Three photos in, and all three do not fit the description in one way or another....
I drew attention to this and it would appear that the concept of a "still life" is not as clearly understood as I had assumed.
Sorry...

ePhotozine has a very clear article in the January 24th Newsletter.
https://www.ephotozine.com/article/basic-still-life-photography-tips-17747

The first picture in that article is a very nice "still life"...
despite the intruding "part glove" and something reflective part-way up the left side...
personally, I don't regard the second picture as a proper "still life" as there is too much vanishing off the sides.
If you compare the two pictures in that article, the first has a clear border around the the main objects...
the second has not... so rather than an arrangement, it looks more like a photo of part of a workbench.
The main subject of the photos is clearly the book with someone's engineering drawings inserted next to a relevant article/paragraph.... but in the second, the composition doesn't link with the "keep it simple" statement of the article. There is nothing creating a composition.

With regard to the three photos so far...
the first has movement in the spinning glass... there should be NO movement in a still life.
the second is an arrangement that has a row of bottles behind the major item, the glasses and jugs...
the third [and the clear winner so far] is just the bottle tops in a row... there isn't a complete bottle there.
Had there not been a spinning glass in the first, that would be ahead of the bottle tops.

Currently a Chinon lens is almost "glued" to the *istD....
so that is very good to know....
that has cemented my choice, John, Thanks!!
I have nothing left from the M42 era, either...
Thanks for the offer.... I'll add a list!!
Eventually... just trying to get a cider press fettled....
I nearly entered three apples for the weekly.... or dreamt I did!!!!

Lovely collection of REAL bikes!! Loved the "going, going, gone" set!!

OK.... that does it!
I will order myself a K1 for Christmas!!
I will have the money by then.... I hope!

Wonderful pix...
I was straight in with a Satyrid...
they are the browns with furry eyes...
take a look at the first pic!!
That's the sort of detail I like!!
And the rear wing detail...
the scale of those scales!!

John, a question, have you tried the K1 with any non-AF glass...
ie: REALLY OLD glass glass, rather than plastic glass!!
I am still using my *istD as it seems the only camera that will close the iris!!

Love the last two shots...
Caption for the penultimate.... "Where's that ruddy beer tent?!"
Two great character studies!!

Like these... different, almost abstract.

I'll go with Northgrain... I know the Strid well, also... these capture the awsome power... and the beauty of the cut.
5, 6 & 7 are wonderful fast water study.... numbers 1, 3 & 11 capture the Strid itself....
thanks for posting these.

[quote:3496ace15f="fatspider"]I agree... my *istD is still ploughing on...
and I wouldn't have dreamed of taking the K7 into Leeds City Centre after 5pm...
and certainly not at any time on the w/e.
I did brave Arcadia [in Headingley] one lunchtime during the week with the K7...
but I'd managed to park up top and came down through what was Safeways...
got the shots I wanted at the resolution I wanted, put the camera back into the shopping bag and went home immediately!!
Then walked back and had a pleasant afternoon's session working my way across the pumps...
with my Optio LS1100 in my pocket.... for eventualities!!
I didn't have the K3-II then... it hadn't been born.

I will be keeping the *istD going, tho'....
not for old time's sake...
but because it is a good camera and....
is the only one of the three that still operates the iris on all my old analogue Pentax K mount glassware...
it was the first I could afford... at £595 from Jessops in Leeds with that kit lens that wasn't bad... but wasn't as good as some!
That now languishes in the "might need it sometime" bag... the *istD is currently sporting my old Cokin mid-range zoom with demi-macro ability...
but is equally at home with the 40mm pancake from my old MX and the 50mm 1.7 from my ME Super and the Tamron Adaptall-2 75>250mm zoom that I bought the K2 to balance [all still going strong... but used on B&W film only!]

I still like my *istD...
but I would love a digital back for the K2 and the MX...
no preview needed... and just the ability to set it to an ISO...
and a micro-SD card as the "film"!

Anyone for a Nettlethrasher....

To keep this "in thread" I am cutting and pasting my comment from this weeks competition...
"In France, that is a bit tricky...
hence my comment in brackets above.
Publishing candid shots of people photgraphed in France is illegal...
it is against the very strict French laws on privacy...
every person depicted in "Le fromager", "Chez Ninie", "Laon, 12 Mai 2011" and "Coiffe and ..." could sue the photographer and win!

In Perspicador's shot they are posing for the camera, so there is no problem...
in mine and the Grande Arche pictures, the people are incedental to the picture, not the subject...
those are OK, too.
You don't need the language to ask...
point at your camera and then the subject...
if they smile and carry on... take that as tacit permission.
If they frown and/or look away, move on...
if they pose and you don't want that, it isn't difficult to indicate that you want to photograph what they are doing.
By rights, the permission must be in writing...
but that doesn't seem to follow in fact.
Pentax User images turn up on Google image searches...
remember, when we enter a competition like this....
we are publishing pictures to the wide world!! "

While I agree with John that it is unlikely that the subject will see, and object to, their picture... you just cannot be certain.
People object for the wierdest of reasons... a picture like "Chez Ninie" could even go viral on "SocialMedia"...
there may not be "share" buttons on Pentax User, but it only takes a right click on an image to copy it.... or save it.... and paste it wherever!!
Additionally, it doesn't need the person themselves to see the picture initially... communication has become much more instant in recent years.
And removing the image that we've posted.... when others are still posting it... just won't work in a court situation.... here or the UK...
and France has become more and more litigous in recent years.... a long way behind the UK, but it is occuring more and more.
At events like the car event I showed, only the dimmest person would expect not to appear in photos....
the people on the steps of the Grande Arche are too small to be identified....
but, being photographed while you are doing you shopping or having a coffee and chat...
and that picture then appearing on the internet...
we wouldn't have a leg to stand on in court... without having asked permission first.
I've never had a refusal, here or in the UK... but it take very little time to ask, so please do.
Many people will actually be flattered by the request...
as was the wearer of a wonderful mohican I had as a subject moons back.
Sometimes you'll need to stop them posing their way and spoiling your intended shot!!

The minimum penalty in France is the removal and destruction of equipment...
computers and stored files are included in equipment....
as well as your cameras and lenses!
You need to ask yourself....
"is it worth the risk for a competition without a cash prize?"
From my personal viewpoint it isn't!!
It wouldn't effect most competitions, even those with subjects that include people....
we just all need to be aware of how laws apply in countries that we visit.

Thanks Barrie....
"Have you tried using Ctrl - to zoom out until the portrait is in full view. Ctrl + to return. That's what I do on my monitors which are the same ratios as yours.
Sorry if I'm teaching granny to suck eggs "....
No... you aren't... never heard of that. I'll give it a try...
just did... it works!! Tareversuch!!
The only time I've used Ctrl+ and - is in Pottyshop.

Before the new website changes the competition pictures always used to be fine...
everything fitted in the window...
and enlarged to a fresh, blank window if you clicked on them...
now, however, there is no change in size in either.

Thanks Barrie, problem solved!!