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Rick Sammon is running a contest based on using Nik Color Efex Pro.  Rick provided two images that were to be composited into a single image and then enhanced with Color Efex Pro.

It seems that every major photographer has diversified their business into the social network arena.  They claim that they are trying to give back to their chosen profession, but is it an accurate statement of their intent?

Could it be that writing, blogging, podcasting, filming or teaching about the business of photography is a more lucrative business model than actually working as a photographer.  Sure they still need to make photographs, but now only to meet the needs of the new business model and maintain their street cred.

There is an analogy to the people that sell get rich schemes, they make their fortunes from selling the get rich schemes, not from using the "proven techniques" that they are touting to their loyal followers.

It is interesting to see the way the photographic industry has adopted this "con".  Manufacturers market photographer branded merchandise so that Joe Photographer can make images just like his favorite hero.  Manufacturers and retailers sponsor blogs, podcasts and  tours so they can encourage Joe Photographer to follow in their heroes' footsteps.  After all, the more hype the heroes makes in the photography industry,  more merchandise gets sold and more profits are realized. 

What's a Wedding Walk?

If a photo walk is the act of walking with a camera for the main purpose of taking pictures of things that the photographer may find interesting, then a wedding walk is the act of attending a wedding for the main purpose of taking pictures of things that the photographer may find interesting.

But where do you find a wedding where you will be welcome to make photographs at? 

I've aded Penny De Los Santos to my list of great photographers.  It's odd because I hadn't heard about her before this week.  Penny is a "food" photographer working for Saveur Magazine, but she is so much more.  CreativeLive said it this way:
 "When you think about food photography, it's not just about what's on the plate. It's about everything around it. The details, the scenes, the people, the culture, the history, the geography, and especially the moments. Food connects all of us. Food photography is the crossroad, where culture, food, and people come together."  When you talk about Penny you couldn't be more accurate. 

Zack Arias made a repeat appearance on CreativeLive (http://www.creativelive.com) today with a free, three day online workshop on "Foundations of a Working Photographer".    The session today was packed with great information on the basic theory of photography.  The best part, in my opinion, was the segment on composition.  Zack's method of presenting this topic by drawing the elements of his composition on a TV screen really drove his points home.  Did I mention that Zack has a sense of humour and an easy going personality?  Zack is very good at presenting technical and conceptual information is an easy to understand manner.

The photos on this page were taken during a visit to the National Museum of the USAF in Dayton, Ohio.  The museum is located at the Wright-Patterson AFB.  The museum is a "must see" venue for photographers and aviation buffs.  There are three very large hangars filled with very diverse aircraft.  The aircraft in the hangars are on the floor and suspended from the ceiling.  It is best to plan on spending a full day at the museum based on the number of displays and the size of the facility. 

During our yearly trek to Florida, the idea of documenting the trip through the eyes of "A Bee", our grand-niece Abby's favourite character from The Baby Einstien video series.  The idea came during a stop for breakfast at Crackerbarrel.  The store in front of the restaraunt have some stuffed bees that Abby's Nana just had to pick up.

onOne Software offers a iPhone app that allows a tethered camera to be triggered from an iPhone talking to the PC via a WiFi connection.  The PC (or Mac) server based application is provided free of charge,  The iPhone app is available in two versions, DSLR Remote Lite (free) and DSLR Remote Professional ($19.99).

The PocketWizard MiniTT1 transmitter and FlexTT5 transeiver are radio triggers for the Canon camera line that support wireless connection of remote strobes and speedlights.  Unlike prior radio triggers, the Mini and Flex support ControlTL technology which allows ETTL control of up to 3 groups of remote speedlites.

Watching a three day on-line workshop about the business of children's portraiture produced by Creative Live  with Tamara Lackey.  The workshop will be a combination of Q&A, tutorials, pre-taped on-location shoots, live demonstartions and critiques.