At risk of repeating 'superb', I'll just say..

.. marvellous.

If they'll take the enlargement, any one of these is good enough to hang on a wall. There's so much great composition in each one that it would take an essay to work through it all.

Thanks for sharing them.

Would be excellent advice, normally, but I'd now classify it with sensor cleaning - sounds scary, but get the right tool, and it's easy.

In case you're wondering, normally, I'm *terrified* of this kind of messing about. I'm no Don, believe me.

In this case, the right tool is a nail file.

Use the right end, folks...

Ha - it's back in the box with all the other bits I'll never use

WOO - done it. And remarkably easily, it turned out.

It occurred to me that what I needed was something thin, made of plastic not metal - so, inspired by Carl's suggestion, I used the plastic handle end of a nail file - like this one

Held the camera on my lap, and gradually inserted the file handle between the overlapping wire of the D-ring. Since the handle starts off thin, and then gets thicker, it was perfect for gradually increasing the gap.

As soon as the gap was big enough, the ring just rotated easily and could be removed with the flexible protector.

No damage or scratches, and I reckon it would be similarly easy to get it back on.

Hope this helps someone else sometime..

Yes, perfect sense. I just have visions of the blade slipping, and creating a damn great scratch where there shouldn't ever be one on a camera.

So I'm a bit hesitant, to say the least.

Does the pin that connects the D-ring to the camera unscrew, or is it an unremovable part of the structure? I'd be more than happy to pay a bit for a spare one, if it was as simple as just unscrewing the one with the ring, and inserting one without.

But it probably counts as one of those "non-user maintainable parts".

... and while I'm hoping for the collective forum genius to come up with something, I may as well mention the secondary requirement.

Which is of course to be able to get it back on again so that in a few years time I can sell it again!

(I know, I don't ask much, do I.)

I went to SRS in Watford today, and came back with a K-5, an 18-135 and a credit card that was whimpering quietly.

So the battery's charging (and will be for several more hours), and I already have my first question...

How might I - non-destructively - remove the D-ring (and flexible protector) from the left hand strap connection?

Reason being, I use a wrist strap rather than a neck strap, and I'd rather not have the unused D-ring rattling around.

Getting keys off keyrings, with the inevitable chipped fingernails, seems positively easy in comparison.

Indeed, and SRS are pretty quick off the mark too!

Fingers crossed, work permitting - Thursday!

Gawd. More than happy to be corrected - is that because the standard expected has gone up? Because it's possible to achieve more?

I just kind of imagined that I'd prefer to have the flexibility of digital if I had to do it again.

Here's hoping I don't

Professionally, I'd agree. But what do you do when a hard-up close friend practically begs you to do it for them?

It's happened to me twice - in each case they couldn't afford a pro, and in fact were doing their own catering in the local village hall, in conjunction with some of the guests that were bringing food.

The answer is, in my case, you agonise, dither, and eventually agree to give it your best shot. You prepare the very best you can, you get as much advice as you can, and you make sure you know how your kit works.

People with digital cameras faced with this dilemma don't know they're born, frankly. These days, you can retake after looking on the back, and fix some imperfections later. On the other hand, there seems to be a lot more in the way of 'arty' shots required these days, which wasn't so much in vogue in the '80s.

The ones I did were with a Super A, a Me Super, a couple of primes and a 28-80 zoom. They worked out Ok, and the couples were pleased, so all's well that ended.

Scarred for life, me, though. It was an adrenaline kind of day, each time.