Thank you for supplying this link! Very helpful in my research

Bjørn

Thank you very much for your valuable advice! The one word that keeps popping up in both your answers is "budget". I have just spent all my money ( and some I did not have...) on the 67II system. So I was hoping to hear something like: "Your M055xprob will do just fine!", even though I suspected the reality to be slightly different I guess I have to check out the more expensive tripod ranges, and start saving.

Bjørn

I have been wanting to buy an analog medium format system for quite some time. Last week I ended a deal on a Pentax 67 II with the 45mm, 105mm and 165 mm that seems to be in very good condition. I am waiting in great anticipation for it to arrive

When reading about the 67II I started to think about weight and tripod. I currently have this tripod and head:

http://www.manfrotto.com/photo-kit-with-804rc2-head-055xprob-tripod

This combination has a max load of 4 kg. Would this be ok with the 67II and my lenses? Maybe not?

The M055xprob without a head can take max 6 kg load. Maybe another head would be a solution? I really like this tripod, but at the same time the 67II is a completely different beast than my K20D. I need to have a proper tripod for my new acquisition. I plan to use the 67II for outdoor photography, landscapes, night scenes, etc.


I am very grateful for any advice on this matter

Bjørn

Simon: I am sure no one will object to postponing the deadline for this competition with one week. Then you will have enough time to judge the entries and write some comments. The comments need not be very comprehensive. After all, this is meant to be fun Based on your winning entry of the previous competition, and your flickr photos, you have enough experience to judge a competition like this. I had zero experience with judging competitions before the "Golden Hour" one. I have not received any bombs on my doorstep in the aftermath of my judging

FORTNIGHLY COMPETITION NO. 86

Thank you very much for your entries to the ”Golden Hour” competition! The photos are all really nice, and I have had a hard time evaluating them against each other. One has to take into consideration the nature of this competition and that there is a ”one man panel of judges”, the result is that the whole ting is very very subjective. And who am I, a mere aspiring hobby photographer, to judge any of you? Anyway, I have done my very best!

simonoffpiste

Newcastle on a cold, crisp morning

The three oval shapes in the image are contrasted with several straight lines. The riverbank on the left hand side takes you into the image all the way to the horizon. Wonderful reflections, light and colours!


TOZZA27

My Golden Girl

A really well-composed portrait, where you have used the horizontal light with great effect. The resulting shadow details are very interesting. Maybe the image could have been cropped slightly less? I also find that the wall behind your subject takes a bit too much focus. Warm light and warm smile!


Geordie01

High and Dry

I like your your motive and composition. That is really a beautiful boat, and the overall colours in the image are great. It is a pity with the footprints in the snow, in my mind it would have been even better with snow ”unspoilt” by man. I would also possibly have preferred to crop roughly ¼ of the bottom of the image.


milamber

February Rose

A beautiful photo of the rose. The dying/dead rose and the bud waiting for the cold to go, in accompaniment with snow, results in an exciting, contrastful image. This theme is also highly symbolic: Life and death, the changing seasons, with spring comes life, etc. The blurred background is also very nice.




The Winner

Newcastle on a cold, crisp morning

Second place

February Rose

Third place

My Golden Girl


Congratulations to simonoffpiste for winning the ”Golden Hour” competition! Very well done! And also many ”rounds of applause” to the three other contestants, your entries were also very good. I hand it over to you, simonoffpiste, to find a new theme for the 87th round of the competition. I am looking forward to seeing what you come up with!

I must also add that I spend one year in Newcastle in my childhood, where my family lived in Gosforth, and I attended British Middle-School. I have not been in Newcastle since 1977, but I have heard that the city has changed a lot in recent years. I would like to travel to Newcastle the next time I visit the UK, hopefully I might see for myself the River Tyne and the beautiful bridges again.

Best wishes

Bjørn

Thank you kingfisher for sharing your experience with the Samyang! I am interested in this lens primarily to use for photographing the Northern Lights. but also for landscapes in general. Initially I had been wanting to buy a DA* 16-50mm f2.8 for this purpose, but when I read about the Samyang 14mm, this seemed like an even better option for me. The Samyang costs about a third of the DA* 16-50mm, and probably performs better than the zoom at 16mm: (My guessing without having tried any of them )

After having given this matter some more though, I addressed my complaint to Tokina Service Europe. The email contained much of my text from the opening of this tread. TSE were swift to respond. Firstly they stated that they were sorry about the whole affair and the inconvenience for me as a customer. Secondly they addressed my complaint in detail, and explained the case from their point of view. For instance they told me that the metal ring inside the lens (photo 2) could sometimes get loose during transport/postage, it was properly seated when it left the Netherlands.

So I have decided to sent the lens back to them, to sort out the things that I am dissatisfied with, and to fully repair the zoom mechanism. Hopefully everything will work out okay

Thanks especially to John for your sensible advice!


Regards from "Could-possibly-become-a-born-again-Tokina-afficianado"

Bjørn

Thanks a lot! A great tutorial

Bjørn

The Pentax DA 14mm f2.8 would have been an interesting option for me, but the Samyang has a great appeal in its low price. In Norway the DA 14mm costs twice the price of the Samyang

One of the reasons that I would like to hear some real user experience of the Samyang is that I have read some mixed feedback regarding focusing. Some people mention that the infinity marking on the lens in reality is way beyond actual infinity. Other users have written that one nails infinity wide open when setting the focus ring at 2.4m. So, these kinds of peculiarities are important for me to research a bit before I eventually decide to purchase the lens.

Bjørn