Magic beans you say? I was just looking for some of those the other day - let me find my wallet...

Not a bad price for an LX that needs a service I must admit, but looking at the buyer's "previous" I think it's safe to say it's gone to a collector. I could never have used it because I was too scared I'd scratch it, and now I have a nice well-worn user that's just been serviced by Asahi and cost me a fraction of what this one's just fetched. Not a bad day really.

That's quite remarkable!

*ahem* shameless plug *ahem*

To be honest, the info on the Morris Photo site I linked to above is about as comprehensive as Manfrotto's own site - ie not very detailed.

To answer your questions:

Firstly, the position of the camera on the plate and the way you use your camera will have a bearing on whether you find it difficult to see through the viewfinder or not. I can imagine that if the camera was at 90 degrees to the plate, at maximum forward distance, and you happen to look through the viewfinder with your left eye then yes - you'd find the tail end of the plate poking you in the throat. But then the exact same thing would be true of any rail/plate and can be worked around by taking care of your set up (and using your right eye). It's not something I've ever found bothersome to be honest.

Secondly, the plate doesn't come with a quick release plate but can be fitted with one if you wish. I attach the camera directly to my 454 and then attach the 454 to the QR plate on my tripod head. If I'm doing the sort of work that warrants using the 454 then it's unlikely I'm going to want to be mounting and dismounting the camera in a hurry anyway, so this is another non-issue for me in real-life situations.

If you do a lot of macro work then it gets a "Highly Recommended" from me. It's beautifully made and allows incredibly precise positioning - there are cheaper alternatives but they'll have the same drawbacks and none that I've tried come close to the super-fine control the 454 offers.

I hate having my photo taken (that's why I always stand *behind* the camera) but if I had a gun to my head then Annie Leibowitz I guess - quite like the one she did of the Queen and I figure that with her current financial problems she'd be cheap.

The 454 is an excellent piece of kit, Morris Photo in Chipping Norton have them for £65 with free delivery. If you want precision adjustments for macro work then you won't get better to be honest (I tried a couple of cheaper ones before getting a 454 - buy cheap buy twice and all that ).

Worth keeping hold of - those Spotmeters fetch quite a tidy sum on eBay and are probably about as good as you can get.

Thank you i-berg for some excellent judging and congratulations to Stefan for the win - I look forward to the next topic!

Cats just like a bit of company and someone to make a fuss of them. You'll probably find her owners are one of your neighbours who are out at work all day, hence she comes to see you because she knows you'll be in.

Still, it means you effectively get a cheap pet if you don't have to feed her or pay her vets bills - and she is very photogenic!

Racing Order
with disorderly spectator provisions

[IMG]http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd37/hefty1969/competition%20stuff/IMGP4428.jpg[/IMG]

K10D | Tamron 70-300 | 1/60sec | f/8 | ISO200
Taken Saturday 3rd April 2010, Kimble Point-to-Point Races near Aylesbury
(The horse carrying my money was about 20 lengths behind these three - not my day for winners)