Bazza that is one of the reasons I have always stuck to the Pentax, of course, once you have collected a few lens it is a difficult job to change and to be honest, apart from feeling an outcast, I can see no real reason to change particularly as the Pentax is much better when it comes to battery usage as well.

No matter how logical it all seems every time I come to look at a new camera I always agonise between a Pentax or a Nikon.

I have used and tried nearly all of the nikon range. and i would highly recommend the d80 or the d60. If you have a lot of pentax len's why not get a pentax, they make a dslr dont they?

LOL, yes they do I have a Pentax *is DS and would like a D20 but have been wondering about a Nikon D300 but that would mean buying at least 2 new lenses that is really not warranted as I already own 5 Pentax ones and I am happy with the pentax and have been using them for at least 35 years.

It is a case of wishing to move up the range a bit and wondering if I should join the rest of the gang and go for a Nikon, or remain on the outside with what appears to be the eccentric choice.

being differents all part of the fun lol! D300 is a fantastic camera. maybe you could sell your pentax ones and get some for the nikon. I use nikon,hasselblad and mamiya. Fuji s5 pro is also a good choice as mentioned befor ethe skin tones it produces are amazing. and nikon len's fir the s5 pro. I had an s5 pro and just sold it only because i had no need for it anymore.

Well, I’ve had a long think and a longer talk to myself and decided that I could still get more from my present camera if I try to loose my bad habits and concentrate on make more of what I shoot of a satisfactory standard. Time to think about a new camera when I have truly come to terms with the one I have.

So no new camera but I think I will get a new lens. Want to buy a macro but not sure what focal length to go for. Am I right in thinking all lens, even those that are for digital cameras only, state the focal length in 35mm speak.

Assuming my assumptions are correct what should I be looking at, 40, 50,70 or even 100mm are available but I don’t have any idea which I should be considering. And what is the minimum aperture I should consider?

in between 70mm to 105mm will be the best. I had a sigma 70mm and now i have a 105mm nikon. try to the get the best f you can if you want to use in lower light or freeze quick flying butterflies.

Thanks for your reply, 2.5 seems the norm but should I be looking for 1.7 or will I not get that in a 70 or 100mm?

mine is 1:2.8 105 nikkor it means you can stand pretty far back from the subject so you dont scare it away if its alive and gives good deph of field. I tripod comes in handy. this one has VR on it but im not sure if others do?

Thank you, will go and see what I can find. Understand the point about the distance between the lens and the subject, don't want to scare and daises

I went for the Tamron 90mm macro which came out top in a recent magazine. for closeups yes its very good.Others have success with reversing rings which you may want to consider and cheaper than a new lens. It just depends how much magnification you want to achive and how far away from the subject as well.
As Rev. says a tripod is really a necessity for macro work as the depth of field is so critical.

Bazza