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View Full Version : New DSLR owner here, looking for some pointers



zieg
12-27-2010, 04:10 PM
So, for christmas I got a Pentax K-x. It has an 18-55 lens and a 50-200. I'm doing a lot of reading and playing around with it and whatnot, and I have to say I am impressed!

I used to be into photography as a kid, using my dad's old Nikon 35mm SLR, but that feels like ages ago.

So, all this newfangled technology.. and I am finding myself a bit overwhelmed. I'm going to be doing a lot of indoor shots, so I was thinking the first accessories I might pick up are a macro lens and an external flash. Sound reasonable?

And on the note of flashes.. does anyone have one they would recommend, or maybe someone can explain to me what makes a 'good' flash?


And lastly, where the heck should I go for this stuff? Is there maybe a decent website that sells Pentax stuff?

Mitsu3000gt
12-27-2010, 04:53 PM
For indoor pictures you will want a fast lens and/or flash. The K-x has pretty decent high ISO performance so you're good there. Something like a 50/1.4 would be great. Macro lenses typically aren't faster than f2.8 but of course you're also getting a macro lens out of the deal if thats what you want. If you're using a flash your kit lenses will do just fine.

I don't know enough about Pentax flashes to confidently recommend one to you.

The Camera Store is a great place to buy stuff and use as a reference for what a good price would be. Vistek will also match or beat all of TCS's prices, and always has stuff in stock. B&H Photo in the states is probably the most popular camera shop in the USA, has great prices, and cheap shipping to Canada. Just be careful with warranties if you buy from the states.

And one last thing, before you go investing a ton of money in the Pentax system, make sure it is right for you. Just make sure things like the lenses, flashes, etc. you want now and possibly in the future are available to you so there are no surprises or disappointments down the road. There is nowhere near the selection/variety when compared some other systems, particularly with lenses. Again, please don't let that discourage you or anything at all, just make sure you are happy with the system as a whole before investing a lot of money into it as right now you only have a very small investment. I'm only mentioning this as you seem very excited to go out and buy additional lenses, a flash, etc.

If you have any more questions at all feel free to ask them here.

Go4Long
12-27-2010, 05:05 PM
Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt

And one last thing, before you go investing a ton of money in the Pentax system, make sure it is right for you. Just make sure things like the lenses, flashes, etc. you want now and possibly in the future are available to you so there are no surprises or disappointments down the road. There is nowhere near the selection/variety when compared some other systems, particularly with lenses. Again, please don't let that discourage you or anything at all, just make sure you are happy with the system as a whole before investing a lot of money into it as right now you only have a very small investment. I'm only mentioning this as you seem very excited to go out and buy additional lenses, a flash, etc.

:werd:
The term is "lens committed"...before you get yourself lens committed to the pentax system make sure that it's what you want in the long term...I say the same thing to the Canon and Nikon people as well, but in the case of the smaller manufacturers it's particularly important. Look at where you hope photography will take you, in your opinion, what is the most serious you would ever take photography? if you're always looking at it as just being a hobbyist, then maybe the Pentax system will be great for you...if you're looking at specializing in almost anything though, another system is going to give you a LOT more head room in terms of expansion...just something to think about, like mitsu said, before you go out and sink thousands into lenses and flashes.

It's like me, I'm totally lens committed to Nikon now...even if a body came out from Canon, or even another manufacturer that did everything I wanted and scratched my balls for me too I couldn't go for it, it would cost me to much to move over to the new system and replace all my lenses and flashes...plus, I love my Nikon :poosie:

zieg
12-27-2010, 05:13 PM
Hmm, good info, thanks. I see that TCS has about twice as many Nikon lenses than Pentax.. Do you have any idea what is 'missing' from the selection of Pentax lenses vs. others? If I know that, it should help me decide what to do.


As far as what I plan to do with it, well, I'm not exactly sure yet. I can see myself owning maybe 3-5 lenses, and doing things like some outdoor shots, some night stuff, as well as a fair bit of indoor closeup stuff. I imagine I will find more things to do in time though, but for now that's what I see myself doing.

Go4Long
12-27-2010, 05:20 PM
I would say selection...lol. But honestly, looking at their range, it's hard to say without really knowing what I'm looking at what's missing...long fast zooms and primes are all absent from their range (with the exception of a 300 F4, which, while fastER I still wouldn't call fast glass), They seem to have the range covered, but honestly, I have no idea what I'm looking at with their lenses.

zieg
12-27-2010, 05:31 PM
Hmm.. Well, I don't THINK I will get into zoom lenses too terribly much. The camera came with the standard 18-55 as well as this (http://www.thecamerastore.com/products/pentax/pentax-da-50-200mm-f4-56-ed-wr) lens, which seems to have plenty of zoom for me. I think I'll just stick with this one for now and then if/when I do decide I want to take it to the next level and get more lenses, then I will re evaluate my options.

I'm glad you guys are here, I was beginning to feel pretty lost. :thumbsup:

Mitsu3000gt
12-27-2010, 06:04 PM
Originally posted by ZiG-87
Hmm, good info, thanks. I see that TCS has about twice as many Nikon lenses than Pentax.. Do you have any idea what is 'missing' from the selection of Pentax lenses vs. others? If I know that, it should help me decide what to do.


As far as what I plan to do with it, well, I'm not exactly sure yet. I can see myself owning maybe 3-5 lenses, and doing things like some outdoor shots, some night stuff, as well as a fair bit of indoor closeup stuff. I imagine I will find more things to do in time though, but for now that's what I see myself doing.

Like Go4Long said, it's mostly their selection. Other companies pour WAY more money into lens development, which provides more variety and regular refreshes/upgrades of existing lenses.

If you want to use Nikon as an example, what you will notice is that they have "entry level" and "pro" lenses of most different focal lengths/ranges and everything in between. For example you can buy a cheap $250 35/1.8 lens and a $2000 35/1.4 lens. Nikon has 3 different 85mm lenses, a ton of midrange zooms, fast primes up to 600mm, etc. Basically you just have more options, and you're totally covered all the way from beginner to working professional. In 2010 alone Nikon released 9 new lenses, 2 new DSLR bodies, 12 point & shoot cameras, and a new flash.

Other than general selection at any given focal length, from what I can see, Pentax is mostly missing the faster lenses toward the telephoto end of things. They do not have a 70-200/2.8 which is without question one of the most popular lenses out there. They don't seem to have anything longer than 300mm, and nothing over 200mm that is faster than f/4. They do, however, seem to have some excellent wide angle zooms (16-50/2.8, 16-45/4). It's mostly the type of photography that interests you that will dictate if the system will have any limitations for you or not.

zieg
12-27-2010, 06:19 PM
Ah, ok, that makes sense. I just found out my buddy has a K-5 and a bunch of lenses that should fit mine, so maybe I will see if I can borrow a couple and see what they're like. And for the short term, I'll work with what I've got and see what I can do, and then go from there. But I will make sure not to get lens committed until I know what I'm doing. ;)