I'm sure enjoying wringing out my new camera, a Pentax K-5, which was just released this month. I think this one should serve my needs for a long time to come.

This is a shot of the skies over the desert not far from my home in Arizona. I love it when we get moisture here. Not only does the earth need it, but it makes for dramatic pictures. Maybe this will give you some idea of what it looks like in my neck of the woods currently.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Nice shot...I can't believe you were the only one who responded to my brand new Pentax K-5 karma...enjoy the camera and keep an eye out for my 70-200 lens giveaway....

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

That is a significant camera you got there... the reviews are outstanding.

I'll take the dreaded number one spot

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SWCA #2306
DAV in honor of POP

Very nice shot John - the light is awesome - real nice in your neck of the woods - I'd have to travel some to shoot something like that!

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Lou

Great shot; keep 'em coming!
TACC1

A Wratten #3 and a polarizer would have brought out the UFO better.

Kidding aside, nice shot, as are all the others you've posted that've been taken with your new camera.

Thanks for sharing,
John

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Age + Treachery = JohnnieB

Here's another test shot with the K-5, from the same area. This is the Squaw Peak mountain range in north Phoenix, taken from a spot to the northwest of the mountains.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Nice shots, plus they show it has been a very green year in AZ this year. I crossed the Southwest from CA to points east and north 6 times this year and noticed on each trip the AZ, NM and West Texas were greener than I'd ever seen them and they stayed green all year. That is definately not something I am used to seeing.

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Non illegitimae carborundum

BTW, I know most people buy Nikon and Canon, but I have been looking at entry level DSLR's and I settled on the Pentax K-X...very compact....not as fancy as the 5, but enough camera for a novice like me....

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

Great shots! Enjoy your new digital camera!!!

Going digital makes things a lot more fun, beautiful and creative for the photographer. You are gonna love it!!!

Tom

Excellent choice, Sip. I've been using a Pentax K200D, the predecessor to the K-X, for several years - quite versatile, and it does get the job done for about 90% of anything you might be able to want to use it for. Just remember, any lenses you buy for the K-X can be used on all Pentax cameras you might upgrade to in the future. Most of the quality in a camera is actually in the glass, and Pentax makes some of the finest lenses available.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Keen observation! Despite a prolonged drought, late season summer rains brought not only a "green up", but also a rare phenomena of a "second spring" which my hunting compadre and I noticed a few weeks ago on our desert deer hunt. Plants not normally in bloom at this season were blooming away, and their pollinators and other symbiotic species were also resurgent, this, called to our consciousness by the flittering passing of a small "sulfur" butterfly, a Pima Red Tip, ordinarily only seen here in late winter/early spring. Once alerted to the phenom, we noticed abundant examples --- this, probably a once-in-a-lifetime experience...

More pix please, John.

Very nice pictures.
No pictures from South Mountain (Phoenix)?

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ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

I can second Pallidin's opinion of the Pentax K200D. I bought one before taking a trip to Barcelona last year. I have been a die-hard fan of film and reluctantly made the switch to digital just for ease of travel. I now find that I rarely use the film cameras anymore.

Pentax makes some fine quality lenses for DSLR's, just not the number of options that you have with Cannon and Nikon. But they are making strides at improving that.

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Expect no quarter.

For those interested in photography with Pentax cameras, you might want to check out the Pentax Forum online. Joining the forum is free, and it's a source of an incredible amount of knowledge and advice. Just about every Pentax camera ever made is described, reviewed and discussed there. I'm a sometime contributor, with the same handle:

The Largest Pentax Camera & Photography Forum - Pentax News & Rumors - PentaxForums.com Home

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Nice pics! Cloudy skies in AZ are always a good subject.

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Tom
"Panem et Circenses"

Well, gee - OK.

Here's one more from that group of K-5 test shots I made on and near the desert that day. Hope you like!



Here's another test shot, taken in our own back yard, again just to check out how the K-5 performs against varying requirements. So far I'm really pleased.



John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -