When I go to a blog – I am going there for information and/or an education.  I am not going there to be “sold”.  I get enough email, snail mail, phone calls, and such promoting various products, outfits, and services that the last thing I want to do is go and seek it out. So, if blogs become promotional arms to other ends, there is nothing inherently wrong with that – but it’s not what I want to read in either my inbox or my free time.  Having given that side note, it’s time to reveal (in no particular order), my choices for The Top Ten Blogs for 2012:

1.  Flying With Fish – This blog came to my attention a few years ago when some travel tips for photographers was highlighted.  Since then, I’ve continued to follow it as I’ve been interested in travel generically.  The notes, news, and other pearls that are shared here really add value, understanding, and insight to an aspect of my business travel that would otherwise be severely lacking without this resource!

2.  Digital Photography School – What started as a blog has morphed into an amazing website and community of talented photographers and writers.  The inspiration comes from Darren Rowse, author of the also popular Problogger.com where I’ve picked up some tips and tricks that have been implemented here as well.  It’s an amazing repository of information and a fantastic community.  If you had to pick one resource on the web to go to with questions and get answers, this would be it.

3.  DIY Photography – Having done a few DIY things in my own day, including a gridded snoot, a 10-stop filter, and most famously a star tracker (which was even featured on their site!), DIY resource sites are like flames for this moth.  If you have a hankering for DIY stuff, and love to learn about anything and everything, then this is the perfect site to segue with your photography interests!  Absolutely love it!

4.  Photopreneur – Anyone who’s ever picked up a camera has wondered – “Can I sell my images?”  It doesn’t matter if you’ve sold images or not, the thought of whether you have what it takes is always something you wonder.  For those who are ever interested in blending a career with photography, this is one site to keep in your favorites.

5.  The Lightroom Queen – Victoria Bampton came to my attention after Adobe released Lightroom 2, and I realized that Lightroom was the future of photography post production.  Victoria saw this much sooner and became an expert pretty much before anyone else did, and has kept herself at the forefront of the developments in the product line.  I keep wondering when I can get her on the podcast, and perhaps this will nudge things along a little more!

6.  1001 Noisy Cameras – If you want to know the latest developments and releases in the industry, this has become pretty much the go-to resource for pretty much everyone in the industry.  Whether you have a penchant for Canon (me), Nikons, or any other vendor, and irrespective of DSLR, P&S, or these new 3rd gen cameras, 1001 Noisy cameras has the latest and greatest on all the camera news one could ever hope to soak in.  An endless resource for the gear hound in all of us!  (In the interests of full disclosure, they’ve also been generous when I’ve done gear reviews in giving some link love to me, so thanks to them for that! )

7.  Strobist – Now the only resource around for those interested in the details of off-camera lighting, it almost goes without saying that Strobist by David Hobby should be in your bookmark list.  Some days are more interesting than others, but there is always something worth learning (or re-learning if you want a refresh on anything).  Make sure you check out the Lighting 101 series – a beginner’s guide to off-camera lighting.  I can’t believe I had the opportunity to work with this guy a while back and had to decline because of a work conflict – was so bummed about that!

8.  Light Stalking – An impressive repository of writers and articles that covers everything from technique, to gear maintenance, and everything in between.  Some of the articles are a bit shorter than I would like to see, but there’s almost always good content, and it’s in my emailed list of sites that I permit into my mailbox.  Not only do I learn things from here myself, but it’s also a source of inspiration for article ideas and expanded content!

9.  F-Stoppers – What a talented set of photographers, videographers, writers, and project artists!  These guys will totally blow you away with the projects they put out over at F-Stoppers.  I am inspired and impressed with their footage, results, and behind-the-scenes perspectives that they all share every time they press the “Post” button!  If you haven’t stopped over to them yet, do so and add them to your inbox now!

10.  A Photo Editor – Coming from the perspective of a magazine editor, this is the place to go for photographer profiles, industry news, and great insights on the industry as a whole.  With so many resources out there, this has become a pretty authoritative outlet, and information resource so make sure you add it to your own list of sites to visit regularly.  I do and am sure you will come to rely on Rob’s content too!

*****

So, there you have it – 10 blogs and websites to make sure you take some time to visit for 2012.  Now, as I alluded to at the beginning of this post, some noticeable blogs are absent that used to be perennially listed.  Specifically, Scott Kelby’s “Photoshop Insider” and Joe McNally’s blog.  This is not to say that these are not worth visiting.  It’s just that the content there I am finding less interesting and useful.

The former is not what it used to be – a good resource for Photoshop and photography tips.  Instead, it has become a pulpit for delivering promotional content to the Kelby landscape of products and services.  I am not criticizing this at all – after all, the services and products that come from Kelby Training and NAPP have served me well for years, but Scott Kelby’s blog is no longer something I learn from – it’s where I go to get news about NAPP.

As for McNally’s blog – that too has become more of a promotional venue.  I enjoy his writings and images that he shares, but don’t really feel that I am learning much from that outlet.  My visits there are now completely for entertainment.  I do watch the Kelby Training schedule to see if and when he will be hitting Denver so that I might be able to attend a workshop, but the blog is just not a good learning resource.

1. Hard Drive Noise
2. Shooting Tethered – forum post with HP resolution
3. 60D and Camera Raw
4. Shutter Count for Cameras
   1. Canon:  http://www.astrojargon.net
   2. Nikon: http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/exif-reader.htm
5. Tutorials on Framing and Matting
6. Including hyperlinks in slideshows
   1. YouTube
   2. Camtasia
7. Right-Click on a Mac
8. Disable the ROT Crop lines in PS:  Online Help File from Adobe
9. How to react to lowball clients

Contests:

Nations Photo Lab announces 1st Annual National Family Photo Day

Learning Digital Photography:  November Contest/Giveaway

• Saturday Aug 28th – Denver, CO
• Workshop will be held at:
• Arvada Center for Arts & Humanities
• 6901 Wadsworth Blvd Arvada, CO 80003

*****

On the free front – the August contest is underway on Flickr and the prize this month is a 50 sheet pack of Polar Metallic Paper from the folks at Red River Paper.  You all likely know how much I love this paper and this company – here’s your chance to find out why with your own pack of paper to push out some super prints for clients, family, friends, or even your own walls!  Submit your own image to the Flickr thread (the theme is Metal).

*****

Last but not least, the eBook has been flying off the virtual shelf, and the response there has been overwhelming too.  Read the reviews, and get your own copy from the eBooks page here!  It’s still a super deal at only $4.99 for the digital download – it includes 49 Photo Tips, explained in detail and with accompanying images to demonstrate the effect when appropriate!  Add this one to your virtual library today!  (An iPad version is due out shortly – working on the ISBN now…)

*****

That’s it for Friday!  Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you here on Monday with the Super Exciting News that I can’t share yet!  Are you ready for some excitement though?  Stop back in to find out!

Learning Digital Photography:  Episode #41

Stock Photography – Taking the Plunge!

News – Trevor Current -
Thanks to Trevor for helping out with the news – check out his site at www.currentphotographer.com and don’t forget to follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/trevorcurrent Here’s the news links that Trevor talked about during his news segment too:

Stock Photography with Nicole Young (Nicolesy)

1. Options
   • iStock
   • Getty
   • Shutterstock
   • Alamy
   • Crestock
2. Pros and Cons to consider when getting into stock photography

• Mass producing images
• Approval process

3.  Difference between exclusive and non-exclusive arrangements

500 downloads and 50% approval

4.  Stock versus Fine Art – Can fine art sell?

Listener Questions and Answers

What is the best way to make sure my photos are “color accurate”?  (Nick in Charlotte)

What kinds of lights are best used for product photography versus studio?  ((Candace in St. Louis)

What kind of videos are stock companies looking for from content producers? (from email, anonymous)

Contact

www.nicolesyblog.com
www.twitter.com/nicolesy

The show should be available for listening via download by the time you read this both in iTunes and over at PLM.  Thanks also go out to the folks at Audible for sponsoring the show.  Find out how you can get a free book of your choice by visiting www.audiblepodcast.com/learn Last but not least, I’d also like to welcome Trevor Current to the show who will be providing more of the news moving forward so I can spend more time with the guests!  Check out all the news notes on his site at www.currentphotographer.com

Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow…the long-awaited Drobo review should be up by then!

1. Joe McNally’s Blog – The perfect blend of tongue-in-cheek stories, and yet educational and fun to read!  This quickly ratcheted up to the top of my preferred favorites, and it should be in your list too! (And his books are of the same ilk:  read The Moment it Clicks and The Hotshoe Diaries as soon as possible if you haven’t already…)
2. David DuChemin’s Blog – As David said it best – “Ahhh…..Vision!”  If you are yearning to touch the intangible and learn about creativity, David DuChemin’s blog is a must read!  (I hear he has a few books too!)
3. Petapixel – Very similar to this one, in that it is informative, interesting, and almost always tied to photography.  He wisely started without a vendor association though, and it’s paid off in spades (he’s been around less than a year, and has double the readership).  Of course it could be that his content is pretty kick-butt and mine is just the meandering mind of an individual.  Nevertheless, a great read and congrats to them for the content they are putting out!
4. Strobist – If you don’t know about David Hobby’s site, then you are in the dark (literally!), because it’s all about light!  Anything you want to know about photography lighting, this is the place to go.  With workshops, and primers for both the beginners and advanced shooters, this is an absolute must-read!
5. Canon Rumors – What can I say?  I am a Canon guy, so I am always interested in the news and rumblings of Canon’s next great move in the digital photography realm, and this has become my premiere source of information on the web aside from Canon directly!
6. Weekly Photo Tips – Authored by Scott Eccleston, this blog is a mixture of tips, tutorials, and personal thoughts on a variety of subjects to include gear, post processing, and such.  Worth the read just for the human aspect of photography.
7. Photowalk Pro – Jeff is the de facto master at organizing photo walks, and although I’ve been on walks since before discovering his blog – his insights have helped me to organize better walks, be a better organizer, and his subsequent foray into photography (HDR) tutorials and photo books (a review on his book about the 50D is forthcoming!).  Definitely one worth adding to the reader!
8. The Online Photographer – Not the usual fare, as TOP can get very professorial.  I learn a lot though, and gain insights and get creative inspiration from the photographers and works they discuss here.  The entire staff is great, but my favorite writers are Mike himself and Ctein!
9. Photojojo – What a great blog, creative ways to use your photos all the time.  Not only are the ideas cool, but almost always they are highly economical.  Definitely for the DIY-er!  They also have great photo montages periodically, so also great for inspiring some creative vision!
10. Photoshop Insider – Want to get the latest scoop on Photoshop and photography in general?  Scott has taken a a great Photoshop resource and in the last year, merged it into his own foray into photography from the perspective of being behind the camera.

There’s my top ten blogs for 2010.  It’s certainly not definitive, definitely biased, and subject to change at a moments notice, but as of today, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!  What are your favorite photo-related blogs?  Now’s a chance to shamelessly promote your work (or your friends work) in the comments!

1. What was my best photo?
2. What was my biggest accomplishment?
3. What software/hardware really stood out above the rest for me?
4. What was my favorite book of the year that I read?
5. What new blog became a staple in my reading?

So, rather than me telling you, this year you have an opportunity to tell me what your favorites are!  Feel free to sound off in the comments or via email…the address as always is jason<at>canonblogger<dot>com

In the blog notes for the week – the latest podcast is up, and lots of blog/podcast news to share.  I also took a more detailed look at photography and the law, and some of the resources I rely on.  Lastly, as always were the listener questions and answers.  Enjoy the show, and here’s the links/show notes:

Blog/Podcast Notes and News

• Canon Blogger Fan Page
• December Giveaway (theme is “Giving”)
• DIY Photography Article – Astrophotography
• Photofocus Article

Photograhy Legal Resources

• Photographers Rights
• The Photo Attorney
• Jack Resnicki and Ed Greenburg in Photoshop User Magazine

Listener Questions and Answers

Enjoy the show – as an added bonus I added another link in the show notes that wasn’t actually IN the show.  Anyone know which one it is?  Winner is the first person who guesses right in the comments!  Oh yeah, and here’s a link to the show on PLM and iTunes!

So, that’s it for this week – looking forward to hearing people’s thoughts of the year!  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here again on Monday, have a great weekend!

• First up, the finalists of the $500 giveaway have been determined.  These six finalists are being considered to win a pretty impressive package of stuff including a Thinktank Photo Multimedia Bag System and a complete set of the Topaz Labs Photoshop Bundle.  View the finalists gallery here.

• Next up, a recommendation:  Even if you aren’t a subscriber to the Rangefinder Magazine (although you should be), you can read the current issue online here, (it’s a PDF download) which includes in the most recent issue an interview of none other than David Hobby, founder and author of the world-famous Strobist blog.

• From Scott over at one of my favorite daily reads (Weekly Photo TIps), there is a new PBS series starting this week on National Parks.  I am definitely setting the DVR for this series!

• As a longtime fan of DIY-projects, this one on making a tripod for your P&S (or iPhone) out of a paperclip was just too cool to leave out of the list.

• And finally, for those that just insist on getting a photo fix regularly, visit former contest winner John Dunne’s blog, My Chi to see a great dilemma as he is torn between a color and a black and white version of a sunrise scene on the Promenade (psst….I like the black and white version!)…

Well, that’s it for today, be sure to stop back tomorrow for another dose of inspiration as we hit the midway point of the week (a.k.a. hump day)!  Happy shooting and we’ll see you then…

Here’s where reader input is going to be what makes or breaks the content – that’s right, I am putting it all on the reading audience.  You can link to your own site in the comments, and the “Comment Luv” plugin will show the most recent post for fellow bloggers too.  Here’s what the content topics are to chose from (you can pick one, two, three, or all of the topics to address in your comment):

1. What are your favorite iPhone/iTouch applications (for photography)?
2. Who would you like to see guest-write here on the blog (you can include yourself too)?
3. If Canon Blogger were to start a monthly newsletter, what would you like to see in said newsletter?
4. If Canon Blogger were to start publishing eBooks for download, what topics would you like to see addressed?
5. What one photo tip would you share with others above all else to help improve their photography (and “Take off the lenscap” is not allowed! LOL)

The best part of this?  Some lucky commenter will win a $25 gift card to B&H Photo from yours truly!  Yup, no sponsors, no tricks, no gimmicks, no nothin’ but free moolah to the best photo store on the planet!  All out of my pocket!  What am I looking for?  Useful content and ideas that will help me generate more resources to share with everyone.  So, get your thinking caps on and get to commenting.  If you post a comment and think of something later, feel free to add it – but your name can only be “entered” in the Comment Contest once!

When does it end?  Midnight Sunday!  (August 30, 2009 – so if you are reading through archives and this is like March 15th, 2035, sorry, the contest is over…)

And speaking of contests, you also only have three days left to get your shots into the Flickr thread for the “Win a Wacom” contest!  The contest pool of entries has increased a tad bit, but you can’t win if you don’t play, so get a shot or two in over the weekend – as they say at the Lotto – “Hey, ya never know!”

Finally, on this last Friday of August, I’d like to share yet again, an absolutely hysterical strip from What The Duck (I shared it earlier this week), but this  just floored me, so had to give another shout out for those that haven’t picked up WTD in your readers yet (and you should!).  So, have a laugh, then have some fun and share your thoughts – the sky is the limit.  Have a great weekend everyone and we’ll see you back here on Monday!

Scott is a regular contributor to Mac Break Weekly, This Week in Photography, and owner/operator of PhotoFocus.  You can find him there, via his Bourne Media Group online presence and a bazillion other places like Photoshop World, Aperture Nature Photography Workshops, Bosque Del Apache, and much much more.  I could link to it all but that would take an entire post of it’s own, so will point you to his main presence at Photofocus and Twitter:

http://www.photofocus.com

http://www.twitter.com/scottbourne

We had a great talk on this week’s show, covering his photo background from Motocross to Wedding work, and of course his Avian work as well.  We took a look at a little of the gear side, got some nuggets on branding and the business side, and even had a chance for a couple twitter questions.  Great stuff and all packed into a mere 30 minute interview!  Thanks again to Scott for taking the time to talk to me on the podcast!

Other content from the show includes a discussion on some of the things to consider on matting and framing (hence mats in the title), and an in-depth look at the finalists from the last LDP contest.  There’s also nuggets and links for other contests out on the web as well as what to look for in future LDP contests, so some teaser stuff there too.  All in all, a great (but long) show so grab it from your preferred source point, whether with the folks at PLM, or in iTunes!

Here’s the links, as promised from the show!

Mats and Framing

1. American Frame
2. Redimat
3. Guide to Preservation Matting

Contests

1. OnOne Top Ten Finalists
2. Wacom Giveaway
3. Bogen Imaging Macro Giveaway
4. Music/Band Photography Contest

Gear: Ring Flash

1. Canon Ring Flash
2. RayFlash
3. Metz Ring Flash

Technique: Causes of Blur

1. Camera shake
2. Subject Shake
3. Sharpness/Depth of Field

So, there’s the link love for the show – it was a lof of fun this week, but the weekend is almost upon us.  This Saturday it’s another photoshoot with the Meetup Group and then some night photography as I prep for the next article of PhotographyBB Magazine! Make sure you get out and do some shooting too.  Have a good weekend everyone and we’ll see you back here on Monday!  Happy shooting!

Grab the Feed

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 while longer, but tried to keep things managable.  On our discussion we learn about his HDR work, his printing work, and his travels from within an Airstream.  He’s got some great stories including mountain lions, sock puppets, and much more.

A couple administrative notes and links from the show.

Here’s links to Rich’s website and his blog, as well as his book, The Digital RV

A couple other things we talked about included:

Arctic Butterfly sensor Cleaner

Bert Gildart’s Photography

Stuck in Customs

Also, don’t forget the OnOne Software Plugin Suite 4.5 Giveaway is coming to an end soon!  You could win this software suite, valued at $500 retail just by entering your “Numbers” themed photo (taken in July) over at the Flickr thread before July 31st.  Good luck and I expect a lot of entries will be coming soon as people reveal the fruits of their labor, and the results of their work over the month (especially given the photo walk from this last weekend)!   I could amuse you with more, but then would have nothing for tomorrow, so don’t forget to stop back in for another fun day of photography news, information and discussion.  Happy shooting everyone!

Grab the Feed

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 Twitter
• www.w3schools.com

Shooting Fireworks

• Use a tripod
• Make sure you have spare batteries (and fully charge all batteries)
• Shoot with a low ISO
• Set your shutter between 4-8 seconds for best results
• Try adjusting the zoom in or out for attention grabbing light trails

Enjoy the show, hosted by the folks over at Personal Life Media!  Happy shooting, and be sure to share your own tips and tricks for shooting fireworks by tomorrow and I’ll try to put all of them together along with some (hopefully) inspiring photos for enjoyment.  In the spirit of the show, don’t forget the trailing question:  What was your first camera?

So, anyway, here’s my Friday Fab Five Photoshop shortcuts and what they do:

1. CMD/CTRL+J = duplicates your existing layer
2. CRTL+ALT+SHIFT+E = Stamp Visible  This takes all your visible layers and merges them onto a new layer.  Increases file size, but very cool
3. CMD/CTRL+’ = (yes, that’s apostrophe) – it activates the grid in your preferences.  Since my grid is set to every 33.33% and one subdivision, it basically shows a Rule of Thirds grid overlay on my images – very handy for compositional cropping
4. Left and right brackets – decrease and increase your active brush, whether it’s for clone stamp, healing brush, eraser, history brush – whatever
5. Alt+Eyedropper = you can drag the eyedropper outside of Photoshop to sample a color in another application (great for color matching)

So, those are my five for this friday – what are yours?  Sound off in the comments!  In the meantime, have a great weekend and happy shooting! I’ll leave you with my favorite What the Duck cartoon of the week:

Grab the Feed

BAMBOO FUN!

So, here’s a little teaser video for those that are interested:

This might be fodder for an upcoming contest or giveaway, but only time will tell, so keep your fingers crossed.   In the meantime, here’s the rest of the Friday news:

• Get a good laugh at What the Duck (here’s my favorite)
  
• 

• Check out Jason Moore’s blog – he draws something positive from my negative too (thanks Jason!)
• Rob Weiher keeps capturing unique and fun imagery in his 365 Project
• A neat nugget about Flash card speeds that I didn’t know about

Okay all, that’s it – been a crazy busy week, and I am tired, but also geared up for the weekend.  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here next week for hopefully a little more of an uplifting series of content!

Grab the Feed

• The last day to enter your photos for the Lightroom giveaway is super close – so get your shots in the Flickr thread here pretty soon!
• Adobe updated the ACR to 5.4 (still in beta), and is downloadable here
• Canon announced some firmware updates and break/fix news on some of its SLR lines.  Tune into the podcast for details.
• My Pick of the Week:  Photoshop Insider
• Scott Kelby’s Worldwide Photowalk
• Chuck Conder’s Flickr Thread (listen to find out why…)
• Wireless USB Dongle from Engadget

Seriously folks, don’t miss out on your chance for a free copy of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom!  Get your photos in today!  A $30o retail value and free from the folks over at Adobe – in this economy we could all use a little help and Adobe is being very generous here.

Well, that’s about all for this week.  Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you back here on Monday – as we head out for the weekend, don’t forget to have fun out there.  With that in mind, here’s my favorite WTD from this past week – so fitting for my job in IT!

Happy Shooting!

ETA:  Thanks to reader Don for reminding me about the link to the PhotographyBB magazine article.  You can download the full magazine here

Grab the feed

Volumes exist on what lenses to use, how to light, depth of fieldand much much more, but perhaps the most valuable information on how to take great portraits comes not just from technical awareness, but from personal interactions, and how to get people to act natural yet emotive and to let that come through in your work.  While no blog post could entirely exhaust the subject, here are ten quick tips on taking better portraits:

1. Establish a connection – portraiture is about connecting with someone through the image.  If you don’t connect with them through the camera, then there will be no connection in the print.  Make sure you connect with your subjects in some way.  Get to know about them, because that knowledge can transform your vision into really beautiful works of art.
2. Relax the subject – Connecting with your subject means they feel comfortable around you – now the key is to get them to feel comfortable in front of the camera.  Many times this is much easier said than done, but when you do get them to relax, the poses will come more fluidly, and you’ll get better results.  One way I do this is to just start taking pictures of things around us as we talk and connect.  The whole idea of hearing the shutter can be scary to some people, so by hearing it almost to excess and know it’s not on them can mitigate the “scary” factor.
3. Choose a background – if you are in a studio environment, this is fairly easy, but if you are on location, keep your eyes out for backgrounds that provide contrast to the subject.  Are they wearing light clothes?  Look for a dark background.  What about props to give a little more meaning.  Are they sports fans?  Have them hold a football, or stand by a basketball hoop.  Backgrounds can help give more definition to your subject.
4. Have a purpose – try to think of reasons why you are taking the picture.  Is it to record an event, or is it for a model?  What about a head shot for a business executive?  If you think of why you are taking the picture in the first place, that can help give you ideas for how to compose it.  For the event, it’s about the moment, while the portrait it’s about just the person, so give some thought to how to enhance their best qualities and minimize flaws.
5. Create separation – this is crucial to giving definition to your subject while minimizing distractions.  In the on-location areas, look out for things like power lines, nearby light sources and other objects that may detract from the subject.  Here it also helps to keep a wider aperture so that any distractions can be effectively blurred out of focus to minimize their impact.
6. All about the angles – Some people have great profiles.  Striking features can be accented from certain angles and can give greater impact and meaning.  Shooting from below can suggest power and strength (for the business executive), while shooting from above can minimize a body style that is more robust.  Even profile shots can be stunning if done right (hint:  try shadows there).
7. Lights, lights, lights – photography is all about painting with light, so portraiture is no exception.  Whether it be modifying existing light with reflectors, diffusers and shoot throughs, or creating your own light with strobes and flashes positioned off to the side or from above, lighting can create a wide variety of moods and bring images to life, especially in portraiture!
8. Watch the eyes – for any subject, whether human or animals, we like to have the eyes in focus.  It’s just the nature of people to look at the eyes in a subject, so make sure the eyes of yours are tack sharp.  Seeing a persons eyes have often been said to be a mirror to their soul.  You can get playful eyes, soulful eyes, sad eyes, sparkling eyes, weepy eyes, tear-stained eyes, angry eyes, hungry eyes, passionate eyes… (you get the eye-dea!)
9. Clean that skin tone – this means make sure that you are keeping the tones in check.  If the skin is too orange or too blue, add or remove some flash or ambient light.  Here the key is in white balancing your images.  Take along a grey card (even something as small as a 3×5 card can work) and you can set your white balance off that – your skin tones will be spot on if you do – and save you tons of post processing time.
10. Less is not always more – let’s all just admit it, it’s a digital world.  Those pictures are really just data packets and with data being as cheap as it is, we can afford to take more shots.  This can help with blinkers, and if you want to try several poses or wardrobe changes, or lighting changes, or location changes, or group changes (think weddings). or weather changes (think sunlight versus rain, versus cloudy), or….I think the gist is clear again here.

So, there’s ten nuggets.  I tried to be brief yet have some detail, but you can never have enough time or space to really cover something with so much to talk about in a short blog post.  With that in mind, what about your thoughts on portraiture?  Add to the pool!  Got any ideas, DIY tricks or nuggets that work for you?  Share them in the comments or via email.

Before signing out for the day, I’d like to give some special thanks to a few people.  First to Derrick Story for the helpful link from his blog post today about the tethered shooting write-up.  It’s always nice to get what I like to call “a nod from the Gods”, but not only did he write a post about my write-up, he also submitted it to the Imaging Insider, who subsequently included the write up on their site.    Second up, I’d also like to throw some NAPP-Love back to Karen from “Pursuing Photoshop” (a.k.a. Mitzs in the blogosphere, also a member of NAPP) for her link back to the Adobe Photoshop Lightroom contest currently running here on the blog – thanks Mitzs!

Oh yeah, and finally, don’t forget the Photoshop Lightroom contest I announced in last week’s podcast – it’s running over in a thread on Flickr, and the images are starting to come in.  Some really nice ones so far, but there’s plenty of time left in May to enter!  Good luck to everyone!  Well, enough content for one day, so happy shooting and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.

What’s kind of exciting about that article, is that not only did Jason find it interesting enough to include with the collection of folks that have been featured thus far on his blog, but the good folks (Hi Dave!) over at Photography BB have released their latest free online magazine, and the article was included in there as well!  (I must be doing something right!  *grin*)  Be sure to download that magazine as well, because there really are some talented writers and photographers sharing their perspectives.  I’m also honored that Dave has included the CB Learning Digital Photography podcast in his list of favorite online media sources for photography (we’re #1 in the audio section – woOt!).

When it rains, ir really does pour!  However, because of the interview with Mr. Hogarty, the podcast is thus delayed again, because the two themes of Listener Questions and Answers and Questions with Adobe seamed together pretty well.  I may have it compiled early enough to post before the weekend, but don’t expect any miracles there.  More likely that will be published next week Tuesday under the software heading of the new schedule (since it’s about Lightroom – there’s also some great links you’ll want in the show notes).

For today though, I do have a little maintenance announcement as well: for those of you picking up the blog via Feedburner, you will likely be getting a double dose of images, because as promised, I am also uploading the images from yesterday’s post to share on Flickr, so you will likely see some repetition there.  It’s also a little exciting to share that the feedburner subscription hit an all time high not once but twice this week of 691 listeners/readers.  So, thanks to everyone that has signed up – it really means a lot that so many have found the CB resource useful!

That’s about it for this first Friday in May – have a great weekend everyone!  Happy Shooting and we’ll catch you back here on Monday for the latest in the hardware reviews.  I’ll leave you with one of my favorite selections from this past week in the What the Duck series:

• News Links –
  • Ansel Adams Video
  • Getty ventures into China for Asian collections
  • Yahoo adds YouTube and iTunes Integration
• Artist Statement Resources
  • Photo on Blogs
  • Art Business
  • Writing the Artist Statement

Another news item I forgot to mention in the podcast is an upcoming web seminar series for photographers, free, from Adobe.  Here’s the dates:

• Photoshop: April 23rd
• Lightroom: April 9th and May 7th
• Both: May 14th

Link for more info and to register is here

Make sure you stop in and grab the podcast from the good folks over at Personal Life Media, and visit our show sponsor Lensbaby if you are thinking about the Lensbaby Composer.  Diggs from PLM and reviews from iTunes are encouraged, welcomed, and appreciated!  Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here tomorrow! 

Don’t forget, you can email me from the show link with any questions, comments, feedback or thoughts, as well as share comments here, and reviews on iTunes.  For those without iTunes or Zune, I can provide an mp3 version of the show on request.

Without further ado, here’s the latest in the revived Thursday thoughts series, with Scott Eccleston!

Q:  Hi Scott, welcome and thanks for agreeing to participate in the latest edition of the Thursday Thoughts series.  Since everyone always wants to know some of the basics, so let’s get a few things out of the way at once here…first up, ow long have you been a photographer?

A:  I got my first digital point and shoot in 2003…

Q:  So, that means you’ve been shooting digital for about 6 years now.  What kind of gear do you shoot with (i.e. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax)?

A:  Nikon, not to feed into the “Nikon vs. Canon” feud, it was because of familiarity. My first camera was a Nikon, then I upgraded to a Nikon 8700 (looking back, it was not much of an upgrade), then a D70, then to a D200, and now a D300 (but there is this persistent fantasy that involves a D3x)…

Q:  No worries about brand wars here – I think the CB readership knows it’s about the person behind the lens (and in front).  What about film?  Ever dabbled in that prior to digital?

A:  No film, never shot film – as Vincent Versace says “film is what you grows on your teeth when you don’t brush” 

Q:    Who’s Vincent Versace?  Just kidding!  What about post production – do you work on a mac, PC, Linux, or some combo?

A:  PC…

Q:  And let’s go completely off topic for a moment:  Chocolate, Vanilla or Strawberry?

A:  STRAWBERRY!

Q:  Nice!  Well, now that we’ve gotten the basic sundry stuff out of the way, I like to get others insights on various aspects of your work – and this often starts with the critique.  Photographers often enjoy hearing helpful and constructive critiques of their work, as we are aware of how much we can grow from it.  However, we’ve also all had the “nice shot” and “cool” comments when we’ve shared our work.   With that setup, what would you say was the singular most useful critique or comment you’ve ever had on work you’ve shared publicly?

A:  It was a critique about composition – “cinematic approach to photography”. Film makers (and film shooters) do not have the luxury of cropping; thought and planning are an important part of their image composition. Because I started shooting digital I adopted the “I’ll crop that out” that evolved into the “I’ll fix that in Photoshop” mindset that is too common with digital shooters. Confession, I began as a lazy photographer, I used Photoshop as a sledgehammer, now I use it as an emery board. I use it so infrequently now that when I do, it takes me a moment to orient myself to the workspace. And I don’t use it to “fix” an image, I use it for a black and white conversion or to edit something I had no control over at the time of the shoot (like blemish removal). I learned that if I spent more time getting it right in camera not only did I spend less time in post production, I was getting better quality images.

Sorry, I was rambling, but this is fundamental building block in my evolution as a photographer (and I could ramble on, and on, and…).

Q:  Heh, again, no worries – I’ve been known to wax on and on myself.  Speaking of waxing, just the other day I was…oh, wait, sorry, getting off topic there.  Back on the subject of critique… if someone was asking you for an honest critique of their work, what 3 factors would you look at most (excluding friendships or family relatives, we’re talking professional or fellow photographer-types here)?

A:  The first thing would be to determine if they really want an “Honest Critique”.

1. Intent
2. Technique
3. Execution

Q:  What happened to the rambling nature?  Again, just kidding, but I like the approach – it shows how you approach capturing your own images!  Speaking of capturing your own images, as we’ve seen the post process mature in programs like Photoshop and other software options,  new ways to create images are presenting wider options and possibilities. If you had to choose between the gear or the software as the only way to create, which would it be and why?

A:  GEAR! The software should be used to complement your work, not create it.

Q:  Heh, well, it shows in your skillwith which you execute your imagery.  Speaking of which, you’ve got a great body of work!  In that vein, if you had to pick three pictures out of your entire portfolio to represent your approach to photography, or your artistic vision, which ones would you pick and why?

A:  Each of these images represents a first for me…

This was taken with my point and shoot and was the first image that said something to me, that evoked an emotion. It was the image that made me want to learn more about photography (and spend a ton of money on gear in the process).

This was the first of my images that said something to others. I was new to the Portland (Maine) Camera Club and had just started submitting to print competitions, during the critique one of the judges (who is a well established professional photographer) said “this is one of the best black and whites I have seen here”.

This is the first time I had an idea for an image that came out exactly as I had envisioned it.

Q:  Wow!  These are great ones, and I can see why you chose them.  Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts, work, and input here on the blog.  Are there any final thoughts you’d like to share about the state of photography or any catch phrases that you keep in mind when shooting?

A:  There are two things about the state of photography that have drawn me in and make me want to stay:

• When photographers discover new things, new techniques, instead of hiding it like a closely guarded secret; they share it with the rest of the world. Sites like Strobist and people like you are great examples of this.
• In keeping with that theme, most photographers seem to have little interest or desire in being better than another photographer, they just have a desire to be a better photographer.

Thank you for inviting me here Jason.

Thank you Scott, the pleasure has been all mine (as is the same for the readers of the blog)!  Remember, you can find out more about Scott, his Weekly Photo Tips, and his professional body of work on the web too, so be sure to stop over and enjoy everything he has to offer!

Here’s the rest of the show notes:

Here’s the links from news items I talked about:

• Pinhole Camera Day
• Mamiya 33 MP DL33 News
• TipSquirrel
• Wordle
• Terry Reinert
• Christian Science Monitor Article on starting a photography business
• Get the free 0.6 X Wide Angle with Macro conversion lens when you buy a Lensbaby Composer

Listener Questions

• How do you fix the Canon 99 Error?
• What does the term “sync speed” mean?
• What does kerning refer to in typography?

Listen in to the podcast over at Personal Life Media for the answers and full details on all the show segments.  In the meantime, what does your shutter sound like?   It doesn’t even have to be a Canon camera, listen to your camera whether it’s Canon Nikon, Olympus, Sony, Pentax, Panasonic, Leica, Hasselblad, etc! Find out why in the podcast up now over at Personal Life Media!  Thanks for stopping by the blog, and for all your kind words during the flu bug bout.  Enjoy the podcast, then go out and do y’all some shootin’!  See you back here tomorrow!

The “Name Your Dream Assignment” is in full swing – you can describe your ideal dream photo assignment and with enough votes (it’s entirely a popularity contest) you could win $50,ooo toward actually getting it done!  I did an entry just for the heck of it as well.  If you would like to enter the contest (or vote on my entry, stop over here:  Win a Dream Assignment You’ll probably notice a graphic for it in the sidebar too…

Also, a reminder that the Twitter/Blogging poll I set up a few days back is a month-long poll here, so if you’ve not stopped in to vote and share your thoughts, feel free to do so.  Quick link to the poll is here You can also follow my updates on Twitter here

For those of you that read the comments like I do, you’ll notice that Terry Reinert had some extensive and interesting insights on the bracketing posts I did a short time ago.  He’s got some excellent work over on his own site, so I would highly encourage you to visit.  Here’s the link:  http://www.tkrphoto.com

Kind of a busy day so I’ll leave you with those web links.  If anyone has some useful resources or sites that you’d like to share – feel free to email me or post in the comments section – consider today a web link day and most any post to the comments will be allowed unless it’s blatant spam.  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

First off, I’ve done some further tweaking to give a little more consistency and structure to the show for your listening pleasure.  The three segments that I am going to try to regularly stick to will be:

1. News, Events, and Information from around the community and industry – here I’ll share nuggets, information, and other useful snippets from the most recent days and weeks of activity within the photography community.  Sometimes I’ll share information that’s available elsewhere, and other times I’ll offer my own perspectives on the news and events that shape the industry.
2. Authors and Artists from within and related to the industry of photography are also an area I would like to devote some time to since the Thursday Thoughts series has not seen much attention lately (not that I am planning to either – I think it’s just on sabbatical!), and I had the good fortune of actually sitting down with an area professional recently which provided a source of inspiration for this weeks show.
3. Sources of Inspiration – As artists I think we are always searching for and discovering new sources of inspiration.  Often these can come from well known venues such as photography magazines, galleries, and the like, but I am not adverse to featuring unusual or new sources either.  This week, I will be featuring an unusual source of inspiration, so make sure you stop in for this segment too!

To find out why these links are all up and on the blog, make sure to stop over to Personal Life Media and grab this weeks show! For the link grabbers, here you are:

• TWIP on the Panasonic
• The Online Photography on the Panasonic
• PhotoJoJo
• Photographic Dictionary
• Canon Firmware
• Adobe Updates
• One Million Faces
• Peggy Dyer
• One Million Faces Photo Galleries (The first 5 are kinda cool! )
• Sunny 16
• David Ziser

That’s it for today all! Enjoy the show, and we’ll see you back here bright and early tomorrow (well, maybe not so early, as I still have an on-going problem with the sandman! LOL) Happy shooting!

P.S. I am still including a copy of the show locally, so you can grab it from here if you like too. Don’t forget, we still have a poll going on re: Twitter and Blogging, so if you’ve not voted yet, vote here!

So, this last weekend I went on the photo meetup group outing for the month of February into Eldorado State Park, south of Boulder, and had many an opportunity to capture some landscape and macro work. Some great views were had and I only hope that they all come out as well as this one did. While hiking up a trail of slippery snow and ice (it was cold out Saturday morning), I saw this fissure that was pretty intense looking because it was only partially lit. I thought about it for a second and decided to bracket some exposures to see if it would turn out with some HDR massaging. Not only did it turn out better than I would have thought, I was also very pleased with how Photomatix did with this. I would highly recommend this software to anyone interested in HDR work. Not only is it more intuitive than Photoshop, the results were much more gratifying! You can buy Photomatix for PS, Lightroom and for either Windows or a Mac over at www.HDRsoft.com.

Some other web links I learned about recently also include www.fotoblur.com and www.usefilm.com Both are much more cognizant and respective of photography copyright than other social and photo networking sites like Flickr and Facebook (we all know about the Facebook Terms of Service fiasco, right?). One thing I like about both Fotoblur and Flickr is that you are limited in how many images you can upload daily. This requires you to be more careful about what you publish, and as a result, you are more thoughtful and objective of what work is worth posting and sharing online.

Last but not least, the podcast that I had intended to put out last week was delayed for a few days as I put the finishing touches up on a home improvement project. (We finished out one of the basement rooms – expect to see some photos on that makeover forthcoming!) The good news is that not only is the basement room on the verge of completion, but that the podcast is up for this week. Naturally, the title of the podcast will match the blog post title, as the show notes follow closely to todays content. Stop on over to Personal Life Media for the show, or pick it up in iTunes! (Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the review section of iTunes too…the more the merrier!)

Until tomorrow, when I’ll have some more HDR shots to share, keep on shooting – hope all your shots are good ones!

Well, I completely lost track of the week and did not get the weekly podcast recorded in time for publication today.  So, while I could have gone with the alliterative “Forgetful Friday” blog title, I figured that would have been a little too on the nose.  So, instead, I’ll share the exciting news that the latest issue of PhotographyBB magazine has been published.  Dave Seeram, editor-in-chief, announced it a few days ago on the website, so do stop over and download the latest article now. Make sure you take a peek at the article Photography Food for Thought (pgs 19-22), it was the contribution of yours truly to this months issue!  Of course the rest of the magazine is a worthwhile read too.  I particularly enjoyed Dave’s article on Photoshop Retouching.  He’s got a unique balance of technical expertise and translating that skill to the written word. Thanks go out to Dave and the entire publishing crew over at PhotographyBB for another opportunity to share an article with a wider audience than is here at CB!

That’s it for this week.  Happy shooting, have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here Monday with the belated podcast!

Seeing projects come to completion can be a motivating force and can drive inspiration, so I’ve also brought myself current with the latest photography magazines.  Most especially relevant for today was the latest issue of Rangefinder magazine.  The web version can be found at www.rangefindermag.com and is enjoyable to be sure, but the print version really shows so much better.  Get your copy off newstands  – this issue is well worth it!  Artists such as Dixie Dixon and Jay Stock give a great dose of inspiration and demonstrate that anyone can be successful if you have the passion and inspiration, no matter if you are new to photography or have been around the block a few times.  Also in this issue is an excellent article on creating your own fine art photography books.  The price tag is high, but the end results seem pretty amazing!

From the blog front:

• I also would like to take a moment to thank Crash Taylor again for his Thursday Thoughts interview last week.  Some great imagery in there also serve as excellent sources of inspiration, so be sure to stop over at his site and see the latest developments he has to offer.  Thanks Crash!

• For those of you that have not downloaded the podcast yet, be sure to take some time to give it a listen – you can win the new Streetwalker backpack from Think Tank Photo!  I did my review on the show, and am giving the back to some lucky listener.  Find out how by listening to the show.  It’s a $140 value and you can have it for free!  How’s that for a dose of inspiration?

Feel free to share your images too – remember, at the end of the month, I will be doing a montage of all the images submitted to the “Flat” theme thread over at the Canon Blogger Flickr presence to feature here on the blog, so get in while you can to win fame and fortune!  (Well, maybe not, but it’s always fun to see your images online, right?)

As you may have noticed if you’re picking up the feed, I am also uploading all the “What’s This” images to the Canon Blogger Flickr Pool.  As that content arc has ended, I thought it might be fun and of interest to see the entire gallery of photos that have gone up on that subject over a period of roughly 23 weeks.  (Almost half a year of images there to rack your brain on!)

As we head into the weekend, be sure to take your camera with you -never know when a photo opportunity will present itself, so as the Boy Scouts always said:  “Be Prepared!”  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here Monday morning!

[podcast]http://www.canonblogger.com/wp-content/uploads/audio/CBPodcast64.mp3[/podcast]