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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
2 Days Ago
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I think there were six of these stainless steel '36 Ford Deluxes produced, and they all had > 200,000 miles when retired. Can you believe it? The most I ever got out of a car was 185,000, but then I am in the Midwest where salt is deadly.
This '36 Ford Deluxe is at the Senator John Heinz History Museum, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
If the 21mm does not work there is the 40mm f/2.8 Limited, or a used 40mm f/2.8 XS. These are lower budget but work well. Here is my 40mm f/2.8 Limited in muted light.
 Bird of Paradise by Mark Roeder, on Flickr
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Forum: Lens Clubs
3 Days Ago
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We are one week ahead of you on crocuses. We are onto daffodils and early tulips, now.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
3 Days Ago
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You may or may not be satisfied with the 21mm f/3.2 limited. It wasn't perfect in the museum, but I liked the results. At 21mm with a crop sensor, it will pick up exhibits in a museum with dim lighting on my budget. This was taken with my K-3, so a more advanced camera sensor could do better.
 1936 Ford Deluxe by Mark Roeder, on Flickr
If you have a Cadillac budget go with the HD Pentax-D FA 21mm F2.4 ED Limited DC WR.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
4 Days Ago
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You have roses going out of bloom, already? Mine are only starting to develop leaves from leaf buds.
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Forum: Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories
04-09-2024, 09:18 PM
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The way the fire escape works is that when one steps on the bottom level, the staircase slowly lowers to street level because of the weight of the escapee. I learned that when I was in an old 10-story building that caught fire on the 2nd story. I was on the 7th story.
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Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
04-03-2024, 09:07 PM
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I am no expert on birds in flight. I took this one handheld from a distance of 100 yards or more with a K-3. I sharpened it with Topaz Sharpen AI, and it helped, but it looks a bit more like a painting in some respects. The inexpensive 400mm lens was 60-years old it has aberrations. The focus at this distance is infinity. With this lens I won't win any contests.
When I arrived home to view the photo, I was pleasantly surprised. I looked at the camera settings, I thought, I could have done better. And that's what the original poster needs to do, is reassess after looking at the camera settings. On this one I had:
EXIF:
f/11
1/2500
400 ISO
I wished I had bumped up to at least 800 ISO, and speeded up the shutter. With an eagle in flight, unless one has a lot of time, which I don't, you come back home, and reassess what should be done the next time. There was quite a bit of light that day which enters into the decision-making.
 Eagle in Flight by Mark Roeder, on Flickr
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
03-31-2024, 08:26 PM
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Agree with everything Mike said.
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Forum: Welcomes and Introductions
03-30-2024, 08:40 PM
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You are off to a great start. Curious what lenses came with it.
This hobby is infectious. Next you will want more lenses, a flash, a tripod, a remote so you can take photos from the tripod without shaking the camera, then a newer body, a camera case, and ... .
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Forum: General Talk
03-12-2024, 09:13 PM
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Mom and Dad have had Toyotas for the past 20-years or so, and mechanical issues, are virtually unheard of. As dad was dying, in the few days before his death, he insisted mom replace the RAV-4 last year with a new RAV-4 (the old one was about 7-years old and mom does not probably have that many more years (she is 89), and except when I travel to Tucson to visit and we take a trip to Kitt Peak, she is going to the grocery store, hardware store, Lowes (seldom), and Walgreens. Toyotas are reliable. That said, I have a Chevy Equinox, and it is reliable, too. The Japanese taught GM a lesson, or two.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-19-2024, 09:42 PM
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It is the skill of the photographer that is the final decree. Still, your photos make me yearn for that lens.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
03-07-2024, 10:06 PM
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-04-2024, 10:58 PM
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
03-02-2024, 10:28 PM
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Forum: Lens Clubs
03-04-2024, 09:34 AM
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
02-03-2024, 11:18 PM
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This is the correct answer, and use the charger made for Eneloop batteries to be certain. I used a non-Eneloop charger and fried a set of 4 batteries. Perhaps I did something wrong by discharging the battery entirely in the charger before starting the charge, but regardless, use the right charger and take no chances.
Eneloop batteries are regarded as the best batteries for digital photography.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-28-2024, 10:23 PM
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An advantage of the Pentax 40mm Limited and 21mm Limited is that they are pancake lenses, which is great for street photography. They look great on the camera, they have high quality build, and take very good photos. The 40mm Limited is probably not quite up to the optics of the 43mm f/1.9 Limited (which I don't have and cannot personally attest to), but the price of the 40mm isn't up to the 43mm f/1.9 price level either.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
01-27-2024, 10:01 PM
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I have a version of the Sigma EX DC 30mm f/1.4 . A prior poster suggested a Sigma 30mm f/1.4. There are 3 or 4 versions of a Sigma 30mm f/1.4 lens, and I think they are different in quality. I can only speak to the version I own.
I would refer to my model as a budget lens. At 1.4 it is very, very soft and the corners are softer. It sharpens up at f/3.5. It is not such a good street lens as it is quite large for a 30mm. Now that I have the Pentax DA 40mm f/2.8 Limited, and the Pentax DA 21mm f/3.2 Limited, I haven't a use for the Sigma lens I own.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
01-09-2024, 10:28 PM
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I enjoyed reading your missives. I had a K-5, and obtained wonderful photos with it. Several years ago I sold it, and purchased a K-3. Among other lenses, I have the 21mm 3.2, my second favorite prime. I also have the DA f/2.8 40mm, my most used prime. I have the plastic fantastic 50mm f/1.8 which is a very good lens considering its budget price. I have four manual prime lenses from the 1980s, and many other lenses. I enjoy re-experiencing my youth with the old lenses which are very good, even by today's standard. They make you think about aperture, iso, and exposure, more.
I am on a budget, but the 21 and 40 were within my budget. The 50mm is a bit too long for most of my photos on a crop sensor. The 21mm is a very nice lens for the price. You should come to enjoy it. The 40mm is even more compact, and is my favorite prime.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
01-09-2024, 10:31 PM
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Snow in Arkansas? What a novelty! I love your photos. When I retire, I am going to sit out on my deck and do what you do.
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
09-01-2023, 08:57 PM
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This was taken at dusk from Balltown, Iowa. The foreground is timber, and farmland in Iowa, including some beef cattle. You can see the rough hewn bluff overlooking the Mississippi River which is on the Wisconsin side of the river. Old Man River is underneath some substantial bluffs on the Iowa, and Wisconsin sides, and cannot be seen.
In the far distance, red lights in Wisconsin were flashing, probably from a wind farm.
 Overlooking Mississippi River Valley by Mark Roeder, on Flickr
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
12-27-2023, 10:42 PM
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I would have cropped it, but I am not complaining, because . . .
This is an extraordinary photo!
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Forum: Post Your Photos!
12-18-2023, 10:48 PM
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 Dubuque Skyline by Mark Roeder, on Flickr
This shows a part of downtown Dubuque taken from atop a bluff at 1:00 a.m. 6/25/2023 after my daughter's wedding reception. Dubuque is located in the "Driftless Area" in Northeast Iowa along the Mississippi River. Notable landmarks are:
- Lower left - Washington Park Gazebo.
- Left - Roshek Building, a former department store, now an office building.
- Just to right of Roshek Building - Sandstone colored Grand Opera House (with the peaked roof).
- Center - Clock Tower. This clock formerly sat atop a three-story building in downtown Dubuque. In the 1970s it was moved onto a modern and very ugly pedestal in the center of a pedestrian mall on Main Street. The pedestrian mall has since been dismantled; the clock still sits on the same 1970s pedestal in the middle of Main Street, now surrounded by a traffic circle.
- Dubuque County Courthouse with the gold foil cupula.
- In the distance you can see red lights on the bluff on the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi River. There was a lot of Canadian wildfire smoke that day in Dubuque.
Much more detail can be seen on Flickr.
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-10-2023, 10:02 PM
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Forum: Lens Clubs
12-07-2023, 10:50 PM
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In a town of 5,000 people in the Midwest, it is a bit difficult to do "street photography," because I am not anonymous. Tonight we had the "Manchester Window Walk and Static Parade." I walked around the street after sunset with my camera, somewhat hidden by cover of darkness. The night was like a spring night, but it was Dec. 7, 2023. The shots were way less than fantastic, but I will share. These were taken with my K-3 and M 50mm f/1.4.
The 2nd photo is Santa atop a ladder truck from the fire station.
The last photo is a City Dump Truck / Winter plow / salt spreader. The dump body and salt spreader and plow (which is not attached) are made right here in Manchester by Henderson Products, a division of Douglas Dynamics.
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Forum: Pentax DSLR Discussion
12-04-2023, 10:25 PM
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That is a really cool looking building with statues atop, and a market. Christmas markets were a topic of discussion on Iowa Public Radio, today. I was working while the program aired, and was unable to listen closely. I believe Austria came up in that discussion, too. Outdoor Christmas markets are a bit foreign to us in the Midwest, as you probably know.
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