My first D-SLR!!!

[A.M.D.A.]

Not the latest or hottest Canon…






Not the latest or hottest Nikon…






Not the king of the high-megapixel race…






Rather, a PENTAX *ist D!:thumbsup:

------------------------------------

Yesterday evening, a friend who is a retired pro photographer handed down to me a used *ist D – in excellent condition (except for a dead built-in flash). He also gave me three lenses, an external flash, 2X tele-converter, macro-specialized tripod, and a large camera bag.

After firing off a few indoor “test” shots, and walking around with the camera, I immediately noticed several different things compared to my FZ7K:

• Size! Very noticeably larger and heavier.
• Viewfinder size, sharpness, and clearness.
• Bigger & yet comfortable handgrip – enough room to include the “pinky” finger.
• Zoom/MF rings.
• Loud sound everytime a photo is taken. (Think it's called "mirror-slap").
• Wow – incredibly low noise at high ISO’s!
• Also, the *ist D has the ON/OFF switch right around the shutter button. Since with the FZ7K I am used to zooming by means of a “zoom rocker” in the exact same position – slightly weird since I might end up turning the PENTAX camera off when trying to zoom. I’m sure this problem will go away after a while, though.


Can’t wait for the raining to stop to go outside and try out my new gear…

#1. *ist D with TAKUMAR-A ZOOM 1:3.5~4.5 28~80mm lens.
#2. *ist D with TAKUMAR-A ZOOM 1:3.5~4.5 28~80mm lens and PENTAX AF-330 FTZ flash.
#3 -

• *ist D. (Center).
• TAKUMAR-A ZOOM 1:3.5~4.5 28~80mm lens. (Mounted on camera).
• PENTAX SMC PENTAX-F 1:2.8 100mm MACRO lens. (Far right).
• 2X MC7 TAMRON-F AF TELE-CONVERTER. (Front right).
• PENTAX AF-330 FTZ flash. (Front left).
• SMC PENTAX-A* 1:4 300mm lens (Far left).

I'll try to post real “samples” as soon as possible. With the macro lens this'll be easier, since I might find stuff to photograph around the house. But the 300mm/2X will definitely have to wait for the weather to clear up.

Anyway, just wanted to share this big news (for me), and am looking forward to browsing/posting more in the PENTAX forum.

[Frog]

Your friend gave you a bundle.
I bet you're excited.
Now lets see some shots!

[spiraleyes]

Wow, congrats! You've got a great selection of lenses!

[ken1953]

Fantastic!!! I'd take that man out for a very nice steak dinner!!! Can't wait to see your first photos with it!

[Snapac]

congrats, you are gonna have alot of fun. I got some good lenses to start. Looking forward to seeing some shots.

[ken1953]

I really like the Pentax's. But I really don't have enough user experience to really compare the others. I did do a lot of comparison shopping though before I bought our Pentax's, and have never regretted it and our next bodies will be Pentax.

[ozbuc]

Congrats and welcome to the DSLR world.

[danic]

Good Stuff ADMA! You won't regret it.

[A.M.D.A.]

Thanks guys!

The *ist D uses CF cards − I don't have a CF card reader and the USB cable for connecting camera/computer wasn't included. Which means that I won't be able to post any images here yet. Tomorrow I may go to a local camera shop and buy a reader, and several rechargeable AA batteries.

A larger capacity CF card will also definetely be on the list. (Current one is 256MB − and now full).

Hopefully there will then be a lucky break in the constant drizzling...

[A.M.D.A.]

Everything finally cleared up today... but I suspect not for long.

Here's three shots from this morning with the *ist D/100mm MACRO lens. All hand-held.

#1. Little bud between two tree branches.

Shutter-speed: 1/125 second
Aperture: f5.0
ISO: 1600

#2. Twig with water droplet.

Shutter-speed: 1/320 second
Aperture: f5.0
ISO: 1600

#3. Some kind of plant (or weed).

Shutter-speed: 1/160 second
Aperture: f5.6
ISO: 1600

I have to say that I am amazed that images at such high ISO's can actually turn out usable! The only thing which I greatly miss is an Image Stabilizer. Guess PENTAX hadn't developed its SR yet.

[Photo-John]

Congratulations, Alex! That's a hell of a hand-me-down

I did a review of that camera a few years back. It was one of our first pro reviews. I liked it a lot. Even though you think it's big, it was much smaller than my Canon DSLRs. I have a feeling you're going to have a hard time using your Panasonic anymore

[A.M.D.A.]

Congratulations, Alex! That's a hell of a hand-me-down

I did a review of that camera a few years back. It was one of our first pro reviews. I liked it a lot. Even though you think it's big, it was much smaller than my Canon DSLRs. I have a feeling you're going to have a hard time using your Panasonic anymore

Thanks Captain.

I absolutely love that 100mm MACRO – it appears to provide as much (or more) magnification that my FZ7K and image-degrading close-up diopters.

Excellent lens for portraiture too.