Macros certainly don't always need to be sharp, they just need to be good pictures - which these most definitely are.

As always, it depends on the intended use. These would be great for illustrating a poetry book. A botanical reference book would need sharp pictures. For personal use - do whatever you like!!

Steve

The colours of the opening bud and the background are perfect for each other. Hopefully you'll post the open flower later in this thread.

Steve

A lovely picture of a lovely rose - and not damaged by wind, rain or bugs!

Steve

I mentioned your project to an expert friend. Your little friend is about the size he said it should reach before pupating. He also said that having hatched in April, it will probably become a butterfly this year - so you might get a second generation before Christmas .

Another set of good pictures, too!

Steve

RobL - I used to be with you 100% re new vs used. Now I'm with you 80%. What caused the change of mind was buying a used 77mm limited from LennyBloke. It's a superbly made, screw drive, mechanical lens wth no motors or fancy electronics. As such, there isn't much that can go wrong with it provided the optics are OK and it's been well looked after. So my policy now is that for lenses like this it's OK to buy used from someone who is knowledgable and trustworthy (and LennyBloke certainly is). But for lenses that are not as robust or have electronics or motors, buying new with a warranty is still the policy (and that's why the recent death of my Q 06 is a problem for me ).

As for the 77mm limited, it was a 'nice to have' rather than 'need', but has now become a 'glad I've got it'. It might happen to you...

Steve

The good old British £ seems to have fallen almost 10% against the Yen since the beginning of the year. Perhaps that's got something to do with it...

Steve

It's been a while since anyone posted pictures of stripy fields, so here are a few for old time's sake. Taken one evening last week on a rare day when the sun was shining. I'm wondering whether to make a huge print of the last one and try to sell it for £1M to the person who bought that picture of the Rhine ... link

K3 + 55-300.

Thoughts, comments etc. welcome as usual.

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Steve

Last November, Harrogate. Although down here there's a school of thought which says that anything north of Shaftesbury is both north and foreign.

Steve

Such things appear much less confusing late at night...

Steve

Grocer's apostrophe isn't a new phenomenom. Didn't you go up the apple's and pear's to the land of dream's every night? (Which is what I'm about to do now...)

Steve