Glyn I simply use the hood only as protection when going into my bag it seems to offer more then enough protection (small hole and nothing in the bag that fits through it)

When using a filter I simply put it in the Leather bag, that offers also enough protection in my case.

I've one, it's a very small lens some say too small but it's still quite a good lens to handle if you don't have very fat fingers.

Wide open it's average but close down a stop it's a sharp lens and it stay very constant a cross the frame so no drop off around the edges.
The AF is lighting fast, it's the fasted lens that I have. Focusing from one end to the other takes less then a second.

When buying the lens I had also the option to buy the DA35mm but ended up with the DA40 since it preforms just a bit better image wise, it was cheaper and I have the 100mm macro so the macro of the DA35 was not a real extra for me.

I love the animation they show, very helpfull

1) yes they are the same so far as I know
Don't know about the graphics card though, I believe they will just handle it and aren't bound to profiles to be honest but I can be wrong.

3) yes aRGB has a broader colour range so when comparing side to side you see a better graduation in colours.

4) Not if XP converts the colour it can't display to sRGB colours, I believe XP does but many browsers don't so for the web use sRGB only.

just a side note, RAW isn't effected by the colour profile you set the camera on, the jpg preview image pf the raw and jpg photos are.

Those look better Jeanette, what kind of noise reduction did you used?

I quite like what you did with the last photo of the leaf, I was pulling to hard to make it bright

What I did was the basic noise reduction and sharpening.
Then converted it to black and white and copy the coloured photo and let it blend with the black and white.
So the coloured photo colours in the black and white photo but did it in such a way that I still could change the B&W.
With the B&W option you can say how bright or dark, yellow, red, blue, cyan, purple and green must be and that has effect on how bright it colours in that colour.
Do you understand that?
You don't have photoshop right or else I could send you the file and see for yourself.

Jeanette I hope you don't mind I played with them but this is what I meant.

[IMG]http://i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk244/Anvh/IMGP5744PassionFlower.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk244/Anvh/IMGP5721rainonleave.jpg[/IMG]

Stunning photos an all of them very different

Like Andy said about the noise in the first one, quite a shame.
Did you used a tripod or else get one, it will really help you with these kind of shots.

The second one the colours are so great and I like the water on the "leaf" that's why I don't like your crop of it, you miss althose things in it.

3th photo also very nice but just a bit to dark brighten it up just a little bit to make the colours more vibrant.

RR have been thinking more about it.
Still your idea doesn't seem to work since you need to read the whole sensor out simultaneously, very difficult to do that.

You could however with your example with 1, 2 & 4 second exposure, you could use the mechanical shutter to freeze the sensor for a moment.

You can see a pixel as a bucket that fills itself with light.
So you let the sensor fill for 1 second and close the shutter read out how full they but let them be that full so don't empty them and open the shutter again till the next mark, do you get the idea?
I don't know if the pixel need to be emptied when read though but if not this is quite feasible.

Thank you for the information John still we compress the dynamic range because we can't show any other way I believe.
Wouldn't it be great that they can print a photo with the complete dynamic range that was there, that would be truly stunning.
I know it can't be done but just think about and maybe someday there might be a media that can.

RR I also once thought about that but don't think it is doable with current techniques.
You need to read all the info from all the pixels instantly and that can be done with current design.

Btw compacts do need a shutter but since they don't have one they use the aperture and close it fully so that it acts like a shutter.

The shutter still works like in the film days and it gives the camera time to process the information correctly.

Very nice
I like the contrast of the withe water and the background and how it comes back in the drops.