Taking the Pentax K-1 and the 50mm f1.4 for a spin around the house.

Dining Room Chairs. 

I have a certain hesitancy about rushing outdoors and being busy when it's 105 outside and the the humidity makes it feel closer to 110. After the long, Sunday workout in an already too warm pool, I did things through the day mostly in air conditioned spaces.

I had a breakfast taco loaded with eggs, Mexican white cheese, pico de gallo, and avocado, at Trianon Coffee, along with a nice, almond croissant and a big coffee. Once back home I contemplated a long walk but decided, instead to re-read some parts of Annie Leibovitz's book and to spend some quiet, quality time with that new-to-me Pentax K1 and the older, 50mm f1.4 AF lens.

People are getting a bit tired of everyone who "tests" cameras and lenses shooting "test shots" handheld and in weird lighting, so I decided to put the K1 on a tripod and to use the live view function to accurately focus the lens I was using. Wild, huh? What I found almost immediately is that the 36 megapixels I paid for are more like the 36 megapixels I was initially expecting when I bought the camera. The combination of sloppy focusing techniques, a reliance on positioning the AF square accurately based on the finder targets and just the basic frailty of our human stability systems at first made my results seem not much better or worse than a wide range of camera and lenses. Putting the system on a tripod allowed me to see, for the first time, a bit more of the functional capabilities of the K1. 

I'm pretty sure though that I've just skimmed the surface of what's possible in terms of uncompromised image quality if for no other reason than that I did these images on a very small and thin Benro carbon fiber tripod that's probably not the best match for a bigger and heavier camera.

I also shot a lot at the widest aperture of the older 50mm lens so.... not the best recipe for critical sharpness. 

But there were some things I really enjoyed about just walking around the house making photographs with the whole combination. I liked working in live view with the camera because it's so easy to punch in a achieve very, very precise focus...which goes a long way to ensuring sharpness where it's supposed to be. I liked the implementation of the tilting and movement of the rear LCD. It was so easy to operate and, when I ventured into the backyard to make a photograph of my lawn sprinkler I appreciated an external, rear button that would increase the brightness of the screen, in two steps, to compensate for the high ambient light levels. 

Of course, not everything got the "f 1.4" treatment. The image just below was shot at f11 which is just about the smallest aperture I like to shoot at. I'm always cognizant that diffraction will begin to push down sharpness if I go past that. 

My reading table. 

Always something interesting to buzz through. 

It seems strange but I have to admit that it's nice to have a traditional camera to play with again. I wouldn't consider moving back to a DSLR system but playing around with different systems is an interesting way to keep the "playing" mode engaged. 

I was interested to see that Annie Leibovitz is also a system switcher; even more egregious than me. In an appendix to her "At Work" book she talks briefly and generally about equipment, relating that she once changed digital cameras four times in the course of one year to find the one that suited her best. She also stated that she's alway anxious to try the new stuff coming on to the market; just to see if it works better for her. Even I haven't switched systems four times in one year..... I might try that some time...

Swim towels hanging in one of the bathrooms. 

A constant rotation of soggy towels awaiting their turn.

A quick note: the dryer got fixed this morning. 

Patrick did a great job and replaced a damaged switch. 

Still considering the Australian method though.

Most of us have gotten used to the idea that we can handhold anything as long as we have a camera or lens with great image stabilization. I'd forgotten the simple joy of using a tripod instead. Being able to select exactly the aperture and ISO you want to use and still get sharp images in dim environments seems so empowering and is, perhaps, a technique that newer photographers aren't embracing. With a dual I.S. systems and a medium ISO I can shoot okay in the bathroom location just above. With a tripod I can use ISO 100 and f5.6 to get exactly the look I want. No compromise. And when did using a tripod get so difficult that people have seemingly jettisoned them altogether?

Ah. Another good place to take a nap. 

I feel so European these days. After my father's passing I temporarily stopped marketing altogether in order to deal with the grief but also to focus my full attention on handling the estate and getting through the process of probate. In effect, I've been on vacation since the beginning of June. I've just recently (finally) figured out how to relax and not worry about whether or not work will come back in the same way. Would my hiatus become more or less permanent?

I needn't have given my extended, European style vacation much thought. The clients have tired of being patient and have come back. I'm flying over to Knoxville, Tenn. on the 20th of this month to take one portrait and then zooming back to Austin to shoot a video project on the 22nd for a department at UT. I should just wrap those projects up in time to spend Sunday the 25th working with the Seminary of the Southwest for an event. I guess I'm not done with this work thing just yet...

Will I take the Pentax K1 on any of these jobs? No. I'm so comfortable with the Fuji equipment. I'm packing two X-Pro2 cameras, the Fujicron trinity of lenses plus the 90mm for the out of town portrait assignment. The X-Pro2s pack down smaller than the X-H1s. But I'll pull in the X-H1s for the two camera video shoot (plus one extra for back up) at UT. The Seminary job's gear selection is still up in the air but it will be an all Fuji packing adventure. 

And speaking of Fuji....well, more to come.

Hope all my Texas buddies are managing the heat well. There is a "dangerous condition" alert in place today between noon and seven p.m. Hydrate, seek shade, and air conditioning (or Deep Eddy Pool) is your best friend. So glad I finally opted to buy a white vehicle for Texas.....