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Forum: Pentax Forums Giveaways
09-07-2016, 05:30 AM
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... it matches my Ferrari!
j.k., I wish I had a Ferrari
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
04-04-2016, 09:49 PM
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Agreed; I don't think it would be that complicated or difficult for a small engineering team with a small budget. It seems that the camera is already communicating with the flash. The communications handshake I'm sure looks like this:
(1) Camera sends a message to flash asking if it's HSS compatible
(2) Flash responds
(3) Camera disables power to hot shoe for shutter speeds faster than the sync threshhold if the flash is not HSS compatible; otherwise, it sends power to the hotshoe irrespective of shutter speed.
If this communications is already taking place, the V6 (or V6II or whatever device is there) merely has to intercept the HSS query message to the flash, block the response message from the flash, and respond back to the Camera "yes, I am HSS compatible". All other communications are passed through as if the V6II were not there in the first place. I'm glad Cactus is already working on it - I was tempted to sacrifice my V6 to try it myself. :lol: I will be buying a V6II when it comes out just for this, since this is by far the most elegant solution for Pentax off camera HSS.
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
04-03-2016, 02:31 PM
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Does anyone know if the Pentax hotshoe flash -to- camera communications is documented somewhere, or has been decoded or reverse engineered? I am thinking of how easy (or difficult?) it would be to fool a Pentax camera into thinking that there is an HSS-capable flash installed on the hotshoe. If you can fool the camera, then you could use a V6 to communicate wirelessly with off-camera RF60s (or other flashes mounted on V6's), and have HSS. I understand to get it to work, another device would have to be installed in the hotshoe between the camera and the V6. Or, one would have to hack up an RF60 to put the pseudo-HSS circuitry in a V6.
What does everyone think about this idea?
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Forum: Winners' Showcase
09-02-2015, 08:55 PM
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Forum: Monthly Photo Contests
09-02-2015, 08:55 PM
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Forum: Winners' Showcase
09-02-2015, 08:54 PM
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
07-04-2015, 09:32 AM
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Great photos! Besides being heavy, what are your other impressions of the lens? AF speed? AF-C (tracking) ability?
I would be in the market for one, but I just picked up a Sigma 70-200mm HSM II that I've been eyeing for a long time... :-(
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
01-04-2015, 07:55 PM
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hjoseph7 - good point, I do remember that from the K5 days. I just checked, and red eye is not enabled in the K3, and the Metz 52-1 doesn't have a setting for this.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
01-04-2015, 07:23 PM
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I have noticed the flash delay problem recently with my Metz AF 52-1 and my K3. I thought I would post my thoughts here since the threads seem to "live" longer here than on dpreview.
I have dual systems (Nikon and Pentax), and was able to test the D7000 + Sigma 18-50mm + SB-600 vs. K3 + Sigma 17-50mm + Metz 52. Subjectively, there is no delay when taking TTL, aperture priority, jpeg photos with the Nikon setup; on the other hand, there is a very noticeable delay when taking the photos with the Pentax setup. After seeing the post on dpreview that points out imaging-resource's measurements of the D71000 vs. K3 (they are essentially the same in their testing at about 300ms), I thought I would measure this myself.
I don't have access to a scope or other test equipment (although I am an electrical engineer, I don't have a home lab); I test shutter delays using an internet stopwatch; I can calculate the shutter press - to- capture delay by looking at the time on the photos. Although not perfect, it is relatively consistent.
I measured 499.6ms for the Pentax delay vs. 353.4ms for the Nikon delay. Although 146.2ms may not seem like much, it is noticeable, especially compared to the K3's essentially instantaneous response in pretty much all other situations.
Looking forward to a fix. For me, this isn't a deal breaker, although it is annoying. I'm just glad that bounce flash now works well. :-)
jm_mac
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Forum: Pentax Forums Giveaways
12-13-2014, 07:07 PM
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Forum: Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands
12-12-2014, 09:40 PM
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Flash compensation should work. Which Nikon?
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
09-26-2014, 06:56 AM
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Class A, is there a step-by-step method of figuring out the exact settings for HSS, and if so where can I find it (is it described well in the manual, or are the tricks to it)? Also, are the settings good for only a particular camera and shutter speed, for example K3 @ 1/4000s? If I tried to use the same settings for a K5iis @ 1/4000s, would it work?
Thanks - I bought two RF60s and the V6, received them 2 weeks ago, and still haven't played with them. It's been so busy at work.
jm_mac
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
09-09-2014, 05:19 PM
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Hi Class A, thanks for the quick reply. So I can't have the Metz 52 AF-1 + V6 be the remote flash.
But, I can use the K3+V6+Metz52AF communicate wirelessly with the V6+SB600. I will have remote power control over the SB600, but no PTTL. Is this correct?
Thanks,
jm_mac
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
09-09-2014, 04:55 PM
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Class A (or anyone else who knows the answer) - I'm on the verge of pulling the trigger (finally) on the V6/RF60, but have to figure out how many of each. I have two systems (Nikon and Canon), and two x-TTL flashes: SB600 for Nikon and AF52 for pentax. If I buy a couple of V6's, will I then have full xTTL capability if I mix and match these?
In other words, will I have xTTL capability for the remote strobes with these two setups:
1. K3+V6+AF52 <==> V6+SB600
2. D7000+V6+SB600 <==> V6+AF52 (for Pentax)
Thanks,
Chris
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
03-08-2014, 04:39 PM
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Thanks for the detailed reply, this clarifies communication with older strobes. I have a couple of Yongnuo YN560-II strobes (without the wireless receiver) - since these are fully manual, it seems that it's impossible for their power to be remotely controlled (no TTL), correct?
thanks,
jm_mac
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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio
03-08-2014, 08:27 AM
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I'm now very confused about how the V6 works (I guess since I'm very new to these radio triggers). Doesn't the V6 use RF to communicate with the flashes? If so, how can it support power control of any of these older models?
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Forum: Pentax K-30 & K-50
01-10-2014, 09:26 PM
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Jim,
I have shot some of my son's hockey games, so I may be able to give some useful advice. I prefer action shots, taking photos of the players moving around, skating, shooting. I love trying to get shots of the players moving towards or away from me (like #1, 3, 4 above). This makes it a lot harder due to the horrible lighting in the rinks, though. It's a lot easier to take "static" hockey photos (for example, focus on the goal/net and wait for something to happen there), or to get some shots of a "scrum" along the boards since the players' distance from the camera doesn't change much and you can get consistent focus. But I find these photos uninteresting, and I don't normally take them.
I like to track the hockey players as they skate around (AF-C). It's difficult enough, so you want a fast focusing lens. I have found Sigma lenses with HSM to be about the fastest around. I use a 50-150mm in Pentax mount (I also have a 70-200mm for my Nikon DSLR). I think the 50-150mm is a bit short, so I prefer the 70-200mm. I have no experience with the 60-250mm; when first introduced, SDM had a reputation for being smooth, but slow; from what I've read, however, SDM lenses are faster on the K-3 so the AF algorithm seems to have been improved. But I can recommend the 70-200.
I much prefer the vantage point from the stands; some prefer shooting through the glass, or from the bench. I personally don't like the vantage point of shooting from ice-level. Someone on the other forum said "you get a lot of pictures of the players' backs", which sums it up for me. From the stands, you can see a lot more; however, the net is always there, and it may appear prominently in the photos. Since I'm not selling my photos, I don't care so much about the net as long as it's subtle (you can see it in the last two photos above).
If you prefer ice level, try to shoot from the bench (no glass), or if you shoot through the glass, bring your lens hood and put it against the glass to reduce/eliminate glare.
I think your 55-200mm may be fine for soccer on a bright day, but you definitely need a faster lens for ice hockey.
And another thing - as you know, not only is the lighting usually very dim, but it has a tungsten-like color cast. I set my white balance to tungsten, but I shoot in raw so I can fix it easily.
Good luck!
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
08-11-2013, 08:26 PM
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Just wanted to say hello. I am a long time Pentax user - first a K1000 (my Dad's from the 60's I think), then a Program Plus in college in the 80's. Then a waterproof film P&S in the 90's, and finally a K10D, K20D, K5, and K-01. Although I currently own too many systems to mention (if there is a really great deal on a new ILC, I'm all over it!), Pentax has always been my favorite brand, and I almost always reach for one of my Pentaxes when I head out the door to take pictures.
Anyway... Hello!
jm_mac
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