Found you another one (not olive though, price a lot better though!). I have ordered an F100 off them before and it was exactly as described and postage was reasonable: http://www.collectablecameras.com/cameralist.htm” onclick=”window.open(this.href);return false;
For a budget of €500 he should look into a Nikon D90 and lens. It’s a very capable dSLR which will auto-focus with AF-D as well as AF-S lenses and does video (it was one of the first Nikon dSLRs to introduce video, but it is a bit limited in this regard).
You can upload pictures to a different website (such as flickr) and click the Img button and paste in the address of the file.
Also maybe advertise it on http://www.adverts.ie
I take club competitions with a grain of salt. In fairness to the judges it’s not an easy job and probably a thankless one too. However I could write a book of ridiculous comments which judges have uttered over the years.
There definitely are fashions in photographs submitted and fashions in what is popular with judges. Often it’s the luck of the draw with regard to the areas of expertise/interest of the judge on the night. For instance a fantastic and difficult macro shot may not get the recognition it deserves one night, but could have been the winner another.
While I can see there must be an element of genre fatigue, a club competition should really embrace all disciplines and interests of its members. It would be a shame if people submitted pictures because they are on trend, rather than what they are passionate about photographing.
A sense of humour and a thick skin are required in these matters!