All Forum Comments
Comment by JAK posted on .PEF technical information at 10/05/2012 - 10:31
milamber wrote:
Thanks John. It's a shame that there weren't more entries, but the weather hasn't given much scope for variation during the last month or so.
I thought waypointcharlie's was the best by a long way and would probably have been tempted to let the slight time difference slip, given the lack of entries
Just in from the theatre so I'll have to leave the next theme until the morning.
Agree it was a shame there weren't more entries. It hasn't been the weather for going out on family day trips though which is probably the usual stimulus for people to take photos.Thanks John. It's a shame that there weren't more entries, but the weather hasn't given much scope for variation during the last month or so.
I thought waypointcharlie's was the best by a long way and would probably have been tempted to let the slight time difference slip, given the lack of entries
Just in from the theatre so I'll have to leave the next theme until the morning.
Your entry was still a deserved winner, but as to allowing the slight time slip for waypointcharlie's photograph, I'm not sure how much discretion there is to break the 'rules' given this is my first competition critique here. There was all that fuss over whether it finished at 6pm or 7pm recently! Missing EXIF could have been another issue - I even had to look on hosting sites to find some of it!
The lens stipulation in the last weekly competition seemed to attract more attention to the competition than usual so perhaps they both need a daily 'bump' to remind folks they're on and they're eligible to enter if it isn't being done automatically with new entries. For a time I thought entries were limited to PU subscribers so guess I might not have been alone thinking that.
John
Comment by JAK posted on Fortnightly competition 92: Weather at 10/05/2012 - 01:16
It may not be a battery, it could be just a capacitor. Many compact cameras loose their settings if left with a run down or no battery. Anyone experienced that with a Pentax DSLR? I'm sure there is a thread here where someone was saying their camera would not remember its settings when it was turned off and back on again. A duff battery/capacitor might cause that.
Mention was made of a Nikon camera having an extra call for its internal clock. The Canon EOS I had for a time did too, but none of my Pentax's do.
John
Mention was made of a Nikon camera having an extra call for its internal clock. The Canon EOS I had for a time did too, but none of my Pentax's do.
John
Comment by JAK posted on Internal battery at 09/05/2012 - 23:00
I feel from comments made at various Pentax events that there might be more than one new Pentax DSLR on the cards. Mike-P reckons it'll be in the region of £1300/1500+. I think one of them may initially be even more than that, but if you are happy with an APS-C sensor camera like the K-5 it might not be for you.
I then feel there will be an updated camera based on the K-5. We've had the K-7, we've had the K-5, how about the K-9? It'll be some dog of a camera Whatever it is it will be similar to a K-5 but be updated with some of the newer features Pentax have included with the Q and K-01 but not present on the K-5 (eg the animation feature.) To be honest though, what else would you want on a DSLR that the K-5 doesn't have already? It has been shown to out-perform well regarded full frame models from other manufacturers. The DSO ranking placed it 7th in the table of 2012 Best Professional DSLR Camera Reviews http://digital-cameras.toptenreviews.com/professional-dslr/ but surely anywhere in the top ten cannot be too bad!
Which is the best value of them all? It would seem that the K-5 is pretty well up there already with the best so how much could it be improved in a new model? I feel not a lot when it comes to taking photographs and technology needs to progress somewhat for it to jump to the number one slot for features not to be found in anything else.
You would certainly find going from the K-x to the K-5 a worthwhile jump. As to whether the follow up camera is worth waiting for we can only conjecture, I feel it will offer a little more, but not much and come in around the same price point the K-5 was 18 months ago, that is initially around £1100/1200 and gradually drop over a similar time scale to where the K-5 is now. The K-7 did just that before it.
No one knows Pentax's secrets - but let's hope someone at Pentax does!
John
I then feel there will be an updated camera based on the K-5. We've had the K-7, we've had the K-5, how about the K-9? It'll be some dog of a camera Whatever it is it will be similar to a K-5 but be updated with some of the newer features Pentax have included with the Q and K-01 but not present on the K-5 (eg the animation feature.) To be honest though, what else would you want on a DSLR that the K-5 doesn't have already? It has been shown to out-perform well regarded full frame models from other manufacturers. The DSO ranking placed it 7th in the table of 2012 Best Professional DSLR Camera Reviews http://digital-cameras.toptenreviews.com/professional-dslr/ but surely anywhere in the top ten cannot be too bad!
Which is the best value of them all? It would seem that the K-5 is pretty well up there already with the best so how much could it be improved in a new model? I feel not a lot when it comes to taking photographs and technology needs to progress somewhat for it to jump to the number one slot for features not to be found in anything else.
You would certainly find going from the K-x to the K-5 a worthwhile jump. As to whether the follow up camera is worth waiting for we can only conjecture, I feel it will offer a little more, but not much and come in around the same price point the K-5 was 18 months ago, that is initially around £1100/1200 and gradually drop over a similar time scale to where the K-5 is now. The K-7 did just that before it.
No one knows Pentax's secrets - but let's hope someone at Pentax does!
John
Comment by JAK posted on Is now a good time to upgrade to a K-5? at 09/05/2012 - 22:43
I'm sure it's been said before but comparing photographs which all have their merits is never an easy task. I am sure we'd all place most of them in a different order of merit depending on out take of the subject. Normally anything blurry would get thrown out but with a weather photo the blur may show how strong the wind was or how wet it was perhaps. There might be a good excuse to ignore some of the rules that normally cause pictures to be rejected.
So here goes:
darlene - Rare Sunny Day
Certainly know the feeling about rare sunny days lately!
It's a lovely shot of a quayside with the local village across the estuary (so it appears, I could be totally wrong.)
It's a great record shot of the quay, sharp and well exposed. I'm not sure that it conveys a strong feeling of weather though; perhaps it might have had more atmosphere if it hadn't actually been shot on one of those rare sunny days?
Technically it's hard to fault it. It's naturally sharp without any obvious extra help from you and it's well exposed. But somehow I feel it doesn't do full justice to the competition theme.
bforbes - It's Wet Out There
That certainly shows how the weather has felt like in the UK for the last month and sums up Apri 29th nicely.
Clearly it was taken with that special water effect filter otherwise known as a windscreen!?
Compostion is traditional with strong use of the rule of thirds with the water line and fence in the horizontal plane and the roundhouse on the horizontal. I feel it is just missing one thing; that is some brave soul being swept off their feet down on the sands in the middle of that vast expanse of emptiness! That would have made it special. I seem to rememeber seeing another similar photo from you where you had just that. However it is still a strong candidate for the competition as it clearly has weather for its subject matter.
WaypointCharlie - Hail burst
A terrific capture. Can see the actual rain drops coming down and the clear disdain of the runners.
It's a shame, as you say, that it is inelgible as taken outside the time frame allowed but thank you very much you for showing it. It would have been a real contender!
milamber - Another day, another drought
Well you wouldn't know there's a drought on in that image! A lovely well rendered capture of the dark approaching storm clouds set against the field of oil-seed rape and the skyline broken up by the trees. I like the composition, the colours, everything about it!
dougf8 - Light cloud and updrafts
A good capture. I really like this one too. Spot on for theme - a sport that needs the right weather for it to happen. I'm sure some would say the image is too central but in this instance I feel it works. If the parachute was more oblique to the camera, then the position of it might have needed adjusting so that it was coming into the picture. But it's square on so is fine by me!
Technically it looks to be sharp and well exposed but there does seem to be some extra sharpening of the image leading to a clear white outline to the parachute and person but that's nitpicking. Well done.
TOZZA27 - A Spring day in April
Perhaps it's my monitor but this looks to be considerably underexposed. Unfortunately full exif hasn't been given. There's mention of it being spot metered and perhaps that is the reason; ie the meter has taken the reading off the bright cloud and used that for it's average when the white is at the end of the curve, not the middle, so hence underexposed it. This might have metered better using the matrix rather than spot but even then some positive compensation would in all probablility have been required. I'm also puzzled as to why I am seeing some magenta and cyan fringes to the clouds. Despite those strange issues (and I'm curious to know if thoese were for real) I feel what the picture really lacks is a point of interest. The photograph would work well for a windows backdrop or screensaver but is not strong enough in itself in comparison the the other entries.
---------------------------------
Some of the entries didn't give the full exif so I had to do a bit of exif seraching to check the photos were eligible! dougf8's entry somewhat surprised me as he found a gap in the clouds! I felt that the entries needed something weather related rather than be just a general photograph, so the order this time:
1st: milamber - Another day, another drought
2nd: dougf8 - Light cloud and updrafts
3rd: bforbes - It's Wet Out There
Also a commendation to WaypointCharlie - Hail burst for a super weather shot.
Many thanks to everyone who submitted entries during a fortnight when the weather has not been kind and well done to you all!
To dougf8: "Alto" are middle level clouds that have bases between 2000 and 7000 m (6500 to 23,000 ft.)
Cirrus clouds are thin, wispy clouds blown by high winds into long streamers. They are considered "high clouds" forming above 6000 m (20,000 ft.) so it is not possible to have alto cirrus clouds! Cumulus relates to the type of cloud (a heaped cloud) and I think that is how I would have described those in your shot. Those clouds in your shot do not appear to be particularly high! But you knew that anyway!
John
So here goes:
darlene - Rare Sunny Day
Certainly know the feeling about rare sunny days lately!
It's a lovely shot of a quayside with the local village across the estuary (so it appears, I could be totally wrong.)
It's a great record shot of the quay, sharp and well exposed. I'm not sure that it conveys a strong feeling of weather though; perhaps it might have had more atmosphere if it hadn't actually been shot on one of those rare sunny days?
Technically it's hard to fault it. It's naturally sharp without any obvious extra help from you and it's well exposed. But somehow I feel it doesn't do full justice to the competition theme.
bforbes - It's Wet Out There
That certainly shows how the weather has felt like in the UK for the last month and sums up Apri 29th nicely.
Clearly it was taken with that special water effect filter otherwise known as a windscreen!?
Compostion is traditional with strong use of the rule of thirds with the water line and fence in the horizontal plane and the roundhouse on the horizontal. I feel it is just missing one thing; that is some brave soul being swept off their feet down on the sands in the middle of that vast expanse of emptiness! That would have made it special. I seem to rememeber seeing another similar photo from you where you had just that. However it is still a strong candidate for the competition as it clearly has weather for its subject matter.
WaypointCharlie - Hail burst
A terrific capture. Can see the actual rain drops coming down and the clear disdain of the runners.
It's a shame, as you say, that it is inelgible as taken outside the time frame allowed but thank you very much you for showing it. It would have been a real contender!
milamber - Another day, another drought
Well you wouldn't know there's a drought on in that image! A lovely well rendered capture of the dark approaching storm clouds set against the field of oil-seed rape and the skyline broken up by the trees. I like the composition, the colours, everything about it!
dougf8 - Light cloud and updrafts
A good capture. I really like this one too. Spot on for theme - a sport that needs the right weather for it to happen. I'm sure some would say the image is too central but in this instance I feel it works. If the parachute was more oblique to the camera, then the position of it might have needed adjusting so that it was coming into the picture. But it's square on so is fine by me!
Technically it looks to be sharp and well exposed but there does seem to be some extra sharpening of the image leading to a clear white outline to the parachute and person but that's nitpicking. Well done.
TOZZA27 - A Spring day in April
Perhaps it's my monitor but this looks to be considerably underexposed. Unfortunately full exif hasn't been given. There's mention of it being spot metered and perhaps that is the reason; ie the meter has taken the reading off the bright cloud and used that for it's average when the white is at the end of the curve, not the middle, so hence underexposed it. This might have metered better using the matrix rather than spot but even then some positive compensation would in all probablility have been required. I'm also puzzled as to why I am seeing some magenta and cyan fringes to the clouds. Despite those strange issues (and I'm curious to know if thoese were for real) I feel what the picture really lacks is a point of interest. The photograph would work well for a windows backdrop or screensaver but is not strong enough in itself in comparison the the other entries.
---------------------------------
Some of the entries didn't give the full exif so I had to do a bit of exif seraching to check the photos were eligible! dougf8's entry somewhat surprised me as he found a gap in the clouds! I felt that the entries needed something weather related rather than be just a general photograph, so the order this time:
1st: milamber - Another day, another drought
2nd: dougf8 - Light cloud and updrafts
3rd: bforbes - It's Wet Out There
Also a commendation to WaypointCharlie - Hail burst for a super weather shot.
Many thanks to everyone who submitted entries during a fortnight when the weather has not been kind and well done to you all!
To dougf8: "Alto" are middle level clouds that have bases between 2000 and 7000 m (6500 to 23,000 ft.)
Cirrus clouds are thin, wispy clouds blown by high winds into long streamers. They are considered "high clouds" forming above 6000 m (20,000 ft.) so it is not possible to have alto cirrus clouds! Cumulus relates to the type of cloud (a heaped cloud) and I think that is how I would have described those in your shot. Those clouds in your shot do not appear to be particularly high! But you knew that anyway!
John
Comment by JAK posted on Fortnightly competition 92: Weather at 09/05/2012 - 20:47
Just a quick reminder for any last minute entries. As I'll be out at 6pm I'll endeavour to review the entries when I am back in and anticipate posting the result around 8pm (BST.)
John
John
Comment by JAK posted on Discussion for Fortnightly Competition 92: Weather at 09/05/2012 - 16:55
How about either a Pentax or Tamron 18-250mm? Sadly brand new ones may be difficult to come across. Maybe also consider the Pentax WR 18-135mm?
Alternatively, keep the 70-300mm on the DSLR and get either a decent compact camera or another DSLR body to use with your existing 18-55 to cover the more normal focal length range to save changing lenses.
John
Alternatively, keep the 70-300mm on the DSLR and get either a decent compact camera or another DSLR body to use with your existing 18-55 to cover the more normal focal length range to save changing lenses.
John
Comment by JAK posted on Lens problem.... at 08/05/2012 - 11:38
I decided it might be useful to have one of these fairly extreme neutral density filters too. I ruled out Lee due to cost. I decided on a standard screw in type filter but even these are generally quite pricey. The double polariser idea sounded interesting but thought getting repeatable results might be tricky to say the least given that one has to meter the exposure before putting on the filter. I tried an experiment with two polarizers I already had but results were flaky to say the least, and given others' reports about colour casts doing it that way made me doubtful. I'm not sure how one can get repeatable results with this method either.
There seems to be a feeling that you only get what you pay for regarding these extreme ND filters, however I found one more in my budget on eBay and to be fair, it doesn't seem too bad:
Haida filter link
I did a Google search to see if I could find any comments from anyone who had purchased one. There were the usual quotes from people who presume them to be useless, but others who had tried them commented otherwise.
To save you the same search it's here: link
I've not tried any serious pictures with it yet but test shots to check it's true density gave no cause for concern - a pretty neutral colour balance was maintained. My calibration test found it needs a 10 2/3 (Ten and two-thirds) stop exposure adjustment. I've made up an exposure conversion card to save having to do the maths each time.
Has any one else tried these Haida filters?
John
There seems to be a feeling that you only get what you pay for regarding these extreme ND filters, however I found one more in my budget on eBay and to be fair, it doesn't seem too bad:
Haida filter link
I did a Google search to see if I could find any comments from anyone who had purchased one. There were the usual quotes from people who presume them to be useless, but others who had tried them commented otherwise.
To save you the same search it's here: link
I've not tried any serious pictures with it yet but test shots to check it's true density gave no cause for concern - a pretty neutral colour balance was maintained. My calibration test found it needs a 10 2/3 (Ten and two-thirds) stop exposure adjustment. I've made up an exposure conversion card to save having to do the maths each time.
Has any one else tried these Haida filters?
John
Comment by JAK posted on ND filters explained for novices at 08/05/2012 - 11:11
Comment by JAK posted on Whatever Happened to..................? at 07/05/2012 - 19:12
I wonder if the in-camera lens database gets updated with firmware updates. I cannot remember ever seeing that it has but it seems more than just the stated changes are made.
That said, I doubt the camera knows the lens by name, just its allocated number and it is that which gets translated by EXIF reader software. If the last update given on the PhotoMe home page is correct, PhotoMe hasn't been updated since 3rd May 2009. PhotoMe link.
John
That said, I doubt the camera knows the lens by name, just its allocated number and it is that which gets translated by EXIF reader software. If the last update given on the PhotoMe home page is correct, PhotoMe hasn't been updated since 3rd May 2009. PhotoMe link.
John
Comment by JAK posted on Internal database to recognise lenses? at 07/05/2012 - 18:59
To most users here the .PEF format is Pentax's propriety version of .DNG and Pentax may well be bound by commercial secrets. However have you seen this page here: link which seems to cover some of your queries and maybe someone from that site maybe able to help you further? (By the way I'm not endorsing the product in that link, if anything it seems to lack support for many recent cameras.)
John