Hi Thomas, i agree with you on all but the the point you made about using the macro mode. Well actually i cant disagree since i dont have an alternative lol But the macro mode on my cam seems to do a great job though. The dof IS really shallow in macro, the closer the shallower. The dragon pic was shot from a distance of 1.2 inches or so from the dragon. Thats why i got the shallow dof :o) I never use flash, i think it makes the pic look unnatural. Specs. of the dragon shot are: 27.3 mm focal length; 1/195.4 sec; f/4.1 ...i used the auto-mode. Autofocus as well. Have a great day !! :o) Jeroen