Free sample of the Pentax K-3 e-book and Free Focus Check Charts.

Email: brqyvn@gmail.com 

 Hi Photographer friends,

I received many emails telling me that the free Pentax K-3 sample e-book and the Free Auto-focus charts will not download from the e-commerce store. It appears that Paypal is blocking any free transactions although I posted them at $0.00.

I understand your frustration and I will upload the free stuff on a different server.First, I need to open another account with a provider. In the meantime, just email me at brqyvn@gmail.com and I will manually send you the file(s) you request (Samples or AF charts). I am not sitting at my computer all day, but do check periodically.  I do receive emails on my iPhone, but I can't transfer the files from my iPhone as it would take too much memory to install the files there to begin with.

The bottom line, if you haven't been able to download the free e-book samples or AF charts, email me. I will fix it.

Best Regards,

Yvon Bourque

The e-books for the Pentax K10D, K100D, K20D, K-7, K-x, K-r, K-5, K-5II, K-5II e, K-30,  K-50, K-500  and the K-3 are available here: http://www.ebooks4cameras.com

First workshop for Pentax Cameras only.

(C) Me - 2012

(C) Me 2012 - K-5

Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Photographer friends,

I had my first workshop last week in Las Vegas and Vicinity. I believe all had a good time, learned a bit more or a lot more about photography, got great images and made new friends. The Hotel was included as well as the e-book corresponding to their own  Pentax DSLR. A coffee Table book will be sent to each participant in the next few weeks, that will include every participant's best images, with caption as well as a commemorative section with the dates, locations and other participant's names. The book is formatted as though all photographers were Professionals, on assignment.

Picture taking took place at Red Rock Canyon, the Neon Signs Boneyard and around the Las Vegas Strip and Old  Downtown at night.

Since the expertise level was different with each person, the teaching was individualized to each person's own needs. Among the things I do photographically , there isn't much that's more rewarding, in my mind, than getting someone excited about photography. Consequently, there isn't much that gets me more pumped-up than photography.

The following images were all  taken during the workshop. These are just a few images, as several full SDHC cards were full.

(C) Roland 2012 - K-7

(C) Monique 2012 - K-x

(C) Annie 2012 - K-r

(C) Henry 2012 - K-r

(C) Monique 2012 - K-x

(C) Annie 2012 - K-r

(C) Henry 2012 - K-r

(C) Roland 2012 - K-7

For information about our next Workshop, at the end of May, email me at brqyvn@gmail.com

Thank you for reading,

Yvon Bourque

New iBook coming soon for the Pentax K-01

Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Photographer friends,

Apple came up with a new App recently called iBooks Author. It brings e-book writing to a new level. It only works on iPad but allows multi-touch books. You can incorporate videos, animation, photo galleries, interactive diagrams, 3D objects and more.

Pentax just announced the new Pentax K-01, with availability in March. I am going to publish another e-book "Everything you need to know...and then some" for the Pentax K-01. It will be available in PDF format, like my preceeding e-books, but it will also be available for iPad  owners in this new iBooks Author format. Take a look at Apple's  https://www.apple.com/ibooks-author/

Click above to see how Apple iBooks Author works. See the video within Apple's page. You will need to have Apple Quick time player to see this video.

Click above for a short introduction to my upcoming iBook on how to use the new Pentax K-01. This will bring you to the You Tube site.

Click on the above to see the video on this page.

Until march, you can purchase the Pentax K-5 at a reduced price. If you need a little help, you can get my e-book for the K-5, as well as other Pentax fine cameras, such as the K-7, K-x, K-r, K20D, K10D and the K100D. Check it out here

.

As always, thank you for visiting,

Yvon Bourque

Mini vacation in Palm Springs and Anza-Borrego Desert with Pentax K-5, K-7, K-x and K-r.

 Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

My brother and his wife visited us this past week. We took advantage of their visit and spent four days in Palm Springs and visited the Wind Farm.. While there we also drove to the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. We had a good time, although I broke my K-5 by dropping it on the ground, with the telephoto lens hitting first and tearing the k-mount completely off the camera.

I will write more about the vacation, the K-5 and pictures we took, but I thought I would just post some pictures tonight.



First morning in Palm Springs, on our way to the Wind Turbines.

© Yvon Bourque - K-5

 

The sun peeping through the clouds and dark skybehind  gave us some unique opportunities.

© Yvon Bourque - K-5

How lucky can we get, a rainbow to top it off.

© Yvon Bourque - K-5



Second day, 7:00 A.M, entering the Anza-Borrego Desert State park.

© Yvon Bourque - K-5



The cactus were in bloom.

© Yvon Bourque - K-7



And so were most of the wild flowers, however, we had to get off the paved roads.

© Yvon Bourque - K-7

Look at what we found; The famous  "Great Road Runner", roaming around for food!

© Roland Bourque - K-x

I'm not a "Birder", but this one was pretty. Anyone knows what it's called?

© Yvon Bourque - K-7
it's an adult male Bullock's Oriole. More info here:
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bullocks_Oriole/id
Contributed b yMiserere...Thank you.

What a nice Church, in the middle of the desert.

© Roland Bourque - K-x

We were being watched. These are wild dogs that people just leave behind. We couldn't approach them.

© Roland Bourque - K-x

P.S. The AlettA DSLR Stabilizer will be available sometime early April. I have my first big order scheduled for delivery to me next week.  I won't advertize it again before I get them in my hands.

Coming soon...

Best Regards,

Yvon Bourque

NEW TUTORIAL: CAMERA SENSOR CLEANING - From Cambridge in Colour

Visitors to this page also like "Recommended Reading" on the right column. Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

Cambridge in Colour, A Learning Community For Photographers, have released a new lesson. Follow the link below:

NEW TUTORIAL: CAMERA SENSOR CLEANING



Digital Camera Sensor Cleaning

If you're using an SLR camera, you'll eventually encounter spots in your photos due to a dirty camera sensor. If it hasn't happened yet, don't worry -- it will. When it does, you'll need to know if what you're seeing is indeed from sensor dust, or is instead the result of a dirty viewfinder, mirror or lens. Most importantly though, you'll need to know how to clean the sensor, and how to minimize the risk of this happening again. Click the link above to read more.

Anza Borrego Desert four wheeling weekend. Bringing the K-7 and the K-x along.

Visitors to this page also like "Recommended Reading" on the right column. Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

This is Miss "Peggy"

I am joining a group of four wheelers this weekend for an adventure at the Anza Borrego Desert State Park.

The group is a Ford Bronco enthusiasts and I will be one of the few people driving a Jeep. A good friend of mine, also my mechanic when it comes to off-road vehicles, has a Ford Bronco and invited me to this run. It's a night run, doubling the fun...and the risks. We don't know which trails we're going on until we get there. Only the organizers know the agenda. What we know is that we will leave at around 5:00 P.M. Saturday night and return way after midnight Sunday Morning. We were told to make sure we had plenty of water and some kind of off-road lights, as it's more difficult to maneuver at night.

I'm a little nervous, but there is going to be many other vehicles, and four wheelers all help each others, at least I hope. I may be the only Jeep among all the Ford Broncos.

I intend to take many pictures and video as well, using the K-7 and the K-x. I will be posting on my return Monday. Hopefully, I won't have too many pictures of a broken Jeep! I think Miss Peggy will make me proud.

This is the Main Highway!

They live here.

The old Ford Broncos are very good 4WD vehicles.

Come back next week to see pictures and videos taken with the K-7 and K-x.

Thank you for looking,

Yvon Bourque

As in Bob Dylan song, "The times they are a-changin' ". Magazines, books...all going to e-reading devices. What will be the impact on photography?

Visitors to this page also like "Recommended Reading" on the right column. Email: brqyvn@gmail.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

Simulation, but soon to be reality.

Simulation, but soon to be reality.

For several years now, we have been told that printed books and magazines were rapidly disappearing. It’s  noticeable when glancing through the magazines section and the aisles of any bookstore. As it turns out, it wasn't as rapid as predicted, but alas, I think we are at the periphery of changes, and for real this time. For the times they are a-changin'

Most magazines and many books have been available in e-format for a while, but the reading devices have been limited to PC and laptop computers. Portability has been the major obstacle to the e-format publishing. Even the small notebook computers are too big for continuous and easy transport and the screens of cell phones, such as the Apple iPhone, are too small for easy reading. The first generation of portable reading devices such as the Amazon’s Kindle, the Sony e-reader and the Barnes & Nobles’ Nook were too limited, but finally, I believe we have come to the age of e-reading for the masses. For the times they are a-changin'

The iPad and the newest Amazon’s Kindle have made e-reading and publishing available at a reasonable price (especially the Kindle) and easily transportable. I prefer the new Kindle with Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities. The screen is easy to read, even in bright sunlight, and at $189.00, it’s a bargain. Note that it can hold around 3,500 books and the battery life can last up to one Month. Purchasing e-books is almost instant and the prices seldom exceed $9.95. There are thousand of free books available as well. Major newspaper are available on a monthly subscription and blogsites are also available and published on the Kindle. (I will have this blogsite published on Amazon Kindle in a few days if not tonight.) For the times they are a-changin'

My first two Pentax books, for the K10D and the K100D were sold and published as paperback books, but the subsequent books, the K20D, K-7 and K-x, were published in e-format (PDF) and I sold thousands. It was easier for me to produce and much cheaper for the buyers. They were also delivered instantly…well almost. For the times they are a-changin'

Well…”The times they are a changin’” indeed and my next books for the upcoming Pentax DSLRs and EVIL cameras will be published and available on Amazon Kindle. With the Kindle, the format that Amazon uses, it is also readable on any PC, Laptop, Cell Phone and other devices such as the iPad.  Music can be loaded through an SDHC card and the Kindle also reads PDF files. Granted that the images are in shades of grey, versus the iPad’s entire color screen, I’m ascertaining that the future kindle devices will slowly migrate to color as well. For the times they are a-changin'

So there you have it, my humble opinion in writing. Time will tell if I was right, but if I’m not this time around, I will be in the very near future. For the times they are a-changin'

Any of you readers have a Kindle or an e-reader device? Any readers loading Photography books on their devices? My Kindle is on order, but will not be shipped before early September. That’s a long time to wait, but a sign that they are selling well. For the times they are a-changin'

Thank you for a-readin'

Yvon Bourque

After all the rain we had in California, it was impossible to get to the top of the San Bernardino Mountains.

The end of the road for us

There was plenty of water

One-car bridge, still standing

Marisa with the K-x

Another storm in the making

Here's a tree that was cleared from the road

There was more snow as the elevation increased...but the road was not accessible

My traditional picture

Now, that's a strange place for a chair

Visitors to this page also liked: See "Recommended Reading" on the right column.We honor reciprocal links. Email: brqyvn@aol.com

Hi  Pentaxian friends.

My daughter, Marisa,  is visiting from Florida this week. I tried to bring her to the San Bernardino Mountains with my Jeep but, with all the rain (snow at high elevation) we had recently, it was nearly impossible to get to the top. We tried several different trails but each trail was either completely washed down or had fallen trees or rocks across the road. However, we did take some pictures with the Pentax K-x and the K-7. I just wanted to share these with you all. She used the K-x in Auto and in JPEG and it produced well exposed pictures everytime. As for me, being the "expert", I used the K-7 manually and I humbly admit that not all my pictures were properly exposed.

Thanks for reading,

Yvon Bourque

We support this site by selling e-books for the Pentax Digital SLR cameras, including the K100D, K10D, K20D, K-7 and the K-x. This site does not ask for contributions. We sell real tangible merchandise that can improve your photography. Our free Auto-focus adjustment charts have been downloaded thousands of times by Pentaxians as well as Nikon and Canon users.

Dear Santa, I've been good all year and I want a Pentax K-x for Christmas, pretty please?

Dear readers and Pentaxian friends,

Thank you for visiting this site for the last two and one half years. I appreciate all of your comments and suggestions. Our free downloadable Autofocus Charts have been downloaded nearly 5000 times. You can tell your Nikon or Canon friends that the charts also work for all brands of DSLRs, as long as it has the capability of adjusting the front and rear focus. You can download the charts here:

http://pentaxdslrs.blogspot.com/2008/06/part-1-autofocus-adjustment-for-pentax.html

For the past two and a half year, I have funded my blogsite by writing books about the great Pentax DSLR cameras. I now publish the books as downloadable e-books (PDF files). You can print the books on your own printers or just read the e-books on your computer screens. This has allowed a cheaper price and immediate delivery after the PayPal payments. Pentax current available cameras are the K-7 and the K-x. The K-7 e-book has been available for a while right on this blog, toward the top right corner of the main page. The K-x will be available in the next few days. We also have e-books for the K20D, K10D and the K100D ,if Santa gives you a slightly used DSLR.

***If you email me at brqyvn@aol.com with "Pentax K-x book" as subject, I will email you the minute the book becomes available.***


Visitors to this page also liked: See "Recommended Reading" on the right column.We honor reciprocal links. Email: brqyvn@aol.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

This has been a good year for Pentax and they got to be one of Santa's preferred supplier with the K-x. The K-7 is also on the Christmas list of many people, but that's only for the people that have been extra good all year.

The K-x, with its excellent 12MP CMOS sensor, great Image Quality and a price at around $600.00 is the best deal for the people wanting to upgrade from Point & Shoot cameras. It can still be an Auto-everything camera like a Point & Shoot, but the IQ is so much better and the Video capability of the K-x makes it an even better deal. It's a DSLR that is so helpful for entry-level photographer, as you can gradually learn how to control the camera settings and eventually use it to its full potential by adjusting the controls (Aperture, Shutter speed and ISO) yourself.

Don't believe in Santa? Well, believe in your spouse and let them read this blog.

There are still some good gadgets that can be very helpful for your photographic endeavors. There's still time to purchase them and have them shipped overnight. Here's a list of my preferred gadgets.

* Delkin Fat Gecko Camera mount

http://www.delkin.com/products/accessories/fat-gecko.html

I purchased this little gadget myself and it is fantastic. I will be posting photos and videos that we produced using the Fat Gecko, shortly.

* Litepanels MicroPro

A handy accessory that I've found more and more uses for lately, especially when it comes to shooting video with a DSLR, are the Litepanels lighting fixtures. Using a grid-like pattern of soft LED (light emitting diode) lights, Litepanels attach to the top of your camera via a cold shoe mount and are powered by either regular AA or Lithium Ion AA cells. There are two versions, the smaller Litepanels Micro which uses five batteries, or the larger MicroPro that takes six batteries.

http://www.pdngearguide.com/gearguide/content_display/reviews/e3i5bc95dcbd33158676ecff35655305071

* New Portrait Professional 9


This software package will make your portraits shots editing so much easier. I purchase this software and my close-up portraits of people can be turned into glamorous shots in minutes.
http://www.portraitprofessional.com/

There are so many more interesting gadgets, but listed above are the gadgets I purchased for myself and like.

Best Regards and Merry Christmas.

Yvon Bourque

Technology is great but is it necessarily a good thing?

Visitors to this page also liked: See "Recommended Reading" on the right column. We honor reciprocal links. Email: brqyvn@aol.com

Hi Pentaxian friends.

Technology is great but is it necessarily a good thing?

During the past two to three years, I have acquired quite a collection of new Pentax lenses. From the DA 10-17mm to the DA* 300mm and almost every lenses in between. I also started collecting the Limited lenses. I have enough lenses for just about all possible situations . Yet, I found that my photography enthusiasm has fallen several notches. Could it be because I have too many choices? Honestly...I believe so.

Every time I go on a shooting trek, I take all the lenses I can humanly carry and still complain to myself about which lenses I should have brought instead. I believe that having so many lenses and choices does not help my photography...instead it complicates it.

So, for a while anyway, I decided to put all of my zoom and telephoto lenses away. I will limit myself to carry a maximum of three lenses with me. I will carry a wide angle, a normal lens and a small telephoto. Instead of taking a powerful telephoto for photographing distant subjects, I will walk or drive closer. Who knows what I might see while physically getting closer. I know, you can't do that for sport photography without being trampled by players, but I personally don't do sport photography.

Will I use Pentax best DA* prime lenses or the Pentax DA limiteds? Not necessarily. I own dozens of older Pentax "A" manual focus lenses that are still superb in quality. Since I'm sort of going back to the basics, I won't be using the autofocus. The "A" lenses are manual focus, but the K-7 and other Pentax DSLRs will acknowledge when AF is achieved with a beep and the green hexagon illuminated in the viewfinder. A small red square will also briefly appear to show where the AF point is located, on most Pentax DSLRs. My eyes also play an important role. What I see is what I want to get. Using AF is sometime misleading the DSLR into focusing on another spot in your scene. Manually focusing gives you a better chance to focus exactly on the desired part of the scene. I like to use the focus point in the center, and recompose if necessary. It's going to be a slower operation, but maybe that's what we all need to do...slow down and compose. Will IQ suffer? I don't think so.

Pro lenses do last longer, can take more of a beating and usually are f/2.8 and faster. However, low cost or older lenses take good pictures as well. They may not endure the handling demanded by Professional Photographers, but they render great images quality as well. The usable ISO of today's DSLRs is so much better than what was available with film cameras. The fast lenses are not as crucial as they were once.

All Pentax DSLRs use APS-C sized sensors. When Full Frame lenses are used, the image circle is much bigger than what's needed for the smaller APS-C sensor. Since glass effectiveness or accuracy tends to be less on the outer edges of any given lens, only the middle portion of Full Frame lenses hits the sensor, making every shots within the sweet spot of the lens used. Therefore, better IQ is achieved when using a Full Frame format lens on an APS-C sensor, although it is cropped. Who cares about the cropping, what you see in the viewfinder is what you get afterall. When post processed with Photoshop, 90% of image quality can be fixed, if needed. This is today's "darkroom" and I see nothing wrong in fixing image quality with Photoshop or other software.

Today's DSLRs are great technical achievements, but too much automation can hinder one's creativity. I you use a fully "Auto-Everything " DSLR, where does the hobby and craft of photography goes? What happens to the careful analysis of a scene and the meticulous composition?

I think this approach will get me back to the groove and my pictures will improve. It's easy to take the path of least resistance, but the outcome is usually proportional.

Thank you for reading,

Yvon Bourque