Monthly Archives: July 2009
Galleries Addendum
Yesterdays post on how to get into galleries generated some great questions and comments both via email and on the blog, so in the interests of keeping that interest and momentum going, here’s a few more tips on Getting Into Galleries, courtesy of Dave Warner from LensFlare 35 and Rich Charpentier (who I’ve interviewed here on the podcast). Thanks guys for chiming in and offering your assistance! Onto the 5 additional tips: Make sure the gallery shows photography – if gallery owners deal primarily with paintings, sculptures, metal work, and such, the odds of being accepted are much less. This … Continue reading
Show Notes for Episode #28
No cheeky title today, just a straight up informational one because the podcast was a super long one with all the news, interview time, and listener Q&A so I’ll stick to the meat and potatoes. On the Photo News Beat Canon Announces Hybrid IS technology Stock Exchange joins Getty Images Think Tank Photo Announces a New Bag System OnOne Software expecting to release a Remote Capture update soon LDP/CB Notes The OnOne Software Plugin Suite Ends Friday – last chance to get your best image in the Numbers Contest The August Prize is announced: A Bamboo Fun, courtesy from the … Continue reading
Repost: Quality versus Quantity
I’ve got a few software reviews up my sleeve for both Windows and mac, but ratehr than rush them out the door prematurely, I’d rather postpone that material in the interests of sharing some rather thought-provoking content on the question of quality versus quantity. I’d written this post before, and the first publication got a few interesting email responses – so we’ll see if the debate is still holding true. Tell me what you think: Does quality trump quantity or vice versa? Here’s my take: “Okay, I’m done.” “That’s it? You’ve only been shooting for ten minutes!” “Yep, got about … Continue reading
Addendum
Just a quick note for those that have been asking – no the blog has not been compromised, there is in fact a PayPal donation button in the sidebar now. I tried to make it as unobtrusive as possible, but did want to give people the option to donate if they so choose. Given the tightening economy, I can understand the rationale for pinching pennies, but if you have any to spare – you can pick your own amount to contribute to help offset the cost of hosting and time spent in delivering content to you regularly! Happy Shooting! Grab … Continue reading
Hardware Review: The Canon EF-S 18-55mm
After a couple diversion-driven weeks of postings, hardware reviews are back in full swing, and this week the 18-55mm lens from Canon undergoes analysis. Since the lens has already seen a great deal of feedback and reviews in the community, a discussion of the technical features of the lens is somewhat meaningless. Instead, here are a couple great resources that talk about the quality of the lens in great detail: Photo.Net Review Photo Notes So, why talk about the lens if it’s already been covered so well? For two reasons…first because the lens really offers a great range of focus … Continue reading
Martini Memory
Have you ever had some crazy idea for a photo and then realized it might not be as difficult to pull off as you thought? Something just off the wall, not really something that would ever grow into anything other than “just for fun of it”? No project, no marketing, no commercialization, no selling, no limited prints, nothing like that at all… In case you couldn’t tell, I had one of those moments a while back, and finally decided to pull the trigger trip the shutter! Here’s the small version of my Martini Memory! There are, of course, a few … Continue reading
The Moment of Oops
Ever have a moment of “oops”? You know the moments, right? We’ve all had them: That moment when you realized you said the wrong name.. That moment when you realized your ISO was set too high all day… That moment when you realized you forgot your battery… That moment when you realized you forgot your memory card… Yes, these happen all the time – in the military they were referred to as “brain farts”. Your brain stops thinking, or thinks wrong, and it’s just embarrassing! Well, this happened to me on the photo walk last Saturday. Remember the photo walk? … Continue reading
Walk, listen, and ask…
Lame blog post title segue alert – too late! This week’s podcast is completed and available from the always generous hosting of the folks over at Personal Life Media, and over on iTunes, so download from your favorite option and enjoy! Here’s the show notes: I give a roundup review of the Scott Kelby Worldwide photowalk, along with a more detailed back story on the Canon Confession, which was outed yesterday here on the blog. Rich Charpentier of The Airstream Chronicles also stops in for a really great interview with me – we probably could have talked for quite a … Continue reading
Busted – guilty as charged…
For the second week in a row, there will be no software review this Tuesday. The 2nd Annual Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk is the reason for eschewing the format again this week, so for those that miss the software reviews – go bug Mr. Kelby, it’s all his fault! (Just kidding, don’t go bugging him, but if you don’t have his site in your RSS feed for daily reading, then you are missing out…) Truth be told, the reason for the deferment again is to admit to the charges – and I may as well come clean, since my … Continue reading
Full Review: Apple iPod Touch 2G
Having had the Touch now for about a week, I’ve had a fair amount of time to look at all the features, bells, whistles, and nuances of it to give a more thorough review. As this review begins, you surely must be asking, “How does this relate to photography?” An excellent question, so let me begin with the benefits relating to photography: Photo Albums – this is a great way to take a portable portfolio with you where ever you go. Say you are in a grocery store, restaurant, or somewhere and a discussion starts about any good photographers. “Funny … Continue reading
Fifteen Freebies for Photowalking Fun
On the eve of the 2nd Annual Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk, it seems appropriate to include a checklist of things you should be doing today and tonight (if you’ve not done them already). I’d done a post like this before so this is somewhat repetitive but since it’s been a year, probably the content could use a little of a dusting. So, here’s my photo walk checklist Round Two! Charge your batteries, and the spares! Clean your lenses, wipe them down and use lens cleaner to get everything spiffy. Decide what items you will be taking with you and what … Continue reading
The iPod Touch Unboxing!
That’s right, my replacement podcast resources is finally here, and I share the unboxing with the viewers here tonight via YouTube: Initial thoughts? It’s pretty sweet – love the App Store, the WiFi, email access, twitter access, youtube, and so much more! A few downsides though – no built in camera, and no microphone – I know it’s not for phone, but recording audio snippets would be ideal. There are apps you can download but need a mic and with just the audio jack, not sure I am gonna be able to do one of the things I had been … Continue reading
The Rule of Thirds in History
Last week we looked at the Rule of Thirds as a general rule that can be applied differently depending on the type of photography. You could use the hot spots or the lines for compositional approaches, and I commented on what seems to be a trend toward the former being more popular in portrait work and the latter being more popular in landscape type work. The idea makes sense as portraits have subjects within the picture, while with landscapes the subject IS the picture (the entire scene). Click here for the full blog post with examples. Well, today, I am … Continue reading
PDF Link Fixed
The PDF Link was broken earlier – fixed now, sorry all! Let me know if there’s additional problems.
49 Photo Tips Cheat Sheet
Ok, so this week the schedule is all off kilter, since there was no hardware review and no software review today, so I give up on that. Instead, today I am sharing (on request) a PDF that I have been been busy compiling of my favorites and some unusual ideas for photography. Ranging in subject matter from how to improve your composition to gear tips, making money, photo walks, and everything in between, here are 49 Photo Tips – all compiled nice, neat and easy as a PDF for easy download and reference (top 50 lists are so cliche! )! … Continue reading
Photo News, Interviews, and Contest News
As you may have guessed, the podcast that was delayed Friday is now compiled and ready for your listening pleasure. I would like to take another moment to thank Terry Reinert of TKR Photo for taking the time to participate in the interview series – not only is he full of useful information, but a great guy to boot. We literally could have B.S.ed on Skype for another couple hours if time permitted. This does mean the hardware review was supplanted for this week, due to the dentail fiasco from Friday. On that note, I would also like to clarify … Continue reading
Stop crowning around
The best laid plans always seem destined to fail…or something like that, right? Well, such was the case for todays scheduled blog post. Today was supposed to be the day where I release the latest podcast for everyone’s listening pleasure. I’ve got all the prep content outlined and had a great conversation with Terry Reinert of TKR Photo all smoothed out and ready for insertion when… A temporary crown came loose. This crown had been in place for going on a year now and the new dentist in Colorado had seemed more or less unconcerned about (but will be later … Continue reading
Contest Updates
Today I thought it would be appropriate to take a moment and give some contest update announcements. First off, don’t forgot the OnOne Software Plugin Suite contest that is going on all month. Share your images over in the Flickr thread (with a theme of “Numbers”) to be eligible. Second, the winer of the Fotoquote Pro discount is contributing commenter Fred from the comments posted in June. Fred won the discount code for a copy of Fotoquote Pro – congrats to Fred. Third, the next contest is also going to be an exciting one because the folks at Wacom have … Continue reading
The Rule of Thirds Revisited
We’ve all seen the term used, and the approach should not be a novel one to most of us at this point. Heck, I’ve even talked about it here before to a certain degree. But today, I’d like to take the Rule of Thirds and look at it from two distinct approaches: landscape and portrait photography. The reason is because the rule can be applied in different ways and these two genres illustrate well how the same rule can be applied completely differently. To start, let’s just review real quick… The Principle The Rule of Thirds is a general rule … Continue reading
Mask Pro 4.1
Okay, I know the folks from onOne have been very generous with their contribution of a copy of the OnOne Plugin Suite for the latest giveaway here at Canon Blogger/Learning Digital Photography, but I have to say that I am literally blown away by this offer even more. As I delve into each tool more and more, I am totally amazed at the functionality and how easily it really makes things. For those of you that watch Photoshop User TV, you’ve seen what I’ve seen – ads from OnOne claiming that masking is made so super easy that you can … Continue reading
Charge!
The time has come to say goodbye – that’s right, the time has come. You knew this day would happen – we all did. It was inevitable. It was a good run while it lasted, but there is no avoiding it. No tears please… No cries, no weeping, no condolences, regrets, or farewell parties are needed. As the old saying goes – all good things must come to an end. For better or for worse, it was a tough decision to come to, but I have decided that it is time to say goodbye – there’s just not enough time … Continue reading
Fireworks Friday!
In honor of the upcoming holiday here in the U.S., today is offically a no-blog day,as we usher in the weekend. Happy Fourth of July everyone!
Win, Listen, and Bang!
This week’s show is a doozy – I talk about the latest contest, (#3 for 2009), have a fun conversation with Jason Loucks, then tackle some tips on photography fireworks. Of course the show always takes care of a couple listener questions and answers, so it’s 45 jam-packed minutes of photography fun. Here’s the show notes: The Third Photo Contest, sponsored by OnOne software. Rules and entry information are posted on Tuesday’s blog, and you can enter your photos here. Here’s the sites and twitter folk we talk about during the show: www.freelanceswitch.com www.smashingmagazine.com www.tutsplus.com www.css-tricks.com & Chris Coyer on … Continue reading
Creative Composition – Vignetting Photos
In general we learn that placing your subject dead center in the frame is something to avoid – creatively speaking it can kill a picture. While this holds true as a general rule, I was walking into work yesterday morning and the sky was a brilliant blue, with the capitol bulding of Denver right dead center in front of me, and I thought that might make an interesting attempt at breaking the rules if only I had my camera….and then it dawned on me, I did have a camera. Granted, not my trusty 40D, but the smaller Powershot As500 IS. … Continue reading
