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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
01-25-2013, 04:45 PM
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Thanks for the replies guys. Its morning here and i did some more testing under good natural lighting conditions and the problem didnt exist anymore. Unfortunately i dont own a tripod so i took the photos handheld with the shutter speed on 1/200 and i was getting really sharp photos. To be honest it was focusing so well on a point (down to the milimeter!) that i couldnt manual focus that accurately even if i spent 10 minutes trying.
I would post some photos to show you what was happening last night but they are mostly of my big toe which is a bit embarrassing. It appears the problem was the lighting conditions in my room as suggested. It was a bed side table light next to me so when the picture was taken the light source was behind the camera, albeit quite weak.
What puzzles me though is it would pick up the focus really quickly and didnt need to hunt around much for it with both lenses. I then discovered it was just a few cm off (focusing on something slightly in front was the trick) but with the 35mm lens that makes the object in focus quite blurry.
Does anyone else have an issue like this and is it common? Is there any way to correct or calibrate the camera for focus in low light? Because the focus is so good in natural light i am hesitant to do this. Its not the end of the world but i hope it doesnt impact photos i take in low light conditions of family etc.
Thanks,
Max
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
01-25-2013, 04:59 AM
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Hi Pentax people,
Im not sure if my camera has a problem or not but i am hoping someone might be able to give me some advice or perhaps tell me if i am doing something wrong in regards to my photography.
I have owned my camera for only a short time now and have been enjoying taking photos of friends and family with it. I purchased the camera with a 18-135mm lens and just recently got myself a DA 35mm f2.4 to take some better shots indoors. So far i have been taking really good photos and have not noticed any problems other than noise with an ISO setting higher than 1600 but i guess that is expected of any camera.
However just now i was sitting in my room taking pictures of my foot with the 35mm and playing with the settings a bit to better learn the camera amd just muck around. Because its night time i put the flash on and dropped the iso down to 80 and was going through different apertures to see if the quality changes from wide open through the range. In doing so i discovered that only every 3 or 4th shot were giving really crisp images. I thought perhaps it could be me not having a steady hand so i cranked the shutter speed up to 1/180 but still was getting really blurry images. Then i put the camera into manual focus and discovered that when focusing manually i was getting better results. Finally i put the camera back into auto focus and realised that when i focus on something slightly in front (say 4cm) it was giving really crisp images again. Tried with both lenses and got the same results.
Is there something wrong with my camera? I cant say i have noticed anything like this during the day so could it be related to the flash possibly? I will experiment further tomorrow but before i went to bed now i though i would put the question forth to people with more experience hoping i can get an answer and possible fix this thing if there is a problem.
Thanks,
Max
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
12-04-2012, 09:27 PM
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Hi all, the camera has finally arrived!
Unfortunately i am at work and can't really open and play with it until later tonight but im sure it will be getting a heap of use over the next few weeks until i learn how to use it properly.
I am planning on buying a few accessories for it now so that im ready for action next time we are out. A camera bag, and some SD memory cards are the items that i need but i just wanted to know if i should be purchasing anything else at the same time? Do i need to worry about lens filters or UV protection etc. I don't think i am ready to lug around a tripod just yet but i read a guide just now about essential items for a dslr camera and a lens filter was high up there.
Can one of you seasoned veterans give me some advice in this regards please as i am going to make a purchase soon and don't want to forget anything as shipping is expensive.
Thanks
Max
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
12-02-2012, 05:35 PM
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Appreciate all the replies and advice everyone, this forum is great!
I went ahead and purchased a K5II bundled with the 18-135mm lens over the weekend and should be expecting to have it in about a weeks time. Although the K5 classic would have been more than enough for what i needed i though as this is my first serious camera i will not be upgrading it for a long time and i may as well splurge and get the newer model for the extra $$. I read somewhere it gets more shots per battery cycle as well which is always a good thing, and if i ever take photography more seriously the better low light performance might be useful.
It did stretch the budget more than i would have liked but instead of purchasing extra lenses straight away i will wait a little and get one after christmas.
I think for me to pick the correct lens i will need to follow this advice as im not sure what focal length will suit me the best. Knowing this forum exists to help out when im uncertain is very reassuring. Again, thanks for all the help and advice.
Max
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
11-29-2012, 10:05 PM
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Thanks for the replies all. Even though i am no closer on deciding which camera to go with i am learning plenty.
Phychdoc, appreciate the advice on the lenses. I know that is a whole other aspect to photography that will require so much learning and research to make the right choices. I was leaning towards the 18-135 purely because its an all purpose lens like you mentioned but for my indoor photos i was thinking about getting the SMC Pentax-DA 40mm F2.8 Limited which has gotten some awesome reviews on this website. Even though the aperture is not as large as the 50mm ones, it seems to have good low light performance and bokeh. What do you think about this particular one for my specific situations?
I have used a prime lens before and it can be annoying for getting more than 2 people in the photo. I think the Tameron 17-50 you mentioned might be a good idea as well. I can see this becoming an expensive hobby...
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
11-29-2012, 07:34 PM
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Thanks for the reply Adam.
I did read the reviews and they was very insightful, it was also what led me on this mission to find out if my specific scenarios will benefit from the new model or if the original K5 will handle them without hiccups. It seems to me that the one key difference between the two asides from the gapless lcd display is the auto focus improvement in low light situations, and seeing as i will be taking pictures in these low light situations it might be a deciding factor.
I assume the AF assist light can be used without the flash. If so will that added light (which usually blasts like a torch on the nikons) change the composition or white balance of the shot at all? Anyway its not a deal breaker in any case, but when it comes to touching up photos after they are taken i have absolutely no idea how, and its not something i really want to get into unless i wish to develop which i do only very occasionally.
There is both a K5 and K5ii being bundle with 18-135mm lens in Australia which makes the decision all the more harder! This is the site i plan on purchasing one of them from. The price for the K5 is actually really good for us here as they are usually much cheaper internationally but not in this case. With international purchases the shipping costs are very expensive.
Pentax K5 Digital SLR Camera with Pentax 18-135mm WR Lens - Digital Camera Warehouse
Pentax K5 II Digital SLR Camera + 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 ED AL [IF] DC WR Lens - Digital Camera Warehouse
Im leaning more towards the K5 now but am still worried that the low light photography might be an issue. Im hoping someone will be able to put my mind at ease so i can just purchase the damn thing and enjoy it!
Max
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Forum: Pentax K-5 & K-5 II
11-29-2012, 06:33 PM
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Dear Pentax owners,
I have registered on these forums because after hours and hours of searching the web i find myself in a situation in that i need help making a decision and hopefully i can get an answer here from some experienced users here so thank you in advance.
Like the title reads i am about to purchase my first DSLR primarily to take pictures of my newly born son but also for those special occasions with family etc. It will be a purchase that im hoping will last me a few years and i know that its something that i will invest plenty of time in. I have compared every single camera in my price range and i am certain that the Pentax K5 with the 18-135mm lens is the perfect combination for me.
Even though its my first DSLR i am not unfamiliar with photography in general and have used my sisters one many times before (Nikon D3100). I understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed, and ISO settings and will not be one of the people who uses the camera in auto mode. Taking pictures with the bokeh effect is something i find very appealing and am looking forward to exploring this further. I am from an IT background and will endeavour to learn every single feature and function of the camera i purchase, i usually read a manual several times until i understand every function and setting of the device.
My question is should i go for the regular K5 version or just the new K5II? The price difference is around $290 AUD more for the latter. Performance wise i read the difference between the two is a upgrade to the focus system which improved low light focus performance. Most of the family occasions that i will be taking photos for will be in restaurants with poor lighting. Actually the main reason for me even purchasing a DSLR is my complete dislike for using a flash and obviously a camera like this is 100 times better than any point and shoot variety or mobile camera which we currently use. So with that being said low light performance is one of the main reasons for this decision. Although the people being pictured will not be moving around it is important that i can take a photo and get proper focus in these dark environments (some of them are candle lit or just really dim lighting). How is the standard K5 in these situations? and have people with this camera experienced difficulties in these types of environments? Is it worth spending an extra $280 for the newer model basically is where i am getting stuck.
I was thinking with the money saved on the camera body i could put towards purchasing a prime lens with a large aperture to help in these low light situations and give nice bokeh effects but i am willing to spend the extra $$ if needed although it is stretching the budget further than i would have liked.
I appreciate any advice you can give me on this.
Thanks,
Max
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