Taronga Zoo, Sydney - with Jimbob and Ron. Images in reply

[Dave]

Hi Mousehill,

Although you directed your question regarding OOF rendering with the new DA 300 f4 lens vs. some of the FA lenses to Lance ( Fa lenses we've known to love and use). I cannot speak directly for Lance although I did notice a few areas where I couldn't tell if it was the rendering or he may have shot through some "chicken wire or netting of some sort. I've just begun some comparitive tests of the F* 300 f4.5 vs. the DA 300 f4 and although they were cut short by very inclement weather at the moment, I did notice a few instances where the OOF renderings (wide open) with the DA 300 f4 were quite on par or as pleasing as the F* 300 f4.5..but the lighting and reflection off the subject matter I was shooting may have contributed to this. I'll reserve judgement until I can at l can at least finsih the bulk of my initial tests. I'm sure Lance at this point can and has observed more than I and would be in a better position to comment.

Dave

 

[leopold]

Hi Lance,
some very good images as usual!

I like the Panda and Koala shots a lot!You seems to appreciate that new DA*300,and from what i can see it's a very good performer also.

Thank you for sharing.
--
Leopold
Pentax forever

 

[Jonson PL]

Amazing stuff. I had been waiting for you to get to the Zoo or Symbio with the K20. These shots and high Iso are better than I had hoped for, good to see some real images to illustrate.
I really like the red panda ones. You’ve outdone yourself again.
The low Iso ones are breathtaking as well.

The dragon below the Koala shot, has a really nice 3d effect.

--
kind regards
Sune



“The Pentax K20D, Canon EOS 1D Mark III, and Nikon D3 lead the pack in DSLRs for serious HDR photographers.” Jack Howard, administrator at Popphoto.com's forums and online technical editor

 

[GuyM]

Lovely set of images in less than ideal conditions, Lance, going by the exposure data. And a great demonstration of the higher ISO capabilities of the K20. And, course, SR with the DA*300. Even then I don't think I could hold it quite so steadily as you. Even though we don't see Koala's yawn all that much, the shot sums them up brilliantly. Classic. Wish I could have joined in.

Cheers,

Guy
--
GMT +10

 

[Lance B]

Hi Dave,

Thank you very much for your lovely post.

Hi Lance,

As usual impecable images.

Thank you very much for your vey nice comments. Very much appreciated.

I have a soft spot for zoo's, (when not
actually shooting animals in the wild). I find myself gravatating
there often (to zoo's) as a quiet retreat when there is time to take
a short break from the hustle and bustle of the weeks work.

Agreed. Something I would like to do more often also.

You're truly showing off the virtues of the new DA 300 f4, especially
when it's combined with both your photographic technique and post
proccessing.

You are too kind. It does make it easy when you have a good lens, though.

I especially love the shots of the various speciies
that we don't often get to see in this part of the world (hey I did
have a stuffed Koila bear I was facinated with as a kid). Besides
the animals themselves, it also interesting to see how the habitats
are arranged for the familar species that we have in zoo's here and
how it compares. As I mentioned in a past post, it wasn't too long
ago our National zoo aquired red panda's..and although they put their
enclosure right next the the Panda's from China (due to their
proximal geographical habitats in that part of the world)...most
visiting though go away assuming they all related in one big Panda
"bear" family.

LOL. Yes, I am quite sure that the Giant Panda and the Red Panda are not even related.

I don't know how it is with other major zoos around the world, but Taronga is making a special effort to make the enclosures as friendly as possible to the animals(within reason of course) and also people friendly. The new exhibits for the penguins, seals, elephants and others are excellent to say the least.

Just starting to put the DA 300 f4 through it paces here...but of
course we all wish we were able to get the fantasic purchase price
you were accorded by Pentax (well deserved by you of course).

Thank you very much for the congratulatory words, Dave.

I think you will like the DA*300 very much, image quality is superb on all counts. The only drawbck I have found so far is that it is a little slow to AF, but that, I think, is partly to do with the long throw of the AF. Personally, I like the long throw for the ability to fine focus. Also, the lens can focus to 1.4mt, so there sre close focus benefits compared to the FA*300.

I recall it wasn't too long ago I sent you the FA 300 f4.5 (love it's
performance and compact size)...how time flies.

It was 2 years ago almost to the month, if I remember correctly. How time flies! Your efforts in obtaining this lens for me are still very much appreciated! I am not going to part with it just yet either.

Thanks for posting the great shots!

Thank you very much again for stopping by and taking the effort to comment. Your comments mean alot to me.

Dave

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

Hi Lance,

Of course excellent composition and captures as we expect from you!

Thank you very much for your nice comments, Mike.

A question on the side though,
when I look at these images there definately is a lot of sharpness in
that lens, however..... they don't have the normal FA* OOF rendering
that I'm used to with the older 'ed lenses. Is that just me or do
you share the feeling that the lens lacks the rendering I (and you)
have become to love so much?

Wonder what your thoughts are here!

I don't think Pentax have quite managed to capture the FA* image quality that we so much like. I do agree that with most of the DA* lenses that the image quality is different in some way, but I can't really put my finger on it. The DA* images are sharp, with nice bokeh, contrast and colour, but there is a difference. Maybe there is something about the new coatings/digital requirments/something else, that makes it more difficult to obtain? Maybe the lack of lead in glass nowadays?

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[var1]

Nice to catch up again Lance & great images as we all know you produce. Great to see three K20D users very happy with its performance on the day under less than ideal light.

Cheers
Ron

 

[Lance B]

Absolutely great photographs in terms of composition and final
processing. Saying that, I'm saddened to see such beautiful creatures
behind bars. Nice shots though, really enjoyed viewing these.

Thank you very much for your nice comments, Irek.

It is a pity that these animals are behind bars and in enclosures, but Taronga Zoo has made special efforts to make these enclosures as friendly to animals as possible. They have done a major upgrade to many of the enclosures to make them better for the animals and also for people to be able to see them.

Unfortunately, as I am sure you know, that many of these animals habitats have been destroyed or they are under threat from extinction and a zoo such as Taronga can play an important part in preserving their species.

Thank you for looking and taking the time to comment.

--
Irek J.
London
Canada

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[MikeAusA200]

That one of the koala yawning should appear on many posters from now
on !

Let's hope I can get some royalties for that too. ;-)

. . . . so how will you feel if they offer you a free koala to look after ???? (I'm asking you - not your daughter !)

--
Mike . Sydney, Australia
http://www.pbase.com/mikeaus/galleries
http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b356/MikeAus/?

 

[Lance B]

Hi Mousehill,

Although you directed your question regarding OOF rendering with the
new DA 300 f4 lens vs. some of the FA lenses to Lance ( Fa lenses
we've known to love and use). I cannot speak directly for Lance
although I did notice a few areas where I couldn't tell if it was the
rendering or he may have shot through some "chicken wire or netting
of some sort. I've just begun some comparitive tests of the F* 300
f4.5 vs. the DA 300 f4 and although they were cut short by very
inclement weather at the moment, I did notice a few instances where
the OOF renderings (wide open) with the DA 300 f4 were quite on par
or as pleasing as the F* 300 f4.5..but the lighting and reflection
off the subject matter I was shooting may have contributed to this.
I'll reserve judgement until I can at l can at least finsih the bulk
of my initial tests. I'm sure Lance at this point can and has
observed more than I and would be in a better position to comment.

I look forward to your results and feelings on this, Dave. I have also been asked to do some comparitive shots from the DA*300 and the FA*300 but have been too busy taking photos. ;-)

If you can post some samples of your comparison, I am sure it would be greatly appreciated by all interested in the DA*300.

Dave

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

That one of the koala yawning should appear on many posters from now
on !

Let's hope I can get some royalties for that too. ;-)

. . . . so how will you feel if they offer you a free koala to look
after ???? (I'm asking you - not your daughter !)

LOL. If it were me left to look after it I am sure it would die. ;-) My daughter would kill it with kindness. Somewhere in between would be the ideal. ;-)

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

Hi Lance,
some very good images as usual!
I like the Panda and Koala shots a lot!You seems to appreciate that
new DA*300,and from what i can see it's a very good performer also.

Thank you for sharing.

Thank you very much for your very nice comments, Leopold! Much appreciated.

The DA*300 is a gem and highly recommended and is a great assistance to get good photographs.

Thank you for taking the time to look and comment.

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

Amazing stuff. I had been waiting for you to get to the Zoo or Symbio
with the K20. These shots and high Iso are better than I had hoped
for, good to see some real images to illustrate.
I really like the red panda ones. You’ve outdone yourself again.
The low Iso ones are breathtaking as well.

The dragon below the Koala shot, has a really nice 3d effect.

Thank you very much for your very nice comments, Sune. Much appreciated.

I cannot recommend the DA*300 higly enough!

--
kind regards
Sune



“The Pentax K20D, Canon EOS 1D Mark III, and Nikon D3 lead the pack
in DSLRs for serious HDR photographers.” Jack Howard, administrator
at Popphoto.com's forums and online technical editor

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

Lovely set of images in less than ideal conditions, Lance, going by
the exposure data. And a great demonstration of the higher ISO
capabilities of the K20. And, course, SR with the DA*300. Even then I
don't think I could hold it quite so steadily as you. Even though we
don't see Koala's yawn all that much, the shot sums them up
brilliantly. Classic. Wish I could have joined in.

Thank you for your very nice comments, mate. Much appreciated.

It was a pity you were not there as it would have made the day that much more enjoyable. I would like to go back there in a few weeks or so, so maybe nect time? I will try to fit in with you so you can make it.

See you Sunday. We will work out a time closer to the day.

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

This was taken through small cage wire and I therefore had to work on
it to get reasonable contrast and a decent result. I like the way the
birds were cuddled up together.

K20D DA*300 f4 @ f6.3 1/200sec ISO1000. Hand held.

Wow, a picture is worth a thousand words. There is so much noise
reduction applied that it is difficult to see any detail in many of
the feathers. If ISO 1000 means turning your photograph into a
painting, then thanks but no thanks.

On my home computer screen this photo looks fine and how I judged the noise reduction. Now that I have viewed it on my cheap work LCD screen I do agree that it could be better. Having said that, I really don't think I needed to apply any noise reduction and it was as much an experiment as anything, so maybe I shall have to look at this image again.

Now, if you are only out to find fault with any image from this batch, then you can blame me, not the camera, or is it that you did want to somehow find fault with my work? Not one word of praise for any of them?? Even if you can praise the camera lens combo rather than having to stoop so low as to say admit that I may have had some input into the worth of the photos.

Anyway, have a look at Jimbob's zoo results from ISO1600 shots as they are excellent.

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Lance B]

Nice to catch up again Lance & great images as we all know you
produce. Great to see three K20D users very happy with its
performance on the day under less than ideal light.

Thank you very much for your nice comments, Ron.

It was very nice to catch up with you and meet your lovely wife.

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[Irek J]

Hey Lance, thanks for the positive reply. I'm sure these beautiful animals have a very comfortable place to stay as illustrated in your fine photos.
--
Irek J.
London
Canada

 

[shane gerrish]

superb series of shots Lance.

looks like the weather was not kind to you all going by the slow speeds so that is impressive work.
--
Shane,Gold Coast Aussie. Lens list in profile.
http://bigred4x4.blogspot.com/2008/01/welcome.html

 

[Lance B]

superb series of shots Lance.
looks like the weather was not kind to you all going by the slow
speeds so that is impressive work.

Thank you very much for your kind wrds, Shane. Much appreciated!

--
Lance B
http://www.pbase.com/lance_b

 

[dvorjak]

As I said in JimBob's post, you and he must have Hands of Steel to get sharp images hand held at the focal lengths and shutter speeds you use.

And the K20D high ISO output is amazing.