They look pretty much the same - slightly "fluffy" texture to the buds. And when you apply them, the stick bends at the bud so the majority of the bud is in contact with the sensor.

Are they the bulk items?
Matt

Wet and Dry

Normally you use them dry - they create a small vacuum because of the design on the fibres, and effectively "suck" up the dust. That works great for most of the grime.
However, any organic or oily stuff needs the fluid - you just put a couple of drops on the bud, clean and then follow with the dry bud.

You never can tell from the hype, but I was recommended these by a couple of pros who have tried other systems. And I found they worked really well

Matt

I've used Eclipse and PecPads in the past... but I still had traces of stuff (especially when using a pin hole - don't ask!).

So I switched to DSLRclean from http://www.intemos.com/
I have the fluid too, and the CCD was so yucky I had to do it twice - wet, dry, wet, dry.

Now it's good

Matt

AFAIK the CCDs are panchromatic. This must depend partly on the quality of the bayer matrix filter (because the CCD just measures light levels, and the bayer matrix provides the split into RGBG - twice as many greens as reds and blues).

As you say, all white balancing should be done with the camera - not filters. Even JPGs can be white balanced - that's what the manual WB setting is for Personally I use the ExpoDisc and have had great results with RAW mode, but a much cheaper solution is the QPcard - that works a real treat on JPGs. You just take one shot of the card in the lighting, then use that as a reference and it will do an extremely good job of correcting JPGs (it's not for RAW).

What's also pertinent is that CCDs are linear, not logarithmic. Consequently exposure issues are slightly different. But then that's going off topic...

Matt

What kind of change?

If you're thinking exposure change - well, you won't! Any TTL metering will automatically compensate for the polariser.
Polarisers work best with the sun at an angle to the subject (whether that's sky or water etc), so if you have the sun behind, or directly in front, you won't see a great difference. But at an angle you should have the ability to richen foliage, darken blue skies, and almost eliminate the reflections on glass and water.

If that doesn't help, let us know some more details!
Matt

Ajay,
The first thing - get a tripod. That's essential with any night-time work.
If depends what you are trying to achieve...

Cameras (both digital and film) can only capture a certain range of light to dark. If you have a brightly lit fountain with darkness around then you will never get both the fountain and background in one shot

The best way is this: using the tripod, first set the exposure for the fountain and take a picture (the background will be black). Then, expose for the background and take another shot. You can then combine the two images in Photoshop (or similar).

If you're trying to take a photo of someone at night, but want the sunset (for instance), then you should use a flash. Use "M" mode, and set the exposure for the sunset or scenery. Then, without changing the settings, pop up the flash (or power up the external flash), and take the photo. Even the pop-up flash will be "clever" enough to expose the foreground. However, make sure you use a shutter speed that's slower than 1/150" (which is probable for a sunset or night scene).

Learn about Manual exposure and spot metering (which helps you to judge exactly what will be exposed correctly).

Best thing is to experiment with what you have!
Matt

Whoops
Thanks for the correction
Matt

There's Asahi Photo in Brentwood.
They're currently offering a service and clean for any Pentax DSLR on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pentax-SLR-Digital-Camera-Repair-Service_W0QQitemZ76164286...

I've spoken to them in the past and found them to be most helpful.
Their website is:
www.asahiphoto.net

Matt

The *ist-D has been discontinued for some time.
I think you'd be extremely hard pressed to find one anywhere - refurbished or second hand (they're snapped up pretty sharpish generally).
Even the *ist-DS is now no longer available... some web sites show it as available, but with a few week delay.
Looks like the *ist-DL2 is the "current" UK product

Matt

(Very kind of you George.)
Just to explain my reasons why it's my favourite (still)...

I've tried, I think, all the PC RAW convertors there are: dcRaw, Bibble Pro, Raw Shooter Premium (which I bought, thought I'd use but didn't), Adobe CS2, Capture One.

Yet everytime I come back to Capture One. The reason is this: image quality. Adobe CS2 is a close second when it comes to image quality, but C1 is much easier to create film quality output and is faster for processing a batch of shots.

I've commented on the various differences in detail on other threads, but this review (not mine) does help show what I mean. Just whizz to the bottom and check out the comparitive outputs. Don't forget that Capture One LE has exactly the same image quality (it just can't resize the output).

As with all RAW convertors, it takes a little time to master (say a couple of weeks of solid use at least), so whichever approach you take - stick with it

Personally, I wouldn't give up C1 for anything
If you want a quick start guide, check out: https://www.pentaxuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1765

BTW: Gruesome skin condition you've got in the macro!

Hope that helps!
Matt