ron_goodenow Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I've been thinking a lot about the dslr issue. It's complicated in mymind because for travel and most of the photography I do I amextremely happy with my Oly 5060 and associated lenses and digitalgadgets. But there are times, for example, when my conversion wideangle lens just doesn't produce the undistorted results I need,particularly when photographing architecture, or I miss having trulylong telephoto capability. Because I have a beautiful set of old Kmount lenses which I used for years on Pentax bodies I've thought ofupgrading to a Pentax dslr, but am simply not yet persuaded that theinvestment is justified. The ist D is 'only' 6 megapix, its littlecousin would require I get a whole new set of flash cards, and becauseI hang around construction sites I want a camera like the Olys, thatcleans sensors. I would also need to invest handsomely in a very wideangle lens in the 35mm equivalent of 19-20mm. Ok. How many of you have wrestled with this issue and decided to usetraditional SLR's to complement your primarily digital work? When doyou use them and how satisfied are you with scanning conventionalprints or negatives? I have a great Epson scanner that does bothbeautifully. Is firing up a fine old system a good stopgap for aperson like me? And, does anyone know if (a) Pentax will be comingout with a new top of line dslr or (b) anyone has figured out a way toput a K mount lense on an Oly digicam? Thanks much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_kapla Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Hello Ron, Yes I wrestled with this.........for about 5 minutes! When Canon came out with the DRebel, I made a mad rush to my local store and got one. Simply because I had been an OM user for a number of years, and I was aware that I could obtain an adapter to go from OM mount to EOS and still have infinity focus. The adapter is from Cameraquest.com. The supplier's name is Stephen Gandy. He may have an adapter for your K-mounts to a Pentax Digital. I was not aware that Oly made a 5060 with a lens mount. Hmmm. Anyhow, like I said, it was much of a decision for the switch to digital for me because at the time Oly did not have the E-1 or the E-300 yet. Yes, they made an adapter for the old Zuiko lenses, but the Drebel was the best buy on the market at the time. I still have the camera after about a year, and to say I am delighted is an understatement. The Zuiko lens are superb on the Rebel with the adapter. Only thing I don't have is A-focus, but that's okay because I have never used A-focus so I guess as long as my peepers hold out, I'll be okay. Bottom line is, don't wait for the latest and greatest, if you can find a way to use your K-mount lenses, get at it and enjoy the benefits of going digital. I know I have. Good luck, and happy shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conrad Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Why not just fix the distortion: http://epaperpress.com/ptlens/ Also, I would not get hung up on "only" 6MP. The only DSLR's on the market in the in the Pentax's price range with more pixels is the Canons with 8. Not that big of a difference, especially considering your kit of K-mount lenses. Also, I would not discount the *istDS just because it means you need to buy more memory cards. It's an excellent camera. In some ways better than the *istD. For lenses to meet your wide angle requirement check out the Pentax 14/2.8 DA (equiv to 21mm) or a Sigma 12-24/4.5-5.6 EX (equiv to 18-36). But yeah, if the Oly 5060 is serving you just fine with the exception of the distortion issue (which can be fixed in post) you're probably better off sticking with it given the environment. Even if you decide to get the Pentax I would say keep the Oly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron_goodenow Posted February 25, 2005 Author Share Posted February 25, 2005 Thanks. My Oly takes conversion lenses which are attached to the primary lens via a 'lens armor' adapter and step rings. I can clean a lot up with PS and so distortion is not a truly major problem. I agree about the Oly lcd and macro focusing. Tis a pain, but with some work the results can be spectacular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godfrey Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 6Mpixel is more than enough for the vast majority of print needs. I'm making very nice, saleable A3 Super (13x19 inch) prints with 6Mpixel Pentax and Canon DSLRs. Compared to the additional time, work and expense required to work with my 35mm film cameras, well, I'll take the digital camera any time. Quality is not an issue. If you already have a set of Pentax lenses that fulfill most of your requirements, an *ist D or DS body will return you sensitivity and responsiveness unavailable with any small- sensor digital camera, particularly the DS. A Pentax DA16-45/4 lens will render superb results with very little distortion and field of view equivalent to approximately a 24-25mm lens in 35mm terms, it's fairly inexpensive for its quality. If you really need the additional field of view, the DA14/2.8 is similarly high quality, albeit at a somewhat high price. In addition, the Pentax DSLRs are compact and light, excellent for traveling. A DS with three lenses (16-45, 50/1.7, 135/2.8) fits nicely into the same bag that I used for a Konica Minolta A2 plus wide lens converter. Godfrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dean_g Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I have a good friend who in addition to a D60, keeps a couple Elan 7 bodies in his bag for those reasons and for shooting slides which he's is occasionally still required to do..(but that's becoming less frequent). He uses the D60 the most often, but always has the Elans there for special needs, and gets a lot of mileage out of his lenses that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_bedell Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Ron, you're just absolutely not allowed to use your film SLRs again, no matter how reasonable doing so may seem to you. It's simply not acceptable in today's intellectual market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godfrey Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Hmm. I didn't think Ron was into selling intellectuals. Godfrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivo_miesen Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 An ultra wide-angle, albeith fisheye, for the istD and istDs allready exists, even at a decent price. The Zenitar 2.8/16 is widely available on the web. Prices in the 100 Euro/125 dollar range. Both camera's are sold with a wide-angle zoom. I've bought an istDs recently, now I'm acquiring a nice selection of K-mount lenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stwrtertbsratbs5 Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I love digital - the mad rush drove down the prices of soome wonderful film cameras. For example, a friend just purchased a truely mint Mamiya RZ with a 150mm lense for $600. Fantastic camera that produces stunning images. A high-end DSLR will depreciate that much in the first few months (not an issue if you are a pro and the DSLR improves your work flow enough to justify the cost). Why not just keep your Pentax lenses and use them on a film body? You can always buy a Pentax DSLR later. Robert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godfrey Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 <i>Zenitar 16:</i> <br> This is an excellent lens at a steal of a prince, but I doubt whether someone looking for a lens that will not produce the distortion of a Oly C5060+Converter really wants to deal with a fish-eye rendering and the software manipulation required to make a rectilinear rendering. <br><br> <i>"high end" DSLR ??? </i><br> A Pentax *istDS is hardly an expensive camera. He can get the body for $750 and add one lens, the DA16-45/4 zoom, for $430 more, use all his existing lenses, and get great quality while retaining digital camera convenience and speed. <br><br> There's nothing wrong with using his existing Pentax SLR, but it sounded to me like he really wants a digital camera solution that suits the need better. If you own Pentax lenses already, you really can't do much better than an *ist DS body. It also doesn't mean that you have to stop using your Pentax film SLR either. <br><br> Godfrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron_goodenow Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 I want to thank everyone for their advice and ideas. Getting practical about this I reviewed photos from my last shoot and found that virtually all problems could be fixed using perspective controls in my software. But, there were some low light situations where a noise free ISO 800 would have been good to have. Further, I found a strip of 35mm negatives and ran them through my scanner and was blown away by the quality. What all this means is that I will crank up the Pentax and do some more testing in some 'real world' situations. I also discovered that I can get an adapter which would allow me to use my K mount lenses on an Oly digicam, though $175 does elevate my eyebrows a bit! One comment that gives me pause is that SLR zooms may not be so good on a dslr. My favorite lenses are two Tokina ATX's that have given me brilliant results over the years. One of the problems I face, and I suspect that many of you have it as well, is that the last camera store in my area which would have some inventory to test lenses with just went out of business. So my guess is that when I go dslr it will be for the inherent quality of the camera and lenses designed for use with it. IF I'm feeling flush I can get an adapter and play with my SLR lenses. For now I am going to stick with my 5060, with the Pentax in the car for situations in which I feel its wide angle or low light capabilities may add value. That's a low cost solution. In a year or so I will doubtless go dslr if my side commercial business keeps growing. Again, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now