Fun with the 645D

[Shashin]

gurtch, it has been a long time. Lovely sunset.

I have nothing against composite images, but this one is not working. First you should change the color temperature of the boat and the "reflection" is far too clear. In fact, the boat should be backlit with the reflection almost black and very broken by the water--you might try a glass or water filter on the reflection in Photoshop. The boat is also too small for its location. It looks like the boat has been distorted to try to match the perspective of the water. Sorry if I sound harsh--I am not trying to be. But the sunset would have stood better on its own.

 

[gurtch]

Shashin: Thanks for the input. You were not harsh; I welcome constructive critisism. I will take your comments to heart, and see if I can improve the image.
Best Regards
Dave Gurtcheff
Beach Haven, NJ

 

[tsjanik]

Local pond, birch tree and hemlock reflections. 400mm f/5.6



_IGP6337-1 by tsjanik47, on Flickr

 

[MGrayson]

Wonderful texture!

 

[delander]

This camera seems to have died a death in the UK market, little mention of it anywhere. Not enough of a system (lenses) for the pro and too expensive for the amateur. Still I love mine so I thought I'd post a few autumn pics from the UK.

Jeff

 

[D&A]

Dave: Striking sunset...very dramatic! You have a wonderful location from which to shoot from...especially your seacape images.

Tom: Love the abstract of Fall colors in the water's reflection. I especially like when autumn's colors are done in an original way.

Jeff, your images show what is some of the Pentax's 645D's strength....outdoor/landscape shots and the depth and richness stands out. LOvely shots of the season!

Thanks all for posting these!

Dave (D&A)

 

[delander]

Thanks Dave. Is this camera selling OK in the USA, here virtually nobody seems to stock it and it gets very few mentions. I love the camera but I would like to see evidence of it being marketed by Pentax/Ricoh. There is almost a conspiracy of silence.

Jeff

 

[tsjanik]

Thanks MGrayson and Dave.

Jeff, I spoke with a 645D rep last week and he indicated that Pentax USA is selling all the 645Ds they can get. There's little point in marketing something you can't supply. 25mm production has been impacted by the recent weather disasters, as it has impacted all the Japanese companies. As far as coverage, it's last year's camera. How much do you hear about a D3x? SONY 24 MP sensor etc. is all the rage now.

Tom

 

[D&A]

Jeff, as Tom has mentioned, the 645D seems to be selling well here in the U.S. Not a few weeks go by that I don't learn of another new purchaser of the 645D...so it appears to be moving along fairly nicely for a MFD. I'd like to see them do well and continue moving forward with new lens releases.

Dave (D&A)

 

[delander]

Tom & Dave,

Your replies prompted me to talk to the dealer that sold me my camera. His view is that the situation is rather like Leica, they are selling every one they make. He also offered the view (from his Pentax rep) that Ricoh will be putting a lot of investment into Pentax.

Jeff

 

[Shashin]

The Pentax salon in Tokyo has the mockup of the next lens release on display--with carefully placed tape so you can't see what it will be. So the release schedule is still on track.

 

[gurtch]

I usually use the histogram after exposure to make sure I got it right. I usually shoot hand held with a monopod. Today I used a tripod, and mirror lock up, because I wanted slow shutter speed to slightly blur breaking waves. I discovered that with the cable release plugged in, there was no image replay with histogram. It would not play back either. If I made a shot, then unplugged the cable release, the replay with histogram came up, no problem. Is this normal? BTW the cable release is a generic release, not the Pentax brand. Thanks in advance.

Dave G in NJ

 

[delander]

Rust and paint, 645D with standard 55mm lens. 2.5 seconds at F11, ISO 200.

 

[gurtch]

The weather here on Long Beach Island, NJ has been beautiful, for late November, early December. Here are two recent shots. First is with 45~85 lens @ 45mm, ISO 800, 1/125 at f13. Hand held with monopod. Second is 35mm A lens 1/15th sec f13, ISO 200, polarizer, tripod, mirror lock up.
Thanks for looking
Dave

 

[gurtch]

After posting, I noticed the first picture's light sky areas seem a bit burned out. On my calibrated screen the full size PSD (not JPG) shows better, but I have not as yet printed it. If it prints light, I will need to do a little burning in.
Dave

 

[princepollux]

This past Friday I decided to treat myself and the 645D to a late afternoon at the beach. Here is an HDR of the illuminated Manhattan Beach pier. Shot with the A200mm.

 

[gurtch]

This past Friday I decided to treat myself and the 645D to a late afternoon at the beach. Here is an HDR of the illuminated Manhattan Beach pier. Shot with the A200mm.

Very nice job of using HDR. I am still experimenting with the technique. I have had reasonable sucess using 35mm.. (Alpha 900) and Photomatix, but my 645D HDR images still need work.
Dave

 

[tsjanik]

400mm f/5.6 hand held; heavy crop. B&W conversion in ACR. I really like the graphic nature of this, it's very different from my usual shots.

Tom

_IGP6448 by tsjanik47, on Flickr

 

[D&A]

This past Friday I decided to treat myself and the 645D to a late afternoon at the beach. Here is an HDR of the illuminated Manhattan Beach pier. Shot with the A200mm.

I'm generally not a big fan of HDR...but there is something both real and surreal about thsi image. It works extremely well with subject matter and lighting of the scene. Very nice!

Dave (D&A)

 

[D&A]

400mm f/5.6 hand held; heavy crop. B&W conversion in ACR. I really like the graphic nature of this, it's very different from my usual shots.

Tom

_IGP6448 by tsjanik47, on Flickr

Tom,

Love it! The moment I saw it posted on the screen it caught my eye and I'm still looking over the details. As you mentioned, very different than your usual posted shots and I really like the way this one was processed. One of my favorate images of yours.

Dave (D&A)