A readers "Dave Hill" image..

Thanks to Ceci for taking the time to send us her faux "Dave Hill" image...

Click on the image to view it larger.

"My men before & after"

The "faux" Dave Hill look...

I had a lot of people ask me what I did to two of the images from last weeks Veterans Day parade.

Last spring I had a post that showed folks how they could (barely) emulated the Dave Hill look.

You can find the tutorial here and it's really pretty quick and easy.

Should you give it a try please share the results, we'd all love to see them.

Click on any image to view larger and in a new window.

Model photography...

Here are some shots from a recent session, it was the first time I worked with Penelope and first shoots (like first dates) can be kinda awkward and clunky, but this went well.

We were going for subtle and understated and I think we hit the mark.

If I can give one piece of advice, when shooting anything, shoot away even after your subject thinks it's over as this is when you get some good stuff.

Image 2 was taken after I told Penelope to "take a break" and image 5 was while she was having a conversation with my assistant.

Candid is king.

Click on any image to view larger and in a new window.

One of my favorite podcasts, "Digital Photography Life"...

One of my favorite photography podcasts is (eerrrr, was) "The Digital Photography Show" with Scott Sherman and Michael Stein.

If it had to do with photography chances are they not only talked about it, they also had an informative guest to boot, so you can imagine how disappointed I was when the show suddenly and mysteriously ended.

And if you (like me) wonder what happened the "The Digital Photography Show" you can get the facts directly from the horses mouth at Scott's blog.

The most important fact is that Scott and Michael are back on the podcasting circuit with their new show "Digital Photography Life".

As if listening to Digital Photography Life isn't enough (trust me it is, it's photography candy for the mind) they give away great prizes on their show and through their contests.

Some of my phoDOGraphy…

I humbly submit some of my dog images for your review and critique (click on any image to view larger & in a new window):

Today's Veterans Day Parade...

Here are some images from today's parade that was held in our little town of Biddeford Maine (click on any image to view larger):

Veterans Day 2008...

How come no one told me about Camera Dojo?

About a week ago I stumbled across Camera Dojo and was blown away.

Not sure which was more surprising, how good it is, or how I've missed it for so long.

No doubt it was a large (right wing) conspiracy to keep me in the dark, everyone knew about it but didn't tell me (much like the guy who is walking around with toilet paper stuck to the heal of his shoe), snickering at my ignorance.

;)

But seriously, here is a screen shot of the categories:

Sure, sure, anyone can have a good looking list of the things that they cover, not only do they cover them at Camera Dojo, they do an outstanding job.

They cover subjects with the depth and detail that leaves you completely informed.

A website was not enough, they also have a podcast, forums, Flickr group, and blog.

And there is something for everyone, if you just picked up a camera for the first time yesterday, or have had one surgically attached to the end of your arm for years, there is something for you at Camera Dojo.

Their site is crisp, clean, well laid out, and easy to navigate.

So if you are one of the handful of people who didn't know about Camera Dojo, run - don't walk, over to their site! The rest of you can stop snickering now.

A free lunch for Veterans...

Actually, it's a free lunch to veterans and active duty military.

On Veterans Day, Tuesday November 11th Applebee's restaurant will give a free meal to all current and former military personnel.

From their website:

Select Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar restaurants (164 participating restaurants nationwide) invites all active duty and veterans to pull up a chair for a meal and heartfelt thanks this Veterans Day.

"It's an honor to host an event that helps the neighborhood come together and say thanks to our veterans and active servicemen and women." said Mike Archer, President, Applebee's.

You can read the details and fine print here.

It's easy to say thank you with words, it's more impressive to say thank you with your wallet.

This is a pretty impressive show of thanks.

A shout out to a friend...

One of the things I like about writing this blog is the people I meet. I have come in contact with (and gotten to know) folks from all over the world that otherwise would never have been known to me.

One of those people is Mike Palmer. You have "seen" him here before, his last visit here was when he wrote a review on "Digital Food Photography".

We have actually had the pleasure to sit down together with our families and break bread (well, we actually broke lobster) and I'm looking forward to their return to Maine next summer.

Anyway, I am a regular reader of Mikes blog, and I would encourage you to be one as well, he posts some great stuff.

So when you have a minute, give Mike a visit, and be sure to tell him I said hi.

Nikon releases major firmware update for D300...

A few days ago Nikon released a major firmware update/upgrade for the D300, here's a list of the fixes and new features. You will find the links to download the update are at the end of this post.

1. The Highlights playback option has been moved from Display Mode > Basic photo info > Highlights in the playback menu to Display mode > Detailed photo info > Highlights.
2. The size and color of "Demo" displayed in the monitor with playback when No memory card? in the Custom Settings has been set to Enable Release have been modified.
3. The range of settings available for ISO sensitivity settings > ISO sensitivity auto control > Minimum shutter speed in the shooting menu has been increased from 1/250 - 1s to 1/4000 - 1s.
4. When shooting in hand-held live view mode and the frame is magnified prior to auto focusing, operation has been modified so that display returns to the magnified display rather then the full frame display.
5. Images captured with Rotate tall, in the playback menu, set to On, are not automatically rotated for display immediately after capture (image review).
6. A Copyright information has been added to the setup menu. When Copyright information is enabled, the copyright symbol ( © ) is shown on the LCD display, Shooting info menu.
7. Recent settings can now be displayed in the place of My Menu.
8. Custom Setting e3 Flash cntrl for built in flash ( e3 Optional flash when an optional Speedlight is mounted on the camera) can now be added to My Menu using the Add items > Custom setting menu > Bracketing/ flash.
9. The degree of the High ISO NR setting can now be confirmed in the shooting info display while the High ISO NR setting item, in the shooting menu, is being applied.
10. Ankara, Riyadh, Kuwait, and Manama have been added to the Time zone options for the World time item in the setup menu.
11. When a GPS device is used and no heading information is available, --.--° is now displayed for the Position / Heading option in the GPS item in the setup menu.
12. When shooting in live view mode using Camera Control Pro 2 (ver. 2.2.0 or later) with a PC-E lens, the aperture setting can now be adjusted from the computer.
13. Focus acquisition performance in dynamic-area AF mode has been improved.
14. Focus acquisition performance with contrast-detect AF has been improved.
15. Auto white balance performance has been improved.
16. The fourth digit in seconds display for GPS latitude and longitude information is now rounded off rather than omitted.
17. The current MB-D10 battery type setting can now be confirmed in the shooting menu display when R6/AA- size batteries are used with the Multi-Power Battery pack MB-D10.
18. An issue that caused an increase in noise when shooting in [M] exposure mode at a shutter speed setting of bulb with the shutter held open for less than 8 seconds and Long exp. NR enabled has been resolved.
19. An issue that prevented shutter release at the specified shutter speed when no operations were performed for 30 seconds in mirror up mode has been resolved.
20. An issue that caused abnormal image display when Image review was set to On and the playback zoom in button was pressed immediately after shooting at the following settings has been resolved.
Image quality: NEF (RAW) + JPEG
NEF (RAW) recording: Lossless compressed or Compressed
Image size: S or M

21. When the Speedlight SB-800 was mounted on the camera with flash mode set to distance-priority manual (GN) mode, and the camera recovered from standby mode triggered by the auto meter off function, the distance information in the SB-800 changed. This issue has been resolved.

Windows users can get their update here.

MAC users can get their update here.

Please...

Cast your vote today.

The October 2008 photo contest winners...

The thing I love about this contest is all the beautiful images I get to look at, the bad thing is I can only pick two as winners.

And it's only coincidental that both of this months winners shoot Nikon.

;)

So, drum roll please...

The first October 2008 winner is Mark Pellegrino of New York City "New York City?" (ala Pace salsa commercials).


Location: New York City
Equipment Used: Nikon D700 and the 14-24 2.8 Ultra, ultra wide angle lens
Post Production: The post processing was done in Lightroom 2.0 with the de-saturation brush

From Mark: "This is clearly the 9-11 lights of New York last month on Sept 11, 2008. The tunnel you see is the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel entrance and the bridge in the back is the Verrazano Bridge. It was taken from the 20th floor of a residential building on Rector Street as the ceremony was going on. The lights were moved from the actual ground zero site to the top of this parking garage as construction has begun on the new freedom tower. Funny from afar I always thought they were two big spot lights. Turns out its about two sets of 50 spot lights."

The second winner is Sheri Lewis from sunny (and warm) Florida.

Location: Sarasota, Florida
Equipment Used: Nikon D50, Nikon DX 18-55mm Lens
Post Production: Adobe CS3, converted to Black & White and darkened the black silhouettes

From Sheri: "I'm an amateur photographer and was scouting a location for a friend's outdoor wedding, to see where the sun would set. I was walking the grounds and noticed how beautiful this tree's silhouette was with the sun setting behind it and the clouds just made it perfect. I wanted more contrast so converted it to Black & White and it came out beautiful."

It certainly did.

The prizes for Mark will be a ProShot 2 GB compact flash card from EdgeCorp and a compact flash case from Hakuba USA.

Sheri will be receiving a ProShot 2 GB Secure Digital (SD) card from EdgeCorp and a LensPen also from Hakuba USA.

Thanks to everyone who entered this month, the November contest is now open so start sending those beauties in!

It's Halloween and it's Molly's birthday...

My Daughter Molly turns 14 today and I am not really happy about time stealing my little girls.

When she was really little molly thought all the hoopla for Halloween was to celebrate her birthday, and of course I did nothing to dissuade her from thinking that.

Let me share two quick stories that shows what kind of person my Molly is.

Story 1:

She was 6 at the time, had long hair, way down her back long hair and one day came into the kitchen and announced to us that she wanted to have her hair cut off so she should could "donate to the company that makes wigs for sick kids", then she turned and walked away. Her mom and I just looked at each other until one of us finally said "where did that come from?".

Our plan was to just wait and see if it was something she still wanted in a few days. Well, by the end of the week she had bugged us so much that I was ready to let her shave her head, get tattoos, and join a biker gang.

So down to the hair solon, off came the hair and sent off to Locks of Love.

Story 2:

We really get into Christmas at our house, for weeks we'll tell elaborate stories about what we want most and why, and that year (it just happened to be the same year Molly cut her hair) I wanted a telescope. We had marked the day on the calendar when Santa was going to be at the fire station (he lands on the roof and comes down the big ladder to see the kids) and when the day finally arrived it was cold and the line was long, long, long, so it took some time before we reached the big guy. When it was finally her turn Santa asked Molly what she wanted and without hesitation she said "I want you to bring my dad a telescope".

Ya, I was speechless.

Now she is taller than her mom, has mounds in her sweater that are absolutely unnecessary, and looks far more like a woman than I like. But she still kisses me before she leaves the house, will tell me she loves me in front of her friends, and is still the same caring girl who gave her hair to another and used her time with Santa for someone else.

Happy birthday Molly, I love you!

Review of the new book "PhoDOGraphy"...

Never ever have I gotten a new photography book and had every person in my family pick it up and thumb through it from cover to cover, but the new book "PhoDOGraphy - how to get great pictures of your dog" by Kim Levin changed that.

Why?

Every other page has a full size dog portrait on it while the opposing page not only has the chapter content, but often has 1-3 more thumbnail images. And these images aren't there as "window dressing", every single image is an example of what that chapter is covering with a full explanation of the "how's & why's" behind each of the sample images.

The first thing that came through was that Kim is a real dog lover, and of course this hit home with me as I am the proud dad of two miniature schnauzers, one of the ways this was apparent is Kim's emphasis on the safety of the dog when shooting outside of the confines of the dogs home.

While the book covers every topic you can imagine regarding photographing dogs, it's a quick read, I read it from cover to cover (each time) in just a couple hours (which means normal people could read it even faster).

Kim covers it all, from photographing dogs indoors, outdoors, dogs in motion, how to make use of different weather and seasons, photographing single dogs, multiple dogs, puppies... and more.

Ever see a picture of a dog and they're looking into the camera with its head cocked to one side? Kim walks you through how to capture that exact image.

One of my dogs is black and I can never seem to get a good picture of her, well Kim devotes and entire chapter, "The Black Dog", to this problem.

If you haven't picked up on it yet, I loved this book. It is well written, extremely informative and stuffed with outstanding images from cover to cover.

If you put a copy on your coffee table I guarantee that not only will every person who walks in your house pick it up, you will here things like "oooooh" and "aaaaah".

And you'll learn a heck of a lot about photographing dogs too.

After I finished reading the book I had a few questions regarding the business of dog photography, so I emailed Kim and she was kind enough to answer them:

WPT: When you started your business as a dog portraiture photographer, what were some of the successful techniques you used to market your business?

Kim: I had worked in advertising for almost seven years at that point, so I had a good background in branding and marketing. When I first started out, I made postcards and placed them at local pet boutique stores and vet hospitals in NYC. I also partnered with the Center for Animal Care and Control and the ASPCA and created adoption posters to help animals get adopted. My name was on the posters and that also helped promote my photography.

WPT: Now that you are a success, has your marketing changed, (other than word of mouth) if so how, and what works for you?

Kim: I still rely on many of the marketing techniques that have worked for me in the past. I just recently made new promotional materials for my pet and kid portrait business (i.e. postcards) and placed them at various pet boutiques, kid clothing and toy shops and vet hospitals. I also from time to time, run advertising in my local area as a reminder that I am available for commissioned assignments. I also continue to donate a portion of my proceeds from my books and products to animal humane organizations. This is a way for me to give back to the animal community and it also serves to keep my name and brand in the spotlight. For four years I photographed the ASPCA annual calendar as well as my local Monmouth County SPCA calendar. This time of year there are a lot of animal events (fundraisers for shelters) and I always have a vendor booth where I sign my books and promote my photography business. I invested in updating my website and it has really helped showcase my portfolio of work.

WPT: How did/do you arrive on your pricing, do you charge the same for humans and dogs?

Kim: I actually do charge the same rate for animals and humans. Most of my shoots are dogs and cats but in the last year or two I have been trying to promote my family and kid portraiture as well. I have focused my energies on specializing with kids and pets - which is a natural fit for me. So when someone hires me to photograph their baby and their dog, they get the best of both. I will photograph the baby alone, dog alone and them together. Most photographers tend to focus on one area vs. the other. This is an area that I am still exploring and trying to carve a niche for myself.

Below you will find some of Kim's favorite images from the book, clicking on any of the images will open them in a new & larger window.

Enjoy.