NEW CAMERA AND A STEEP LEARNING CURVE

I've just up graded from a compact camera [Canon Power Shot A590] to a DSLR. I did a bit of research and took my time about choosing what camera I would get and settled for the Pentax K5 with a 18-55mm WR lens plus a 50-200mm WR lens. I had a Pentax SLR [film] some time ago and used to develop my own pics but the pressures of life took me away from photography for a while. I started up again and for convenience used a compact but just didn't feel in control of the situation when taking a pic.....which is why I have up graded. But it is a whole new world as I want to learn Lightroom 4 as well. It'll keep me busy during the dark Winter nights



I also bought an extra battery, UV filters for both lens, a remote control, and a 32 GB SDHC card. Which is all well and good.......but there's still that learning curve.

 

You're right about the Manual, Sheal!! I have a little read of it, put it down and do something else, then pick it up again to read another couple of pages. I re-read a section a few times if I have to just to get my head around it. But I'm happy with the camera but still need to get used to the options of controls......I guess keep it simple is going to be the rule.

 

Hi Joolz, yes, I have taken some pics with it....in the garden of course! I took some shots with the Pentax of the Cannas and some are in a post of Cannas 2012. Plus I had a very nice happening in the garden today and managed to get some shots of it all.....I'll post those tomorrow!!

 

Actually, Sheal, I've gone the other way.....using manual controls as much as I can, especially when it comes to focusing I find auto focusing isn't as good as it's cracked up to be when getting close but that's because I haven't yet tried using the different combinations of sensors when taking shots. I'll get the hang of it by the end of the century.

 

Thanks Gonzo, your advice and opinion is much appreciated believe me. At least with digital I can control the noise in a pic whereas in film it was a lot more noticeable as grain on fast film and I can reject shots on the spot instead of waiting to develop them. There's still a place for film in my opinion.

 

I think Gonzo was being more generic in his comparison between film and digital cameras, Robajobs. There'll always be a rivalry between film and digital users, and I, personally, believe there'll always be a place for film. But I find the attraction of digital in being able to take, discard, and enhance pictures while it's still in the camera, being able to use internal filters, use jpeg, raw and HDR, is something I can't ignore and want to use to raise my standard of photography. Plus, I like learning, gaining more knowledge and all that Jazz

 

I actually thought long and hard about what camera I was going to buy, Robajobs. I had the funds to buy a Nikon or a Canon at a professional level, but to be honest, all you see advertised is Canons or Nikons..being popular doesn't make it great, possibly just sheep following sheep. As it was, the price of the K5 was around the same as a comparable Nikon or Canon. All DSLRs look the same really, so I did a lot of research before I chose the Pentax. All of the independent reviews, to my surprise, put the K5 on par, or above, the same level and some supposedly higher level Nikons and Canons, on build quality [using titanium for the body instead of a mixture of plastic/titanium], the resolution of the lenses, the quality of the sensor, it's ability to do more within the camera etc, the ergonomics, being weather resistant to a greater degree than other brands, and in general it scored higher in most tests than the other comparable cameras. So I did a lot of comparing, trying out in shops, reading up on the level of camera I wanted. I was leaning towards a Nikon but the build quality, believe it or not, was not rated as good as the K5, nor were they weather resistant. But it was the resolution marking of the lenses that convinced me that I would get a lot more quality and value with a Pentax than I would with a Canon or Nikon. There's some nice little touches that Pentax has put into the K5 that, for me, puts it above others. I'm slowly getting to grips with it and so far I am really pleased with it. It's just a case of climbing that learning curve

Just noticed your observation about HDR, Robajobs!!! I only mentioned it in passing as my main interest will be shooting RAW and trying to get my head around Lightroom 4.