To me it looks identical to a sensor stain on my first K5. I could confirm with a closer crop.

Contact your retailer for a replacement.

It’s that time again. A really nice varied selection of entries, thoroughly enjoyable.

Dancing With Self: Judith Ann

Great start. Twirly whirly dervish stuff. Wonderful sense of motion and childhood abandon. I like it.

Thai Dye Daisy: Sandinista

With a shutter speed of 1/800 I presume this is the result of clever pp jiggery pokery. I like the effect you have produced, simple and eye catching. But I can’t look at it for more than momentarily as it makes my eyes go all funny.

Bank Holiday: Karma Mechanic

The title says it all. I love the defocused holidaymakers. A great visual commentary. Why don’t these people learn to come on holiday to France where there is eternal sunshine and a nice little gite that wasn’t booked for this week, what a waste.

Shutter Blue: Dougf8

A precise test of the rumoured K7 problem and the results are surprising. There is no shutter blur after all but you have uncovered a potentially much more serious problem, lady blur. A bombshell. Lucky the K7 is on the way out.

Vortex: Aliengrove

Not the usual up and downy one. Interesting. Would look pretty good big I think.

Forest Pines: Blaze

The up and downy ones are all the rage at the moment. I even got a couple in PPG. I like the greens. I think the up and downiness needs to be a bit straighter, a pan and tilt head helps. The highlights are a little bright, but good attempt.

One Second To Impact: Frogherder

I imagine it’s very difficult to get right and I think the speeding car needs to be closer and the target more evident. But great idea.

Washburn Valley: Karl

A gentle blur which has rendered the water still and brought out the reflections lending a serenity to the scene. Sky looks a little bright. I’m sure you will have great fun playing with this filter.

Darlene: Newfoundland’s Flags

I’ve seen some great shots from you but this isn’t a favourite. I think I’d like to see more of the context of the flags - a boat? And the cables are a bit in the way.

Bock Crags In Brotherswater

Difficult to repeat this title quickly. An unusal effect, reminds me of a scrambled CanalPlus transmission, football match or porno usually, much rarer a Lake District scene. Weird and a bit of weird is good.

Relativity at 100kph: iBerg

I like the clever title and idea and I like the shot. With the caveat that the sky is a bit brighter and might be better mostly cropped out just leaving a little to define the horizon. A good way to make the most of the otherwise drab .

Reach For Infinity: Mark Taylor

I like the way the eye is drawn in the abstract nature retains a mystery about the subject. I don’t get the infinity reference though as my eye is drawn to the midpoint and there is a finite point.

Fast Feathered Thief: Tozza 27

Well done for capturing a magpie, I can’t get near them. But the blur would be better confined to the wings and there is quite a bit of noise.

Red Berry Blur: Pnjmcc

I like the subject with the blackening berries. I’m not entirely sure what the effect of a lens baby is but I’m not sure I like half the photo sharp and half distorted. I don’t really get it and I also find the scene a bit underexposed. I’ll keep an eye open though to see what else you do with it.

Colombo Reflections: Dr Mhuni

Here we have the ordinary man overwhelmed by modern communications and the dizzying pace of modern life. What cobblers I talk, but that’s the point really, this is a very interesting and engaging photo with a touch of the surreal about it and makes you think a bit.

Motion Blur: Malvern Man

No points for the title but I really like this example of panning. Just the right amount to give a sense of action to the scene but to leave the background discernible.

Tanker: Darkskies

You know that Guns n Roses video where Slash just avoids the freight train. That was faked but here it seems you have dared a French lorry driver to avoid you. Mon dieu citoyen. I feel the buffeting in this shot. Fou.


Shame about the underground train, I liked it.

Results:

1st Karma Mechanic
2nd Judith Ann
3rd= Malvern Man, Dr Mhuni

Special Awards:

Photographic Pun Award: Dougf8
Not What I Need To Look At After A Skinful Award: Sandinista
The Trying For A Darwin Award Award : Darkskies
Loved The Shots On Flickr But Wondered Why You Didn’t Enter Award: BlueBuggy
Best Title Award: iBerg, Marklj.

Don't worry he's a pussycat really.

Number 3 for me.

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I was wondering what kind of things are possible in Photoshop CS compared to the elements versions.

I am not a user of Photoshop so I'm asking the question from a complete dummy's viewpoint.

I just have. Now looking back at this, yours are art photos mine are bird photos. Thanks for sharing them.

Here are some photos I took during last weekend's break. The trip was mainly for seascapes (under the guise of a family holiday) but the birdlife was too good an opportunity not to have a quick go at. I have enjoyed the few sessions I have attempted bird photography and it is an area which I want to spend some time on. So I would appreciate comments, particularly from keen bird photographers on these, and particularly criticism - it is nigh on impossible to offend me so if you think these are largely boring or over cliched then I'd like to know. Plus help with ID's would be appreciated. All with DA 55-300 and I've tried not to overcrop:

Little egret (I think and probably not a seabird but a bird in the sea). It just wouldn't let me get closer but I quite like the rockpool environment:




Another, it's a little soft and there's not enough room below the reflection but I like the pose:




This one is a bit sharper:




Shame about the bland background but I like the way this shows the aerodynamic design:




This one I do like. Herring or common gull, I can't tell:




Shaded head, but I like the juvenile markings:




I liked these little things, very tricky as they don't half shift:




Nice little compact grouping of gulls with black heads (black-headed gulls?):




One of them touching down:




ID please:




And again please:

Good thread.

I have just ditched a load of my photos as there was too much rubbish cluttering up my flickr. I started this lark a year and a half ago and having just completed this exercise I can say that I have definitely improved. However, I did start from a level of incompetent.

I enjoy the process of photography even though I know most of the photos I take are going to be average and destined for the bin. That doesn't matter as it continues to teach me different ways of viewing the world.

My main immediate aims are a few more changes of scenery, I need to learn Photoshop and I need to cut out a bit of laziness. I think I've worked out now what makes a good photo and I have a very firm idea of the level I am aspiring to reach. I probably won't get there but I very much doubt I'll ever get bored trying.

I hope in a year's time to look back and consider most of my current photos rubbish too.

And welcome from France. I spent three years studying (in theory) in Devon. It rained all the time.

Why not just post a (very) low res version for starters - watermarked. Our appetites are whetted now.

I love the high key look, it works brilliantly here. They're all very good - I like the dynamic of the second shot and the sharpness of the third. Very impressive. I was just about to post a first attempt at some seabird shots I took at the weekend, maybe I still will, but I'd feel a bit of a wally after seeing these. Terrific.