On Apr 17, 2011, at 12:43 PM, Paul Stenquist wrote: > > On Apr 17, 2011, at 2:07 PM, Larry Colen wrote: > >> >> On Apr 17, 2011, at 9:50 AM, Tim Bray wrote: >> >>> I'm awfully happy with the K-5. (I was out last night trying to take >>> flash-free pictures in the light of the full moon using my old Sigma >>> 30mm f1.4; it didn't come off for one reason or another, but I haven't >>> given up). Anyhow, it can shoot in as little light as I'll ever need, >>> and as many frames-per-second as I'll ever need, with as many pixels >>> as I'll ever need, and has a battery as big as I'll ever need, and so >>> on and so on. >> >> I can nearly shoot in as little light as I'll need, but it would be nice to >> do so at higher shutter speed, with slower glass and less light. >> When you can shoot without a tripod by moonlight, with a kit lens, and the >> noise looks like base ISO, then we can discuss not needing more sensitivity. >> There is also always dynamic range. I was pushing the K-5s dynamic range >> last night, metering for stage lights, letting the exposure on the musician >> fall where it will, and was able to bring things back in post processing. It >> is, however, a bit noisier than I'd like. > > Generally, you're better off metering for the shadows with digital. And > exposure push in conversion is going to add noise.
You are correct. If you don't mind blowing out the highlights, you are generally best off metering for the shadows. This was a particular case of wanting to get a photograph of a musician, with the colored lights in the background showing as colors, not a spot of white possibly surrounded by some seriously posterized color. The fact that I was able to pull it off at all was a testament to the profound abilities of the K-5, and I pretty much just tried it to see if I could do it, in case I ever need to. In not too many years, I expect that even point and shoots will have something like 16 stops of dynamic range in their sensors, and HDR like conversion software to adjust everything so that the final picture looks like what we see with the human eye. If I had been willing to grab my flash and snoots from the car, and deal with shooting flash, I could have filled from the front with flash. For that matter, I probably should have just tried exposing for the stage lights and using the pop-up flash. The band is one that I've seen many times, they play at dance events several times a year. They had a percussionist playing with them, who I had never seen with them before, and at the band break he was hanging out in the courtyard of Moe's, so I went over to ask if he was new with the band, or just sitting in for the night. When he saw me he commented that he also shoots Pentax, and uses a lot of manual focus lenses. Like me, he has also had a K100, K20 and has a K-5, though he never had a K-x, didn't like the lack of focus points. Like me, he was very fond of his K100Ds. I don't know whether it's a "first camera" thing, or that the K100 was just a really nice design. I like the feel of it a lot better than the K-x, and even the K-r doesn't have the wired shutter input, which is necessary for using it with things like a bushhawk or radio triggers. -- Larry Colen l...@red4est.com sent from i4est -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
