K-mount lenses on istDs.... probably stupid question

Hi everybody,
after thinking for a long while I have finally bought an istDs which has joint now my Z1p and MZs. Well, I have a really stupid question after a discussion with a friend who is never ever using the depth of field preview: To actually see if my exposure is okay (in manual mode and aperture ring permitted), I generally use the little depth of field preview to close the diaphragm in the lens. But, I just keep it close and simultaneoulsly adjust aperture via the ring on the lens and speed on the camera. He had the theory that this might do some harmt o the camera and or lens? Well, please tell me if I do some nonsense there or if it okay!
Cheers,
Tanya

psssh!
I do this all the time!!!
No problems here!

you should be ok and shouldnt damage the camera

: why do you want to to depth of feid preview with a digital camera ?

what you see is what you get buy a larger sd card bracket your shots and delete what you dont want

1: Isn't that about the same as saying you don't know :

2: The DOF preview facillitates a pre-capture view of a particular shot to ensure the desired effect will be achieved by using the camera properly in a pro-active way and not the 'finger in the air' approach. Bracketing only adjusts exposure and might or might not show a different amount of DOF per shot.

I defy anybody to be able to see any real detail on their built-in screen on a bright sunny day whereas the scene can be viewed before capturing the shot through the viewfinder. On older lenses, DOF can be guesstimated fairly accurately using the DOF scale on the lens barrel.

In my view, DOF preview is a must for some shots, but not all.

That is certainly not a stupid question Tanya. I also use that method to check the exposure settings when using non-A lenses. You will find this mentioned in the chart on P. 179 of your manual so you can be assured it will in no way damage your camera. I prefer this method over simply pressing the AE button to set the exposure as you are able to see the exposure values in the viewfinder when simultaneously turning the thumbwheel to stop up or down for exposure compensation (if desired). I totally agree with Mannesty's comments regarding the preview feature being extremely useful - even when using A and FA lenses.

Cheers

Drew Peabody

in answer to mannesty I DO KNOW but digital caneras are easily fooled as can be the user in low light situations when using depth of field preveiw just gives you a completely black veiwfinder

my *istds has a depth of feid preveiw on the back its called a screen which shows you the picture so the point i was making was why use a depth of field preveiw through the veiw finder when you can see it on the screen as a picture THE SCREEN IS BIGGER THAN THE VIEW FINDER IS IT NOT

okay I could say being a PRO I dont use depth of field preveiw at all

not because I dont know how but because I dont need to

their are two ways to bracket your shots

1/ let the camera do it

2/ do it manually using aprature and shuter speeds

using a digital camera (as i do) i sometimes bracket manually and take several shots using different aperature settings to alter contrast depth of field even filters

by doing this i am then able to sit with the laptop later on and peruse the days shooting then i dont miss that one shot and regret it

the point i was trying to make was if using a digital camera and in dought take as many shots with different settings as you like it does cost for processing just time in our light room

sorry for the little outburst photography is a learning curve and a digital camera can be a great help to get perfect shots so use all of its capabilities including veiwing your shots on screen

Agreed, photo's shot in low light scenarios show DOF better on the screen and probably not at all in the viewfinder. Bright sunlight however dictates the exact opposite, you generally can't see the detail you are seeking on the screen.

Hmm. Technically the screen provides postview, not preview (but lets not split hairs) and if the moment has past when you could recapture the shot if needed, as would be the case if you couldn't see the screen at the time the shot was taken, . . . it's lost, maybe forever.

I don't know of too many amateur photographers who carry a laptop around to review images and my perception is that the original poster is an amateur. My apologies to Tanya if I'm wrong.

My point about your original answer is this: An enquirer asked a specific question and you as a PRO in reply, state that x "should be OK" or y "shouldn't happen", it's not very reassuring, is it? If you know that no harm will be done by the action Tanya described, why not say so? I have no doubts as to your technical photographic prowess (I have no knowledge of it either) but such vagueries as should, or shouldn't are not helpful when someone has a problem, they just pose other questions for the original poster.

as a little side note on using the lcd screen for exposure and or DOF checking:
it's not that accurate, images look shaper than they are because of the size and I find images that look ok on my lcd are often underexposed on my computer. The histogram doesn't lie; and I've learned to use that; as it's easier than remembering to pump up/dial down the brightness setting on my lcd when the ambient lighting changes. OLED screens from samsung on future cameras may solve that problem though.
DOF; best method is use a chart (Mattmatic help please) to figure the DOF for your focal length and use Hyperfocal distance. second best method use your viewfinder and DOF button (better than when I used to half unmount my kmount lenses on my k1000 to get the aperture to stop down. ).When in doubt stop down and/or set higher iso.
original post has been answered in that it is safe to use the method in question.
ps the original post said "after thinking a long while..." blah blah blah
I see you've been buying Pentax for a long while; so I guess it goes without saying, that you've been "thinking a long while" also...

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Don:

Info available here: http://www.dofmaster.com/
This link ( http://www.dofmaster.com/charts.html ) will allow you to spit out a little chart for your lens and camera combination.

I have a freebie utility for my Pocket PC - "DOF" by Jonathan Sachs. (http://home.comcast.net/~jonsachs/)

Hope that helps
Matt

Hi all

Using the DOF preview and viewing the resulting image in the viewfinder of course tells you nothing about if the exposure is correct. It only stops down the lens to the chosen aperture so you can approximate the effect on the depth of field before taking the picture. I guess that is why they call it that and not the Exposure Preview button.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I think there is a misinterpretation of Tanya's point. My take on her intent is that she is using the DOF preview button to read the exposure values (+0-) that is visible in the viewfinder when using manual lenses and making the appropriate adjustments. This is an alternative method to using the AE lock button to set the exposure when either the lens aperture ring is not set on the A setting, or with when using manual non-A lenses. She asks a very legitimate question and I doubt she is looking to debate whether the viewfinder image is a good way to see if her exposure is correct. Jump in here Tanya.

Best regards

Drew Peabody

I think Joshua answered the original question. The rest of the thread is a "side note" I see little benifit to repeating the right answer, but it never hurts explore the ideas and info in the entire thread. Ever ask a question and find the answer leads you to ten more questions? That's what makes an interactive forum like this, so valuable.

Thank you Matt for the link, I have a Palm pilot, and now have a Dof chart to go with it.

I don't know about you guys, but I found this Entire thread to be worth my time.

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Even in a viewfinder, DOF preview is mostly to see if a background goes enough in focus to be distracting, or general stuff like that. You can't get a really detailed view.

But DOF preview is an absolute prerequisite for any camera, for the above mentioned reason.

On re-reading Tanya's original post I agree with Drew. She seems to be using the DOF function to set/verify a correct exposure and not actually to preview DOF.

Anyways, It's been an interesting thread and no Tanya, your question is not stupid and was accurately answered in the first reply post. Your camera will not suffer any damage by using the DOF function as you described.

Excuse us for rabbiting on off-topic but as a result I've got a couple of new programs for my PDA to play with. Funny how things turn out.

yes i agree sorry tanva for getting all carried away with technical jargon


hope you try different methords enjoy photography and happy shooting

Just another option:
http://www.vividlight.com/articles/3513.htm

Scroll down and you'll see a link to a pdf file (or excel if you like) that can be printed. It worked for me.