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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
02-23-2014, 02:10 PM
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YES! The K3 and I are getting to know each other! Went out today and shot in the same arena as last week. I used a combination of Jbinpg (Jack) suggestions along with shooting speed priority mode (TV). I had the Auto ISO set at 100-3200.
ISOs ranged from 1600 - 2500, shutter speed 1/400-1/500. Aperture normally at f2.8. Shot with the Tamron f2.8 70-200. I also used the flash a bit too which of course changed shutter speed to 1/180 and ISO usually about 800. (None of these were taken with the flash.)
These shots (but for resizing and converting from DNG to JPG) are directly from the camera. I can work with these to clean up the noise and fine tune the lighting in post processing! Very happy with the results. This may work! LOL!
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
02-18-2014, 03:33 PM
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Thanks, Jack. I am going to go with much faster shutter and higher ISO (3200) and address any issues in post processing with Lightroom. I don't know if you recall, but in the one photo it was possible to see silver reflective material. I am going to try bouncing a flash off of that this weekend, too.
Other comments below each point:
1) To enable Expanded AF, you need to select AFC, and one of the three modes - Sel-S, Sel-M or Sel-L (easiest to change these using the Status and Info screens on the back. Note that the small button to the right of the Menu button is the one you need to push to put the K-3 into focus point selection mode). I would recommend experimenting with all of these to get a feel for how they affect your shots.
RC> I will play with these. Thanks for the tip about using the status screen!
2) Next, you should decide how you want the AFC to handle both the initial focus acquisition and shutter firing in C3-15, and the focus/shutter firing after the first shot in C3-16. Release Priority means that the shutter will fire whether or not focus has been acquired. This is used mainly by pro sports shooters who will be machine-gunning their shots. The idea is that even though the first frame may be out of focus, the AFC will have likely caught up to focus within the first few shots of the burst. Focus Priority means that the shutter will not fire until focus has been achieved for those who want more control. You will need to try both to see what works best for you.
RC> I am using: Focus priority for both
3) Then you should decide which AF Hold setting you need. This adjusts how quickly AFC reacts to change in focus. The default is Off which means that it will react immediately. The Low, Medium and High settings are meant for those situations when you want to isolate the focus on a subject which may be moving through a confusing foreground or background such as a race car or bird in flight. Delaying the AF reactivity here gives a distinct advantage in these cases.
RC> I have this set to medium. Will try it at high, too.
4) Also, go to setting C4-25 and turn off Catch-in Focus. This will work in opposition to focus tracking if enabled. Catch-in focus is meant for single shot shooting such as macro where you will be moving the whole rig to acquire focus. Not sure why Ricoh did not just code it to automatically turn off CIF when AFC is engaged. I know there will be a howl from those who actually do use AFC and CIF but it causes more problems for many photographers.
RC> I have the catch in focus off so that is taken care of, too.
After the outing Sunday I will post a couple shots so it can be seen how they came out! A friend of mine gave me a LOT of encouragement yesterday. She pointed out I should remember the photos displayed by another club member of music acts did NOT come out of his camera as shown. That even with his pro model Canon, he had to do a bit of work using Lightroom's Clarity setting. Another member unintentionally gave me encouragement when I asked him to show me some shots taken at the same event I did, out of the camera at ISO 800-3200. His were marginally sharper but definitely not by much. He was shooting a 5D Mark III.
So in the long run I just need to accept that my K3 IS working fine and producing shots not that far off from the Mark III. Now THAT is comforting! :lol:
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
02-17-2014, 11:00 AM
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Thanks for the response, Jack.
I did not have the expanded AF enabled. Just the "9 point zone select". Am I correct in the expanded autofocus is designated by the red/pink tinted selection area?
I used the custom NR but only had it kicking in at 1600 ISO. The quality of the shots at ISO 800 are what disappoint most.
I shoot only in RAW format. These examples in JPG were made to compress the size. I have attached a screen print of the exif settings for the "Daniel" shot. Hopefully I did it correctly so you can see it.
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Forum: Pentax K-3 & K-3 II
02-17-2014, 07:38 AM
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