I've had a string on Pentax DSLRs since the *istDS and never once have any of them locked up.

It's just possible that the dark frame subtraction delay after taking a low light shot with a long shutter speed might be mis-interpreted as a lock up. Sometimes we're not very patient and the camera might be busy.

With most things in life, exercise and/or practice will develop skills and abilities. You can learn to see images Andrew and Stan, but it takes some work.

I would suggest you try an exercise that will help to focus your mind. Select a place, be it a museum, art gallery, stately home, deer park or whatever. Then select a theme, say "red", something simple for starters. Then give your self say an hour or two hours to go there and produce say 15 images covering the theme. Then take them home and make them into a set, perhaps to post here in the forum.

This should give your shoot a sense of purpose and start you really looking. I do this every now and then and sometimes for small groups of photographers. It does help.

Welcome back, hope you are soon 100% again.

It's odd though. After all, what use is a K mount lens that doesn't fit on a K mount?

You have done one very good thing with your image - the framing in the foreground is generally darker than the background, so our eye doesn't wander out of the image, rather it travels into it. So far so good.

I think some are feeling that, once drawn in like that, they are drawn to nothing particularly different. You could think about a focal point, maybe a bird on the water, or a boat.

But even as it is, the image is pleasant enough and well ordered enough and I personally like it.

There's a certain irony here, as in one sense they do. They call them iPads.

I think the description needs amending, although it's become apparent in the posts that follow, with respect I don't think you can describe it as new if you feel you can't return it as new. I know it'd splitting hairs, but it will need thinking about if you decide to list it on eBay.

Hope that helps.

I can go with the academic interest, if we have the time and inclination to follow that particular avenue.

In this instance, the avoidance of misinformation I would take as following the instructions. If in doubt, read the instruction book. If we want to know why, one thing we could usefully do is ask the manufacturer.

But I also agree that the internet is rife with misinformation. Fortunately there's a good deal of good information as well.

It's one of those odd things that I just feel isn't worth the time spent on it. According to the manual SR should be switched off when using a tripod. So why spend any effort trying to disprove what the manufacturer says when it's easy enough to just switch it off?

As it happens, when I use a tripod I use the 2 second self timer as well, so problem solved anyway.

I have a suspicion that at macro distances in particular SR would only detract from sharpness rather than help. Therefore, a solidly held sensor will give the optimum resolution with high quality lenses. The reverse is of course the new AA simulation in the K-3, where SR is used to actually add a small amount of vibration.

Package received, on time, all exactly as described. Many thanks!