pentax pixel shift question..

I have been using the little 21mm HD lens on crop mode on my pentax Ki in pixel shift because of the tiny lens and crop 15MP it is faster so I can hand hold up to F8 with razor sharp results. someone said the files would be four times as big this way does that mean more resolution better detail and being able to print bigger thanks Paul

Pixel Shift is intended to give more information at each pixel and therefore better image quality, by and large on stationary subjects using a tripod. It isn't going to make it faster and isn't going to reduce camera shake.

I would suggest switching on SR (Shake Reduction) and switching off Pixel Shift. Your images should be nice and crisp!

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Best regards, John

Just use the K1 in full frame mode

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John K

Agree with John here. A sharp non-pixel shift picture is going to out resolve a blurry pixel shift one every time. I regularly print 24"x16" from FF K1 images and have no need for PS.

If you are using an original K1 (which does not have Dynamic PS) you are going to be at risk of shake unless you use a tripod. The SR mechanism does not operate in PS mode, because it is being used to shift the pixels.

The statement that PS files are 4x as big is misleading. if you shoot raw then the files can be up to 4x as big because the raw file will contain 4 separate captures. Once you process that raw file in appropriate software the resulting jpeg will be the same size as an equivalent one taken without PS.

If you shoot jpeg in camera the file size will be the same as a non PS capture.

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Peter



My Flickr page

thanks for the feed back when using my small apsc lens I like to use pixel shift as it gives me lot more detail out of the 16mp file and I have found because its a small lens I can handhold with great results of course with full frame lens there's no need ,just don't like my apsc lenses going to waste until I build up my full frame primes lens any favourites out there ..thanks

The two parts are separate, which is what's being suggested by others above.

Handheld with great results will fundamentally come from a sensible shutter speed. Too slow and your hand movement will blur the shot.
Pixelshift disables shake reduction, because both use the same hardware to move the sensor, so a fast enough shutter speed is even more important if you opt for pixelshift over shake reduction.

Once you have a fast enough shutter speed, then you can consider using pixelshift if the scene will benefit from it. If there is movement in the scene, or it's a bit dark and you have to have a slow shutter speed to gather enough light (rules out hand holding) then pixelshift may do more damage to the image than good.

It really is a case by case basic situation. I wouldn't be using pixelshift for every shot on crop mode, but rather those where the subject matter would benefit from it (such as static landscapes/product shots). Movement doesn't play well with pixelshift, even on the later models where you're hoping the computer can spot any areas of movement within the shot and disable pixelshift just in those regions. Also pixelshift can be of benefit in both crop and full frame modes, and it's more a case of does the subject allow for this/will it benefit from it, rather than needing it in crop vs not in full frame.

As others have said, you can use any lens in full frame mode, and then crop the result to your liking afterwards. Many DA APS-C lenses do perform out past the APS-C region, so taking control of where the image is satisfactory to you might be of interest, rather than shoot in crop mode only.

Lots of options.

Thanks for the explanation and very helpful much appreciated...