Photography--Educate Me

[legion]

I know nothing about photography.

I have a Pentax P30 35mm camera. I prefer it over my 3.2 Megapixel Kodak for outdoor shots. My current lense is 35-80 mm, which basically allows me to take pictures at life-size or to zoom out. I want a lense that I can zoom in on something specific over a distance (hundreds of feet to two miles).

From what I understand, a telephoto lense is what I should be looking for. Because I pretty much only use the camera on vacations, I'm looking for used lenses. I've found a few lenses on eBay. From what I understand, any "k mount" lense should work. I'm looking at lenses that are from 80-200 mm up to 500mm. Am I on track or HOC (high on crack)?

[masraum]

on the right track. You'll probably want something around 300mm. 200 is good, but I always found that it was just not quite long enough.

[StevoRocket]

I have this lens with a Nikon mount on my D70 digital nikon - 28mm wide angle to 300mm zoom in one lens - so it suits all circumstances. Brilliant. NO EXTRA LENSES TO CARRY !
From ebay............................

Tamron AF 28-300mm XR Zoom Lens Pentax Digital Cameras

You Are Bidding On A Brand New Tamron Auto Focus 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Ultra Compact Zoom Lens w/ Lens Hood & Cap. Lens includes a Six-Year Tamron USA Warranty.

Compatible with Pentax Models : ZX-M, SF-XN, Z-1P, ZX-5, ZX-5n, PZ-70, PZ-20, PZ-50, SF-1, PZ-10, MZ-30, MZ-S, PZ-1, SF-1N, *ist D, *ist, ZX-L, ZX-60, ZX-50P, ZX-50, MZ-3, ZX-30, *ist DS, MZ10, MZ-M, MZ-60, ZX-10, MZ-5, MZ-50, SF-X, ZX-7, MZ-6, SF-7, MZ-7, Z-1, SF-10, and More...
............................................
I have just tried this (Nikon version) lens on my Nikon F50 35mm and it worked fine, so it would be worth checking out the Pentax version with your local Pentax dealer for compatibility with your 35mm and then looking for a second hand one on ebay.

[StevoRocket]

A a further point to my previous post, all my lenses for my Nikon D70 digital were bought on ebay in the UK, huge price savings over new and all came in origional boxes with paperwork and no marks or defects. A great place to shop for lenses.

[StevoRocket]

Heres an example from UK ebay....

SIGMA 70-300 DL MACRO ZOOM LENS – Pentax K Fitting


70-300 mm 1: 4-5.6



In excellent condition with negligible marking other than handling. This lens has had a 58 mm UV filter on since the day it was bought. Complete with front and rear lens covers and lens hood. RRP of the latest version of this lens is £169 on offer around £99. Therefore a sensible start price should get someone a real bargain.


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Sigma-70-300-Macro-Zoom-Lens-Pentax-K-fitting_W0QQitemZ7557183186QQcategoryZ48558QQrdZ1Q QcmdZViewItem

[legion]

Here's what I bought:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7557786584

I'm trying to gauge my interest (and skill) in photography. If I find I have both, I may upgrade to a digital SLR in a few years.

[2.7RACER]

legion,
I wouldn't spend alot of money on your 35mm. I'm sure it's a nice camera but film technology for all but the large format commercial stuff has gone digital.
I was given a Minolta digital recently. A hand me down from my daughter. It has a 128 meg memory card which means I can shoot over 400 pics at the best quality. I can select the ISO speed equivalent to film speed up to 800.
The built in zoom lens works from 35 mm to 250 mm, with a digital 2x multiplier for an effective 500mm.
You can select motor drive like control that will shoot up to 4 shots per second.
You can also select a bracketing feature which automatically shoots up and down from a selected exposure.
Also shoots in the macro mode, just inches away.
It also will shoot video, maybe a minute and a half or so.
All this and more for a camera costing around $400.
The down side is batteries. 4 AA rechargables which last maybe a couple hours. This thing eats alkalines like candy. So I carry two sets of batteries and one set of alkalines.
I learned photography with a 35mm many years ago. 35mm SLR's are great but the digitals just do so much more.
The plus is 35mm at a camera show should be very reasonable,(cheap).
If you like dark room work it can be a lot of fun.

[legion]

So far, I've spent a grand total of $35 on this camera. (That's for the lenses. I got the camera for free.) Like I said, I'm sticking with film for now because it is cheap. I have a simple 3.2 MP digital, but I'm trying to figure out if a digital SLR suits me, and this seems like a pretty inexpensive way to figure that out.

[928ram]

Legion,

I'm a Canon guy, so no expert on Pentax. I think that while all K-mounts will fit and function, there may be issues with older lenses not being able to make use of all of a more modern body's "auto" functions. (I believe Nikon has the same issues) You may have to use them in a more "manual" mode. There was a website that I ran across years ago that was all about the K-mounts that covered all the cameras and lenses which used this system and what the running changes were. Maybe a google of "Kmount" or similar will bring it up; lots of photo info out there.

TO reach out further on the cheap (relatively), look into a 500mm mirror (reflex) lens. There are limitations of these optically, but compact size and price are the trade-off, my Canon reflex fits in my bag just fine and I carry it often, whereas my regular 500 is usually carried only when I know I'll be shooting long. If you look into these, get the real Pentax unit and avoid the cheapy ones that you'll find all over eBay.

[Harlan Chinn]

Your camera's lense is the most critical component of your system. The optical quality of the glass and its ability to focus sharply and with sufficient contrast will provide you with astounding images. I've shot with both Canon and Nikon systems professionally as a sports and news journalist. I also own a Leica M rangefinder system (Could be considered the Porsche of the camera world) which I prefer to use when I travel and is great for use for candid people photography. The lenses are sharp and provide great contrast. Contax makes a comparable camera, with Carl Zeiss optics that is a lot more affodable.

Keep in mind that with any camera when you use a longer focal length on a zoom or fixed length lense will require shooting with a higher shutter speed to eliminate camera shake or the use of a tri-pod or monopod. If the lighting conditions require a slower shutter speed, you will most definitely need a tri-pod for sharp photographs.

If shooting film, ditch the idea of any mirror reflex lense as they are very slow in terms of minimum f-stop and will reflect doughnut like spots on your photographs in certain lighting conditions when the light reflects off of the mirror.

[scottmandue]

legion,
I was pretty big into 35mm SLR ten or fifteen years ago, two years ago I picked up a small Nikon digital for vacation and business trips where I didn't/couldn't drag my 35mm bag along. The Nikon has taken much better pictures than I ever imagined, especially for a pocket camera.

However I recently pulled my Cannon 35mm stuff out of the closet and picked up a few Cannon lens on evilbay.
It took me one roll to get back into the feel of it... and now I love it. I know the pro photographers and the wire heads say digital is the only way to go but shooting film is a whole different experience... not better, just different.

Also I can shoot in the morning, drop my film off, for a few bucks most places will burn them onto CD for you, do my shopping and pick my pictures and CD up in an hour.