FS Friday, late as usual.... and Wanted F 70-210/4-5.6
Long time no see, friends. I have lots for sale, starting with these. Insured shipping is a flat $10 to continental US.for each item or combination of items. Overseas shipping at cost from zip code 75460. 1. Pentax 1.4 2.0 XL TeleConverters. http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/pho/2542422364.html One each Pentax REAR CONVERTOR-A 1.4X-L ($280 OBO) and Pentax REAR CONVERTOR-A 2.0 X-L ($290 OBO) Both perfect. These are for specific Pentax long lenses like 300/2.8, 600/4 and 200/4 Macro. Buy both for $500. 2. SMC PENTAX 200/f2.5 Rare Fast Telephoto - $300 OBO. http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/pho/2542423354.html Very nice SMC Pentax 200/2.5 fast telephoto. Fairly rare, especially in this good condition. Manual focus, built in hood. Some minor scratches to paint, mostly retouched. All in all, a great Pentax lens with perfect glass, snappy blades, and tank-like construction. Just add your Pentax 1.7 Autofocus Adapter to get a great semi-autofocus 510mm/f5 lens for your DSLR! 3. Slik Twin Pan Camera Platform - $90 OBO http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/pho/2542465173.html Mfr# 618-704. Length 16, weight 2.47 lb. This odd studio device has strong, rigid construction allows attaching and positioning up to three cameras easily. Manufacturers info: Use up to three cameras and/or accessories at one time with Slik's Twin Pan Camera Platform. It mounts to any tripod legset with a 1/4-20 threaded post (this has a 1/4-20 hole, not a 3/8-16 hole), and has two panheads which allow photographs to be taken independently at any angle as well as a third 1/4-20 on one side which you could use to mount a small tripod head or another camera. You can remove one of the pan heads to use this device as a lateral side arm, and in that regard it has a maximum lateral displacement of ~13.8 (35 cm). -- Twin pan/tilt camera platforms with spring-loaded 1/4-20 camera screws -- Camera mounting platforms can rotate camera while pan/tilt axis is locked -- Bottom has a female 1/4-20 threaded socket This device sells for $169.99 at BH Photo: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/48708-REG/Slik_618_704_Twin_Pan_Camera_Platform.html (three customer reviews, each rating 5 stars) Wanted: SMCP F 70-210/4-5.6 autofocus zoom. I sold mine some years ago and have regretted it ever since. It makes a great light kit when matched with my F 24-50. Cash, check or USPS money order only. Will consider offers or trades, Nikon or Pentax, perhaps an ultrawide zoom?. -- John Mustarde Reno, Texas -- 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.
Re: OT - Another bad break for a cyclist
When I lived in Arizona there were nice bike lanes and even nicer canal trails so I could bike recreationally about 10-60 miles in relative safety. But I discovered nothing angers a motorist more than having to yield to a bicyclist, even for one second of braking. My last incident I was struck from behind by a negligent driver while traveling in the bike lane, and dragged along the street. The driver stopped and tried to assault me laying helpless in the street, but bystanders intervened. Cops investigated. They tried to say it was my fault because of lighting, until I pointed out my bike's two powerful headlights, taillights, reflectors, and that the street lighting for a hundred yards in any direction was bright enough to read by. The damage to my bike and his car was consistent with my story. I got a free attorney consult and discovered auto insurance normally would pay approximately 3 times my medical expenses. My suggestion is to record all expenses, maybe some future compensation will help. It is in many ways a PTSD type of injury with lasting effects. I got $3500 and a new bike - paid from his policy. It wasn't enough, but better than nothing. After a couple of years the nightmares of being helplessly dragged finally went away. And to all of us, please remember no cyclist can possibly cause a substantial delay, so keep a cool head and a sharp eye. Now I still use horns, lights, reflectors, bright apparel, cell phone, etc. I've added pepper spray (dog and human strength), a small steel object designed to destroy auto windows (in case I have to rescue a motorist)... and much more. All legal and backed by proper training, of course. Don't Mess With Texas -- Happy Trails, Texdance -- 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.
Re: Question about flash photography
... for indoor use, where ceiling bounce flash works, cut slots allowing 4/5 of the light to bounce and 1/5 reflected forward for nice fill-flash. Easier done than described, but it works great. Can also be used outdoors to reduce flash output. Commercial version here: http://www.lumiquest.com/products/80-20.htm Before you spend your money on e-Bay, do a search for DIY Bounce Flash Template. There are a bunch of them out there. Here's one I found. http://www.pieroway.com/reflectorgeneric.pdf I'd just print page 2 on a page of white card stock to get the dotted lines. -- Happy Trails, Texdance -- 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.
OT: FS Nikkor 135/f2.0 AF-D DC lens
In the spirit of the hundreds of recent OT postings regarding non-Pentax gear, I offer: http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/pho/2027346626.html This is a unique and clever lens design able to produce nice artsy pics. Help an elderly, poor, chronically unemployed, disabled, and bald person with a chipped tooth. Discount to PDML. Serious inquiries, please. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: On behalf of William Robb
WR come home. All is forgiven. Actually, for me the incident passed with barely a notice. You see, I understand outbursts very well, having made some doozies in my time. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
FS Friday Spotmatic Manual Scans
Check out my Picasaweb folders for items for sale, mostly Pentax, a few Nikon. Also old, lo-res scans of a Spottie manual. Barely readable, but still interesting. http://picasaweb.google.com/Texdance . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: Speaking of KEH and good lenses
On Thu, 14 Oct 2010 08:55:11 -0400, you wrote: KEH is listing one of the semi-legendary F 70-210 f4~5.6 lenses for only $139. When did this lens become semi-legendary? I've had two; neither was great. I sold my last one for the going rate of about $125 some years ago. It was nicely matched in range and size with the F 24-50/f4, but optically was sub par, suitable only for 4x6 snapshots and cropped 8x10s, at almost every focal length. In the days of when anything faster than ISO 100 was of unexceptional quality, the f5.6 speed was a nuisance. There was a long PDML thread discussing its measured shortcomings some years back. It was poor anywhere near the edges. But of course, using only the center glass on an APS-C camera, it's performance likely increased substantially. Maybe even to semi-legendary status? The problem with great glass is that it becomes greater through discussion and praise, rather than objectively evaluated by measurement. I've been as guilty as anyone of promoting lenses based on my limited experience. It is an easy thing to do in the absence of reliable and accurate means of measurement. That said, I have a superb, super fast and semi-legendary M 200/2.5 lens for sale. Cheap, make offer, hurry cause there's a fancy new but soon to be legendary .22 Magnum semi-auto pistol I'm lusting after. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: PDML Paris?
Don't forget to cap your trip with a visit to the eiffel tower. http://picasaweb.google.com/Texdance/ParisTexasRedHatEiffelTower# On Thu, 7 Oct 2010 10:48:28 -0700 (PDT), you wrote: Hi team, I've tacked a couple of days onto a business trip to Paris next month to be a tourist and do some shooting. Is anyone free Tues 9 Nov or Wed 10 Nov? Contact me on or off list. Cheers, Rick http://photo.net/photos/RickW . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: Large List of For Sale Items, some really good stuff
Loretta at Sotheby's wanted my collection, but she refused to give 10% discount to PDML on larger items. After showing her colors as a heartless profiteer, I said get back...Loretta. O. On Sat, 02 Oct 2010 07:54:11 -0400, you wrote: Here's another large list of items for sale. Some are, indeed, really good: http://auction.eastmanhouse.org/ . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: Large List of For Sale Items, some really good stuff
My Pentax Gear Sale October 1 update: pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/texdance http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/pho/1984409828.html PZ1p body with data back. Used but not abused - I had three of them back in the day so no one got excessive wear.. $289 Will throw in the wired remote, and the nice comfortable original Pentax neck strap plus a body cap and original manual. Combo Set for Film: $395 which includes the PZ1p set above with remote, strap, and manual, plus an AF500FTZ auto-zoom and bounce flash which is the correct top-line flash for the PZ1p, plus the correct Pentax off-camera flash shoe and cord for the AF500FTZ. Pentax-FA SMC 50mm F2.8 AF macro $325. This is the good solid FA version with clamp feature and recessed front element requiring no hood. Like New with used box. M 85/2, worn paint on blades and sluggish, but works fine on istD. $225 SMCP-M 200/2.5 $350 Some paint wear, excellent optics. I'm taking a big lo$$ on this. Don't miss this if you have the Pentax 1.7x Adapter, they make a compact 510mm/f5 semi-AF combo with a DSLR. SMCP-F* 300/4.5, with tripod mount, perfect glass, $850 That's right, this is the great classic F* with big foot. Tokina AT-x 300/2.8 SD, tripod mount, reversing hood. $850. Like new with original hard soft cases and large front filter. This one is truly like new. Add a Pentax 1.7x adapter (not included) to make the finest 510/f5 semi-AF lens in town. With the APS-C sensor multiplier, that's over 750mm with a nice close focus of 8 feet. Vivitar Series One 90-180/4.5 Flat Field Macro, with built in tripod mount, no hood but it will take one. Adapted to fit KAF-mount without interference (originally Viv had too much metal protecting the aperture lever, and it struck the double pins introduced with PZ1P). Great MF zoom, focuses to 1/2 lifesize at 180mm. This is the perfect MF lens to take to the zoo on a monopod...$200 Flashes: Sunpak GX8R Ring Flash Kit $79, AF240T $49 AF500FTZ $169 a bounce Viv 2800 $19 choice of a couple of other cheap bounce flashes -- $12 each. Large zoom head SunPak potato masher flash with camera mount, x-sync cord, C-cell battery pack, and correct cord for Quantum 1 battery pack. Will include defunct Quantum (can be rebuilt). $145 See more photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/texdance . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: PESO: Saahwing, battah!
Nice shutter-release timing. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: Large List of For Sale Items, some really good stuff
Photo samples taken with Tokina 300/2.8. Also pics of the 300/2.8, 200/2.5, and FA 50 Macro. http://picasaweb.google.com/Texdance/TakenWithTokinaATX30028SD# http://picasaweb.google.com/Texdance/TokinaATX30028SDSMCPM20025SMCPFA5028Macro# -- John Mustarde Paris, Texas 903-272-4087 -- 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.
Re: Large List of For Sale Items, some really good stuff
$30 or free with any purchase over $150 Prices are mostly negotiable. If interested, send me a private email. on, 27 Sep 2010 11:18:12 +0800, you wrote: On Sun, Sep 26, 2010 at 7:09 AM, John Mustarde jmusta...@suddenlink.net wrote: Albinar 2x Macro Focusing TC - no A contacts. Almost as good as the Vivitar version, turns any 50mm into a 100mm 1:1 Macro. Price? -- John Mustarde Paris, Texas 903-272-4087 -- 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.
Large List of For Sale Items, some really good stuff
I've been away from PDML for so long I can't decipher the subject line cryptograms... but it's nice to see so many familiar names. For Sale, lotsa gear, some prices are negotiable: MZ10 body $100, like new. PZ1p body with data back. Used but not abused - I had three of them back in the day so no one got excessive wear.. $289 Will throw in the wired remote, and the nice comfortable original Pentax neck strap plus a body cap and original manual. Combo Set for Film: $395 which includes the PZ1p set above with remote, strap, and manual, plus an AF500FTZ auto-zoom and bounce flash which is the correct top-line flash for the PZ1p, plus the correct Pentax off-camera flash shoe and cord for the AF500FTZ. YUZO DC2814 RING LIGHT WITH AC ADAPTER. This one will be for sale if I can find it - any PDML'er remember buying this from me? Phoenix 18-28/4-4.5 $85 Where else can you get 18-28mm MF lens under a C-note? SMCP-M 35/2 $200 worn but glass is perfect SMCP-M 50/1.7 $70 Pentax-FA SMC 50mm F2.8 AF macro $325. This is the good solid FA version with clamp feature and recessed front element requiring no hood. Like New with used box. M 85/2, worn paint on blades and sluggish, but works fine on istD. $225 SMC PENTAX-FA 100/2.8 AF Macro. $400. This also is the good solid FA version with focus limiter, clamp feature and recessed front element requiring no hood. SMCP-M 200/2.5 $350 Some paint wear, excellent optics. I'm taking a big lo$$ on this. Don't miss this if you have the Pentax 1.7x Adapter, they make a compact 510mm/f5 semi-AF combo with a DSLR. SMCP-F* 300/4.5, with tripod mount, perfect glass, $850 That's right, this is the F* with big foot. Tokina AT-x 300/2.8 SD, tripod mount, reversing hood. $850. Like new with original hard soft cases and large front filter. I sold Cotty one of these many moons ago.. and darned if he didn't resell it quickly so he could buy a Canon digital. Oh the humanity. This one is truly like new. Add a Pentax 1.7x adapter (not included) to make the finest 510/f5 semi-AF lens in town. With the APS-C sensor multiplier, that's over 750mm with a nice close focus of 8 feet. Vivitar Series One 90-180/4.5 Flat Field Macro, with built in tripod mount, no hood but it will take one. Adapted to fit KAF-mount without interference (originally Viv had too much metal protecting the aperture lever, and it struck the double pins introduced with PZ1P). Great MF zoom, focuses to 1/2 lifesize at 180mm. This is the perfect MF lens to take to the zoo on a monopod...$200 500/f8 Mirror Lens with filters and case. $90 This is a T Mount, but none are included. Flashes: a Sunpak GX8R Ring Flash Kit $79, AF240T $39 AF500FTZ $169 a bounce Viv 2800 $19 choice of a couple of other cheap bounce flashes -- $12 each. Large zoom head SunPak potato masher flash with camera mount, x-sync cord, C-cell battery pack, and correct cord for Quantum 1 battery pack. Will include defunct Quantum (can be rebuilt). $125 Albinar 2x Macro Focusing TC - no A contacts. Almost as good as the Vivitar version, turns any 50mm into a 100mm 1:1 Macro. REALIST STEREO WHITE 3.5 $125. This is a kit with some extras. Camera was sold to me as operable, but I never used it. Prefer local sale in case refund is necessary. Vintage Bausch Lomb Film Slide Viewer, Medium Format!!! $25 with old box. SLIK Twin Pan Camera Platform $39 Semi-antique RIES Tr-iLok Tripod from the 50's or 60's. Fine wood legs, cast camera base, I have 1/4 and 3/8 mounting screws. Perfect for displaying your old medium format collectible camera next to the brass cuspidor.in the Big Boy's Room. $125. More to come, also have some nice Nikon gear like AFD 135/2, 180/2.8 AFD, another Viv S1 90-180 Macro, 50/1.4 MF, 85/2 MF, Kiron 105/2.8 Macro MF, etc. I got old and have been genteel poor since the years I was active on the list. Now all I need is some extra spending money, one camera, one zoom, one prime, one flash, and my angel wife. Shipped insured at actual cost from USA zip 75462 by any safe method. No paypal. Will consider trade or trade-in for a quality plinker like .22 LR Buckmaster pistol or Single Six SS Convertible revolver with adjustable sights. References provided upon request. Reserve right to correct typo errors. Thanks for looking. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: 20 Pentax lenses tested on K20D by Chasseur D'images
...as for psychological considerations, there is also the unbendable urge to consider any shortfalls of Pentax equipment as unfair testing, biased German/French/American/Tralfamadorian testers, bad sample, or oh-poor-me Pentax doesn't never gets a fair shake criticism. To demean pruple fringing as a problem that only occurs for the poor photog who shoots backlit twigs is to miss the point - purple fringing is well known in digital sensor testing - check Dpreview.com for many examples- so lack of mention for Canon and Nikon would indicate, duh, a lack of that problem on the lens/camera combos tested. I love Pentax, but long ago gave up the notion that they have the best lenses on planet urth. Whilst Pentax has many fine lenses and cameras, it is sad that they have a bad habit of falling short when there is no need to fall short, i.e., newly designed expensive cameras and lenses such as the K20 and DA* 200. But Pentax is not alone in lens shortfalls - consider how many recent DA-type lenses of all manufacturers (with reduced image circle) suffer from severe light falloff in the corners. What's with that? They have a smaller area to cover and can't make a design to cover it without significant (1 stop +) falloff? . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: 20 Pentax lenses tested on K20D by Chasseur D'images
I'm curious - what is a centering defect Photozone shows a flaw in the DA* 200 - purple fringing. Bad enough for me to avoid it. Unfortunately the DA* 200mm f/2.8 has quite a problem regarding purple fringing. Purple fringing is a blooming effect that occurs at extreme contrast transitions. The camera sensor has surely a few stakes in here but the effect is also dependent on the lens. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Sorry for the absence
Due to unforseen circumstances I have been unable to get online for the past few days. I am way behind in replying to the many emails concerning the gear I have for sale. I hope to start tonight getting replies out. Sorry to all who have been expecting replies. The same health issues that are leading me to downsize my equipment stash have been making it difficult to keep this project on track. . -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Re: Thumbs Up
Obviously, the point of the photo is GREEK BOYS COTTY ISLAND RESTAURANT (waitress wanted) and the guys on the left are encouraging Sinead on the right to apply, despite the missing left antler. Thumbs Up!. -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Regarding my Pentax gear for sale...
I 've had many responses, thanks to all of you, and other offers are welcome. It will take me a couple of days to sort everything out. I've had many people interested in the 600/4 and accessories. I am working up a total price for the whole set, which is everything one needs except a camera and good tripod or monopod. Items no longer for sale: 50/1.2 (sold long ago) F 300/4.5 (my keeper) F 24-50 (wife's keeper) 1.7x AF Adaptor (my last one - will keep) plus a few other minor items. Serious offers received on: M 85/2 M 20/4 A 50/1.4 200/2.5 (both) 600/4 kit For those of you who want me to set a price, it may take awhile since I haven't been looking at the value of this gear for many years. It would be best just to make a decent offer, maybe a little under Ebay or under KEH Ex prices. I will ship overseas, but you guys have to do the research on shippers and choose one: who, what, when where and how much... I am at USA zip code 75462. Overseas will be all sales final, sorry, that's the best I can do. -- John Mustarde Paris, TX -- 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.
Back after a long time; plus some Good Stuff for sale like FA* 600/4
I'm glad to see olde friends on PDML. I have been unable to follow the list for some time now, mid 2004 actually, and I re-subscribed just today. Apparently Pentax has a couple of new cameras with nice features since I last posted... Anyway, part of the reason I re-upped PDML is I have a few too many cameras and many too many lenses and accessories. I see a Big House Cleaning soon, lenses and accessories from FA* 600/4 on down. I'm sure I'll keep a good set of gear, probably get a Pentax camera upgrade to my IstD, but I'm really going to downsize this time. I'll keep one Pentax DSLR, a couple of zooms and maybe 2-3 more lenses, one good flash, tripod and simple head, minor accessories. On the items I'm going to sell, prices are not firm yet since I don't know the going rate nowadays, but will be fair and probably under Ebay. Will ship overseas if the buyer makes the arrangements on their end and all I have to do is drop off the box and sign the customs form. Offers welcome, reasonable or not, public or private. Will reply as quickly as I can. Partial list: PENTAX FA* 600/4 WITH ORIGINAL FACTORY FULL KIT INCLUDES FITTED METAL HARD CASE, HOOD, INTERNAL FILTERS WALLET, NECK/SHOULDER STRAP) MISC. EXTRAS KIT FOR 600/4: PENTAX 1.4 AND 2.0 XL MF TC's; WIMBERLEY HEAD; REALLY RIGHT STUFF QR RELEASE AND FOOT SPECIFIC TO FA* 600/4; DOMKE LONG LENS BAG W/ KINESIS BACKPACK HARNESS PENTAX F* 300/4.5 TOKINA ATX 300/2.8 MANUAL FOCUS MINT W/CASE, BAG. PENTAX FA 100/2.8 MACRO PENTAX FA 50/2.8 MACRO PENTAX SMCP-M 20/4 PENTAX REAR CONVERTOR-A 2X-L PENTAX SMCP-F 24-50/4 PENTAX REAR CONVERTOR-A 1.4X-L SIGMA AF 75-300/4.5-5.6 PHOENIX 100/3.5 MACRO PENTAX SMC-F 1.7X AF ADAPTOR KENKO PZ-AF 1.5X TELEPLUS SHQ PENTAX F 50/1.7 PENTAX PZ-1p PENTAX MZ-10 WIMBERLEY LONG LENS HEAD PENTAX AF-500 FTZ FLASH PENTAX 16X50 PCF BINOCULARS DOMKE LONG LENS BAG FOR 600/4 BOGEN TRIPOD 3021 PENTAX SMCP-M 85/2 PENTAX FA 28-80/3.5-4.7 PHOENIX 18-28/4-4.5 KENKO PZ-AF UNIPLUS TUBE 25 PENTAX PZ-10 LOWE-PROBAG OFF-ROAD BOGEN MONOPOD 3249B BOGEN HEAD 3262QR PENTAX SMC-P 50/1.2 PENTAX SMCP-A 50/1.4 VIVITAR 2X MACRO FOCUSING TELECONVERTOR PENTAX SMCP-A 50/2 PENTAX 24/2.8 110 PENTAX AUTO 110 SET BOXED REALIST REALIST STEREO WHITE 3.5 w/extras PENTAX ME Super PENTAX AUTO 110, FLASH, 24MM PENTAX AUTO 110 PENTAX DATA BACK FD-P1 BOGEN TRIPOD 3205 PENTAX EXTENSION TUBE SET 3 PENTAX AF280T FLASH PENTAX AF240T FLASH STROBOFRAME FLASH BRACKET FLIP BOGEN HEAD 3047 CANON BAG PENTAX AF200T FLASH PENTAX HOT SHOE ADAPTOR FG LOWE-PROBAG NOVA 1 PENTAX CABLE SWITCH F PENTAX CABLE SWITCH F PENTAX EXTENSION CORD F5P HOYA67MM 81A FILTER PENTAX 58MM SKY FILTER HOYA58MM UV FILTER HOYA58MM UV FILTER PENTAX 49MM HAZE FILTER HOYA49MM UV FILTER HOYA49MM UV FILTER HOYA52MM UV FILTER HOYA49MM UV FILTER PENTAX SMCP 200/2.5 (QTY 2) VIVITAR 90-180/4.5 FLAT FIELD MACRO, CULT CLASSIC (MODIFIED TO FIT KAF WITHOUT BINDING) RIESRIES JR. DELUXE TRI-LOK TRIPOD (WOOD) VIVITAR lens, SERIES ONE 135/2.3 K-MOUNT VIVITAR lens, SERIES ONE 135/2.3 FOR NIKON OTHERS: SEVERAL HAMMERHEAD FLASHES, QUANTUM PRO FLASH BATTERIES, CORDS, FILTERS 49-55-58-62-67-77, ETC. PLUS MANY OTHER ITEMS - LIKE A PENTAX SWISS ARMY KNIFE WITH LASER ENGRAVED WOOD HANDLES... I also have quite a few quality refurbished old school 80's road and hardtail MTB bicycles needing a good home. Steel is real... I look forward to talking to my old PDML friends Doug, Cotty, Rob, David and all the rest of you again. I'm now living in northeast Texas, selling watermelons out the back of my little red pickup and trying not to collect cans off the highway for pocket change ;-) Ya'll take care, -- John Mustarde Paris, Texas aka Texdance -- 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.
Re: kick-fitting a 500
On Wed, 25 Aug 2004 23:07:51 -0500 (CDT), you wrote: Thanks to a generous offer from a member of this list, I'm now the proud owner of a 500/4.5 Takumar screw-mount howitzer. While I can envision some genuine uses for this thing on my Spotmatics, I'd also love to find a way to attach it usefully to my Nikon DSLRs--to see what the chromatic aberration does if nothing else. I'm thinking some sort of adapter to fit Nikon, with some extension to it, is the best available option. You'll need the extension to get to shorter min focus distance more than you'll need the infinity focus. If you end up with working distance of 20-40 feet the lens will at least be useful for birding from a blind. I used a Spiratone K mount flange (from the front of a bellows) mated to an F bayonet (from the back of a bellows) to attach the FA* 600/4 to the D100.
Re: Paypal Class Action
On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 08:44:28 +0100, you wrote: Hmm, maybe it's not a hoax.. https://www.paypal.com/settlement/ John Mustarde, have you seen this? http://www.settlement4onlinepayments.com/question1.php3 Oh yes, I've got my copy and intend to collect to the fullest extent possible, which will probably be one cent. I've said for awhile that PayPal is not your friend. Perhaps this is just the tip of the iceberg. Funny, I canceled my PayPal account awhile back but they still sent me a notice yesterday asking me to log in and update my credit card because that particular one is due to expire soon. Wonder why they want a valid card for a canceled account? Actually, I wonder why they still have my card number/data on file since I canceled the account and removed the card...Hmmm. Be carefule every time you log in to PayPal they consider it a renewal of agreement to their terms of service no matter how egregiously they changed them to your detriment since you last logged in.
Re: New Pentax body from Cosina
On Fri, 16 Jul 2004 06:24:05 -0500, you wrote: Kinda ugly, but plastic! $225 buys a VERY nice ME Super, complete with CLA. Or almost a CLA'd Super A, yeah, yeah, thats the ticket! Don Yeah, but you don't get that incredible rubberized 35-70/3.5-4.8 Macro zoom, ya know... Actually, the best bargain in a film camera would be a used PZ1p for around $300 - 400. Now *that* would be a worthy investment in a film camera. But try to tell that to someone with only $225 to spend... -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: SMC-FA* 200mm macro
On Thu, 15 Jul 2004 11:30:53 -0500, you wrote: Very happy. Can't wait to get out into the field in the next few days and really test it out. Haven't got a 67mm UV filter on it yet, so it's not going near the great outdoors yet. Don't tempt fate I always believe! Do yourself a favor - buy some insurance for the lens, and leave the filter off. No way would I impair the fabulous optics of this lens by permanently installing a cruddy filter in front of it. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: (on-topic) Pentax digital cameras
On Wed, 14 Jul 2004 19:51:12 -0700, you wrote: etn I notice that the *istD and the Optio 550 name files in exactly the same way. I etn don't suppose there's some kind of easy fix available so as not to cause etn confusion when files from both sources are stored in the same place? etn ERN If using JPG only, my idea is to borrow the Nikon View disk from a buddy. The Nikon software will download Pentax jpg's, and allows re-naming at download. Only problem - it does not recognize Pentax raw PEF files so does not download them. Maybe someone could bug Pentax for an upgrade so their software is at least as functional as the competition. Man, I hate the software with the *ist D, so much that I never ever use it. It is the main reason I don't shoot raw with Pentax. If I need raw files, I break out the Nikon gear. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: apologetic
On Wed, 14 Jul 2004 14:37:57 -0600, you wrote: - Original Message - From: Bob Blakely Subject: Re: apologetic Christianity is advertised like soap powder in America? Really! Exactly which shelf is it on? In my neighborhood, they come door to door, sort of like Fuller Brush salesmen in dark suits. William Robb In my neighborhood, which is predominately Mormon, they are quite cheerful and usually tolerable, young men bicycling around in pairs in dark pants and white shirts and ties in the 104 degree heat. But what really bugs me is they ride their bikes at full speed after dark with no lights, invisible in their BW camo garb and black bikes, often on the wrong side of the street, I guess racing each other home. I've chased a few pairs down and offered to buy them lights and batteries out of my own pocket just so they don't kill me or the wife on our evening rides. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Lots of racing photos
On Mon, 12 Jul 2004 07:56:09 -0400, you wrote: ...none of which is on line yet. But I spent all day yesterday shooting motorcycle roadracing. Okay, Mark, it's all digital, it's been a couple of days now, so where's the beef, I mean photos? The racing photos you make, and a few others, are one of my secret pleasures about PDML, and certainly a great antidote to all the folderal around here lately. So pick a dozen or more and post 'em soon, I'l be looking for them. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW
On Mon, 5 Jul 2004 08:05:50 -0700 (PDT), you wrote: Very good shots, there were enough photo ops on this one hike to last a month of Sundays. I enjoyed browsing this paw as much as any in the past year. But you left me wanting for info - who are the folks, and why only one coloring book. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: what is a reasonable price for an SMC A 100 2.8 macro?
On Sun, 4 Jul 2004 20:37:35 +0200, you wrote: Hi all, just checking, anyone know what a reasonable price is for an SMC A 100 2.8 macro? Frank From the replies I've seen, there is no reasonable price for this lens - it sells for unreasonable prices. If one really wants a lens to use and not to fondle or make the heart burst with pride at one's excellent taste in lenses, then any of the 90-105mm f2.8 MF or AF lenses should be a good choice. I've not heard any bad about any of them. When I added a Nikon camera to my kit, I wanted a 100mm Macro lens that went to 1:1 magnification. Being broke because of the expensive D100 purchase, I did not want the Nikon AF version. I already had a nice Pentax FA 100/2.8 Macro that cost close to $500. So a very quick search of the usual used sites found me a Kiron manual focus 105/f2.8 Macro in Nikon mount. It is every bit as good as my Pentax FA 100/2.8 Macro, except for lack of autofocus. But the difference in price? The 25-year-old Kiron cost about a hundred bucks, which was the going rate and not some super lucky bargain. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Quality of pentax teleconverters.
On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 15:42:32 -0700, you wrote: If K200/2.5 takes A1.4X-L or A2X-L, they are the best option. If not, A1.4X-S is the next best thing. F1.7X has plastic body which might not be able to withstand the weight of 1kg. The Pentax XL teleconverters do not fit the K200/2.5, but the Pentax 1.7x AF Adapter works great with it. No problems at all, and no worries about the strength of the Adapter. It makes a sturdy combination with good optics. The handling is a little slow, because the K200/2.5 has stiff and long focus throw and needs to be pre-focused into range for the AF Adapter to take over. When using the PZ1p this was a favorite combination of mine; on one vacation I left all my other long lenses home and relied solely on the K200/2.5 with 1.7x AF Adapter as my long-lens option. But the handling is different depending on which body is used: the PZ1p is large with a good grip protrusion and handles this heavy combo well; the AF Adapter/K200/2.5 is a little heavy for the small *istD and hard to hold for any length of time. Alan Chan http://www.pbase.com/wlachan Right now I use a Sakar 1.7 teleconverter and its not horrible but I wouldn't mind upgrading to something of better optical quality. I've been looking for one the well regarded kenko/tamron pro ones but they are pricey and hard to find in pentax mount. What are the pentax ones like for optics? I'm especially interested in the 1.7X F AUTO FOCUS ADAPTER so I could use that with my K 200mm f2.5 and end up with an auto focus 340mm f4.25 that will autofocus. Also the A 1.4X-S and A 2X-S. _ Add photos to your messages with MSN Premium. Get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-capage=byoa/premxAPID=1994DI=1034SU=http://hotmail.com/encaHL=Market_MSNIS_Taglines -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Asahi Pentax 400mm f5.6 Tele Takumar
On Sun, 27 Jun 2004 16:06:06 +0200, you wrote: Hi all good people. Anyone know this lens: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItemitem=3823874307 ? Cheers The design of these old 400mm lenses usually has very long minimum focus distance, about 30 feet, which becomes frustrating very quickly. The user of this lens will want some extension tubes available. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Another one bites the dust.. lost customers
On Sat, 26 Jun 2004 23:52:47 +1000, you wrote: Well another of my friends who is a first time digicam and SLR purchaser has just purchased the 300D, price was the persuader. He's happy and Pentax has lost yet another potential source of income by coming late to the party with a baby *ist D. A story come full circle but to Pentax disadvantage. Many of us bought into Pentax because of price. Now, many new camera buyers, sensitive to price as well as features, don't even have Pentax on their radar screen. But the Digital Rebel has such a low price that its price comparisons confound every competitor, not just Pentax. Price was the persuader when I bought into Pentax with a PZ1p, later two, then three of them. Nothing from Canon or Nikon compared to it, unless I was willing to spend almost double the price. Hyper Manual and in-camera flash compensation and 1/250 flash sync were the features that did it for me. It was great to have two cameras handling the same, with different lenses, hanging around my neck, and a third stationary on the tripod with the 600/4 so it was ready for action instantly. I guess I had some kind of 100-300-600 zoom by grabbing three different cameras. I don't fault Pentax too much for 'being late to the party' - they have been late to every film/digital party since Canon changed their mount. Heck, I'm just glad the *istD arrived as early as it did, and is a fine camera. I hope the Baby D is something my wife likes so I can have a second K-mount digital available. But I still miss the 1/250 sync and in-camera flash compensation of the PZ1p. Funny thought - since I bought my first full-featured AF camera on price, knowing little about manufacturers or photography, I might just as easily gotten stuck with Minolta... Now there's a manufacturer that's really, really late to the DSLR party. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Kowa Prominar TD-1, 3mp, 450-1350 f2.8-4 zoom
450-1350/f2.8-4... Now that's a zoom. But how can it be? I thought 1350mm/f4 would require a front element about 337mm in diameter. http://www.dpreview.com/news/0406/04062402kowprominartd1.asp -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Pentax Cable Switch F question
On Mon, 21 Jun 2004 09:12:56 +1000, you wrote: Has anyone here disassembled the Pentax Cable Switch F? If so is the switch body screwed or glued? Cheers, It's screwed. Disassembly and reassembly are easy, just remember what position the switch lock was in (locked or unlocked) and keep the inner lock piece in that same position upon reassembly. I took one of mine apart the other day to check electrical connections. Inside is an ingenious little two-position switch with a metal lock slider, which has to be in the right position relative to the plastic outer slider upon reassembly or it won't lock anymore. It's all very understandable once the innards are exposed. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Analog vs digital by Herbert Keppler
On Thu, 17 Jun 2004 08:36:40 +0200, you wrote: OK, Jostein, You and the others who posted on this subject have convinced me. It makes little sense to me, but I can accept that many snapshooters are now buying a DLSR. Hopefully, while most of them will store those cameras in adrawwer after a while, some will grow as amateur photographers, and that's a good thing. Dario Our daughter is a good example of a snapshooter. A few years ago when she was in her early twenties I gave her a very nice ME Super set with a couple of primes, a zoom, and a flash. She was thrilled, and using this nice set she caught the snapshooting bug. So what did she buy for an upgrade from the ME Super? Canon Rebel. Kit lens short zoom. 70-300 that I bought her for a present. Now, a couple of years later, she has added the Digital Rebel as her primary camera, which came with an 18-55 kit lens. Most likely she has reached her equipment saturation point, and probably won't ever upgrade again. Snapshooter behavior: On her recent trip to Hawaii, she took one 512mb card. As it filled up, she made more space by editing the bad ones, then started lowering the resolution to get more on the same card. It never occurred to here to go spend the bucks for another CF card, or an image tank, or the other options. She thought it was perfectly okay to lower the resolution to get more pics on her one card. BTW, the Digital Rebel is an odd gunmetal color, which gets more ugly the more I look at it. But for all its plastic body, it still feels fairly sturdy, and is much larger than one would expect, especially compared to the *istD. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW A clinical view
On Wed, 16 Jun 2004 19:34:58 +1000, you wrote: And now for something completely different: http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=2448548size=sm Comments and criticisms welcome as usual :-) Cheers, Very nice. Wanna trade? I have an F 50/1.7, a stretchy neck strap, three rolls of film, and a flash to be named later... Seriously, the even lighting is very successfully done. Any Photoshopping - drop-shadows or erasure of background? Also, what exactly is the low-temperature tungsten lighting you mention? I am looking for lighting options to outfit a plate examination area at work - high-ceiling (28 ft), open area about 30 x 30 feet, money no object (up to a few thousand) for lighting... BTW, at Medium size, each letter of PENTAX-A and FISH-EYE are outlined by artifacts. Sharpening halo, unavoidable at low resolutions, maybe? -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Papa-D
On Fri, 4 Jun 2004 07:17:04 -0400, you wrote: what has happened is that my readings on people who actually do what i am trying to and are making a living at it say the same thing. if you have the basics down, stop playing with wannabe hardware and get what it takes to get the job done reliably, and without interfering with the photographic process. I like to think of it in this way: how much capital is needed to become self employed in nature photography, as compared to say, setting up a two-man barber shop or a fast-food franchise. In that light, nature photography is dirt cheap. The capital outlay is well under $100,000 and can be operated out of the home, thus no ongoing extra rent or building costs; the barber shop will cost twice that, and the fast food franchise four times at least. As a long time owner of big glass, and admirer of Art Morris' work and teachings, I agree: anyone wanting to be a player in the nature photography field needs to go head to head with the equipment used by his peers. As of today this means Canon and only Canon. 600/4 IS USM plus 1.4 and 2x TC, flash bracket and flash extender, Wimberly head or video head, top line Gitzo tripod, then after receiving that multi-thousand dollar lens go buy some camo tape and wrap it up. $6899 EF 600mm f/4.0L IS Image Stabilizer USM Autofocus 1389 EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Autofocus Lens 1649 EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS Image Stabilizer USM Autofocus Lens 279 EF 1.4x II Extender 279 2x II Extender EF - Autofocus Add ten thousand for incidentals and you're in business for under twenty-five thousand bucks. Wow, pretty cheap. By the way, the Canon 600/f4 has gone way down in price the last six years - it used to cost over $10,000, now they have added IS plus a couple other features and the cost has dropped to $6899. The 400/4 DO is a neat lens, but has not been widely adopted yet by those in the know. But the important thing for a successful nature photographer has nothing to do with gear: it is the seminars and sessions and books and articles which generate significant income. A few stock photo sales per year will not make the car payment or put the kids through college; one needs a steady profit which provides a reasonably high income, which is where the famous and semi-famous nature photogs excel, they provide themselves with a wide range of income opportunities. If one wants to go be serious about nature photography as a business, or a form of self-employment, Pentax would not be the system of choice. However, that does not mean that Pentax can't match photo for photo with Canon and Nikon - it's just not the best business decision. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: istD preferred lens survey in archive?
On Tue, 25 May 2004 06:36:48 -0500, you wrote: I think you nailed my most troubling thoughts about buying an istD right now (and its just money and availability of lens) snip There now, I've got it all figured out. Now if only someone would buy my Mamiya 7II... Good luck with trying to sell that. I sold two PZ1ps before their value dropped too low; it would have been difficult to part with them for bargain basement prices. I think the prices of used film equipment are rapidly dropping, which is not too good for those wanting to get some money back out of their used equipment. The more desirable film gear should retain value for awhile, but as time goes on it there will be more competition from other sellers, and prices will go way down even for very good kit. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: M 85mm f/2
On Sat, 22 May 2004 07:56:52 +0200, you wrote: JM I used Rob's excel spreadsheet to calculate lpmm for three lenses at JM available apertures f2-f8: the M85/2, FA 100/2.8 Macro, and a manual JM focus Vivitar VS1 28-105/2.8-4 (fairly new cheap lens, not some old JM cult classic). John, you said we can flame away as we like ;-) So take on your azbesthos suit: lpm doesn't say much about any lens quality. It doesn't take into account resolution at different contrast levels, nor does it much see coma. Nor does it sees different gradations each lens has. With the high contrast resolution targets, often even cheap zooms will perform well, but get into low contrast targets, and the lens resolves only a muddy mush. You would have to have at least resolution targets with several widely different contrast ratios. Either some difficult MTF tests, which are pretty difficult to do meaningully as well (as always, chosing the right distance, chosing full daylight spectrum, etc...something they don't do at Photodo), or real world scenes... You certainly did good at chosing the right distance for portraits, and your test does tell something about the lenses, and the digital sensor is different enough that some great lenses can perform badly on it, but still, you only tested for high contrast resolution. So your test is useful, but it doesn't tell the whole picture :) I am personally not in favour of lens testing. It's very hard to evaluate properly, not subjectively, and the results are equally hard to project into one's photographic needs. Best regards, Frantisek Vlcek I agree 100% with most all your comments. Lens testing is only one limited data point when learning about a lens, and many data points are needed for a reliable evaluation. But I think personal lens testing has value, especially comparisons between similar focal lengths one already owns. I have owned lenses which time after time disappoint in some subtle manner, the kind which leave nagging doubts about the lens or my technique, when in fact some simple tests showed the lens to be totally incapable of giving decent results compared to other available lenses of similar focal length, so off goes the bad guy to the scrap heap, without regrets. In the case of the M85/2, my little tests provided some data which agreed with what I already knew from actual use: the M85/2 is a keeper, a nice sharp lens which is easily able to perform well in its intended use as a portrait lens. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: M 85mm f/2
On Thu, 20 May 2004 17:23:24 -0600, you wrote: - Original Message - From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: A 15mm-85F2 (was RE: 77 limited or 85* for portraits/canndids) Portrait lenses don't have to be sharp!!! This is not to imply that the M85mm is soft, I hope. What I don't understand is the insistence of extremes that this list is so fond of. The M85 may not be as sharp as the K585, for example, but this doesn't mean it isn't a good sharp lens, it just means that the K is sharper. Apparently, the M 28mm suffers from the same crisis of quality. Perhaps there are better lenses out there, but it's not like as if the M is crap. William Robb The*istD and idle hands make for some easy comparisons. Please flame away all you like about how bad this is for a lens test, it pleases me, so that heck wit ya, na na na na naaa. I chose a subject distance suitable for the lens in question, i.e. 3.3 meters for the 85mm, which gives a full head-and-shoulders shot. I used Rob's excel spreadsheet to calculate lpmm for three lenses at available apertures f2-f8: the M85/2, FA 100/2.8 Macro, and a manual focus Vivitar VS1 28-105/2.8-4 (fairly new cheap lens, not some old cult classic). Shots were manually focused. I used the *istD mounted on a nice stable Ries wooden tripod, 2-sec mirror prefire, actuated by the cable release I modified from PZ to istD using PDML instructions (thanks guys). Numbers such as 0,3 show the group and pair resolved. The test target is one I keep pasted on the rec room wall for just such misadventures as this. The short story - from f2 through f4, the M 85 at 3.3 meter subject distance is the clear winner, and maintains a slight edge at f5.6 and f5. This was surprising to me, but heck I saw it with my own eyes. The 100/2.8 Macro resolves one small increment more at f8, being Group 0, Pair 6, but the spreadsheet penalizes it a bit for 100mm length vs 85mm, so the lpmm value is smaller. M85/2 2 0,3 48.9 2.8 0,3 48.9 3.5 0,3 48.9 4 0,4 54.9 5.6 0,4 54.9 8 0,5 61.6 FA 100/2.8 Macro 2 2.8 0,4 46.7 3.5 4 0,4 46.7 5.6 0,5 52.4 8 0,6 58.8 Vivitar Series 1 28-105/f2.8-4 at 105mm 2 2.8 3.5 4 0,4 46.7 5.6 0,5 52.4 8 0,5 52.4 -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Expressions of Interest
On Mon, 17 May 2004 17:25:37 +0800, you wrote: Hi Gang, I am thinking about lightening the load in my camera bag, and changing the way I do things a little bit, so I have some gear I am interested in selling. All items are AS NEW. I will consider offers on the following: 1. Tokina 300mm ATX F2.8 SD (MF) with case, carry bag, original lens hood and original box. Alsocomes with 112mm filter on front, and rear cap (I think Cotty will vouch for how good these things are?). Comes with valuation from OEM importer for insurance purposes. I don't mind an unsolicited comment on the Tokina 300/2.8 AT-X SD - it is one fine lens. I've had two of them, both were sharp as tacks, I almost regretted selling the first one because it was so good I was afraid maybe it was one-of-a-kind, but when I got my second one it was optically excellent also. The first I sold to Cotty, who later sold it as he forayed into DSLR country. The real strength of this lens comes out when it is coupled with the Pentax 1.7x AF adapter - it becomes a fine semi-autofocus 510/f5 (actually f5.047003 according to fCalc) *which is only a tad larger than a 300/2.8*. This lens, with or without the AF Adapter, compares well with the Pentax FA* 600/f4 in optical quality at f4, and as a bonus it focuses much closer than the 600/4. I know the price range for this lens, and for the money there is no better KA mount long lens solution anywhere. Plus it has a nice deep sturdy hood, which reverses and the whole thing fits in a protective bag which I've taken into ballparks looking unobtrusively like a 2-liter water bottle bag. Yes, it is a little heavy, because it takes a lot of glass to make a long fast lens like a 300/2.8, but its sturdy rotating tripod collar helps make it balance nicely on a monopod even with a light duty head. All in all, the Tokina AT-X SC 300/2.8 was one of my best lens purchases ever. Both times. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT (very very): Fujifilm user group
On Wed, 12 May 2004 20:23:42 +1000, you wrote: Is there a user group for Fujifilm cameras. Specifically, I'm after one for the S2 Pro, which I use at work. I have a very arcane question about current consumption for said camera. Many users of said camera at: http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1020 However, I am curious to know what is the question about power consumption. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Photokina rumour mill has started...
Hey, it's got an LCD screen, so how about a nice TV receiver, using the CF card as a TIVO? Plus an AM/FM stereo radio? Organizer, note pad, spreadsheet, database, todo list, a few games, email, you know, the full suite of PDA apps? Might as well add a cell phone slash walkie-talkie and ports for external keyboards and monitors. I mean, why waste all that memory and computing power, I'm sure there is plenty of extra space inside to add a chip or a board or two, and oh yeh don't forget the Scrabble dictionary. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Saturday Survey
On Sat, 24 Apr 2004 19:19:26 -0400, you wrote: OK, here's a new question: What camera or lens have you bought that you regretted purchasing? Two LXen. Didn't use them much, never got to like them, and lost big on the resale. They just didn't suit me at all, from the off-balance strap configuration to the flash problems to the loud shutter to the many, many repair needs. All the hoopla about the OTF metering sounded good, but in real life I wasn't used to setting the camera on auto, and when I did it incorrectly exposed just as often as any other center-weight meter, although it has some theoretical advantage if the light is very low or changed at the instant of exposure. For a good manual Pentax camera, give me a PZ1p any day. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: ok, now I'm cool
On Fri, 16 Apr 2004 11:14:04 -0400, you wrote: I am the proud owner of an *istD. Just a few questions. 1.) Is digital photography better than film photography? Yes. It's better. It just is. In about a week, or 4000 photos from know, you'll know why. Kiss that poor PZ1p goodbye, it is headed for a lonely life, languishing seldom used in the equipment drawer with all the old soft lenses that seemed like such a bargain at the time, and 4-element 2x teleconverters, and extra 50mm lenses; a camera too good to get rid of but now suddenly requires an expensive consumable which was never before really a factor, just a fact of life. Let's trade pics of our PZ1ps, put them together with the cameras, maybe they won't be so lonely at night. 2.) So, how does this thing work? Good enough, but as with all Pentax cameras, Pentax for some unfathomable reason made it lacking in certain important areas so it is not quite as good as it could have been for the same manufacturing cost. But you'll find out for yourself, the first time it lets you down in flash exposure, or in AF speed, or when the silly AF selector dial gets knocked between detents and thus stops the AF from AFing, or when you go looking for the 100 ISO selection, or the 1/250 flash sync or flash exp comp with your 500 FTZ, or try to view that darn instant review for more than 5 seconds. But you won't be unhappy with it, it has all the basics covered well enough, and the output quality as good as the competition in every respect, and slightly better than the D100 from my own experience. Oh, BTW, the software is truly useless, get something else quick. You will also want Photoshop CS just for the shadow/highlight tool. The bane of digital is blown highlights; keeping them in range can block up the shadows, but the info is there, just needs a little tweaking in the midtones to bring out. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Do I still need it?
On Sun, 18 Apr 2004 17:10:16 +1000, you wrote: How much equipment is too much? What would you do if you had excess equipment doing nothing? Last year I sold a lot of Pentax film bodies, and a few lenses and flashes. Luckily I got fair prices for everything. Now I still have an MZ series, and a K 200/2.5 and an AF280T which are surplus, but I can seem to get any takers at anywhere near what I paid for them. So my advice is to watch current sale prices, and sell off any duplicate or extra gear without delay. lest it lose all resale value and still sit unused. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT: PayPal oddity - need advise
On Sun, 18 Apr 2004 11:43:02 +0400, you wrote: My question - is it a mere glitch, or am I in trouble? Anyone had similar experience? Thanks in advance. Boris PayPal and Ebay are in business to maximize their profits and close off all loopholes that might cause losses. Never forget. They are not nice guys out to help us buy neat stuff at a bargain. So any refusals one encounters are simply PayPal protecting itself, without regard to user convenience. I envision a time when PayPal and Ebay become so onerous and expensive to use that they destroy their original core business - individuals buying and selling their own stuff. It's happening somewhat now - the number of bargains from individual sellers is way down compared to just 18 months ago. Most of Ebay photo is overrun with full-time businesses hawking retail merchandize, much of which can be purchased online or in local retail stores for about the same as the Ebay price. I am heartily enjoying my Ebay-free and PayPal-free lifestyle. I actually wish I had abandoned both of them a couple of years sooner. When I think of all the hours spent on Ebay, not to mention the dollars, that could have been spent with my wife or even the dang dog, I think I must have been addicted, or somehow in a PayBay-crazed fugue. -- Cactus Jack Warm and Dry in the Valley of the Sun www.photolin.com www.photolin.com/payanon/payanon.htm No More Pay, Pal © 2004 John Mustarde Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Hey Hey-ah, Good Bye. Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Na, Na-aaa, Good Bye.
Re: PUG reminder
On Sat, 17 Apr 2004 17:42:13 -0500, you wrote: This theme is doing my head in, it's so open to interpretation. Comments anyone? Norm I'm starting with the dictionary definition. http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=environment It may not work, but I'm headed out now with a 20, 100 and 300 to try to come up with something to fit the theme, rather than digging out old photos and fitting the theme to them. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Interesting Cloud Photo on APOD
On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 21:53:07 -0400, you wrote: Archive back a day or so to An Iridescent Cloud Over France http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040413.html -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT: something that we should remember all
On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 10:48:02 +0400, you wrote: Hi! Please point your browser to http://www.angelfire.com/extreme4/kiddofspeed/. This is rather long story with some rather amazing documentary photographs. They don't have high technical level or anything. But I thought I would share the link with you anyway. This link was presented not too long ago. I became engrossed and read every page in the essay. The commentary is thoughtful, and the bleakness of the landscape makes one wonder if it could happen closer to home. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Some good news....
On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 09:07:40 -0600, you wrote: http://www.bernernews.net/2004/pictures/0415.jpg The actual picture I submitted can be seen here http://www.beard-redfern.com/tmp/prize_w.jpg The category in which we won makes it even more special as Boris was diagnosed with lymphosarcoma in September last year. wendy beard ottawa, canada http://www.beard-redfern.com wendy beard ottawa, canada http://www.beard-redfern.com Great shot, very expressive, a blue-ribbon winner in my book also. The first link, web-photo-of-the-photo, looks better than the web photo link, because the web shot is just too dark compared to the one with the blue ribbon next to it. Anyway, the big guy looks like he's got the wisdom of the ages tucked away somewhere. Sorry to hear about the diagnosis. Losing a pet is very difficult. One of the young feral cats I take care of died of unknown causes last night, we found him this morning, it was very sad. One can't really be close to feral cats as if they were pets, but I like to think he knew me and trusted me a little, he allowed me to get close to him as I provided water and food every day. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: WTB 4p cord for IR remote
On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 19:02:54 -0400, you wrote: Hi I am looking for a 4p remote cord for the LX motor drive to IR remote receiver. If anyone has this for sale drop me an e mail Thanks in advance JD I have something called item 37325 Infrared Remote Release Cord F It is a short coiled cord with a pointy male screw end (like an old push-style remote shutter release) plus a plastic female plug end. Does that sound right? Email me directly, I can post a link to a photo tomorrow. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PENTAX *ist D : Things to improve
...and native 1/250 flash sync without an expensive extra flash ...convertor so I can use my existing remote release cables instead of buying new ones ...white or red lamp AF assist without having to pop up or fire the flash ..re-design the viewfinder info display with the over-under graph at the bottom instead of the side. ...longer strap, with pockets, like the one that came with the PZ1p ...or priced so low I can't complain about the lack of features -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: NEW_PUG - questions
On Sat, 10 Apr 2004 11:30:23 +0200, you wrote: I think these are enough questions to start the ball rolling. Cheers Jostein and Adelheid I too appreciate your continuing commitment and efforts. I can live with pdml-pug.net. Other suggestions: pugphoto and photopug are available. I am willing to leave the final decision in the capable hands of Adelheid and Jostein, and will support them fully. As for helping with the annual costs for a new PUG server, count me in. I don't send a photo to pug very often, but it is something I enjoy and support. However, I don't use PayPal, so I would appreciate an alternate method of transferring an annual contribution. I would like to vote for an uncluttered, clean, fast interface that simply frames and enhances the photos, with space for a bit of descriptive text. Leave off any extra graphics from the photo display pages - no need for a PUG logo at the top or blinking gifs or any of the distracting elements seen at photo.net and other photo display sites. In other words, please stay close to the current PUG. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Cropping or resizing 35mm and *istD images
How you crop or resize your images which start life with 3:2 ratio? What factors are considered when cropping or resizing? Final image size to fit 8x10 enlargements? Removal of unwanted image area? Fit on preferred web page screen size, or size for PUG? Is there a never crop group, which of course would have only 3:2 ratio enlargements and no 8x10's? Is there some technical reason to resize *istD images exactly by fourths to get to 752x500? Or some reason *not* to crop or resize by an even number divisor? Just curious. I try to resize web images by an even factor of four. That seems to help reduce jagged diagonals, but I don't know if that is just my perception or a technical fact of life. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: *istD and M20/4 at San Diego Automotive Museum
On Sat, 03 Apr 2004 23:21:41 -0500, you wrote: Nice shirt, John! vbg -frank Thank yew, thank yew, thank yew. My lovely wife made me a batch of colorful custom shirts. I get smiling comments on them all the time, actually. I love the custom fit and colorful fabrics. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: *istD and M20/4 at San Diego Automotive Museum
On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 09:25:41 +0300, you wrote: Competent photography - but lack of captioning is frustrating. How can one identify a Clenet Continental without captions? Yes, I know I should have included captioning. I really wish I had the full documentation for the Hunt Special, which can be seen in images 3 and 4. Seems it was built for a wealthy rancher who absolutely *had* to have reliable transportation over the rutted Baja California cart paths to get sixty miles to town to see his doctor. It was a matter of life or death for him to see his doctor regularly, so he commissioned this original Baja off-roader, which successfully traversed the roads in the area now used for serious Baja off-road racing. It was the epitome of excellence in small-shop design, engineering, machining, and assembly. Everything was manufactured at the Hunt's own machine shop except for the crankshaft, which was farmed out because the shop was very busy with other work at the time. I think it was built in only a year. It was a convertible like some of today's exotic SUVs - the back passenger end was removable, and when it was taken off the car became a flatbed truck suitable for hauling cargo. The forward engine compartment does not contain the engine - there's nothing but empty storage space in the hood area behind the radiator. The engine is under the front seat, utilizing horizontally opposed cylinders. The suspension has huge amounts of clearance and travel, and has a nifty built in safety arms which allow the car to continue even if it breaks a leaf spring. I tried a Google search for more info about this car, but came up empty. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: FA 50mm f1.7
On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 16:42:52 +1000, you wrote: Anyways, I am wondering if these two incidences are related (ie not able to AF in the church with plenty of light, and then not being able to get a lock on focus at all in low light even with an AF assist beam), or separate. Should I send it off to CR Kennedy (I am becoming their best customer!) for a repair, or was the church thing a one off incident and the waltz thing was just due to low light? tan. Most likely you inadvertently pushed the camera's AF point selection dial to a position slightly between settings, which makes the autofocus exhibit crazy behavior. It happens to me all the time, and drives me crazy, because the AF won't work right, and I think either the camera or lens is broken, but when I look at the AF point selector dial it has been moved just enough towards the 'select' position to confuse the camera.. I wish there was some way to disable this selector in software so I could just use the center AF point. I don't like this AF point selection dial at all. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Spring Wildflowers
On Sun, 04 Apr 2004 10:32:07 -0400, you wrote: I'll probably try your spray bottle trick and see how that works. All but one of these was shot with a diffuser, some with an added reflector putting some directional light back into the frame to bring out detail. One thing I was trying to do when shooting alst week was to capture more of the environment - showing the dried leaves and hopefully suggesting the ecological niche this plants inhabit. - MCC You're My Hero® Well, sort of, ;-). I started to explore some similar environmental shots this weekend, so seeing your photos gives me a known quantity to check against. 4558 is my favorite, it shows the delicate nature of the flowers set within solid surroundings. I think such environmental shots require some creative thinking to decide which batch of flowers best shows the niche - this batch or the one two feet away. For myself, I may have to change to shorter focal lengths just to break away from recent habits of isolating single flowers. I would love to see a shot and description of your diffuser/reflector setup in action. Here in Arizona we have lots of high contrast lighting days, and I could use some help dealing with the bright sunlight. I could just stay home, but that's no fun, since the sun shines bright about 350 days of the year. Also, has anyone explored the low-contrast setting on the *istD? -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Predictions, anyone?
Prediction: Pentax DSLR with built-in endoscope. Camera name: *Ouch. Will kick competition in the you-know-what. -- Cactus Jack Warm and Dry in the Valley of the Sun www.photolin.com www.photolin.com/payanon/payanon.htm No More Pay, Pal © 2004 John Mustarde Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Hey Hey-ah, Good Bye. Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Na, Na-aaa, Good Bye.
Re: Infamous UPS
On Thu, 1 Apr 2004 21:34:33 CST, you wrote: Leon posted: UPS is wonderful. In America. Once you go beyond that you have problems. ... Their reputation IN the USA isn't great either. One of the many hats I wear at work requires I keep an eye on the shipping performance of several major carriers we use, which includes thousands of shipments per month ranging from one package to full truckload quantities. Rest assured every shipper loses or destroys or damages or delivers to wrong address at least 2% of all shipments. There are really no exceptions - all carriers are about as good (or bad, depending on how one looks at it.) Sometimes the poor performance will spike up over 5% per month for a carrier, but generally they stay in the 2% - 3% range for what we call carrier errors. So if one ships enough packages, the law of averages says there will be a plenty or horror stories for everyone. Today we are preparing a rush replacement order - we shipped 64 cartons on a pallet, when they arrived at the customer most were soaked with oil. 30-weight, looks like. Somewhere between one and ten gallons. How in the heck could that have happened. So when selecting a carrier, look for the things that make them easy to live with, such as easy reimbursement for lost/damaged insured packages, or low cross-border fees. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: big is beautiful
On Mon, 29 Mar 2004 17:13:06 -0600, you wrote: OTOH, as soon as you are working directly with a client, often the larger camera garners instant respect. This, in turn, can actually lead to better photos, as it is one more thing that puts the client at ease about the job. William Robb Sometimes larger relates to a useful accessory, like a battery grip/winder, or the added bulk required for a built-in vertical release. In my story, 'big' related mostly to a Stroboframe flash bracket, and I think bigger really was better. My daughter hired a student photog for her wedding. I showed up at the rehearsal with PZ1p and AF500FTZ on a Stroboframe flash bracket, with the curly cord between flash and hotshoe jiggling little exclamation points each time I lifted this big rig. The student photog showed up with a Canon Rebel or Elan, I forget which, but I noticed he had no flash except the pop-up one. Yuck. I was worried she would get nothing but red-eye snapshots instead of wedding photos. But to his credit he went out that afternoon and bought a decent flash and Stofen attachment, which he used to good effect for the wedding photos the next day. He told my daughter that my camera (your dad's big pro camera) shamed him into springing for the flash he already knew he needed. As it turned out, he had some training, a good attitude and way with people, a list of required shots, and some knowledge of posing and lighting. His photos turned out okay, not as perfect as a pro with more experience, but much better than I expected, considering my first impression of his 'small' camera. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT what is that makes the CD not usable ?- was : Photo Software
I'm at a loss for use with photo software since my PhotoShop CD appears to be not usable anymore when I needed to reinstall it. :-/ Adobe used to replace damaged or lost Photoshop CD's for a small fee, I think it was ten dollars. They required a simple affidavit of loss, and of course they had me on record as the registered owner. I used this service a couple of years ago and got a brand new CD. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Pentax quotes and SLR production stats
On Fri, 26 Mar 2004 21:06:24 -0500, you wrote: DSLRs will outsell film SLRs this year. if not this year, they certainly will next year. With all the Digital Rebels and other Canons and Nikon DSLRs out there, you'd think I'd be seeing them out and about. I was walking along the San Diego harbor near the Star of India and Maritime Museum last Thursday evening. There were people everywhere. Half of them had a digicam of some sort, and they were all doing the digicam stiff-arm salute (camera at arms length examining the LCD screen for focusing)... ... but only two people had a DSLR - me and another guy. Guess what brand? 100% Pentax! We both had an *istD! -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: My own DOF confusion
On Wed, 24 Mar 2004 12:34:51 +0100 (MET), you wrote: On Wed, 24 Mar 2004, Tanya Mayer Photography wrote: This may seem uneducated of me - but I here you all saying i'm right of centre, he's left, left winged, right winged etc, can someone please explain to me just what these terms mean? This dates back to the French parliament of 1789 where the radicals that wanted to change society towards more equality and freedom sat to the left as seen from the rostrum, and the conservatives that wanted to maintain the old system sat to the right. Since then, liberal politics has been labeled left and conservative politics has been labeled right. In the mid 19th century, an even more radical ideology was formed, socialism, to the left of the then current left. This blurred the left--right concept somewhat, since the liberals then became middle or even right. The left--right concept became even more blurred in the 1930's when fascism and nazism was placed off the scale to the right (extreme right) even though many people think that they have more in common with the communists on the extreme left (left of the socialists) than with the conservatives traditionally labeled right. Nowadays, it can be hard to determine what should be called left and right and there also are big differences within each side, so one should generally ask for clarification when these terms are used. Especially in an international context such as this. anders - http://anders.hultman.nu/ med dagens bild och allt! A post worthy of saving. Thank, Anders.
Re: Lasse V. Collin, formerly Re: My own DOF confusion
On Tue, 23 Mar 2004 22:32:51 +, you wrote: I don't think members should put political opinions in sig lines. This one offends me, and others may have problems with it too. Cheers, Cotty ___/\__ || (O) | People, Places, Pastiche ||=|www.macads.co.uk/snaps _ All them damn repetitive sig lines offend me, even my own. What say we make it a rule - change sigs every week, kinda like a PAW, no more than 55 characters for the sig subject, plus one attribution line and one name line, and of course the required -- and carriage return that makes the sig identifiable as a sig and not a continuation of the text. Anyone using the same sig two weeks in a row has to apologize. Profusely. And repetitively. Over and Over. -- John Mustarde Yo Mama Loves FOSI (unknown)
Re: muvo 4gb hitachi drive thingy...
An added bonus: the 4 gb Hitachi drive from a Muvo is easier to remove from the *istD than a regular IBM Microdrive, because the Hitachi has a tiny exposed lip that one can catch with a fingernail for easy removal. The same area on the IBM Microdrive is covered by a wider label so it is smooth. As for removing the drive from the MuVo, just follow the directions at the link someone posted earlier. Get a sturdy set of jewelers screwdrivers, the kind that you can get a good grip on with your fingers, which have a rotating top so you can press down firmly and rotate with your fingers at the same time. The downward pressure helps prevent stripping the screws. These screwdriver sets should be available at any hardware store or craft store or sewing store. I've even seen them in the big US grocery stores in the notions section. Five bucks US should buy a set, I would think. Set the Muvo in a pie pan or similar, so as not to lose the really really REALLY TINY tiny screws. Save the screws in a medicine bottle, then sell the stripped MuVo on Ebay for a hundred bucks or so. Or put a cheap compact flash card in it and use it for music. One the Hitachi drive is removed, just put it in the *istD and Format. No need to go messing with the card in a computer - a regular Format from the *istD menu is all mine needed. Bingo. 4gB of storage, ready to shoot. One caveat: keep up with the dpreview.com storage and media forum on this item - sooner or later everyone feels sure Hitachi will make it impossible to use this drive in a camera, somehow. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: omg - i have my foot in the door (but now I am scared)...
On Mon, 22 Mar 2004 15:43:17 +1000, you wrote: Post this question, perhaps shortened to just the basics, to rec.photo.technique.people, or join z-prophoto group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/z-ProPhoto . Both places have experts in people photography who seem very good at providing usable answers. However, be aware the newsgroup has more than its share of name-calling flame wars, if you can delete past the flames there is a lot of useful information from people who do this every day for a living. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW - Tres Amigos Redux
On Sun, 21 Mar 2004 15:43:31 EST, you wrote: SB I changed the crop a bit, burnt down some bright areas, and SB adjusted the toning. Comments welcome, of course. SB Adjusted version: SB http://home.earthlink.net/~scbelinkoff/images/tres-2.html SB Original version: SB http://home.earthlink.net/~scbelinkoff/images/tres-s.html Hmmm, strange reaction on my part, I actually like the first one better. Went back and forth to see why. Like line of wood (cabinet, door?) down the right side. Don't know why, specifically. Marnie aka Doe I like the first one better, also. The paper on the door or wall or whatever it is to the right, plus the headroom adding ceiling height above the stacked cans on the back wall, give size perspective to the boys - they are boys without a doubt, naturally smaller but small in perfect ratio to the other visual cues of the shop. When the door is cropped, that piece of paper is removed, the ceiling height reference above the stacked cans removed, the boys become indeterminate in age and size, or maybe their size becomes incongruous with the other size hints in the scene. The reference that guides one to their height is gone. Their height is no longer in natural ratio to the other objects in the shop. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: to *ist or not to *ist, that is the question!
On Sat, 20 Mar 2004 03:21:43 GMT, you wrote: John Mustarde écrit: On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 09:39:38 -0700, you wrote: For most of my uses, the antiquated and much-maligned autofocus in the PZ-1p is superior to the *ist D. I agree with that. Two things the PZ1p excelled at: focusing on a bird in the bush without hunting all over the place or getting stuck on the twig in front of it, and low-light AF. The more I use the *istD, the more I think its AF is worse than the PZ1p in every respect. But I haven't given them a fair comparison yet, just seat of the pants impressions. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com DO you compare the *ist D in a single centered Af mode or with all set on ? Yes. I keep the *istD in single centered AF mode. But do not rely only on my impressions of AF accuracy and speed, they are only untested impressions, not verified in any way yet.I am sorry I mentioned AF speed without making any tests, that is not a good way to provide accurate information. I intend to take my PZ1p, *istD and D100 and use them side-by-side to see how they compare in real-world shooting. I will try to keep the comparison as simple and accurate as I can with my limited equipment. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: FW: Request for opinion on LX deal
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 23:33:23 -0500, you wrote: The are also 28/3.5, 85/2, 135/3.5, 50/1.7, 300/2.8 A* and 400/5.6 lenses being offered. The last two are priced at $299 each. The lenses all appear to be in EX+ or better condition. Any advice would be much appreciated. Get the 300/2.8 A*, it is a genuine bargain for $299. Then find a Pentax 1.7x AF Adapter for about a hundred bucks, and voila you will have an excellent semi-autofocus 510mm/f5 lens. It should even work fine with the *istD. I wouldn't spend $299 on a Pentax 400/5.6, not even the newest version, unless I had a buyer already lined up for it. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: digital infared?
On Sun, 21 Mar 2004 10:17:18 +1000, you wrote: Ok, Photshoppers, I am looking to recreate the effect of infared photography on my digital images... Anyone got an action or a workflow that they use? tia, tan. Start here for some neat stuff: http://www.nickgallery.com/web_pages/technical.htm and the IR conversion action is on this page: http://www.nickgallery.com/web_pages/technical%207.htm -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: to *ist or not to *ist, that is the question!
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 06:02:37 -0500, you wrote: On Mar 18, 2004, at 11:06 PM, John Mustarde wrote: an option to switch function of the Tv-Av wheels, just for fun Sounds like someone doesn't have enough to do. ...can't put nothing over on you guys at all... actually I think this was or is a feature on some Canon body, once mentioned as desirable by a list member. The LCD is way too slow to respond, compared to the D100. I wait and wait and wait for the image to appear, then if my attention wanders the review disappears before I can look at it. Also, I think Pentax should up the frame and buffer rate, making it one better than whatever their direct competition such as D100 and 10Doffers, not because anyone really needs that slight increase, but because better specs help increase sales, and more sales of Pentax gear is good for all Pentax buyers. And while we're at it, how about a left-handed *istD, a complete mirror reverse of the camera as we now see it? With computers, reversing the dies and construction should be no problem. Hey if they do it with golf clubs, why not a DSLR? There sure won't be any competition. Plus the AF stinks. Way before the *istD appeared I appealed to Pentax to offer extreme improvements (at least in AF) over the D100 and then D30-D60, which by design used the Nikon and Canon second-tier AF system, but that did not happen. The AF in the *istD is not really bad, it's just not really a grand improvement over the PZ1p, and about on par with the D100 - 10D, despite several years Pentax had to implement hardware and software changes from the then-excellent PZ1p. I think the AF is really slow to respond, and occasionally locks onto the wrong spot and won't let go of that lock until focusing to some other distance and coming back. So am I unhappy with it? No, I don't get into buyers remorse unless the gear is totally unsuitable. The *istD is as good as the D100 and 10D in most ways that matter, but certainly not better. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW: Birds on a wire
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 09:29:15 +0200, you wrote: BB This is my submission for the week. I decided to try a high contrast look BB from a digital file. This was done in Photoshop. BB as always, comments welcome. BB http://www.usefilm.com/image/333057.html I like it. It has a harsh litho film quality to it. I can imagine it as a cover to an old detective magazine, with a body added to the foreground and some exclamatory verbiage Twenty Five Witnesses - and None Will Tell! -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: my 1st istD portrait
On Thu, 18 Mar 2004 22:48:07 -0700, you wrote: I just thought after asking to see other's work that I would share my first attempt at portraiture with my new camera. http://www.davidmadsen.com/images/personal/pages/buggy.htm That's just too cute. I mean that in a good sense. Save it for blackmail in the teen years. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Slide Dup for *ist D
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 08:54:16 +0100, you wrote: Due to 1.5x Aps factor, you must have 0.67x magnification for entire slide copy I use: M42 daptor + M42 bellows + 4/100 Macro-Bellow + Slide-Copier Just out of curiosity, I set up a home-brew method, pictured here: http://www.photolin.com/misc/s02.jpg http://www.photolin.com/misc/s01.jpg http://www.photolin.com/misc/s03.jpg It's an *istD with an FA 100/2.8 Macro, a tabletop tripod, a small inexpensive Tundra battery powered backlit slide sorter, a piece of glass taped to the Tundra to make a ledge for the slide to sit on, and, of course, an antique Kodak Tourist camera box (with camera inside) that the sorter leans on to get to the correct angle. So far I have not got this setup down pat. I'm getting poor color, burnt highlights, slides not square, and a few other things that perhaps can be worked out. Here's one of the least-bad ones, shot at 1/50 f3.5, ISO 400: http://www.photolin.com/misc/s04.jpg As far as the mechanics of getting the slides into position and photographed, this setup works just fine. The photo quality is not good enough yet, but I think some improvement would come with a little more experimentation. I suppose any similar 100mm macro lens, or combination of lens+tc+extension approximating a 100 macro at about 1/1.5 magnification, plus some sort of backlight arrangement, could be set up like this and work fine as a slide copier. Earlier this year, I set up a similar arrangement to copy a bunch of old prints of various sizes. I set an empty picture frame on a table, propped upright at about a 60 degree angle, then placed the pics on the ledge of the frame one or two at a time, and fired away. The camera was on a tripod a short distance away, square to the frame. I used flash, bounced off a sidewall, to provide even and predictable lighting, plus a 24-135 zoom so I could fill the frame with every shot without moving the tripod around. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: to *ist or not to *ist, that is the question!
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 09:39:38 -0700, you wrote: For most of my uses, the antiquated and much-maligned autofocus in the PZ-1p is superior to the *ist D. I agree with that. Two things the PZ1p excelled at: focusing on a bird in the bush without hunting all over the place or getting stuck on the twig in front of it, and low-light AF. The more I use the *istD, the more I think its AF is worse than the PZ1p in every respect. But I haven't given them a fair comparison yet, just seat of the pants impressions. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: [1630] trackball problems
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 01:14:00 +0200, you wrote: Sorry about that, posted to the wrong list, its actually the trackball on my Bernina 1630 sewing machine. Ever so humbly Feroze Since The Great Selloff To Finance The DSLR, we now for the first time have more sewing machines than Pentax cameras. Something like six and counting. But none of them have trackballs, sticky or not. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: to *ist or not to *ist, that is the question!
Whew, what a list. I have *istDed, so the question for me is not to ist or not, but rather what is needed for the DaddyD: MOST important of all, move all the viewfinder info to a position across the bottom ala the D100, so I can see the darn exposure bar, which right now I can't see unless I cock my face just so and look over in the corner of the viewfinder for it, even then sometimes the indicator blip is obscured. SECOND most important, add in-camera flash exposure compensation, like the PZ1p or D100, via a simple button/wheel combo. Geez, what were you thinking Pentax, leaving off a major feature that's been around on a Pentax body since 1992 or so. Also very important, add more options for the LCD review, such as showing histogram and blown highlights overlayed without going through extra button pushing, plus more options for how long the LCD stays lit, and an option to install custom curves like the D100, and more control over in-camera sharpening (say, 11 levels instead of three), and an option to switch function of the Tv-Av wheels, just for fun, and a lock switch for that pesky AF point selector dial, which my thumb invariably rotates when I don't want it to, and moving the ISO-WB-Quality selector off the left main Green-P-Tv-Av-M dial, maybe via an inner/outer dial, so the camera is always ready to shoot, and Oh, and add that aperture lever so my M lenses meter without the extra button push. Wouldn't a vertical orientation sensor be great, too? With auto rotation of images? Plus the ability to use a nice cheap mechanical plunger-type remote release would be helpful. Shorten the prism overhang - I can't do verticals by rotating the body counter-clockwise when using the F* 300/4.5 because the tripod collar locking knob hangs on the prism. re-design the four-way controller, lose the push switch built into it, add another button for that function, or a lockout of some sort. Don't worry about the Pentax Photo Browser/Lab software package, those programs are unredeemable. Just pay someone to add the Pentax name and raw conversions to some decent software photo browser/convertor software. Right now I download all my Pentax photos using Nikon software, but it won't see the Pentax PEF files, nor show all the header info correctly, so that's not a perfect solution. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: why buy *istD
On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 11:13:20 -0600 (CST), you wrote: Hopefully for Pentax users the D70 will hasten the appearance of a $1000 Pentax DSLR with a reasonable feature set, or simply make the *istD cheaper. I've owned a D100 for close to two years now, and agonized over the decision to get an *istD. I had a serious buyer for my 600/4, and came within a day of selling everything Pentax. If I could have generated enough dollars to afford the new Nikon 200-400/f4 AF-S VR IF-ED, I'd probably be lurking on a Nikon list instead of PDML. But I went ahead and bought an *istD and kept all my Pentax 35mm goodies. The small size was an important factor, since my wife thought the D100 was too big, and was disinclined to use it, but thought she would use the smaller *istD. The price reduction and firmware upgrade were important, too - without them I would not have bought the *istD. But the biggest factor was the three lenses I already owned that I could not or would not exactly replace in Nikon line for one reason or another - FA* 600/4, M20/4, F* 300/4.5, and Tokina AT-X 300/2.8 with the Pentax 1.7x AF Adapter. If all I had to worry about was a keeping a couple of ordinary and easily replaceable lenses, then my decision to keep a Pentax DSLR kit would not make as much sense. I could make a case for Pentax, but it would be weak. Small size? Build quality? Backward compatibility? H not much there to hang a dollar sign onto. Limited lenses? They become strange focal length equivalents when the crop factor is figured in. Starting essentially from scratch, why not go with Nikon or Canon, who have image stabilized, ultrasonic motor lenses? One reason is price - images stabilized lenses with good optics are expensive. The Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM was very tempting to me, even at $1400 and a little soft at 400mm. The EF 300mm f/4.0L IS USM is great, and only $1100. I would have gone with Canon when I first went digital, except I tried for months to buy a D60 and could not find one for sale anywhere. The other great lens I lusted for, and bought, is the Nikon AF-S 300/f4, which was $950 or so with a rebate. It is one of the few lenses sharper wide open than the F* 300/4.5 and equal to the FA* 600/4. I would have liked image stabilization, but really have no complaint. If I have a moment on location to slow my breathing and shoot between heartbeats I can hand-hold it down to 1/60 fairly well, and 1/125 with precision. Am I happy with the *istD? Sure, no buyer's remorse here. The photo quality is equal or slightly better than the D100, the LCD review is less convenient but more accurate than the D100, my wife loves the small size and will probably start taking pictures again, I can get a 20-50-100-300-TC-Flash kit *and* my binocs in my Off Road bag again, so overall I am a happy camper. But for a DSLR long-lens kit? There's nothing better for the price than the D100 and Nikon AF-S 300/4 with Nikon 1.4x AF TC. Except maybe the Canon 10D with EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM and EF1.4x AF TC. Ahhh, choices, choices. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT:Racing Movies-was:Pentaxc in the movies
On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 17:36:00 -0500, you wrote: Someone mentioned the Shadows: Shadows (maybe the most beautiful Can Am car ever!) 1972 SHADOW CAN AM ..and sure enough there's one for sale right now, at a modest $325,000. Twin Turbo 510 Chev. 1350 hp. 1450 ft. lb. torque. 225 mph at Daytona. Proven to be the fastest historic Can Am car in the world. The ultimate testosterone ride! Only $325,000 http://www.staufferclassics.com/72shadow.html But I think I'd go for the '65 Shelby Cobra for my $325,000: http://www.staufferclassics.com/65cobra.html And to keep this in Pentax mode, maybe some of you car guys could offer to make some better pics for this guy... for a modest fee, say a few laps in the ride of your choice. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
USAF chart tests
I'm not a great lens tester - I'm a little weak on the math involved, and a little lazy when it comes to establishing and following a rigorous scientific method. Most of the time I would rather use the lens as intended and see if it works for me or not. But I still like to fiddle with the USAF chart once in awhile, especially to confirm a really good or really bad lens, or to help sort out the sweet spot of a lens. But I have some questions. First - where can I get a higher resolution chart, rather one that has been printed better, at a reasonable price? I only have the pdf version, printed on my inkjet at (I think) 300 dpi. Most of my lens tests resolve the tiny Group 2 line pairs, partly due to very long focal lengths at my standard 4 or 5 meter test subject distance. But nothing smaller than Group 2 is resolved on my printed chart, and even the Group 2 lines are a little ragged and unevenly separated when viewed under 12x magnification. Second - when using Rob's spreadsheet (USAF lens target to lpmm.xls), does one enter the actual focal length or the actual focal length times the crop factor? 300/2.8 times the 1.5x *istD crop factor makes a big difference in the lpmm numbers; using the 450mm instead of 300mm significantly reduces the lpmm number. Finally - at what resolution do lenses start to look better than average? Much better than average? Much worse than average? -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
DA 16-45 samples, by Dominique Schreckling
I found this message at Dpreview, and followed the links to a set of very nice travelog/vacation photos taken with Pentax gear by Dominique Schreckling. Many with shot the *istD and 16-45. Have a look, if you like pics of far away lands and want to see some DA 16-45 samples. http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1028message=7976163 direct links: Mainly 18-35 photos: http://www.pbase.com/tcom/thassos Mainly 16-45 photos: http://www.pbase.com/tcom/egypt http://www.pbase.com/tcom/srilanka If you have Photoshop CS or the trial version, open http://www.pbase.com/image/26689625 or something similar and apply the Shadow/Highlight adjustment. It makes a great improvement. The Shadow/Highlight adjustment alone may be reason enough for me to pay the $169 upgrade fee. I am beginning to believe the *istD could use a custom curve to boost the midtones as a default setting. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT - Spain suffers
My family and I are deeply saddened by the events in Spain. To Carlos and our other PDML family members from Spain, please know our thoughts and prayers, our sympathy and grief, are with you. It is so terrible, so destructive, so inhuman, and so incomprehensible. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: NG thoughts on PayPal
On Fri, 12 Mar 2004 08:40:42 -0500, you wrote: Here's the most common Paypal scam: You sell somebody something and you're paid with a credit card. You withdraw the funds and ship the item. The buyer receives the item and then calls the credit card company and claims it's defective. The credit card company immediately issues a chargeback, without any kind of investigation. Paypal is the 'merchant of record' and must return the money to the CC company. It then attempts to recover its loss from your Paypal account. Yep, I got hit with a version of that scam. So now I have the choice of donating $95 to PayPal, or dealing with a useless frozen account, and perhaps collection agents and credit bureau grief on down the line. And, dammit, it was a nice piece of Pentax gear I lost. Right now I'm telling PayPal I have frozen my account until they remove their unauthorized charge. But I don't expect to win this one. PayPal is too big, and has full-time lawyers on staff. I'm doing myself a favor, I no longer accept any PayPal payments, because there are many ways they can make me lose still more money. Plus Ebay and PayPal charged me hefty fees for the privilege of helping make me the victim of this scam, which didn't sit well at all. Heck, I've quit using Ebay as well as PayPal. The air smells fresher now. Life is simpler. I have more pocket change. My dog loves me more. My photos have richer color. Ahh, happiness - EbayFree and PayPalFree at last. -- Cactus Jack Warm and Dry in the Valley of the Sun www.photolin.com www.photolin.com/payanon/payanon.htm No More Pay, Pal © 2004 John Mustarde Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Hey Hey-ah, Good Bye. Don't Ebay, pal, No more Pay, pal, Na, Na-aaa, Good Bye.
Re: My first front page
On Fri, 12 Mar 2004 14:16:20 +, you wrote: On 12/3/04, [EMAIL PROTECTED] disgorged: Just pays to keep that *istD with you at all times. and a link... http://www.wildcherry.com.au/index.php?p=photophoto_id=19 Kevin That's a huge front page pic. Fabulous. I like the rocky outcrop which effectively anchors the perspective, and hints at more danger than just the shallow water and little waves. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
OT: Music from our musicians?
Glenn's post got me to thinking - we have some very talented musicians on the list, where's the music? So drag out those links, post 'em if you got 'em. I'd love to hear some of Glenn's tunes, for sure. Hey, maybe he'll produce a Best Of PDML cd... and Amita already the cover shot! I can't carry a tune in a bucket, but I am an appreciative fan. My son-in-law plays bass with this band: http://www.drivebysatellite.com/ His name is Adam, he is third from left in the topmost photo on the main page. The one with the decent haircut. He's Canadian, hopefully they will get rich and famous and he can buy a nice trophy house in Scottsdale so our daughter will be close to her mom. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Photographer a Week: Chernobyl
On Thu, 11 Mar 2004 15:10:51 -0500, you wrote: This woman lives not to far from Chernobyl, and she likes to ride her motorcycle through there because she can ride fast without encountering anyone else. Looks like she's a snapshooter but the photographs and captions are very moving and some of her observations are pretty funny. The site is about 17 pages long. http://www.phule.net/mirrors/chernobyl-kiddofspeed/chernobyl-page01.html Enthralling. A real page turner. I had to view every single page, and wanted more at the end.
Re: PAW: Last one from San Francisco
On Tue, 9 Mar 2004 22:09:44 -0500, you wrote: We all have our egos and our outspoken moments, but I think personal attacks are out of place here. Paul Yep, you're right, no need to get personal, I apologize, to Shel, and to and anyone who may have taken offense. I was responding to perceived pokes by Shel towards me and a couple other people, but that's no excuse, I probably misunderstood the context anyway, I should be more thick skinned, or less abrasive, or something. Oh well, life goes on, out here in far, far west Texas. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW: guitar
On Tue, 9 Mar 2004 19:52:10 -0500, you wrote: I'm taking a graphic design course, and last week's homework was to take an object and portray it 50 different ways. Not necessarily a photography assignment, but what else was I going to do? I borrowed Nate's Canon 300d and shot at least 200 exposures of my acoustic guitar. Needless to say, I don't even want to look a the guitar for a while. ;) While I was at it I also my hand at some studio photography using a halogen lamp and a flourescent lamp for lighting and no flash. This was one of the better shots: http://www.beyondthepath.com/photos/paw/2004-03-07.html Sell it. A sure cover shot. Very nice. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Cleaning CCD sensors - with those swabby things
On Tue, 09 Mar 2004 22:01:25 +1100, you wrote: I would like to hear from anyone who has bought and used the cleaning swabs that Nikon recommend for the same sensor in their cameras. Did it work? Did you scratch the CCD and end up with an expensive repair you are too embarrased to talk about? Are they easy/hard to use (I'm an electronics technician and have small nimble fingers that should manage ok)? I've cleaned the sensor (once) on my D100 with no ill effects, but instead of swabs I used a home-made handle and folded PecPads. It was no particularly difficult, but I read everything I could find about home sensor cleaning before I attempted it, and made a few practice swipes before I went after the sensor itself. At the time I did it, the swabs did not seem to be the best way to go, the folded PecPads were getting better reviews as sensor cleaners. The materials I have are: Eclipse Lens Cleaner, 2.0 oz, $8.00 PEC*PAD non-abrasive wipes, $7.00 pkg of 100 piece of scotch tape piece of softwood from the garage scrap bin fashioned into the shape needed to make a swab handle. Check dpreview.com forums. I followed a site whose url I have misplaced which had wonderful step-by-step photos of the process and pitfalls. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW: Last one from San Francisco
On Mon, 08 Mar 2004 20:50:01 -0800, you wrote: ... for a while. I was reluctant to make this photo, as just clicking away at some guy sitting there in despair is kind of a cheap shot, but I saw a context, making him smaller in the scene, shooting contre jour purtting him in shadow, with all the people walking away from him, and the skinny trees mirroring, to some degree, his posture. http://home.earthlink.net/~scbelinkoff/images/handh.html Maybe it works ... It brings forth my aversion impulse, if that means anything. I've often wondered why people don't get arrested for theft of the shopping carts... those things cost more than a good used LX. There is a thriving business around here in retrieving carts - the store pays a fee to guys who roam the neighborhood in a pickup and steal the carts back. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Shopping Carts: Change of subject.
On Tue, 09 Mar 2004 18:03:39 -0500, you wrote: Use this thread to discuss what you know of shopping carts. Then I can skip your posts. Grin. SHOPPING CARTS.. fer heaven's sake. Since my back was injured, I push my 600/4 and tripod and camera bag around in a cart. So don't dis carts, na na na na na. Actually, I think it is a baby buggy, or maybe called a stroller. Sure helps save the old back. It has large soft rubber wheels which navigate the trail well up to medium gravel. It has a padded ergonomic steering handle, parking brakes, a top section for the lens and bottom section for the camera bag, the tripod hangs off the handle, there's a holder for my glass of scotch and one for the water, and an awning folds out to shade the 600/4. It's much lighter than a steel shopping cart, and I didn't have to steal it, seeing as how they are cheap at the Goodwill Store on half-price Saturday. So don't try to pawn off your old heavy large format shopping carts on me. I know, they're more durable and have better resolution than my little small format baby buggy, but I don't care. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Martha Stewart
On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 23:34:30 -0600, you wrote: Gimme a break. That is a gross oversimplification and generalization of some problems with a couple of bad apples. Two bad apples. Hah hah hah hah hah hah. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: Martha Stewart
On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 06:53:17 -0800, you wrote: John, Your comment below is a little disturbing: You say that most everyone is a crook. That implies that some are not, yet are so labeled. You also say that not all have been charged or convicted yet. Hmmm ... being labeled as a crook and not having been charged or convicted ... that seems outrageous to me, but hell, I'm just a tofu-tottin' Berkeley Liberal. I'm a Berkeley liberal too of a sort, just don't have any tofu in my bag, as a matter of personal taste, nor rose colored glasses, because they were ground into dust by jack-booted right-thinking corporationists about 1969. Whew, that was heavy ;-) Wish I had a camera with me when it happened... but no, they probably would have crushed the camera also. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW: a lucky shot
http://users.bestweb.net/~hchong/temp/ Very good shot, especially considering the distance and limited time and equipment you had. It's easy to get motion blur in those conditions, but your shot appears as sharp as the lens would allow. CAUTION, GORY PARAGRAPH: Did you notice the little piece of meat in the beak has a thread extending back to the body that hasn't popped free yet? I once had a pic of a vulture in the road pulling an intestine from a road kill skunk, he had it extended like a piano wire about three feet long. Someone at my wife's work saw it and got me to make an 8x10 for them - what taste, I thought. END GORY PARAGRAPH. Wouldn't it be great if those animals all stayed around long enough for us to get in position for the good light, and acted as if we really weren't there so we could move into position? And hung around long enough for us to change to the good lens? Hmmm, I think I just defined Zoo animals, or at least animals who are acclimated to human contact, like this one, which was within ten feet of a patio with a dozen picnic tables all full of people and kids wandering all around the water's edge: http://www.photolin.com/gulp/img0002.htm -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: PAW: ChampCars at Brands Hatch 2003
On Fri, 5 Mar 2004 03:06:40 -0500 (EST), you wrote: You're absolutely right, frank - that's my main objection to the shot, too. I was set up there to get shots of cars coming round the turn. Normally cars are running at around 100+mph through that turn, so I was set up for that. Then suddenly I saw Tracy Bourdais nose-to-tail coming out of the pits at maybe half that speed Just curious - what shutter speed catches just the right amount of motion blur when the subject is traveling 100 mph? Does anyone have a spreadsheet for this? Seems like useful knowledge for motorsports photogs. In baseball photography, I would settle on 1/125 capture a hint of running and throwing motion, while 1/250 would freeze all but the end of the bat and the ball coming off the bat. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: any feedback on M20/4.0?
I like the M20/4. Mine was inexpensive, and I like its small size, so it has a built-in cost/convenience/value factor for me. This weekend I plan to post some evaluation shots of the M20/4 using the *istD, which won't help film users much because of the crop factor. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: clever virus attack
On Thu, 4 Mar 2004 21:38:02 -, you wrote: I was not impressed to be told I couldn't have a 5.5 inch drive. I have stacks of those, including a copy of Windows v2.0, in those dark days before the launch of 3.1 which made it famous. I collect and enjoy using old software. Someone has too ;-) Ah, the good old days when I dragged my computer to school on a four-wheel cart, uphill both ways, in the snow. A couple of years ago I sold a box of software for $5. The guy got a bargain - it was all very functional registered stuff that he could have transferred title if he wanted. Full version of MS Word 4.0 for DOS, and even an decent Office 95 for Windows that was on about 110 disks. Boy was I glad to get rid of it - I had moved that box of discs and floppies so many times. I gleefully waved it goodby for the last time and danced a little jig. The neatest thing in that sale was an original box containing Windows 286. I'm pretty sure it was considered Windows 1.0 but not called that. I am almost positive it pre-dated Windows 2.0, but all that was a long time ago in computer years. I bought it from a guy who worked for Microsoft at the time, and he got it through his job. I remember I could not get it to run worth a hoot on my fancy 286 - 12mHz computer with 512k of RAM and 10 Mb HD. I couldn't justify the week's salary it would have cost to upgrade from 512k to 640k of RAM to try to get it to run faster. An Excel file took ten minutes to open and fifteen to save, and five minutes or more for every computation, if it did not crash at the first sign of data entry. But that little 286 was a real workhorse without Windows. Word for DOS was very fast, and I even knew a whole lot of the formatting shortcuts. Printing on a dot matrix printer from a 286 machine could get really slow, though. It wasn't until Pentium 3 - 450mHz age that I got as fast using MS Word (for Windows) as I was using Word 4.0 for DOS. Oh well, trip down memory lane. Most likely other PDMLers go back much further than me with computers. I still like to remember how well that old 286 served me. It only crashed once in two years, and that was when a spider took up residence in it, and hatched little spiderettes which one day all of a sudden came scurrying by the dozens out of the floppy drive slot like lemmings over the cliff, heading right across the desk towards me and scattering in every direction at once. Eeek, I went scurrying myself that day, you can be sure. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
Re: OT:shipping to Canada
On Wed, 3 Mar 2004 00:49:27 EST, you wrote: I must say after reading stuff on this list I will probably never use UPS. I sell a little bit of junk of ebay and I use US Postal Service priority mail. If you accept PayPal, be aware of a big scam they are perpetrating. The bidder buys from sellers who are using Priority Mail (which normally does not have online tracking) then claims he never received the package. Acting on that claim, PayPal automatically reverses the funds from the seller back to the buyer. The buyer keeps the gear, and gets the money back. The seller pays the fees, and loses his gear. End of story, no appeal. Why? Because the seller violated the terms of service by not sending the package with Online Tracking. PayPal does not care whether or not the package was sent or received, or if the buyer paid for insurance, or even if the buyer account holder is the person making the claim. They only care if someone, anyone, logged in and pushed the website button saying non-receipt of item, and was there online tracking for the item in transit. May I humbly recommend those who accept PayPal always ship with online tracking to avoid this scam? Remember, the buyer gets the money back, and gets to keep the gear. Oh yeh, the seller gets to pay all the Ebay and PayPal fees to boot. But wait - there's more!. The other big PayPal scam is about the item description. It the buyer claims the item was not as described, PayPal will reverse the funds back to the buyer without recourse by the seller. Again, the buyer gets the gear and the money, the seller loses his gear and pays the fees. End of story, but at least in this case there is some provision for appeal by providing proof of condition. So always photograph the goods before and after packaging. Also, keep the description undeniably accurate (read:simple) because do you really want some desk jockey at PayPal giving your money away because the M-series lens you sold does not have autofocus, and is therefore not in Excellent condition? PayPal is not your friend. Make no mistake about it. They will change their terms of service without notification, then hold you to the new terms - and take your money. -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
