MrB. Thanks for your efforts but, I'll agree with Nigel on this one, there's not much to be done to these images to 'make them better'. As I said, it WAS dull, grey and flat.

However you are right about the inconstancies with my P&P. I edited each image individually rather than as a whole. When I look at them 'tiled' in LR4 I can clearly see the differences in the colouring and contrast.

Nigel, we all take images for different reasons and view them differently. On previous occasions I have gone out of my way to capture a specific effect/image. I have posted some of them on here, 'Sunset on Lowestoft Ness' and the 'Starlight over Horsey Windpump' to name but two.
In this instance we went for a walk and I took the camera to record the walk. I hoped that I might capture a 'gem' but the walk was the main reason for being there.
These images (excluding the HDRs) were the best composed and, with some P&P, were the best 'reflection' of the day.
Are they 'good' images? That is a decision to be made by the beholders. Some contributors to this thread appear to like them, so, IMHO, they were worth taking and sharing for the few seconds of enjoyment those viewers felt.

I can understand your view and I respect it but if no one took any pictures unless the lighting was right or it was a never to be repeated event, then the newspapers, magazines and galleries would have far fewer images to display

Looking at it another way; images are all about stimulating a reaction. Those can range from joy to anger, tears to laughter or, in this case, a bit of a discussion

IMO, as the person that froze his ***** off and got soaking wet, in the process of taking these, I'll count it as worthwhile

EDIT:
OOPs I was typing as you guys were posting. More discussion = definitely worth it

I have an iPad Mini which I use as a book reader, genral surfing and watching videos whilst travelling. I specifically bought a wifi only model and 'tether' it to my iPhone when I need internet.

Once set up its a simple one click bluetooth connection.

This approach has several advantages:

1. Lower initial cost
2. Only one contract/data plan to pay for
3. When you're travelling internationally you can make use of subsidised roaming phone tariffs. These are very scarce for tablets. Of course you can do this with a 3G tablet by switching off the mobile data and tethering in the same way. But then your still paying for a data contract you're not using.

The only downsides that I have encountered are:

1. wifi only iPads don't have GPS (not really a biggy but it may be to some)
2. Tethering can hammer the battery life of your phone so it's worth having your charger plugged in if you can.

Of course you can do the same thing with androids

sorry what I meant was that's I bit too much as I only need single shots.

Alan, good point although I wasn't actually looking for alternatives, it's just everybody else kept suggesting them:

Cedric, you're a star. Thanks for those, my fears have been calmed. So it looks like I may be off to Wex at the weekend.

Thanks for all your comments.

John
Thanks for that, but I think that what I have in mind was a camera with Shutter Priority or a 'sport' mode.

Examples from our most recent trip include this:


was taken crossing the Oresund Bridge at only 1/60

and these:








at 1/200

and this:


at 1/320

These were all taken on auto by Belinda (my wife) as we drove along. So even at relatively slow shutter speeds she has managed to capture some reasonable images. Admitedly there were lots of dashboard and headlining shots as well but that's only to be expected.

Our next trip is to the Faroes Islands and Iceland so we won't be driving too quickly and, as most of the roads will be empty, we will be able to slow down when we want.

I have looked at the reviews but was hoping to get some insight from other forum members for a 'real world' perspective.

CMW thanks for the idea about Amazon, I hadn't thought of that.

It would seem that the general feedback on the review sites and amazon is pretty positive although I'm not too impressed by the sample images on the ephotozine website.


As John R posted earlier, at £150 it's relatively inexpensive and so might be worth a try.

Thanks Tom. The reason we(I) chose Southwold for our walk was because of the potential for nets, boats, huts, flotsam, etc. etc. When the sun is out it can be a magical place with photo opportunities around every corner.

Yesterday the driving rain and freezing wind took the edge off the experience, prevented the use of a tripod and meant that you didn't want to stand anywhere too exposed for very long. Glad you liked them

Thanks Smeggy. The HDR ones were just a bit of fun really. In some cases they work in others they don't. In these cases it's probably the later. The main aim was to bring out some definition in the sky. The truth is that there wasn't much and I was able to tweak the higlights in LR4 enough to show what there was anyway.
However I took bracketed shots so I was damn well going to use them
But I agree, they don't really add anything.

McGregNi, You're right that the light was dull, grey and flat but sometimes that's what there is. Personally I still think it's worth trying to capture an image that reflects the atmosphere at the time and I still felt that they were worth sharing. To me these are a reflection of the place at that time and should give the viewer an impression of 'being there'. It WAS dull grey and flat

However we all see things differently and that's why I welcome C&C

Thanks for all the comments. I'm now in two minds over this mainly because most posts seem to be telling me to look at something else and Rataegeoff, the only person to use one, says that the image quality is "better than his Galaxy phone". Which is hardly a great recommendation.

My wife tends to take pictures, through the windscreen, as we are driving along (we tend to do extended driving holidays/expeditions in our Land Rover each year). Becaause of the car motion she prefers to have a 'weighty' camera and would rather use a viewfinder. She uses the iPhone when she is out and about because of its convenience. Please bear in mind that my wife is not a photographer. She has no concept of or interest in RAW, jpg, aperture,composition, etc. etc. She presses the button to capture memories rather than photographs.
However on our last trip, due to the limited number of photo opportunities when we stopped, many of her images formed the mainstay of our collection. Because of this I want her to have a simple camera that gives the best chance of producing good quality images. It will be on Tv or auto 99% of the time.
As the X-5 has a 16Mp sensor I was hoping that the image quality would be quite good.
Rataegeoff your comments are appreciated and the points you made worthwhile but I was hoping for a bit more insight into the image side of things How is the output compared to your K10D or Kx for example?

Cheers
Ralph

....so that I could go out on wet dreary miserable days and not worry about my camera getting wet

To blow the new year's eve cobwebs away we decided to go for a (as it turned out) blustery and wet walk at Southwold Harbour with the campera

By the end of the walk it was blowing a gale with horizontal driving rain.

There was not much colour and these were about the best I could muster. All with K5iis and DA* 16-50, ISO 400.

1. Wet fish shop open for business;



2. Boat for sale



3. Aground and decaying



4. Waiting for the summer



5. Choppy waters



6. Muddy walk to the windpump



7. Gloomy path



8. Beached



9. Windswept beach through a wet lens



All the above we single images with P&P in LR4

I also tried some bracketed shots, merged in photomatrix for a slightly grungy feel

10.



11.



12.



C&C welcome



PS. Happy New Year

Thanks for the advice but my wife specifically wants a viewfinder.

She 'handled' an X-5 at a recent Pentax day at Wex and liked the feel of it. I am just surprised that no one on here seems to have one

I searched all the previous threads before posting this and noticed that no one seemed to want admit to owning one.

It would mainly be used from inside the car as she will use her (dare I say it) iPhone the rest of the time. She was using my K5iis but wants her own camera with a similar feel.

Is there anyone on here that can give an idea wht they're like to own?