One (possible) workaround is to download Adobe's standalone Camera RAW converter. That can turn your PEF files into DNG files... which probably will import into your current PSE.

e.g. http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=4365

Hope that helps!
Matt

Hmmm
I've checked the data on PentaxImaging.com and the answer isn't the list of choices! But then checking elsewhere on Pentax, the seal count differs by 5
Maybe no one can win
Matt

I find the 17-70 a bit "snappier" in terms of contrast/sharpness/colour. I really like the 16-45 as well, and it serves well for landscapes etc.

But the 17-70, especially with the longer reach, is much, much more useful (to me at least). Additionally, the bokeh seems much smoother on the 17-70 (very much like the SMC-FA 24-90 that I also have). There may be a touch more vignetting on the 17-70 compared to the 16-45, but there's not much in it (and in any case it can all be fixed in software).

The 17-70 is SDM only, and appears to be at least partially weather sealed (it has the rubber ring on the lens mount and feels very damped on the zoom).

Overall, I'm very happy with the 17-70... while my wife is thoroughly enjoying the 16-45 as a "very nice upgrade" to the kit 18-55 on her *ist-DS

Hope that helps!
Matt

If you haven't already got a kit lens... ring Chris at SRS Microsystems
It won't be that much more expensive compared to the lenses you already have, and a lot more versatile (and probably sharper too!)
Matt

Danny,
The links to the JPG & RAW seem to take me straight back to the thread
Matt

Read the blog posts... there's many reasons in there why I think I'll stick to the day job of programming

Thanks for sharing the info Ben!
Matt

Welcome aboard David!

If you've put the lens correctly on the "A" position, then you should not see the "F--" displayed and shouldn't need the custom setting to permit aperture ring use

Check whether the contacts are dirty and make sure the lens is correctly mounted. I occasionally get this error when using other lenses and find that dismounting and remounting sorts the problem.

Sorry to disappoint you, but with a 28mm lens you are very unlikely to blur the background much, even at f/2.8 You see depth of field is also proportional to focal length - the wider the lens, the more is in focus at a particular aperture... and 28mm for portraits is not very flattering either

Your best bet for portraits is to use a longer lens (even the 18-55 kit lens at 55mm would be ok); find a fairly neutral backdrop and position the person a goodly distance from it.

If you have a looooonger lens (even 50-200) then you'll get even shallower depth of field. But you could end up needing extra lighting, and/or a good steady hand and tripod (plus a subject that can sit still!)

Hope that helps!
Matt

...interesting that my SMC-DA 17-70 has the rubber gasket seal on the lens mount that my DA*50-135 has

It's also very damped on the zoom - feels like it's sealed

I wonder if it's one of those things that isn't mentioned on the spec sheet so as not to displace sales of the DA*16-50?

Matt

I have found Aaduki to be excellent. Very easy to deal with - and you can arrange public liability insurance and professional insurance as well as amateur
Matt

Huh?!

Nah - it's about the SR being overly active in a static environment with long exposure time and producing a blurred image unnecessarily. (Quantisation errors, and accumulated errors over time.)

EDIT: Awww! The K7 menu looks very intuitive!

Matt