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A slightly different take on best value for money : the 43 ltd. Some say one of the best lenses ever made and yet compared to the 31 or 77 or even a Zeiss / Leica / Nikkor it's great value.
Comment by Frogfish posted on The Best Value Pentax Lens? at 24/08/2011 - 03:40
Very very nice set Simon. Really like quite a few if these (though a couple look a touch over-exposed to me but that may be a personal thing. Loved the church interiors and the very last shot.
Comment by Frogfish posted on Around the Baltics at 23/08/2011 - 17:08
Excellent shots ! Love the Green Spider, that's #1 for me. The mating ants is an unusual shot too - what did you do ? Haul her out of the nest
Comment by Frogfish posted on Garden safari at 23/08/2011 - 16:53
I wouldn't worry about all the views and no responses - it happens on all forums and a lot of it is because there are lots of non-members who view (and can't comment) and there are also plenty of members who view and never post !
Close but no cigar would be my assessment (different composition of the boat & pump perhaps)- but I do love your subject matter so keep at it !
Congrats on your new camera & post more so we can rip them to shreds too - joking, joking !
Close but no cigar would be my assessment (different composition of the boat & pump perhaps)- but I do love your subject matter so keep at it !
Congrats on your new camera & post more so we can rip them to shreds too - joking, joking !
Comment by Frogfish posted on First batch of shots with K200D at 23/08/2011 - 16:42
Like to know what you are asking for the SPL ?
Actually I think you'll generate a lot more interest if you give asking prices and put it in the appropriate forum !
Actually I think you'll generate a lot more interest if you give asking prices and put it in the appropriate forum !
Comment by Frogfish posted on Considering selling full setup at 23/08/2011 - 12:23
Today I went hands on with all of the EVILs ; Samsung, Ricoh, Olympus, Panasonic and of course Sony's NEX C3 (did I miss any ?). Ergonomically they all felt better than the Sony TBH - but spec-wise they lag behind. I asked for and received a PK to E adapter ($30 if I want to buy it - I've seen them at half that though) and put on the Zeiss 85/1.4 ... I have to say that peaking is extremely fast, much faster than for the vast majority of us when MFing, though not as fast as using CIF on a Pentax DSLR.
However I hated the almost total lack of controls on the camera itself, and having to dive into the menu to do anything. You are actually holding a lens and not a camera that is virtually just balancing the lens on the rear. I also found myself firing off bursts when I only wanted single shots.
The shutter is a little noisy but it didn't seem as bad in real life as the YouTube videos I've seen.
Overall I'm torn. I think for a lot of people a Kr for roughly the same price (a little more) would be a better option. However I can see a use and a market for this camera, no question. Adapter - slip on my Leica, Adapter - slip on my Zeiss, Adapter - slip on my Pentax, Adapter - slip on my Canon, or 4/3rds, or Hasselblad or whatever ..... quite incredible actually. You can know choose any lens you want and slip it on the C3.
So which one did I walk out with ? The DA 15 Ltd !!! Oops !
I'll take a look at the shots and video I took with the C3 tomorrow !
However I hated the almost total lack of controls on the camera itself, and having to dive into the menu to do anything. You are actually holding a lens and not a camera that is virtually just balancing the lens on the rear. I also found myself firing off bursts when I only wanted single shots.
The shutter is a little noisy but it didn't seem as bad in real life as the YouTube videos I've seen.
Overall I'm torn. I think for a lot of people a Kr for roughly the same price (a little more) would be a better option. However I can see a use and a market for this camera, no question. Adapter - slip on my Leica, Adapter - slip on my Zeiss, Adapter - slip on my Pentax, Adapter - slip on my Canon, or 4/3rds, or Hasselblad or whatever ..... quite incredible actually. You can know choose any lens you want and slip it on the C3.
So which one did I walk out with ? The DA 15 Ltd !!! Oops !
I'll take a look at the shots and video I took with the C3 tomorrow !
Comment by Frogfish posted on Back-up to a K5 : Pentax or Nex ? at 22/08/2011 - 14:59
i-Berg wrote:
A second body is surely useful (even as an amateur) to give flexibility with focal length, and avoid changing lenses? That last is pretty useful here, as it can be windy and dusty for three seasons even in the southern part of the continent. In the centre there's the risk of dust 12 months of the year.
That brings on a second point - good sealing for the body itself, if visiting those more remote parts.
I should have added in my earlier post that should your trip extend to Melbourne, make yourself known Kevin, as I'd be pleased to catch up and show you around.
Thank you kind Sir - I would be delighted to make your acquaintance ! On this occasion we have no plans to go to Melbourne but they are a changeable crowd so who knows ?A second body is surely useful (even as an amateur) to give flexibility with focal length, and avoid changing lenses? That last is pretty useful here, as it can be windy and dusty for three seasons even in the southern part of the continent. In the centre there's the risk of dust 12 months of the year.
That brings on a second point - good sealing for the body itself, if visiting those more remote parts.
I should have added in my earlier post that should your trip extend to Melbourne, make yourself known Kevin, as I'd be pleased to catch up and show you around.
Comment by Frogfish posted on Back-up to a K5 : Pentax or Nex ? at 21/08/2011 - 08:24
Smeggypants wrote:
I suppose it depends on the type of shoot you are on, but when I only had one body I misssed loads of shots becuase had a wideangel when I wanted a tele, andvice versa. by the time you've messed around changing lenses the moment has gone.
Exactly what I used to do with the K5 (tele/action) and K7 (wide/landscapes-scenery). I was thinking the NEX C3 could do that (wide .. probably with MF Zeiss 28/2.8 set to H-F from ca.5m to infinity, so virtually an AF lens). i-Berg wrote:
A second body is surely useful (even as an amateur) to give flexibility with focal length, and avoid changing lenses? That last is pretty useful here, as it can be windy and dusty for three seasons even in the southern part of the continent. In the centre there's the risk of dust 12 months of the year.
I use two bodies precisely to try and have an appropriate focal length on at at least one of them to hand when a shot presents itself.A second body is surely useful (even as an amateur) to give flexibility with focal length, and avoid changing lenses? That last is pretty useful here, as it can be windy and dusty for three seasons even in the southern part of the continent. In the centre there's the risk of dust 12 months of the year.
I suppose it depends on the type of shoot you are on, but when I only had one body I misssed loads of shots becuase had a wideangel when I wanted a tele, andvice versa. by the time you've messed around changing lenses the moment has gone.
Tomorrow I'm off to the camera mall to get my hands on them all and see if there are any decent bargain priced used K100 super / K10Ds for sale as I think that is the only thing that would now dissuade me from buying either a Kr or Nex 3. My lens kitty is going to take a big hit I think
Comment by Frogfish posted on Back-up to a K5 : Pentax or Nex ? at 21/08/2011 - 08:22
johnriley wrote:
These sort of artificial comparisons really miss the point entirely. If you need a backup, just take a spare body. This can be any Pentax DSLR as you are unlikely to need it, but if you do...
It's the boring solution in many ways, but mixing systems doesn't gel and enable trouble free shooting. You need to know what you are using backwards and forwards and not be casting around for an instruction book. If you want to take a compact for the causual moments then any compact that appeals will be the one. It doesn't need to be a fancy one, but a W90 or WG-1 would expand the possibilities.
Thanks John but what I failed to mention is that I'll also be taking a small Sanyo HD camcorder (5mp stills) with it's tiny UW housing for any snorkeling / diving I may do (not likely with the people I'm going with).These sort of artificial comparisons really miss the point entirely. If you need a backup, just take a spare body. This can be any Pentax DSLR as you are unlikely to need it, but if you do...
It's the boring solution in many ways, but mixing systems doesn't gel and enable trouble free shooting. You need to know what you are using backwards and forwards and not be casting around for an instruction book. If you want to take a compact for the causual moments then any compact that appeals will be the one. It doesn't need to be a fancy one, but a W90 or WG-1 would expand the possibilities.
It's OK people saying you don't need to take a backup but when you've spent thousands on getting there / hotels /side trips and food then you want to ensure you are covered if the worst happens and your primary is stolen / damaged / suffers a fault. That's what I'm looking to do.
Comment by Frogfish posted on Back-up to a K5 : Pentax or Nex ? at 20/08/2011 - 16:59
johnriley wrote:
A useful trick is to set up hyperfocal distance (or any other DOF requirement) for an aperture, say f8, but actually use f11 instead. This results in a more conservative estimate of the DOF available and allows for better qquality enlargements.
That's a great little tip - thanks !A useful trick is to set up hyperfocal distance (or any other DOF requirement) for an aperture, say f8, but actually use f11 instead. This results in a more conservative estimate of the DOF available and allows for better qquality enlargements.
Comment by Frogfish posted on what is your tip when using manual focus under f2.0? at 20/08/2011 - 16:46
