Simple, yes, but I bet it took a while to set it up as precisely as that. Nice. I like it .

Steve

That's because I'm just a silly kid at heart, seeing the world as the crazy, mixed up thing that it really is and determined to enjoy myself in spite of it. It must be genetic 'cos my brother is like that, too. We both married sensible people, though, so our children have turned out OK

Mea culpa, I did indeed miss the dishcloth at the bottom left. No offense meant to either you or the dishcloth.

"Unsanitary is the more frequent form in North America, while insanitary reflects British usage." From the Language Portal of Canada, and those good folk know a thing or two about languages.

Steve

Brilliant! You obviously had a good rapport with the model in order for it to hold a perfect pose in just the right position for the hours it must have taken you to get the lighting right and the lens aligned correctly. As for the writing, it is worthy of a place in Pseuds Corner in Private Eye. Love it!!!

If I had to be picky, I'd say that the stray bristle pointing downwards from bottom of the head of the dishbrush is a bit distracting and could have been tidied up before the photo shoot. But what do I know about dishbrushes - I make do with a frequently insanitary (until Mrs L notices ) dish cloth.

Steve

The lens looks like it's working well . Nice reflections, particularly in No. 4. It look like there's a hint of shadow on a white wall, did the sun come out to lift the gloom? Your walks are rather more interesting than my walk into town...

Steve

I agree with loadoftripe, first one for beauty, second one for drama. The first one makes me think I could make it to the top, the second one says 'absolutely no chance!'.

Steve

My spectacles have coatings which do the same job as coatings on filters and lenses. I use the same specialist cleaners to clean bothspectacles and camera lenses and filters. No harm appears to have been done to any of them. In fact, the lens cleaning fluid I use if something is really greasy explicitly says that it is suitable for both spectacles and camera lenses.

Steve

It's photos like these which make me think that I ought to either (a) put in a lot more practice; or (b) give up! You might not get quite the same look with another lens, but I bet you'd still get a really good look because you'd understand both the light and the strong points of the lens .

What's that about having a slower 300mm + TC in the bag for wildlife? I thought you had a 150-450mm for that sort of thing?

Steve

Some people always want the latest thing, get it, then move on to the next latest thing. The fast fashion industry relies on this - can't be seen to be wearing what you wore last week. Others think carefully before getting something then keep them forever, even if they get a replacement (I'm like that). Are we just seeing the former moving on to the next latest thing, meanwhile a lot of people will be happily keeping their pride and joy for a very long time even if it does eventually end up on a shelf gathering dust?

Steve

Do they manufacture in batches? If so, 'discontinued', 'out of stock' etc. might mean that they are waiting for sufficient demand to build up before producing another batch. And 'special order' might mean that the retailer doesn't want to keep the item in stock at the moment (lots of possible reasons, not necessarily bad ones). In any case, a lot of things I own have been discontinued, in some cases the manufacturers no longer exist, but I just keep using them and don't worry about it.

Keep calm, carry on, and keep smiling!

Steve

Same here. Life changes, horizons have to shrink, stick to what is possible and be grateful for what you do have.

It's one reason why I've turned to macro in recent years. To a ladybird, my gardens are absolutely enornous, so looking at things through a ladybird's eyes means there's a lot to explore without even leaving home .

Let me know If you ever do manage to head my way, it would be nice to put a face to a forum name.

Steve