Got mine for under a hundred on fleabay, keep looking.

You can post a link to the download file. You can use Flickr or this file sharing site.

Again another superb set of images that many on here would dream of taking.

Welcome Ada,

Hi Rob and welcome to the forums, I am unfamiliar with the Tamron lens you mention, but most lenses have a distance at which they can focus correctly.
This is called the close focusing distance and I believe it is 18inches.

For macro you need to shoot around f11 and above to achieve a resonable depth of field for the shot. Set the dial, top left to A/V and set the f number to f11. I would then choose ISO of 400 vie the menu button. If your not using a tripod try and place the camera on a sturdy surface, sometimes when outside I use my raised knee as a tripod. If you go into the menus you can also set the self timer to take the shot, this reduces the chances of any movement and should give a sharper image. Place the camera on sturdy surface, press shutter button and the timer will count down and take the shot.

Bird photography is a very difficult genre, and many on here are more experienced than me. Depending on the sky, i.e. sunny/dull/overcast/ect
you may need to overexpose the shot using the exp compensation button or set this within the menus on the camera. Shooting in RAW format, again set within the menus means you can save what would be a badly exposed shot in post processing.

That's a lovely image.

Well said Bernard.

You need to insert, "what appears to be", between "this" and "corrupt"

Unfortunately this will increase during the Olympics.

Arrested under the "Aviation Act" watch out all you plane spotters. Shocking