Manual focus lenses on K10D

Until I bought the K10D I hadn't handled a Pentax since an H1a in 1970. I am

not up on all the lens variations for sure. If I start looking at the used

manual focus SMC lenses I need to find an SMC-A lens to get an auto stop down

diaphram correct? An SMC-M lens would be a stop down manually shooter and so

would a screw mount right? Thanks

M42 will require proper stopped doewn metering, however with M lenses you set the aperture (still with the lens open) and prior to taking the shot push a button on the body and the lens will stop down for a split second, meter and hold the metered value.

Neil: That's right. If you want to use all exposure modes, you want A, F (AF), FA (AF, more electronics), FA-J (no aperture ring), D-FA (recent but full-frame with aperture ring), or DA (no aperture ring, reduced circle for smaller-than-35mm digital APS-C sensors).

 

The stop-down metering on the K10D doesn't seem to be very accurate so you prepare yourself for manual tweaks that's if the way you're going to go (with K, M, or M42 lenses).

 

-Andrew

I recommend sticking with A-series manual focus lenses or any of the later AF series lenses

(you can always focus them manually if you prefer). That way you get the benefit of all the

metering modes and options, as well as more accurate metering and greater metering range.

 

Godfrey

I always stop down, because I'm an all manual girl. I actually have never known any other way. When I switched from my vivitar v4000 to the *ist DL I just put it to manual and shot the way I always knew how. Now with the k10D I do the same. I enjoy the creative control that comes with metering, and setting the aperature to the exposure I want.

Got two issues here: Look at a recent thread regarding stop-down metering on the K10d. I've been trying to find a solution for this.

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00KapA

 

On the focus issue, I also use manual. First, those are the lenses collected over 30 years of Pentax shooting. Second, I can't abide the hunting the auto lenses seem to do. I'd rather make my own mistakes.

 

When I'm in shooting mode, I sometimes step forward or backward to adjust the focus.

 

BTW, Neil, I'm slow cleaning up an old H1a to get it back into use. My original Pentax was a Spotmatic.

Interesting. In my case, I have a K100DSuper (just got it yesterday) and I have a bunch of K lenses (including the 50/1.4 I was really looking forward to using). First thing I notice is if I use the Av mode, it takes perfect exposures no matter what the aperature ring was set to (I had set up the menu to allow the use of the aperature ring). Didn't make sense to me, since I knew the camera couldn't detect the f-stop. After taking a few photos, what was happening became apparent - the lens was not stopping down at all! I was shooting at f1.4 all the time. I also could not figure out how to get the thing to do stop down metering. So I come here.

 

Well, I finally figured it out. On the K100D, you have to use Manual. Av will not work. You fisrt have the set up the "preview mode" in the manual to "optical". Then, the preview setting on the on/off collar will stop the lens down instead of taking a preview shot. Then, looking in the viewfinder, on the right side, you see a numerical exposure indicator that tells you how many stops you're off. Set this to "0" or as close as you can by turning the aperature ring, OR by setting the shutter speed using the thumb dial at the back of the body (useful, that...). Then release the preview and press the shutter release. Quite quick, actually. But not as nice as those old moving needles in cameras such as the Ricoh XR2s, and not as fast as true auto exposure.

 

Also another weirdity. In Av mode, the lens won't stop down when you press the preview UNLESS you do as one post suggests - put some tape on the back of the lens mount to prevent the pin contacts on the body from shorting out. But still, this is useless, since the camera will base its shutter speed on the wide-open aperature, and since the lens stops down during exposure, you get a severely underexposed shot.

 

Iskandar