So it's the K100D that's just a loss leader then?

I've got my old 80Gb laptop hard drive in a no-brand "Digimate II plus" portable USB enclosure, which was about £20 on ebay. It's great, and much more convenient than taking your laptop wherever you go. Less risky, too.

Can't take issue with either battery life or transfer speed. It copies a 1Gb card about as fast as you could copy to a computer, and I don't think I've ever really had to charge it. It came with a charger, but it seems to top itself up each time you connect it to the computer.

You can't see the pictures until you get them home of course, but then why would you want to?

Steve

http://www.siblingmedia.com/

Along with the new K10D firmware, Pentax have now released a codec for RAW .PEF support in Windows Vista. There are also updated versions of Photo Browser, Photo Laboratory and Remote Assistant.

All available here:

http://www.pentax.co.jp/english/support/

Steve

http://www.siblingmedia.com/

Yes

Yes, it should fit. I think all Pentax eyecups fit all Pentax cameras, including the digital ones, though I haven't tried all combinations. The rubber parts wont necessarily fit in with the body quite as nicely as the camera they were designed for, but the fitting around the eyepiece is the same for all K mount SLRs (and probably the earlier screw mount cameras as well, but I'm not sure about that).

Steve

http://www.siblingmedia.com/

Hartblei do a number of tilt-shift lenses in K mount, available new from a couple of sellers on ebay or presumably direct, though their website is quite out of date.

I have an ARSAT 85mm tilt/shift which looks to be a similar design to the ARAX. The focal length is too long for architecture, but it would make a nice portrait lens. It isn't that sharp (by Pentax standards), and it didn't focus close enough for my purposes, so it doesn't get much use.

If you're wanting to do close-up work there are also bellows options. Noblex do a tilt-shift bellows with interchangeable mounts, but it's quite pricey. SpeedGraphic have them in the UK. Zoerk do a modular tilt/shift system which is geared more to macro work, but again it's a little pricey (but then so are tilt-shift lenses). There are also M42 tilt-shift bellows out there, but they're very hard to come by.

Note that all the above options will require manual metering, and in-camera metering may not be reliable. My *istD is really thrown off by tilt.

Steve

http://www.siblingmedia.com/

Agreed. Judging by the vegetation, they were taken over a period of weeks or months rather than days.

When photographing white birds against a dark(er) background you invariably need to under-expose in order to avoid blowing the highlights like this, even when shooting RAW. I normally use manual exposure for swans and seabirds.

The K10d does give you more headroom than the *istD, but it still pays to be careful.

Steve

I think this is some of the best advice ever posted on a forum

The DA 35 is on the roadmap, but I'd expect it to be a little more expensive. In the meantime, the 35/2 Super Tak can be had pretty cheaply, as can the Vivitar 28/2.

Steve

http://www.siblingmedia.com/