25 June 2008

Getting the Flagship Pentax- K20D

Ok, time to fess up. I got the new K20D.
But that meant letting go of the K10D and the K100D Super that I had. On the face of it, it doesn't seem logical to let go a camera that garnered no less than 6 major photographic awards plus the K100D Super is probably the best 6 megapixel DSLR in terms of picture quality. After all both were serving me well enough.


DFA 100mm Macro

But wait! The K20D while so much like the K10D in shape and controls, is simply a different camera altogether. The K10D on paper had a lot of things going for it but it never was refined enough. The niggling back focusing issues with certain lenses, so-so noise levels at higher ISOs just detract a little from what is still a fine camera.


Sigma 90mm Macro

The K20D's strongest trump card is the simply stunning 14.6 megapixel CMOS sensor. It's this sensor that got me to sit up and decide that there was a qualitative improvement in image quality. Much thought has gone into improving the previous camera. The camera does many things better: focus, white balance, color rendition, plus user defined focus adjustment and Live View to name but just a few. I'm continually excited to use this camera and I'll be posting up more photos just as soon as I get through the instruction manual and explore the rich features of the current flagship from Pentax.

24 June 2008

Emu Up Close



An emu from the archives.

18 June 2008

Get the Point



Toying around with the K100D Super and a Sigma 28mm manual focus lens mated with a Pentax Auto Extension Tube K.

17 June 2008

Rides Up Close


K100D FA 100-300mm

Went through my images and almost forgot that I had taken a couple of snaps of some nice wheels, here a Yamaha bike, a Mini Cooper S and a Toyota MR-S.

I took the image of the bike on a very overcast day outside my place. Just as I walked away I turned around to get a last look and was rewarded with a nice image of the shiny engine in my mind. A couple of steps back and I knew I had the shot I wanted.


K10D DFA 100mm Macro

As I walked back to my car after a party, I was immediately drawn to the shades of fiery red of the Toyota. The white reverse lights stood out as I focused up close.


K100D Super F 35-70mm

This was a chance shot as I was shooting outside a church and had just stopped shooting. The reflected buildings off the shiny bonnet of the Mini adds a sense of perspective to the shot. Perhaps not the best car shot but I like it.

16 June 2008

Where's Everybody?



Came across this young boy playing at the water fountains. All his friends had gone somewhere else. K100D Super with DA 50-200mm.

15 June 2008

White Flowers



Recently on one my my trips to meet a client, I passed a new office building that had a pretty big landscaped area. What caught my eye was the large bed of white flowers which were starting to bloom but sadly I didn't carry a camera. Fortunately I had a chance to pass by the building a few days later and took just a few minutes to shoot with the K100D Super using the small and handy DA 50-200mm telephoto zoom.





08 June 2008

Macro Mix



One of the reasons why I like and have several macro lenses is the unique ability to capture very small and tiny subjects. The ones that we often overlook or small details that we miss. The versatility of being to capture subjects near or far gives the macro lens a unique way of seeing the world around us.



In my view the subject isolation and narrow depth of field at close focus lend a magical photographic perspective that separates colour and shape and brings out the details that we all too often miss with the naked eye.



Where I live is an urban tropical jungle. There are no nice rolling meadows, no breathtaking mountains nor the variety offered by the change of the seasons. It's lush tropical greenery for the most part. So from time to time it's a treat to shoot flowers and plants at the macro level.



These were taken this year with the DFA 100mm f/2.8 Macro. Thanks to the Pentax in-body Shake Reduction, the hand held shots are acceptably sharp. All shot with available light.