:

Nigel, from these comments it would appear that you have little understanding of natural history....
personally, I would have just loved to see all the action in the lead up to the last picture and the follow through.... just being there would have been enough...
forget photographing it!!
And I probably would have.... forgotten to raise the camera!!
Nature isn't theatre... although it sometimes throws out wonders!

Alan, I think you should submit that last shot to Birdguides for their Picture of the Week...
it is an absolute corker of a shot.
There is a new curator / judge / editor...
and he seems to go for real action shots that show behaviour...
rather than wonderful bird portraits.

And I'll echo those who say keep posting...
can there really be enough Barn Owl shots in the world...

" Sunsniper dual harness "....

Not come across this make before, looks good...
I can have binos and both cameras to hand...
which I need quite often when out in the field...
especially as the veteran istD is the one that handles the old glass the best.

I like the bearings idea...
I've been trying to make my own using sea-fishing line swivels...
good to 100 kilos and stainless steel, so weather-proof.
So no more twisted straps.

This is a very useful set of answers for me also...
I have been looking for a similar setup myself....
having got my straps tangled more than once...
and narrowly missing dropping the unheld camera on the other strap....
onto our exceedingly unforgiving tiled floor!!

Here in France, I can't seem to get the Optec items at a reasonable price...
usually around 15 to 20 quid more here once the conversion into £Sterling value has been calculated...
so I will probably buy from the UK and get my bro' to forward the parcel.

My Pentax Papilio binos have a superb, and very positive, clip in - clip out connector built in at each side...
now, why can't Pentax bring out the same clip system as a fix-to-camera / fix to strap post purchase accessory.

"From the original post setting the challenge in the gallery. Everyone has a worktop. "...
er, yes...
but looking at the state of ours after this w/e...
I would have been very hard pushed to clear enough room to take a picture for my challenge of last month.... let alone arrange one!
although I suppose I could have taken a pic of it as it is...
caption...
"Disaster Zone"

We are about to start the recovery proceedure....
washing up!

"And what on Earth is the point of alerting us to a competition that has already closed????"....
Peter, I have long felt that!
It is a waste of newsletter space...

However, it really only takes a couple of minutes to check the competitions page...
eg: I do it every Monday or Tuesday evening for the weekly...
and read the rubric whilst supping a brew.
And there really seems no excuse...
even in February with only 28 days...
for not catching up with the monthly subject with enough time to contribute....
I write pointedly...
having only had five entries to judge for the last monthly!!

Sorry if I have confused the situation by posting a copy of the rubric for this month's competition...
but this is a discussion thread and not the competition itself.

I hope that you enter then, Ken....

I am sure that people will have questions about the restrictions I am placing on the subject this month...
so I am starting a topic for it.

This is the rubric...
to save you switching to and fro:

It is grey, wet and miserable here today...
so I have decided on an indoor topic...
"Still Life on a Kitchen Table"...
but to make it more of a challenge...
you are to include three or more items from the following list:

bell
book
candle
tablecloth or other fabric
keys
orange or other citrus fruit
non-citrus fruit
biscuits
kitchen cutlery
kitchen crockery
a well known cooking implement
obvious cooking ingredients [which can include un-plucked game!]
a wine or beer bottle and glass [you can fill it...]

you are not restriced to what is listed above...
but you must include a minimum of three of them...
and three of one item counts as one item!

But the end result must be clearly kitchen focused...
and as some people won't have a kitchen table...
I will allow "worktop" to act as table.

Lighting and framing... no restrictions.
B&W, monotone or full colour... your choice...
all I have done above...
is what you would find in a still life art classroom...

And I don't mind if you want to recreate any famous oil paintings...
or draw inspiration from them...
so, take over the kitchen as your studio and get composing!

So, if you have a question...
please post it here and I will endeavour to clarify!!

Excellent job...
neat, clean, simple!

White space is good...
a choice of background shade would be much better...
especially for people with eyesight problems.
As would choice of font...
this font is very vertical and thin...
for astigmatism sufferers...
even with corrective spectacles...
tall thin text blurs...

Love the fact that the fixed top bar has stopped the pesky bobbing up and down of the screen...
and resultant time wasted because....
your click didn't click on what you had put it over....
but the advertiser link just above!!!

Love the grey bottom bar...
at least the 16 different shades are now clear and crisp.

Menus are much better, too...
again they are easily read.