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Pentax K10D, SMC Pentax-FA 50mm f/1.4, ISO 125,  f/1.4, 1/60 sec, +2/3 EV, IS on

Been playing around a bit with a Pentax FA 50 f/1.4 lens I’m borrowing. This shot was taken almost directly into the late afternoon sun streaming through the windows on the front of our house. So far I am finding the FA 50 to be a bit soft for my taste wide open (as you can see here) but the autofocus and extra 2/3 stop advantage over my old A series 50mm f/1.7 are nice. There does seen to be a fair amount of purple fringing in a lot of my shots but I have yet to really test the lens with anything more than some plinking around. I don’t think I’m going to do my usual full-on User Review for the FA 50. I’ll probably just do some anecdotal comparison to my old 50 f/1.7 for those people who either have an older manual focus lens and are thinking of upgrading or for those people who are considering their first fast fifty.

BTW, this image was imported into Lightroom using my standard import settings for my K10D. I then selected “daylight” for the white balance and nudged the blacks slider up to 16 to dial in a bit more contrast. Lastly, I cropped it square and rotated it slightly clockwise to adjust for level on the left side of the frame.

Pentax SMCP-DA 35mm f/2.8 Macro Limited User Review

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Ever since I started shooting DSLRs with APS-C sized sensors I have struggled to find the perfect go-to lens for the majority of my photos. I love the speed and image quality of my old A series 50mm f/1.7 but the lack of autofocus and relatively tight F0V (75mm equiv.) makes it less than ideal for a lot of my shooting. When my friend Stephen said he was sending me his DA 35mm f/2.8 Macro Limited to take for a spin I was pretty sure that it was going to be the lens I have been looking for. I had read all the reviews so I knew that it was a sharp lens with top-notch build quality. All that remained was for me to live with it for a few days…

Pros:

  • Razor sharp starting at f/2.8.
  • Virtually no flare and very low CAs or fringing.
  • Wonderful bokeh (especially during macro use).
  • Impeccable Limited build quality.
  • Smaller and lighter than most 1:1 macro lenses.
  • Durable*
  • Ultra close focusing capability.
  • Built-in lens hood.
  • Excellent bang-for-the-buck.

*I didn’t test this lens’ durability but my friend Stephen did. Within minutes of opening the box he dropped it from a height of 1M onto concrete. The filter mount ring took the brunt of the impact (note silver filed away area in these shots) but the function of the lens was not otherwise affected. Wow!

Cons:

  • Slow focusing due to extremely long focal range.
  • Lack of focus limit switch (might correct previous point).
  • Focus ring spins during autofocus operation.
  • Included lens cap falls off too easily.
  • Extremely limited stand-off distance at 1:1 magnification (read: “none”).
  • Diffraction may be a problem above f/8 with non-macro shots.

Conclusion:

Turns out this is not the do-it-all lens I’ve been looking for. Now, before all you Pentaxians out there start accusing me of bashing Pentax again, let me explain…

The DA 35mm f/2.8 Macro Limited is one of the best macro lenses I have ever used. It absolutely blows everything away within 2 feet of the front of the lens. I love the natural look the 35mm (52.5mm equiv) FoV provides. I can easily see this being one of the best lenses available for shooting products in a studio setting. If I were still walking the floor at Asian electronics trade shows it would be my go-to lens (lots of close-up shots of products held in my hand). However, the things that make this lens so good at what it was designed to do also make it less than perfect for my everyday use. If your primary interest is up-close hand-held macro photography, look no further. Buy this lens. If, like me, you are thinking that this lens might double as a good medium focal length lens for everyday use, please read the rest of my review and decide for yourself:

More »

test fodder

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Another box of goodies arived today. This time it’s some more loaner gear for me to put to the test. What we have here is a Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 lens, Tamron SP AF 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro lens and a Sigma EM-140 DG TTL ring flash kit. Stay tuned…

BlackRapid R-Strap RS-4 user review

Black Rapid R-Strap mini review

The BlackRapid R-Strap RS-4 camera strap was only product I came across at PMA that I decided to buy and try for myself because I thought it was such a clever solution for an age-old problem. BlackRapid has obviously gotten a lot of press for this product because I am seeing a high percentage of Google hits on my site from my single mention of it last week. So, I decided to forgo the usual studio photography routine and go ahead and publish my user review to help all of those of you obviously trying to figure out if this thing is worth all the hype.

Pros:

  • Quick access to camera as advertised.
  • New design camera mount is fairly easy to use and solid.
  • Decent construction quality of shoulder pad.

Cons:

  • Camera incessantly gravitates to an in-the-way position.
  • Difficult adjustment mechanism.
  • Camera dangles and spins at your side.
  • Chintzy connection clip.*
  • S.W.A.T. team riot gear styling.
  • Shoulder pad does not stay put.
  • Connection clip may contact LCD screen potentially causing damage.
  • Camera can not be set flat without removing mount.
  • Sharp edges on camera mount can damage surfaces, other objects, etc.
  • $50 price tag.

Conclusion:

I’m guessing by this point you can tell that I’m not a huge fan of the R-Strap. The most disappointing thing is that I had such high hopes for this product. In fact, I made a special trip back to BlackRapid’s booth and forked over $40 (PMA show special- $8 off their MSRP) just so I could start using it right away even though they promised to mail me a review unit after the show. Eager to get rid of my 12 year old Nikon branded neoprene shoulder strap, I stepped around the corner and quickly tore into the package. Immediately, I encountered difficulty with the connector clip. Then, I struggled to get the length of the strap adjusted to suit my preference. After spending a good 6-8 minutes squatting behind a trash can I was finally ready to put the R-Strap to use.

Within the first 5 minutes I was already starting to think I had made a mistake. My camera just wouldn’t stay put. It kept gravitating to the bottom of the strap which put it on my right hip with the lens sticking straight out into my arm and oncoming traffic. I tried turning and shifting my camera sideways and around to the small of my back like the BlackRapid people had shown me to do standing in their booth. But as soon as I started walking it would quickly slide back around front where I’d smack my lens against my arm or some poor soul walking by. I knocked the lens hood off my little kit lens 3 times in the first 10 minutes of use. I can’t imagine how bad it would have been had I been sporting a longer lens.

Thinking that maybe I hadn’t gotten used to this new-and-improved way of carrying my camera, I was determined to give it the ol’ college try and muddled through the rest of the day and half through the following day. Yes, the R-Strap did make it quite quick and efficient for me to get my camera to my eye and snap a picture. And, I love the fact that the strap doesn’t get all tangled up across the eyepiece like a traditional strap always seems to do. However, I just couldn’t get used to my camera dangling, twirling and knocking into everything while I was walking the show and the streets and casinos of Las Vegas.

BlackRapid seems to market their product to people on the go. From my experience the R-Strap is really only suitable for photographers in a static position that need quick access to their camera (like sports photographers standing on a sideline with three cameras around their neck). I can see how it might work better attached to the tripod collar on a larger telephoto lens- though the laws of gravity seem to suggest that it’s always going to seek the lowest point and not stay behind your back as BlackRapid suggests. As it is- combined with the geeky styling, camera dings and high price tag- I can not recommend the R-Strap. And I’m really bummed about that. Be that as it may, lot’s of people seem to swear by it so make your own choice.

Now for the details and photos: More »

Pentax BG2 battery grip user review

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The photos for this review were hastily shot with a borrowed Nikon D40. Some of the shots were taken left handed and upside down. I apologize in advance for any lackluster image quality ;-)

I have typically resisted battery grips for my DSLRs because I felt that they weren’t worth the extra bulk. There have only been a half dozen times in my the past 5 or 6 years that I actually drained a fresh battery while shooting. Even then, I just pulled a back-up battery out of my bag/pocket and kept on shooting. My K10D routinely gets 200-300 shots out of a charge so I haven’t even bothered to pick up an extra battery. After playing around with a Nikon D3 and a Canon 1D Mark III (both cameras with built-in vertical grips) I was struck by how much better these cameras felt in my hand- despite their heavier weight. In preparation for heading out to the PMA show I decided to pick up an extra battery. While I was shopping I discovered Cameta had a deal on Amazon for a BG2 battery grip + extra no-name battery for $139.95. This meant if I bought the grip I’d get the battery essentially for free. So I took the plunge. Here’s what I discovered:

Pros:

  • Vastly improves ergonomics, balance and stability of the camera.
  • Extra battery equals more shots between charges.
  • Ability to designate grip battery as the primary battery so it depletes first- leaving the in-camera battery as a back-up.
  • Redundant controls for vertical shooting.
  • Solid OEM build quality (weather sealed, too).
  • Does not require removal of in-camera battery and battery door like some grips do.
  • Nifty storage slots for extra SD card and Pentax IR remote.
  • Makes camera look more “significant”.

Cons:

  • Added weight (11oz).
  • Added bulk (may not fit in many bags).
  • Redundant controls are not placed identically to camera controls and do not function as well.
  • Tripod screw mount takes a few seconds to engage/disengage.
  • Vertical grip not as substantial as regular grip.
  • No AA battery option.

Conclusion:

Having used the grip for three days of walking around the Las Vegas Convention Center and a couple of days worth of my normal routine I can safely say that this is the best accessory I have purchased for my camera. Surprisingly, it’s not because of the extra battery life. The main advantage of the battery grip for me is the dramatic improvement in the ergonomics and handling of the camera. If you own a Pentax DSLR you owe it to yourself to pick one of these up (the K200D uses the BG3 grip). The improvements it makes are easily worth the $130. I actually believe that this is one of the only accessories that I have tried that can actually help improve the quality of your photographs by making the camera a more natural extension of your hand. If you have another brand of camera I can only assume that their battery grips will provide a similar improvement in the handling of your camera (though some are a bit more fussy to work with).

On to the pictures and details… More »

About

I'm an industrial designer and an avid hobbyist photographer. People are always asking me "how'd you do that?" So, I decided to create this site as a place to share my experiences and insights about photography, the gear and what it all means to me. I'm not sure if this site will make anyone besides myself a better photographer but I figure it's worth a try. Take a look around and let me know what you think. Thanks for stopping by!

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