I think the Q ticks a lot of boxes in terms of it's features and 'pocketable' factor, and if I owned one, I'm sure I'd find it a lot of fun to use, and enjoy every picture taking moment. However, I have bought a 'mirrorless' camera, but it wasn't the Q. It is just far too over-priced for what is essentially a very good compact camera..... and standing in a camera shop and comparing it to cheaper priced, but better specified offerings by other camera makes, it just wasn't justifiable. if Pentax want the Q to succeed, then really it's battle is with the high end compacts which are in the £200 - £300 bracket, and not against the likes of Sony or Nikon or the M4/3 which it can never beat in the sensor real estate area. In fact, even with their 'before end of 2011 cashback deal', a high end compact with a similar size sensor to the Q is still cheaper and will offer a much greater zoom range.. I really would have loved to buy the Q, I really would, but when it came down to the decision, image quality trumped cuteness, and I bought the Olympus E-PM1.

I know what your getting at with your thoughts on 'frozen seascapes', it has become a little bit too predictable and formulaic. But art isn't just defined by style alone. There's still lots of room for personal expression in even the most realist genres.

Even documentary photographers, who are expected to 'depict reality' can be arty.

Have a look at this galley by one of the most important photographer today. Reality and art blended superbly.

link

I think the dividing line is in 'intent'. Maybe the artist can't help what they do, maybe they just have to do it. Everything else is probably more contrivance, mere copying of a style 'because it looks good'.... which is fine if it's a tool for progression, but no one can claim to be doing something unique when they create a HDR for instance, or put together a Joiner in the style of Hockney, or create a stitch panorama, or whatever is in fashion. Best thing, keep taking photo's, but above all enjoy, learn and grow from what you do.

Hi there

You might need to adjust a couple of CS5 settings to get accuracy from the Canon printer drivers, and therefore the same result as printing out through Canon's own software. If you already have done all this, then I'm not sure why the results would come out different to Canon, but see if this helps....

First of all set up your colour settings. I always set up the RGB colour Management to preserve the embedded profiles. I also use the Adobe ACE engine and use Absolute Colorimetric, as it is the most accurate. The access to these settings are in the 'Edit/Colour Settings' menu (Shift+Ctrl+K)

When you are to make a print go to File/Print and in the dialogue, choose your printer, and in the colour management dialogue, choose 'Document' (you should see the RGB colour profile it will use in brackets), and then make sure your printer manages the colour, and that you choose 'Absolute Colorimetric'.

Then click on Print settings', which will open the Canon print Driver software. Follow through with your desired settings, and make a print.

Good Luck

Hi
My career is in Further & Higher Education, and I have written a number of currently accredited courses up to BA(Hons) in the creative digital media area (which includes Photography), so have a bit of experience with questions like yours. One thing I always talk to prospective students about in the guidance stage is about what they expect a course to provide. At degree level you will be set some challenging work for sure on every course, but they are not all alike, some offer a more technical route into careers such as forensics and sciences, others are more arts based, so choose carefully. Work out where your career goals lie, and have that in mind when you ask questions before you enrol. A degree, especially now the fees have gone up, is an expensive undertaking, and once you sign up, you pay the fees for that year whether you stick with it or not. Its worth remembering that.

Check out who your tutors are, that will give you an idea as to the emphasis the course might have. If you can, see if you can talk to any of the current students. There is a wealth of information on the web written by students on degree courses. A good starting place to check out what other students think about your choice of institution is HEFCE, under the National Student Survey link.

A degree is really rewarding. I did one back in 1989, after years of working as a Photographers Assistant. The course I chose taught very little technical stuff at all, and concentrated on creative image making and understanding images. It was right for me at that time.

Photography as a subject is growing in popularity. In my college we have already had around 60 applications for full time photography courses starting in September 2012. This number will climb to several hundred between now and March. With the kind of growth in the market, it will become a very competitive career choice. With that in mind think about a niche product you could offer, and try to match it to a service you can provide. A friend of mine has made a name for himself in sports photography, because he concentrates on sports he knows the most about, Cycling & Decathlon events. He knows everyone in that sports area, and his work always gets sold and published. Another close friend does specialised wildlife photography, and has become an expert in tracking and photographing very elusive species. He works full time for various conservation agencies because he has a proven track record, and they know he will get the shots.

I wish you loads of luck on this undertaking, I'm sure you will find it really rewarding

Thanks for the Link Neil, much appreciated

Just realised I left my K-5 on and attached to my Mac for the whole evening. Ran the battery flat and I don't have a spare yet. Doh.... and just learned by experience that auto off doesn't work when the K-5 is connected to a computer.

Haha, that brought a smile to my face

I really like the look of this one, I will see if they are available here in the UK. Thanks for the tip.

I'm not finding the supplied camera strap with my new K-5 very comfortable particularly when out doing wildlife shots, and I need to get to the camera quickly, but need it outside of the camera bag. I would like a strap that allows me to walk/clamber/climb about freely without the camera swinging around (which happens when its round my neck with the current strap). I was climbing across some boulders today trying to approach a Buzzard in a nearby tree to photograph, and I missed the opportunity because I had to put the camera away to stop it swinging into some rocks before I got to the vantage point. The buzzard flew off before I had retrieved my camera from the bag.

I looked online, but I've no idea what actually is worthwhile buying, so any recommendations appreciated

I know it's not a professional package like Lightroom, but UFRaw which is free (either as a standalone application or bundled in with Gimp) does a pretty good job and would be a stop gap before you upgrade your Adobe software. link