All Forum Comments
Any news yet Kris ?
Comment by stevejcoe posted on USM and DA* 50-135mm at 23/06/2009 - 08:34
MarkD wrote:
I think most of it is currency related. Last year £1 got you 245Yen now it's about 145Yen. That's a big hit. I think the Yen is artificially high at the moment as most other currencies are slowly creeping back towards where they were a year ago. I think the Yen will have to come down with a bump soon. Not that it helps us, and ,historically, when prices go up they usually stay up! Especially if stock has been bought at the higher prices.
The Pound did peak against the Yen @ 247 in July 2007 . Last year the highest that it reached was 212 again in July. Looking back over the past 5 years, 2007 appears to have been an exception, 205-215 seems a more standard range.I think most of it is currency related. Last year £1 got you 245Yen now it's about 145Yen. That's a big hit. I think the Yen is artificially high at the moment as most other currencies are slowly creeping back towards where they were a year ago. I think the Yen will have to come down with a bump soon. Not that it helps us, and ,historically, when prices go up they usually stay up! Especially if stock has been bought at the higher prices.
Last week the Pound hit 162, but has fallen back to around 158 today. So yes we are down some 36& on the July 2007 peak , but more realistically down 25% on average values.
http://www.x-rates.com/d/JPY/GBP/hist2009.html
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on SRS new prices at 22/06/2009 - 18:03
I recommend 'The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 Book: The Complete Guide for Photographers' by Martin Evening as a hard copy reference.
Steve
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on Lightroom2 Questions at 20/06/2009 - 08:16
I am with Hefty, you already have the 28-200 and the wide end is covered by the 10-20.
Have you considered the FA 35 F2? It is still available if you shop around and is a very good for use as a standard lens.
Also remember the 18-250 does not have quick shift.
Steve
Have you considered the FA 35 F2? It is still available if you shop around and is a very good for use as a standard lens.
Also remember the 18-250 does not have quick shift.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on Pentax/Tamron 18-250 at 19/06/2009 - 10:54
I would also add, that we have a number of stickies ranging from basic RAW and Flash guides to how to upload a picture that both old and new users have found useful.
I read a comment earlier in the week that an announcement may have been missed due to the lagre numbers of stickies.
Perhaps we need some reorganisation of the forum with some new categorisation?
Steve
I read a comment earlier in the week that an announcement may have been missed due to the lagre numbers of stickies.
Perhaps we need some reorganisation of the forum with some new categorisation?
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on What about a Wiki? at 18/06/2009 - 15:58
I am with Stefan on this. There are cases when there is a clear answer. For instance how to use pre 'A' series lenses on a K10, 20 ect. We might all use slightly different terminology, but the answer remains the same. I don't see how making that information readily available and easy to find could be considered cold.
Where questions are asked and and answers are dictated by personal preference and bias, then that is a different matter, but that is not what I think Stefan is advocating here.
Steve
Where questions are asked and and answers are dictated by personal preference and bias, then that is a different matter, but that is not what I think Stefan is advocating here.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on What about a Wiki? at 18/06/2009 - 15:44
George Lazarette wrote:
I think the problem with this is that to a large extent it would probably duplicate existing sources of information. We have Boz, and Stan, and the AOHC, and various lens review sites, etc., etc..
Unless you put a lot of effort into it, it will probably be eclipsed by existing sites.
But having said that, Stan's site is seriously out of date. If you were to produce a modern Stan, it might prove to be very popular.
G
George, I always refer to Stan's for reviews of older lenses and agree that it would be great to have an updated equivalent on this site. Some of the reviews on Pentax Forums are quite good, but others are poor, with overall ratings often being scewed, by how much someone paid for a particular lens.I think the problem with this is that to a large extent it would probably duplicate existing sources of information. We have Boz, and Stan, and the AOHC, and various lens review sites, etc., etc..
Unless you put a lot of effort into it, it will probably be eclipsed by existing sites.
But having said that, Stan's site is seriously out of date. If you were to produce a modern Stan, it might prove to be very popular.
G
Anvh wrote:
It might put an end on FAQ such as which flash to buy is a great example.
Exactly Stefan, there are several recurring questions asked by new users when they join the forum. A succinct definitive answer for each, might save a lot of time and be of real benefit.It might put an end on FAQ such as which flash to buy is a great example.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on What about a Wiki? at 18/06/2009 - 13:22
Quote:
I have masses of lens tests going back to the seventies and never once has a budget lens approached the quality of camera makers lenses. The nearest were Series 1 and Tamron SP, but these weren't budget lenses.
People who used these budget lenses in the past, bought camera maker manufactured lenses as soon as they could afford them. Sigma and Tamron weren't really budget makers, more like independents.
I agree for the most part with your comments, but I do recall I that purchased a 28mm Vivitar lens in the early 80's after reading a very good review (can't remember the mag now), where it was very favourably reviewed against manufacturers offerings. There were some undoubted gems made, but you need to know what to look for, which is where the information about serial numbers can be very helpful.I have masses of lens tests going back to the seventies and never once has a budget lens approached the quality of camera makers lenses. The nearest were Series 1 and Tamron SP, but these weren't budget lenses.
People who used these budget lenses in the past, bought camera maker manufactured lenses as soon as they could afford them. Sigma and Tamron weren't really budget makers, more like independents.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on Vivitar 24mm F2.8 at 18/06/2009 - 13:07
iceblinker wrote:
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I have just tried a very rough and ready test using a 28mm M series lens. Shutter speed was 1/4 of a second. I set the focal length for SR purposes at 15, 28 and 70. TonyM wrote:
Pete - does the compromise really work? Given that we are told to turn SR off when using tripods, that tends to imply "wrong" SR can be as bad as no SR? I've been put off buying manual zooms because of this.
I've yet to see evidence of it yet, but yes in theory "wrong" SR can be as bad or worse than no SR. You could turn it off altogether when in doubt, and that won't matter when you can use a fast-enough shutter speedPete - does the compromise really work? Given that we are told to turn SR off when using tripods, that tends to imply "wrong" SR can be as bad as no SR? I've been put off buying manual zooms because of this.
.
At normal viwing magnification, I could see no discernible difference between the 15 and 28 settings, however at 70 there was very noticeable blurring.
I occasionally use 35-70, 35-105 and 70-210 'A' series zooms, which I would usually set at thre mid ponit and have never noticed this effect before.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on SMC K (fully manual) lenses on K20D at 18/06/2009 - 12:55
Quote:
So, if I have got this right:
A lenses are fine with AV mode but K and M lenses are probably better suited to MANUAL mode.
Can the manual settings be stored somehow as a USER profile or I guess each one is different depending on the lens?
'A' series lenses are fine in any mode, as long as the aperture ring iss is set to the 'A' position. You will still need to tell the camera the focal length if you want to use SR.So, if I have got this right:
A lenses are fine with AV mode but K and M lenses are probably better suited to MANUAL mode.
Can the manual settings be stored somehow as a USER profile or I guess each one is different depending on the lens?
As for storing settings, you can I believe only store a generic profile, as the camera would have no way of identifying a lens without electrical contacts.
Steve
Comment by stevejcoe posted on SMC K (fully manual) lenses on K20D at 18/06/2009 - 12:08
