... and now I'm not.
Thanks to the kindness and patience of another list member, I've
had an *ist-D in my hands for a few days now, experiencing what
digital photography _should_ be like. The contrast between the
*ist-D and my non-Pentax point-and-shoot is ... well there's no
comparison except to repeat the complaints I made earlier this
month, and at this point I'd rather just think about niftiness
of the *ist-D than concentrate on the p&s.
So far I haven't noticed that I'm learning new things from
shooting a DSLR (hey, it's only been a few days), but I have
noticed something I thought worth mentioning:
This fancy camera doesn't seem to be making any
of my old manual-camera skills obsolete; it just
makes applying those skills easier and quicker.
Oh yeah, I'm shooting mostly on the 'P' setting, but when I
notice I'm in a fool-the-meter situation, or want to use a non-A
lens (I was hunting birds who were hunting insects yesterday,
and I used an old 400/6.3 preset lens to do it), or just want to
take over from the computer for a couple of shots, the controls
are there and the skills are here and I don't always
particularly notice that I'm switching gears as I do it.
When I first read about HyperProgram and HyperManual modes here
on the mailing list, I knew they sounded like something I'd find
useful. Even so, I underestimated how much I'd like
HyperProgram (I haven't really done much with HyperManual yet;
when I've had the *ist-D in 'M' mode, I've so far just treated
it like plain old-fashioned manual-mode -- I'll get around to
it).
It's a sweet camera. (From reading the mailing list and looking
at the B&H catalog I know there are sweeter Pentax DSRLs.
Doesn't matter. Can't afford 'em anyhow. I'm enjoying this one
a lot.)
A friend came over last night to drop off a scavenged rack-mount
computer and share some Guinness. Of course, I had to show off
the camera. (IIRC, he shoots Minolta for film and Canon for
digital.) And he had to try it out. He had as much trouble
putting it back down as I do. Y'know, a gigabyte of storage
fills up pretty quickly when a camera is being handed back and
forth over a couple bottles of Guinness. And suddenly the 30G
hard drive in the computer he brought doesn't seem all that
large after all.
I am so very much looking forward to shooting swordfighters with
this thing this summer.
In the meantime, I'll have to search the list archives for clues
about how to use a 'TTL' flash from the Super Program era (as
opposed to a 'P-TTL' digital-era flash) on it, and how to make
it not get confused when I use a pinhole lens. (When I can
afford a #89 or #87 filter, I'll need to figure out whether the
metering system can see IR or not - I know the camera records
IR. I also need to get around to building the IR-LED array to
use as an IR flash, like I'd planned to do a while back.)
The single biggest thing I like about it is admittedly something
most folks probably take for granted (and should, if shooting a
DSLR): the fact that it fires when I press the button (unless
the AF has to hunt), not a random interval later. Just like my
film cameras and in huge contrast to my digital point-and-shoot.
My single biggest complaint about it is that, being slightly
smaller than the PZ-10, it's a little too small for my hands.
I've already been advised to try a grip strap, and I've been
contemplating how to shape a thingie that'll attach via the
tripod mount and wrap around the grip on the right-front to make
it a wee bit larger -- I have a Dremmel, scrap wood, and a chunk
of aluminum, and I'm not afraid to use them. (If it were not
for that battery comparment / handhold, the PZ-10 would be too
small for me as well; it's not as big on the *ist-D. The KX was
a good size for me.) The battery-grip accessory sounds like it
would be useful, but it also sounds like something I should
postpone looking for seriously until I've managed to pay for the
*ist-D first.
-- Glenn
PS: Next on this evening's agenda: an M42->K adaptor and the
bellows, because I want to shoot something that's too small for
the Sigma 50/2.8 Macro. Wheeee!
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