David

I have heard that anything other than proper lens cleaning fluid can take off the coatings on the lens so personally I would avoid those

As with the others I use a microfibre cloth. Be careful if you have any abrasive dirt on your lens though. I also use a simple puffer/blower for any loose dust I use mine dry

Boost

Whose shoulders though? lol

Happy New Year everyone

Sounds like a nightmare Colin, I hope you get sorted soon...actually I could have just quoted Heather but only just noticed it on Kobi's post. Same sentiments though and I really do wish you well

Very creepy Leon, it works well, well done

That's not so sad Kobi, if my 'back yard' was half as nice I may never leave it haha...and it would definitely be my patch too

Yes it is ...and I want to go to Teesmouth sometime soon. I am off to Newcastle tomorrow with my camera

PRIME

Ahhh I see

I have no experience of this and although it sounds interesting, I also find it a little confusing lol. I use the AE-L/AF-L to lock the focus where I want it then re-compose and take the shot. I will have a look at the link when I have a bit of spare time

Hi Derek, welcome to TIPF. Mono is an area I am being drawn to more and more recently so it will be good to see your images

I'm like Martyn - not much help with choosing a camera. All I can say that I set a budget and looked at what was on offer. I read loads and loads...then loads more reviews and came up with the Nikon D3100 as the best I could afford. Again like Martyn I agree that a better camera won't make me a better photographer, however after about 18 months of using the D3100 I became frustrated at its 14MP sensor. Despite this I had fallen in love with it, especially the ease of operation. So when it came to upgrading, again I read loads of reviews but only on Nikons, and went for the D7100, purely for the affordability - I had to go for another APS-C sized sensor. I haven't been disappointed and it has lived up to the expectations from the many positive reviews I read. I think the D3200 or D5200 are great entry level DSLR's although in time the 1.5x crop may get frustrating, as it is starting to with me now

There is the elusive, and rare Argus Butterfly there, but I haven't seen one yet. And I am really looking forward to some snow and ice down there

My local Dene is 'my patch' I used to go all the time from when I was at school and got to know every footpath and where to go to get the views many never see. I moved away for a good 20 years and now I am back in Peterlee. A lot has changed - housing has been built right up to the edge of it and some of the footpaths and routes have eroded away through landslips, so I can't get to everywhere I used to go, which is a shame. But it is a good place for photography, and there is always something to shoot with a camera, and there's a nice little burn running through it. It is a steep valley with some exposed limestone cliffs and trees in some perilous places. There are pathways on different levels. I have yet to get the best out of it photographically, but I often go there for a walk with my camera

I bought a second hand Zenith when I was about 18 (1983). My Dad had always owned 35mm SLRs (don't know what makes) and used to develop his own photos in a makeshift dark room in a cupboard, before I was born. He was often going on about F/nos, DOF, apertures, light meters etc. To be honest I didn't understand any of it and I was too scared and confused to use it. I wasn't very close to my dad at the time so I didn't ask for any advice. I may still have it somewhere, but then again I may have got rid of it. I made do with point and shoot instant cameras, but I never lost my love of or fascination for photography - and got some really good shots with those types of cameras over the years. My 1st digital camera was an Olympus 5MP (can't remember the model, maybe C50 or D50? but it was amongst the 1st 5MP cameras you could get back in the late 90's). It must have been an early bridge type - It had a fixed lens and MPAS settings (again too scared to use them) and you could even save images as raw files. It was about £500 over here but I saved around £150 by buying it from America. That was when I 1st discovered the marvel that is photoshop and, even though many professionals wouldn't entertain digital cameras, I knew digital was the way forward for photography. I continued with point and shoot digitals until about 18 months ago, when I got my 1st DSLR (Nikon D3100) and became determined to learn the settings and try and take my photography to the next level. I went to college for a while soon after and a couple of months ago I went up a notch to a Nikon D7100, I am still getting used to that lol. That's where I am now, I still use the kit lens from my D3100 and a budget 55-300 Nikkor zoom. I am saving for a wide angle, fast prime lens for improved low light, scenic and more mirror box experiments, but most of all I really want to take sharper images. More of a 'my history' than pure soviet cameras lol

Well done Colin, the whole set was great. Good choice Kate

The title says it all! They are really interesting images and nice to have the descriptions with them

I have never joined a camera club, mainly because I don't have the time or flexibility to attend regularly. But Bugs I think yours was a great idea, and when you start off like that you will probably find that most people fit in really well.

There's a place for all... I will be posting t' olde lone tree on t' moors as soon as I find one haha p.s. I like the odd milky waterfall...as seen on a post of mine not so long ago In fact...