21 on my K3iii and contemplating adding the DFA lens at some point. The selling points of the later being some weather resistance, better edge performance, ability to use all of the K3iii's focus points, quieter focus, and larger lens to grip for landscape shots. I'd keep the DA21 as I love the small profile for street photography and in general I quite like the colors and contrast it produces. With the DA21 I've noticed that the edges are a bit soft but I think there's field curvature at play as well. I tend to notice that issue when the edge is a different distance away from the focal plane even when stopped down quite a bit (something I haven't noticed on cameras like the 18mm Ricoh GR). At first I thought maybe it was decentered but some internet research and more time with the lens has led me to believe it might be field curvature. I don't tend to care about edge sharpness that much but it is pretty noticeable without pixel peeping. It just feels to me like the K3iii might be bumping up against the limits of a pancake lens. At $1300, the DFA is a tough pill to swallow, though.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
06-18-2023, 06:49 AM
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I wonder if the K70 is going to offer a lot that the K3ii doesn’t.
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Forum: General Photography
06-17-2023, 11:15 AM
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I think good stuff can be made anywhere. And the lines are blurring more than ever with components made in all over the place before they are put together. My main concern is the labor conditions etc of the employees wherever the things are made.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-15-2023, 03:47 PM
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I’m considering adding the DFA 21 to my DA 21. I love the DA21 but there are some times I’d like quieter focus, some weather sealing, a chunkier lens to hold onto, and sharper edges.
I love the 21mm field of view on APS-C.
If I added another DFA it would probably be the DFA 50 for short tele, though the FA 43 looks more pleasant to haul around.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III Monochrome
06-14-2023, 03:29 PM
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Thanks for sharing your experiences. No doubt the K3iiiM is a very different camera in an adjacent niche and I can see both being useful. I wonder how much lens choice factors into the K3’s AF performance in low light. I have the color model with a DA21 and low light AF seems pretty quick (which is highly subjective but to me that means it at least feels competitive with my D850).
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Forum: Pentax Price Watch
06-14-2023, 05:54 AM
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I was going to say the open box models at Ricoh’s USA store are probably a better deal (with full one year warranty) but they look out of stock at the moment.
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