If it's of any interest, I've got a broken K100D with a duff aperture control unit (powers up but the shutter won't fire and reports depleted batteries with many different types) that has an undamaged top LCD and panel that may be of use as a donor for repairing this one.

Excellent advice - I have a Tamron 10-24 and am also on the early bit of the ultrawide learning curve. I found that it doesn't work how I thought it would - for shooting wide open landscapes I find I'm always at the long end, but it works really at the wider end for either shooting in confined spaces or up close against something, showing lots of the background.

My undertanding is that using virtualisation makes it much harder for malware to 'escape' from the virtual machine and get at your computer, so it would certainly help.

As with security in many domains, the best you can hope for is to make life hard enough for a would be attacker that they move on to an easier target somewhere else. If someone really wants to get on to your computer, it is inevitable they will eventually find a way.

An alternative approach is to change to something like a Mac or Linux system. Contrary to popular opinion in some quarters, these also have security flaws that can be exploited by malware, but since most PCs run Windows, most of the 'bad guys' focus their attention on Windows machines.

Thanks for the suggestions - I believe that the 250 euro price was from the Palace press office (and I thought it wasn't bad price given the gravity of the occasion).

The suggestion of comissioning a photography student to do some shots at the wedding is a good one - I'll suggest it.

My mother edits the members' magazine for a small club in Germany. They are looking for photos that they can use for a commemorative issue for the Royal Wedding in April.

The cheapest stock photos they have found so far are 250 euros each, which is beyond their budget. This isn't something I know much about, but has anyone got any suggestions to more cost effective alternatives?

Many thanks

After a year or so of having it, I've decided I don't really use it enough to justify keeping my 18-250 (and the proceeds of selling it should add a bit to my K-5 fund)

As you can see from the pictures, it is in very good cosmetic condition - it hasn't had a lot of use. The only blemish I can find is a small scuff to the edge of the lens cap (shown in the final picture).

Mechanically it is also in very good condition. There zoom ring is precise and operates as smoothly as would be expected for a plastic lens and the focus ring moves smoothly throughout the range. The diaphragm is snappy and shows no sign of oil on the blades.

Optically there are one or two tiny specks of internal dust if you look closely (probably due to the zoom action) but nothing abnormal or that affects the picture quality. The front and rear elements are in excellent shape and are free from any marks or scratches.

I haven't got the hood or original packing, but it has been stored carefully and hasn't had a lot of use. If there's anything I've omitted above or you've got any further questions (or want more, specific pictures), don't hesitate to PM me.

I'm looking for £270 delivered in the UK (as the going rate for BIN on similar lenses on eBay seems to be £300-£350).

Full view
Front element
Rear element
Rear cap
Front cap

I've got an M200 F4 in excellent condition (hardly used, with original caps and hard case) that I haven't used for a couple of years and probably wouldn't miss - PM me if you're interested.

We've just had our third baby and my experience has been that in all of the gear you need to cart around initially, carrying a DSLR and a couple of lenses is not something I'd worry about in the grand scheme of things (apart from anything else, you can always fit a camera bag under the pram/pushchair when out and about).

However, I completely understand your point about wanting something small and unobtrusive to shoot with - I have a N*kon compact that fits in a pocket that I don't mind if if it gets sat on, dropped (or vomited on!).

32, working full time in an office, with a young family, definitely looking to retiring. There are so many things I'd like to do given my leisure that I haven't got time to do at the moment. However, getting old doesn't look much fun - I'm not sure I'll bother with that bit!

The A50/1.4 is very good, but the A50/1.7 is much better value (less than half the price in the UK).

I have an A50/1.7 and FA50/1.4 (optically identical to the A50/1.4 as I understand it) and both are very good lenses. The main differences are in the performance wide open. The 1.7 is sharper, but I find the images from the 1.4 more pleasing (could well be down to luck/lack of skill on my part, though).