ibargureni

<p>Here are my two architectural photos this week, experimenting with perspective correction in Gimp...</p>

<p><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2689/4035035029_919a3d964c_o.jpg" alt="" /><br>

K20d @ ISO100. DA 55-300 @ 135mm. f/6,7 - 1/250s</p>

<p><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3511/4035789552_791313cfb5_o.jpg" alt="" width="700" height="435" /><br>

K20d @ ISO100. DA 55-300 @ 55mm. f/4,5 - 1/350s</p>

<p>John, by any chance, do you know any software that can mark / unmark bad blocks in flash memory cards? I know scandisk (or chkdsk or whatever it's called now) does mark bad blocks, but what about unmarking? Now that you talk about bad blocks, I think something like that could have happened to my 4gb card.<br>

Antoni, regarding card models, is there a real reliability difference between regular Sandisk cards and Ultra II (or Extreme III, IV) cards? I'm aware the higher end cards do have higher speeds and perform better in extreme conditions, but are the regular ones known to fail more?<br>

As for image recovery, I have successfully used TestDisk (free, btw) in a number of cases and it worked flawlessly. Moreover, it is available for Windows and Linux.</p>

<p>Michael, as you said, each medium has its limits. There seems to be some kind of "issue" with RF waves in digital images. Moreover, digital information can be lost as a result of file corruption sometimes. However, film also has its limits. As you say, X-Ray scanners have always been problematic and film can't be stored for a long time undeveloped, whereas digital memory cards can hold the images a lot longer.<br>

They key is to know each medium's limits, as it has always been.</p>

<p>So SD cards are quite fragile then... I'll try to handle them with more care from now on... just in case.</p>

<p>I once had a really bad experience with a 4gb CF card in my Nikon d70s. I shot 3gb of photos in other cards and then I started using that 4gb card. It worked perfectly and I stored around 1gb of photos there. This was a trip to Stockholm, and I didn't have any computer there. When I got home, I put the cards (including the 4gb one) in the card reader and reviewed all the photos but didn't copy them to the computer due to time constraints. Later that day I started copying my photos to the computer, but the 4Gb card couldn't be read. I tried all possible ways of recovering them (software, formatting, inserting it into the camera, different card readers, etc.) but it wasn't possible. At one point I managed to make the card work with 3Gb capacity (quite strange, by the way) and from that moment the card would act as if it were a 3Gb card, and the images were in the missing 1Gb :-((. Needless to say that card has been trashed. Well, in fact I have stored it just in case I came across a way of recovering the images contained in it one day...</p>

<p>With this experience, I learned two things. First of all, It's worthwile to buy known brand cards, as even if they certainly can fail, in the cases I found defective cards, the images could be recovered quite easily with recovery software. And secondly, having separate cards (and not very high capacity on them) is really interesting, even if they need to be changed more often, carrying 8, 16, 32 or even mor Gb of photos in just one card is quite dangerous. In another trip I got my camera stolen, with the card inside it, of course, but as it was the last day of the trip and I had shot with other cards, I had a bunch of photos remaining that were "safe and sound". Now, with my k20d, I use 3 4Gb Sandisk cards, and I'm quite happy with them.</p>

<p>Well, thanks for reading my "brick" and sorry for the bit of "off topic".</p>

<p>Thanks for the replies.<br>

John, the effect was also visible in the RAW files (they were shot in both formats, RAW+JPG), but I haven't been able to reproduce this effect in any other situation. In fact, it happened in just two images shot within maybe two seconds (yes,this kind of "burst" is possible even with the k20d, hehehe).<br>

Robert, I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking of external interferences. The fact is that that place was probably quite saturated of radio frequence waves, so if external interference could cause this kinds of effects, this place would be the perfect place to experience them.<br>

Javier, if this happened more regularly, I would sure send it back (it's just 2 weeks old...), but as this hasn't happened any more in the aproximately 1000 shots I've done so far and as I am not able to reproduce it, I will wait a bit before blaming the camera for this. However, I'll search for these "waves" in the photos I take from now on.<br>

Thanks for the answers and more ideas are welcome, of course!</p>

<p>Hi, everybody,<br>

I have been sooting and learning my new K20d these last weeks, and I'm really enjoying it so far. I have received my Tamron 17-50 today, so will be using it extensively in the following weeks...<br>

However, the last weekend I found something strange in two of my photos. A strange wave pattern was clearly visible in two of the photos taken in daylight at not very high ISO (ISO 400). It can be seen at 100% in the attached photo, and after two images with this pattern, it didn't appear again in any of the photos (the conditions were similar for the ongoing shots), nor have I found it in the previous photos (I have done around 1000 shots so far). At first I thought it could be owing to moiré effects, but it is clearly shown all around the image, so it isn't moiré. The photo I uploaded is from the jpg straight out of the camera, but the PEF shows the same effect (I shot PEF+jpg).<br>

It didn't bother me extremely, but I am curious to know if it happened before or if it is a common issue with this camera as I hadn't read about it before. If it didn't appear before, my thoughts were it could be induced by some kind of radio interference, as there were a high amount of policemen with their motorbikes around as well as many cars with their respective radio transmitters (it was a cycling race).<br>

Here is a 100% crop of the photo:<br>

Pentax k20d, DA18-55@55mm, f/5,6, 1/250 sec, ISO 400<br>

<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2424/3695331531_91db5bdcd8_o.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Well, here is my first POW. There was a Citroën 2CV meeting in a hotel in front of my house, quite interesting that all of them were yellow!<br>

Pentax k20d - DA18-55. Just modified curves<br>

<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2573/3664031034_0f009d54a4_b.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>[sorry did a repost...]</p>

<p>Thanks for the initial howto, Michael! I have already read most of the user manual, so I know the theory quite well. I am trying to familiarize with the controls, but they seem to be intuitive. By the way, I find the use of the Green button very useful in most of its uses.</p>

<p>Somanna, my K20d came with firmware 1.01, so I upgraded it to version 1.03 (I found it really easy to upgrade).</p>

<p>I have two exams next week, so I'll show you how my desktop looks as a sample photo for now...<br>

<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3645/3657515405_67fae84ee0.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>And my focus alignment "set-up".... (yes I'm still a student....)<br>

<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3653/3657519393_f1517afe27.jpg" alt="" /></p>

 

<p>Hi again!<br>

Well my new kit has just arrived and I am already playing with it (the Tamron hasn't arrived yet). So far, I like the overall handling of the lenses and the body. The 18-55 does seem quite well constructed for a kit lens. The 55-300 seems to be a good performer (even if I don't have other lenses in this range to compare it with). I'll post some images when I take some interesting photos with the gear (so far, all the images are quite boring...).</p>

<p>Regarding focusing, I haven't tried high end Canikon products, but I can compare this with the Nikon d70s and Olympus e500, and I can tell you it isn't any slower. I find the focusing action quite fast actually. The 55-300 does hunt in some situations in the longer end and I find the focus marking in the viewfinder is a bit smaller than the real sensor. I mean, it can autofocus in a point a bit outer from the marks, but can be easily handled.</p>

<p>One thing I wanted to try with this body was the fps in continuous shooting. I don't use this mode very often, but I was curious as a number of people is quite unsatisfied with this point. After trying it, I would say it's as fast as I would ever need, and I loved the deep buffer, as I the 4 raw shot buffer of my d70s did sometimes limit my shots (more than the fps, indeed).</p>

<p>I have also tried some high iso shots, and I've found even iso 6400 could serve me in some extreme situations. I find it could be similar to iso 1600 in my d70s and e500, and I did use these values in extreme situations. I think I'll like this camera with the Tamron combo for low light!!!!</p>

<p>I have navigated through all the menus (I have already updated to firmware 1.03) and I think I've set up the camera more or less to my needs. Something I was shocked with was the sensor cleaning vibration system.... what a vibration! My Olympus does also have a similar system, but it is just a kind of minimal buzzz sound. In this camera, it actually vibrates!</p>

<p>I have found the viewfinder quite good to even manual focus, and the quite limited LiveView system does allow precise manual focusing when the light isn't very low.</p>

<p>Well, now I think I'll start making questions as they arise... hehehe. Thanks for reading my brick!</p>

<p>Ok, I'll try it thoroughly... when it arrives! I think it will arrive in around 2-3 days at most, since it has already been received by the shipping company and it is a trustworthy company at least in Spain (SEUR).</p>

<p>I'll make you know my first impressions on the kit.</p>

<p>Hi, marc!<br>

I have been looking at prices over the internet around different webpages. Buying overseas has, in my opinion, two main "problems". When the goods arrive, it is quite uncertain if they will be stopped in the customs office. I once bought a lens from b&h and the shipment was incredibly slow due to that reason, and I had to pay around 40€ for a 120€ piece of equipment. It was still cheap comparing with the prices over here, but it gave me something to think about. Moreover, I don't know how the warranty works in such cases. If the equipment needs to be shipped back to its original country it could be quite expensive.</p>

<p>Nevertheless, I compared the prices from quite a lot of places, and after balancing their pros and cons, I finally bought the kit (k20d + 18-55 II + 55-300) from Pixmania Spain over the internet (they have a shop in Barcelona, by the way) for 970€ (shipment included). The Tamron 17-50 was bought from Amazon.fr, where it cost me 370€ (ship. incl.). It was a bit cheaper if I bought everything from amazon.com (even if it didn't include the 18-55 kit lens), but if customs stopped the package (quite likely, it being a moderately big pack) the economical advantage would have been gone, and the other cons (warranty, returning policy, etc.) would still be there. Curiously, it wasn't that much cheaper buying from e-bay (with which I have quite a lot of experience).</p>

<p>Well, I think you are correct concerning the Nikon / Canon service for professionals. It seems to be more suited for that segment but, personally, I don't fit that segment, and if I happened to enter there, I would have to reconsider my entire system anyway.</p>

<p>I also considered the D200 but, as you noted, it is still quite expensive for that relatively old camera. Moreover, I feel the overall lens lens offering is quite expensive considering you don't get image stabilization with most of them. But I won't comment on Pentax optics before trying the lenses, of course ;).</p>

<p>Orlando, I read that somewhere before, but I didn't know about the compatibility of that precise lens! That's really awesome, as I love the overal rendering of that lens. When I try my Nikon lenses I'll make you know about their "mountability".</p>

<p>Concerning the NR at higher ISOs, I agree with you, Michael, in that Pentax follows another track delivering crisper images but with more noise. In fact, in the test photos in dpreview comparing the k20d side by side with the d90 I can see way more detail in the k20d shots even at 3200 and 6400. I feel this approach is more conservative as applying noise reduction in post process is quite easy nowadays.</p>

<p>I am sure the k7 will be an excellent camera, but I don't like buying cameras immediately after they are launched. It's quite common to find design or software issues in the first batchs, which will have to be solved eventually, and the price of the new gear is always a bit overpriced at first. However, looking at the specs and previews of the camera, I feel it could be the "professional" camera that some people claim the k20d shoud have been. It looks like the so much expected e3 in the Olympus 4/3 system.</p>

<p>Well, I have already filled my LBA for now, so I'll try to restore the health of my bank account again ;) and when that happens I'll start looking at primes. I think I have contributed enough to solve the financial crisis for the moment! hehehe.</p>

<p>By the way, I already answered your mail Miserere.</p>

<p>Hmmm, I see there is an adquisition syndrome in this world too, there is something similar in the Nikon community, called NAS (Nikon Adquisition Syndromme). In the end we all are humans...</p>

<p>Robert, I understand that if you are investing a high amount of money in a system, as some professionals do, you should think about the far future of the system, but bearing in mind that there are tons of current and old lenses available I don't think it's that "dangerous" to start a Pentax system. I would be more concerned if the system would have started recently, as do 4/3 and m4/3 systems. I know Pentax has been bought by Hoya, but Ferrari also was bought by Fiat, and it continues manufacturing incredible cars.</p>

<p>I hope I'll be able to try that kit lens in arond a week... I'm already reading the user manual of the k20d, so that I am prepared when it comes! hehehe.</p>

<p>Well, I hope my unit of the Tamron lense performs well.... I'll try to adjust the focus for it in case it doesn't work correctly out-of-the-box.</p>

<p>I have already placed the order and it shoud arrive in around a week. Finally, you (evil people, by the way ;)) convinced me and I ordered the Pentax 55-300. In fact, I ordered a kit containing the K20d + 18-55 + 55-300 and the Tamron 17-50, as the price difference was somewhere around 40-50€ and I could buy the kit in a spanish store, so it should be easier to handle problems if they arise. It's curious that it's more expensive to buy the K20d + 55-300 separately than a kit containing both lenses + the 18-55. I will never understand marketing... Moreover, I thought it would be nice to have that small lense "just in case".</p>

<p>Now I'm waiting the delivery impaciently!</p>

<p>Hi, Justin. I agree with you in the quality of the d70s. I have been happy with it and I would continue with it if it wouldn't have been stolen... I used the high speed flash sync for some shots and it is really "real". The built-in flash and the original Nikon flashes work as far as 1/500sec (which is pretty high by itself), but due to its mechanical/electronical shutter system all the speeds (up to the 1/8000sec limit) can sync with external flashes, not needing the special FP modes other higher end flashes/bodies use. However, for those shots I needed to fire the flash at its full power for quite close subjects, so I suppose powerful flashes would be needed for more distant shots. That's a neat hidden feature of that camera.</p>

<p>Thanks for all the explanations about Pentax abbreviations, Rose, It's quite interesting to know the meaning of them. I'll investigate about these primes so that when I have saved saved some money again I can make the right decission... I'll try to put my hand on the correct colour circle! hehehe.</p>

<p>I have also read good reviews about the DA 16-45 f/4, but I preffer to have the f2.8 aperture for thos low light situations. Concerning the 55-300.... I see lots of people recommending it... The Sigma 18-50 f/2.8 also seems interesting, but after reading different reviews it seems that it isn't so good wide open, even if the build quality seems to be better than the Tamron. However, I preffer to have good optical performance for the moment (I try to treat well my equipment...).</p>

<p>Well, Catalonians and Basques are different people, but we have some things in common. As a matter of a fact, my mother is learning Catalan just for the pleasure of knowing it... And, by the way, most of us are naturally polyglots, as we speak Basque and Spanish, at least ;). I was mentioning Basque singers, but there are quite a lot Catalonian equivalent singers,as Joan Manuel Serrat, Luis Llach, and so on.</p>

<p>Well returning to the Pentax world (this thread is becomming quite off topic, by the way :-))), thanks for the information about the robustness of your camera, Martin, this shows the good construction of Pentax bodies, indeed.</p>

<p>Bob, thanks for the link, I didn't know that site, I think I'll learn a lot there!</p>

<p>Somanna, I see what you mean. When I had my d70s, I have always looked at the higher or newer models, but I am trying to learn to be satisfied with whatever I have or can have, even if it is difficult! Damn marketing! Well, it's always nice to have a higher target, isn't it?</p>

<p>So you know our cheeses, Michael! They are really good, I eat a piece of cheese every day and I don't even get bored... hmmmm. We could do a food interchange somday! hehehe.</p>

<p>Concerning the primes, I always have liked them (I have a 50mm f1.8, 24mm f2.5 and a 105mm f2.5 for Nikon...), so I think I could use some of those Pentax lenses someday.</p>

<p>Hey, thanks for all the replies! This forum is really active!<br>

Well, I see we basques are a bit known over the world... nice! hehehe. Rose, that boy could have done a career in music, as we have quite a lot of famous (for us, obviously) folk singers singing their own songs while playing the guitar (Benito Lertxundi, Mikel Laboa, Xabier Lete, etc.). I am quite young (I'm 23 years old), but those singers are still famous.</p>

<p>Returning to our subject, I have been trying a k20d this afternoon and I've liked the feel and simpleness of the controls. I am quite convinced on this body... I see the K7 seems a nicer body, but I need a camera now, and it'll be a long time till it comes close to my budget, so I feel the k20d meets my demands, as I don't soot sports frequently, so AF speed isn't that critical. Regarding the 55-300, I'll see if I can stretch my budget... I'll see I'll see.</p>

<p>I see I'll have to start studying the kinds of lenses Pentax has made over the years in order to know their characteristics (after learning all the Nikon acronyms.... Ai, AiS, AF-D, AF-S, VR, and so on). No problem, I like history, hehehe.</p>

<p>Thanks and more comments are really welcome, of course!</p>