Extended Trial!

Pentax UK have very kindly allowed me to extend the trial indefinitely, so the blog will live on. I have recently purchased the other kit lens for the K-7 (18-55 f3.5/5.6 DA AL WR, so I can now cover the whole range from 18 to 200. I'll be trying out the new lens in the next couple of days and will post a quick report. I now have 50mm covered by 4 lenses so a little comparison will be fun. The lenses are: the 18-55 just bought, the original 50-200 DA WR that came with the camera, a 50mm SMC Pentax-A f1.7 and the old Sigma 35-135 f3.5/4.5.

I intend to use the K-7 as the basis of a DSLR video rig, so more on that later.

The Last Gig?

Last year I was hoping the first Fotoboat outing for the Pentax would be the Bloody Mary, at Queen Mary Sailing Club, but I was prevented from getting there from Devon by the snowy weather. This year there was no such problem. The temperature was almost into double figures, there was a good breeze and the rain held off. At the end of the event we even had some low winter sunshine.

You can see a summary of my experience with the Pentax in the post before this one. I think it's now time to find the box and get in touch with Pentax.

The Bottom Line

I've had the camera for about a year now, so it's a good time for a summing-up:

The figures:

• Events attended: 20+
• Frames shot: 5-6,000
• Published images: (local and yachting press): 31
• Total images sold (retail and editorial): 75

The good points:

• Rugged, weather-sealed construction and compact size.
• Adequate image quality under most conditions.
• Acceptable burst speed and AF performance.
• Very flexible to set-up and customise via menus.
• Good use of legacy lenses eg 50mm f1.7.

Not so good points:

• Noisy images at ISO 400 and above.
• Some controls can be fiddly to use and too easy to operate accidentally.
• Video is very hard to use for a spectacle wearer; cannot focus on the subject and the viewfinder (rear LCD screen) at the same time although that will be the same for all DSLRs, not just the K-7.

My main regret is that I haven’t had the chance to use the K-7 with some good Pentax glass, like the 300mm F4, which is also weather sealed. The sharpest lens I have used on the K-7 has to be the SMC 50mm f1.7 which came with my old K-1000 about 30 years ago!

And the bottom line –

If I was starting from scratch in this field of work, without the current investment in Canon equipment (especially lenses) would I consider the K-7? Certainly, although by now I would be more likely to be looking at a K-5.

An Indoor Job

A couple of weeks ago I was asked by a friend who plays in a local jazz quartet (Take 4 - http://www.take4jazz.com/Take_4/Welcome.html) if I would take a few shots of a gig in a local put, for use on a new CD sleeve. The lighting was pretty grim and it was a very cluttered environment, so I concentrated on close-ups, using the K-7 on ISO 1600 with the old 50mm f1.7 lens. This is the shot they used on the CD cover.

On the Kayak Again - and a Pavlova

The weather on Sunday was perfect for another outing on the Kayak, on the Exe estuary. We were also on neap tides so not too much current to worry about. Plus, Exe Sailing Club had a Sunday afternoon race so there was plenty of subject matter. You can see some of the results on the club website at http://www.exe-sailing-club.org/.

But the picture of the day was taken after racing. Club member Tony Brewster had pledged during a Help for Heroes fundraising evening back in March to have a pavlova made for post-racing tea. Yesterday the plan finally came together and the pavlova, made by Sandra Sydenham, was fantastic! I just managed to get a shot of it before the hordes scoffed the lot. It was in the unlit kitchen, shot at 1/8 sec so I guess the anti-shake was working!

The on/off switch is now so stiff I prefer to keep the camera switched on all the time just in case it seizes up completely.

A Pentax-only Mission

Last week from Thursday to Sunday, Exe Sailing Club (my club) hosted the national championships for the RS500 and 800 classes. On the first three days I shot with the usual combination of Canon and Pentax and you can see the results on the Fotoboat website. On the last day, I was rostered for duty as safety boat crew, so I only took the Pentax, so as to be best prepared to do rescuing if needed. It was a blustery day with quite big waves, but very little sunlight. Most of the time the camera was on ISO 400.

There were plenty of opportunities for photos as boats came past us going upwind, but looking at the PC screen that evening I was disappointed by the number of dud shots. I don't know if it's the speed of the AF, or the lack of contrast making life difficult for the AF, but many of the shots were a good deal less sharp than I know the camera is capable of producing. The images here show one which I accepted for the website and one I rejected. I think you will be able to tell which is which.

Perfect Conditions

When the conditions are right, there are few better sailing venues than Lyme Regis. Last week the 505 class held their national championships there, blessed by four days of great breezes, building waves and not a little sunshine. I was there on the Friday and enjoyed one of the best day's shooting this year. I was using the usual setup - Canon 40D with 70-200 f4L plus 1.4x extender and 400 f5.6L, and the Pentax K-7 with 50-200 DA WR.

The best shots of the day were undoubtedly taken with the Canon, particularly the ones shot with the 400mm lens, but some respectable results from the Pentax. I would love to have the opportunity to use this camera with some better quality glass!

The on-off switch has now become very stiff through salt water ingress. I expect (hope?) the seals are keeping it out of the camera's vitals, but in places where it gets trapped it must be doing some harm.