A Synopsis from Today's Shoot with the K10D

[benjikan]

Well....The guys and a gal from Pentax came to my shoot yesterday...They were totally chuffed to say the least. They can't wait to get their hands on the final images. The K10D worked famously. If it weren't for that frippen 2 giga card that screwed up it would have been perfect. I found myself going more and more for the 16-45 lens. I basically used the 21, 40 and 16-45. I don't think I used the 70..too long for what I wanted. I'll check my Raw's to check. I may have used it once.

I will say this. The studio assistant wants a Pentax K10D. After she saw the results, well it was over for her. She NEEDS it! It is just fine for pro application. If you are asking how does it compare to a D200..Well equal or better. Less noise and what an incredible user interface. I still have to get used to going for the 4 way toggle for choosing my focus point. It is a question of time. Been using Canon for years. It's like changing girlfriends..oooppppsss sorry..

Banding..NNNOOOOOOO. Noise.....NNNNOOOOOO. Sharp....YESSSSSS. In fact, for the Pentax, I have reduced my unsharp mask to around 200 to 240 at .3 pixels. I do have sharpen at 25 in Camera Raw however...None the less, if you have any questions..You Know!

Ben

 

[Iron Flatline]

I'm glad to hear the K10 is a serious camera! I thouhg ti might be, and there are GREAT lenses for it.

 

[benjikan]

You can see some samples not yet re-touched hot off of the camera from this weekend..at:

http://pentaxworld.com/forum/index.php?topic=478.0

 

[oCyrus55]

I like the shots you got, I think you got some nice images. However, in the last shot (number 4), I wish that her eyes stood out a little bit more. O well... but you haven't post-processed them yet. Make sure you post the shots after you process them!!!

 

[Jeremy Z]

I still have to get used to going for the 4 way toggle for choosing my focus point. It is a question of time. Been using Canon for years.

The smart focusing points are a pretty useless feature unless you don't know how a camera's autofocus works, which you do. Go into the menu and turn off all the focusing sensors except the center one. When you're going to take a shot, (in single frame mode) put the center on your subject, press the shutter release halfway to lock focus, then recompose and shoot. It is ever so much faster than trying to keep your framing, then messing around, trying to select the right sensor.

On my K100D, this control is in the main menu, one screen down, and named: "Switch dst msr pt". There's a graphic that looks like one sensor. Select that, and you're golden.

 

[benjikan]

The smart focusing points are a pretty useless feature unless you don't know how a camera's auto-focus works, which you do. Go into the menu and turn off all the focusing sensors except the center one. When you're going to take a shot, (in single frame mode) put the center on your subject, press the shutter release halfway to lock focus, then recompose and shoot. It is ever so much faster than trying to keep your framing, then messing around, trying to select the right sensor.

On my K100D, this control is in the main menu, one screen down, and named: "Switch dst msr pt". There's a graphic that looks like one sensor. Select that, and you're golden.

Thanks for the info. I have always been aware of this function. However as I work in very close proximity to the subject using realtively wide angle lenses and am rarely parallel to the subject i.e. sitting on floor or up on a cube looking down. if I do as you suggest, once I have moved the camera to re-crop, the center position where I had focussed becomes the stomach and the head will be out of focus.

When I am standing and quite parallel to the model and using perhaps a 50+ mm, I will only use the center focussing point.

Thanks
Ben

 

[Don Simon]

Thanks for the info. I have always been aware of this function. However as I work in very close proximity to the subject using realtively wide angle lenses and am rarely parallel to the subject i.e. sitting on floor or up on a cube looking down. if I do as you suggest, once I have moved the camera to re-crop, the center position where I had focussed becomes the stomach and the head will be out of focus.

This is true. It's part of the reason I still prefer manual focus, though I'm gradually coming round to using AF points.

Ben those are some nice shots. Can I ask for your opinion on the 21mm? Specifically the build quality and the performance wide-open? I like the look of the pancakes but am a bit hesitant as I usually prefer faster lenses.

 

[benjikan]

This is true. It's part of the reason I still prefer manual focus, though I'm gradually coming round to using AF points.

Ben those are some nice shots. Can I ask for your opinion on the 21mm? Specifically the build quality and the performance wide-open? I like the look of the pancakes but am a bit hesitant as I usually prefer faster lenses.

It reminds me of the Leica lenses. The build quality is excellent. All of the new Limited lenses are well conceived. I have the 21, 40 and 70. The 21 is a very sharp lens. During my shoot this weekend I shot at between f9 and f13 so I can't really answer your question. In private tests it appears to be quite sharp wide open. I think the 40 might be a bit sharper wide open as is the 70. I haven't done a formal test and never have. Quite heavy for a small lens.

 

[usayit]

Oh very nice results... I like the 3rd one... the lighting and the pose all work nicely together. Nice to see professional offerings from Pentax in action.

btw... good luck with winning the cover spot.