Built-in flash should only be considered as a fall-back device when you need to get a picture in a hurry or when you are just doing snap-shots. Note that most pro cameras do not even have them.

Frontal lighting is very clinical and uninteresting and the size of the light source is comparatively tiny. Even with a diffuser the improvement is small, and the problem of foreground object being much brighter than more distant ones will always be there.

Bounced flash is much more even and less obvious than direct flash. It's worth investing in an add-on, bounceable flash if you plan to do a lot of flash photography.

For those on a limited budget it's really worth taking a look at Photoshop Elements.

It has most of the functions available in CS3 including a cut-down version of Adobe Camera Raw. It also has an excellent cataloguing function including the ability to tag media by geographical location, having a mapping function built in.

Another very useful gizmo, which IMO is better than the CS3 one, is the 'Magic Extractor' function which can separate the subject from the background with a few easy clicks.

If you can still get the K10 go for it. They represent a lot of camera for your money.

Ah... I was wondering about that - there seem to be a number of lenses with the Pentax / Tamron / Samsung badges that have identical specs. Are they all made by the same manufacturer. And what about Sigma - are they included?

OK well thanks for that Simon. I'll have a look at it.

Would you opine that Tamron products are generally better than Sigma?

Thank you for that Simon. I don't really need 250mm - I can get one of the lenses I mentioned for £200 and that's about as much as I wish to pay for the use I have in mind.

I'm thinking about buying an 18-200mm lens for my K10D.

There are three on offer from Pentax, Sigma and Tamron.

As it's for general use when I can't be bothered to change lenses I don't need to go for the more expensive Pentax model so it's really between the Sigma and the Tamron offerings. (The Sigma is the 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC Lens - Pentax AF Fit).

Which should I get - the Sigma or the Tamron?

The ACR file needs to be copied into the 'plugins/file formats' folder in your Photoshop Elements program folder.

Think of it as the camera's G-spot...