Well OK I didn't know that - I assumed that because most of Gursky's work is film based, he wouldn't use cloning!

But anyway, it's clear that 'his vision' was this simplified view of that industrialised, straightened river and he edited out some minor elements, which is perhaps slightly different from starting with a rustic scene like the one above and completely changing its character.

Gursky is one of my favourites. There's certainly no cloning involved in creating his epic minimalistic images, he does it the hard way - fastidiously selecting his viewpoint. Without disrespect to Blaze, Gursky's images are in another dimension to these.

I think the photos succeed in showing the current state of the river. To me this is reportage rather than landscape photography, so you could include more elements that help tell the story - e.g. get the boats into the foreground, include human interest, etc.

That said, I quite like the last shot as a regular 'landscape shot'.

Nice. Come on then, lets see it! And it'd be interesting if you could show us the shot you would have chosen.

No, the Tamron isn't quite twice as good

This is a thorny issue that commonly puts people's noses out of joint. Here's one way of possibly settling the debate - out there in Canikonland, which is more well thought of, the Tokina 16-50 or the Tamron? Yes the coatings might be slightly different, but the Tokina is the same optical design as the Pentax.

On the other hand, the Pentax is fully weather sealed. This may be a major consideration for some people as splitting hairs over IQ is irrelevant if wet weather makes you miss your shots.

Wow, no. 4 is fabulous! And the last one, suuperb.

Thanks Gwyn, this is exactly my sentiments.

I always contribute to the British Legion, but when they hand me a poppy I say 'no thanks'....

If I have spent 500 quid, I do tend to pixelpeep, and lenses tend to get returned if they have 'optical defects'...

I am quite willing to forgive a bit of softness in an old cheap lens if it has a bit of character and charm though...

However the lens is clearly able to take a sharp picture! If you got it a considerable discount, that's great! £500 doesn't sound like a 'steal' to me though... would you not have been tempted to buy a Tamron 28-75mm instead and save some readies, or is this a bit of the 'collector' instinct kicking in?

Can you PM me whenever there's a match on so I can avoid going into the city via Bordesley Green!

Payment received, lens in transit.