Camera Labs

[Razvan]

Excellent news on the speed,rei. Was the focus spot on every time?
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Gear: Nikon D80,18-105mm,85mm F/1.8,SB-600
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[rei_vilo]

Bonsoir Razvan,

Thanks for your message. For this first series of pictures, the AF was on automatic. I didn't move the camera, so there was nothing to do for the AF.

Should I moved the camera, I guess the continuous AF would have been more suitable. But I didn't pay much attention to the auto AF.

One critical feature I haven't mentionned: the K-7 makes no noise. It's so quiet

I have 250 shots from my first batch of tests and many things to tell. I hope to do more tests on manual and continuous AF afterwards.

Stay tuned
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[kpr]

[rei_vilo]

3- Outdoor architecture - From light to darkness

The most common problem I experience while shooting at buildings, relies on the high contrast between light and darkness, with all the shadows in between.

Columns, rounded and squared 1/2000 f/4 iso100 135mm



This is the classic test for dynamic range. The result is superb.


Pyramid 1/500 f/4 iso100 135mm


All the intricate details of the structure of the pyramid are shown. The pyramid is new entrance for the Louvre museum.


Detail of the Louvre 1/2500 f/4 iso100 135mm


Thanks to all the pixels available, even a 600x600 crop provides good image quality.



Louvre and lamps 1/1000 f/4 iso100 135mm


Do you see how the light is retained by the sculptures, the pilars and all the arquitectural paraphernalia? At the contrary, lamps seem not to be concerned?


Old metro entrance 1/500 f/4 iso100 135mm


New metro entrance 1/125 f/4 iso100 135mm



Old lamp in La Concorde 1/400 f/5.6 iso200 250mm


New lamp in La Concorde 1/320 f/5.6 iso100 200mm


Front lamps show plenty of details, despite being black. Rear buildings just do the same, on the white range, without being burned, despite of the high contrast.
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

4- Indoor architecture

Compared with the K10D, the K-7 features HDR. I tried it.

HDR1 and HDR2 actually take 3 pictures: hence the blurring . Thus a tripod is requested and I need to try again.

All pictures at 1/125 f/4 iso200 58mm

Normal mode (no HDR)


HDR1 mode


HDR2 mode


I don't know why the camera is taking 3 pictures. One RAW with 3 different processings could deliver the same result, I guess.

There are many other options on the K-7, including highlight correction and shadow correction. More investigations and tests needed
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

Break - Fountain pictures

La Concorde square has two elegant fountains. I played the classic game with water, sun and speed.

1/30 f/22 iso100 200mm


1/2000 f/4 iso200 200mm


Max speed is 1/8000. I tested up to 1/4000. Water droplets are just frozen on the air

1/4000 f/4 iso800 250mm


This 600x600 crop shows full details on water droplets and a nice bokeh. At iso800, noise is low.


_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

5- Outdoor macro

Remember the red affair or how a camera deals with colors Red is said to be one of the most difficult color to process for dSLR. I picked flowers with different nice colors and shot them in RAW and JPEG. Here is the comparison between RAW and JPEG results.

Red
1/500 f/2.8 iso100 135mm
RAW


JPEG


RAW 600x600 crop


JPEG 600x600 crop


I think I could trust the K-7 built-in JPEG processing. All the nuances are preserved

White
1/3200 f/2.8 iso100 135mm

RAW


JPEG


Pink, 2
1/250 f/2.8 iso100 135mm

RAW


JPEG


Yellow and white
1/500 f/2.8 iso100 135mm

RAW


JPEG


Pink
1/400 f/2.8 iso100 135mm

RAW


JPEG



The K-7 built-in JPEG conversion engine works fine. The JPEG images may look darker than the RAW ones, and thus may need some post-processing. The RAW images are better balanced. What's important, in RAW as well as in JPEG formats, colors are nice, without over-saturation and the nuances are preserved.
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

Break - Autumn light

It was 10am with that special Autumn light the K-7 perfectly catched.

The Orsay museum from the opposite bank 1/250 f/5 iso100 118mm


Looking at the Louvre 1/250 f/5.6 iso200 170mm


The French Parliament (Lower House) 1/200 f/5 iso100 128mm


A chair in Les Tuileries garden 1/200 f/4 iso100 64mm


White balance was on automatic mode and dealt fine with all situations.
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

Bonjour,

After my first batch of tests, I think it's time for having a closer look at the ergonomics of the commands, both harware buttons and software options.


6- Command ergonomics

There are 4 levels of commands in the K-7:

• Hardware buttons
  
• Shortcut buttons
  
• Info panel
  
• Menu panel

Level 1 - Hardware buttons

One of the major features of the K-7 is the ability to operate it as a film camera, without relying on software menues and options shown on the back LCD.





The following parameters are managed directly by specific hardware :

• Mode: full auto (green) P, Sv Tv, Av, TAv, M, B, X, USER, film, by the Mode dial (left)
  
• Speed and aperture: by front and rear dials (right)
  
• ISO: button plus rear dial (right)
  
• Compensation (+/-) : button plus rear dials (right)
  
• Flash: pop-up button
  
• RAW: button
  
• Back to standard parameters: green button
  
• AF: button or half-pressed trigger
  
• AF mode: auto, selection (one zone out of 11, with the 4-keypad) or spot
  
• Light measurement: auto, central, spot, by sub-dial (left)
  
• Depth of field check: sub-dial under the trigger
  
• AE-lock: button

The top LCD provides enough information with all common parameters (speed, aperture, ISO, compensation, ...).



As an option, the rear panel could display the common parameters. I've unchecked that option: I'd rather prefer the top LCD.


Level 2 - Shortcut buttons



The 4-keypad provides shorcut to

• Shooting mode (up-key): continuous, timer, remote, ...
  
  
• Color mode (right-key): natural, enhanced, portrait, landscape, bright, down, B&W
  
  
• Flash management (down-key): forced, red-eyes, slow, first curtain, second curtain, remote, exposure bracketing
  
  
• White balance managemet (left-key): auto, sun, clouds, lamp, tungsten, flash, manual
  

The rear LCD is used. The ok button validates and the Menu button cancels.

I'm really missing the loss of the hardware button for exposure bracketing.


Level 3 - Info panel



The Info button shows a full single panel on the rear LCD.



Select the parameter you want to change with the 4-keypad and adjust the value with th front and rear dials (right)

• ISO auto; lower and higher value
  
• P-mode: auto, normal, MTF, fast, depth of field; ...
  
• High light compensation
  
• Shadows compensation
  
• Distorsion compensation
  
• Enhanced bracketing: white balance, hue, saturation, sharpness, contrast, ...
  
• Digital filter
  
• HDR
  
• Color aberration
  
• File format: JPEG and/or RAW
  
• Pixels used: from 2 up to 14 M
  
• JPEG quality: from * up to ****
  
• Shake reduction

No more hardware button for shake reduction.


Level 4 - Menu panel



The Menu button brings a rash of 15 different screens on the rear LCD.



Among many, many other parameters,

• P-mode: (again)
  
• Enhanced bracketing (again)
  
• HDR (again)
  
• Digital filter (again)
  
• Multiple exposures
  
• Intervalometer
  
• Electronic horizon with automatic correction

Conclusion

All this, and especially the 4 levels of commands, may look complicated at first glance. At the contrary: each level is carefully designed. Most commands are at level 1 with no need for reading the rear LCD. If more commands are needed, try level 2 with the shortcut buttons. If the solution isn't provided, escalate to level 3 through the info button. Last solution is level 4 with the menu button. Please, avoid using that level 4 on the field

Consider level 1 as consistent with a film camera. Level 2 manages the digital aspects of the SLR (as white balance) and provides some electronic assistance (as timer or remote). Level 3 features sophisticated processes such as color and distorsion aberration or HDR. Level 4 is more oriented at tweaking the camera at home before going to the fields.

The truth is, I was first disappointed and disoriented by so many levels and so many options. The user manual only lists the options one after the other, without providing a clue on the philosophy behind the 4 levels and the purpose of each one. The K10D had only 2 levels, corresponding to level 1 and level 4, but obviously didn't feature so many options.

But after half an hour, I felt at home. Sure, I've been prepared by many years with the K10D . However, during my first batch of tests, I used level 1 most of the time, level 2 occasionally mainly for white balance, level 3 maybe twice and level 4 never.

I'm confident that, after a short learning period, each user would prioritize the options to use regarding the needs, and then find the best way to deal with those four different levels

Sorry, it has been a long and wordy post with no pictures, but dealing with so many options may be confusing. But I'm convinced that, when the logic behind those four levels is clearly stated, everything becomes obvious and easy to enjoy

[ EDIT] I've added some pictures to ease the reading
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

6a- Indoor macro - ISO tests

Weather was just horendous in Paris , as usual in October / November. This is Autumn, with some taste of Winter. For sure, that's different in the South hemisphere , isn't it Gordon

So I stayed at home, and played with macro. The Remote Assistant which used to be part of the software, is no longer available. However, LiveView could provide a good alternative, together with the infrared remote.

I launched a batch of tests on ISO and HDR. All pictures are with f/4.0 and 103.0 mm.

0.3s iso100


1/6s iso200


1/13s iso400


1/25s iso800


1/50s iso1600


1/100s iso3200


1/100s iso6400


Image quality is stunning till iso400, artefacts are barely visible at iso800 and noise is visible starting iso1600. So the working range starts from iso100 up to iso800. The K10D stopped providing noise-free pictures at iso400. Note that the iso6400 is an option and requires to be switched on somewhere on the Menu parameters (Level 4).

Let's see more details, a 600x600 crop in the center.

iso100 iso200
iso400 iso800
iso1600 iso3200
iso6400

As a standard, keeping auto-ISO 100-800 is fine. ISO is clearly shwon on the top LCD, and changing the ISO value is just a button away thanks to the dedicated ISO hardware button.
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

6b- Indoor macro - HDR tests

Once again, HDR is rather deceiving . All pictures are at f/4.0 1/25s iso800 103.0 mm. The camera was on a tripod, so no blurring occured.

Normal


HDR1


HDR2


Maybe should I learn more on HDR, but I'm not a fan and I'm not convinced by the results so far .
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

6c- Indoor macro - High ISO and noise reduction

Good news Despite some noise at iso3200, noise reduction proves to be effective. All pictures were taken at f/4.0 1/25s iso800 103.0 mm.

The noise reduction is available through the shortcut button Color mode (right-key, level 2) then rear dial to select normal, medium F or strong F2. This option is featured starting firmware 1.02.

Normal


Medium F


Strong F2


And the usual 600x600 crops...

From left to right: Normal, Medium F, Strong F2


Actually, the crops don't give the same idea as the full pictures.
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

7- Live-view

The absence of Remote Assistant is largely compensated by the live-view feature. For still or macro pictures, this is perfect, provided the camera is on a tripod.

I tried to use live-view outdoor, but I didn't like it so much: I rather prefer the view finder.

However, indoor or in poor light conditions, live-view is much comfortable than peeping through the view-finder, especially with the zoom feature provided by live-view on the large LCD.

All starts with the live-view button.



Real subject and on screen picture are consistent



The AF zone could be selected on screen by the four-ways pad. Focusing is obtained by pressing the AF button. Three modes are provided: 1) standard AF or phase difference, 2) contrast AF, and 3) by default, face detection and contrast AF.

Standard AF of phase difference (mode 1) requires the mirror to flip-flap. Contrast AF and/or face detection (modes 2 and 3) are rather slow. Manual focusing is possible too.



Pressing the INFO button zooms in, here 2 times...



...up to 6 times, perfect for a sharp manual focusing.




Live-view provides a nice alternative to the now-defunct Remote Assistant. It suits perfectly still- and macro-photography, especially when the camera is mounted on a tripod. Then, poor light conditions are easily addressed .
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

8a- More about noise reduction

On level 4, there's a parameter about noise reduction on the Menu > Custom > 3 > High ISO Noise Reduction with four options.

Please note that no pictures were post-processed.



Off

Low

Medium

High

And the usual 600 x 600 crops.

Off Low
Medium High

The result is clearly visible on the watch dial. I guess some post-processing could boost the contrast and even smooth the noise.

Being on level 4 through the Menu button, this parameter is not intended to be changed on the fields . From my average user point of view , I'd rather prefer to avoid ISO 3200 and complicated noise reduction parameters , and work with lower ISO up to 800, slower speeds and the shake reduction I know I could rely on
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ

[rei_vilo]

8b- More about noise reduction with post-processing

I wasn't fully convinced by the built-in noise reduction parameters. So I pay a look at the post-processing noise reduction built into iPhoto '09.

Before

After

Here are the post-processing parameters

And the ususal 600 x 600 crops

Before After

The watch dial appears cleaner and the numbers darker.

Well , IMHO, the best way to have a noise-free picture is to avoid high ISO . Am I wrong

I'm sure professional photographers use more sophisticated tools, such as Aperture , but I'm just an amateur
_________________
--- rei_vilo
Pentax K-7 + DA* 16-50 + DA* 50-135 + DA* 60-250 + AF-540FGZ