Web Analytics RiceHigh's Pentax Blog: New K-3 Firmware V1.11

Sunday, August 24, 2014

New K-3 Firmware V1.11

http://www.ricoh-imaging.co.jp/english/support/digital/k3_s.html

Changes to V1.11
  • Corrected – When shooting image after using the Built-in flash, Exif data of shutter speed is not updated on Version 1.10.
  • Added automatic reset function when detecting rarely occur abnormal motion of the sequence.
    (When automatic reset function is operated, latest setting will be reset)
    • *Contents of [Version 1.10] and earlier version will be also updated.

Frankly, I really don't completely understand what is updated and what's new. Fix an EXIF tag bug and an auto-reboot function when something goes wrong? :-o
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foton's avatar

foton · 552 weeks ago

There seems to be nothing to correct in the K3. Still, one bug I would suggest correcting - removing the 1/180 sync speed limitation, so that flashes could be fired at higher speeds. Sometimes only a part of the frame needs to be lighted, so this limitation lames the camera. Maybe the manufacturer thinks that setting this limit is a courtesy to the user. NO WAY! It is a BUG that has to be corrected, if only possible.
6 replies · active 551 weeks ago
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adrianpglover's avatar

adrianpglover · 551 weeks ago

I don't use my flash that often, but isn't the HSS mode specifically for this?
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foton's avatar

foton · 551 weeks ago

I use a bunch of flashes for my photography. Currently, I have ten Nikon SB-24s, which I hook up to my radiopopper receivers to get remote control. I had a choice to buy ten used SB-24s, or to get just one expensive HSS compatible flash for the same price and ten times less power. So, calculation is easy here.
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Heiko's avatar

Heiko · 551 weeks ago

HSS (high speed sync) is a hack in and on itself. The flash needs to be set individually in order to fire multiple succeeding miniature-bursts of the same intensity in order to overcome the mechanical problem that is defined as keeping the whole of the image-frame open for the duration of an otherwise single flash-shot.

The shutter in the K-3 - albeit a very quiet one, indeed - isn't optimized for flash work, as it can only guarantee for the the whole image plane to be shadow-free down to 1/180th of a second. Other manufacturers (Canon, Nikon) opted (!) for their shutters to behave a little differently - but in principal share the same limitations. Their shutters allow down to 1/250th of a second. That's just about half a stop. Is it a big deal?

If it is, I suggest looking at the Pentax-Q. Some Q-lenses offer a leaf-shutter that exhibits the same properties as found in some medium-format lenses: down to 1/500th of a second full flash-sync(!). Talking about a PURPOSE for the "cute little Q": THIS IS IT.

However, keep in mind that Pentax isn't the only "large-sensor IL-System" that is thrown back by flash-sync limitations: even newer systems like Sony NEX, Fuji X, Samsung NX and others are handicapped in exactly the same way: 1/180th of a second flash-sync. The problem pretty much lies inside the physical challenge when building focal-place shutters. The mass-latency of the individual shutter-blades becomes bigger with their size and weight. Leaf-shutters built into lenses consist of much smaller, thus lighter shutter-blades and thereby allow for faster movements leaving more headroom for a shadow-free opening within shutter-actuation.

Long story short: USE MORE LIGHT or dare to downsize to the cute Q ((or up-size to medium format, your choice))
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Heiko's avatar

Heiko · 551 weeks ago

I miss-spelled " focal-plane shutter "

Sorry, English is NOT my mother-tongue.
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foton's avatar

foton · 551 weeks ago

All of the things you write, are just. Nothing new. But sometimes I do not need the light to cover the whole frame but just a part of it, as I mentioned. The problem here is that Pentax cameras do not fire the flash at speeds higher than 1/180 s. This is a silly limitation for me. Other brand cameras allow the flash to fire even at higher speeds. If the user gets the black strip, it is his problem. But some users DO KNOW that! And they would still be able to use it, when only a part of the image has to be lit by the flash. So, please, do not explain to me how curtain travels and all that sort of stuff. Believe me, I do understand the technicalities.
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Heiko's avatar

Heiko · 551 weeks ago

You are rightfully upset about this. I kind of used the wrong reply-button

That's where Pentax engeneering-brilliance meets marketing FEAR (isn't it the same for pretty much all camera-companies?):
I take it the Pentax-PR would prefer to not bother with explaining to users (i.e. customers) that THEY are handling their tools (a Pentax product) in the "wrong way". I really do think it is this exact mentality problem that resulted in this electronic nanny-limitation. Like stability-control ("ESP", ...) on newer cars that you cannot switch off all-the-way (unless you know which electrical fuse to pull out under the hood, probably resulting secondary follow-ups like the engine running in limp-mode).

Also: I meant to clarify things for "adrianpglover" in more detail, hence my lengthy reply.

Anyway: Since I'm just getting into strobist work, thanks for that reminder. I'll have to check that the other day to confirm this problem showing up on my ancient K20D, as well. And my freshly acquired Samsung NX20, as well(...)
...using full-on manual flashes (YN 560-III) with radio triggers that are supposedly good for 1/320th (I really hate that TTL-crap apart from full-auto shooting )
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Bukaj's avatar

Bukaj · 551 weeks ago

Criticize an update just for being a minor one? :-o
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kadajawi's avatar

kadajawi · 551 weeks ago

They still haven't fixed video, and they probably never will. It would (probably) be soooo easy. Activate what the K-5 already did. MJPEG, video stabilization based on the SR mechanism and no crop for video (comes from the useless electronic stabilization). Heck, both things are already there! The camera captures 4K timelapses in MJPEG. It also does SR based video stabilization without a crop in liveview... you just can't record it!

It's insane. They ruined the K-01 (which has the same problems). People complained. Then they went on with the K-30, K-50 and K-500, and they too had the same problems, and people complained. So what did they do for their K-5 successor? Why, of course do the same crap they did before.
2 replies · active 550 weeks ago
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foton's avatar

foton · 550 weeks ago

I have hundreds of hours of videos made with various equipment. Who cares?! Who watches those? NOBODY!!! It is much easier to watch photos than videos. It is much faster. How often do you watch your videos? Friends of mine have plenty. They never have time to go through them. The fact is that photos are much more important. You can hang them on the wall, blow them up to large sizes and etc. People rave about videos but at the same time they hardly ever watch them!!!
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Heiko 's avatar

Heiko · 550 weeks ago

Good-Gracious!

It's called youtube. Simple.

...Should you proceed to upload the stuff it is also called "making Google rich", as well as giving up on any personal possibility to sell that stuff and most of the copyright - 'cause most youtube-videos can be -legally- downloaded for personal storage and consumption. In addition to that: it means opening/maintaining a google-plus account. That's social-networking: i.e. antisocial "data-mining".

quid pro quo
Or who the heck is watching all these timelapse-videos of a mostly-blank windscreen looking at traffic that some people (more than 2) actually post online?

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