I apologise. My brain seems to have ignored the "better than".

G

When I studied optics, 18 was wider than 19.

G

This is what they actually said:
The Pentax SMC DA 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AL is a surprisingly good kit zoom although it has its weaknesses specifically at 18mm. The center and border performance is fine here but the extreme corners are somewhat soft. Pronounced vignetting and reduced contrast are also present at f/3.5. At 35mm and 55mm the situation is much better. CAs are very well controlled. The build quality is good for a kit zoom and a level up from the rest of the gang such as the Canon EF 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 or Nikkor AF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 ED. All-in-all a good offer from a price/value perspective but naturally there're better lenses out there ... with a much higher price tag.

Where did you see "pretty poor"?

G

Matt, I know you have a long to-do list. This is the fate of all helpful people of above-average competence.

So with that in mind, I ask nothing more than that you place this project at the top of the list.

What could be more reasonable than that?

G

Prieni,

Here's some comfort.

My K10D has a problem at the moment, so I have dusted off the *ist D.

It's a pleasure to use, and reminds me of when I had both a Z1-P and a Super A. Although the former was the better camera in terms of spec., I preferred to use the latter. It was just smaller and nicer and simpler. And of course it did the job. Same with the *ist D.

In my view the only thing wrong with the *ist D is that it's slow to process the images, and in consequence fills the buffer rather quickly.

If that's not a problem with your style of shooting, then the *ist D is still a wonderful camera, and frankly the inage quality is not massively worse than the K10D. Using a good lens affects the final image more than the inate difference between the cameras (IMHO).

G

Bracketing might help.

G

You can only measure the actual trigger voltage at the instant of triggering, and for one reason or another it might differ somewhat from the voltage across the terminals when they have not been shorted.

But it's irrelevant. If there is just a small voltage across the terminals when you do the measuring, then you can (I believe) safely assume that you will not suddenly find 500 volts going through when you press the shutter.

G

What you are testing (as I understand it) is whether the flash discharges through the hot-shoe circuit, or whether shorting the hot-shoe circuit triggers the discharge through a different circuit.

If the former, the measured voltage will be hundreds of volts (as it is with my (very) old Bowens studio flash unit, and some early Vivitars).

If the latter, the voltage almost certainly will be in single figures, or just over.

You are NOT trying to measure the actual discharge.

It is my belief that this whole question is really a non-issue. For many years, flashguns have used a separate circuit to trigger the flash. I doubt if a single flash unit made in the last fifteen years has discharged through the trigger circuit.

And even if you are unlucky enough to find such a flashgun, Pentax cameras have traditionally been able to handle it. I haven't tried the K10D with the Bowens yet, but all my other Pentax cameras (including the *ist D) have handled the Bowens without a problem.

This is all blown out of proportion by people like Wein, who make a lot of money out of selling expensive and unnecessary junk to frightened photographers. You are much more likely to be killed in a car crash than you are to damage your camera with a flashgun.

G

The ability of the camera to fire the remote flash using the pop-up flash is a recent improvement (dependent on your upgrading the firmware), and unless Pentax have updated the manual, you will not find it mentioned.

G

He looks rather well-endowed around the chest for a male marathon runner. And I wonder if those safety pins hurt.

G