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Comment by MattMatic posted on K5 built in flash at 07/03/2012 - 12:49
Quote:
seems a biggish download
Firmware will always be a biggish download as it's the whole code for the hardware seems a biggish download
But, Pentax have been known to silently fix/tweak things in firmware updates Wish they were more open about the changes they've made...
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on New Firmware at 02/03/2012 - 11:39
It depends more on the software, rather than the hardware
ArgyllCMS + dispcalGUI are extremely flexible and allow all calibration + profiling options
Matt
ArgyllCMS + dispcalGUI are extremely flexible and allow all calibration + profiling options
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Monitor calibration that adjusts brightness/contrast? at 01/03/2012 - 08:48
Thanks for the suggestion Bernard
To be honest, it's not worth spending extra on them... I've seen the mashed up mess that becomes of the interconnector and it will definitely mean a new main board, plus a full recalibration and setup.
I wouldn't be surprised if a repair bill was over £200.
Given that I can buy a second hand K10D with 6 month warranty for £220 it doesn't make much sense.
Apparently they can be used tethered even without an SD card (or LCD for that matter). They may end up being used for stop-gap animation and having the shutters run into the ground
I have a slim chance of carefully pulling off the main board, bonding and resoldering the connector and getting a working one. But it's going to be several hours work... hey ho!
Matt
To be honest, it's not worth spending extra on them... I've seen the mashed up mess that becomes of the interconnector and it will definitely mean a new main board, plus a full recalibration and setup.
I wouldn't be surprised if a repair bill was over £200.
Given that I can buy a second hand K10D with 6 month warranty for £220 it doesn't make much sense.
Apparently they can be used tethered even without an SD card (or LCD for that matter). They may end up being used for stop-gap animation and having the shutters run into the ground
I have a slim chance of carefully pulling off the main board, bonding and resoldering the connector and getting a working one. But it's going to be several hours work... hey ho!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Dreaded Message - Memory Card Error (K10D) at 29/02/2012 - 16:30
Thought I'd post my (unfortunate) experiences with the K10D as a little warning
Quite a while ago I bought a partially defective K10D that had an intermittent memory card error message. Having looked through the service manual I thought I'd give it a whirl and try and get a half decent dSLR for one of my sons.
Getting the thing apart wasn't difficult... until I came to the main board. Taking it off the chassis (having desoldered the crazy amount of wires) I find that disassembly has ripped off a tiny 14-way connector off the main PCB. Unfortunately this connector bridges the main board with the SD reader board. So, now I have a microscopically small, partially damaged connector, with a main board that has broken tracks which I can't repair (I could if the tracks were larger). I can see that there were definitely dry joints too in the way that the connector came cleanly off some of the tracks (but ripped other off).
Everything else about the camera is A1. Hey ho. So I ponder a long while on what to do (and I mean months)...
Then I purchase a cheaper K10D that has a broken LCD. Cool, me thinks! I can easily replace the LCD and get the K10D back and running making one out of two.
I take a few photos with a broken LCD - first with the 18-55 then the 50-135 and all looks fine
Disassemble, replace LCD, and reassemble took about 40 minutes working slowly. Feeling happy that it's all lighting up properly, I take a couple of shots, have a look at them and all seems well.
Then "Memory Card Error" shows up. Huh!? Uh-oh...
...and then I have another Google around and stumble on this (with the photos). Oh dear.
Looks like a design fault of the K10D that any impact can create pressure between the main board and SD reader. Adding to that the serial numbers of the two K10Ds (unfortunately for me) are probably within the same block.
Sooooooo.... looks like I have a less than 5% chance of getting one working out of the two, with a high likelihood of having two cameras that are fine for remote tethering only
You could say I'm a bit cheesed off! (Should've saved the cash for a neat Pentax Q kit instead.... grrrr) Anyone have a couple of K10D with broken mirror/shutter/prism that need some spare parts??
Let that be a lesson!!!
Matt
Quite a while ago I bought a partially defective K10D that had an intermittent memory card error message. Having looked through the service manual I thought I'd give it a whirl and try and get a half decent dSLR for one of my sons.
Getting the thing apart wasn't difficult... until I came to the main board. Taking it off the chassis (having desoldered the crazy amount of wires) I find that disassembly has ripped off a tiny 14-way connector off the main PCB. Unfortunately this connector bridges the main board with the SD reader board. So, now I have a microscopically small, partially damaged connector, with a main board that has broken tracks which I can't repair (I could if the tracks were larger). I can see that there were definitely dry joints too in the way that the connector came cleanly off some of the tracks (but ripped other off).
Everything else about the camera is A1. Hey ho. So I ponder a long while on what to do (and I mean months)...
Then I purchase a cheaper K10D that has a broken LCD. Cool, me thinks! I can easily replace the LCD and get the K10D back and running making one out of two.
I take a few photos with a broken LCD - first with the 18-55 then the 50-135 and all looks fine
Disassemble, replace LCD, and reassemble took about 40 minutes working slowly. Feeling happy that it's all lighting up properly, I take a couple of shots, have a look at them and all seems well.
Then "Memory Card Error" shows up. Huh!? Uh-oh...
...and then I have another Google around and stumble on this (with the photos). Oh dear.
Looks like a design fault of the K10D that any impact can create pressure between the main board and SD reader. Adding to that the serial numbers of the two K10Ds (unfortunately for me) are probably within the same block.
Sooooooo.... looks like I have a less than 5% chance of getting one working out of the two, with a high likelihood of having two cameras that are fine for remote tethering only
You could say I'm a bit cheesed off! (Should've saved the cash for a neat Pentax Q kit instead.... grrrr) Anyone have a couple of K10D with broken mirror/shutter/prism that need some spare parts??
Let that be a lesson!!!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Dreaded Message - Memory Card Error (K10D) at 28/02/2012 - 14:37
I've had similar behaviour with Teleplus extension tubes and the DA*16-50 and DA*50-135.
You may find that pressing the MENU button or LiveView just blinks the rear screen and you can't do anything. I couldn't get any combination of MF/AF on body or lens to work correctly - hugely irritating!
As far as I can tell, it's the camera getting mighty confused over the presence of an SDM that it cannot talk SDM with.
In the end I modified my extension tubes to stop some of the body-to-lens communication. I detailed my findings on page 2 here.
Not sure whether I'd want to do the same with a teleconvertor, but you should get the general idea!
Matt
You may find that pressing the MENU button or LiveView just blinks the rear screen and you can't do anything. I couldn't get any combination of MF/AF on body or lens to work correctly - hugely irritating!
As far as I can tell, it's the camera getting mighty confused over the presence of an SDM that it cannot talk SDM with.
In the end I modified my extension tubes to stop some of the body-to-lens communication. I detailed my findings on page 2 here.
Not sure whether I'd want to do the same with a teleconvertor, but you should get the general idea!
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on K-7 screen flashing when mounting a Kenko 2X Teleconvertor at 28/02/2012 - 11:41
Horst,
You'll find the comments on this thread may help too.
Because of the electronic interface on the dSLRs it is possible for the thyristor to 'latch' on such that you'll get one trigger but not any more (until you unpower the circuit). Wikipedia's entry under "Switching characteristics" is useful.
You may require a high-impedance buffer to interface to the hotshoe to prevent the electronics latching.
I wouldn't recommend trying to directly drive anything more than a couple of milli-amps
Matt
You'll find the comments on this thread may help too.
Because of the electronic interface on the dSLRs it is possible for the thyristor to 'latch' on such that you'll get one trigger but not any more (until you unpower the circuit). Wikipedia's entry under "Switching characteristics" is useful.
You may require a high-impedance buffer to interface to the hotshoe to prevent the electronics latching.
I wouldn't recommend trying to directly drive anything more than a couple of milli-amps
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Bulb Flash with a Pentax K5 at 27/02/2012 - 12:15
Quote:
I will check if the centre contact needs to be positive or negative.
Centre pin of dSLR flash should always be positive I will check if the centre contact needs to be positive or negative.
The chassis is ground.
See p187 of the K5 manual
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Bulb Flash with a Pentax K5 at 27/02/2012 - 11:34
It's normal
There's a technique to ejecting with the K7 & K5 - you push in with a fingernail and slide your finger off the card quickly. (So rather than pushing like a ball point, you're making an "L" shape movement) This lets the spring in the SD card slot eject the card out more fully.
It seems to vary a bit depending on the card as well.
Matt
There's a technique to ejecting with the K7 & K5 - you push in with a fingernail and slide your finger off the card quickly. (So rather than pushing like a ball point, you're making an "L" shape movement) This lets the spring in the SD card slot eject the card out more fully.
It seems to vary a bit depending on the card as well.
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on K5 SD Card ejection stiff? at 27/02/2012 - 09:34
All dSLR trigger outputs are electronic (thyristor based I believe), and as such are polarity sensitive.
You can always warm up the light from an existing flash with a Stofen colour unit - http://www.stofen.com/store/coloromni.asp
Or, you could experiment with home-brew diffusers and adjusting the manual WB controls of the K5
Matt
You can always warm up the light from an existing flash with a Stofen colour unit - http://www.stofen.com/store/coloromni.asp
Or, you could experiment with home-brew diffusers and adjusting the manual WB controls of the K5
Matt
Comment by MattMatic posted on Bulb Flash with a Pentax K5 at 27/02/2012 - 09:24
We are not talking about the duration of the flash, but the interval between the preflash P-TTL exposure and the main flash
It works like this:
1. Camera leaves mirror down, fires flash and takes exposure
2. A fraction of a second later the camera lifts the mirror, and triggers the main flash
It's the gap between 1 & 2 that makes the difference.
I suspect the main issue is down to flash protocol. AFAIK, the Canon does not support wireless (optical) flash - you have to pay a hefty sum for their transmitter. Pentax, on the other hand, allows for remote control of slave flashes through a morse-code-like high speed signalling of the pop-up.
So, yes, there can be an annoying gap between the preflash and main flash where the subject has closed their eyes If you use the red-eye mode then they should have opened them again before the main flash
But, for some people the only way is to resort to good 'ol fashioned "A" mode flash with a cheapy external flash (I've had to use the hulking great Metz 50MZ5 for a wedding where the bride blinked every time - thankfully I tried it out pre-wedding).
HTH,
Matt