Language of the Lens

Paris the most beautiful city in the world, was captured and frozen in time by the great master of photojournalism, Henri Cartier-Bresson, who brought beauty and a new dimension to an ordinary street scene. Photography, he once wrote is a spontaneous impulse which comes from perpetually looking, and which seizes the instant and its eternity.

Henri elevated "snap shooting" to the level of a refined and disciplined art. He exclusively used the Leica 35mm rangefinder cameras equipped with normal 50mm lenses or occasionally a telephoto for landscapes. He was one of the first photographers to shoot in the 35mm format and helped to develop the photojournalistic "street photography" style that influenced generations of photographers to come. He was the father of "the decisive moment," when everything in a picture was entirely balanced.

He often spoke of the geometry of photography. "Change your position by a millimetre and the geometry changes," he said. "This cannot be calculated but needs to be instinctive, when I start thinking, everything's lost. What counts in a shot is its plenitude and its simplicity."

During his boyhood, Henri experimented with a 3 X 4 view camera. However, his main interest lay in painting. When he was 19, he went to study painting with Andre Lhote, the Cubist master. There he learned about angles, walls and the way things tilt. His still-lifes and Paris street scenes are indicative of his subtle and sensitive eye for composition.

In 1931, at the age of 22, Cartier-Bresson spent a year as a hunter in the West African bush. Catching a case of backwater fever, he returned to France to convalesce. It was at this time, in Marseille, that he first truly discovered photography. He obtained a Leica and began snapping a few pictures, and within a decade, he was famous. "The only thing about photography that interests me is the aim, the taking aim." "Nothing is lost," he says. "All that you have ever seen is always with you."

After World War II, he resumed his career as a photojournalist and helped form the Magnum picture agency in 1947. Assignments for major magazines would take him on global travels, across Europe and the United States, to India, Russia and China. Many books of Cartier-Bresson photographs were published in the 50's and 60's, the most famous being 'The Decisive Moment' (1952). A major milestone in his career was a massive, 400-print retrospective exhibition, which toured the United States in 1960.

As a journalist, Henri Cartier-Bresson felt an intense need to communicate what he thought and felt about what he saw, and while his pictures often were subtle, they were rarely obscure. He had a high respect for the discipline of press photography, of having to communicate a story meaningfully in one picture. His journalistic grappling with the realities of men and events, his sense of news and history, and his belief in the social role of photography all pushed his work beyond the usual boundaries.

His work and his approach have exercised a profound and far-reaching influence. His pictures and picture essays have been published in most of the world's major magazines during three decades, and Cartier-Bresson prints have hung in the leading art museums of the United States and Europe (his monumental 'The Decisive Moment' show being the first photographic exhibit ever to be displayed in the halls of the Louvre.)

No one captured the language of Paris so profoundly. The incredible grace and movement he bestowed on all his subjects, his attention to detail and powers of observation all came together in one 'defining moment.' Photographs of men in bowler hats, the abattoir workers, the lovers, the drunks, the refugees, the tarts, the judges, the picnickers, the animals and the kids. "Not art," he once commented when someone referred to him as an artist, "just gut reactions to moments happened on."

You can capture the language of Paris through the Bilinguagroup, a professional translation & interpreting service. Their team of multilingual professionals are consistently praised for their speed and efficiency of service by their clients based in Paris and all around the globe. From Farsi to French they are there to help you all the way – call them in any language and judge for yourself!

How to Maximise Life on Camera Memory

Whilst digital camera memory is getting cheaper and faster all the time, it still pays to take care of your memory cards. Ideally we would all transfer data from our sd cards or cameras to computer and back them up, but in the real world, many of use leave half-filled cards stuck in our cameras until we next need to take a picture.

This is particularly the case where you have something like an 16gb sdhc memory card - i.e., an sd card that packs a lot of memory. The higher the memory capacity of your card, the more likely you are to leave images on your camera until space runs out. Whilst a 2gb sd card doesn't sound like a big capacity, it can carry the same number of images as 15 rolls of 35mm film!

If you don't take a huge amount of photos or video, you probably don't need to splash out on a high capacity card - a 2gb memory card is fine.

Beware of the dangers of leaving something like an 8gb memory card or higher in your camera. You'll discourage yourself from making regular downloads to your PC by having a high capacity card, which means you risk losing images if the camera gets lost, stolen or damaged. You can replace a camera, but lost images are gone forever. Whilst your insurance might cover the camera, it won't cover the 8gb sdhc card you paid as much as £18 for.

Regardless of the capacity of your memory card, applying some basic care rules will ensure not only that your sd cards will have a long and healthy life span but also that your precious pictures don't suffer. Be sure not to pull the memory card out of your camera the second you switch it off - the camera could still be transferring data from the buffer to memory. SD cards not built to withstand rough treatment, so be gentle when exposing the metal elements, such as during removal or transit. And don't try to remove the card whilst the camera is still on; the memory could get corrupted.

Few of us have any idea how to do it, but it's actually a good idea to reformat your memory card after each data download. Because so many of us download our pictures directly from camera to our PC, we rarely remove the card. However, if you want to switch a card between cameras or want to clear the files of photos, reformatting by going to 'set up' in your camera's function areas will ensure that you are starting with a 'clean slate'. By doing this you are less likely to encounter memory problems.

Worried that you've lost the images from your memory card? Don't fret. Software packages exist that are able to tease out the buried images on secure digital memory cards - provided that you haven't already written over the data. A quick search of the internet or a question at a photo development shop should answer any concerns you may have here.

To sum up, camera memory care is very simple and mostly common sense. SD cards may look small and unimportant, but they can carry a huge amount of data - stuff we want to keep. Extremes of temperature, moisture and general exposure are all enemies of digital memory cards.

The Ruse Of Digital Wedding Photographers

Digital cameras are an exciting tool for consumers and amateurs alike! They provide enough instant feedback, gratification and seeming "success" that can easily build a false sense of security whereby the camera operator - now encouraged by well-meaning family and friends - decides to declare him- or her-self a "photographer" and promptly secures a website as proof of their new career. But, "What is wrong with that?" you would say, "Everyone has to start somewhere! And, if they really are enthusiastic about photography, why not?!"

My answer: because at a wedding, there is only one opportunity to get it right. There are no do-overs; once the moment has passed, it is gone, never to happen again. Informed people are less likely to be disappointed by leaving their precious memories to chance.

As an International award-winning professional photographer educated in and operating my own business for over fifteen years I've not witnessed such a large influx of wedding photographers since the industry moved from medium-format cameras that produced traditional photographic results, to the use of 35mm cameras (and yes, even the current digital cameras) that resulted in the more editorial and contemporary documentary style photography of today.

The real problem lies in the fact that most of the people flooding into wedding photography today lack a formal education, consistent training, or at a minimum, an internship in the professional photographic techniques that will provide clients with beautiful imagery and consistent exposures and results. In the amateur's enthusiasm in claiming their stake as a "photographer" and declaring themselves a business, they quickly overlook and even dismiss the important photographic theories and creative techniques, such as proper exposure and the ability to see and use light creatively, and they almost always lack solid business experience frequently falling short in accountability to their clients.

As what often happens in the concept of supply/demand, when supplies (photographers) are in abundance, prices of the product (photography) typically decrease. This can seem to be a great thing, particularly for most wedding clients on a budget who are embarking on one of the most expensive ventures of their lives! But the fact is, that price alone does not always determine experience or quality service and products, particularly a low price, again bringing to light that most amateurs don't know how to operate a business in the first place. If the price seems too good to be true, it probably is and you'll want to keep in mind the adage: you get what you pay for.

How then, do we help our friends, family or even our potential clients choose a professional photographer with the creative skills and business experience to deliver their precious cargo - the history of how a couple's lives began together? We inform them of what criterion to look for and what questions are critical to ask when they are seeking a professional photographer for their important events.

If you would like to learn more about how you can help your family, friends or clients make a sound investment, instead of wasting their money and losing their memories, please stay tuned for my second article: Selecting Your Wedding Photographer. And for those of you thinking you may want to become a professional photographer, stay tuned for future how-to articles and resources on that topic as well!

For more information on my credentials and experience, please visit:
Joanne Bartone Photography
Website: http://www.joannebartone.com
Email: joanne@joannebartone.com
Tele: 412.418.8075

Camera Reviews - Nikon Coolpix L20 10MP Digital Camera

Affordable point-and-shoot digital cameras like the Nikon Coolpix L20 usually don't offer very good image quality but this 10MP digital camera delivers exactly that along with the ability to use AA size batteries. Lets take a closer look at this digital camera model.

Design: Since the Nikon Coolpix L20 uses two AA sized batteries the camera body is a bit thicker and bulkier compared to other digital cameras that use proprietary li-ion batteries. Thankfully, Nikon have formed the grip around the bulkier battery compartment making the camera easier to hold even with wet hands. Utilizing a large three inch LCD, minimal controls and a shiny surface finish the camera looks great and feels good in your hands. At 4.8 ounces it is quite lightweight.

Specifications: The Nikon Coolpix L20 offers 10 megapixel images with a 3.6x optical zoom and a 38mm-136mm focal length lens (35mm equivalent). This allows it to zoom in a bit further and take slightly wider than average images. The camera uses SD and SDHC memory cards and two AA sized batteries. This means that you can use normal off-the-shelf alkaline batteries or rechargeable ni-MH batteries. The camera takes JPEG still images and even allows you to use the optical zoom while taking 640x480 movies running at 30fps, something which not many digital cameras allow you to do. With digital image stabilization the camera is surprisingly rock-steady and lasts a respectable 230 shots on two AA-sized batteries.

Features & Performance: If you're used to pressing the shutter button half-way to auto-focus first then the Nikon Coolpix L20 is extremely easy to use with pretty fast shutter speed. While the camera does offer various image-recording modes you cannot manually adjust exposure or ISO. Instead the camera automatically adjusts ISO to suit current lighting conditions. Thankfully, the camera is intelligent enough to create great images which are sharp in detail and have accurate exposure. Other automatic features of note include a Blink mode that warns if somebody blinked while the shot was being taken and a guided panorama mode for easy panorama shots. All in all the Nikon Coolpix L20 is a surprisingly good point-and-shoot digital camera with intelligent automatic functions. It should suit any new point-and-shoot user or just the average tourist, thanks to its ease of use and easy to get AA sized batteries.

Samsung Flight II SGH-A927 (AT&T) Review

Samsung's summer of sequel continues with the Samsung Flight II, a successor to the Samsung Flight messaging phone from last year. Like the original, the Flight II has a touch screen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard; however, this time the keyboard slides out horizontally instead of vertically. Aside from that, the phone's features remain mostly the same as its predecessor--a 2.0-megapixel camera, GPS, a media player, and 3G supports--though it has a few extras like an HTML Web browser and social media apps. The Samsung Flight II is available for $49 with a new two-year service agreement with AT&T.


While the Samsung Flight looked distinctive with its rather broad footprint and vertical QWERTY keyboard, the Flight II is absolutely not unique. Measuring 4.4 inches long by 2.1 inches wide by 0.5 inch thick, the Flight II looks similar to other slender sliders we've seen from Samsung--the Seek and the Messager Touch spring to mind. We can't help but feel the design is rather uninteresting as a result, but we admit it does have a nice feel in the hand because of its bowed corners and oval shape.


The Flight II has a 2.8-inch touch screen, which makes it a hair bigger than the one on the Flight. Its display looks vivacious and colorful with crisp graphics and text; in fact, it looks much brighter and sharper than the display on the Eternity II. You can adjust the font type, the brightness, the backlight time, and the greeting message on the home screen. You can also tailor the menu layout as well as add and remove apps from the list.


Like a lot of Samsung's touch-screen characteristic phones, you can customize the Flight II with up to three home screens. Samsung dedicate one home screen to Favorite contacts, while you can modify the other two with shortcuts and widgets from the TouchWiz tray on the left. A few of the more attractive widgets are the ones for Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Yahoo Search.


At the bottom row of the home screen are shortcuts to the phone dialer, the contacts list, and the main menu. The menu is alienated into dissimilar pages, which you have to navigate by swiping across the screen. On the main menu, the bottom row shortcuts change to the phone dialer, the contacts list, and a new text message.


The touch screen was receptive, and we're glad to see that it has a capacitive display instead of the more common resistive option. You can add vibration feedback if you want, and you can adjust its intensity. While we liked the touch screen's receptiveness, and the overall performance of the phone blemished it significantly. There was often a delay when swiping home screens, and when opening and closing the TouchWiz tray. Launching apps took a few more seconds than it should as well.


Features:

The Flight II has a generous 2,000-entry phone book with room in each entry for five phone numbers, an e-mail address, a Web URL, a nickname, a company and job title, a birthday, and notes. You can also add the contacts to caller groups and associate them with photos, vibration patterns, and one of 15 polyphonic ring tones. You can also use your own MP3s as ringtones if you like. The Flight II comes with AT&T's Address Book service that lets you store your contacts in the cloud as a backup.


As the phone is a messaging device, we're happy to see text and multimedia messaging, instant messaging, and AT&T's mobile e-mail. The latter has a restricted, clunky Web-based interface that lets you access POP3 e-mail services like Gmail, AT&T Mail, Hotmail, and others, but it takes too long to launch and load. The Flight II also includes a few social networking apps like Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter, that offers quicker access to their status update page. If you don't want the individual app, there's an AT&T Social Net app that combines them all into one interface with different tabs. The app has an RSS reader in it as well, though you're limited to the built-in news feeds.

Nikon D700 - The Best Digital SLR Ever?

If your looking for the best of the best, and money is not option, and your into digital photography, or you just got a big inheritance, and have decided to buy the camera of your dreams, then I under stand why you would be looking at the Nikon D700 SLR. While it comes with a price tag of $3000, I'm sure you don't really care. The people that buy this camera, either have an unlimited budget, or are professional photographers. Otherwise, it's pretty much out of reach for the average consumer.

It may be priced high, but not without reason. One of the biggest reasons for that is the full frame sensor that is standard issue on the D700. What full frame means, is that the image sensor is the same size as the film frame would be in a conventional 35mm film camera. Very few digital cameras come with a full frame sensor, due to it's prohibitive cost to manufacture. One of the nicest things about full frame, is that you can use any lens that was designed with the 35mm format in mind.

Another impressive is the usable ISO range of the D700, which according to manufacturer specifications clocks in at 100 to 25,600. While that range may sound impressive it becomes difficult to use after 12800. Speed is another thing the D700 does well. What doesn't it do well? There are a few, but hang on a bit. You'll be able to grab 5 frames of photos per second, and with an impressive fifty one point auto-focus, I'll bet, that most of those pictures are in focus.

While there are a few nit picky problems some may find with the D700, they're hardly worth mentioning. Ok, I will. While balance can be flaky at time, and you can get more resolution from some of the competition. Competitors being the Canon 5D, and the Sony A900.

Getting the perfect camera, is never an easy thing, especially with the way digital technology is constantly changing. Fortunately, there are plenty of helpful websites online, that can narrow down your search and help you find the camera with all the features important to you

Nine iPhone Killers

There can be no doubt that iPhone is excellent. A large number of Apple fans queued for scare buying since it was launched. But its faults - video recording, unchangeable battery, MMS, only synchronization with iTunes, make some users disappointed. Almost all mobile phones are imitating iPhone's big touch screen, florid users interface, and gravity sensor. Some copyists make a perfect reproduction in appearance but with an odd interface. Anyway there are some brilliant copyists. In some aspects they have great advantage. We call these phones "iPhone killers". We find that these "killers" have much in common - they all have 2.8" touch screen and equalizer. And their cameras are better than iPhone's 2MP, most of them supporting auto focus. Does iPhone still have predominance? Let's see with this evaluation of 9 iPhone killers.

We make the basic standards in this contest:

1. No smaller than 2.8" touch screen

2. Built-in gravity accelerator

3. No lower than 3MP camera

According to this standard we get 9 handsets which are very familiar to us. They are HTC Touch Diamond, HTC Touch HD, LG KP500, LG LC910, Samsung i908, Samsung M8800c, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic - Nokia's first touch screen phone, T-Mobile G1, and Blackberry 9500 Storm - Blackberry's first touch screen phone. All of them stand for the most sophisticated and newest technology.

Rules:

With regard to iPhone's biggest feature - user interface and web browser, we had some rule adjustment. Practical functions such as user experience and video play are paid more attention to while hardware such as camera and CPU are less valued. Appearance, battery life, and price are kept as usual.

1. Appearance (10')

2. User interface (20')

3. Display (10')

4. User experience (10')

5. Video play (10')

6. Web browser (10')

7. Add-ons (10')

8. Battery life (10')

9. Price (10')

Awards:

The best "iPhone killer" phone 2008

The most popular "iPhone killer" phone 2008

The most cost-effective "iPhone killer" phone 2008

Appearance (10')

All these mobile phones are their brands' flagship. Five editors marked them and then arrived at the average mark. The result shows that HTC Touch Diamond is the most beautiful device. HTC Touch HD and Samsung i908 take the second and the third placerespectively.

The diamond cuts on the back give the phone a name "Diamond" which tells us HTC Touch Diamond's appearance is far from being ordinary. It looks slim and delicate. If you have some knowledge about Windows mobile operating system which is adopted in this phone, you will understand how difficult it is to make it as thin as 11.35mm and its weight as light as 110g.

A 3.2MP, auto focus camera is placed on a silver triangle among diamond cuts on the back, which is exquisite. There is not too much decoration on flanks and interfaces for the sake of its compact style.

Interface (20')

Besides the Apple logo on the back, the gorgeous, strong, and easy to use interface is iPhone's another selling point. That's why we award 20' on this section, including comfort when touching, equalizer's scope, if supporting rolling menu or not, the fluency of rolling menu, and reflection speed. 5' are awarded in each section.

In the section of "comfort when touching" Blackberry 9500 gets full mark because of its "SurePress". HTC Touch HD gets 4' for its 3.8" touch screen. 4 Korean mobile phones with vibration feedback, LG and Samsung, get 3'. T-Mobile G1 ranks on the last place for its mechanical and blunt touching feeling.

We tested equalizer's scope as well as its speed and fluency in the section of "equalizer's scope". Blackberry 9500's main menu supports auto turning and it's very swift and free-flowing, thus it ranks the first again. On the contrary, T-Mobile G1's equalizer is not available in all its interfaces. Which goes to the bottom again.

"Rolling menu" refers to switching interface by finger rolling. HTC Touch Diamond, HTC Touch HD, Blackberry 9500 and T-Mobile G1 are tied for first place in this section. Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and Samsung i908 are tied for last place, only supporting a scroll bar.

The reflection speed is attached with the most importance by users. T-Mobile G1, which was listed on the bottom in last sections, ranks first with 4 mark in this section. Nokia 5800, which adopted S60 5TH Edition, gets 2.5', ranking on the last place. The final result shows that Blackberry 9500 is the champion, HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch HD equal second.

Display (10')

Needless to say, display means a lot to "big touching screen" phones. This section is divided into 3 parts - size, resolution and subjective evaluation. In this section HTC Touch Diamond gets only 4' for its 2.8" VGA screen.

Two 1920x1200 pixels pictures were applied to test saturation and contrast of these phones' display. They are classified into 3 levels. Blackberry 9500 is the first level, LG KC910, T-Mobile G1, LG KP500 and Samsung M8800 the second, Nokia 5800, HTC Touch HD, Samsung i908 and HTC Touch Diamond the third.

Users experience (20')

More than 20 users were invited to experience the 9 handsets. After 2 hours we received 17 questionnaires about easy use and reflection speed. T-Mobile G1, HTC Touch HD and Blackberry 9500 are ranked the first three.

Vedio play (10')

iPhone only supports M4V, MP4, MOV. Let's see these "iPhone killers". We play 13 video formats, including avi, mp4, rmvb, wmv, etc, in these sets. If the phone can play one, it gets 1'. We mainly test the built-in video player, but phones with open operating system will earn more marks.

Because CorePlayer can be installed in HTC Touch Diamond, HTC Touch HD and Samsung i908, they are all added 2'. Though G1 doesn't have a video player it can play 480x352 pixels, H.264, H.263 format video providing Video Player is installed in Market. We gave it 2'.

Web browser (10')

iPhone's Safari is considered to be the best web browser. Youtube video player counts more and more. Browser and Youtube are the two items we test in this section.

Add-ons (10')

In this contest the hardware equipment is not valued. However, data link and some hardware equipment still need our attention. In terms of data link we compare their data interface, flash memory, expansion slot, earphone slot, GPS, camera and speaker. HTC Touch HD gets the highest mark - 7'.

Standby (10')

It seems that these iPhone killers' batteries are not better than iPhone's. Fortunately their battery can be changed. We tested their theoretical battery life which is awarded 4' and practical performance which is awarded 6'. Nokia 5800 XpressMusic proves to be the best one.

Total score:

When counting the total score by Excel, we found the champion is HTC Touch HD one more time! It was "the best hardware-equipped phone" in the test "17 windows mobile smart phones contest" we made last December. In this contest, it is "the best iPhone killer phone 2008".

Windows mobile smart phone HTC Touch HD was released at the end of 2008. The most specific feature is its super-high resolution and 3.8" screen.

Developing direction:

A. Special User Interface

iPhone's UI is simple and delicate, and "iPhone killers" have their own special UIs and operating ways. Simple, convenient, brilliant user interfaces are always smart phones' selling point.

B. iPhone's App Store is thought to be the most mature commercial software platform. Android Market develops very fast. However, Windows Mobile, Symbian S60 and Blackberry haven't built their software shop online so far. Symbian's signature is a bother. There is no doubt that in the future easy software downloading and online shop are the trend.

C. As 3G becomes more and more popular, mobile phones will be the commonest device for WWW, RSS, Twitter, online video, blog, even online games. Phone-end internet application will be iPhone killers' developing direction. Google Android OS is open to internet all round. Like iPhone, it is a typical phone in the hand internet era.

In fact these phones are not as convenient and simple as iPhone though we name them "iPhone killers". iPhone still has dominance. "Simple is beauty." is Apple's maxim. Do these killers have their own maxim?

We wish these phones could do more than imitating; we hope to see more and more creation and evolution in future phones; we hope to see and use phones much more interesting than iPhone. That's the ultimate goal of this contest!

Jerry Smith, the editor of http://www.mobilephoneonly.co.uk. An expert on mobile phone and an observer of UK telecommunication market. He writes reviews on latest mobile phones, and also suggests promotional deals and special offers from mobile phone retailers in UK.

Ghost Hunting 101

Do you hear bumps in the night? Does your hair stand on end when you walk into a room? Maybe you feel as if someone is watching you or perhaps you think you see someone out the corner of your eye, but when you turn to look no one is there? What you may be encountering in those unsettling moments is a ghost. So before you go running out of your house screaming, let's take a moment to talk about ghostly encounters and those that investigate this phenomena.

A ghost is believed to be the spirit or soul of a person who has remained on Earth after death. When a ghost has taken up residence in a location, it is referred to as a haunting. There are two different ways in which a ghost inhabits a location. The most common type of haunting is a residual haunting. A residual haunting is typified by ghostly energy that is static or goes through a number of movements over and over again. It can be likened to watching a movie clip that repeats itself or a record album that has a skip in it, causing the needle to jump back to an earlier point on the album and begin again.

The second classification of haunting is the classic haunting. In a classic haunting the ghost displays intelligence and interacts with the people in the environment. It is not uncommon during a classic haunting for items to be moved around, for lights or electrical appliances to turn on and off, to hear voices our sounds out of nowhere or to be touched, tickled, stroked or even shoved. These ghosts often reflect the personality of an individual, even after their death. With this type of haunting, the aroma of flowers, perfume, cigarette smoke or other scents that are associated with the individual are often detected.

So whether you think you are being haunted by a ghost and want to have a group of trained professionals to come to your home or are interested in investigating all that goes bump in the night, but don't know where to begin, here's some information that can help you get started.

It is held that ghosts are electro-magnetic in origin and they create these fields when trying to manifest into this dimension. The energy that is given off by a ghost causes disruptions in the locations magnetic field, thus making it detectable by specialized equipment and psychics alike.

Because the presence of a ghost can be detected by specific types of equipment, a ghost hunter can become well equipped with a number of affordable pieces of equipment, many of which you may already own. From basic to advanced, there are many different types of equipment you can use to detect an otherworldly presence. For someone thinking about participating in an investigation, this doesn't mean you have to own every piece of equipment in order to perform a reliable investigation. It does mean that you should at least possess a basic set of tools to use.

Basic Equipment

35mm or Digital Camera - For a beginner, having a camera is probably the easiest and least expensive way to begin. Pictures, whether digital or recorded on film can capture paranormal activity, activity that is often invisible to the naked eye. This is especially true in the case of documenting the presence of orbs and ectoplasm.

Notebook & Pen or Pencil - Simple as this may be, it is always a good idea to have something to record any notes, findings or experiences you may have during an investigation.

Flashlight - Many times an investigation will take you to a dark or foreboding location such as a cemetery, old warehouse, abandoned building or other place that is dark or without electricity. In these instances you will need to have a portable light source.

Extra Batteries - Depending on the paranormal activity of a location, batteries oftentimes will mysteriously and unexpectedly lose their charge leaving you in the dark. Regardless of the type of equipment you use, make sure you bring extra batteries along to replenish depleted ones.

Intermediate Equipment

EMF Detector - The Electromagnetic Field Detector is probably one of the most important pieces of equipment to own if you are serious about doing an investigation. In addition to detecting the energy fields of ghosts, it is a key tool to use when taking baseline readings of a site. A baseline reading is a preliminary evaluation of a location, where investigators identify any existing or man made electromagnetic fields such as those created by power lines or electrical appliances.

Digital Video Camera - Video cameras can be a useful investigation tool. Unlike still cameras, a video camera will document any activity in its entirety including the length of time the phenomena occurs, the surrounding conditions, as well as the phenomena itself. A tripod to rest the video camera on is also helpful, especially if it is going to be left in a stationary position to record the activity in a specific location.

Tape Recorder with an External Microphone - There is no better way to capture EVP's (electronic voice phenomena) than through the use of a tape recorder. Whether using a traditional tape recorder with high quality tapes or a digital recorder, an external microphone should always be used. A detached mic will eliminate the sounds of internal gears and turning wheels that can contaminate your recording.

Advanced Equipment

Motion Detectors - Motion detectors can be used to sense the movement of unseen forces. Many need to be plugged in to an outlet, but battery operated ones are also available. Before you go out and buy one, decide which type will best support you investigatory needs.

Thermal Scanner - A thermal scanner or non-contact thermometer can be used to detect rapid temperature changes. A change of ten degrees or more from the ambient temperature (the temperature of the surrounding area) can indicate an ethereal presence.

Psychics - As An Investigative Tool

In addition to tools such as cameras, meters and gauges that are used by ghost hunters, many groups also utilize the services of trained psychics as a means of gathering information about a site. This is the role I play when working with ghost hunting groups.

Finding a true psychic to work with can be a real asset to the quality of your investigation. They can play an invaluable role in supporting the efforts of any paranormal investigation. Like a good piece of equipment, a psychic can help to detect anomalies as well as provide additional insights into the nature of activity encountered.

If your group decides to include the use of a psychic as part of the investigation team, there are a few items that should be considered. To maximize the objectivity of the investigation, it is critical that the psychic go into a location "cold". This means that they do not know the details of the location or of any activity that may have been encountered by other members or the property owner. Telling the psychic the history of a property can cause the individual to become "contaminated", which can make it difficult for them to differentiate what they perceive from what they have been told.

Conducting An Investigation

With at least a basic kit of equipment in hand, you are now ready to explore the world of paranormal phenomena. Before you begin, there are a few ground rules to consider. First, never go on an investigation alone, in addition to personal safety, you never know what may happen. Next, consider the fact that ghost hunting groups are often judged by their behavior and professionalism - so always try to be respectful of the people, places and situations you may encounter.

To do an investigation, the first step is to select a location. Locations can include cemeteries, old buildings, historic sites, private homes and businesses. Always get permission to be on a site. This will keep you from getting in trouble for trespassing. Before you begin a formal investigation it is a good idea to do some research on the site. Talk to the owner, check out old newspapers, or contact the local historic society to see if anything happened there in the past. It is also a good idea to evaluate the terrain for potential hazards or/or to identify places where you can setup stationary video cameras, motion detectors or tape recorders.

Most investigations occur after dark, between the hours of 9pm and 6am. These hours are considered the "psychic hours" and are believed to be the best time to record paranormal activity.

When you get to the selected location, walk around to get a feel for it. Next, set up any stationary equipment and take baseline readings of the site. Then let the investigation begin. Take pictures, shoot video, record for EVP and take meter readings. Take them everywhere and anywhere, especially if you feel something or get a reading on another piece of equipment. When you are done walking around a site, turn your stationary equipment on and let it run while you and your group are out of the area.

When you have finished collecting your data, it is time for analysis. Here each picture, video and tape is reviewed for evidence of a haunting. This is probably the most important part of any investigation. As you review your materials, be skeptical. Look for earthly causes of any phenomena. Was someone smoking in the area? Was the room or location dusty? Where there reflective surfaces that could be the cause of the anomaly in your image? It is important to make sure your evidence will stand up to scrutiny by eliminating any other explanations. This will give your data more credibility.

As you pore over your data, what you will find is that not every location you go to will have ghostly activity. You may discover that many of the things you initially detected during your investigation actually have real world explanations as opposed to supernatural ones. What keeps many ghost hunters going is that one-in-five chance that this investigation will be the "real" thing.

When your analysis is done, presenting your finding to the home or property owner or sharing your results with others is often done. Many groups also post the results of their investigations on their group's website, thus share the outcome of their investigation with the rest of the world.

If you are interested in ghost hunting or think your have a ghost hanging around in your local, there is a plethora of information available on the worldwide web. Here you can find articles about ghost hunting in general, stories of other people's ghostly encounters, places that sell ghost hunting equipment and even sites hosted by ghost hunting groups in your geographic area.

So if you think you are hearing bumps in the night, don't be afraid - it just might be a ghost!

© Copyright Body, Mind & SoulHealer (www.soulhealer.com) 2006. All rights reserved.

Dr. Rita Louise, Ph D is a Naturopathic Physician and the founder of the Institute Of Applied Energetics. It is her unique gift as a medical intuitive that enlivens her work. Let Dr. Rita assist you bringing health, healing and wholeness back into your life. Visit http://www.soulhealer.com or http://www.appliedenergeticsinstitute.com for more information.

Using Photoshop To Create The Perfect Shot

Many amateur photographers have recently switched over from using traditional film to the digital realm, especially with the advent of the cheaper digital SLR or DSLR cameras.

Now you can use your digital camera in exactly the same way that you could a traditional 35mm SLR. In fact the digital models are even better as you can set the film speed and make previews etc etc.

Having made the change to digital there are far too few photographers who realize the power of Photoshop.

Digital enhancement of your images is something that can turn some of the most amateur photos into professional looking shots.

The possibilities are endless but include;

Creating better composition.

This is the first and most important step in creating the perfect image. Get this right and your photo could be stunning.

There are certain rules to the composition of the perfect image which we will not go into in detail here but you can adjust your image in Photoshop so that it adheres to some of these rules. For example, with a little creative use of the crop tool you can resize your image and adjust the position of the subject to fall into one of the key positions making it more pleasing to the eye. For example, in most cases, a central subject is not as effective as one that is offset to the side (adhering to the rule of thirds). Using crop can effectively move the subject over, up or down to position it perfectly.

Create depth of field.

You can quite easily add depth of field to the images that you have taken "snaps" of. If you have an image that is completely in focus and the background too is in focus (a common effect of non SLR digital point and shoot cameras) the you can solve this using Photoshop. You simply draw a mask or make a selection around the subject, invert that mask so that it selects all but the subject and apply a blur effect to the part of the image that is selected. In the later versions of Photoshop there is actually a filter that emulates the natural lens blur. The end result is a sharp, in focus subject with an out of focus background. This can be very effective and can draw attention to the subject.

Color Correction

You can change the color of your image and balance the overall exposure of your images in a number of ways. The most common is by using the levels function or the curves. Here you can gently touch up your photo making the dark areas darker and the lighter areas lighter to achieve greater or lesser contrast.

There are countless other methods and techniques you can use with Photoshop to better your images without having them look like they have been altered. Selective blurring can give the impression of movement, you can change certain areas of a photo such as the color of a specific object, red eye effects can be removed, skin blemishes and spots can be hidden and even with a little more skill and knowledge, complete makeovers can be achieved.

We have an ever increasing collection of video tutorials on our Photography Book web site which show you step by step how to achieve some of these process.

Don't fall into the trap of thinking that Photoshop is a tool for designers and fantasy artists alone. It is fast becoming the chosen tool of the trade for most professional photographers and is used on a daily basis.

If you found this article of interest you might want to check out some of the tutorials on offer at our web site. We also have a popular digital photography blog which offers many tips and trick on a daily basis. Subscribe to our blog here.

Canon Powershot A570 IS Digital Camera

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With technological development, more and more technically advanced digital cameras are flocking into the market. It becomes difficult for you to decide which is to be purchased. However, this query is solved as soon as Canon Powershot A570 IS camera comes into the picture. It has features that are extremely enticing. It helps you to freeze memories to infinity. And when you glance through these long lost memories that have been preserved due to the good technology of your digital camera, you will definitely feel great.

Design

With weight of just 175 grams, Canon Powershot A570 IS camera comes in silver color. It is an ultra compact camera.

Key Features

Canon Powershot A570 IS camera comes with a 7.1 mega pixel CCD sensor. It has a 2.5 inch LCD display. To add to this, it has a Real Image optical viewfinder. Canon Powershot A570 IS has a 4x digital zoom and a 4x optical zoom. It has some really attractive features. For example, it comes with different modes for better picture quality. Besides these, there are other features like built in flash, auto flash, red eye reduction, self timer and image stabilizer.

User friendly aspects

Canon Powershot A570 IS camera has a 7.1 mega pixel CCD and a 2.5 inch LCD that makes it a cut above the rest amongst its competitors. It has a 4x zoom lens for detailed images. All these features come together to give high definition images and footage with the Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera. The lens of Canon Powershot A570 IS camera covers an area of 35mm to 140 mm. The manual options available help you get crisp and clear images. Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera is integrated with a Digic III processor chip that is a face detection device. The system recognizes known faces and then uses your subject's faces to focus and meter the scene. One of the unconventional features that Canon Powershot A570 IS camera beholds is the red eye removal technique. This is an in built function. You could remove the red spots on the images of the pupils of your subject while operating the camera. As a result, the most avoidable part of the snaps is taken care of. This enhances the image quality. Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera has several modes that enhance the picture quality. There are two standard modes that let you record footage at either 640 x 480 or 320 x 240 pixel resolutions. You could click approximately 1.7 shots per second with Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera. You have other options like the fast frame rate movie mode lets you cover footage at 320x240 pixels and 60 frames per second. With the help of these modes, sharing footage with friends and dear ones will become an easy task. All the functions are divided into two buttons, namely, the function/set button and the menu button. As a result, operating the Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera becomes an easy task.

Performance

The image quality delivered by Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera is quite notable. Images express definite colors. Images are detailed even in shadows. So, you could say that the images are quite sharp.

Know More

The finest features of Canon Powershot A570 IS digital camera are the image stabilizer and the red eye removal technique.

Conclusion

It needs to be accompanied by 2 AA Alkaline batteries or 2 AA rechargeable NiMH batteries Canon Powershot A570 IS has more of pros than cons. Hence it is deservedly suggestive. It is a good one for starters. For advanced amateurs, the advanced sister productions are an option.

The Future of Stock Photography is on the Internet

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When my brother John started his photography business about 35 years ago... there was no such thing as an answering machine! Nor did individuals have fax machines... He remembers being very excited about getting a fax machine... because now an Art Director could send him a layout without using a bike messenger or Fed Ex!. Now, here he is shooting without film, digitally enhancing his images on a computer and delivering them via the internet.

For twenty years he shot assignments. A huge part of the business was marketing him self to ad agencies and design firms. Thanks in large part to his foray into digital manipulation of his images; he was very successful at his marketing. He was selling stock photos through "Tony Stone", later to become Getty Images, and through "The Stock Market" along with my line of greeting cards being sold through Portal Publications. He was shooting assignments, but he was very picky and only took assignments that really interested him.

If you were an advertising agency you went to Tony Stone, The Stock Market, or a tiny handful of stock photography houses. There was no internet and thus no way for small businesses to easily purchase stock photos for their advertising needs.

After the dot com bubble burst he found him self without assignments for a couple of months...but it didn't matter because he was making plenty of money with stock photography. One gig ended and another took over. Of course, today that industry is in turmoil... first royalty-free stock photos impacted the business... and now micro-stock. I even see pay per click ads that cost the advertiser money... advertising free stock photos! I guess he doesn't have much to worry about that now because the prices can't go any lower than that free!

I remember when it took a week and buckets of money to get a good print from a photo lab! Now, if I want to print a funny animal picture I just hit command-p on my keyboard and get almost free prints that are of far better quality than anything I used to get from the lab! I can make fine art prints that are even more archival than what the labs could offer right in my own office...and these prints are in my hands in just a matter of minutes.

A few years ago my brother bought a house...a beautiful house on a hillside overlooking a valley. He was surrounded by horses, deer, wild turkeys, and even bobcats and coyotes! He planned living in that house till the end of his days. A close friend cautioned him though, that he should not count on living there forever. "One day you will sell that house" he said. My brother laughed. As I write this He is planning on selling the house in the spring.

John's greeting card business was growing like crazy. Each quarter his royalty checks were getting larger and larger. People loved the cards...the company was thriving and he was their number one greeting card artist. Still, a business consultant friend of his suggested that he create a worst-case scenario plan for his business just in case something went wrong. John found it difficult to do because he could not possibly see any worst case scenarios on the horizon. Eventually he forgot about the backup plan for his stock photo business.

Fast forward five years... the greeting card company no longer exists. It was purchased by a venture capital firm that made some bad decisions and the business for all practical purposes died. He is now with a different greeting card company and they are slowly rebuilding the business. One thing is different this time... he no longer assumes that the greeting card business will be around forever.

Two new 35mm digital cameras have just been announced... one by Nikon and one by Canon, that both shoot, in addition to extremely high quality digital stills, HDTV motion. Videos are becoming increasing popular... as evidenced by Youtube and other internet sites for sharing video clips. There is an emerging market for stock video clips.

The stock photography business is changing rapidly. More and more small business's are turning to the internet and purchasing their stock photos online and even getting free stock photos! Digital cameras are not only prolific, but producing better images and in some cases they produce images of higher quality than you could shoot with a film camera.

I believe the future of stock photography is online. Photographers need to adapt to changing times and learn to market their work on the internet.

Who was it who said the only constant is change? That is so true... but I do have a method for coping with all this change. My secret is a good attitude and continuously reminding myself of the need to stay open and flexible.

How to Choose a Pair of Binoculars

This article will give you most of the basic information needed in choosing a pair of binoculars. Choosing a pair of binoculars should not be a difficult or challenging experience. Use the guidelines listed below to help you choose the adequate binoculars for your viewing needs, especially if you are just beginning the world of up-close viewing.

o The first thing you should ask yourself when considering buying a pair of binoculars is, how much money do I want to spend for a pair of binoculars? This one question entails several answers and or other questions.

o How much? Binoculars come in many price ranges from very inexpensive, fifteen to twenty dollars each, to highly expensive models, up to several thousand dollars each. If you are buying your first pair of binoculars it is recommended that you start out at the lower end of the price range scale until you know what you are actually looking for in a pair of binoculars. Experienced binocular users generally know what they want as far as quality of binocular optics, power or magnification, waterproofing, barrels and other features that relate to binoculars and binocular use. Prices will normally increase, sometimes dramatically, as binocular quality goes up and binocular features expand. This is not to say that you can't enjoy up-close viewing with inexpensive binoculars.

o Binocular "power" or "magnification" is determined by the first numbers in the model designation, (example 10 x 50). 10 is the power or magnification ability of the binoculars which translates to making the object you are viewing appear 10 times closer to than viewed with the naked eye. A power of 10 is an all around good number for general binocular use, especially if you are a first time buyer. 10 power is somewhat in the middle of the power range and is good for most all viewing.

o Objective lens size, or the second number in the model designation example mentioned above is 50. The 50 represents the diameter of the objective or large lens of the binoculars in millimeters. This is important as this number determines how much "light" is gathered into the binoculars. The more light that is gathered into the binocular barrel, the brighter the image. The brighter the image also relates to how well you will be able to see in low light conditions. You will see much better in low light conditions (early morning, late evening or cloudy days) with an objective lens diameter of 50mm than you will with an objective lens diameter of 25mm. An objective lens diameter of 35mm to 50mm is a good place to start if you are new to the world of binoculars use.

o The next question you want to ask yourself is do I want large binoculars (standard size) or small binoculars (compact size)? Standard size binoculars must be carried in hand, on the shoulder or around the neck by the safety/carrying strap and can have higher powers and larger objective lens sizes than compacts. Most compact binoculars can be carried in the shirt pocket or coat pocket. The biggest disadvantage to compact binoculars is that they normally don't have an objective lens size of more than 35mm. A 25mm objective lens size is normally standard in most compact binoculars due to their small barrel size.

The above is basically all you need to know when purchasing a pair of binoculars. To recap, Price, Model designation (10 x 50) etc, and Size determination. There are dozens of other determining factors related to binocular choices and features. As you become more familiar with binoculars and your binocular viewing needs you can check the binocular sellers specifications for more information on a particular model of binoculars or go to the FAQ page of the binocular seller you are visiting to gain much more additional information that can and will influence your binoculars buying decision.

35mm Film - A Short History

When it comes to photography and motion picture it is impossible not to hear about 35 mm. film when going technical into the conversation. It is called 35 mm. film as it is 35 mm. wide and will have perforations on both edges at each 4.23 mm along it.

With a history dating back since 1889, when it was first introduced by Thomas Edison, the 35 mm film is still used today with some variations in format based on what it is used for but basically its form stayed the same all these years. It was first introduced into photography in 1913 and is still very popular amongst several professional photographers.

If we are to talk about film we have to talk about sound as well. In the beginning the idea of synchronizing sound and video was appreciated but was quite difficult to realize. That's when the sound started to be stored directly to film, forming the analog soundtrack that takes out of the film a small margin to the left. In the search for perfection the display ratio changed together with new methods of storing the sound.

Nowadays digital soundtracks have been implemented. The technology break through behind this was the storage of the sound between perforations in Dolby Digital, in 2 strips along the outside part of the edges in SDDS and lately on a special compact disk synchronized thanks to a time code with the film in DTS.

With technology evolving as it does at the moment new techniques and features will probably be available in the future but so far the main format of the 35 mm film has remained unchanged with just mild modifications that are better suited for the purpose it was designed for. The most common aspects of the film nowadays is considered the one that has 4 perforations, a vertical pulldown and a density of around one frame in 19 mm.

Scanning 35mm Slides

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Many people who cherish their families and the memories they create together almost always love to keep photos of special occasions. So what joy it is for them to be able to discover old films and slides kept in their parents' or grandparents' homes. To these people, the well kept slides are real treasures and those which may even provide them a link to the past.

With the advent of the slide scanner, images from old films and slides can still be saved and restored. It doesn't matter whether you have your own dedicated or flatbed scanner or not. Good if you have one at home but if not, you can turn to business enterprises that offer professional slide scanning services at very affordable rates. You can find many of them on the internet.

Now let's get started. After you have prepared your 35mm slides and cleaned them, you are ready to start scanning.

If you're using a flatbed scanner or the so-called all in one, first check if a transparent materials adapter (TMA) is available. This adapter is where you normally mount the slides so they remain in place during scanning. If there is none, you can actually create one using paper or a thicker material such as a cardboard and tape.

Experts, however, recommend using a dedicated slide scanner to capture images that are of higher quality. A scanner meant exclusively for slides or films has a Digital ICE feature that is advanced in that it can remove dust and scratches from old slides through the use of infra red light technology.

Before you begin the scanning process, it is best to read and follow carefully the instructions provided on your scanner's manual. Keep in mind that models for this device vary the reason why there is no standard method.

If you're using an all-in-one flatbed scanner such as the HP Scanjet, first open the lid and get the adapter. Then carefully place your 35mm slides into the right template. There should be icons on the template that will guide you how to properly position your slides.

When you're done, close the lid and press the scan button. Depending on what you're scanning, you can change the settings to suit the type of material (negatives or positives which refer to the slides) you're scanning. After choosing the type of material, go to the Scan To section and click on the save to file button.

Once you're finished with the settings, just click Scan. From here, another window will open and this time, you need to save your files to a certain location. So when this Save Location dialog box opens, click on browse and find the folder where you'd like to save your scanned images. Finally, click the OK button and just follow the other instructions from there to complete the scanning process.

It is also wise to adjust the resolution of your images in the advanced picture settings section. The ideal resolution is 300 dpi to ensure you get top quality digital image.

It would help as well to back up your files and save them on an optical media such as a CD or DVD. In this way, you won't have to keep all your files on your computer to free up storage space.

Tips For Wedding Photographs

Weddings are one of the main events which we remember throughout our lives. This is the moment which should be captured properly. Everybody wants it to be perfect. So it is very important that we do not spoil this day in people's life.

So let's look at few tips and ideas which would actually help to give the best of our work.

Camera techniques

Wedding photographers normally use the basic cameras: the medium format and the 35mm. The 35mm has got the propensity to give pictures which are little grainy and only the photographers can notice the difference. Camera height is a good technique which can be used for good effects therefore the camera does not need to be tilted to click the full pictures. You can also look in the viewfinder and review the shot. Also you can decide to lower or raise the camera to present different stature or to cut height. On the other hand you can alter the height. For example, the camera height might be correct for the groom and bride, but other intrusive objects can be shown above the head if the camera is held too low. Also the groom and the bride can look taller by just keeping your camera lower

Black and white or color

Normally colors are used in wedding photographs. But some people want it to feel more artistic, than they prefer black and white. Also black and white images last longer, so one can take the picture in color and can take copies in black and white.

Other techniques

You should be very comfortable with all the basic techniques like: posing, lighting, flash, controlling groups. Even before knowing the camera techniques one should be comfortable using all these techniques

Determining the angle

There are two basic angles which determine the angle: lighting and the point of interest. These are the main basic aspects that need to be determined by every photographer. Photography must have the point of interest. After knowing this one can know the angle of the camera, so that one can capture the type of drama, which one wants to portray in the photos.

Lighting

While determining the angle, lighting is the deciding aspect which determines the character of the subject. This actually shows that the personality of the subject might change according to the type of lightning which is used while clicking pictures. Certainly camera angles might seem very ordinary but it helps to define what the photograph is about. Therefore determining the best angle in photography is very significant.

How to Photograph Football

Getting good photos at a football game is very, very hard to do this without going out and purchasing the f2.8's (fast lens) as the High School football stadiums and gyms are notoriously dim - our eyes can adjust, but the camera don't lie.

The amount of light will be key or significant. Forty years ago I started out shooting nighttime football with film and now in this digital era here I still apply that film knowledge once the game begins at 7:00 pm. I set my camera to an ISO of 800, my f-stop at 2.8 and in the AV mode, which automatically selects the shutter speed, which is normally 500th and above. When the light fails normally at the end of the first quarter I reset the ISO to 1000, put the camera on manual mode with my aperture still selected at f/2.8 and set my shutter speed to 250th of a second and throw on a 550 ex flash unit set at 1/4 power. With the Mark II, the max flash synch speed is 1/250 second. However, the camera does offer high speed=flash sync with the EX series flashes. This allows flash at all shutter speeds (even1/8000 second where basically, the flash fires continuously). This function must be activated on the flash unit’ and is indicated by an H symbol on the flash unit’s LCD panel and also in the MKII’s viewfinder. Then if the smallest or largest aperture blinks (on the flash units LCD in or in the cameras viewfinder) I select another shutter speed.

Even then at 250th second it won't freeze the action but will gives me something to work with. I have used shutter speeds to 640th of a second, but like the lower shutter speed of 250th just to add a feeling of ambient light from the fields tower lighting units. If the lighting is really horrible, which it usually is, I shoot raw and compensate the exposure in post processing.
I've found that there are often pools of 'better' light on the field where the lights overlap. It can be worth camping out in one spot where you can take advantage of this. This is normally from the 20-yard line to the other 20-yard line, but that’s not the case where the lighting in the end zones are weaker. Also, pay attention to the game - that way you can be looking for the dramatic shot, rather than reacting to it. Football is way too fast a game for that.

If you are unfamiliar with the controls on your camera the aperture priority mode might be a good choice for you to practice with. Set your aperture your lowest aperture and your ISO to 800 or 1600 and let the camera set the shutter speed. You may get a bit of motion blur occasionally but it will help you get a feel for what setting the shutter should be on to capture what you want at that venue (lighting is different at every football stadium). Alternately, if you know the shutter speed you want (at least 1/250 of a second with your lens extended) you can use the shutter priority mode and let the camera set the aperture.
It is the combination of low light, fast action, camera motion (from panning) that makes focusing such an adventure. Focusing has to be dead on given the 2.8 aperture; as a result I use the center focus point exclusively - at least that way I'll have an idea of where the focus tracking the action will be.

If you don’t have one of the fast lenses here’s some helpful hints:

1. Monopod A must. Reduces camera shake
2. Lens Image stabilization. Turn it on to setting 2. Reducing horizontal shake (setting 1 on the lens) is ok, but using both axis gets better results.
3. If your stadium's light absolutely stinks, use the custom function and set ASA to 3200 ("H"). Set the camera’s se aperture priority, set it at the lowest f-stop, and let the camera dictate the fastest shutter speed.
4. Stand about 15 yards beyond the line of scrimmage. You'll still get full frame, but the action will be moving more toward you than left to right, so you'll get less blur. If you're trying to shoot defensive players, stand 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage, to get faces and the occasional sack behind the line.
5. When the light gets REALLY bad (meaning we have a shutter speed of 1/250 or less) stop down 1/3 or even 2/3 of a stop. It keeps the shutter speed up, and you can always pull the brightness up in Photoshop. If you shoot at the highest ("L") setting, you'll have more data to pull out.
6. If you have a second camera with a flash, use it too. When the frame of your zoom fills at 70mm, stop shooting, grab your second camera and get the shots as they come to you on the sideline (if they fill THAT viewfinder, stop shooting and get the heck out of the way!)
7. Make sure you use your dodge and burn tools in Photoshop. You'll want to dodge the faces inside the helmets, especially for African-American players. Personally I lasso the face and use the curves to bring out the faces. Most photographers -- even newspaper photographers -- don't do this, and the mom's of our team's black players just love me because they can actually see the faces of their sons in the shots.
8. Burn lots of frames. I have a 4GB card and shoot about 370 frames per card to get 120-150 good shots. Bottom line: You paid for 8fps -- use it.
9. Adjust your metering according to the camera's owner's manual. Set it to center-weighted metering (where no eyeball icon appears on the top menu. This will help your camera get the right light, rather than letting a bright background light source or a super-dark night mess up the metering.
10. Keep tinkering. Every stadium's lighting is a little different. So shoot, look at your images and make adjustments.

Choosing a Digital SLR

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If you are serious about your digital photography, sooner or later you will consider purchasing a digital SLR. 

SLR stands for single lens reflex, which refers to the reflection of the mirror which allows you to see through the lens while composing your picture.

One of the biggest reasons photographers  choose a SLR, is the ability to use different lenses. One can choose from wide angle, zoom, portrait, macro and many other types of specialty lens. This of course means more creative photography and more interesting photos.

The digital Single Lens Reflex also offers more creative control than point and shoot cameras, although point and shoot cameras as of late are adding more SLR like controls. In general a SLR is usually faster and more responsive than a point and shoot. This combination of responsiveness, elaborate control over the capture, and the ability to change lens, makes the digital SLR a perfect choice for more creativity.It is  is usually at the top of the ladder in resolution and offers many settings and options. Most of these cameras offer a "raw" mode. This has been likened to a digital negative. Instead of the cameras software automatically adjusting the white balance, the saturation and sharpness of the image, the photographer makes all these adjustments. The sensors of these cameras are generally more advanced. Some camera manufacturers use a CMOS sensor which gives greater dynamic range. Full frame sensors are available that are equal to a full frame of 35mm film.

The DSLR usually has greater control over the aperture and shutter. They offer very fast shutter speeds and continuous shooting as well as a bulb setting which lets the photographer hold the aperture open until he releases the shutter. This type of camera  is not for everyone though. It is usually much heavier and bulkier than a point and shoot. It can become very tiring after carrying it around for awhile. It cannot be tucked into a shirt pocket. In fact, if you are using different lens and attachments, you will probably need a fairly large case to carry your equipment.

Because of the higher resolution and raw formats (if you choose raw), the size of your images is much larger. This means you will need more portable memory, and later when downloading to your computer, much more hard drive space.

Another possible disadvantage for some is that a digital slr usually does not offer a movie mode. If you take a lot of movies with your digital camera, you may be disappointed that the SLR does not offer a movie mode.

Most SLR's require that you view through the viewfinder instead of the lcd monitor. Newer model SLR's do offer a "live view" option that does allow you to compose using the lcd.

A digital SLR is the choice for creative control and quality. If you want to take more impressive photos, you will eventually want a digital SLR. In the end however it is the skill and creativity of the photographer that is most important.

Push Mail phone-MVL G81

MVL G81 Introduction:

Before when Blackberry introduced push mail the phone was very costly and this technology was able to reach only by high probiles user. Later Nokia, Sonyerricson, Google android phones and many phones started using this technology. This premium technology is available in a phone which is less than 5000Indian Rupees.
   MVL is the new entry into the Indian market after the success of Micromax, Carbonn mobiles, Maxx Mobiles.The MVL G81 is a typical candy bar QWERTY shaped phone. It does not look 'cheap' in any sense, thanks to the glossy materials used and that metallic rim wrapping the edges. The phone felt quite light in the hand and the build quality seemed pretty fair too. The keyboard is very much "inspired" from the Blackberry Curve series (especially the 8310 model). The buttons are shaped and even curved the same way as the Blackberry.
     The typing experience is also same as that of blackberry phones. The keys of this MLL G81 have good tactility even though they have  apparent small size and  they are pretty decent too. Above the keys lies an optical trackpad, which is similar to the BlackBerry Curve 8520. There is no D-pad surrounding the trackpad, like the Nokia E72, so usage is entirely dependent on it. Thankfully, the second usage related stumble has been bridged successfully too. The trackpad is fairly accurate to use and "swipes" across menus swiftly. We kept the sensitivity at 50 percent, which gave us a fine balance between speed and accuracy.

Pros:

• Dual SIM and Decent QWERTY tactility
• Good screen clarity, decent optical trackpad
• Push mail support
• Affordable price which is wallet friendly

Cons:

• Odd symbol placement on keyboard, certain elements in UI are downright stupid, no support for hyperlinks or HTML in mail client.

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Tags: MLV G81, Push mail supported phones, Push mail, Dual sim, Cheap phones, QWERTY keyboard phones.




    

Photography Tips - How to Take Better Pictures of People and Pets

People and pets are among the most challenging subjects to photograph, and yet these photographs command the most interest. No matter what your level of skill, there is always something new to learn about taking better pictures, especially when it comes to people and pets. We hope this article provides tips that help you better photograph the personalities of the people and pets in your life!

Taking Better People Pictures

The best pictures of people portray their personalities. While a snapshot captures a true likeness, often times the picture doesn't portray the person's usual expressions and people end us saying that the " picture doesn't look like me." The solution to this problem is simple: After setting up your photo shoot, spend a little time chatting with the subject, camera ready. When you see that smile or look that has their name written all over it, start clicking.

A few technical tips:

Keep in mind that Portrait mode tends to distort, making the subject look wider or younger. Depending on the age of the subject, the latter might be appreciated, but normally you would avoid this distortion by zooming. Stand close enough that the subject fills the frame of your viewfinder, take one step back, zoom to fill your frame again and shoot.

Use natural light when possible. If using indoor lighting, opt for lamps with full spectrum bulbs. Low ceiling light usually creates pretty bad shadows.

Shoot in high resolution so that you can make nice, large prints of the best, then display them in picture frames to hang on your walls and give as gifts.

Taking Better Pet Pictures

The first rule of thumb for taking pet pictures is: Set your camera to Sports mode or a high shutter speed!

If your camera has a Burst mode this can be very helpful with pets in hyper motion because it will give you lots of pictures from which to choose.

Sometimes instead of using the higher shutter speed to freeze the action, you might want to blur to emphasize a crazy movement, like your dog chasing its tail. In this case, use Portrait mode for a slower shutter speed.

As with people, and even more so, natural light is best, not just because the photos will come out better, but because flash can upset animals. If you must use flash, protect your pets' eyes from injury by referring to your camera's safe distance recommendations (usually four or more feet).

If your pet has a light colored coat, a bright overcast sky will highlight it best; conversely if your pet has a dark coat, direct sunlight will bring out the richness of color. If photographing in bright sunlight, use the same times of day you would with people, when the sun is lower rather than higher in the sky.

To get really good candid shots of your pet, plan your photo shoot for when you have lots of time to follow your pet around, camera ready. Using zoom will allow you to get good shots without being so close your pet is more interested in the camera then just being itself giving. So if you can, keep your distance and use the zoom (optical zoom is best).

Finally as with people, focus on the eyes. Get down to your pet's level to do this.

By using these tips for how to take better people and pet pictures you'll have what you need to capture some fantastic photos. Have fun shooting and don't forget to frame your favorite photos!

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A Flatbed Slide Scanner is Ideal For Enhancing Photographs

Image : http://www.flickr.com

People all over the world are fond of storing memories. You can either store the memories in the mind or in the form of photographs. The latter is the stronger version though. Everyday people click photographs stored in the computer. In the recent past, they could only store photographs in albums or in boxes. Nowadays, computers provide a more reliable method of storing photographs. No longer, do you need to worry about the state of the photographs or their quality after a few years. You can relive the precious memories of your life using a flatbed slide scanner. This device can scan slides or negatives of the photographs on your computer. You need not print the photos for saving them. Thus, you save the pictures from the slide directly and not from the prints.

With a flatbed scanner, your life with photographs becomes very simple. You can store, print, and share any images. It is very simple to transfer the images on your computer. Amateurs and experts of photography have slide scanners as their best friend. In the market, you will find two kinds of slide scanners. They are the specialized scanner and the flatbed slide scanner. The flatbed scanner helps the scanning of slides using an adapter.

There are various models in slide scanners you will find in the market. All the models have their own advantages and features. The entry-level scanners can work only for 35mm slide. There are other high-end scanners that are used for various kinds of packaging. Some slide scanners also come with their own hardware and software. The manufacturer's software will allow you to save, store and edit your images to your computer. This generates very good results of the scanned images.

These are even capable of eliminating scratches and dust particles from the images. Professionals normally prefer working with such kinds of scanners. Several companies like HP, Nikon and Polaroid manufacture the various kinds of slide scanners. They have several models. You can select the model depending upon your requirement and budget. In case you only need to store family images, you will not need to go for a high-end model. In case you are a professional photographer, and want to purse photography as your career, then a high-end style will do you good.

You will find lots of information on the Internet on flatbed slide scanner. You could also research the different models, their features and their price. This way, you can compare the scanners and choose the most appropriate style for your needs. A word of advice to you is that you must go for a scanner made by a reputable company. It might be slightly expensive than the other models. However, buying the scanner assures you of its high quality. You can be sure that the vendor is not cheating you about the price for the scanner. After all, you do not buy a slide scanner on a daily basis. When you store your images, try to follow the order and arrange the photographs by date. This way, you can get any photograph easily when you wish to retrieve.

Micromax-x600- Touch screen Mobile Features and Price

Micromax released one more feature rich phone called Micromax x600. As we have seen in Micromax q7, micromax added WIFI technology. But in this phone they have added touch screen and many more features. Let us go through this Micromax-x600. You can download free mobile applications, games to your micromax x600.

The new Micromax X600 Gravity is a Dual SIM GSM mobile phone with 3.2-inch full touchscreen display.The key feature of Micromax X600 is that you can swap between the two SIM cards by just rotating the mobile phone using the gravity sensors.

Micromax X600 gravity mobile phone specifications and Features:

•      Form Factor:Bar Style
•      Band:Dual GSM-Dual-Band (900/1800 MHz)
•      Weight:110g
•      Dimensions:113mmx56mmx12.7 mm
•      Display:3.2-inch Full Touch keypad 262K TFT QVGA Screen (320*240 Pixels, 8.1cms)
•      Motion Sensor
•      Gravity Sensor enabled
•      Camera:2.0 megapixel
•      Music
•      Facebook
•      Opera Mini browser
•      Multi-Messenger Nimbuzz
•      Stereo FM Radio
•      Video Player
•      SMS /MMS
•      Email
•      Bluetooth with A2DP
•      EDGE/GPRS/WAP/MMS
•      Expandable Memory MicroSD (upto 4GB)
•      Battery Type:Li-ion (1000mAh)
•      Talk Time:Up to 5 hours*
•      Standby Time:Up to 8 days*

 Micromax X600 Price in India: Approximately 4400Rs.

Other reviews on micromax is given in  Micromax mobile reviews

Tags: Micromax x600, Micromax mobile, Micromax Mobile Review, Mobile reviews, Micromax, Micromax Games, Micromax Operating System, Micromax price, Micromax Price in India,  Micromax India, Micromax touch screen.


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How Can You Buy a Digital SLR Camera? What is the Best DSLR?

Image : http://www.flickr.com

Today, digital cameras have become the norm. Specifically, digital SLR cameras have become hot items. The SLR stands for "single lens reflex." Before digital cameras came along, only professional photographers really used SLR cameras. With SLR cameras, when light enters the lens, a mirror reflects it up into the viewfinder or eyepiece. This lets the photographer see exactly what the final picture is going to look like before it's ever shot.

With digital SLR, the SLR camera has gone high-tech. It uses digital memory cards and light sensor chips instead of film. SLR cameras also use interchangeable lenses, with different focal lengths. This lets photographers do close-up photography or long distance telephoto shots.

Digital SLR cameras differ from regular point and shoot digital cameras in several ways. First of all, of course, the lenses are interchangeable. However, SLR cameras are much quicker at starting and focusing, as well as taking pictures, even multiple pictures. They also take pictures in low lighting conditions because they use higher ISO speeds for pictures that show no graininess. They also let you have more control over light, depth of field and responsiveness.

They cost more as well. For example, a Canon Digital Rebel will cost you about $1000. Professional versions cost several thousand dollars, about $3000-$4000, not including lenses. Digital SLR cameras are usually heavier and larger than typical point-and-shoot models, so that they're more difficult to carry with you and less likely to be tucked in pocket or purse simply to carry along. (Usually, you carry these cameras around your neck with a strap; think "professional photographer.")

However, they also have some advantages over standard film SLR cameras. You can see your shot on the LCD screen immediately after you take it. You also don't need to buy or develop film anymore. Instead, if you wish, you can take 10,000 shots without having to buy reams of film. Several digital SLR camera models are listed below, both consumer and professional models.

They include:

Professional Models:

* Fuji Finepix S3 Pro

* Nikon D2x

* Canon EOS 20D

* Canon EOS-1D Mark II

Consumer models:

* Pentax *ist DS

* Canon EOS 10D

* Olympus Evolt E-300

* Nikon D50

* Nikon D70s

* Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT

Most Digital SLR cameras use a light-sensing chip that converts incoming light into a digital picture. In a digital SLR camera, sensors are much larger and have a much higher resolution than those that are point-and-shoot. This means you can take crisper, clearer pictures with better color reproduction and detail. If the camera is very high end, it will have sensors as big as 35mm film. It will also capture up to 12 megapixels of detail. The larger the sensors, the more light you capture, so that if you have a six megapixel point-and-shoot camera, you'll have lower image resolution than a six megapixel digital SLR camera that has a larger sensor.

Do you need an expensive digital SLR camera? You do if you take pictures for a living. If photography is a hobby for you and you want to take more professional and better quality photos, you might consider one. Of course, this takes into account the fact that you wouldn't mind carrying around a bigger camera that you simply can tuck in pocket or purse.

That said, most of us will do just fine with a camera costing several hundred dollars instead of several thousand dollars; we'll do just fine, too, with a five megapixel or seven megapixel point-and-shoot digital camera. With these small cameras, you can tuck them conveniently in pocket or purse, you can review your photos instantly so that you can check photo quality right away, and your images will be high resolution, easily printed at an 11 x 17 size. You'll get acceptable photos that are quite good under almost any conditions.

In addition, these types of digital cameras will get better and even less expensive over time (as most technology does), so eventually, consumers will be able to take advantage of currently professional-level features only available on much more expensive cameras at present. This means that consumers, too, will have faster response time, will be able to take up to 10 frames in just a few seconds, have an accurate autofocus, high-resolution image sensors, and so on.

Of course, you can't change optical laws, which means that even with better technology, you won't be able to get the same kinds of results from a lens as big as your thumbnail as you can from a large professional lens. Take a look at your photography needs and budget first. Once you've done that, take a look at what you've got available to you at that price. Then choose the highest quality model available in your price range.

Photo Film Negatives - Preserving Your Old Photos For Future Use

When 35mm film is developed into prints, part of the process creates photo film negatives. These smaller strips of cellophane contain the precise images that were created when you snapped the photo and exposed the film. You can use photo film negatives to produce multiple prints of any size. Some developers will use the negatives to create special effects, such as colorization. Scanning photo film negatives is a powerful and easy way to preserve your old photos for future use.

Why Scanning Negatives is Better Than Scanning Prints

The film negative is the original photo from your camera. It holds all of the information that created the picture that was printed from the negative. If you have a chance to scan the film instead of the print, you will find that your scan contains far more detail and clarity. Scanning from a print creates a third generation of information. Each generation involves some data loss. The best way to create a high quality reproduction of the original picture from the camera is to use the photo film negatives that were produced when the film was originally developed.

Special Negative Scanning Attachments

Many flatbed scanners today are manufactured with attachments that allow you to scan 35mm negatives as well as film slides. These attachments are fairly simple to use, and they allow you to scan your negatives more precisely. The attachment is generally built into the lid of the scanner, and it allows the scanner's light to pass unimpeded through the negative image. However, not all scanners will give you the same quality. If you intend to scan several negatives, or believe you will need to scan negatives regularly, you may want to invest in a scanner that is specifically designed to capture images from film.

Does Scanning Harm the Negative?

Since light plays such a large part in the production of film, it would make sense that passing a strong scanner light through negatives repeatedly might wash the images out and eventually destroy them. The fact is, however, that your negatives are perfectly safe when you scan them in a normal scanner. The light passes over the image in a fraction of a second. Negatives can be harmed after they have been exposed to high level lights for long periods of time over many days or weeks, but the amount of light that passes through your negative during the scanning process will not harm the negatives at all.

Preparing Photo Film Negatives for Scanning

How well you prepare your negatives before you scan them will have a direct impact on the quality of your images in the end. Negatives are made from a material that attracts dust easily. Each dust particle will appear very large and obtrusive in your final scan, so it is important to clean the negatives thoroughly before you scan them. You can use a soft, lint-free cloth to remove any dust that may have collected on the negative surface. You will need to scan your negatives at a very high resolution to increase the size of the photo if you plan to print it out.

For more information on photo film negatives, visit http://pfe.com/p156093-processing-photo-film-negatives-yourself.cfm.

What is the Diana Mini?

The Diana Mini, sold by Lomography, is the spiffy addition to the Diana F+ range. As its name suggests the Mini is smaller then the Diana F+. In fact it's quite cute! It offers all the same basic features, such as the tri-pod mount, Flash plug, B(Bulb) mode for long exposures, N (Normal) mode for an automatic shutter release of 1/100th of a second, sunny and cloudy exposure, cable release ability and lastly the ability to change distance (1-2, 2-4, 4-oo metres).

The main differences of the two cameras besides the size, is the type of the film. The Diana F+ uses 120mm film as its default but uses attachments to allow, instant photos and 35mm film. While the Mini uses exclusively 35mm film. This redesign allows affordability in film and gives the camera the ability to be so small. Another unique quality this camera has is being able to switch between half frame (24-17mm) and square frame (24-24mm) modes. The half frame is a brilliant feature as it allows double the exposures on the same roll of film. So for a normal 24 frame 35mm film, the half frame allows up to 48 frames. Roughly double the exposures. The square frame mode is a little bit more tricky as it has a tendency to overlap the frames. The trick is to ensure that one frame is exposed on the 35mm film. Square frame allows the standard amount of exposures. One of the smaller features on this camera is that it allows a closer distance then the Diana F+, the Diana Mini starts at 0.6m. The Diana Mini is my favourite toy camera. It is small, light, affordable and creates the edgy shots Lomo is known for. I highly recommend it.

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The Canon EOS Digital Rebel T1i - A Fifteen Megapixel Screamer

After some time for me to explore the camera I now have a review of the new Canon EOS Digital Rebel T1i (500D). This camera is the latest in the Digital Rebel series (what I call value priced pro consumer models). It falls in the $600 to $800 range, depending on accessories and lenses.

For me, the T1i was a giant leap up in megapixels. My first digital camera was the trend setting original 6.3 Megapixel 300D Digital Rebel that I have used for thousands of pictures over the last several years. It worked great for me and I skipped many an upgrade until the market reached the 15+ megapixel range. Then, my wonderful wife gave me a great birthday gift of this new camera.

I ordered it from Amazon, got it in several days and started to shoot right away. The first thing I had to remember is that the camera kit with the 18-55 EF-S lens did not include a flash media device (it used SDHC cards). Now what was Canon thinking? If I had not remembered to read the fine print, I would have been waiting to pick one up before I could take my first picture. This is like buying a car, but they did not include the tires.

Well, with that out of the way, the camera is great. It has a 3" LCD screen in the back that displays not only your pictures in review, but the settings you have. On most counts, the T1i offers some pretty nice specifications, highlighted by the 15-megapixel APS-C size CMOS sensor (for Canon's traditional 1.6x focal-length multiplier) and same nine-point user-selectable autofocus system as the predecessor XSi. The APS-C size sensor means that it is a "cropped" sensor that captures a slightly smaller view than traditional 35mm cameras or the Canon big professional cameras costing in the over $2500 range. I drool thinking about the possibilities.

The camera has received very good reviews regarding its image quality and I can say that the human photographer is the only weak point in getting a good shot. It has the full range of image sizes from small.jpg to RAW. I shoot almost entirely in RAW mode (this saves a very big file, but has all the information available for use in Photoshop).

One really great feature is that it shoots video too. Though not quite as robust as on the EOS 5D Mark II, which supports 30fps for its 1080p capture, the T1i's video still surpasses that of the Nikon D5000 that is limited to 24fps 720p. The movie quality is solid, but I stick with the 30fps 720p and avoid the High Definition mode of 1,920x1,080 because it is only 20fps, and the motion looks a bit jerky. You can manually invoke AF while you are shooting, which is useful, but remember that it's slow and creaky. Initiating focus creates some jerkiness, but at least you do not have to stop, focus, and restart; I definitely prefer having the option. Like many of the low-end implementations, it uses mono audio (there is no mic input).

I had the opportunity to shoot a major men's tennis tournament in October and got some great shots of tennis legends Todd Martin, Andre Agassi and Jimmy Arias (among others). The camera was great in less than perfect lighting for the night matches. I used the Auto ISO setting and it stretched the settings of the camera to be fast enough to catch the action with some very artistic blur of the ball and racquets. The daylight matches allowed me to set the camera at very fast shutter speeds and freeze those yellow tennis balls in mid flight and the players in mid stroke with feet off the ground.

Those Auto ISO setting got me in trouble several weeks later when I was in the mountains trying to get shots of the fall colors with Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB). I have used AEB before and it works great and allow some great opportunity for HDR merging of shots later. However, it is only logical if you are shooting in Auto-bracketing you have to turn Auto ISO Off lest all the auto configurations conflict and create an image that averages out everything to its most dull form. Now I know better.

All in all the Canon T1i is great camera for more advanced amateurs and the cost challenged professionals. I will stick with this one until I can figure out how to get one of the Canon big boys. I look forward to many years of shooting and learning about how to capture nature's beauty in a digital image.