New with Pentax K10D

[stephanie_shaner]

I'm new to photography and have a Pentax K10D with 50mm f1.4 Pentax lens. I've been shooting on manual mode and

am trying to get that creamy blurred shallow depth of field (bokeh - is that correct?). Sometimes I do,

sometimes I don't. I've been fiddling with the front e dial and the rear e dial to adjust the shutter speed and

aperture. I'm really clueless and just keep shooting and moving and changing those settings. Can someone help

me here? One thing I've noticed is that sometimes (maybe all the time - can't remember) when I change the

shutter speed, the aperture changes automatically and vice versa. I was under the impression that when I changed

one the other didn't change. Is it supposed to be that way?

 

I'm sorry if this has been asked and answered before - I'm totally new to all this and thought you guys could

help out.

 

sincerely,

stephanie

[mcmanamey]

Hey stpehanie - welcome to the club!

 

Share your pics w/ us!!!

 

1. To get the shallow depth of field, keep your aperture as small as possible. If you keep your lens set around 1.4, your

depth of field will be about an inch or less. That will be your rear e-dial, btw. ;-D

 

2. If sometimes you change your shutter speed, and your aperture is changing, you've done what I manage to do

several times a wedding and I haven't figured out how to make myself stop yet! Your left palm or the side of a finger is

hitting your settings dial. You're bumping yourself out of full manual mode and into aperture or shutter priority. Really

frustrating, and I swear I don't know when my hand is doing this, but it's doing it w/o letting my brain know. Bad left

hand!

 

The great thing about aperture priority is: set your aperture so that you get the depth of field you want, and the camera

will take care of the shutter speed for you!

[andrewg_ny]

In most autoexposure modes (P, Av, Tv, Sv), a change to shutter speed will result in an offsetting change to aperture and vice-versa. In a manual exposure mode like 'M', they are decoupled and you get what you ask for, 'correct' or not. TAv is also a autoexposure mode, but it is the ISO (sensitivity) that is changed automatically, while shutter and aperture remain as selected.

 

As Maria said, lower aperture values and longer lenses reduce depth-of-field and increase subject isolation.

 

Also, when in P, TAv, Sv, and M, the green button will 'reset' values back to the default program line (this is slight oversimplification, but will help move you in the right direction I think).

 

As a newcomer, you may find Av mode the more straightforward way of achieving what you want. Just select a low aperture value. Use EV comp to adjust exposure.

[frygge]

Welcome Stephanie

 

That's a great setup you've got there. What Andrew and Maria said is true.

 

One more thing to have in mind is distance to your subject. The closer the subject is, the lesser Depth of Field you've got, creating blurrier back-/foreground. (Known as Bokeh). From what I've heard your lens should produce very creamy bokeh.

 

Also remember that because of the very narrow DOF at f1.4, Auto Focus may be hit or miss.

 

Good luck

 

Fredrik

[miserere_mei]

Stephanie, instead of writing a long post, I will tell you to buy a book, <a

href="http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Exposure-Photographs-Digital-Updated/dp/0817463003/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218546079&sr=8-1">Understanding

Exposure</a>, by Bryan Peterson. Right now, it's the best investment you can make to improve your photography.

It's a true beginner's book, assuming you know nothing, and filled with photographs illustrating what is being

explained. And at $16.50, you have no excuse not to buy it :-)

[alisa_stieg]

Stephanie, what Mis says is true. Bryan Peterson has written several books that are all excellent. I would also recommend two additional resources for you; Langford's Starting Photography and Digital Photography Master Class by Tom Ang. There are some excellent resources on the web as well that explain the concept of Depth of Field (commonly called DOF) to help you understand more (google Depth of Field and you'll find MANY articles!). One thing to remember is that as your aperture gets smaller in number, your lens opens wider and lets in more light. It also reduces the amount of area that will be "in focus". Think of it as vertical layers between you and your subject, and then even beyond your subject. Depending upon the DOF, you might only be able to have ONE of those layers in focus (shallow DOF, ie small number) or SEVERAL (wide DOF, ie big number).

 

Bokeh is the appearance that your lens gives the out of focus areas in your picture. Some lenses produce better bokehs than others. In fact, several of the Pentax members have been posting pictures using mirror lenses, which produce very cool bokehs. Here's an article that you might find useful; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh.

 

 

Welcome to the Pentax forum! Hope to see more of you!

Lisa

[abe_hollander]

I'm going to also recommend the Exposure book that Miserere (my long lost brother) mentioned. I bought it in May, and just opened it this past weekend, and it's already helpful (can't imagine where I'd be now, if I opened the book in May...).

 

Stephanie, I'm only a "couple chapters" ahead of you in the learning curve - so to speak, so let us know if you find the book helpful too.

[stephanie_shaner]

I posted a reply but it didn't seem to go through. I forgot to confirm the message darn it!

 

Thank you thank you for all your responses. I've purchased the book suggestions and made notes. I figured out

my problem - I was reading the mode dial wrong - duh! I told you'll that I was clueless, but I'm learning a

little at a time. I appreciate all the advice and look forward to learning more from you'll. Hopefully soon

I'll learn to post pictures on the forum.

 

stephanie

[alisa_stieg]

Welcome to the "duh" club! We all have these moments! They are great teachers! LOL! I still keep forgetting to adjust my ISO from one setting to the other! Talk about a duh!!!

 

Lisa

[stephanie_shaner]

Alisa, It's funny but tonight I was trying to adjust the settings for my daughter's birthday cake pictures and my light meter (I think that's what it is) was just NOT moving with anything I did. Everyone was getting impatient and finally my oldest son, a teenager, says "Mom, don't you need to take that cap off?" Duh, once again. I had to just laugh.

[mcmanamey]

ok - 1) I want an investigation into my disappearing film cannisters! Why am I down to 1?????? (Where's Doug

Stemke???)

 

I've been shooting w/ an SLR for nearly 13 years now, although after we got our Lumix, it was rarely, I'll admit. I've been

shooting the K10 for 1 year now (2 wedding seasons). I S T I L L put the darn thing up to my face & wonder where

everybody went!!!! (always a good one when taking group formals).

 

Stephanie - blame it on the excitement of the birthday. It'll fly. also helps to use the light meter view you'll find in the

camera, as before you even notice it's not moving, you WILL notice the big black screen staring you in the face. Well,

unless the party's a really *really* good one, anyway.....

 

Alisa - here's our best iso DUR!!! When we're shooting together, I generally play assistant (hold the reflector, pick the

location, and set people into their poses). So we're shooting engagement pics for our tanzanian couple (africa) outside,

full sun at the city gardens. Matt was having a heck of a time getting the camera to not overexpose the background

terribly while keeping their faces nice & well-toned. It was right after he snapped nearly the last pic of the day when he

realized he'd been shooting at 1600. Talk about embarassing!

[musings]

To Maria, I have noticed that I have inadvertently bumped the exposure dial with my left hand/fingers several times. It doesn't help that I have large hands, either. One remedy I have found -- and highly recommend -- is the battery grip. Since the BG gives the camera more "beef" and better handholding, I am now able to keep my left hand either near the bottom of the pairing (and away from the dial) or under the zoom ring on the lenses. I am *very* happy with the BG -- if you don't have one, please treat yourself to one...you won't be disappointed!

 

Cheers, Jeff

[mcmanamey]

yup. got the BG. I hold the camera by the lens. If there's a zoom on there (often) I hold the camera w/ my left hand on

the zoom ring (three fingers in the air. why??????) Weight of the camera rests on my right palm nearly on my wrist.

Makes for a sore wrist after a 12hr wedding day. I really gotta change my grip.