Thanks for the feedback everyone.

It seems the floodlit pictures on my other parallel thread were the ones that really generated interest, which was a pleasant surprise for me since I wasn't even sure that me and the K-3 would cope well enough to get any keepers.

Roy

Thank you everyone for the feedback. I wasn't sure how the shots under floodlight would turn out but the atmosphere and the ability of the darkness to isolate the subject from the distracting backgrounds compared to the daylight shots has surprised me.

Roy

I've acquired Topaz DeNoise which has done a good job but people actually seem to like the "grain" so I'll keep them like this. Best of luck at your next match and, of course, post the images on here for me and everyone else and hopefully we can learn and improve together.

I did notice some strange AF behaviour though. I originally custom set up as the first image with focus priority and subsequent images with release priority and found that the K-3 wandered off focus. I checked it was the AF and not me by selecting a slowly walking player so I could be sure I was keeping the focus point on the player. Once I'd confirmed this I changed the setting to focus priority for both first and subsequent and noticed a dramatic improvement in hit rate when bursting. In some cases this did noticably affect the burst speed but it was still pretty rapid.

These are images taken with my K-3 under the meagre floodlighting available at Knaresborough Town FC - the sun had set about an hour before I took these. Both images are at 6400 ISO and no more than 50% cropping. So you can see the noise levels there is no NR applied and the noise is pretty ugly when viewed on my 27 inch screen. Aperture's in-built NR seems pretty ineffective anyway so I'm going to need to investigate a decent NR plug-in.

What I was incredibly impressed with was the K-3's ability to lock focus under such low lighting (1/800 sec, f/2.8, ISO 6400). In fact the focus lock behaved exactly the same as it did in the early part of the match when there was some daylight. I used a single point so no AF matrix tracking.

Got the chance to try my recently acquired K-3 at a football match today. Light levels were going to be a challenge with a 3pm kick-off and a 3.30'ish sunset time. Here is the first set taken early in the match when there was some daylight. I'll post a new topic with the pictures taken under the meagre floodlighting available at Knaresborough Town FC. In both threads I've not applied any NR so you can see the noise and because Aperture's NR seems to be pretty ineffective. I'll need to investigate an NR plug-in.

Tried the burst mode to get the tackle sequence below - ISO 800. The last picture was a two-footed tackled that didn't even get a yellow card - ISO 1000. For all of these the cropping was about third of original size.

I've done a few football matches and it is a very demanding type of photography. Not done anything in cold conditions and under floodlights yet so this can only add to the challenge. I'm going to take my K-3 to a match on Saturday and I'll get to experience both.

I use my Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 because at 200mm wide open there is a better chance of avoiding a distracting background compared to at 135mm and I believe it is fastter focusing than the DA* 50-135mm. No weather-sealing so it means a cover if it rains. I also take my Da* 300mm for action at the other end of the pitch - i'll put that on my K-5.

One question - what are the rules for photographimg football in Scotland? In England you have to go well down the non-league tiers before you are allowed to publish photos without a licence.

My advice is keep practising to get that peak of action shot. The K-3 burst mode should help if you try to react just before something interesting looks like it 's going to happen. That's the theory anyway . I've also been told to always have the ball and faces in the picture. Focusing on the right player is a nightmare so i've been advised to use single AF point, which mostly I keep in the centre but can be moved around as needed.

Merry Christmas!

Well if the K-3 does win and that helps people into the Pentax brand, creates profits that are then returned into investment into the lens line-up, say, and/or persuades the third-party lens manufacturers to develop more lenses for the K-mount then I'm pleased.

I think it will take a few more accolades and a sustained period of further innovation before we get to that point though.

In the meantime, I will feel even better about my recent K-3 purchase if it tops the poll.

Merry Christmas!

For sports (which I shoot a lot of) my personal opinion is if you want to improve on the K-3 then spend a lot more money on a Canon or Nikon bodies and glass but at the same price point as the K-3 all the equivalents from other brands also have limitations for sports. My K-3 arrives next week so I'll see how much better it is at football compared to my K-5 - although in my case technique and creativity may be as much of a limiting factor!

Actually what subjects do you shoot mostly or is it a real mixed bag required for your course?

Roy

I agree but at the price point of the K-3 body there are also limitations to the Canon and Nikon equivalents for sports. If you want to better the K-3 and Pentax for sports then I think you have to spend a lot more money on a body and associated glass. At least that's my theory and I'm going to have fun with my new camera finding out! For example the Nikon D7100 can only shoot in burst mode for a few seconds before it's paltry buffer fills up.

One of the factors for me is that I have invested in Pentax fit lenses and it's a pain to switch systems but I don't think I will ever justify a Canon 1DX or a Nikon D4 unless I become a pro (which I won't). I hope a K-3 will give me advantages over my K-5 for sports and I'm pretty sure it will do that. It won't turn me into Eamonn McCabe but I know I can already better the poor shots I see on club websites and on the back pages of my local paper and more keepers will just make me happier.

However, a Pentax 70-200mm F2.8 with weather sealing and faster AF would be fantastic. For now, at least, I have my Sigma.