VWGolf

"Mum! MUM!"

I had a go at doing a 'night time' portrait in afternoon sun in my garden. With flash! Copied the method of the photographer Glyn Dewis. Line up subject, then chose small aperture so that you can see nothing, only darkness. Flash in small soft box to right of subject. Shoot. The small aperture/fast speed cuts out ambient light so that subject is lit only by the flash. I was quite impressed that it worked.

No - not that sort! Rescue cat with naughty kitten.

Yes, these are mute swans - according to my sister, who has become an 'expert'. The first picture is Dad and the last one is Mum - she is a Polish mute swan, apparently, as she has pink feet and something else - I forget what - to distinguish her Found another one - not sure if this is Mum or Dad. I like to get down to their level, though it meant sitting on the boat ramp and getting my feet wet!

A very belated thank you.

It may amaze and surprise you to learn that I do occasionally take pictures of creatures that aren't cats! My sister and her partner regularly feed swans on a local reservoir and they have become quite tame. So a good opportunity to take some photos. If only there weren't quite so many of them squabbling over the food.

She's got a lot of meezer (Siamese) blood in her, so no doubt will lead you a right merry dance! Then she'll look at you with the big blue eyes and you'll just melt and let her get away with everything and anything. Welcome to the world of cats!

What an absolute beauty she is, Fuji. I am so pleased for you, having another cat, and so pleased for her - after all she's been through, she deserves a really good home and a great big softie like you to spoil her to bits! But a Bengal! They reckon they're even naughtier than Siamese and a real challenge - she'll knock years off your age as you chase round after her, rescuing her from one incident after another! That's a very fancy cat tree you've got her - very handy for leaping up to the top of the curtains.

Very good looking young men. And super lighting

Great locomotive picture and love the B&W conversion

Love the steam locomotive

Well done - wonderful picture

The thing I read about Sigma is that you need to calibrate their focus to your camera. Not a thing I've ever had to do with any of my Nikon lenses! I bought my Nikon 24-70 when it was on offer - just before the newer VR version came out, I found out later. It is a superb lens and with VR on top of the performance of mine, I wouldn't even be considering the Sigma. On the other hand, I'm not currently saving up my pennies to buy one and I expect there is a considerable price difference between the pair of them. Good luck with whatever you chose and I'll look forward to seeing your pictures in all their magnificent detail in due course!

When my Nikon flash got wet and packed up, I bought two YongNuo flashes and radio triggers - all of which together came to less than a new Nikon flash. I wanted to try off-camera flash, and didn't want to spend a lot and then find I didn't get on with it. Three years later, I am still using all the YN stuff - it's robust and I can't find an excuse for upgrading it yet. Nowadays, especially now arthritis in now spreading to my hands, I probably use OCF in about 90% of all pictures I take - it's great for freezing action PS after about six months after its soaking, the Nikon flash returned to life, so I now have three flashes.

What did you get in the end, Vanguard? I'm using a 2011 27" iMac with RAM upgraded to 24gb and it still cuts the mustard. PS & LR run fine, with both open, plus other stuff. Although I have a 2015 MBP, I prefer the larger screen of the iMac when it comes to doing fine detail editing, thought the MBP is great to take with me when I'm away.

Probably not much use, but I own a Nikon D750 and the lens that is on my camera probably 90% of the time is Nikon 24-70mm F2.8 (non-VR) I don't do landscape, but tackle most other things and it's a very able lens, and pin sharp. I don't know what the Sigma copy is like, but if it's similar, it's a very useful lens for all sorts of genres. I would guess the Sigma, having the same lengths and speed would be a good buy, although with a 46mp camera, you might want to consider the Nikon version instead. Maybe consider hiring one for a weekend, to make sure you're entirely happy with its performance on your camera, before paying out a tidy sum of money?

Fabulous bit of panning of an iconic locomotive Well done, a very worthy winner

Karl Jenkins - great choice.

Freddie Mercury! Who else? Has anyone been to see Bohemian Rhapsody? Brilliant film, I've been twice already!

David - maybe consider (once you've made up your mind what to go for) second-hand lens(es). From somewhere reputable, not eBay type 'bargains'. Some dealers will even give you a warranty on s/h lenses, so you can feel confident in buying. If you are able to, consider joining a local camera club. It's like being on here, but physically meeting people, and you'll perhaps find someone with a similar camera to yours and maybe even someone who will let you try out their lens. Plus you'll perhaps learn all sorts of things by going to their lectures and entering their competitions.