All Forum Comments
Comment by MattMatic posted on AF360FGZ Flash with *istDL2 at 14/03/2008 - 14:07
Quote:
I always had the impression UK Pentax users were complaining about the excessive prices for Pentax gear in the UK? Did things change so drastically or is it just compared to the US and not the rest of the EU?
It's because the K20D has just come out and the K10D is dropping off the price list fast I always had the impression UK Pentax users were complaining about the excessive prices for Pentax gear in the UK? Did things change so drastically or is it just compared to the US and not the rest of the EU?
...still hanging onto mine as I can't afford the K20D yet...
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Pentax K10D body in great condition at 13/03/2008 - 14:16
Quote:
A brand new K10D body can be bought in the UK for £400 from SRS Microsystems - with a free post offer to Pentax User members.
Body only is £355 at the moment from SRS A brand new K10D body can be bought in the UK for £400 from SRS Microsystems - with a free post offer to Pentax User members.
With the 18-55 it's £399.
And they get in Grade A refurbished stock too at even cheaper prices!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Pentax K10D body in great condition at 13/03/2008 - 14:05
Quote:
Only wish the PENTAX 's would synchronise at 1.250th sec as does my wife's Nikon FE2 body
Just a note for all... the max sync speed is a function of the mechanics of the shutter, and not anything electronic It is the effectively the fastest time where the leading curtain can finish its travel before the trailing curtain has to follow.Only wish the PENTAX 's would synchronise at 1.250th sec as does my wife's Nikon FE2 body
ie the shortest time the complete sensor is exposed. Faster shutter speeds "scan" down the sensor or film where the trailing curtain follow before the leading has reached the end.
Just some info
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Metz Mecablitz 45 CL-4 at 01/04/2008 - 14:09
If the CL3 is like the CL4, then here's the manual (PDF).
(It's a hammer head style flash George You won't need the 5P cable at all.)
According to the manual you need an SCA3702 adapter for the Pentax, and the addition SCA 3000 C cable to link the flash to the SCA3702.
Hope that helps!
Matt
(It's a hammer head style flash George You won't need the 5P cable at all.)
According to the manual you need an SCA3702 adapter for the Pentax, and the addition SCA 3000 C cable to link the flash to the SCA3702.
Hope that helps!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Metz Mecablitz 45 CL-4 at 01/04/2008 - 09:56
I have the Metz 50MZ5 with SCA-3702 adapter...
You won't get P-TTL or TTL mode, but you will get an excellent linkage in the flash "A" mode. The flash gun will automatically track the ISO and Aperture settings of the camera so you can use any of the Pentax bodies with that combination.
(However, you may have a hard time getting flash exposure compensation.)
Flash modes:
P-TTL mode is not possible as the flash doesn't support this.
TTL mode is not possible because the camera doesn't support it (only P-TTL).
A mode is possible.
M mode is possible.
Hope that helps!
Matt
You won't get P-TTL or TTL mode, but you will get an excellent linkage in the flash "A" mode. The flash gun will automatically track the ISO and Aperture settings of the camera so you can use any of the Pentax bodies with that combination.
(However, you may have a hard time getting flash exposure compensation.)
Flash modes:
P-TTL mode is not possible as the flash doesn't support this.
TTL mode is not possible because the camera doesn't support it (only P-TTL).
A mode is possible.
M mode is possible.
Hope that helps!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Metz Mecablitz 45 CL-4 at 13/03/2008 - 06:45
Strange things can happen at f/1.4...
If you want to remove the cast in Photoshop:
* Add a new layer
* Change the layer blend mode to "Color"
* Pick a soft brush
* Alt-click on hair colour
* Brush over the purple bits
That'll get rid of it in a few seconds
I reckon it's a mixture of extremely shallow DoF and stray light. Without a more controlled test I couldn't say. I generally try and shoot at least at f/2.0 though - and even then the DoF is crazy shallow!
Matt
If you want to remove the cast in Photoshop:
* Add a new layer
* Change the layer blend mode to "Color"
* Pick a soft brush
* Alt-click on hair colour
* Brush over the purple bits
That'll get rid of it in a few seconds
I reckon it's a mixture of extremely shallow DoF and stray light. Without a more controlled test I couldn't say. I generally try and shoot at least at f/2.0 though - and even then the DoF is crazy shallow!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on 50mm af 1.4mm pentax lens purple shadows at 14/03/2008 - 21:37
As far as I know, the Adobe DNG converter is a Huffman-based encoding scheme - ie lossless compression.
The K10D PEF format also uses a simpler Huffman encoding scheme - which is why the PEFs are relatively small. I suspect that putting Adobe DNG compatible compression in the DNG files would have taken too much processor time in camera.
So, yes, as far as I can see you can choose to re-DNG and gain some disk space
Also, the DNG converter can also create a larger file that includes the original, unmodified, source RAW file too - for archiving purposes.
Matt
The K10D PEF format also uses a simpler Huffman encoding scheme - which is why the PEFs are relatively small. I suspect that putting Adobe DNG compatible compression in the DNG files would have taken too much processor time in camera.
So, yes, as far as I can see you can choose to re-DNG and gain some disk space
Also, the DNG converter can also create a larger file that includes the original, unmodified, source RAW file too - for archiving purposes.
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on convert dng files to dng files? at 10/03/2008 - 10:58
Interesting link Drew!
I checked out Swatchbox Technologies who wrote the software and there's probably more...
http://company.swatchbox.com/
http://www.swatchbox.com/lowes.asp
Matt
I checked out Swatchbox Technologies who wrote the software and there's probably more...
http://company.swatchbox.com/
http://www.swatchbox.com/lowes.asp
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Digital home painting program at 09/03/2008 - 06:57
Blue,
You MUST use something like the Focus Test Chart NOT a ruler. You cannot be absolutely sure that the centre focus point is accurately aligned.
The FTC has a thick black bar in the middle that you focus on at 45 degrees. There are ruler markings at the far right and left edges that will show the focus. But the camera needs something completely unambiguous to lock onto. Download the chart, print it out and try with that
Matt
You MUST use something like the Focus Test Chart NOT a ruler. You cannot be absolutely sure that the centre focus point is accurately aligned.
The FTC has a thick black bar in the middle that you focus on at 45 degrees. There are ruler markings at the far right and left edges that will show the focus. But the camera needs something completely unambiguous to lock onto. Download the chart, print it out and try with that
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on sigma 18-50 ex - problems! again! Anyone else experiencing! at 06/03/2008 - 16:37
The "dumb" slave mode will work with any camera, and because the AF360 was designed for fast retriggering in the P-TTL mode it can cope with double triggers even in the "dumb" mode
You can use either the "A" mode or the "M" mode of the flashgun - as long as the preflash uses no more than half the charge. Effectively that cuts the flash distance in wireless to one half as well... but with digital you can always use a higher ISO setting on the camera.
As said, it's best to use fully "M" mode on both flash and camera - especially if you are in a studio or other controlled environment. Takes less than 2 minutes to get a good setup with digital once you know what you're doing (And it sounds like you do!)
You may find some of the sticky threads of mine on flash are useful
Hope that helps!
Matt