Yes, a larger ball and decent locking system are needed. I use a Vanguard model on my Manfrotto tripid and it is very secure, and for photography a good ball head provides the needed stability mixed with ultimate flexibility in camera positioning.

And Jules is selling everything again, so that's at least one customer for the next new model when it comes out !

Extraordinary detail Derek, especially evident on the heads here where we can see the intricate lines that must be minuscule!

That could save the need for a "master Tiff", sure. I find that the times I use JPEG tend to be when the lighting is uniform and dynamic range is fairly under control (eg when taking lots of flash photos with the same setup) .... These situations invariably need very little processing anyway, often it is straight into PS for a tiny tweak and cropping, so no need for any Tiff.

Darkmunk has just updated his sale post with a K5 for 250.00 that sounds in great condition ..... That would he a good upgrade I think.

I do agree Rob, and tend to use RAW when there is likely to be more attention put onto individual images. JPEGs I use when taking many of the same sort together as it does remove one stage of processing and saves time.

The TIff suggestion was just a way to edit JPEGs without incurring compression loss if needing to use more than 1 program or having to continue your work at different times. I use the TIff for RAW files as well, as I use Sagelight for the RAW editing, save as a TIff, then open that into PhotoShop for the finishing touches. Again, this is just a means to transfer the image between programs while retaining 16bits and no loss of quality.

When done via the interface of a photo manager program it's all really quick and easy .....just a right click on the TIff and choose 'Open File With .....'. If PhotoShop is already running then the image is there in a few seconds.

But we shouldn't he heading towards any RAW vs JPEG debate ...... It was Johns image that makes me think I am very likely to choose JPEGs more often with a K1, as there are certainly no compromises evident!

Many of the better RAW editors also handle JPEGs (eg Sagelight, Lightroom, Silkypix etc ), and they also perform 'non-destructive' editing ..... this is achieved by the ongoing work you do being held in memory, in a sort of 'live state', until you are finished. Only when clicking 'save' is the completed new version of the image written into the storage format (JPEG) and any compression involved is applied.

So it is not necessary to lose any quality from camera JPEGs caused by any single editing session, if you wish to avoid that. Opening, editing and re-saving a single JPEG multiple times would of course lead to some loss, but really we mostly work on a photo right through to completion in one session I'd have thought .... ?

I avoid any chance of this sort of degradation by saving my original JPEGs (not all of them, just the ones I choose to edit, the better ones) as lossless TIFFs ...... these I call my 'Master Files', and the TIFF is used in the editing programme or multiple programmes and saved at the end of each session. There is no compression loss caused by this process, so editing can be carried out over an extended time and in different sessions as convenient until the image is 'perfected' ..... (it has to be perfected, right ).

This is also a convenient format to use if needing to use different programs for different purposes .... so I might do my levels, colours and sharpening in Photoshop, but then want to use a Distortion Correction tool in DxO ....... the TIFF can be loaded into the other program in the exact form and state it came out of Photoshop.

When finished and final JPEGs are saved, one for Web, one for Print, then I can delete the 'Master File' TIFF ..... its unlikely to be ever needed again. I keep my original RAWs and unedited Camera JPEGs in archive folders and backed up.

Thanks Chris ....I'll have to give it a try sometime ....after which I'll be able to show you all my collection of beautiful soft bokeh backgrounds !!

Yes, I am looking forward to one day upgrading and getting a chance to try all the latest goodies! I suspect that RAW is the way the K1 is used by most owners (they are the kinds of photographers looking for the best quality and demanding conditions.... Well that's who I assume K1owners generally to be) ....

But I am actually more attracted to the JPEP lately, mainly because I've got very little time for processing now, plus I'm mostly taking flash images where the exposures and DR are mostly spot on at capture, and I appreciate being able to save out a larger number of images quickly with less time on the computer

If the K1 can reproduce even a good percentage of it's dynamic range via JPEG then I imagine I would he perfectly happy. I also enjoy tweaking things on the camera to optimize what I'm seeing on the LCD for each specific situation, so hopefully I wouldn't be losing much ....

Perhaps for landscapes I would switch to RAW, but then I take far less of them and want to spend time with them on the computer.

I hope to see some of your colour jpegs from the K1 too, as I don't see many other K1 users showing them. ...(or they're not saying if they are )

The first one is the best for me.... superb foreground with lovely reflections from the sky.