Yeah, mine is squeaky. It is still quieter than mechanical, but noisier than I'd like. The 50-135 on the other hand has always been really nice.

Not sure if it is clear in this image...
And maybe my testing is flawed, but whether you focus with the line at the top of the AF area or at the bottom of the AF area does make a difference.

Of course this movement adjusts distance, relative size, etc... but all of that is part of making the image in the first place and in my opinion still applies to the issue and not sure this would invalidate the test.

If your AF sensor areas are not in the right place, the final image will be affected with regards to DOF in front or in back of the exact point you are hoping to focus on.
As long as I know where my AF point is, I can be consistent. It is simply important in some limited cases to know where that is. Lets say for macro for instance.

The top image I focused with the black line at the top of the AF area (for my camera is nearly dead center). For the bottom image I focused with the black bar at the bottom of the AF area (a bit below the expected AF area).

Still, I understand what you were saying... it certainly isn't any 40mm difference.

OMG!! I have been kicking myself for having poor focus skills but after running through this adjustment, I am really looking forward to using my camera!
The test chart witha 45 dgree angle doesnt' show a nice 30/60 split in front/back DOF, but for real life captures -- like people say, "its a whole new camera"!

Now I have to get used to focusing correctly. After a year and a half I've come to adjust to what I've been seeing. (thought it was my eyes and shaky hands. Ugh!!! :roll

Check out the before and after (ignore the wonky color balance)
I had to set mine to -170.

I have what might seem like a stupid question, but I'm not sure how/if this affects the results...

On my camera, the center auto focus point (actually all of them) appear to be not exactly centered. If I take a blank piece of paper with a black dot on it and move it around, I can find the edges and shape of each auto focus point. With that I've found that my focus points were down about 15% of the frame and a tad to the left.

1. Does that seem a valid test?
2. If the focus point is not centered, will the focus chart be a valid test for focus adjusting? i.e. is the focus on the far edge of the center bar or the near edge?
Does it matter? If the camera focuses properly does it matter much exactly where the focus point is?


My guess, is if the camera is focusing properly, but the focus point is not where I think it should be, I as the viewer will think it is off. Adjusting the focus depth would only make things worse.


I'm thinking of making the adjustments as well, but not sure if I'm really going to do much better if the camera is a bit out of whack to begin with.
Not sure it is worth another ten weeks to send for repair.

Hang'em! Argh!

Discussed a few competitions back... If I remember, it was left up to the person posting whether they wanted to go for more images or better quality/higher detailed image. And therefore up the the judge on which ranked higher.
The rules are pretty open, so I think everyone was on board.

Of course, they do forfeit their winnings.
We need some standards.

Excellent comments, well thought out.

Regarding the blue cow lamp stand...
I wish I had time to take more photos and do something more artistic at times. We were on tour and I had barely enough time to grab a quick moment to get this photo.
Generally, I tried to keep the painted cows out of most of my photos, but this one was too ludicrous to pass up.

Some day I must go back and take more time to photograph some areas properly, just so long as the cows are gone.

From our vacation in Italy. What a welcome these were!! Ugh!

Anyone know how to remedy something like this?


Not a 100% crop, this is just a scaled down image.

This is with my DA* 16-50 lens! I can open the aperture and look through the lens and see the crap stuck to the glass inside.
Those are some pretty poor seals if it lets that sort of crap in!! None of my other lenses show this sort of stuff, and my sensor is clean. This stuff was not there a few days ago. Even my cheap-arsed lenses from 10 years ago have not allowed this much crap INSIDE!!

I suppose I can send it back for service, but from what I hear, Pentax feels the DA* lenses are disposable items and not serviceable.
I guess I'll wait until I hear from the camera shop, but I am really not at all happy at the moment.

I guess I'll need advice on self-servicing of lenses if I cannot get it cleaned.

Very cool! I am frequently frustrated with Pentax's IR remote. Even indoors at arm's length, it rarely fires on cue, and then sometimes fires when I barely touch the button.

Thanks for the link and info.

With fading being a known issue, I had a large print done professionally two years ago. It has now faded to the point that my rottweiler (black and tan) is just shades of green.

I have prints I made myself on good paper with 12 year old printer (with inks made prior to anti-fading hub-bub). No noticeable fading after 8+ years in hallway brightly lit with sunlight.
I also have prints on cheap paper done with a new printer with fade-resistant ink and all. They are fading in under a month under florescent lighting. (prints made with same printer, good paper sitting under the same conditions are not fading).

New printers and ink may help a bit, but go with the good quality paper. It makes more difference in my experience regardless of which printer I had used.