Digital Photography 1 on 1: Episode 3

Digital Photography 1 on 1: Episode 2

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Digital Photography 1 on 1: Episode 1

Let Your Summer Memories Follow You Into Fall…

It’s back to school time and many of us are mourning the end of summer’s carefree ways. While we want to look ahead to fall’s own unique beauties, we can still take summer with us. Here are just a few ways to keep summer alive as the seasons change:

Create a Summer Scrapbook—the Easy Way: Take a few minutes to search through your summer shots and tag your favorites (many popular image editing programs have a function that allows you to do this). Copy the images to CD or onto a flash drive and bring them into our store. We can show you how to create a great scrapbook in no time flat. Consider making an extra copy or two to share with your kids or loved ones; there’s something special about holding a book of your favorite images in your hand. We love seeing them on the screen but nothing compares to the printed version.

Get Framed: Have you often thought about enlarging and framing some of your favorite images but just never seemed to get around to it? Let us do the heavy lifting for you! Just bring your images into the store and we’ll show you all the amazing ways that we can bring your summer shots to life. Imagine that incredible memory hanging on your wall in a place where you can enjoy it each day. And think of all the great conversations that image can encourage…

Make Note of It: Email is wonderful for casual communications but the art of handwriting a card to someone remains highly valued—especially by the person who receives it! Bring in one of your favorite summer photos and let us turn it into a personalized note card set. Now, the next time you feel like dropping a line, you can share a summer memory, too!

Lunch Kit Surprises: Order a 4x6 set of your favorite summer photographs and tuck them into your kids’ lunchboxes now and then. Kids love surprises and photographs are an easy way to give your kids comfort and support as they transition back into a busy school year.

Did you know that you could create one or all of these fantastic keepsakes just by bringing your images into the store? Come on in and get started!

Inside the Life of an Aquatic Photographer

Alan Wulfe is seen by many as an underwater adventurer who spends his free time exploring the deep and filming a world few are fortunate enough to witness with their own eyes. His day job as the SVP of Alamo Aircraft LTD in San Antonio keeps him busy but he has made sure to make room for his aquatic photography passion. While he started with standard underwater photography, he quickly added video to his repertoire and has found combining the two mediums has taken his storytelling skills to an entirely new level.

For more than 35 years, Alan has pursued his passion for traveling in pursuit of aquatic discoveries. Alan is a dive instructor and his enthusiasm has spread throughout his family. “My wife and all four of my children have their open water certifications,” he says. He has also been generous in sharing his discoveries with his community.

“I regularly share my work with some middle school and high school science classes in Austin and San Antonio,” Alan says. “They enjoy seeing aquatic life and the videos help them learn in a fun and interactive way.” In addition, Alan’s videos are used as teaching aides for Texas State University’s underwater photography course.

Alan’s unique perspective is one that he’s happy to share with other shutterbugs who are just venturing into aquatic photography. When asked what are some of the most common missteps beginning photographers make when venturing into the ocean, he says, “One of the most common mistakes people make when starting is to buy the under $50.00 camera. I currently use a “Lights n Motion” housing and video lights with a Sony HD Video Camera for both video and still shots, but I have used Nikons, Sea & Sea and Sea Life for stills.”

When it comes to technique, Alan advises, “Another common mistake is not understanding how color is lost when light is diminished as you go deeper or further away from your subject. Shooting down on a subject gives poor results while a straight on or up shot with the sun or flash at the right angle will yield better results. Try to “fin in and zoom out” the “less zoom the better the shot”. Backscatter can easily ruin a great shot.”

Alan has had numerous excursions in fascinating places, so it was tough to pin him down on a favorite location. After careful consideration, he offers, “I’ve had many great adventures starting in the 70’s so it’s hard to pick a few, but Truk Lagoon was incredible because of the history still available underwater and Palau had unbelievable corals and sea life. Little Cayman is always a favorite because it is easy to get to and the diving is always great.” When asked if he has another adventure on the books, he says, “Our next trip is on a live aboard in the Maldives later this year and Fiji in 2011.”

Alan also encourages anyone who has been interested in aquatic photography to get scuba-certified. “It’s never too late to start and what you see underwater will amaze you.”

Can the iPad be Your Camera’s New Assistant?

Can the iPad be Your Camera’s New Assistant? While the iPad has received enormous media coverage regarding its role in the future of computing, the debate also includes its impact on digital photography and how we interact with our photographs. It’s still too early to say what the long term effects will be, but we have discovered a few ways your iPad can help keep you organized and streamlined.

Travel Lighter: If an upcoming business or personal trip only requires light computing, the iPad can help you lighten your technology load. Its design can also get you through airport security more quickly as it doesn’t need to be taken out of your bag and scanned separately.

Photo Back-Up in a Pinch: By adding an iPad Camera Connection Kit (purchased separately), you’ll now be able to copy the digital pictures from your SD camera card to the iPad. The import happens quite cleanly in iPad’s Photos application but don’t expect to create extensive albums or do much organization at this point. That said, having your digital photographs on a second device can provide peace of mind. Don’t delete the images off your card until you can get them to your primary computer, though; it’s best to keep them on the card until you can properly transfer and organize them on your central storage computer.

Share This: The iPad’s screen design is an excellent platform for sharing and viewing digital photographs—far superior to viewing images on your cell phone. Many of us enjoy keeping favorite memories on our laptops to enjoy at our leisure, and the iPad makes this even more engaging. You can also keep your Facebook page current by uploading images from your iPad or emailing favorite shots to family and friends.

For professionals looking to share their work, the iPad can serve as a digital sample book or portfolio. It will be a great conversation starter as well as a new way of displaying your best work.

While the iPad isn’t in a position to replace your laptop and image editing software, it can provide some support with some of the most common digital camera issues. And for those who travel regularly for work or pleasure, your back will be pleased with the lightened travel gear.

iPad Photo Apps to Consider:

· Photo Transfer App

· CameraBag for iPad

· Photogene for iPad

· Filterstorm

· Masque