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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-17-2024, 03:28 PM
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Satin Bowerbird (female). K-3iii + FA*300mm f4.5
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
6 Days Ago
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Welcome from country Victoria, Australia.
You don't need to go overboard in buying lenses and other gear when you are starting out. You can work with a basic kit for a while and then you will be better placed to make informed decisions about getting extra, more specialist lenses and other gear.
I would agree with others who have suggested getting the Pentax DA 55-300mm f4.5-6.3 PLM lens. It's affordable, compact, lightweight, versatile and very capable. It focuses very fast and quietly and image quality is very good for such an inexpensive lens. It's a great lens to take on a walk. Even if you later decide to get a bigger, heavier, more expensive lens like the DA*300mm f4 (many people use it with the DA 1.4x teleconverter for effectively 420mm f5.6) or the DFA 150-450mm there will always be a place for the PLM.
Check out this thread for examples of images taken with the 55-300 PLM: https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/10-pentax-slr-lens-discussion/365761-hd-...what-cant.html
There's quite a bit to learn, especially with bird photography. You might be disappointed in the results at first, but stay with it. The best and cheapest way to improve your photography is to get as close as possible to the birds. If you are within say 10m (less for small birds, a bit more if it's a big bird like a pelican), you can get decent results with a 300mm lens and some cropping. When it comes to wading birds that are 50m or more away, you will need much more reach - that is, longer telephoto lenses running to 500mm or more. The subject needs to fill enough of the frame to get the sharpness and detail you want. Otherwise the most you can hope for is an image to ID the bird and as a record of what you saw.
If you are shooting handheld, you need to learn the best technique to steady yourself and the camera. This is useful for all handheld photography. See this terrific article: Making the Most of Long Exposure Handhelds - Introduction - In-Depth Articles
You also need to become familiar with the camera and with basic photographic concepts like the exposure triangle (the balance between aperture, ISO and shutter speed). As @jgnfld suggested, it's worth getting the ebook for the K-70.
Doing a course is a good idea.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
12-09-2017, 02:44 PM
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Here are some more shots of the same Hereford bull shown above in post #96. The first is with the K-3 + FA*300 f4.5. The second was taken with a K-30 + DA-L 55-300.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
07-23-2017, 06:55 PM
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While we are on goats, here are some Miniature Angora Goats, from a local agricultural show. K-S2 + FA 77.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
05-23-2017, 12:21 AM
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He looks very happy. Photogenic chap, isn't he?
Very nice shot of the goat.
Haven't posted for a while. Time to kick start the thread again
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This breed of cattle has the oxymoronic name of Polled Shorthorn. K-S2+FA 77 Ltd, at a show in South Gippsland.
All photos hosted at Flickr. Click an image to see its page on Flickr. |
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
08-18-2016, 04:25 PM
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Great fun shot @goatsNdonkey. Lots of personality there.
So now we've met the goats, look forward to seeing the donkey.
A Suffolk in Suffolk. Thanks for sharing. Which lens did you use Tim?
These are terrific @Barada. Happiest looking pig I've ever seen.
G'day Rod. Isn't he a beautiful fella?
---------- Post added 08-19-16 at 09:28 AM ----------
Here's an Angus bull and a horse (don't know what sort), tormented by flies, from Sth Gippsland. Both K-30 + DA-L 55-300.
 
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
03-18-2024, 02:37 PM
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Satin Bowerbird (female). K-3iii + FA*300mm f4.5. We had never seen them here until last year.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
04-10-2024, 02:08 PM
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High ISO performance, far inferior AF, compared to the K-3iii. Those are the main things. Those things matter when shooting wildlife or sport, but might not matter much for other uses. Compared to the KF, the K-5 or K-3/K-3ii lack the high ISO performance and flippy screen, but have a number of advantages.
You have plenty of other good AF options to cover 21mm on APS-C. Starting with your DFA 21! You should also consider:
- DA 20-40 f2.8-4 Ltd. Compact, lovely colours, nice rendering, beautifully built. Has a lot of field curvature.
- DA 16-85.
- DA 12-24.
If you don't care about the smaller battery, noisy shutter, way inferior AF, inferior metering, single card slot, no top LCD, unavailability of a grip, less solid construction, slower burst rate, lack of 4k video, and other missing features, or the extra money for the K3iii isn't worth it, the KF will do fine. There won't be much difference in IQ. And you get a flippy screen. If you buy new you might get a deal on bundling with a DA 20-40 or DA 16-85.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-20-2018, 09:46 PM
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Another welcome to PF.
I'd echo what others have said, that one of the three Pentax 55-300mm f4-5.8 models (as distinct from the HD-DA 55-300mm f4.5-6.3 PLM, which is an entirely different lens) is your best bet for an affordable telephoto option. @UncleVanya summarized the differences, but the main point is that they are optically identical, except that that the WR model has the newer HD lens coating, which cuts down flare and improves contrast. The WR model is the one to get if the budget will run to it, but a second-hand copy of the earlier DA and DA-L models will be more affordable ($US100-150) and provides great value.
I've got the DA-L model (with a very cheap hood I got from ebay). Here are some sample images taken with it.
More samples here: Pentax DA-L 55-300mm f4-5.8 sample images - Des(Australia) - Flickr
The key to using a consumer zoom like this is to stop down (ie narrow the aperture) by one or two stops whenever possible - in particular, at the long end the resolution is much better at f8 than wide open. That means that in less-than-ideal light you will need to compromise on shutter speed and/or ISO (although with the K100D Super there isn't much scope for increasing the ISO) or use a flash (on low power, for fill - it can give you a lot more feather/fur detail).
The other key to any wildlife photography is to get as close as possible to the subject.
I had a K100D Super for 6 years. It was a fun camera. But to be honest it isn't a great choice for wildlife, particularly because the 6mp sensor doesn't give a lot of scope for cropping, the autofocus is way behind even models from 5 years ago and you are limited to only a couple of stops in the ISO. When I went to a K-30 in 2013 it was a revelation. The 16mp models like the K-5, K-30 and K-50 are quite cheap now (starting around $US200) - if you can spring for one of those you will get more enjoyment from learning wildlife photography.
EDIT: I see one of our experienced forum members is offering a K-30 for $US150 (https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/24-photographic-equipment-sale/375953-sa...ma-tamron.html), so they are getting even cheaper than I thought. The only catch with this model (or the K-50/K-500) is that there is a small solenoid in the aperture control mechanism that is prone to fail. If you are handy it can be a cheap DIY fix, but otherwise if it strikes it may be uneconomic to repair. The K-5, which has the same sensor, doesn't have this problem. Still, for $150 for such a capable camera, you aren't risking a great deal. Incidentally, the K-30 (or K-50/K-500) can be run with AA batteries with a $5 adapter.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-08-2024, 03:34 PM
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Thanks for pointing this out. I guess I really meant the Info screen, which is where the OP was looking for the setting. I'm not sure that it's a setting that can be assigned to the info screen. It could be saved as part of a user mode though (e.g. for portraits).
And thanks again for sharing all your investigations of this feature @Kobie.
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Forum: Pentax KP
03-31-2024, 01:58 AM
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Banksia woodland walk. KP + DFA 100mm f2.8 macro WR.
Saw Banksia
Milkmaids
Insects on Austral Grass-tree flower
The last of these are Long-nosed Lycid beetles.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-04-2024, 02:51 PM
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That sounds interesting!
Most of us who like to photograph birds in flight (BIF) and other moving wildlife have preferred default settings, which we save to a user mode. Then when the moment arises you just need to switch the mode dial to the relevant user mode (User1 for me). I'd suggest you try this for your K-70. (BTW, what lens are you using on the K-70?)
Working out your preferred settings is a matter of trial and error. And it depends on the camera and lens you are using. My current preference for the KP is:
- Tv (shutter priority) mode with a shutter speed of 1/1600th second (for focal lengths of 300mm or 420mm on APS-C). You might get away with slower speeds for a large slow bird like a pelican, but more often you might need to go to 1/2000th or faster.
- Floating ISO, because as others have said, the price of a sufficiently fast shutter speed is often a high ISO. The upper limit depends on the camera. With the K-70, I'd suggest 6400. In good light you could go higher
- Aperture wide open. As Peter (@K2 to K50; ) said, you generally don't need to stop down the aperture (e.g. f8, f11) because the subject will be at a sufficient distance to give adequate depth of field at wide apertures. But with some low end lenses, you might need to do so because the resolution is not good enough unless you do.
- I leave shake reduction on, but I don't think it matters much at high shutter speeds. In fact with entry level cameras it might be better turned off.
- AF.C, AF Auto 27 points, focus priority, action in AF.C Auto, AF Hold medium.
- Continuous shooting H.
- RAW only. (I process with DxO Photolab, which does a good job.)
There are plenty of different preferences for these settings. You need to experiment to see what works best for you.
For these albatross, I used 1/1000th or 1/1250th (with a 300mm lens), but I wish I had used a faster speed.
By contrast, for this Yellow-billed Spoonbill (at 420mm), I used 1/2500th and it was better, although even faster would not have been overkill.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
03-17-2024, 03:28 PM
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Satin Bowerbird (female). K-3iii + FA*300mm f4.5
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
02-12-2024, 02:22 PM
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Thanks for asking Loyd. We are going off-topic (might be better in this thread: HD Pentax-DA 55-300mm F4.5-6.3 ED PLM WR RE - Show us what it can do, what it CAN'T! - PentaxForums.com) so just a few quick tips:
- If you are finding 300mm sufficient, it means either that you are cropping heavily or getting quite close to your subjects. The former is a necessary evil; the latter is the ideal. Almost all my best photos at 300mm or less are within 10 metres of the subject, many less. It's because the wildlife are bold, and get to know me. That is hard to replicate. Photographing water birds from a hide or from shore at 30 metres or more, 300mm is rarely enough to get a high-quality image, no matter how good your technique. Rule #1: get closer (or go longer).
- The 55-300 PLM is so light and easy to handle and use (especially compared to the 150-450) that it's possible to get complacent about the basics. But for handheld shooting you always need to be aware of technique. I constantly go back to this article: Shooting Long Exposures Hand-Held - Articles and Tips | PentaxForums.com
- Shake reduction with recent cameras like the K-3iii is so good, you can also get complacent about shutter speed. I still try for 1/640th or 1/800th as a starting point for wildlife; for birds in flight, 1/1600th. This often means pushing the ISO - but I am generally happy with 3200, or even 6400, with the K-3iii if necessary.
- The lens is so good wide open that you generally don't need to stop down for better resolution (as was the case with the old 55-300). But the f6.3 maximum aperture at 300mm can be a problem for focusing in low light - sometimes it's better to zoom back to about 260mm, where the maximum is f5.6.
- The AF is so fast that the main thing is to use suitable focus settings in-camera. I like the XS point select in the K-3iii for wildlife (I have the horizontal and vertical default points one or two above the centre, which closer to where the eye is likely to be), except where they are moving fast, for which I use AF.C and Zone select. If the bird is all one colour, the camera might find it hard to focus; you might need to aim at an edge as a proxy.
- Shooting a burst often gives you a better result than a single shot. I use Continuous shooting (H) as my default, although it involves the tedious task of sifting the wheat from the chaff and deleting many images later.
- I always shoot RAW, even though PP can be time-consuming. I am getting more ruthless at culling images so there are fewer to process. I keep the RAW files that survive the cull. Sometimes I go back to the better ones, as my PP skills and software have improved. I have found that it is worth spending time to improve PP skills and I am willing to pay for decent software and to keep it updated (I use DxO PhotoLab and the Nik Collection). I learned a few tricks and techniques from watching YouTube tutorials during the lockdowns - they make a real difference to the end product. But processing is not a substitute for getting a decent quality image to start with.
- I am also getting more ruthless about culling images for posting on Flickr and here. My shutter count on the K-3iii is about 6000. Of those I have probably deleted half to two-thirds without processing. A lot of the rest will be quite satisfactory for my own purposes, but repetitive or not good enough to post publicly. I have posted only 22 photos with the K-3iii to Flickr so far. There might be another 15 or 20 I have taken with the K-3iii to date that I will process and post eventually. So let's say 40 out of 6000 actuations - about 0.66%. When they see only the very best or most distinctive, people think you are a better photographer than you really are!
Hope this helps. And I hope others will excuse the digression.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
01-30-2024, 11:21 PM
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Silvereye. K-3iii + DA 55-300 PLM at 300mm.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 III
01-25-2024, 02:21 AM
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Great series.
A mop with a nose. ;-)
Brown Thornbill. K-3iii + DA 55-300mm PLM at 300mm.
(X-posted from the 300mm+ thread) |
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-28-2024, 02:18 PM
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No. Even assuming it can be fixed (and it looks to me like damage from being dropped, and might not be fixable), it would cost more than getting a replacement.
That's a very good lens.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-02-2023, 09:37 PM
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Two responses to disturbance.
First, freeze.
That didn't work. Run!
Common Wombat, Wilsons Promontory NP, Victoria, Australia. KP + DA 55-300mm f4.5-6.3.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-24-2024, 02:04 PM
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That is, with the TC. Without the TC it's the point where it goes from f5.6 to f6.3.
If the PLM is struggling to focus when the maximum aperture is f6.3 (in poor light), going back to 260 or 270mm where it's f5.6 often does the trick. I think it's to do with the sensitivity of the AF points in the camera.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-23-2024, 04:27 PM
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You've got a lot of good advice already. I'll just add my own experience. I have the Sigma AF 400mm f5.6 tele macro (said to be the best of the third party AF 400mm f5.6 lenses in K mount), FA*300mm f4.5 and DA 55-300mm f4.5-6.3. I also have two teleconverters, the Kenko 1.5x pz and Pentax HD DA 1.4x. I have previously had the Pentax DA L 55-300mm f4-5.8 and Sigma 170-500 APO. (I've got samples from each in albums on my Flickr stream: Des?s albums | Flickr)
Every option is a compromise, trading off price, weight, bulk, aperture, AF speed quality and noise, reach, flexibility, resolution, IQ and aberrations. That's why there are so many different answers.
The FA*300 is a fine lens and relatively compact and light weight. It works well with the 1.4x TC, although it is 420mm f6.7 wide open with the TC. The screw driven AF is a bit slow and noisy, but it is reliable. A number of users have had problems with the SDM AF on the DA*300. If Pentax ever upgrade the DA*300 with HD coatings and better AF I would be all over it.
The Sigma 400 is a bit bulkier and heavier, but still fairly portable at about 1.4kg. The Bigmas and the like are over 2kg, and that's a big difference.
I don't see the DA 55-300 PLM and the longer primes as alternatives. You should get the 55-300 regardless of whether you get another long lens. It's a terrific walkaround lens. If you have a good copy and use it within its limitations (don't expect high res images of a duck 50m away), it's one of the gems of the Pentax lineup.
As others have said, it works with the TC, but you need good light (not under dense tree cover). I'd disagree with those who say you don't gain anything with a TC on a camera with a 24mp sensor, but it's not a magic bullet.
I'd just float one other point. The K-50 is a good camera, but for wildlife you will get some worthwhile gains from upgrading to a more recent body - better AF, more pixels for cropping, better high-ISO and (with more advanced models) more bit depth, better metering, quiet shutter, faster burst rate, etc. Think about that as a possible upgrade too.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
03-24-2024, 02:06 AM
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Great samples with each lens Sandy. Good argument for the 150-450, although I gather that it is beyond the OP's budget.
Superb Fairy-wren with banding on both legs - I've never seen that before. I wonder what the study is. This chap doesn't look fazed anyway.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
03-19-2024, 02:16 PM
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Satin Bowerbird (female). K-3iii + FA*300mm f4.5
Explored 18 March 2024 #216 |
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Forum: Pentax KP
11-14-2023, 02:17 AM
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KP + HD DA 15 Ltd
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