Cheers Nigel, thanks very much for the comments!

The IR filter approximates to a 10 stop filter, or possibly even darker than this. I was using approx. 2 minute exposures at F8, ISO 100, but could have pushed the exposure time to 3 minutes or so without burning anything out.

I think I agree with you on the Sepia one, it was a bit of an experiment and would probably look better as a straight black and white.

Regards
David

Very nice shots these, great colours and DOF. The K-3 is a fine camera, I haven't found anything yet that I don't like about it.

Why not have both Daz? I actually prefer the K-3's images, they are warmer than the K-5IIs and if you have quality glass you will really notice the resolution difference. I've had to re-appraise my lens collection since buying a K-3 as it demands good glass.

Regards
David

I've been meaning for a while to do some more serious photography with my K-3, in a location I keep going back to over and over again. I decided today, before I went to Roche Abbey, to try some IR shots with a Hoya R72 IR Filter. I chose my Pentax-M 28mm F3.5 lens to partner the filter, (a) because I like this lens for landscape and architecture shots, it's inherent sharpness lends itself to this type of work and (b) because for some reason it works very well with the Hoya IR filter.

Those who have viewed my shots before will know the location as I've featured it before. Roche Abbey is a C12th Cistercian Monastery, set in a secluded Limestone Glacial Valley, but only a stones throw from the industrial South Yorkshire landscape. The closest Town is Maltby, which has its roots in the mining industry like so many other towns in the area.

I hope you like these shots, I've tried to capture the atmosphere of this place, which can be tangible at times, especially in Winter when there is frost and mist around. Two are straight black and white, one has a Sepia filter applied and one has a slight cooling filter. The person looking at the ruin is me, sorry about the slight blur but I had to stand still for 2 minutes! Just for Nigel's benefit, there is no HDR in these shots

Looking at The Ruin





The Abbey





Pillars & Arches





Ruins in Sepia




CC encouraged!

Regards
David

I disagree - I have both Integral Ultima Pro and Komputerbay cards. The difference between them is huge - the Komputerbay cards are frankly rubbish, whilst the Integral ones are superb. They do not fall apart, they have never let me down. The Komputerbay ones on the other hand fall apart readily and in my experience are not worth buying.

Regards
David

Whack! The nail is firmly struck right on its head and is driven firmly home! I could not agree more - I know we're all so different but I can't help thinking Nigel that I would like to spend some time with you on a shoot, just so I could try to stop you from being so analytical and help you to 'let go' and shoot from your gut. I suspect this might not be possible though!

I do enjoy reading these threads, the view expressed are so opposed it is fascinating to read them.

Regards
David

The four young men are a creative sidestep here, but for me number two is the stand-out shot. It really hits home for me, perfectly focussed and although it's a static portrait, it seems so full of life. The hint of a smile, the glint in the eyes, the overall demeanour of the young woman sets my mind running - what does do, what is she thinking about, what secrets does she have? The rendition of the 50-135 is also so beautiful in this shot, what a hell of a lens it is.

Maybe you will think me strange but this is what the image makes me wonder as I look at it.

Regards
David

Good question, also I would like to know how to get hold of the part you are not interested in, i.e. the rubber flap that fits over the contacts on the base of the camera.

Regards
David

A lot depends on the camera body you are planning to use it with. If it is a K-5, forget the Metz as it will be a complete waste of time. The K-5 is unreliable in the extreme with a Metz P-TTL flash like the 36. I know because I had this combination and the exposure results were dire. If you have a K-5, get a manual flash like the Yongnuo or a Neewer 560 Speedlite.

If you have a K-3 it's a different matter, the K-3 works properly with P-TTL flash and great results can be easily obtained with such as the Metz 36.

Regards
David

For me this looks pretty conclusive. Andrewk's image is by far the most natural and best looking to my eyes, by comparison the blended / HDR images look slightly 'unreal'.

Regards
David

No issues for me at all, the problem doesn't lie with the site. However, I did have issues previously and traced them to my virus checker (Bullguard) which wasn't fully Windows 8 compatible and required an update patch to fix the problem. Since then, everything runs very fast.

Regards
David