Thank you very much, Rob and Stu, for your comments

Bjørn

Very impressive captures! It seems like K5 and the 18-250mm zoom is a good combination even for such demanding tasks like your pictures here

I like the way you have composed your images. The third image is my favourite. On my monitor the skies/highlights in images three and four look slightly overexposed. I only have experience with the Spotmatic and MX, but I love the feel of these "simple" classic cameras. The S1a must be a very enjoyable camera to use

A wonderful set with sharp well-composed images. My favourite is the Sea Vixen.

Bjørn

I have zero experience with Sigma super zooms, and I know I am not answering your question, but have you considered this new Sigma 18-200mm?

http://www.pentaxforums.com/news/new-sigma-18-200mm-for-pentax.html

Bjørn

I picked up the same lens last year, and started a thread asking questions similar to yours:

https://www.pentaxuser.com/forum/topic/smc-m-28mm-f2-8-version-ii-28665/p-0#comm_323757

I hope this is helpful!

Bjørn

I like the whole set, but my favourites are the first two because of the way you caught the light shining through the clouds.

Bjørn

Wonderful images, especially the last two.

Bjørn

Thank you very much for taking time to comment on my photos!

Gwyn: I am saving for a wider lens

The last image is the only one I cropped. I removed parts of the image to the left so that the beam from Venus ( is placed according to the rule of thirds. I believe that many photographers of aurora borealis simply aim at capturing the shapes of the Lights, but it helps, like you also point out, to have some kind of contrasting context or setting (mountains, trees, cities, etc.) But there are also many wonderful N.L. photos with only dark sky as a background. And it makes a world of difference what shutter speed you use. Last night I set ISO to 400, and used shutter speeds between 6sek - 15 sek with the lens wide open. You have to observe how fast the Lights are moving and adjust the settings on the camera accordingly. If you use too long exposures, you will most likely end up with some green undefined mess in the skies. There is also the concern about shutter speed and stars in this niche of photography. Depending on the type of lens (14mm-24mm-50mm), one will end up with beginning "star trails" with too long shutter speeds.

The experience of standing alone in the night for hours in the midst of this phenomenon is really hard to describe. One gets blown away.

Bjørn

These are from my second outing with the Pentax 67ii, again at the island of Tautra in Trøndelag. Pentax 67ii, SMC 45mm f4 and Kodak Porta 400.

Mirror 1


SPEIL_1 by bjolester, on Flickr

Mirror 2


SPEIL_2 by bjolester, on Flickr

Mirror 3


SPEIL_3 by bjolester, on Flickr