Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Zinio

I wanted to pass along word about a great application that I've been using lately called Zinio.

Zinio is an e-reader application for electronic magazines and books.  I used this application many years ago and it was just in its infancy then so it left some things to be desired.  However, the newest version is great!  Fully featured, flexible, and easy to use.

Chances are that if you read a magazine, it's probably offered in electronic version on Zinio at or below what you pay for the paper version.  The benefit of Zinio, of course, is that it's digital and it's cross-platform.  You can build a nice digital library with no use of physical space, it's fully searchable, etc.  You can zoom in on your content for a better look, email content, bookmark, etc.  The magazines are the exact same versions you get on the newsstand.  They are not stripped of anything, like you'll find with some other e-readers that strip content to make it fit their device.

There are versions of Zinio for the iPhone and iPad, Windows computers, and Android devices.  It's a great evolution for this application.

Give it a try!  You might find yourself reading and enjoying your magazines and books on your laptop, iPhone, iPad or other device more than you ever did with the paper versions.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Canon EOS 7D Custom Functions

Here is a link to a good write-up on the Canon CPS web site about the Custom Functions on the 7D.  It goes into a little more detail than the manual and I found it useful for tweaking a few of my settings.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Cape Wind

In my previous post on this topic, I spoke about how surprised I was that the Cape Wind project in the US has taken so long to get off the ground and how it has received so much backlash from the local communities where it will be located (off shore and mostly out of site!).

The opposition to this project continues to amaze me, especially in light of the total disaster going on in the Gulf of Mexico with the oil spill. It's truly shocking that even an ecological disaster can't sway people to support this project.

For those of you with open minds and a desire to do something right, read about the Cape Wind project at this link and support it however you can.

Friday, June 18, 2010

14 Powerful TED Talks by Photographers

I picked up this link from a newsletter that I get and wanted to post it here.

For those of you who don't know what "TED-Ideas Worth Spreading" is, you can check it out at this link.

Recently on TED they posted a series of talks by leading photographers, and a website called Peta Pixel gathered them together at this link called "14 Powerful TED Talks by Photographers".

Great stuff! Check it out...

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Thank you! 60 countries and almost 1,000 visits!

Pretty cool stuff!

Since I started this blog, it has gone global and has now been visited almost 1,000 times by people in 60 different countries! Click on the ClustrMap at the top right side of the main page to see the details.

The map indicates that repeat visitors are coming back to read the blog more than once, which is also good news. I'm glad people find this interesting enough to return!

Thanks to everyone who took the time to send me an email at photolife@comcast.net. It was fun to hear people's thoughts from various parts of the world.

Let's knock this over 1,000 visits! Enjoy!

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Favorite photography books

I like to read photography books, specifically those about techniques that I'm interested in. I find the photos, stories from the author, and general discussions very valuable.

The thing with photography instruction, concept, and technique books is that if you don't relate well to the author's writing and instruction style then the book quickly becomes a big bore and not worth reading. Those books quickly find their way to the bottom of my bookshelf...

I'm glad to say that over the past year or so, I've found seven books that I can highly recommend to anyone looking to improve their photography. Some of these books focus on specific techniques, but don't let that put you off if that particular technique is not what you're interested in.

The reason I say that is because the general discussion in every one of these books is valuable regardless of the technique that they're focused on. For example, take Michael Freeman's book "Perfect Exposure". While this book is definitely about mastering the art of exposure and how to use exposure to express yourself more creatively with your photos, it also has very valuable general discussions about light, photo design, and "seeing your subject". Regardless of what Freeman is trying to teach in this book about exposure, those discussions are worth the cost on their own. So you really get two benefits in one!

These authors all have different writing styles for sure, and they all succeed at driving home their points with interesting stories and good photo examples.

So...Here is my list of some of my current favorite photography books that I think anyone can benefit from:

- "Perfect Exposure" - Michael Freeman
- "The Photographer's Eye" - Michael Freeman
- "On-Camera Flash" - Neil van Niekerk
- "The Hot Shoe Diaries" - Joe McNally
- "The Moment It Clicks" - Joe McNally
- "Take Your Photography to the Next Level" - George Barr
- "Night & Low Light Photography" - Jill Waterman