Finally got round to sending it in for assessment after a good few months of using the missus' K30 - turns out the circuit board is damaged/dodgy, and the repair is considered uneconomical.

Bah.

I'll keep it for macro and landscape, but might be in the market for a replacement at some point. Maybe FF, who knows.

Ta all for comments - I've noted the kood filters in AP before, I might give those a try. They've got a set of 77mm ND filters for £40ish, but might be a little small. I'll go for 100mm, will hopefully future-proof if nothing else.

I'll also have a look at Haida and Hitech.

Lee sadly quite a way out of my price range, although I assume if I go for a 100mm system there's nothing stopping me getting some Lee grads in the future, if so desired?

I had a very pleasant afternoon over in the sunny Brecons, fouled only by the autofocus on my K5 playing up.

For those who've never been, the area south of Brecon is full of waterfalls and is a lovely place for a walk on a sunny day. It's also a perfect area for photography, hence my visit over the weekend.

The only limitation - aside from equipment malfunction - is that I don't have any ND filters, which limits ability to get the longer shutter speeds for silky water images. I'm looking at getting a set, but not sure what I should look to buy.

I use any of my Pentax 16-45 and Sigma 8-16 and 28-70 f/2.8 EX. The Sigma lenses pose a bit of a problem, given the protruding front element and lack of a filter ring on the 8-16 I'm unlikely to be able to mount any filters, and the 28-70 has a hefty 77mm filter ring.

I've used Cokin in the past, where I had a set of the smaller size filters which were fine for my old 28mm lenses but vignette or obstruct the lenses I currently use. I managed to lose these on a beach in Cornwall anyway, so I'd like to take the enforced opportunity upgrade to a more useful set.

I'd like to get the slot in type so I can use across lenses, but would consider screw-in given it's really the 16-45 which will see most use. Lee and the like are out purely on grounds of cost, and I'm aware that some of the cheaper 'gel-type' ones (I forget the material) are susceptible to damage.

Are there any decent slot-in system filters that I should consider for the ND type? I'm looking to get the bare minimum, and bearing in mind I suspect I'll be forking out some way or other for the AF issues on my K5, I'd like to keep it reasonably cheap.

I'd eventually look to get some grad filters, but I'm unlikely to use any other type (I already have a screw-in polariser for the 16-45). Another factor to consider, if I dare raise it here, is that I have an Olympus m4/3 system which I would also like to use the filter system with - the only substantial difference I'm aware of being a contrast-based AF as opposed to phase-based. I would expect this only to impact the polariser, which I'm less concerned by, but I mention it just in case. Filter thread is 55mm on my Pansonic 14-45.

Any and all advice gratefully received.

Hi all

My K5 autofocus is behaving very strangely and I was wondering if anyone has any ideas how to address it.

It tends to snap to a decent initial focus point, but then slowly creep the focus out-of-focus, then snap the focus back and then creep again. The AF motor is generally going mad. A few times now it's locked the camera, so that even turning it off does nothing and I have to take the battery out.

It behaves worst of all on my 55-300, the 16-45 can sometimes be OK, and I can't recall it happening on my Sigma 8-16 which is SDM. It happens in both AF modes.

The problem is unlikely to be with the lenses, as these work fine on my wife's K30.

Any and all advice gratefully received,

Cheers

Matt

P.s. by 'both AF modes' I mean AF-S and AF-C - I'll re-test live-view AF to see if the contrast AF also plays up.

Hi all

I've got a Sigma 300mm f/4 APO that I use on both a K30 and K5, but I've never got my Pentax 2XS teleconverter to play ball with it - the aperture coupling never works as it should.

I've seen a Sigma EX 2X teleconverter for sale for a decent price which I'm tempted to try, however I thought 2X was maybe a bit strong and I'd be better holding out for a 1.4X. I'm not sure a 600mm f/8 (if I have that right) would be that easy to handle or compose, that quick to focus or all that sharp, although the idea of using a Sigma branded TC with a Sigma lens would help with the connectivity.

Worth a look, or go for something else? It'll be used for wildlife, which makes me think that such a slow overall aperture wouldn't be ideal.

As an aside, I've not had the most consistent success with sharpness from the lens, some images it's pin-sharp and others the focus isn't too clever, so I'm wondering if sticking a teleconverter into the mix is going to cause more problems.

Any advice gratefully received!

I finally got into a camera shop to have a look - sadly, no MX-1s or Ricohs to play with!

I did have a try of the Canon Powershot, the viewfinder was as bad as Jon had suggested, utterly dreadful. The Fuji X10 was much, much nicer, but there is some concern over image quality of its RAW files (for some reason, these are poor but JPEG OK) - I may have a look at an X20 and get some test images. I'll also stop talking about other brands on a Pentax forum!

I'll try to get into town this weekend, in the hope there's some MX-1s kicking around the have a play with.

Very nice!

John, is it my eyes, or is the DOF on your shot at 2.5 at 56mm quite deep? I would assume that DOF is standard for any focal length and aperture regardless of design, but it just looks a little deeper than I'd expect if I was shooting f/2.5 on my FA 50mm.

I've run this past the missus and she's suggesting I have this for a birthday present. Only issue is my birthday isn't for a few months! Still, give some time to go and try one out, and maybe my nagging can accelerate this a touch!

Brilliant, thanks John.

I suspect a quick demo of the MX-1 and the GR would help me out - I tend to shoot in aperture priority so a single control wheel may not be that much of an issue. I note the MX-1 has shake reduction, which coupled with fast lens and decent high-ISO should allow me to use under streetlight. Has anyone tried this, out of interest? MY K5 with 50mm F1.4 is very good for ambient light shots, but far too bulky.

I do like the idea of the more compact nature of the GR but a fixed focal length may prove a constraint, which is another plus for the MX-1.

I certainly can't justify £500+ on another camera, so it would need to be an older generation GR if I go the GR route.

Ta all for comments.

I notice the MX-1 has only one control wheel (as used for aperture and shutter speed), does this hinder performance and handling? It looks quite bulky for what I had in mind, but definitely satisfies the quality, fast lens requirement.

I note that the Ricoh GR has an optional viewfinder, which appears to me to be optical (given the fixed focal length this would seem most sensible) - has anyone tried it? It seems quite pricey but nice to have the option, and I can keep an eye on ebay.

As mentioned in my opening post, SRS are selling the Ricoh GR Digital IV for £249, which seems very cheap. Are there variant models within the GR line-up, or is this an outdated model? I'd be interested in it, even if a bit dated, assuming that it's not totally antiquated!

Hi all

I'm after some advice on an easily carried, day-to-day camera for situations where I can't easily carry an SLR.

I was thinking of getting one of the more 'serious' compacts, such as a GR or a Canon G9/10/x powershot, but I'm not sure how the versatility and quality stack up against a compact system camera (something like the Q range).

I'm after something mostly for what might be considered street and low light photography, not anticipating taking much wildlife or landscape with it. I'm more than happy with fixed focal length, but really like cameras with good high-iso performance and - ideally- a lens with decent quality through a reasonably fast aperture (but not expecting miracles). I'd also like to retain full exposure control, which is why my old Samsung compact isn't up to the job and I suspect will rule many similar such cameras out of the running.

Budget would be of the order of £200 as a start point, which I realise puts many camera systems out of range but I cannot justify huge sums on a spare camera. I note SRS are selling the MX-1 and GR Digital IV for less than £250 which I would happily entertain. I'm also more than happy using second-hand gear if it's not too outdated.

Any insights into relative merits much appreciated. I know almost nothing about these types of cameras, so any and all comments gratefully received.

Cheers, and hope everyone having a good Easter - biblical rain down here in the appropriately titled Bath!