I do think Pentax would do well to assemble a tour bus/roadshow and take it to events that aren't necessarily directly related to photography. I'm thinking of RIAT (Royal International Air Tattoo) for example - pretty much everyone at this event has a camera with them and at least some interest in photography. Motorsport events and festivals would also be good venues. RIAT seems to have a regular stand from a discount equipment supplier with memory cards, compact cameras, monopods/tripods, etc so there must be some money to be made.

Thing is, they will inevitably sell more point and shoot compacts but they just might get their DSLRs noticed more often. Especially if they did something neat like displaying the original three K series SLRs next to the new digital range, then demonstrating that you can still use lenses from 1975.

I now have an ME Super, MG, and a couple of MV1s (the other is the normal black one) from the M series. I'd quite like an ME F as they were the first AF SLRs, although I don't rate my chances of finding the matching AF 35-70mm lens at a price I can afford.

Right, a better shot without as much blur. The lens is a pinhole type:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0867.jpg[/IMG]

These seem to be incredibly rare - Dimitrov's Pentax K Mount site lists them as turning up "once in several years".

I spotted this on ebay last week for £8:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0860.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0859.jpg[/IMG]

After a good clean, a new back door, and some replacement parts for the winder lever:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0861.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0863.jpg[/IMG]

Apologies for the slight blur there, I think post-reassembly excitement was to blame!

Here's a photo of the Loreo lens fitted to an MG:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0858.jpg[/IMG]

I'm not sure if it's supposed to be usable on both film and digital, but my next roll of B&W will definitely have a couple of test exposures from this lens to see what happens. It's a really good fit for an M series.

I probably wouldn't be worthy of it, but I want one!

I have one of those Loreo "Lens in a cap" things. Basically it's a very small lens (supposedly 35mm) with a control to set one of five apertures. The same control has a blank position to act as a lens cap.

Photo quality was a tad...unusual, although I'm going to keep trying in the hope that I can produce some reasonable results. It's a bit more complex than a conventional pinhole and doubles as a body cap. It feels pretty well made for £15 including postage, have a look on ebay.

Here's a test shot at f8 - this was the best result I got from trying all apertures on the same scene:
[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/IMGP0852.jpg[/IMG]

They also offer a tilt and shift version with two apertures for a few more £s - I'm considering buying one. It's not a serious lens but I think there's potential for some interesting effects.

Outside the mall would be public property, so he has no right to tell you to stop taking photos. Inside, it's private property of the mall owner and a condition of entry is that you follow their rules.

I always like museums with a "no flash photography" sign rather than a blanket "no photography". I never use flash anyway!

Pretty much every person has a camera on them now (built into their phone). Some of the newer models are capable of decent resolutions - I've seen 5mp which isn't far off the original *ist D.

With a camera of sorts in the hands of pretty much every adult, how on earth do the authorities think that hassling people with more obvious cameras is going to do anything? "Terrorists" are more likely to take snapshots with a camera phone (looking like every other tourist and not attracting attention) rather than standing out with a DSLR and a big lens!

It isn't just the import duty. You get stung with an admin charge (basically a fine levied by a private company) which can easily be more than the VAT/duty!

My Km came from Binoculars UK Ltd - turned up at about 8am the following morning and at the time they had the best price I could find. No complaints with their service.

Keep an eye on "Not Just Cameras" on ebay - the chap who runs the shop uses the ID Davygravey and they sometimes have interesting older gear or "not quite perfect" items. I snagged a light meter from them for £5 including post that only needed the plastic window re-attaching, and an MV1 that basically needed a good clean for £8 or so. He's honest with item descriptions and delivers pretty rapidly, so well worth a look.