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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-15-2009, 07:49 PM
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@ Ash: I'm kind of feeling the same way about the DA*55, I am curious about it's IQ compared to the other choices, but I have a feeling I am paying for weather sealing I am never actually going to use. I'm a little nervous about getting an SDM lens after hearing about all the AF motor failures, and all the other lenses wouldn't be weather sealed anyways so chances out are I wouldn't be out in harsh conditions anyways if my whole collection isn't weather sealed. I am also interested in the 43 simply because it would complete the Limited trinity, but I think it's just a tad too slow for me, especially since I'm using a K10D right now and the high ISO isn't as good as the K-7 so that extra stop would really help me out for indoor and night shots.
@ legacyb4: How are you finding the 43? If you do any photography at night or any portrait shots, do you find you are restricted by f1.9?
EDIT: I just realized that the A 50 1.2 is not autofocus (I thought thats what the A meant :P). So I've kinda narrowed this down to the 50 1.4 or the 43 Limited.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-15-2009, 05:37 PM
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Hello,
Lately I've been finding myself working more and more on street (some street portrait) photography for my portfolio and I've decided that the obvious way to go in terms of lens systems for this is a collection of great primes. Initially I was going to go with the 16-50 and 50-135 but I've decided that I would rather have the faster lenses and it's hard to ignore the great reviews of the Limiteds. Not to mention, I would kick myself if, after deciding to go Pentax, I didn't even try the primes. I have decided to go with the 31 Limited and 77 Limited for sure, but I am having a tough time deciding which fast 50 I should choose.
The 50 A 1.2 is the fastest, but for a new unused copy they seem to be going for around $800-$900, about the same as the DA* 55. Would the f/1.2 be worth spending as much on this lens as a DA* 55 would cost me?
The DA* 55 is weather sealed which is cool, but I wouldn't be able to use it with my K1000 when I feel like playing around with film. In your opinions, is the IQ on this lens significantly better enough to buy it rather then the f/1.2, or spend much less on the 43 or 50FA?
The 43 Limited is the slowest, is on the short end (but maybe this is not a bad thing on a APS-C?), and is more expensive then the 50FA, but it is a Limited series lens. Is this Limited as legendary as the 31 and 77?
The 50 FA 1.4 i isn't weather sealed, as fast as the 1.2, or a Limited series lens. But if the IQ is the same quality, the other stuff doesn't matter as much and the price is right.
I'd rather spend less if I can get away with it, but IQ is more important then price as long as it's under $1000 which they all are. Which would you get? Which is "best"? Keep in mind I will also have the 31 and 77.
Thanks for any input, I know you probably hear this one a lot! I have done quite a bit of searching both on Google and on these forums and I've found some great info on all of them, but I just want to know what you folks suggest to someone who is willing to buy any of the 4.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
10-03-2009, 12:56 AM
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Hey guys,
I saw another thread kind of related to this on the first page of the board but I didnt want to hijack the other guys thread so hopefully this isn't too redundant. I really want my next purchases to be the 16-50 and 50-135 SDM lenses but I am put off by the seemingly huge failure rate of the SDM lenses (especially the 16-50).
However, most of the complaints and reviews of these lenses are from 2007 and 2008 and I was wondering if anything has changed since then? Has Pentax finally sorted out the issues with these lenses or is there still a pretty big chance of getting a bad copy? Also, I am using a K10D with the 1.3 firmware, maybe some of the focusing issues I've read about were from before this firmware update?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-17-2009, 01:53 AM
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Thanks for the info, that clears it up. So given that a FA lens covers both fields of view, and the DA lens will only cover an APS-C sensor, is there any point to collect DA lenses (other than for a specific need like the weather-proofing on DA*'s), in the context of Pentax some day releasing a full frame dslr and wanting to have my collection be compatible (I know there are nothing but rumors and no guarantee that Pentax will ever release one).
Also, I take it then that no matter which brand of camera you buy (Pentax, Canon, Nikon, etc) no matter what the designation or type of lens, you always have to do the crop factor conversion yourself, and the actual APS-C focal length is never listed on a lens?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-17-2009, 12:55 AM
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You probably get this question a lot so I'm sorry in advance for being a total newb, but I've tried Google but suprisingly couldnt find much info on the subject or at least nothing written in simple terms. I just want it to hear the answer right from the mouths of Pentax users I guess :p
My question is, when you are using a DA or DA* series lens, do you still have to factor in the crop factor for APS-C sensors?
I know when I'm using an FA lens I need to multiply by 1.5 to get the focal length that I'm actually using. But do I have to do the same multiplication to a DA or DA* lens?
So my 18-55 DA kit lens is really a 27-82.5, and my Tamron 90mm Di macro lens is really 135?
And if so, why do they designate it as FA and DA/DA*?
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Forum: Pentax Camera and Field Accessories
08-20-2009, 10:16 PM
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Hey guys,
I currently use a 2 GB Sandisk Extreme III memory card with my K10D, and I'm really happy with it but I want to buy a second, larger memory card. So I had a couple questions about memory cards:
Is the K10D write speed even fast enough that there is a difference between Class 4 and Class 6 cards?
and
Is there a difference between Class 6 SD cards and Class 6 SDHC cards? What I mean is, am I going to get a faster card if I stick with 2GB cards rather then a 4GB+ card?
Also, the Verbatim 8GB Class 6 SDHC cards are going on sale for a good price at the retail store where I work, but in your experiences are Verbatim cards as good quality as Sandisk Extreme III cards?
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-09-2008, 09:01 PM
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I'll check out the KM as well, the price isn't too much of an issue because I would get either one used for really cheap. But if it has some extra features it might be worth it.
This is a little off topic but what should I look for when buying a used Pentax film camera (K1000, KM, or anything else)? Are they usually pretty solid or is there a good chance buying used will get me a camera that has some broken functions? Might be a stupid question but I've never bought anything used that is this old before.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-09-2008, 05:31 PM
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Good points, regular K1000 it is then. Thanks!
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-09-2008, 12:18 PM
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Do you have a link to the other thread about it? I can't find it but I would give it a read through if someone has a link.
I'm probably not going to spend twice the price just for a red logo anyways, I just want to make sure I'm not missing out on something big.
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-09-2008, 10:59 AM
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Hey guys,
I'm looking into getting a manual film camera just to learn with/fool around with (I grew up with digital so I want to experience a film slr). I was looking at a getting a cheap K1000 on criagslist or something and I came across an ad for "Pentax K1000 Red". Supposedly it's a special edition of the K1000 and the only difference is a red K1000 engraving instead of black and it has black skin around the flash mount.
I wasjust wondering if this is a legit special edition model, or is someone just painting the logo red, and calling it special edition so they can sell for more?
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Forum: Photographic Technique
11-30-2008, 11:57 PM
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I'm in BC, Canada but it's good to know about specific schools out there that are known for really good photography programs because I could always move for school.
@ Ahab: That's a good idea, I'm definitely going to look into finding some photography classes taught by pros in my area, although I don't know how many there are. Worth a try though for sure.
Basically I just want to learn the basics like light, composition, and that kind of stuff so I at least know what I'm doing when am practicing on my own.
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Forum: Photographic Technique
11-28-2008, 11:44 PM
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Hey guys,
I'm fairly new on these forums although I have posted a couple times in the past to ask about some camera equipment. Anyways, in the coming months I have to choose which school and which courses I would like to take in college/university. I am interested in taking some photography courses but it's hard to find a school that has a good photography department as well as some of the other courses I want to take.
I was wondering how many of you have taken photography related courses after high school? Do the majority of people out there just learn photography through getting out there and practicing, or does taking some classes benefit you a lot?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-19-2008, 12:15 PM
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Thanks for the help so far guys. I do already have and use the kit lens that came with the K10D, and I agree it's a pretty good lens and it's what I've been using so far. My only other lens is the Tamron Af 90mm 1:1 macro lens which I use for macro shots but can't use at all for landscapes.
The reason I am wondering about wide angle is because for me, landscape shots basically mean shots of mountain ranges (I live in BC, I notice a lot of you who posted in this thread do as well so you know what I mean haha) but then again I've never used a wide angle lens so I don't really know what the benefit will be, I've just been told wide angle is good for that kind of thing.
I could definitely just stick with the kit lens though for a while, the adjustable focal length is nice and since I've been doing "okay" with it (like I said, still learning in general) and like someone mentioned I could always try the panarama feature if I feel like doing something different.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
09-18-2008, 11:32 PM
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Hey guys,
I've been doing a bit of landscape photography lately and I wanted get more into it. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good lens for landscapes (and seascapes). I'm looking for a lens in the price range of $200-300 so I know it's not going to be anything fancy. I don't need autofocus by the way. I've heard that Pentax has some good prime lens that are cheaper but I'm fairly new to photography so I don't know which fixed mm setting would be best for lanscapes. I would assume wide angle but I'm not really sure, I'm still learning a lot of this stuff.
Thanks for any advice!
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
09-18-2008, 11:13 PM
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Thanks, I figured it out. Apparently the Master Installer has trouble with Macs so you need to go into the resources file and find the Photo Browser and Photo Lab installer itself.
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Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
09-18-2008, 02:26 PM
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Hey guys,
I have a K10D and I recently purchased an iMac. It's updated with the latest OS X updates and all that stuff.
I thought I would try the software that came on the disc with my K10D to see if I like it, but the installer doesn't seem to work. I put the disc in and the computer recognizes there is a disc, I get the icon on my desktop for the Pentax software, I click it, it opens the contents on the disc, and the only thing on the disc is an item called Pentax Installer. I double click that and it opens a blank window, like the installer can't load properly or something.
I tried to get the software from Pentax's website but they only have the updates on there. Anyone have any tips or a similar experience, and is there anything I can do or am I stuck not being able to try the Pentax software?
Thanks in advance for any help.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-17-2008, 12:23 PM
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I would definitely look into a manual focus lens if it means a better lens without being a lot more expensive. I want to get better at using manual focus anyways so that might not be a bad idea.
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-16-2008, 01:14 PM
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Thats kind of what I figured as far as f 2.8 goes so I'll have to forget about that for now.
Is there a big difference between the Pentax 75-300mm telephoto and the 55-300 you mentioned?
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Forum: Pentax SLR Lens Discussion
06-16-2008, 12:37 PM
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Hey guys,
I just recently bought the Pentax K10D and it's a great camera. I have the kit lens which I use to learn on and the Tamron 90mm for macro shots. I want to start shooting sports though, biking in particular (mountain biking, dirt jumps, etc.).
I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good lens thats not too expensive (hopefully under $300) that would do the job. I've seen some Tamron and Sigma telephoto lens (70-300mm I think) for about $200 so I was thinking there must be something that would be good for sports shots even though I know it's not going to have the quality of a more expensive lens. I was hoping for something with f/2.8 but I don't know if I'll be able to find that for my price range.
Any suggestions?
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