Passionate Organizing: How To Create A System To Organise Your Digital And Traditional Photos

Digital photography promises much. Store your photographs on your computer, print them when you want, email them to friends and family ? share them to your heart's content. Couldn't be easier, could it? So how come that for most of us storing and sharing our photographs is a bit of a nightmare?

The ease of using a digital camera is its very undoing. It's easy to take some shots and then 'work on them later'. The trouble is that 'later' doesn't happen often enough and we build up a huge backlog of images that we have to sort and process. That's where things start to get untidy. Very soon you won't know what you've printed or you won't be able to find the original file of that cute shot that your wife wants a copy of.

So what's the answer? As the Greek philosopher Hesiod put it nearly 3,000 years ago, "It is best to do things systematically and disorder is our worst enemy." You need to plan a system for processing your photographs and be systematic in everything you do

You probably remember that after the thrill of your first digital camera, you began to realize some of its limitations. Without a computer or other digital device, it's hard to share them with granny or the cousins back home. You realize that you have to have traditional prints to pass around and share.

So the planning system you adopt must cater for both digital and physical prints ? you need a single system that organizes both and ensures your precious memories are stored forever.

Here's a six point plan to establishing your own system.

1. Decide how you want to organise your photographs

Without a system, you'll just get a list of meaningless file names. The longer this goes on, the harder it will be for you to find the photos that you want.

You've got to have a system ? a way of organising ? one that suits you. I choose to organise my photos by event ? but you could do it by date, by family member or by whatever is meaningful to you.

Under 'My Pictures' on my hard drive, I have four sub-folders ? Family, Business, Holidays and 'The Best'. The first three are self-explanatory; 'The Best' is where I keep images of which I'm particularly proud.

2. Create mirror images on both your computer and photo album

People love traditional prints so no matter how proud you may be of your computer skills, to really share your photos with friends and family, you'll need physical prints to pass around. And to get the most from your memories you should have a single system that runs across both.

Once you've decided on your system ? use the same categories on both your computer and your physical photo album.

3. Taking your photos

Snap away happily but don't carry around useless photographs on your camera or waste your time downloading them before deciding to bin them. As soon as you've taken photographs have a quick look at them and dump the ones that don't look special. Be ruthless and immediate.

4. Downloading back home

The temptation is to rush and get the exciting photos on the machine. This is where discipline is needed. You need to have an uninterrupted session. If you can arrange that easily fine. If you can't you should set aside a regular time once a week to do all your photographic work.

There are four tasks:

<ul>

<li>Download your photographs onto your hard disk

<li>Edit them, e.g. get rid of red eye

<li>Give each file a meaningful name with a date ? so instead of 'P1010012' use 'Sarah on the beach 07/03'

<li>Save them in the appropriate folder.

</ul>

Now make a back up copy. This is essential ? you don't want to risk losing your images. I use a ZIP drive for back-up.

5. Print your photographs

Plan what prints you want, print them and put them into your album immediately. Update your album index as you do so.

6. Store them and show them (but don't ever give them away)

Never give your album photographs away. If someone wants a copy, resist the temptation to hand them your album copy. Instead, print them a new one or email them a digital version.

About The Author

Kesh Morjaria is passionate about organising and runs <a href="http://www.arrowfile.com" target="_new">Arrowfile.com</a>. He provides an extensive range of organizing products that are used not only in the home but by professional photographers, collectors, local government, museums ? even police forces. You can find the full range at <a href="http://www.arrowfile.com" target="_new">http://www.arrowfile.com</a>.

<a href="mailto:kesh@arrowfile.com ">kesh@arrowfile.com </a>

Photography 101 Part 2

Basic Composition

Now that you are beginning to understand how your camera works you can begin to understand basic composition. I know that many people that I've talked to think that photography is just pointing your camera and taking a photo but it's more than that. After you understand how your equipment works you can begin to get into the real art of photography and that art is called composition.

Basic principles:

1. Use all of your available space. Fill the image with the image. If the reason that your taking the photo is your daughter's beautiful face then get closer. If you're taking an image of the breathtaking valley before you. Fill the frame with the valley. Keep distractions out of the frame. They're called distractions for a reason.

2. Look at the forms in your image. You almost have to look at the people or the landscape before you in their simplistic geographic forms. A good way to learn form is to practice taking photos of still life objects, that you can arrange into pleasing forms. A good photo is always a beautiful arrangement of form. Whether it's the beauty of a woman's face, her features being forms, or a wonderful landscape, trees, rocks, and hills being forms.

3. Line or direction, motion. The direction of the forms in your photos is very important. Never have action or motion moving outside of your image. It will direct the eye away from your image. Diagonal motion lines are good, curves and &quot;s&quot; curves are better. The last two is probably way landscape photography is so popular nature is full of curves. Also never put a horizon line in the center of your frame.

4. Contrast, the difference between black and white. Now it is possible to have a beautiful photo with little contrast if that is your intention, this works best with color. But a lot of shots, some really beautiful shots have a nice balance of black, white, and grays. This can be manipulated for artistic purpose of course, but in the beginning you want to focus on trying to take shots with equal amounts of black, white, and shades of gray. (Shoot a roll of B&W film to really learn this principle.)

5. Color, you may have to familiarize yourself with the color wheel. (See my article Graphic Design Using Color for more information it's for graphic design but the first couple of paragraphs talk about basic color theory) Whether you're shooting nature or setting up your own shots in a studio you need to know what colors go together and why. Many of us have an instinct as to what looks good. When in doubt follow your instincts. Start out by taking shots of things that you think have pretty or beautiful colors. Show the photos to others and see if they agree. Photographers learn not only what they think is beautiful but what is universally beautiful as well.

Now the hard part practice all these principles at the same time. It's not easy! Now you really know why photographers take years to really learn their craft.

This week's assignment: Let's break this down into four assignments. You'll need four rolls of film. Roll one, fill your available space. Shoot pictures of whatever you like, but get closer. Eliminate distractions from your image. Keep the focus of your image on whatever it was that made you want to take that photo. Roll two, forms. Here's an old stand by that I did in college. Get out an assortment of vegtables and fruit from your kitchen. Put a sheet down on your table, no distractions, shoot an entire roll of the veggies and fruit making sure that your rearrange with each shot. Make sure you study your results and see which forms looked best. Roll three, Contrast, you can do this in B&W film if you want to. Take a shot of the flower in your garden in the early morning, afternoon, and sunset. Shoot some portraits at the same times, by candlelight too. When you see the results you will be surprised. Roll four, color. Use the vegtables again, this time paying attention to the colors. If you can tell me why a red tomato looks best on a green bed of lettuce or the orange sunset with the purple clouds is so captivating then you've figured out some of color theory.

If you have some specific questions please visit my Photography Forum at: <a href="http://kellypaalphotography.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/index.php" target="_new">http://kellypaalphotography.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/index.php</a> and post your question there.

About The Author

Copyright 2004 Kelly Paal

Kelly Paal is a Freelance Nature and Landscape Photographer, exhibiting nationally and internationally. Recently she started her own business Kelly Paal Photography (<a href="http://www.kellypaalphotography.com" target="_new">www.kellypaalphotography.com</a>). She has an educational background in photography, business, and commercial art. She enjoys applying graphic design and photography principles to her web design. <a href="mailto:kellypaa@kellypaalphotography.com">kellypaa@kellypaalphotography.com</a>

Market Your Photography Business

Setting up your own photography business it easy, you don't need office space in can be done from your own home. However this is not the easiest type of business to market, especially if you are new to the business. Quite often to market this type of business you need specialist contacts, and your newness to the business precludes you from having these contacts, unless of course your surname is Eastman.

Don't underestimate the power of marketing, because it is the tool that can make or break your business. Marketing is the commercial aspect of transferring goods from one owner to another. Without this tool you are lost, but don't despair, there are effective avenues you can explore to market your business successfully.

First of all you need to decide what form of business you are going to set up, there are only two basic types - Assignment photography and Stock photography.

Assignment photography covers jobs that you have been hired to photograph. In other words you have a specific target to photograph. An example of this type of photography is to cover Mr X's wedding. This type of the photography is the bread and butter of photographers, however it is unlikely to win you the Pulitzer Prize for photography.

The photographs will have a limited appeal, in the case of Mr X's wedding; no matter how technically perfect those photographs are, they are going to have a limited appeal. They are simply not marketable outside the field of the family of Mr X.

Stock photography, is exactly what the name suggest, you have a stock of photographs and you have to market them. You have taken the photographs without having a buyer. This type of photography is much more speculative, and you may waste a lot of resources. You may have to invest a great deal of time and or film, depending on whether you are using an SLR camera, or a Digital Camera. Non-professionals think these photographs occur when you are in the right place at the right time. In reality though, being in the correct place has an element of advantage, who can forget the child on fire from Napalm running out of a village in the Vietnam war; often they are a particular photograph taken out of a series of hundreds. Whilst these photographs are often more exciting to take, they can be boring as well, and you may never quite get that photograph that &quot;Says it All&quot;.

There are effective ways to market these stock photographs, which is wonderful for the beginner because you do not bear the cost of the marketing. There are several stock picture libraries on line. You submit your photographs to these libraries, and they then sell the rights for others to reproduce them. The price structure on this type of photography depends on its content and also where it is sold. It may go on the front page of an encyclopaedia with a print run of half a million, and it may go on someone's private web site. There will be a different rate for the type of photograph and its market. When your photograph is sold the library will deduct a percentage of your commission for marketing and of course profit.

Most photographers when they start will combine these types of business to varying degrees. There are several ways that you can boost your marketing profile without actually spending any money. Join a local photography society is one way, another is to go to your local town hall and see if your local chamber of commerce has a group of professional photographers. Another more involved way to market your business and bring it into a higher profile with the local community is to offer to teach photography free of charge. Yes I know the chances are that you are working from home, but why not offer to do it in a local school.

The debate is still raging about SLR cameras versus digital, and it looks like it will for some time to come.

It is still fair to say that most photographers want great imaging, in a compact affordable package. Improved design techniques for the digital camera are now delivering a viable alternative to 35mm film, but one of the drawbacks to marketing this type of film, was the time consumed producing digital photographs at home. Home development often does not give a professional finish. There are now photo development agencies online which will give you great images. You upload the photographs on to your chosen site and they will print them and forward them on to you. This way you can ensure crystal clear prints to your instructions. Kodak gallery allows you to share your prints online afterwards by allowing you storage space, which means that you don't even have to scan your pictures. Don't forget to check out our other articles for great hints and tips for every step of your business development. Make your business work for you!

Whilst marketing is a very important aspect of the business, it does not compensate for lack of quality. Sharp clear prints sell, and others don't. Make sure that you invest in good quality basics, such as a tripod. It is not necessary to invest in products you will use once a year, if you need them then hire them, especially when you are just starting. Even if you use digital, it is still a fact that the lens is more important than the camera. Make sure the equipment you buy is going to work for you. Extra time spent asking questions before you buy will pay dividends later, in terms of money saved. Everyone wastes money at some time or other, but being forethought and researching can reduce that substantially.

Publisher & author: Roy Barker. Roy is the author of the popular ebook, Income from Photography - a downloadable ebook which guides the reader on how to start up and market a Profitable Photography business. It can be viewed at <a target="_new" href="http://www.profitable-photography.com">http://www.profitable-photography.com.</a> Other related and reviewed services & research sources can be found at <a target="_new" href="http://www.profitable-photography.com/html/117/">http://www.profitable-photography.com/html/117/</a> The information on this and adjoining pages may be reprinted and used on other sites providing all information remains unchanged and the article and all pages remain as they are found here in its current font size & image with all links in tact.

Memories That Get Lost

How many people have pictures in a shoe box? In a drawer? Inside a book? Sitting in the garage?

Imagine 40 years from now. Someone will get those pictures and they will say: Who are these people? What are they doing in this boat?

They won't have a clue about the stories that those pictures tell and they will probably throw part of your story away. - How sad is that?!!

There are several ways to preserve your memories. You can make a scrapbook, which is great. But as time goes by it will get faded, get wet or any other kind of accident and your memories may then be lost. Also it is not an easy or inexpensive way to share with friends and family who don't live close by. Some of the pictures will need to be restored and this may be a costly option - You can also have your pictures in a slide show, but that can be really boring and after some years, people still won't know a lot about those pictures.

A fairly new home-based company in Salt Lake City offers a solution for that. - It's a storybook CD / DVD that tells the stories behind the pictures.

Pictures may say a 1000 words, but they usually need some help. In this format, you may have your pictures, the story- in a written format, animation, voices and video clips. It is not a slide show, and it is not a video. It is based on new softwares designed for multimedia productions.

It's a great way to teach your kids in a fun manner about your life, and share special events of your past with your family.

Because the designers have a lot of experience with movies and tv, the timming and rithym is taken into consideration to make your story like it should be told. We know that grandpa Joe has trouble reading and little Jack who is 7 is still struggling with words, and that is also taken into consideration.

The company doesn't use templates, everything is customized according to your story, your needs and wants, and you don't just send the photos and then receive the product. As everything else done at Bearycrafty.Com, you're part of the process.

Even a kit that helps you organize the pictures and write the story is provided to ensure a high quality final product. This is a very affordable option, it is quite inexpensive to get copies for your family and really cheap to send by mail.

Your memories count and should be preserved.

Shahar Boyayan
Is the owner of <a target="_new" href="http://www.bearycrafty.com">http://www.bearycrafty.com</a> photo restoration and Legacy DVDs. - Has a degree in e-commerce and Psychology, She's been an international public speaker since 1997 on topics such as &quot;Negotiation skills, stress & change management, and self-leadership&quot;. Author of &quot;Market yourself now&quot; and movie director since 1999.

Contact: (801) 533-4213 / (801) 674-5815, <a href="mailto:shahar@bearycrafty.com">shahar@bearycrafty.com</a>

Digital Camera Interpolation Explained

In a device such as a digital camera it is very important to understand the very basic aspects of the device so as to properly operate it and give it the due respect it deserves. Such a topic is interpolation! These are accessories that help the digital camera to perform the technologically advanced features that it is capable of. In extreme explanatory and simple terms it can be summed up as that interpolation refers to software programs that can effectively enlarge image resolution beyond the actual resolution by adding extra pixels using complex mathematic calculations. Now, this is a feature that can be absolutely useful in providing a good success to a user.

Looking into the technical aspects it can be stated that interpolation is a technique where the spatial resolution of an image is increased from its original size to a higher or larger resolution. The spatial resolution of an image is simply its horizontal x vertical pixel count. For example 1600 x 1200. Again getting into further intricate details it can be stated that there are two techniques of interpolation commonly used, they are software and hardware. Again software interpolation can be performed on a digital image using a one of a number of image editing programs such as PhotoShop. This is often termed as resizing and is done with a computer, performed on an image file from a digital camera that already exists in a file format such as JPG. Hardware interpolation involves the resizing of an image, but it differs from software interpolation in that the image is resized algorithmically inside the camera during the image processing sequence and before the image has been saved as a JPG image file.

Also, it can be noted here that JPG is a compressed image file format. Whenever a file is saved as a JPG file, image data is lost in the compression process. Image data is thrown away in exchange for file-size efficiency. Software interpolation is a process performed after the JPG losses have been applied. Hardware interpolation occurs inside the camera prior to JPG compression and before JPG losses have been applied. The resulting hardware interpolated images are of superior quality to a comparable image interpolated in software.

These are basically the important points as discussed in the above lines regarding the digital camera interpolation. The explanation is worth for every user who can be a novice as well as an expert and thus uncovers another great feature of a digital camera, the process of interpolation.

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Photographs Everywhere, But Is It Really Art?

I once heard a lady say to a photographer that she would have bought his work if it had been a painting. She liked the image, but for whatever reason didn't consider the medium suitable for her &quot;it's just a photo&quot;.

I am sure that some share her thoughts, whilst others would be quite happy either way, but a growing number of people do recognise photography as an Art form. And collect it.

&quot;There are three fundamental components of what we call art. First, is the artist; second, is the medium; and third is the artwork. All three, clearly are interrelated." Tad Beckman

Defining photographic art

It is true many people do regard photography as merely a reproductive medium, and the photographer as simply the technician. And if this were just about your holiday snaps then it would be a valid point.

So let's start with my definition of photographic art. I say my definition because there is no stock answer it means different things to different people.

For me it's about creating a beautiful image that is an interpretation of the scene that I saw in my mind captured on film, rather than just a recording of what is already there.

It's about the photographer being the choreographer of the various components; the composition is critical, as is the lighting, weather conditions and the colours at play.

It's not just about pressing the shutter release, although timing is everything. Patience comes into play too, as you wait for all the components to be perfect all at the same time.

Some things you can control, but the weather well that constantly throws out surprises that can add that hint of drama to a picture or send you home disappointed.

It's these uncertainties that add the challenge, and this results in creativity as you respond to the situation. Other photographers will have their own criteria, but we all are producing very personal pieces of work that we feel passionate about and that are a representation of our interpretation of the world.

A photograph - more than just a sheet of paper with an image on it?

Oh yes! Typically a photographer will capture an image that pleases their eye. They will create something that is close to their heart, and therefore give a little of themselves in the image.

Effectively they are allowing you to see how they perceive the world to be, one moment at a time. Add into the fact that many photographers print their own work (once they have an order!), and sign it then you could say you are buying a piece of history - or designer art!

In other words you are not buying a mass produced print, and naturally the price reflects this. You are buying into the reputation of that photographer and you will expect to pay more. When someone is starting out and building reputation then you are investing in the potential of that person.

You won't pay as much, but you'll be backing your own instinct and demonstrating your belief in that person's talent. Contemporary photography is affordable art.

Subject matter - does it matter?

Personally I don't believe it does, and I mean this in the sense that people will be drawn to your work because they have seen something of yours and liked your style, and typically that means they like your choice of subject matter too.

My preference is for landscapes and increasingly flowers, whilst other photographers prefer sport, people or a more abstract approach to name but a few.

I think the key to preserving artistic integrity is to shoot for your own personal satisfaction, although naturally as your reputation builds you will develop an understanding of what collectors want, but for me I always have to love the image myself to want to share it with the world. Anything less and it stays in the drawer!

I still experiment, and search for new subject matter, but my photographic style is what it is. It just keeps evolving.

A new language

Understanding the language of the image is something quite individual to the viewer, it does not explain itself in the same way to each person. It is subjective. And although some may view photography as easy, believing that there own point and shoot cameras can produce similar results to a master photographer are confusing the issue.

After all most of us have made paintings at some time in our lives, and may still own paint brushes, but wouldn't necessarily look at a painting by a master and not consider it to be art would we?

It is the heart and hand of the author behind the brush, camera or pen that executes the creative vision not the tools used.

About the author: Sue Kennedy, LRPS & LBIPP Sue Kennedy is an UK based photographer specialising in outdoor photography and works on commission for companies & individuals as well as shooting for picture libraries. To purchase from Sue's current print and card selection visit her Website <a target="_new" href="http://www.blueeyesphoto.com">http://www.blueeyesphoto.com</a>

Copyright ? 2004 Sue Kennedy Blue Eyes Photography Ltd

Photography Has No Gender

Women photographers are fortunate. Unlike other titles, photographer has no gender. Women photographers don't have to force stilted language like &quot;flight attendant&quot; instead of &quot;stewardess,&quot; or &quot;letter carrier&quot; instead of &quot;mailman.&quot; &quot;Photographer&quot; doesn't have the historical male/female titles such as &quot;author&quot; and &quot;authoress,&quot; or &quot;actor&quot; vs. &quot;actress.&quot; Women photographers may not even have to battle the associated gender that &quot;doctors&quot; or &quot;nurses&quot; do. Did you know that bank tellers always were men up until WWII because it was thought that women couldn't handle money?

So when you visualize a photographer, is it a man or woman? It probably depends on your most recent contact with one. But when you look at a photograph, can you tell whether it was taken by a man or a woman? Probably not. So, at least on one side of the lens, it doesn't make a difference that the photographer is a woman.

So why is it important to talk about women and photography? Because, according to a recent study conducted at the University of California at Irvine, women's brains are different than men's.

The study found that women have more &quot;white matter&quot; than men. White matter handles the connections of the brain's processing centers. Men, on the other hand, have more &quot;gray matter&quot; than women. Gray matter controls the information processing centers in the brain. According to Rex Jung, a neuropsychologist and co-author of the study, &quot;this may help to explain why men tend to excel in tasks requiring more local processing (like mathematics), while women tend to excel at integrating and assimilating information from distributed gray-matter regions in the brain, such as required for language facility.&quot; Although different, the study found that both types of brain designs are &quot;capable of producing equivalent intellectual performance.&quot; http://today.uci.edu/news/release_detail.asp?key=1261

It therefore makes sense that when women think and learn about photography, and even when they take photos, their approach is different than men's. What should women photographers do, then, with this information?

First, women should acknowledge and celebrate their differences. There is no right way to approach photography, as long as it works for you. Don't try to imitate male photographers, and certainly don't be uncomfortable with how you shoot. Second, study the work of women photographers who were pioneers, such as Imogen Cunningham and Dorothea Lange, as well as current women photographers such as Linde Waidhofer, Lisl Dennis and Joyce Tenneson. They may have created easier paths for you to follow.

Most important, you should look for support as a woman photographer. There are organizations that specifically serve the needs of women photographers. A primary example is &quot;Women in Photography International.&quot; Its mission is to promote the visibility of women photographers and their work through a variety of programs, exhibitions, juried competitions and publications.

Seek programs like that provided by the Professional Photographers of America (&quot;P.P.A.&quot;). It held its 2nd annual &quot;Women in Photography Retreat&quot; this past August. The purpose of the event was to &quot;embark on an exciting journey of self-discovery . . . to forge new friendships, cultivate your strengths, and shape strategies for your personal, professional and creative development in a relaxing, stress free resort.&quot; You also should evaluate your situation. Does your local camera club involve you as a woman photographer? Do you get the support you need from your friends and family? You may have to make some careful choices about your associates if they don't encourage your art.

Likewise, you should examine whether you are getting the photography instruction that you need. It doesn't have to come from a woman for it to help you. Choose photography workshops that offer the opportunity to share the passion and inspiration with all photographic artists in a welcoming environment. Finally, you should use your female advantage in photography. There are the obvious areas. You can be in the bride's dressing room and you can make a connection with the crying baby. There are the less obvious items, too. You can &quot;communicate&quot; with the person who speaks a different language, connect with the wild animal or see the unique lines of the landscapes. Let your vision expand to its fullest, female state.

This is not to suggest that you become a ranting feminist photographer. The art of photography is to be cherished and appreciated, regardless of whether it is done by a woman or a man. The point is that photography has no gender. As a photographer, you should create superb images of enduring quality. The viewer won't care who it came from. Don't let any artificial designations get in your way. But you also should acknowledge, celebrate, explore and nourish your difference. You may be pleased with what you discover.

Copyright 2005 Carolyn E. Wright

--- ABOUT THE AUTHOR ---

Carolyn Wright is a professional photographer with an active portrait, event and nature photography business. Shooting for 25 years, her award-winning images have been used in books and corporate marketing materials. Her wildlife photos will be included in the upcoming book, "Captivating Wildlife - Images from the Top Ten Emerging Wildlife Photographers" by Scott Bourne and David Middleton. She also is working with Scott Bourne on "Wolfscapes," a photo book documenting the beauty and strength of wolves. Her wildlife images can be viewed at <a target="_new" href="http://www.vivdwildlife.com">http://www.vividwildlife.com.</a>.

On the faculty of Olympic Mountain School of Photography, Carolyn's passion is enhanced when teaching photography. She enjoys writing and speaking on the subject, as well, and is a regular columnist for PhotoFocus, an online magazine for serious photographers.

Picture Framing for Photographers - Part 2

There are two sources for obtaining the moulding for making a frame. You can firstly start with a straight piece of timber, and using a home routing system make your own moulding shape with a rebate to take the art work. Alternatively you can pick from a large range of ready finished mouldings available from your local frame shop or hardware store. I recommend the latter. It's easier, the choice is much wider, and it's more cost effective. However, one word of warning. Always look for a moulding with a good straight back and not too flat on the surface. If the moulding has a bump or some raised section in the top surface it will cut and join easier than a flat moulding. Most mouldings are made from pine or obeche. These are soft grain timbers and cut and join well. Hard timbers like ramin are more difficult to work with.

Measuring and Cutting

How much moulding will you need? The outside dimensions of the frame are determined by the size of the mounted photograph. Carefully measure the overall size of the matted picture you're framing, adding a little extra (3-smm) for "play" to ensure the picture fits easily into the finished frame.

Add the length and the breadth together, then double the total. This will give you the overall length. But you also have to allow for the mitre cuts, so multiply the width of the moulding by 10 and add this to your total (total length required = 2 x (length + breadth) + 10 x width of moulding). The 45 mitre cuts are most important - a bad cut will never join properly and will always look terrible. There are a number of machines on the market for cutting 45 degree mitres starting with the simple mitre box, radial arm saw with a mitre attachment, or a commercial mitre saw (see picture 1).

Cutting one side of a frame is easy. Cutting the second side to be EXACTLY the same side to the first side is the hard part of frame cutting. Using a measuring system you can cut lengths accurately every time. The FrameCo measuring system will attach to any brand of electric or manual mitre saw and will make the cutting of the frames quick and foolproof.

If you have a saw you can cut without using a measuring system. Follow this easy step-by-step guide to cut mitred lengths for your frame:

* Calculate the dimensions of your frame.

* Place the moulding into the saw.

? Cut off a small piece at 45 degrees with the saw in the lefthand position.

* Remove the moulding from the saw.

? With a tape, measure along the back of the moulding, to the length you require.

To this length you have to take into account the size of the moulding you are using. So you add to the length of the side an amount equal to twice the moulding width - not including the rebate. Then make a pencil mark on the back of the moulding near the top so that you can see the mark.

? Put the moulding back in the saw and align the saw blade on the pencil mark.

? Swing the saw around and cut the next mitre.

? Place the two pieces back to back so you can transfer the size you have just cut to the back of the moulding length.

? Repeat the cutting procedure for the other pieces.

Joining the Frame

To ensure a tight and stable joint, glue should be applied, especially if the frame is large. A light smear of a good quality PVA glue is all that's necessary. Although it is possible to buy clamps that join two corners at a time, it's simpler and quicker to clamp all four corners at once. This allows you to see how the corners match up before gluing and securing the mitres. There are several types of clamps...

Cord Clamps: This simple, but effective clamping system works well for small to medium-size frames. It consists of four flexible plastic corners and a length of cord. (See picture 2).

Metal Strap Clamp: This clamping system is slightly more sophisticated and consists of a metal strap, flexible corner pieces and a screw operated tensioning device which allows you to apply a considerable amount of tension so that the corners are pulled together tightly. The Strap Clamp is suitable for large and small frames. (See picture 3).

Once the frame is clamped together and you've made sure all the corners are aligned, then the mitre joint should be secured or reinforced. Glue alone is not safe and secure enough for most sized frames. Here are some options.

Panel Pins: You can nail a panel pin across the mitre. It is advisable to pre-drill the holes and secure the joint in a vice before hammering the pins into the frame. Punch home the nail head and fill the hole with a coloured woodfiller.

V-Nails: Professional framers use these v-shaped staples, which are inserted using a special manual or pneumatic joining machine. The "PushMaster" is a DIY version of these machines and is suitable for low-volume high-quality framing such as required for photography or portrait framing.

Biscuit Joints: More suitable for large and heavy frames such as mirrors. Most commercial picture frame mouldings are small and a biscuit joint is not necessary.

V-Nail Joining Machines There are several models of these machines and all are suitable for the DIY or low-volume picture framing. Here are some of the models.

PushMaster: Similar to a large punch, the PushMaster is a handheld, easy to use tool for inserting the v-nails into the back of timber picture frames. The vnail is loaded onto the magnetic end of the PushMaster, sharp end down, then simply pushed into the wood. The v-nail pulls the joint together because it is made from spring steel. The advantage of the PushMaster is that it doubles as a fitting up tool. The magnetic tip can also be used to fit flexipoints and backing nails to secure the picture into the frame. (See picture 4).

BenchMaster: The BenchMaster is ideal for the serious DIY framing photographer. The powerful cam action of the handle combined with the heavy duty Push Master drives v-nails into the hardest of timbers. Its gentle hand action suits joining small or odd-shaped mouldings. If you start with FrameCo's Push Master you can upgrade to the BenchMaster at any time. (See picture 5).

V-Nails - How Do They Work?

Upon entering the wood moulding from the base, the sides of the metal v-nail are deflected outwards. As the v-nail pulls back into its original shape this pulls the joint tightly together. There is a little curl on the outer leading edge of the nail that locks the nail into the grain of the timber. This stops the nail from pulling out of the end of the mitre, keeping the joint stable and secure. The v-nail method of joining is the preferred method of professional picture framers. With a few simple hand tools it's possible to achieve the same result with a minimal outlay in machinery.

Making Multi-sided Frames

With most good quality suspension type mitre saws there's always the possibility of cutting mitre angles other than 45 degrees. The problem is that the saws do not have a system of measuring the length of the cut. The FrameCo measuring system has a clever scale included with the unit. It allows you to measure a length for any angle. A six-sided frame has the six mitres cut at 30 degrees, while an eight-sided frame has the eight mitres cut at 22.5 degrees. The Measure Mate Scale converts the measuring system into a multi-angled scale so that each one of these different angled mitres can be measured.

So it's possible for the amateur framer to make attractive multiangled frames that add style and creativity to your framing.

Finishing and Assembly

Now that the frame is joined and the glue joints dry you're ready to assemble your mounted photograph into the frame. The PushMaster can be used to fit backing nails or flexipoints into the frame to hold the picture into the rebate.

Seal the back of the picture with gummed tape or good quality backing tape. The best backing tape to use is a silicone coated tape as this will not peel off over time.

Screw two small O-rings or screw eyes into the side of the frame, approximately one third of the distance down the top of the frame, then attach a length of wire or cord securely through the O-rings or screw eyes. After that, your image is ready to hang on a wall.

Gary Leete, of <a href="http://www.clubframeco.com" target="_new">Frameco Picture Framing Supplies</a>, is a professional framer. For further information on any of the his DIY picture framing tools contact FrameCo P/L Australia, Ph: (03) 98723600 or visit the web site at <a target="_new" href="http://www.clubframeco.com">http://www.clubframeco.com</a>

Use A Tripod!

Using a tripod is essential when taking photos - and not just for night shots. To get ultra crisp and sharp pictures, your camera cannot move at all when the shutter is open. In some circumstances, even the tiny movements your hand makes are enough to make a slightly blurry image. The best way to ensure your camera does not move is to use a tripod or other camera stand.

On sunny days or when you use a really fast shutter speed, simply holding the camera in your hand will still produce a sharp image. But there's another reason for using a tripod on these occasions as well. Erecting the tripod causes you to SLOW DOWN and think a little more about the shot you're about to take. Because you're concentrating more, you'll have a better chance of composing your image correctly and ending up with a super shot.

Types of Camera Stands

Tripod. This is a three legged stand that attaches to the mount on your camera. This is the most common type of mount to hold your camera steady, and allows you to move your hands away from the camera completely and still have it steady in position.

Monopod. A variation on the tripod, this stand only has one leg. Attach the monopod to your camera, stand it on the ground and use your hands to ensure the camera and stand don't fall over. This helps because the monopod stops the camera moving up and down, and provides a rest for your hands so camera shake is reduced. For a bit of extra stability, lean yourself, or your camera against another sturdy object like a light pole.

Chainpod. An ingenious design consisting of a length of chain (or string) with a loop on one end large enough to place your foot into. The other end is attached to your camera. To use a Chainpod, place your foot through the loop and pull your camera up so the chain is tight while taking your photo. The tension in the chain will reduce camera shake just like a monopod. The great advantage of a chainpod is you can crunch it up and place it in your pocket!

Dolly. This is a tripod with wheels (and brakes!). A dolly allows you to move your tripod around easily without needing to lift your camera, but it's not so useful outdoors when the ground is uneven. There are dolly attachments available for regular tripods.

Car Window Mount. This gadget allows you to mount your camera to your car window to take photos of wildlife while still sitting in the car.

A Rock! Yes, you can use any ledge as a tripod when you need a sharp picture but don't have a tripod handy. You can also use a small bean bag to steady your camera and lens if your camera doesn't stand upright by itself.

Which should I purchase?

If you're just starting out, I recommend purchasing a standard tripod with telescoping legs that stands full length (5-6 feet). Make sure you get a sturdy (preferably all aluminum) model. Pick the heaviest model you can carry around with you.

Lightweight models are available, as are mini-tripods - Perfect for portability, but they don't have the stability of the larger models.

Using a Tripod

Most of the time, you just setup your tripod, place your camera on top and shoot! There are a few subtleties to using a tripod that can help enormously.

- The longer the legs of the tripod, the less steady the tripod becomes. Extend your tripod legs only enough to enable you to get your camera into the correct position.

- Sometimes the act of depressing the shutter causes movement in the camera. To minimize this, use your other hand and press down on the top of the camera directly above the tripod mount. This will help to further reduce movement.

- You're most likely to need your tripod when your camera is fully zoomed in. When fully zoomed in, any small shake is likely to show on the image.

Other Tripod Secrets

- Try to find a tripod with a built in level. The level will help ensure your landscape shots are completely straight and save needing to rotate the image slightly in your computer to get a level horizon.

- Specialized lenses are available that can compensate for camera shake. They are called "Image Stabilizers" or "Vibration Reduction lenses". They can be rather expensive, so I recommend sticking with a tripod.

- Try to get a tripod with a quick release mount. This will enable you to quickly remove the camera from your tripod should you need to take a quick 'candid' shot.

David Peterson has a great love of photography and has created a series of free tips at <a target="_new" href="http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/">http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/</a> to help digital photography users everywhere take better photos.

Digital Wedding Photography: Myth Vs. Reality

1. Myth: Digital photos are pixilated or fuzzy. Reality: most people that say that have never seen a photo produced by a professional grade digital camera. The quality of modern digital cameras is equal of greater than film cameras.

2. Myth: Digital photos don't last they will fade in a couple of years. Reality: Only the photo capture part is digital. The printing is done using traditional photo paper on the same paper and chemistry used to print film photos. So, both will last the same.

3. Myth: Digital colors are muddy. Reality: Only if they are produced with cheap, low quality cameras and/or the photographer doesn't know how to adjust them and process them for printing

4. Myth: Digital photos are dangerous; the photographer can lose your photos.

Reality: Nowadays most photos are stored using Flash Cards that is one of the most reliable forms of digital storage. After the wedding the photos are downloaded to the computer and additional backups are created on CD or DVD allowing several copies of the same event to reside on different locations. In the case that photos are accidentally deleted they can be recovered using software. With film there is only one copy. It is not uncommon for the photo labs to lose the film, damage it in the printing machine, process it in the wrong chemistry, scratch it, etc. Film also can be damaged in camera, be fogged, damaged by X-rays at the airport, suffer color changes due to heat or age etc.

5. Myth: Digital photos lack detail. Reality: Only if they are produced with cheap, low quality cameras. It is not unusual for us to produce 30x40 inch prints from our professional grade cameras with stunning detail.

6. Myth: Digital is cheaper because there is no film. Reality: Professional grade digital cameras and lens are very expensive. In addition the professional photographer has to invest on computer equipment and software to process the photos.

7. Myth: I got a digital camera that takes great photos now I can start a career as a wedding photographer. Reality: Wedding photography requires that you have artistic talent and that you learn photography including composition, lighting, etc. A wedding is an uncontrolled event that requires technical and artistic skill. It is not the place to learn photography.

8. Myth: I don't have to take care when I take photos anymore I can fix it later in Photoshop or other photo-editing program. Reality: Garbage in and garbage out. There is no fix for badly composed photos, out of focus, bad lighting, etc.

9. Myth: Digital photography is easy now I don't need a professional wedding photographer. Reality: If you trust your wedding memories to somebody who doesn't have the professional skills you are likely to be sorry or disappointed.

10. Myth: I am afraid that the photographer will do weird effects. Reality: the purpose of the editing software is to enhance the quality of the photos. It is not a license to create weird stuff. Talk to your photographer about your expectations.

11. Myth: Digital will never be better than or equal to film. Reality: Digital cameras are equal or better than film in terms of resolution color fidelity etc. and far superior in low light situations. The "film look" can be easily emulated using digital imaging processing techniques.

12. Myth: I got a bigger fancier camera with more megapixels than your so my photos will be better than yours. Reality: Unless you have the technical and artistic skill the camera that you use will have minimal impact on the quality of the photos that you produce. A great camera in the right hands will produce great results. Some of the greatest photos in history were produced using mechanical cameras.

Juan Carlos Torres is a very respected and awarded wedding photographer in Oregon. He has a Masters Degree in Remote Sensing with a strong background in digital image processing and photography. He is a member of the several professional photographer organizations including the Professional Photographers of America, the Professional Photographers of Oregon, the Wedding Photojournalist Association, and the Oregon Wedding Photo Guild. His wedding photographs are unique and very artistic and have been featured in national and international magazines. For a sample of his works please visit <a target="_new" href="http://www.juancarlosphoto.com">portland oregon wedding photographer</a> and <a target="_new" href="http://www.willamettephoto.com">eugene oregon wedding photographer</a> For a discussion on wedding photography see our Blog at <a target="_new" href="http://www.willamettephoto.com/portland-wedding-photographer/">oregon wedding photographer</a>

Is your Digital Camera Compatible With Your Computer?

So you recently bought a digital camera or perhaps your thinking about it. And perhaps you may be wondering how many pictures will your computer hold? First you need to answer a few questions to come to an accurate conclusion. First, how big is your hard drive and how much free space does it currently have? You can find the answer to that question by first left-clicking on "My Computer:" Right-click on "C drive." A menu should appear. Left-click on "Properties." A pie chart should be displayed that will show you the size of the hard drive and how much of the disk drive is free. Your next step is too know how many mega pixels does your camera have? A pixel is a light sensing cell on the image pickup device.

The higher number of pixels, the higher the resolution or picture quality of the camera. A higher pixel number will also require more storage space in your camera and computer for a picture. How much storage does each picture need? If you have a 2M pixel camera, a high resolution picture will require storage in the range of 500kb. Two 500 kb pictures would occupy 1 MB. If that one picture requires 500kB of storage, you should be able to store 2000 pictures of that size in 1 gigabyte of disk space. I usually store my pictures in one folder in my computer called &quot;Camera Pics&quot; and then create sub-folders within that folder with different names depending on the occasion the pictures were taken at for easy reference later on.

Most camera manufacturers will provide software to allow you to transfer and edit pictures from your camera. But some of that software is not the easiest to install and operate. There are a few ways to do the transfer without the camera software. If your camera has a memory card, you can buy a memory card reader and use it to read the pictures from your camera. The memory card reader plugs into a free USB connector on your computer. When you plug a memory card into the memory reader, you should notice a new hard drive on "My Computer."

Your computer will consider the memory device to be a hard drive and will allow you to manage pictures as if they were files on a hard drive. Many new cameras are directly supported by Microsoft XP If you plug a USB cable into the camera and a USB slot on the computer, you might discover that your computer knows how to read the pictures off the camera. Digital cameras offer an economical way to get into photography. After you pay for the camera, it doesn't cost anything to take pictures. You just need a computer to allow you to view and save your pictures. After you have saved a bunch of pictures in your computer, I suggest you to transfer them to a CD or DVD. If you do not, someday you may lose all your pictures if your computer ever crashes.

One other thing you need to be aware of is that older computers will have a hard time working the large megapixel cameras that are being produced today. If you have an older computer and go out and buy yourself a 8 or 10 megapixel camera, you may suddenly find you that you may have to buy a new computer too, or at least upgrade the one you have. The hefty picture files that are created by these large megapixel cameras use a tremendous amount of computer memory and can cause an incompatible computer a lot of problems.

The average needs of most people really do not require a large megapixel digital camera unless you plan on printing large photos. So it is best to keep this general rule in mind when considering a digital camera. A typical 2-megapixel camera will produce a very good 4 x 6 inch image using a typical desktop color inkjet printer. With a 4 -megapixel camera, you can turn out a very good 8 x 10 print, which is the largest print anyone who is not a professional is likely to need.

Doug Rogers has worked as a freelance photographer for the past 25 years in various fields of photography. In the past two years he has become an avid and devoted fan of digital and video photography and a life long lover of new technology. For tips on better digital photography and the latest reviews on the newest digital equipment that hits the market, Subscribe to his monthly Newsletter &quot;The View Finder&quot; at <a target="_new" href="http://www.best-digital-cameras-review.com">http://www.best-digital-cameas-review.com</a>

Exposure Compensation

The digital camera is in reality a great possession with many facets of its utilities and not only that knowing these utilities makes the understanding the digital camera complete. The utilities are also so very diverse that they too offer further introspection of details in their varying applications. Such an area is digital camera exposure compensation. Only knowledge of digital camera exposure is not enough, so the digital camera exposure compensation requires some amount of exposure in itself! This discussion is focused towards that cause itself.

Looking at different digital cameras, even temperately costing digital cameras have arrangements for exposure compensation settings. To explain in a bit detail, the exposure compensation allows the users to control the amount of light entering the lens. And thereby the illumination of the photograph is decided. Exposure compensation can be altered manually or by the help of a digital camera's exposure compensation setting that lets one override the metered exposure set inside the digital camera itself. Strictly speaking, the exposure values provide an expedient line of attack to put a figure on the available light intensity and therefore exposure.

As per general norms of the users of digital cameras, certain standards exist for selecting such values. These values are specifically known as Exposure Values (EV). Selecting an up to standard Exposure Values (EV) helps maintain the details contained in dark areas of a photo, or diminish the more than usually bright areas. Again, looking from technical point of view, the Exposure Values are numbers that refer to an assortment of combinations of apertures of lenses and shutter speed respectively. They have a selective range of values, ranging between -2 to +2 Exposure Values (EV). As a general rule positive exposure settings are used for cases where bulky areas of a scene are especially bright such as taking pictures of a snow scene and also during times of photographing when the background is a good deal brighter than the focal area under consideration. Also, negative exposure settings are used for cases where bulky areas of a scene are especially dark and also during times of photographing when the background is a good deal darker than the fore area under consideration.

One point that is worth noting is that light meters cannot see color. They deliver every scene as 18% middle gray and become accustomed to the exposure accordingly. And most digital cameras will allows a photographer to compensate the exposure by 1 to 2 EV plus or minus in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments. A very important realization for any photographer is that the right exposure is only "correct" in the eye of the photographer; Exposure Value compensation can also be used as a creative tool.

With this information available to the users of the digital camera, the knowledge of digital camera exposure as well as digital camera exposure compensation becomes. But it is only knowledge, the proper acquiring of the whole feel comes only from personal experience.

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Underwater Digital Cameras

Underwater photography's is primarily focused towards entertaining and informing the people and the users themselves about what is happening in the world of under water with the aid of photography. The advent of digital cameras has opened up new horizons for such ventures. These digital cameras are not only handy and sleek but also they offer a spectral range of features that helps the underwater photographers in their work a lot. In this discussion these special features of underwater digital cameras are necessarily been revealed and done justice to!

Looking at the grass root level some of the main features that the users of the underwater digital cameras must necessarily seek are as follows. They are applications for land mode, sea mode and external flash mode. This helps in shooting in any conditions in the sea and obtains much better picture quality than ever before. Some other features are like instant delete option after each picture in both sea and external flash modes along with one-button operation features. These mentioned features provide the sophistication as well as ease of control for the photographers. Some more desirable features are expandable and good quality standard lenses, flashes and accessories.

Some of the sophisticated and well know underwater digital cameras such as the Aqua Pix DX3100 are fully functional and even have a 3.1 mega pixel resolution. These digital cameras can be aptly described as being effusively amphibious! Thus the chances of water damage and flooding in these underwater digital cameras are greatly reduced and are hence extensively used for professional purposes too.

Scrutinizing in some more detail it can be said that the underwater digital cameras mostly use a meniscus lens that can be used above or below the surface of water. The also have features for built in color correction filter and macro lens along with built in flash diffusers too. They utilize multi flash functioning in order to get adequate good quality pictures in the most adverse conditions too. They have sufficient memory of around 15MB and come equipped with complete storage, editing and image manipulation software.

It still remains a fact that underwater photography is a difficult yet fascinating profession. Moreover, with the underwater digital cameras this task has become even easier and creative along with greater scopes to express much more through the eyes of the lens. It is hoped that the new depths of underwater photography would be fathomed with the aid of the underwater digital cameras!

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Digital Camera Reviews and Ratings De-Mystify the Choices

Shopping for a new digital camera can be quite frustrating with the hundreds of choices available. Digital camera reviews clarify this confusion by comparing camera features and options, then rating how each camera compares with similar models.

An effective comparison of best digital cameras requires two things: 1) the camera's specs and features, and 2) performance ratings. Spec sheets and ratings are plentiful, but to efficiently compare digital cameras it's important to set some guidelines.

Decide on how the camera will be used, the quality and size of final prints, and necessary features. Write these down and rank camera reviews and ratings against these standards. Whether looking for a professional or snapshot camera, scan the reviews and narrow your choices down to a few cameras before making final comparisons.

OK, Lets Cut to the Chase...

Re-visit the reviews for this short list and evaluate the digital camera ratings in more depth for the following criteria:

Design, Construction and Controls

Minor design differences can become significant in daily camera use. Carefully compare how each camera's review is rated for design elements. Size and weight, body configuration, plus location of buttons, knobs and other controls can make a camera a joy to use or a real pain in the neck.

Evaluate how well the camera is put together. Are access doors for battery, memory, etc. solid and stable? What does the reviewer say about the shutter release, zoom and other buttons and knobs? How many photos will a fully charged battery take? Is the LCD bright and clear in both low light and sunny conditions?

The reviewer's evaluation of the camera's controls is critical. Can manual adjustments be made for different lighting conditions? How about auto-focus zones and exposure modes? Are controls simple and intuitive, or complicated menus?

Sensors, Pixels and Processors

These are the heart of a digital camera and determine photo quality, so closely compare how the reviewer rates them.

Generally larger sensors have more powerful and efficient photodiodes, and will produce higher quality photo images. Both CCD and CMOS sensor technology is advancing rapidly, but with each new development there are usually draw-backs, so compare carefully.

Digital camera marketing would have us believe it's all about more megapixels. But it's more complicated than that. Evaluate how each camera's review rates pixel quality, not just quantity. Some cameras will actually take better pictures with fewer pixels.

What the camera's processor does with the data collected from the sensor's diodes is equally important. It must properly interpret color balance and interpolate pixels for sharp natural looking pictures. It must be able to do it quickly or you'll have to wait too long between shots.

Lens Optics

In many ways lenses for digital cameras are simpler and less expensive than for conventional 35mm cameras. Even so, sensors and processors can't produce a better photo than what's visible through the lens. Compare the ratings because cheap lenses can distort images and colors.

In conclusion, decide on camera basics and budget range, scan enough reviews to pick a handful of finalists, then scrutinize the reviews and ratings on those cameras to find the perfect choice.

A list of top rated digital cameras can be found at our <a target="_new" href="http://www.a-z-digital-cameras.com/digital-cameras-ratings.htm">Digital Cameras Ratings</a> page.

Digital cameras information from A to Z: camera types & features, how they work, accessories, photo printers, comparisons and more - plus digital photo processing tips and info at <a target="_new" href="http://www.a-z-digital-cameras.com">A-Z Digital Cameras.com</a>, Your Complete A-Z Resource for Digital Cameras, Accessories and Information.

This article may be re-printed in its entirety, with no changes and this resource box included. ? 2005 A-Z Digital Cameras All rights reserved

Digital Camera Memory - An Introduction

The digital camera is essentially a computer-based device, whose core is controlled by the computer. And as a result the photographs are stored in a location called memory. Now, this concept is or paramount importance in discussing digital camera. Strictly speaking, digital camera memory is where digital pictures are stored inside the camera. The digital camera memory is an essential and often a very neglected and overlooked section of equipments for digital photography and camera. There are many types of memory available for digital cameras, and it is a good practice to mull over what type of memory a camera uses before buying a digital camera. This discussing is aimed in revealing some of this relevant information!

Knowledge of the digital camera memory is very essential for using such a camera and capturing photographs. The most common form of such memory is a memory card. These are reusable, have a limited capacity and can always be installed when required in excess. A person needs to be well informed about enough memory available for taking photographs. And accordingly make arrangements. Generally, digital cameras come available with low capacity memory cards, and it is a wise purchase to acquire higher capacity memory cards in order to budget for an additional card for later use.

With the increment of a camera mega pixel counts, it becomes essential to use higher capacity memory cards. Some of the small sized cards are for example the 64 megabyte cards and larger ones are like 1-gigabyte cards or combinations of megabyte cards.

Digital camera memory is available in many shapes and facade depending on the type of digital camera that is being used and even and the number of pictures that are required to be stored in the digital camera memory. These different types of memory are solely dependant upon the requirements of the digital camera, like for example a camera using compact flash type 1, requires the use of compact flash type 1 digital camera memory. Other examples of types of digital camera memory are Compact Flash Digital Camera Memory. It is suitable for rugged and rough handling and is also resilient for incessant usage. This is also small in size to assist better handling and flexibility. What more, it is cheap and anyone can afford it!

Generally, the sizes of a digital camera memory are as follows, 64 MB, 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB, and 1 GIG. Again, the digital camera memory depends upon the file format used to store photographs upon and the compression used by the manufacturer when storing digital images into memory.

Coming to the concluding portion, it is recommended to get hold of one 256 megabyte or two 128 megabyte cards for a 3-5 mega pixel compact digital camera. For higher resolution photographs, 512 megabyte and 1 gigabyte cards are also available. These are some of the guidelines for revealing the true facts about the different digital camera memories and their secrets. Summing up in a few words, with such a powerful tool as the digital camera, a proper selection of memory can help a person achieve the glorious tasks of freezing a precious moment from life for eternity!

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Photography 101 Part 3

Content

Even if you feel that you already know what kind of photography you like to do, it's always a good idea to try your talent at different aspects of photography.

Pictorial, this is a general term but it applies to any photographer who's goal is simply to create beautiful photos. This breaks down into smaller subsets but the most popular form is landscape and nature photography. This is what I do and it's tempting to go on and on but I will just say that this form of photography, to me, is a real art. At least that is goal to create art in photographic form. It is the goal of the photographer to use their abilities to capture an image in it's moment of beauty and simplicity.

Portrait, this can be people and even animals. It also includes wedding photography as well. This is an aspect of photography that can be a lot harder than it seems. Not only do you have to know your basic photo composition but you need to understand what makes each person look their best. You must know how to bring out their personality and character in the shot. If you love working with people this may be your field. It's fun and challenging.

Photojournalism, now this isn't just press photography, though that is one aspect of it. It is also documentary photography as well, the latter doesn't always need an event to occur right in front of you. Either way the purpose is to tell a story. Really good photojournalism shouldn't need the text below it to tell you what is going on. It should be compelling and storytelling. Composition still plays a part, you can't tell a story if the story can't be seen. And while these photos can be beautiful in their technical aspects they aren't necessarily beautiful images. The story telling is as important.

Abstract, probably not as common of a form of photography but I'm seeing it more and more. This is usually characterized by extreme close ups of detail of something, so much so that you can't identify the original subject. But in this case that doesn't matter since the abstract detail or pattern is the subject of the photo. (Color can also be the subject as well.) Basic composition still plays a part, maybe a bigger part in this form of photography.

This week's assignment: Four rolls of film again. Roll one, pictorial, get outside and try your best using all your abilities to capture moments of beauty and simplicity. Composition is key here. Roll two, portrait, get somebody to volunteer for you. Remember composition but really focus on finding the shots that make that person look their best. Different light, background, camera angles, or even clothes. Roll three, photojournalism, outside or inside anywhere you see stories. This can be as simple as a child playing with their toys. Find the appropriate moment to take a shot that tells the story. Roll four, abstract, details, details, and more details. Get in close, make sure that you can't identify the subject but find beauty in the color or details of the item.

If you have some specific questions please visit my Photography Forum at: <a href="http://kellypaalphotography.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/index.php" target="_new">http://kellypaalphotography.com/v-web/bulletin/bb/index.php</a> and post your question there.

About The Author

Copyright 2004 Kelly Paal

Kelly Paal is a Freelance Nature and Landscape Photographer, exhibiting nationally and internationally. Recently she started her own business Kelly Paal Photography (<a href="http://www.kellypaalphotography.com" target="_new">www.kellypaalphotography.com</a>). She has an educational background in photography, business, and commercial art. She enjoys applying graphic design and photography principles to her web design. <a href="mailto:kellypaa@kellypaalphotography.com">kellypaa@kellypaalphotography.com</a>

Is Film Better than Digital for Weddings?

As a professional wedding photographer I get this question asked more than anything else. Rarely will somebody ask me about my wedding photography education, awards, or professional memberships. I believe the root to this question lies on misinformation about the different qualities of film and digital.

Film

For a photographer with no computer experience or who does not want to spend the time correcting digital files film is the way to go. Film allows the photographer to photograph a wedding or event and at the end of the day be done with the process. When the time comes to print the photographs the photo lab will take care of color balance adjustments and retouching. From a technical aspect film has a wider dynamic range than digital. This means than in high contrast scenes film has the edge. It can handle them better without blowing the highlights.

Digital

The greatest advantage for digital is the control of the photographic process in the hands of the artist. The photographer is not longer at the mercy of the lab to produce a photo that reflects his inspiration and vision.

Digital allows the photographer to shoot more frames without the expense of film and development, which can translate into a more complete coverage. After the event the photographer simply edits out the bad photos and you as the customer end up with the best selection of the day. The digital medium is ideal for backup. Multiple copies of the event can simultaneously exist in different locations in the event of a catastrophe. With film there is always only one copy of the negatives, which could be duplicated, but the second copy suffers significant quality degradation. With digital it is possible to produce different versions of the same photo including black and white, color, sepia, etc. through a very simple process.

Digital allows for a faster workflow. If your photographer offers digital gallery previews your photographs can be available in a matter of hours for viewing and ordering. In addition, slide shows and DVDs can be produced for the client.

Digital retouching in the hands of an expert can create amazing results. Since there is no chemistry involved to develop digital the digital process is more environmentally friendly.

Resolution

In terms of resolution both film and digital can produce similar results. With the advent of 11 mega pixel and above digital cameras, digital has the edge for enlargements due to its lower noise levels and the lack of grain. Many purist talk of the film look, which is basically film grain and noise that gives film its unique look. This film look can easily be simulated with digital image processing techniques. Many people would be surprised to know that most photo labs will scan film prior to printing. In other words direct film to print is a myth. Digital photos when printed on true photo paper are virtually indistinguishable from their film counterparts.

What does the film vs. digital war means to the client? I believe that when selecting a wedding photographer the client has to focus on the end product more than anything else. At the end it doesn't matter if the photographer uses film or digital. What really counts is the quality of the photographs that he or she will produce for your wedding day. There are good and bad photographers using film or digital. Your task as a client is to weed out the bad ones and select a photographer that will capture beautiful memories of your wedding day.

Juan Carlos Torres is a very respected and awarded wedding photographer in Oregon. He has a Masters Degree in Remote Sensing with a strong background in digital image processing and photography. He is a member of the several professional photographer organizations including the Professional Photographers of America, the Professional Photographers of Oregon, the Wedding Photojournalist Association, and the Oregon Wedding Photo Guild. His wedding photographs are unique and very artistic and have been featured in national and international magazines. For a sample of his works please visit <a target="_new" href="http://www.juancarlosphoto.com">oregon wedding photographer</a> and <a target="_new" href="http://www.willamettephoto.com">salem oregon wedding photographer</a>

Types of Digital Cameras

If you are in the market to purchase a digital camera, you have surely seen several different types of cameras. It isnt exactly clear what the differences between the types are, and it can be confusing trying to choose the digital camera thats right for you. In this article, we wil discuss the different types of cameras so that you can better understand what to look for in purchasing a digital camera.

Point and Shoot Digital Cameras

Most consumer cameras on the market today fall into the category of Point and Shoot digital cameras. These cameras usually provide resolutions of between 2 and 4 megapixels (million pixels). These cameras are the digital version of your typical 35mm consumer camera.

A point and shoot digital camera is designed to do just that - take snapshots. They provide limited flexability with options, although many newer models have some limited options for special effects. The image quality from a point and shoot digital camera is generally good enough for common uses, such as auction photos, and even 4 X 6 prints.

If you just want a standard, entry level digital camera for family snapshots and auction photos, then a point and shoot digital camera is a budget conscious choice.

Semi Professional Digital Cameras

A semi professional digital camera is a more advanced version of a point and shoot digital camera. Typicaly, these cameras provide resolutions between 5 and 6 megapixels (million pixels). They also often offer the user additional settings and greater control over the camera. The image quality of these cameras is good enough to produce clear prints up to about 8 x 10.

A semi professional digital camera may be the best option for you if you seek greater creative control than you can get with a point and shoot model. The increased flexability does come with a price. Most semi professional models are priced much higher than point and shoot models.

Digital SLR Cameras

If you are a serious or professional photographer, no less than a Digital SLR model will do. SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. Digital SLR cameras are very similar in operation to their 35 mm SLR countereparts. Also, many camera companies (such as Cannon and Nikon) have built their digital SLR models to be compatible with 35 mm SLR lenses. This is a great benefit to professional photographers who can select a model that is compatible with their existing lenses.

Digital SLR cameras provide an amazing ammount of creative control over the camera and the resuting images. Also, these cameras provide resolutions over 6 Megapixels and can produce prints of poster size without noticable pixelazation.

A Digital SLR camera (without lenses) is a pricey investment indeed. Currently, you can expect to spend $1500 or more on the camera alone. Accessories and lenses cost extra.

For more articles, information, and product reviews on Digital Cameras and Digital Photography, visit: <a target="_new" href="http://www.digitalcamerasource.info">Digital Cameras</a> and <a target="_new" href="http://www.digital-camera-guides.info">Digital Camera Guides</a>

Digital Camera Memory Cards

A digital camera accessory you should purchase is a spare memory card. Most cameras are sold with a 'starter' memory card that is usually a low capacity card that's enough to take a few sample photos on, but not enough for day-to-day use.

What is a memory card?

A memory card is the little removable piece of plastic that your camera uses to store your photos. Memory cards come in different sizes and names such as Compact Flash (CF), Secure Digital (SD), Memory Stick (MS), Smart Media (SM) and xD.

Running out of memory on your card is a little like running out of film in a traditional camera. Rather than purchasing a new film to take more shots though, you move your images to your computer or a CD and re-use the same memory card.

Purchasing extra memory cards is a good idea is you're on a vacation and want to ensure you can store all your photos. Fortunately, prices of memory cards have come down dramatically in recent times.

Purchasing - what do I need to know?

There are two pieces of information you need to know when purchasing a new memory card. What type of card your camera takes, and how large a memory card you wish to buy.

What memory card type does my camera use?

The simplest way to find out the type of memory card your camera uses, is to take your existing card out of the camera and look on it for one of the types listed above. If you're still not sure, take your existing card into the camera store and ask the staff for a new card with the same type as what you have.

The size of memory card you purchase will depend on your photography needs as well as your budget. Memory cards come in sizes between 16 Megabytes (and will fit between 4 and 32 images depending on your camera capabilities and image quality) and 4 Gigabytes (4,000 megabytes - store thousands of images on one of these cards).

My advice is to purchase the largest sized card you can afford. This will allow you to take as many pictures as possible before needing to transfer to a computer or CD. On my last holiday, I took along 1 Gigabyte of memory card storage allowing me to take about 500 images without needing to take my computer along with me to download the images to.

Memory Card Speed

Another feature to keep in the back of your mind when purchasing a new memory card is the card's speed. The faster your memory card speed, the faster your camera can write it's image to the card, and the quicker you can take another photo. The actual speed will be the LOWEST of either your camera's fastest transfer speed (see your camera's manual) and the memory card's speed. If your camera can transfer at 40X speed, but your memory card can only handle 12X, 12X will be the actual transfer speed. Note that some cameras ignore the card's speed and write as fast as possible all the time.

How many memory cards do I need?

I recommend you have at least two memory cards for your camera. The professionals usually carry 4-6 memory cards and when they run out of memory on one they swap to the next, but unless you're taking LOTS of photos, that's overkill. With two cards, you can normally work with one but you have a spare just in case you run out of the first, or you go on a long vacation and need to store more images than you normally would.

Microdrives

A recent invention that's gaining a lot of popularity is the Microdrive. These are for the Type II Compact Flash cards, and instead of memory inside the card, there's a tiny hard drive. Their advantage is they can store an enormous amount of data (over 6 Gigabytes), but the problem is they are a little more expensive than a traditional memory card, and can take longer to save your image. They also aren't as shock resistant as standard cards.

Care of cards

Memory cards, although they seem to be small and flimsy, can be quite robust. I've dropped one of my cards in a glass of coke and it has survived - although I don't recommend you do this! It will also depend on the brand of card you purchase. More expensive cards tend to withstand more pounding. Most memory cards will withstand a small amount of misuse, but like any electronic components, take good care of them and they will serve you well.

Other Memory Card Tips

- If you transfer lots of images to your computer, purchase a card reader. These will allow you to transfer the images to your computer at a much faster rate than using your camera's connection.

- Contrary to popular opinion, airport x-ray machines will not damage your camera's memory cards. If you're really worried, remove them from your bag and ask the screeners to inspect manually.

- Turn off your camera when inserting or removing memory cards. Taking the memory card out while the camera is writing to the card could wreck both your card and camera.

David Peterson has a great love of photography and has created a series of free tips at <a target="_new" href="http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/">http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/</a> to help digital photography users everywhere take better photos.

Digital Camera Macro Mode

The digital camera is a wonderful device that allows a diverse variety of applications with its even diverse spectral collection of utilities. As technology progresses it brings along with it those intense pleasures that human beings have only thought of. Now the digital camera has opened up the dimensions for the people and the photographers in providing with the liberty of capturing whatever they wish and of whatever type they prefer! Well the magic words are macro mode. Although the words might seem to be a bit deceiving they have really a great application in the field of digital photography and digital camera as a device. In general the digital camera macro mode allows a digital camera to photograph close-up pictures of petite objects like flowers, insects, coins, etc. Macro mode potentiality vary from camera to camera but almost all digital cameras offer this exclusive feature to enable the users to widen up their imaginations and their weirdest fantasies in creating art.

Extending the discussion further we can state that just about most of the digital cameras has a macro mode. Each of these digital cameras can be verified of having the macro mode because for each of them one of the menu buttons will have an icon of a flower on it. This is the macro mode button invariably. And thus has the specific technology built in. The macro mode button, when pressed, switches the camera into a special close focus mode and many allow the photographer to shoot less than 10cm from the picture subject. Many cameras of reputed companies like Nikon and Ricoh allows the users to be as close as 3cm from the picture subject that permits barely credible close ups of tiny objects such as little insects. The macro mode has a greater variety of applications in security measurements too. At times macro mode may be also useful for making photographic records of priced jewels for insurance purposes in order to prevent theft and fraudulent activities.

The macro mode is more often than not present on the menu button that as well has an icon of two triangles symbolizing mountains (or rather landscape mode) and sometimes MF (manual focus) too. This button has to be pressed several times until the flower icon appears on the viewing LCD. A number of digital cameras then subsequently by design shift into a particular precinct on the zoom lens making a mechanical sound as the zoom reset. While using a digital camera macro mode it must be noted that it is harder to focus for the digital camera instantly, so it takes a bit of time for adjustment. Thus the users need not hurry while using the digital camera macro mode. As the subject comes in focus the depth-of-field also increases. On the other hand, the depth-of-field is controlled by the camera's aperture. Most digital cameras are full automatic and this setting cannot be changed. Thus patience becomes a virtue while using the digital camera in their macro mode.

Much has already been discussed about the digital camera macro mode. It can be stated here that the digital camera macro mode is a really intricate feature. And every delicate object or subject needs to be handled with care. To really cherish the beauty of the digital camera macro modes the users require developing the expertise and also building a kind of patience that is necessary to cerate beauty in art and object.

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Tips for Taking Better Vacation Photos

Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help you capture vacation memories you will treasure for years to come.

PLAN AHEAD

Make sure your digital camera is in good working order before you go, and keep it in a water- and shock-resistant case. Bring two sets of rechargeable batteries and don't forget the charger and relevant cords. Make sure your camera has enough memory. Packing an extra memory card is wise, as there is nothing worse than running out of room for pictures halfway down the Grand Canyon. It may be tempting to lower the resolution so you can store more pictures, but you will regret this later as it may result in poorer quality prints, or you will be limited to smaller size prints. Set your camera at its highest quality JPEG setting and get more memory if you have to. You will appreciate this when you're viewing and printing your photos after your trip.

TAKE LOTS AND LOTS OF PICTURES

With a digital camera you can always erase the photos you don't want. Take pictures of anything you find interesting and try to focus on some of the details such as an attractive doorway or a colorful market, not just panoramic scenes or major landmarks. Let your pictures tell a story by creating a visual diary of your trip. Include street scenes, interesting signs, people you see along the way. For variety take both vertical and horizontal pictures.

READY FOR YOUR CLOSE-UP?

When taking people shots, don't make the mistake of standing too far away. You want to be able to recognize the people in your photos. Get close enough so you can see the expressions on your subjects faces. Zoom in on individuals or capture them from the waist up. Pictures are often more interesting when you can catch people at candid, un-posed moments. In posed photos, try to incorporate some of the background into your shot. Try snapping from interesting angles rather than simply head-on.

USE YOUR FLASH

When photographing in bright sunlight, setting your camera's &quot;fill&quot; or &quot;forced&quot; flash is very helpful, particularly when photographing people. Brilliant sunlight often makes people's faces look harsh, casting dark shadows under the eyes and accentuating wrinkles. The daytime fill-in flash will soften the lighting and make the images more flattering. Your family and friends in the photos will thank you!

EDIT AND ENHANCE YOUR FAVORITE SHOTS

When you get home you can edit, crop and enhance your favorites using photo editing software such as Foto Finish, Ulead or Photoshop Elements. Consider adding drama to your images by turning some of your color photos into black and white or sepia tones and then upload all your images to an online photo printing service like Ofoto or Shutterfly for fast and convenient prints. You can take your best snaps and use your photo editing software to create a photo calendar or make photo cards for personal notes, or to email your favorites to family and friends.

Most of all have fun with your camera!

Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website <a target="_new" href="http://www.digitalphotos101.com">http://www.digitalphotos101.com</a> featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.

Digital Zoom Versus Optical Zoom

The digital camera is but a technological advancement of the conventional analog camera. And thus every component of the analog camera must have been upgraded or changed to bring in some improvisations. This discussion is an effort to unravel alteration and make one comparison between what was and what is! This discussion is thereby focused upon a very critical component of a camera (analog as well as digital), the zoom!

Before making a comparison it is important to discuss the significance of the subject matter, in this case the zoom. Well a zoom lens has more than a few portable glass components inside it. By adjusting these components, the focal length of the lens can be altered. Modifying the focal length alters the view distance as well as reduces the field of view, thereby making the projected image to appear larger.

It must me noted that both the optical zoom and the digital zoom are components that are used to magnify an image, but they work in fundamentally different principles and acquiesces drastically different results. In general, optical zooms always produce a far finer and advanced image than digital zoom.

Looking at the functions of these zooms, in digital cameras that offer optical zooms function the same way similar to a zoom lens of a conventional analog camera. A conventional lens works by accumulating light rays that are projected over a portion of a film, and in this case of a digital camera optical sensor. The distance of the lens from the focus point where all of the light rays converge is known as the focal length of the lens. Unlike the optical zoom, the digital zoom works by ranging the pixels in the ultimate image after the image has been captured. The fact remains that the same number of pixels are collected when the photograph is magnified. The only thing that alters is the light rays that are projected over the optical sensors to figure out those pixels.

It is a common intuition that optical lenses are far better than the digital zooms. The reason is that the digital camera zooms are more prone towards computer applications in them rather than mostly human interactions and expertise. Yet, it also remains a fact that beginner photographers find it more useful to handle a digital zoom and also its computer friendly nature. There the computer does the intricate tasks of finding some levelheaded approximation of colors that pixel might take up as it had captured the images or photographs. Many algorithms are existent in this area, but perhaps the most abundantly used algorithm involves looking at the pixels that are quite nearly like neighbors and come up with a kind of an average. Anyways the process remains too complicated and its end result is what the digital zoom users are interested in.

Thus the ultimate truth remains that it is useless to compare digital zooms with optical zooms. Perhaps it is more logical to compare optical zoom with optical zoom and digital zoom with digital zoom. Both these two types of zooms, the optical as well as the digital, have some good and bad qualities. Both of them have some extra features and preferences over the other. And thus it is not wise to compare them, even though a comparison may exist. The efforts would then perhaps look like comparing oranges with apples!

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of <a href="http://www.snapjunky.com" target="_new">http://www.snapjunky.com</a>. Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.

Tips for Taking Better Vacation Photos

Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help you capture vacation memories you will treasure for years to come.

PLAN AHEAD

Make sure your digital camera is in good working order before you go, and keep it in a water- and shock-resistant case. Bring two sets of rechargeable batteries and don't forget the charger and relevant cords. Make sure your camera has enough memory. Packing an extra memory card is wise, as there is nothing worse than running out of room for pictures halfway down the Grand Canyon. It may be tempting to lower the resolution so you can store more pictures, but you will regret this later as it may result in poorer quality prints, or you will be limited to smaller size prints. Set your camera at its highest quality JPEG setting and get more memory if you have to. You will appreciate this when you're viewing and printing your photos after your trip.

TAKE LOTS AND LOTS OF PICTURES

With a digital camera you can always erase the photos you don't want. Take pictures of anything you find interesting and try to focus on some of the details such as an attractive doorway or a colorful market, not just panoramic scenes or major landmarks. Let your pictures tell a story by creating a visual diary of your trip. Include street scenes, interesting signs, people you see along the way. For variety take both vertical and horizontal pictures.

READY FOR YOUR CLOSE-UP?

When taking people shots, don't make the mistake of standing too far away. You want to be able to recognize the people in your photos. Get close enough so you can see the expressions on your subjects faces. Zoom in on individuals or capture them from the waist up. Pictures are often more interesting when you can catch people at candid, un-posed moments. In posed photos, try to incorporate some of the background into your shot. Try snapping from interesting angles rather than simply head-on.

USE YOUR FLASH

When photographing in bright sunlight, setting your camera's &quot;fill&quot; or &quot;forced&quot; flash is very helpful, particularly when photographing people. Brilliant sunlight often makes people's faces look harsh, casting dark shadows under the eyes and accentuating wrinkles. The daytime fill-in flash will soften the lighting and make the images more flattering. Your family and friends in the photos will thank you!

EDIT AND ENHANCE YOUR FAVORITE SHOTS

When you get home you can edit, crop and enhance your favorites using photo editing software such as Foto Finish, Ulead or Photoshop Elements. Consider adding drama to your images by turning some of your color photos into black and white or sepia tones and then upload all your images to an online photo printing service like Ofoto or Shutterfly for fast and convenient prints. You can take your best snaps and use your photo editing software to create a photo calendar or make photo cards for personal notes, or to email your favorites to family and friends.

Most of all have fun with your camera!

Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website <a target="_new" href="http://www.digitalphotos101.com">http://www.digitalphotos101.com</a> featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.