Looking at the details is great and you've selected some really effective subject matter. The first image I'd suggest a slightly tighter crop to eliminate the rather duller area through the arch at the bottom of the picture.

In the penultimate picture there's an unfortunate bright highlight on the left and that can be quite tricky. A slight change of position might be enough to cure it, but when shooting it's good to be mindful of these hotspots as they can spoil the effect.

Hope those comments are helpful!

I don't see why the Pentax 55-300mm couldn't be lighter and sharper than the Sigma 120-400mm. It depends on various factors, including maximum aperture and construction quality and in any event a 400mm is going to have to be a larger heavier beast. It doesn't make it any better.

Pentax used to make lighter, sharper versions of longer telephoto lenses, such as a 400mm f/5.6 which was considerably lighter than the f/2.8 version. And quite possibly sharper.

Yes, thank you for pointing that out.

As regards removing the e-mail address I can if you want it removed, just let me know.

Disguised again! I think you missed the point - putting e-mail addresses in messages as links attracts spammers, so it's best to alter the format.

e-mail address disguised.

Perhaps an FA series 100-300mm or 80-320mm. Both are excellent lenses that gained good reviews at their release. The FA J 70-300mm is also a really good lens which I used a lot until I bought the newer 55-300mm.

The 55-300mm DA is an all round better lens, maybe not too expensive second hand.

Do you want a portrait lens to be sharp? Just a thought, as your sitters may not be so keen on the sharpness!

However, any of the manual focus Pentax 100mm lenses would fit the bill, especially the macro lenses. The A series is easier to use than previous models as there is an "A" setting on the aperture ring, so auto modes can be used for exposure.

Any other make of 100mm macro is also likely to be good quality.

Sounds like a great opportunity for anyone close enough to get there. Many thanks for the info.

Payment now sent.

Title corrected.