The name on the front of my Panasonic DMC-LX7 camera is LUMIX in big print, with Panasonic being printed in small type on the top and on the serial number plate on the bottom. This seems to be the case for other Panasonic cameras. Perhaps Ricoh will similarly retain the PENTAX name on their cameras and lenses?

Philip

Well composed and presented shots, Nigel - a good set to round off your series.

Philip

The colour balance looks correct in the first one, but I think the image would benefit from a slight reduction of contrast, a bit of fill light into the darker regions, and decreasing the saturation of the blues - blue is correct for the scene, but it is just too intense.

The second is the better photo of the two, in my opinion.

Philip

or number 1

Good shots Smeggy - the last one is my favorite!

Philip

I went out yesterday for a stroll by the River Colne (Hertfordshire) with the K-5II + 18-135. E.g. -




The river at that point is usually just a trickle through the big central arch: e.g. from July -




It was raining most of the time yesterday, and the camera and lens were thoroughly soaked. When I got back to the car, I extended the lens slowly to 135 with it still on the camera body, and dried the outside with a clean handkerchief. As I expected (from past experience), today it is all dry and working perfectly. I think that was another good test of Pentax WR!

Philip

Ralph, on the whole I think the natural ones are preferable. Obviously you wanted to emphasise the gloom, but I think there is a bit of inconsistency in the lighting in the images - the sky doesn't seem to change much, but a few seem just a bit too dark to me (5, 7 and 9) compared with the others. On the other hand, I wonder if selective application of brightness and contrast might help stress the dismal day, while adding a bit more strength to the images? E.g.




Philip

Then the 18-135 should be the obvious choice for you. Well-made compact zoom lens (and evidence of quality results shown above), and WR.

link for excellent service.

Happy New Year to All.

Philip

The brand leader for baked beans is Heinz.

In the "Which?" blind taste test of baked beans, Morrisons own Value Baked Beans (29p) and Heinz Baked Beans (64p) achieved equal scores (70%).

Seems like a credible analogy here.

Philip

That seems unlikely, Paul!

At the time that the previous tower, a tall metal tube supported by steel guy ropes, collapsed (apparently due to the stresses of wind and ice), I lived in nearby Ossett with my parents and we went to see the shattered and crumpled structure. So you had me fooled at first - I did think you had found some of the original's remains to include in your shot of the current tower!

It is now a magnificent reinforced concrete tower, looking rather like a gigantic slender lighthouse. I look forward to seeing more of your photos of this splendid structure that dramatically dominates the Pennine landscape there in Yorkshire.

Philip

Obviously John, everyone will make their own decisions on this sort of topic but, in my opinion, in this case it is a matter of assessing the risk, preferably based on evidence.

As I wrote previously, many of the reported lithium battery problems in electronic equipment have been with OEM batteries installed. Is there any evidence that using generic (3rd party) rather than OEM batteries poses anything other than a minuscule percentage risk of causing a catastrophe? In my experience, 3rd party batteries for any of the cameras I have owned look identical (apart from the label), fit perfectly, and work satisfactorily.

For me, the pleasure of saving £100 by buying two generic K-5 batteries, and thereby being able to afford, e.g., a Tamron 70-300 zoom lens, outweighs any tiny risk that might exist in the use of those batteries.

Philip