Am I right in thinking there is a lot of wooden construction in these houses?

If so, they must burn up pretty fast?

I agree with you. I have always used JPEG capture, apart from making tests to see what RAW capture might offer.

My conclusion was that for the purpose required (A3 exhibition prints) JPEG was absolutely fine.

Also don't forget to change to MF (manual focus) on the camera body, or a manual focus lens will only fire when exactly in focus. This can lead to the impression that the shutter is disabled.

In terms of composition, the lightest parts of a photograph tend to grab the viewer's attention. In this case, that would be the background, taking emphasis away from your subject.

So really I think changing the viewpoint to get rid of the white areas would be a good idea and would also remove any unpleasant lens effects as well.

Hope that helps!

The background circles or shapes are related to the shape of the iris diaphragm in the lens and the aperture used, so with a particular lens you are stuck with it. This is why lenses with more blades to the diaphragm are sought after.

To be sure though it would be best if you post an image so we can see exactly what you are referring to.

Just one more thought. I did have one card that refused to format in my K10D. I formatted it without problems in Sue's K10D and after that there was no further issue with it.

So maybe try formatting in another camera and see if it does the trick.

I'd try using a blower to check there isn't a bit of grit or fluff in the card chamber that could be preventing proper contact.

Always formatting the card when re-using is also a good idea.

Finally, cards do have a finite life and if they are all the same age and getting towards the end of their lifespan I suppose it's possible to get failures at similar times.

Otherwise, I'd try a new card before going down the repair route. Ultimately, though, if it's a repair that's needed then it got to be done.

THe 100mm f4 bellows lens is quite rare and of superb optical quality. It would, needless to say, be perfect on a bellows unit!

For more magnification try a wide angle lens reversed, such as a 28mm. The magnification is startling.

Would mounting the bellows on the front of an extension ring bring the bellows far enough forwards? I know it would extend the bellows magnification, but maybe it would be useable.

Uploading an image uses bandwidth. Hotlinking doesn't as the photo is still on Photobucket (or wherever else) and the link just points to it.

phpBB3 upgrade will enable actual uploading into a forum like this one, when it's available.