My Custom Pentax K-5II Monochrome DSLR
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024
- I am very excited to share this camera with you! my very special Pentax K-5II debayered monochrome camera.
This is just a brief video of what I hope will be many more if you are interested. Monochrome conversions of digital cameras have fascinated me for a while now and I'm just so giddy to finally have a converted camera. There's a lot that goes on with debayering a sensor, from the process to the results and what they mean. If you're interested in a lengthier, probably drier video on the subject let me know. I'm by no means an expert, but I have done a fair bit of research into the matter.
I nearly attempted converting a camera myself. Well, I did actually attempt. I bought a donor broken Pentax after doing research and mapping out a gameplan. Part way through the process I determined my odds of ever getting this to work on a real camera were slim, and would require many failures. The man who converted my camera also went through many "failures" but you can see now how that learning was necessary to get to the point where he is now.
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#pentax
I've been wanting to share more about this special camera for a while now, happy to finally do so! I hope you enjoy! One more Pentax video this month, and then we start getting ready for some camera giveaways and a big August announcement :) Thanks for hanging out with me. -james
how much did it cost to de-bayer?
@@patrickolivier he's in europe in the USA it's $600 to $1000 very expensive. Sony's are cheaper to do for some reason.
@@rivergate950 thanks 👍
I want a nerdy video!
Good! Me too! xD
@@snappiness count me in for the nerdy video too!
Same here!
Yes please, I’m in
+1
if we get a little on the nerdy aspect of things, it is worth noting the one major drawback that Monochrome cameras have that, so far, I have seen very little reviewers talk about : the fact that despite gathering more light thanks to the color filter array being removed, the dynamic range of the pixels isn't widened. It's only shifted.
Yes, you get more light. Yes, that means that with the same aperture, same ISO and same shutter speed you will not only have a brighter exposure, but also retain more detail in the shadows. But the opposite is also true for the highlighs. The saturation point of the pixels didn't move. They still display solid clipped white when they get a certain amount of photons, and there is nothing we can do about it. Only problem here being that by removing that filter, we let more light in, so the pixels saturate quicker. In photographic terms that means that the highlight recoverability is lower, and that we clip to white quicker than we would on a color sensor.
Most people focus on the advantages without noticing the (pretty valid) drawback. Sure, you don't see the highlight clipping in black and white, since what makes you see it in color images is that it's solid white and all color information is lost. Here, being a black and white image, it's way less noticeable. But if the goal was to use it as a landscape camera with super high detail and lots of dynamic range... well you get some extra stops for shadow dynamic range, but you loose some for highlights. It's definitely a camera that would require a gradient filter to carry with you everytime you want to capture a high dymamic range scene, being able to lift the shadows without clipping the whites.
Thanks for this introduction, and I need to dig out my K-5 now.
The better low-light images is already enough to convince me.
Interesting project and you got some great shots there, with a really nice quality to them that I don't think would be easily replicated in software.
It's not the same of course, but I once left my K-r in B&W JPEG only for a month. After spending the first week shooting mostly with live view, so I could see the results in real time, I found that after that I got so used to how things would look in monochrome, I could just use the OVF and I'd still "see" the final result (more or less). It felt weird to switch back to "normal" once the month was up. I tried the same thing last year with my Olympus (with it set to almost Daido Moriyama levels of contrast), but having the EVF made it too easy!
That's the level I hope to be at one day. What a great experiment you did!
@@snappiness oh, I always had the Raw/Fx button to save me if I took a shot that I thought would be better in colour, so I could cheat. Doing what you've done takes more commitment and I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go that route, but it's definitely fun to experiment. I do like the idea of supercharging the low light performance of an old camera, so maybe one day.
Back in the film days I shot mainly Tri-X at ISO 800, set my aperture to f/8 or 11 and used the camera’s meter to get a decent shutter speed. With the lens focused at about 12 to 15 feet I had all but converted a Nikon FM-2 into a point-and-shoot camera. I could shoot almost any subject from pre-dawn to deep twilight, and at night in a well-lighted area*, with only minor adjustments (usually in shutter speed).
Sounds complicated now; but life was pretty much simpler back then.
*Actually, “a clean, well-lighted place” if you’re a literary geek.
I just found my old Canon F-1 from high school back in the 90’s (amazingly the lens and camera look just as clean as when I had put it into storage) and what did I find in the camera bag? About 5-7 rolls of unexposed Tri-X 400 film. I seriously doubt it’s at all usable now, almost 30 years later. Really tempting to try it though and see what happens. It’s never been outside of a climate controlled room, but still…
@@null0byteawesome! Remember: rule of thumb is to overexpose by one stop for every 10 years beyond expiration date (in theory) for ISO 400 film. Good luck, you should try it!
I would very much enjoy a nerdy video!
Now I would love for Ricoh to make a monochrome GR. Can't fathom why they haven't made one yet.
1,000 times yes! If they don't, I'm going back to this guy with more of my money to get a G R converted. He's done a couple already for other people.
hey, it is no problem to get GR monochrome for GR versions 1 and 2 - prepared sensor is waiting in the box to be placed into your camera.
Now I want one as well!
I have had so much fun with my Q7 (and standard prime) set to high contrast monochrome. I have been contemplating having one of my K5's or K3's converted to monochrome as well. After seeing this video, I am convinced.
P-lus-X
Mr. Snappy, you now need a custom logo for the pentaprism.
May I suggest P-lus-X. 🙂
Just replace a few letters.
Or... P-an-X.
There was a rumor of Pentax coming out with a monochrome camera a few years ago. Nothing yet. I love the dramatic affect of bnw
Yes, they polled about the Pentax k-3iii having a special monochrome version in limited edition, alongside the pool where they tea as ed the jet-black edition. We'll see if it ever comes to fruitition.
@@snappiness that would be an immediate purchase for me
@@sdhute it would be a pricey temptation for me 😀
@@snappiness believe it I believe Pentax focusing on a monochrome model would bring HUGE sales. The only other option is the Leica q2 monochrome which is 5700.
@@sdhute I feel like you're right. It's a market that, while small, is monopolized by Leica. You wouldn't have another competitor...
That’s actually why I got my Fujifilm X-T2. I was looking for a camera that could most closely mimic the experience I had back in high school learning photography shooting on an original Canon F-1 shooting B&W only. (We also developed the film and pictures ourselves, but while fun, I don’t completely miss that)
That meant manual dials for the exposure triangle paired with a manual focus lens, which the X-T2 plus a Briten Star 33mm f0.95 has in spades. I lucked out in a near-mint condition X-T2 with an incredibly low shutter count and the Briten Star lens pairs perfectly looks wise. This thing is seriously gorgeous. The canon FD 50mm f1.8 I had used wasnt as clinically sharp as today’s lenses, so the slight softness at f0.95 works perfectly for my purposes.
There’s something liberating about not worrying about colors and only focusing on the lighting, contrast, framing, and textures of an image that lets you take a step back and take your time. Set the camera to one of the B&W film simulations and you’re off to the races. (I set to RAW+JPEG in case I wanted to look at the color RAW images later just in case I happened to capture a great image)
Ya, converting a camera to monochrome is really an absolute dedication decision since there's no going back after lol. If you already shoot alot of black and white then it makes sense.
I mean, you can still do color with a monochrome camera by "stacking" three separate shots, each shot with a different color filter on front
@@berzoidberg3272 For completely static subjects while shooting from a tripod, sure. But for things like street or anything else where the frame or scene will change between each shot, I don't see that being feasible. You could do a recolor in post though.
@@KobieMC True. I'm kinda curious how well AI recoloring models would do with high-resolution digital monochrome images.
I love my K5ii too much to mess and my budget makes me treat it like gold ha ha another interesting and enjoyable video
I think your channel need a video about the legendary K-100D and K10D. That would be amazing!
That deer shot in the intro is awesome!
Glad you like it! I was using the 50-135mm so had a decent zoom there and the deer approached me and posed just perfect! The contrast of the dark body against the dead grass was really lovely.
yay!! I’ve been looking forward to this video! your photos look fantastic, you’ve clearly gotten much more into it since you posted your initial forum(? or was it blog?) post.
were any shot with b&w filters?
i def want the nerdy video even tho i know how it works, i really enjoy your take on things.
and let me second the trichrome vote!
and yes… i would LOVE to get a camera b&w converted. i learned to shoot on b&w film and it’s got a special place in my heart. software monochrome is great in many ways but not the same. it’s so bad tho, i’d like to have infrared/b&w dupes of all my favorites and that’s just not healthy haha.
Yes, i gotta order that blue filter soon. Too fun not to try.
None were shot with filters. Because the Bayer filter is removed you can get the effects like you do on film using filters, but I haven't even gotten that far yet.
Email me if you will! My address is in the about section of this TH-cam channel. I'd like to discuss something but don't have your email :)
Great video as usual. I used to shoot a lot of 35mm black and white in the late 1970s and developed and printed my own. Then I always found colour (color) to be a bit full on and complicated and hated to pay for processing. Since I embraced colour photography, I have shot colour images almost exclusively. However, I very often see the art and the the desirability for want of a better word of B&W pictures and love many I see, but I just can't bring myself to take them. I realise I am being ridiculous, but it is to do with comparing and the feeling as though I am losing something, not getting the full experience, it is a threshold I find hard to cross.
I think the actual sensor differences potentially can make a big difference. I don't like to use super wide aperture lenses (I have a bunch of f2 lenses for my APS-C X-Pro3), but I also like photographing using natural light in dim situations. Often I also want deeper focus in that situation, but I'm taking photos of people so slow shutter speed isn't really an option. Also: I love black and white.
In that situation, having a sensor that gives me over an extra stop of light is utterly godsend. Combine this with the fact that (to my eyes anyway) BW sensors have some of the most pleasing digital noise out there, and that sounds like a wonderful combination to me. I've seen some images from the recently released official Pentax monochrome camera and I also think the rendering of itself is way closer to actual BW film than I've seen from any BW film simulation on color sensors.
If Fuji releases an monochrome version of X-Pro I'd be extremely tempted to get one.
LOL Pentax just released a monochrome DSLR for about $2000. I'd get one to convert to UV only shooting by remoing the IR and UV block filters! Well maybe a bit latter because I'm too cheap to pay that much money for a camera when I know how easy it is to DIY it.
I remember reading somewhere that Raw Therapee has a function for monochrome raw -files... ? And also - WHERE CAN I SEND MY CAMERA TO HAVE IT CONVERTED?! Those greyscales are AMAZING!
I'd already been doing all of this for the last 20 years.
Great images and unique camera! Did you purchase it converted or have it converted? May have missed it in the video 😬
Edit: Read the description and found the answer! Maybe another video/project it would be so cool to "black out" the white labeling you have covered with some sort of paint or epoxy? where the pentax name would be visible but in black
That's a great idea! Would look like the new Pentax k-3iii jet black special edition.
I so badly desire a monochrome camera, waiting to see if the GR IV that should be out this year, comes in a mono version
I really hope they do that. Especially with Pentax releasing that special edition monochrome, and Ricoh being the parent company. Hopefully it's in somebodies ear up there
@@snappiness that is what I am hoping for too, I want an X version in monochrome, to pair with my IIIx
It's very interesting. Can I know how to remove the filter by any chance!
And now you can buy K3III Monochrome :D
Only $2200USD... if you can find it!
Very nice! The photos do have a really interesting vintage quality to them. Is it because without the color info, it is just not as easy to play to death with tones in Lightroom? I've always wondered about that with monochrome cameras, is it limiting or liberating?
Right, so you can't edit b+w using the color sliders, like for adjusting luminance by color for instance. I just concentrated on the tone curve for these. It's taken some getting used to, and some of these later pictures I felt I was better able to edit than others. Fun stuff! You'll see soon enough :D
Looks like Pentax liked the idea of a monochrome version and just released an official one...
I shoot mostly BW film , but lovely idea.
Very cool. Where did you get the sensor work done? I thought you were going to say you did it yourself with some sandpaper and a steady hand. 😮
in case of Pentax K100D you can easily use Stanley steel blade to debayer the sensor. It is not a joke ;)
Well, that's interesting. Are the photos sharper without the Bayer filter? I'm not sure I would want this done since I like color so much; I don't "see" in monochrome to compose very well with it.
believe me or not, after shooting monochrome for a year I can't look to my color pictures shot these days :D
And yes, monochrome looks sharper. 16 mpix mono files have at least same or even better details compared to 24 mpix normal sensor. Monochrome conversion gives at least 2x mpix detail equivalent.
i've been using a Casio point and shoot set to B&W just to see if I could live with the limitation and am honestly struggling to go back to colour. ...would own a monochrome camera in a heartbeat
Awesome! The transition was too hard for me since I prefer black and white film over color, but having it on a digital camera where I didn't have the color raw as a backup was a really different level of commitment for me! Maybe the same for that point and shoot though if it doesn't shoot raw
Did this also remove the IR filter? So, if you have suitable objective like a mirror objective, can you shoot all they way from 1100 nm to 300 nm wavelength?
I would love to have my K5ii converted to K5iis-monochrome; that would be great since I already use K5ii mostly for monochrome outcome and K3ii for color.
I put a link in my bio to the guy who did it for me. It's very cool!
@@snappiness yes thank you
can you do a tutorial on how to debayer a sensor?
Hello, I am interested in a monochrome SLR and am looking for raw files made with a modified sensor, to see how to edit them with the darktable software. Merci
try nikon d700 it's a masterpiece camera especially in mono chrom
I want a nerdy video
Hi mate! I got my K5 with Bayer layer removed as well. But my camera suffers from the auto focus issue. Do you have such issue?
Are you able to provide the name of the person who did the conversation, the link posted doesn’t work for me. Thanks!!
Hello - that link through Facebook is the way he wished to be contacted. You can also find him on PentaxForums with the username "Medex".
Hi James, really great video as always :) I love shooting B&W and I’m really interested in converting an older DSLR to have as a dedicated monochrome camera. If you don’t mind me asking, how much did it cost to have the CFA removed from your K5? I don’t have FB so can’t check the link. Thanks!
A couple hundred dollars - much cheaper than the other current professional services I could find.
Who did the conversion, and what are the risks that you will completely trash the sensor? I have a K-5 that I bought just before the II was released, but I'm afraid to touch it because it's done me so well in its 10 years. They're probably cheap enough these days that I could pick one up just to have a monochrome body.
Sure you can switch to monochrome mode on a normal K-5, but there's something particular about picking up and going about with a camera which you know can only ever give you B&W.
What software do you use to convert to b&w with the monochrome camera? I have yet to see anyone talk about this step for full spectrum cameras.
I think you can skip the nerd video - the biggest difference is the creative process shooting monochrome - no matter if film or a monochrome body. I had basically the same thoughts like the ones you formulated Herr when i got my GR II back from conversion. I really like the shits in that vid.
I want to get my GR converted too someday in the future :) I love the shots you share from that camera.
What software do you use to open images?
Buy a k3 and photograph in bl and wh to your heart content.
Have you done any comparison between a photo from this converted monochrome camera and a pixel shift photo converted to monochrome?
That would be a cool test! I have not. It would be hard to do a closer comparision, since the K-5 can't do pixel shift to my knowledge, so I'd have to compare with one of my newer sensor cameras. But I compared it to my K-3 III here, so I could do that again with pixel shift! My hypothesis is that pixel shift would help the detail part, and probably surpass the monochrome detail, and the noise would improve a little bit, but monochrome would still have the more light gathering advantage so would win for the noise.
@@snappiness I just received my ebay minty K1, and was just reading about the K1 pixel shift and how it works and compares with my only other camera that does it... Also going through the manual, reading about all the functions that no one ever talks about... like catch in focus!
@@christianlainesse4281 I love catch in focus! I use it on my K10D, they had it even back then. It's not perfect especially if you have a really shallow depth of field, but gets pretty close.
@@snappiness some synchronicity here: www.pentaxforums.com/forums/190-pentax-k-1-k-1-ii/447324-pentax-k-1-monochrome-debayered-sensor-high-iso-performance.html
That is so cool. The difference in IQ is noticeable. Did you send it away to someone to do or buy like this on eBay?
I think the debayering would be a great benefit to a small sensor camera like a Pentax Q. I’d totally do that on mine
I put the link to the guy who converted for me in the description. He sells pre-converted cameras on the Pentax Facebook marketplace and on PentaxForums. I contacted him on PentaxForums and was thinking of sending him one of my cameras, but he's in Lithuania so the shipping was pricey. He kindly sourced a camera locally for me to convert.
And I agree. I would love to see the results on a small sensor camera. The process is very difficult to do without bricking the camera and or sensor, but there must be some compact cameras that are easier than others to do.
@@snappiness thank you - I missed it there.
Yeah I was thinking the Q would be a good candidate as it’s sensor is exposed and may make it easier, plus the native DNG capture.
I’m in Europe so that may be an option I’ll investigate further and see if he would do a Pentax Q. If so I’ll be sure to let you know. Thanks again
@@paulanderson24 Awesome! To my knowledge last I checked he had only done GR's, several Pentax DSLR models, and potentially a Nikon? So with a new model there's always the risk of breaking the camera. In fact, the first camera he sourced for me broke during conversion but he covered the cost of that for me which was good of him (and the right thing to do, just not fun for him). The second camera conversion was successful, obviously :)
@@snappiness I asked would he do a Q. Let’s see what happens. The GR2 would also be a perfect candidate for a monochrome camera
Ricoh GR 16 mpix models and GR III/IIIx can be converted. Very compact, pocketable cameras with superb optics. Did more than 10 conversions. Highly recommended!
A nerdy video please. The nerdier the better.
Is there that much difference between the conversion and the monochrome setting? Where you did the conversion? Although I don't see much difference. B and w is a state of mind
There's about a 1.35+ ev sensitivity on the monochrome converted K-5, plus a minor bump in sharpness. I dropped the link to the guy who did my conversion in the description.
Could you make a video about the conversion please 🙏
He made it clear that it was another person doing the conversion, i.e. MG Leisure Monochrome conversion:
th-cam.com/channels/i7nBM8mw8UKx14mcnygmow.html
What special program do you use to modify the RAW files to skip demosaicing for other editors?
I'm using Monochrome2DNG. But there are other editors that can be set to skip demosaicing, like Darktable and Raw Therapee. Maybe more too. I like editing in lightroom, so I wanted one that would bake into a DNG that it is monochrome to tell lightroom not to demosiac.
do a trichrome with it
I plan to. I don't have a blue filter so have to order one. :(
Nice video. Would like to try one out although I'm not sure I could justify the conversion cost.
So, why the tape in front of the pentax logo on top of the cam?
It was originally to tell it apart from the identical k5iis I had. But now that I've sold that one, I don't need the tape anymore. :)
@mipmipmipmipmip I bought it originally to have it converted, but then it became more cost effective to have the guy source on for me in his country. Then I kept it to use to fun and compare to the converted camera. But I sold it because I have the k-3iii anyway so don't really need another Pentax APSC body.
@mipmipmipmipmip that's correct. Mine was, and my understanding was that it was destructive to get past it anyway so keeping it wasn't an option (not that I wanted it).
@mipmipmipmipmip K5IIs would keep original filters and ultrasonic dust removal, same for K-3 models
I don't need it. I know that. And yet the logical part of my brain malfunctions when I see the images. There's just something about the photos from monochrome sensors that feels special. I can't explain it.
That's pretty much exactly the thought process I went through, and then I just bought one anyway 😆 thanks to this channel!
What is the main reason to do such conversion rather than use BW mode (digital filter?) integrated in the camera? Thanx
I touched on it during the video. The main technical advantage is better low light performance and higher detail. Astrophotographers are really into them, but makes for a nice artistic camera too.
@@snappiness thank you.
Sorry, It's me...I hit the dislike button by mistake while trying to hit the like button. Love the video.
If you like b&w save up and buy the Leica Q2 Monochrom. You'll never be able to go back to another camera...
That of course is the dream b&w camera :)
Nerdy video please!
The people have spoken! :D
What did the conversion cost?
Just under $500 usd if I remember correctly. Helped that the euro to USD conversion was more in my favor than it has been in the past. I can go into more detail into the process maybe in a blog post for anyone wanting to get theirs done through him as well.
我有K-5和K-1
Justo use raw+jpg un bw profile...
nerdy video pls