Forum: General Photography
09-26-2023, 09:04 AM
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Back in the day people would have cameras for 20 years at a time. There are cases when new tech makes it easier and more fun to take photos. In other cases new tech allows you to take pictures you would not be able to take otherwise. If you're reaching that point, don't think twice and switch. Life is too short to be frustrated by equipment. ---------- Post added 09-26-23 at 09:05 AM ---------- Also, why not have more than one system? That's what I do ;).
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Forum: Monthly Photo Contests
04-09-2018, 12:48 PM
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I would like to nominate this photo
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-30-2018, 08:08 PM
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I would go for the K-3. It will have a better autofocus, more robust build, more quiet shutter, option of getting a vertical grip, nice buttons. I think it might also have a better dust reduction system - ultrasonic as opposed to shaking the sensor using SR system. The first time I had a problem with my k-3 was after ~50,000 actuations, but it was something that doesn't happen to every camera - I had mirror mechanism's lubricant splashed on the mirror. It shows as green dots on the secondary mirror, and I have seen it in other cameras too (e.g. Nikon D700 with 300k actuations). I bet you will be able to find something below 20k actuations on ebay.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
03-30-2018, 04:30 PM
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Who designed the DA15 ltd?
Also his wikipedia profile says he designed the tamron 24-70 F2.8. Very interesting.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
12-01-2017, 02:39 AM
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oh but that's too easy! I can just walk into the store and pick up a tamrac anvil 17. There's no fun in that. I need to get a BGN grade of a previous year's model on keh with 20% sale. Preferably on a card with cashback. ---------- Post added 12-01-17 at 03:40 AM ----------
Thanks. How did they grade it? Do you think their conservative rating for lenses holds up for accessories? ---------- Post added 12-01-17 at 03:43 AM ----------
What did you end up getting? There is always the cotton carrier.
ref. You Tube |
src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KMfAsQAJwDI?controls=1" allowfullscreen> |
---------- Post added 12-01-17 at 03:47 AM ----------
The padding looks pretty good on the escape 2.0. With 50% discount that's actually very reasonable for this kind of backpack. is there a code for 50% off or did I miss the sale?
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
11-25-2017, 09:51 PM
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I like the ruggards, particularly the harness. My pointof concern is the tripod mount. It seems that the fasteners only reach to about 50% of the height, so I am worried it might fall out.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
11-24-2017, 11:33 AM
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Guys, thanks. This is helpful. Also I appreciate the picture with 150-450, and the information on which dividers come out from the backpacks. I saw many people mentionining lowepros flipside, the tamrac 5x and manfrotto off road hiker are new to me, I will check them out.
- am doing some 5-6 mile hiking with it, so water space would be nice.
- with 200-500, 12-24, 50/1.8 kit, with water, headlamp, vanguard 263ab tripod ---------- Post added 11-24-17 at 12:35 PM ----------
Thanks! I was looking at the canon, but it seemed to small. For the off road hiker 30l - it seems that there is just a small padded divider for the dslr + lens, and the rest is just a regular backpack? ---------- Post added 11-24-17 at 12:37 PM ----------
Thanks! I like that tamrac line, I am looking into the video reviews right now. I found a used ex condition 8x for $75.
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
11-24-2017, 03:12 AM
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hi,
has anyone spotted good deals on a large camera backpack for hiking? I am trying to hold a 200-500mm lens (27cm long) attached to a camera body, and one that has a solid tripod mount.
Any suggestions?
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Forum: General Photography
10-21-2017, 02:07 AM
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Show it to anyone who says equipment doesn't matter in photography.
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Forum: Pentax Q
10-10-2017, 10:52 PM
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There were a lot of tests when they first came out a few years ago. Reviews were good. Lens Rentals | Blog |
Forum: Accessory and Memory Articles
10-10-2017, 10:46 PM
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3D printing will not give you the same quality, especially one that is cheaper than buying a hood from ebay, or a third party manufacturer, e.g. JJC.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
10-06-2017, 12:18 PM
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Same shot, with 30s, ISO 2000 and standard noise reduction. There are some smaller stars lost, but it wouldn't be obvious if the pictures weren't side by side. this must be the only usable image at ISO 51200 I ever got.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
10-06-2017, 12:14 PM
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ISO 51200, 5s exposure. I am pondering a full frame, but I am getting more and more convinced that APS-C is just good enough...
Photo in arches NP. Utah.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-05-2017, 03:00 AM
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Why not just get a real deal soviet lens? ebay is flooded with them for a significantly lesser price. There is a polish service, allegro.pl, which is an ebay like auction site and it should have a lot of soviet lenses too.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
05-04-2017, 11:38 PM
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I could see a point if the fact these three share component would make very good lenses very inexpensive. At $600 there are some good competitors with autofocus, especially on the used market, so I will pass. Then again, I don't think I liked a single product by this company, so I am clearly not a target.
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Forum: Pentax K-1 & K-1 II
05-04-2017, 11:28 PM
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Were you changing lenses in dusty conditions?
If you have dust on the AF sensor or the mirror, it could refract the light and throw the focus sensor consistently. Do a test and see if some points work and others don't. Then take a look at the mirror and AF sensor and see if you see any dirt on it. Similar thing happened to me on a k-3 where at some point off center focus points didn't work very well. I later found out some of the off-center AF points work well other don't. Then I read that dirt on the sensor could be a reason, after long long research. I will be cleaning the camera this weekend to confirm this hypothesis.
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Forum: Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands
05-01-2017, 12:33 AM
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Guys, thanks for all the suggestions and sorry about the delay. I had to catch up on some work and didn't login here for 3 weeks.
I decided to struggle a bit with da-l 55-300 and see what are the limitations. My conclusion is that it can work, although I would like something ~2x longer, and something sharp wide open. But 55-300 will do for now.
Once I figure out what are the most important factors in birding I will jump for a super telephoto lens and maybe a body to match. What I learned that K-3+55-300 can work, although there will be some missed shots. I might get better with time. As of now it seems important factors in, rough order, seem to be: lighting, focal length, steady hands, AF depth-tracking, buffer size, FPS, lens sharpness, high ISO noise, AF tracking, sensor resolution. I will spend a few more sessions and see if the list will get reshuffled.
Here are some shots from my first-day birding, K-3 + 55-300 DA-L, mostly 300mm F8, iso 400-1600, shutter 1/2000-4000, hand holding, but in low position.
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Forum: Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Other Camera Brands
04-10-2017, 01:41 AM
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Hi all,
I am thinking of what are the options for getting a camera with good tracking AF. I typically shoot pictures of static subjects, but I am running into trouble with using k-3. Every review on the internet says that canon and nikon are ahead in AF tech. I am looking for a 300mm F4 options, but given pentax pricing, it's actually cheaper to buy an old canon/nikon body and a comparable lens.
Here are some things I am considering, all around $750, or a price of a used DA* 300mm F4:
- E-M1 + 50-200 f2.8-3.5 (already have the adapter), apparently very solid with new firmware
- 1d mk ii + 300mm f4 L non is
- D7000 + sigma 100-300 f4
- D300s + sigma 100-300
- 7D + 55-250 STM
Any thoughts? Am I missing some better options for the price?
8mpix and 1.3x crop won't be a problem, since I will keep k-3 for everything else.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-08-2017, 12:45 PM
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
04-06-2017, 12:47 PM
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I got a vanguard 263AB, which works very well and has macro arm, for example. It's quite heavy though.
MeFoto has their daytrip tripods that are very small. You might like that one.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
04-06-2017, 12:06 PM
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You could print anything, if you choose all the dimensions correctly. M42/M39 mounts would be difficult in plastic, because the threads wouldn't last very long, and they would need to be produced after printing. CNC milling and metal would be a better choice, because plastic shards will likely chip off over time and land inside the camera, on the sensor etc. Not to mention that support material is kind of hard to get rid of. I am always left with a thin layer that I have to remove manually.
A fun project I keep wondering about is printing the entire lens with a off the shelf components from thorlabs. This could be a very nice, light lens if designed correctly. The problem is that off-the shelf lens elements are quite pricey and the process is not cost effective.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-28-2017, 12:27 PM
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"K-70/50/30 >>style<< dials" i.e. cheaper dials and buttons, not the one found in K-3 or KP
I never said they will be making a mirrorless out of dSLR parts. I happen know a thing or two about engineering, having two engineering degrees from MIT and Caltech.
The development of mirrorless full frame camera has been rumored from a few sources, starting around mid 2016, also mentioned here on the forum. More on the rumored Pentax mirrorless camera | Pentax Rumors |
Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
03-28-2017, 12:02 PM
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I bet they could make a full frame mirrorless for around $1000. With K-70/50/30 style dials and buttons, 1/6000 shutter. dSLR would probably be more expensive due to the extra parts. Website on the matter:
"This is rather amazing. The completely disassembled Sony A7R consists of about a dozen major pieces, held together with 29 screws of just three different sizes. A typical DSLR has around 120 screws of 11 different sizes." Lens Rentals | Blog |
Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
03-18-2017, 02:43 AM
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Pentax forums would be a good place to start... I bet there is someone who would be happy to help out for either a symbolic fee or some good wedding food.
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Forum: Photographic Industry and Professionals
03-17-2017, 04:44 PM
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First off, congratulations!
Do you think you could get a friend to do it? Perhaps someone here on the forum? In my opinion you shouldn't have to shoot your son's wedding, it's a lot of work, and you won't be able to focus and have this moment in memory. Unless you really want to of course.
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