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Thank you all for the advice. I'm just back in the US and with fast enough internet to upload full resolution photos, and I've been able to pare my 3000 down to 50 to put on Flickr.

I didn't end up testing the weather sealing too much, we had mostly sunny skies, warm temperatures and smooth landings. Glad I had a dry bag, and that I didn't ever need it. I did find the tripod useful when shooting moonrise for slightly easier handling of the long zoom, but it certainly wasn't necessary. Mostly used the 24-70 on the K-1 and the 150-450 on the K-3. Only used the 15-30 when going through the Lemaire Channel, otherwise I liked to pick out details in the landscape and wildlife, and used my phone for establishing shots and getting GPS tags.

Antarctica | Flickr
and
Argentina | Flickr

Feliz navidad y januca,
- Josh

Forum: Travel, Events, and Groups 12-01-2022, 09:50 AM

Cruise to Antarctica
Posted By jlev

Replies: 13
Views: 1,407

Thanks for the insight everyone. I did my test pack this week for departure on Sunday, and have enough room to bring the larger lenses as primaries (15-30, 24-70 and 150-450) with the 28-105 and 55-300 as backups. Loving the K3-iii I rented, the UI has changed a lot since my K-1 was released. Peak Design travel tripod also feels very sturdy, and the carbon legs should absorb some of the vibration from the ship if shooting from the deck.

I'll have a laptop with me and download photos nightly for processing and safekeeping on an external drive. Will hopefully have some good shots to share when I return after 12/25.

- Josh

Forum: Travel, Events, and Groups 11-17-2022, 08:27 AM

Cruise to Antarctica
Posted By jlev

Replies: 13
Views: 1,407

I'm headed to Antarctica via Argentina next month with my Pentax gear, and while the thread by Sandy Hancock was very helpful (it appears we are even going on the same ship), I do have a few more questions.

I have a trusty K-1 body, 15-30, 24-70, 28-105 and 150-450 available. My 70-200 is out of commission due to an autofocus issue, undergoing repair at Precision Camera, and won't make it back to me in time for my flight. Pity. So, I am considering renting a K-3 to have both a backup body and an APS-C sensor, so I can snap birds in flight or on ice from the deck.

Without the 70-200, I think I'll leave the 150-450 on the K-3 and use the K-1 for wider shots. Should I bring the 28-105 as my main lens on the zodiac? It's WR, cheaper and lighter than the 24-70, and might give more flexibility for medium-length shots. The 15-30 should be great for wider landscapes, although to be honest my iphone 14 does a pretty good job at 0.5x too.

Will also have a small laptop, backup external harddrive, plenty of memory cards and batteries, and an gopro for action shots when kayaking or doing the polar plunge. I have a Peak Design carbon travel tripod too, although I'm not sure how useful that will actually be on the deck given the engine vibrations.

Feels like a lot of gear, but this is one of the the trips of my lifetime, and I want to actually enjoy being there without worrying about missing a shot. I know I'm not Frans Lanting, but I want to bring home a few keepers.

Thanks for any advice, or just helping get me stoked to shoot,

- Josh

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 09-12-2022, 11:29 AM

Rock and vapour
Posted By jlev

Replies: 24
Views: 242

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 08-06-2022, 02:17 PM

Pyrocumulous Lightning
Posted By jlev

Replies: 3
Views: 117

I was camping near Mt Shasta on Friday July 29th, when the McKinney fire started across the valley. We were planning on driving further north on I-5 the next day, so we watched the evacuation notices for signs they might close the road.

At 2am, the dog woke me up, and I got out of the tent to look at the sky. It glowed eerily red, and I set up my tripod. I enjoy shooting astro, so I know the settings for the Milky Way, but dark clouds with lightning were new to me. I took 40 shots at 15sec exposure each, and stitched them together with QuickTime for a timelapse. This 3 sec clip covers about 10 min of real time.

Pyrocumulus Lightning in McKinney Fire | I was camping near ? | Flickr

Forum: Sold Items 05-19-2022, 04:45 AM

For Sale - Sold: Pentax DFA 24-70mm F2.8 ED SDM WR
Posted By jlev

Replies: 1
Views: 863

Pm sent

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:24 PM

Dachshund Noir
Posted By jlev

Replies: 21
Views: 507

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:24 PM

Ludo Lit Up
Posted By jlev

Replies: 18
Views: 485

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:19 PM

Hunter
Posted By jlev

Replies: 50
Views: 1,271

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:18 PM

Evening walk
Posted By jlev

Replies: 17
Views: 538

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:18 PM

Dinah
Posted By jlev

Replies: 18
Views: 682

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Monthly Photo Contests 10-01-2020, 04:18 PM

Nap Time
Posted By jlev

Replies: 9
Views: 514

I would like to nominate this photo

Forum: Photographic Technique 08-12-2020, 02:20 PM

Astro Meteor showers - Aug 2020
Posted By jlev

Replies: 32
Views: 3,246

I followed some of the advice from this thread and went out last night to shoot the Perseids at peak around midnight. Didn’t love the results from star stream mode on my K-1, but I got a pretty decent capture with a big trail and Andromeda.

Looked best to me in B&W, too much color noise otherwise. 15mm wide open to f2.8 for 30s, ISO 6400.

Forum: Photographic Technique 07-20-2020, 09:18 AM

Shooting Comet NEOWISE
Posted By jlev

Replies: 17
Views: 10,955

Here's what I've been able to do over the last few nights.

Started super early in the morning on the 11th and went up to an area where I knew I'd be able to get some foreground interest and still have dark skies. Used my FA-77 at 1.8, and 8 seconds exposure.

Also tried a "selfie", and ended up a bit blurry.

As it's now visible in the evening, I'm having to wait a long time after sunset. This is from 11pm, and there was no color visible in the sky to the naked eye (15-30 DFA picked it up though).

And then a bit later it descended enough to get the reflection. This is 60s with the astrotracer (which I forgot to calibrate, so it's not as sharp as it could be). Had a lot of color noise, so I thought it looked better in B&W.

Forum: Sold Items 03-08-2020, 10:45 AM

For Sale - Sold: Pentax D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6 DC AW Lens
Posted By jlev

Replies: 1
Views: 821

Pm sent

Forum: Repairs and Warranty Service 11-12-2019, 06:10 PM

Where to find AF contacts
Posted By jlev

Replies: 25
Views: 3,727

This was very helpful in diagnosing an autofocus issue I was having with my 70-200. It wasn't being recognized by my K-1, which prompted me for the length every time it started. Turns out one of the pins was bent off the pad, and some delicate work with a tweezers got it back in place.

Forum: General Photography 12-14-2018, 06:57 PM

Why We All Take the Same Travel Photos
Posted By jlev

Replies: 56
Views: 4,359

I just got back from New Zealand, and saw this phenomenon at "that wanaka tree", which is surely the most photographed tree in the country, if not the world. I got up two mornings in a row for sunrise; the sky was cloudy so there was no color, but each time there were at least ten other photographers out there jostling for position to take the same shot. But move a few dozen feet left or right and there's another alignment for your own shot.

This is what I ended up with, which I think is pretty good. Didn't have a 10-stop ND big enough for my 70-200, but a polarizer and pixelshift did pretty well.

Loved that Pentax weather sealing on hikes in the spitting rain or near waterfalls.