K-5II & Da*300 goes for a walk.

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

Around my local patch, very warm so had to get out early before the heat gets to much.

--
Alan.
It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.
Mark Twain

eenymac · Jul 17, 2013

I think you are liking that DA*300mm as much as I am.

The butterfly shots are so colourful and that last shot of the boat had me wishing I was sitting there with my feet in that cooling water!

lonewolf1 · Jul 17, 2013

Picked up a used one last week (Wish I could afford new!)

Good close focus, good sharpness, reasonable bokeh, what's not to like?

All hand held and wide open, with the new K5IIs at a local bit of wild meadow, very early this morning

--
www.exaggeratedperspectives.com

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

eenymac said:
eenymac wrote:

I think you are liking that DA*300mm as much as I am.

The butterfly shots are so colourful and that last shot of the boat had me wishing I was sitting there with my feet in that cooling water!

Yes me to, i had enough after 1 hour as the heat was reflecting a bit, and i was feeling i had enough. Yes loving the Da*300, i did notice a dust bunny, unlike my other body yesterday i did a wet clean several times to get the gunk off it, still got some left even after the arctic butterfly intervention.

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

lonewolf1 said:
lonewolf1 wrote:

Picked up a used one last week (Wish I could afford new!)

Good close focus, good sharpness, reasonable bokeh, what's not to like?

All hand held and wide open, with the new K5IIs at a local bit of wild meadow, very early this morning

Nice images, no Exif though.

lonewolf1 said:
--
www.exaggeratedperspectives.com

--
Alan.
It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.
Mark Twain

lonewolf1 · Jul 17, 2013

Does Light room automatically strip it out? To be honest, I've never looked at the EXIF on a posted picture in my life before?

Cheers Jules...

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

lonewolf1 said:
lonewolf1 wrote:

Does Light room automatically strip it out? To be honest, I've never looked at the EXIF on a posted picture in my life before?

Cheers Jules...

I dont know about lighroom, but export from flikre and all Exif is there.

Teufel Hunden · Jul 17, 2013

Your making me want to pick up that DA*300! Great series that boat shot was amazing i wanted to be there. Thanks for sharing

DD

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

Teufel Hunden said:
Teufel Hunden wrote:

Your making me want to pick up that DA*300! Great series that boat shot was amazing i wanted to be there. Thanks for sharing

Cheers, im sure if you did get it, you would be blown away like me, i had to sell a few things to fund it, but it was worth it.

Teufel Hunden said:
DD

Bob Corson · Jul 17, 2013

ASR45 said:
ASR45 wrote:

Around my local patch, very warm so had to get out early before the heat gets to much.

--

A very nice walk indeed. Lovely shots.

Very warm here too and I also went out for a walk except that it was 18 holes of golf. I looked and felt like I had been thrown into a lake or something . . . just soaked and exhausted. Nearly impossible to keep hydrated under those conditions. I should have started at 600 AM instead of 7:30 but something tells me it wouldn't have been much better

Keep showing us those DA* 300 shots . . .but don't forget the DA* 60-250 . . .you might hurt its feelings!

Bob Corson
To truly see one must open their mind as well as their eyes

Jenna B · Jul 17, 2013

Some real beauts in there! Love the butterflies, the detail is fantastic! Thanks for sharing

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

Bob Corson said:
Bob Corson wrote:

Bob Corson said:

ASR45 wrote:

Around my local patch, very warm so had to get out early before the heat gets to much.

--

Click to expand...

A very nice walk indeed. Lovely shots.

Very warm here too and I also went out for a walk except that it was 18 holes of golf. I looked and felt like I had been thrown into a lake or something . . . just soaked and exhausted. Nearly impossible to keep hydrated under those conditions. I should have started at 600 AM instead of 7:30 but something tells me it wouldn't have been much better

Keep showing us those DA* 300 shots . . .but don't forget the DA* 60-250 . . .you might hurt its feelings!

Yes decisions, Decisions Lol.

Bob Corson said:
Bob Corson
To truly see one must open their mind as well as their eyes

ASR45 · Jul 17, 2013

Jenna B said:
Jenna B wrote:

Some real beauts in there! Love the butterflies, the detail is fantastic! Thanks for sharing

Thanks Jenna.

leopold · Jul 18, 2013

Yes, nice series , that DA*300 really look like a great lens.... sometimes i miss my FA*300/4.5 .

ASR45 · Jul 18, 2013

leopold said:
leopold wrote:

Yes, nice series , that DA*300 really look like a great lens.... sometimes i miss my FA*300/4.5 .

Cheers mate, cannot wait to get the reserve.

britcam · Jul 18, 2013

leopold said:
Yes, nice series , that DA*300 really look like a great lens.... sometimes i miss my FA*300/4.5 .

brandrx · Jul 18, 2013

britcam said:
britcam wrote:

britcam said:

Yes, nice series , that DA*300 really look like a great lens.... sometimes i miss my FA*300/4.5 .

Click to expand...

Having had the FA 300mm f4.5, leaving aside price, would you be inclined to go that route again, or switch to the DA?

From what I read, the DA has a marginally improved IQ but in practical use not noticeable. On the other hand the lighter weight & compact size of the FA makes a compelling case for me (means I'm a lot more likely to take it out with me ... )

Hi britcam,

I have the F*300/4.5, FA*300/4.5, and the DA*300/4 lenses. I also have the Sigma 400mm f5.6 APO Tele-macro, and the Pentax FA*400/5.6 lenses. So, keeping in mind that I think the DA*300/4 is the very best 300mm lens, if I didn't already own those lenses that I listed, then I would opt for the FA*300/4.5 because it can be used very effectuivly with a 1.4X teleconverter to reach a very good quality 420mm lens. It can also be used for catch-in-focusing (focus trapping) wheras the F*300/4.5 cannot. Note: IMO the DA*300mm f4 lens does not work worth a damn with any 1.4X teleconverter. However, that might change if Pentax produces the long promised 1.4X teleconverter. Also note that if you like to shoot from a tripod and are not concerned with focus trapping then the F*300/4.5 lens has a removable tripod mount and is lighter weight than the FA*300/4.5 lens.

Just my two cents worth.

Cheers.

Ron

britcam · Jul 18, 2013

The converter issue is indeed a strong point in favour of the FA. I thought long & hard before getting my 60-250, and superb lens as it is for many subjects, it is not long enough for many of the sights & subjects I see around the coastal woodlands and estuaries of S Brittany.

Equally, the K5IIs ISO performance is so good that the marginally slower FA would seem to make no difference apart from saving weight. Amazon have recently dropped the price of the DA 300, but nevertheless I am increasingly being drawn to the FA, in combination with a 1.4x TC. In your experience, which make of TC would you advise? Many seem to use Kenko ...

Thanks for the very helpful response.

brandrx · Jul 18, 2013

britcam said:
britcam wrote:

The converter issue is indeed a strong point in favour of the FA. I thought long & hard before getting my 60-250, and superb lens as it is for many subjects, it is not long enough for many of the sights & subjects I see around the coastal woodlands and estuaries of S Brittany.

Equally, the K5IIs ISO performance is so good that the marginally slower FA would seem to make no difference apart from saving weight. Amazon have recently dropped the price of the DA 300, but nevertheless I am increasingly being drawn to the FA, in combination with a 1.4x TC. In your experience, which make of TC would you advise? Many seem to use Kenko ...

I use the Tamron-F 1.4X PZ_Af, Kenko 1.5X PZ_Af, and Vivitar Series 1 1.4X teleconverters. I really cannot tell any difference between the Tamron 1.4X and the Kenko 1.5X. Both the Tamron and Kenko are hard to find and are very, very expensive these days, usually over US $200 on ebay. The Vivitar I bought new for US $99 from BHPhotovideo.com. IMO it is so very close to the Tamron and Kenko that you probably cannot tell much difference unless you look very close. The Tamron and Kenko TC's will drive SDM, HSM, and screwdrive lenses. The Vivitar is only for screwdrive. The Vivitar can also be found on ebay. However, be aware that some sellers list it as being able to drive SDM. It does not drive SDM.

Before forum member Greyser bought his Sigma 500mm f4.5 lens he mostly used the FA*300/4.5 with the Tamron-F 1.4X PZ_Af teleconverter and produced some very stunning images.

I believe that forum member MightyMike has either a Tamron 1.4x or Kenko 1.5X for sale but I am not absolutely sure. Send him a PM if you are interested.

Cheers.

Ron

--
Ron - 'We don't have time to go take pics this afternoon Carl.'
Carl - 'What do you mean? It will only take 1/1000s.'
'Keep your eyes looking forward. However, glance back now and then to see where you've come from. It will put a smile on your face.' ~ brandrx

K-5II & Da*300 goes for a walk.

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