Hin's Photo Corner: adaptall-2

Showing posts with label adaptall-2. Show all posts

Tamonr adaptall-2 70-150mm f/3.5 (20A) on Mother's Day Weekend 2017

2017-05-22 Posted by Hin Man

I took these casual walk-around pictures in Santa Cruz Pier the day before Mother's Day. On Saturday, I did my first rehab hiking 2 months after ACL surgery in Henry Cowell State Park with flat trail and it was a great feeling. And at night we visited the Santa Cruz Pier where we could spot the Santa Cruz Boardwalk from the pier.

In traveling light, I used my Sony mirror-less instead of Pentax. And I have used this lens on Pentax K-x, K20D and K-5 before. It is more well balanced on the Pentax. This zoom lens gets a good recommendation from Hin but I still missed my old faithful with cheaper and likely lesser known manual zoom lens with the Kiron 70-150mm f/3.8 with a 2x tc

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Santa Cruz Boardwalk Bokeh
by Hin Man, on Flickr

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Santa Cruz Pier Lamp Post
by Hin Man, on Flickr

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Sky Window
by Hin Man, on Flickr
shot with a Sony E 35mm f/1.8 prime strolling to find potential dinner place for pre-mother's day celebration. We ended up going home for dinner instead. I made dinner with wife together -- a big mistake as I scrambled when hungry.

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Father & Daughter Beach Walk
by Hin Man, on Flickr

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Double Down
by Hin Man, on Flickr

I woke up very happy on Monday still thinking how good my birthday was and how great we did on the Mother's Day 2017 with visit to a Guitar Center with drums, guitar, piano and others for fun play. I doubt if Monday was anything that could top my weekend experience. But this picture gives me hope as it is a double down kind of picture that relates one light after the other. I will name it 'double down'

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Keeping Us Warm
by Hin Man, on Flickr

Hope you like my walk-around pictures before Mother's Day 2017.

Likely all were shot in f/3.5 with the zoom lens. Most were shot in 150mm and I zoom in to frame in wider view in some of them. The lens is a one-touch zoom and the smooth focusing ring allows me to snap subject into focus. Focusing takes some guesswork as my eyes are plagued with aging decline.

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20170513-DSC06528
by Hin Man, on Flickr

url=20170513-DSC06498]Santa Cruz Boardwalk[/url]
by Hin Man, on Flickr

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Father & Daughter Beach Walk in B&W
by Hin Man, on Flickr

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Santa Cruz Boardwalk Bokeh
by Hin Man, on Flickr

I forget the film simulation that used for the above picture, it is likely using Kodak Ektachrome or Kodachrome 64 professional
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Fatherly Walk With Love
by Hin Man, on Flickr

I have this sleeper for a long time, I was biasly thinking of the Vivitar/Kiron copy of 70-150mm f/3.8. I have been unfair to the Tamron Adaptall-2. I almost sell my copy for a meager $39.00. That didn't last when I went for a work out in Homedepot on easy flower pictures. The Tamron 20A bests the Kiron Vivitar in the close up shots and better bokeh. The Kiron is very cold in the tone while the Tamron is still cold but it works well in bokeh. Sharpness goes to the Kiron and no doubt about that especially wide open shots.

20160605-DSC01548
by Hin Man, on Flickr

20160605-DSC01545
by Hin Man, on Flickr

The close up flower shots in my rare blog post in

Hin's Photo Corner: Tamron adaptall-2 70-150mm f/3.5 (20A) Test Shots

Cheers,
Hin

Moon Chasing with Tamron SP 500mm f/8 and Sony NEX 5N

2013-01-30 Posted by Hin Man

The lithium grease seems to work well with my ball-head and I manage to try my travel camera with Nex 5N on the same Tamron SP 500mm f/8.0 mirror (55BB). It is another problem and challenge to face as the nex is a thin body and I don't have the expensive L bracket. The setup oscillates even when I try to touch the focusing ring. Unlike the Pentax, my travel camera don't have SR for manual lens and with the setup, I pick a higher ISO 400 to shoot the moon yesterday night to gain for a faster shutter to avoid shaking

Moon Chasing with Tamron SP 500mm adaptall-2 f/8 (55BB) and Sony NEX 5N

Tamron SP adaptall-2 500mm f/8.0 mirror (55BB) mounted on NEX 5N

Having a flip out LCD is a big plus especially when the moon rises more to the vertical above.

Tamron mirror and Sony nex 5N on tripod

All documentary pictures was shot single hand with K-5 and FA 43mm as my left hand is holding a remote for the nex 5N setup. I usually do documentary with DA 35 but the 43 is more suited for night shooting

Moon Chasing with Tamron SP adaptall-2 500mm f/8.0 mirror (55BB) and Sony NEX 5N

Having the fold out LCD is a great help especially when the moon is closer to the vertical above you. And I share the same pain on my first shooting where I have to crouch under my tripod to find the moon with K-5. But in actual shooting in hand-held shots without tripod, the optical viewfinder in K-5 allows me to back myself against a wall and brace with the camera aimed high to the moon. The shooting becomes easier without the restraint of tripod. I am lucky to have the lightweight Tamron SP 500mm f/8.0 mirror as it is quite alright to hand-held the moon shots with the mirror lens in iso 200 ~ 400 and have a higher shutter.

And with a fold out LCD, I find the setup with less restraint and with more freedom to find the moon when used on a mono-pod

This is my mono-pod setup with the Tamron mirror mounted on my nex. I have an inexpensive Dolica WT-1003 mono-pod and a very cheap Manfrotto RC2 like quick release from Amazon. I am thinking of Manfrotto 494 ball head for my next upgrade on my lightweight traveling setup. If any of you have manfrotto 494, please help me if there is better alternative that I can consider in similar price range. My current traveling tripod head is Manfrotto 3229 which works better on mono-pod but falls short on a tripod due to absence of a ball head for more directional control.

My boy helps in holding the mono-pod setup. The Tamron mirror lens is actually quite small in use and it is one of long focal lens that I actually enjoy shooting hand-held. But it is best use on a mono-pod if lowest iso is what you are after. The AF ring is very capable for fine tuning. Sharpness and color is very reasonable for such a long focal length. When time allows, I will try to reshoot similar moon pictures with my 300mm with a 1.7x TC -- Photosniper Tair Phs 300mm f/4.5 or my F* 300mm f/4.5

Hin's Camera Gear

Moon Chasing with Tamron SP 500mm f/8.0 mirror and Pentax K-5

2013-01-28 Posted by Hin Man

I was up all night attempting the moon after few days of rains in California. I had a lot of trouble tonight with my tripods and focusing. I never manage to shoot the moons well for various reasons. And Jupiter is absent and perhaps hidden in the clouds. With the clouds moving in and out, I am not able to focus on the moon. All shots come out burry and not worthy of showing.

Moon Chasing with Tamron SP 500mm f/8.0 adaptall-2 mirror lens (55BB) and Pentax K-5

My eyes are getting old with bi-focal glass and I see two moons if I shoot with glass and I can't see anything in focus if I take off my glass. I am desperate for a photo. I can only salvage the old shot that I took in 2009. The shooting was much easier then

pentax K20d, pentax f* 300mm f/4.5, pentax afa 1.7x TC

Old shot in 2009 with K20D and Pentax F* 300mm f/4.5 and Pentax AFA 1.7x TC.

All shots with my 300mm primes fail to deliver. I will show what I manage to get with the Tamron adaptall-2 500mm f/8.0.

When it is close to midnight, I manage to see the clouds escape from the scenes. But my tripod head gets stuck in earlier shooting. It was all my fault as I got it damaged in dropping my tripod onto sand and no matter how I clean the adjustment knobs after the accident, it is never like its original form.

I give up on my tripods tonight and shoot with Tamron adaptall-2 500mm f/8.0 mirror lens. These are not great shots as I am shooting all hand-held with the mirror lens. I will try to fix my Linhof ball-head with lubricant. If you know of the right lubricant to use on ball-head damaged with sand and water invasion, please help me with a comment.

Pentax K-5 and Tamron SP adaptall-2 500mm f/8.0 mirror (55BB)

Darn it, the more that I look at it, the more my moon shots look exactly like a water melon. It is a shame. It may have something to do with my post processing. Watermelon is all jammed in my tired mind Yesterday late into the making of Jupiter missing Moon shots

My very watermelon like Moon shot

Hin's Camera Gear

Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B) on Pier with Twilight

I am cheap-o lens fanatics and as usual, I have strange shots with the Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B) just to see the off focus rendering that includes ring lights. I like to see how the lens renders. My previous post on Seeing Lights At Night with Pentax K-5 was using the FA 43mm limited in f/2.2 and close distance ring lights all show hexagon shapes. And I personally prefer a round ring lights, the closer to a circular shape, the more pleasing that I find. Distance play a factor as the farther it goes, the hexagon shaped ringed lights from the FA 43 will turn closer to a circular rings. The following two shots were taken purposely off-focus a bit at f/2.8 with the Tamron prime

The background is a pier in Cayucos beach where I found myself alive, well and grateful for photo opportunities while enjoying the scenes and togetherness with family.

tamron adaptll-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B) on pier with twilight color using Pentax K-5

Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B) and Pentax K-5 on Pier with Twilight

Around the same twilight color time zone, this is also an odd time to take portraits. But it can be rewarding if I use flash. I ain't a strobist and I certainly dislike the use of built-in flash. In traveling, I seldom find myself carrying an external flash. Whenever I come to a decision to filling a slot in my Kata bag, I always end up choosing an extra lens instead of the flash -- the flash is just too bulky and heavy. I ran into professional photog like shooting in the beach in a couple of occasions with serious flash shooting takes place after sunset while the background is the dimming twilight after sunset.

With lack of strobing gear, I used the built in flash and I normally try to dial in negative 1/3, 2/3 or even 1 stop in flash adjustment. But with the 135mm and a far distance, the flash compensation can be moot.

I wish in 2013 to make a change and bring a flash instead. At the minimal, I am trying to find a trustworthy diffuser that I can count on. I am looking to this built-in flash diffuser in Amazon. I tried film cartridge but I am not finding satisfactory results. If you have tips with a smaller flash that is easy to carry in traveling, please clue me in. I have bought this Neewer slave flash from Amazon for my use with Sony NEX and I will try it with Pentax built-in flash but I need a light blocker to shield the built-in flash as a master for the optical slave.

Similar twilight color shots happen on an earlier day on the Cayucos pier. Not as dramatic color but the blue, orange and red varies as time gets deeper into the evening.

Cayucos Beach Pier

with FA 43mm f/1.9 limited

My model on far end on the pier

with FA 43mm f/1.9 limited

And this is the parting shot where my model dodges to my right and I pan right and miss my original framing on the fishing poles on left. I did not clean up the noise, shot in 1600 straight out of K-5 and FA 43mm f/1.9 @ f/2.5.

I don't know if it is the AWB picked up by the camera, there are times that the same scene will come as more red and yellow while a slight change of angle will have all the bluish tint in the background.

Parting Scene On Cayucos Beach Pier

with FA 43mm f/1.9 limited

Related:

Seeing Lights At Night with Pentax K-5

Hin's Camera Gear

Twilight Color After Sunset with Pentax K-5

2013-01-26 Posted by Hin Man

I shot this one about 30 minutes after sunset. I often find the mystic colors right after sunset magical. As usual, my older boy does his best in running away from my camera and I can only shoot him in a distance with a longer focal length. I have my K-5 with Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B). Picture was taken in Pismo Beach over the long weekend.

Twilight Color After Sunset with Pentax K-5, Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B)

K-5 and Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B)

And about 30 minutes earlier, I missed the sunset shots for late arrival to the beach I mange to get this one in focus for the last few seconds of rim light from the sunset

K-5 and Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B)

And the not-in-focus shot earlier

K-5 and Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B)

A forum discussion mentions about the wonderful work of J M W Turner's seascapes using beautiful watercolor in his sesscapes paintings. It is an inspiration and fascinating work to study from the great artist. Here is another shot of my running boy in the twilight color

I found the mystic colors usually about 15 to 45 minutes right after sunset. I usually see the glow of red and orange as the residual light from sunset. And bluish tint comes along when the darkness approaches the lighting scenes gradually and quickly. It is a suite of magical colors in red, orange and blue and the mix varies upon angles and how much darkness looms over the residual light from the sun.

And I will encourage everyone not to shy away from a scene that looks unusually dark to our naked eyes. The timing is right around 30 minutes after sunset. That was the time that you think that the AF or MF will hamper your shooting in focusing. Sure enough, I have my share of troubles in focusing as my eyes are aged. But my enthusiasm and fascination of the dark scenes take over the handicap. The K-5 ups two notches and pick up the slack with great metering and AWB. I would have an easier job if I have my favorite zoom with Pentax DA* 50-135mm f/2.8. But the traveling light criteria takes over in the decision to bring my Tamron adaptall-2 135mm f/2.5 (03B) instead. I fault in a lot of focusing errors but that manual 135mm prime excels with lighter weight and compact form factor in traveling.

Here is a shot that is less dramatic but I like it as my wife darts with joy in catching up with my boy

A Mad Pentax K7

2012-02-10 Posted by Hin Man

I purchased my K7 as an upgrade to my aged K20D. And my K20D went into CRIS for repair with its shutter and aperture control unit. I was just out of 3 year extended warranty period and the repair came out of my own pocket. It was a devastating experience to have my 2nd Pentax body dead in my hands while shooting. My first dead Pentax was my beloved white Pentax K-x which became faulty on its SD memory card controller. CRIS did a wonderful job in this 2nd repair and restored my K20D to its good state and I was pleasantly surprised with inexpensive charge of $140 for replacing both the shutter and aperture control units. CRIS has restored my confidence with Pentax repair. Unlike my 1st repair that took over 6 plus weeks due to parts back ordered from Japan and this second repair took a little over two weeks. I bought my K7 while my K20D was in service. I was thinking of selling my K20D once it got back from service but I now keep the two as a pair. Cameras do fail and I intend to have dual similar bodies to guard against the odds of camera failure.

And in my recent planned trip to Hong Kong and Macau, my purchase of Sony NEX 5N has taken all the attention from me as a new owner and I have left my K7 out of sight for two months until last weekend.

I happened to find time in visiting Crissy Field in San Francisco and I had my repurchase lens with Tamron SP 17mm f/3.5 adaptall-2 51BB. The 17mm was a later version to 51B and it does not have the built in optical filters like its earlier copy. But I like my new copy that came with the hard to find matching push on lens hood.

Pentax K7 and Tamron SP 17mm f/3.5 adaptall-2 51BB

I have to take my time to learn K7 in more detail. Its body is a welcome upgrade to K20D. I especially like the changes in the grip, much improved LCD, a very welcome 100% viewfinder and a refined tougher build in a slightly smaller body. I especially heart the electronic level indicator in the field. But I have the most difficult time on the SD card removal mechanics. I curse the camera every single time that I have to take out a SD card from it.

Undoubtedly, I like my K7 upgrade but I think I get a very map K7 when indeed I use it much less often than my 5N. It isn't fair but I am aware of many of its negatives such as lesser-than-ideal high ISO noise, the possibility of shutter induced blur on wide angles in around 1/100 sec and many baggage similar to that in K20D.

I try to shoot it like a mad boy while listening to some good music to clear up my concerns on this Pentax fine camera with K7.