Shooting new year's fireworks in frigid climates

In Frostbite Falls they love their cold winters. Rocky and Bullwinkle never miss their cold weather new year's fireworks shows, but they recognize that there are special problems taking fireworks photos when it's below freezing.

For new year's fireworks in frigid climates you have to combine good practices for cold weather photography, with those for night photography, and the special things necessary to capture fireworks, to be successful. Don't be intimidated if you don't have a DSLR. I've seen many wonderful firework's photos taken with quality digital point and shoot cameras.

Smartphone Apps for Photography: HDSLR Slate

One of wonderfully fun things photographers are doing today with their digital Point and Shoot, and DSLR cameras is making videos.

Some of the videos are merely travel log type videos, or family videos, but some are deliberately made videos which may have several scenes, and/or several takes to get it right.

Videographers making commercial videos use “sync-slates” such the Denecke TS-C Compact Time Code Slate - Color Clapper, which costs $1,180, to track their takes of scenes which they will eventually put together to make their video. That cost is certainly out of the realm of possibility for amateur or even pro travel photographers, seeking to capture video while traveling, document their travel work, or possibly create some instructional videos.

Ned's last minute holiday gifts for 2011

Have you been procrastinating? If you have, you've really waited until the last moment. Perhaps you just can't come up with ideas for the photographer in your life?

I've got some last second solutions for gifts from a very hefty $500, if you can afford it, down to under $20. They all are great gifts for aspiring pros, amateur enthusiasts, and vacation photographers who use DSLRs. Any of these gifts would be appreciated.

Each of these items can be purchased via the Internet, many in photo stores. If you can't get it delivered in time, you can always get a photo of each when you order it and stuff the photo in a stocking, or put it in a gift wrapped card. Then, when it comes in, it will be like the holiday's been extended.

Before making my suggestions, I want you to know, as normal, my holiday list only includes products which are part of my personal photography kit, which I use regularly.

Photography Exhibition: The Getty Museum - In Focus: Los Angeles,1945–1980

The Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California, regularly has extraordinary photographic exhibitions. In Focus: Los Angeles, 1945–1980 is no exception.

This exhibition will run through May 6, 2012

Museums banning photography is becoming commonplace

During the past month, I traveled in the Middle East, having wonderful stays in Turkey, Israel, Jordan, and Egypt.

In Cairo, at the world famous Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, commonly known as the Egyptian Museum, photography is forbidden. It isn't just flash photography, it's photography of any kind. In fact, you can't even bring your camera into the museum. If you have a camera with you, the guards turn you away. You must leave your camera in your car, bus, or other place. The Museum doesn't have a place to “check” cameras.

The Museum, does permit cellphones to be carried into the Museum, but if you try to take a photo with it, be prepared to be roughly and emphatically escorted out of the Museum after you delete any photos taken in the Museum.

Photography Exhibition: Philadelphia Museum of Art - Zoe Strauss: TenYears

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has become one of the foremost exhibitors of fine art photography in the nation. Zoe Strauss: Ten Years looks to be a wonderful exhibition worthy of this great institution.

This exhibition will run from January 14, 2012 through April 22, 2012

Digital travel photography - Don't leave home without them!

My mom told me there were two essentials to pack for any trip.

Always take a toothbrush and toothpaste, as tooth decay doesn't vacation just because you do, and always pack clean underwear in perfect condition.

“What would foreigners think of Americans,” she would tell me, “if you got in an accident, were unconscious, and some strange nurse would undress you, only to see your underwear was full of holes?”

If my mom were alive today she might add, for those using digital cameras while traveling, to not leave home without extra memory cards, a spare battery and a way to recharge it.

Here's my list of ten digital photography gear items, in my mom's tradition of, “Never leaving home without them!”

Milwaukee photojournalist obeying police, arrested anyway

Fox 6, Milwaukee, reported that veteran photojournalist Clint Fillinger, was at a fire scene videotaping when a police officer ordered him to move back from where other members of the public were located, while everyone else was permitted to remain.

Fox 6 reported that Mr. Fillinger “was shooting video behind the yellow police tape alongside a small crowd that gathered to watch” when the police officer came to him and ordered him to move back.

The station reported that Mr. Fillinger put his hand up defensively as the policeman was forcing him backwards, and accidentally touched the officer. Then, as the report states, Mr. Fillinger was knocked to the ground and arrested. He was cited for resisting and obstructing a police officer. Mr. Fillinger suffered bruises from the incident.

Focusing your DSLR even while wearing glasses

According to the Vision Council of America, about 75% of US adults use some sort of vision correction. About 64% wear glasses, and about 11% wear contact lenses exclusively, or part time with glasses the remainder of the time.

It seems safe to assume that the same percentages apply to photographers in general, including travel photographers, and those on vacation.

Unfortunately, many photographers who wear glasses seem to have difficulty focusing their DSLRs and composing their images due to their inability to see the image fully in their camera's viewfinder, “edge to edge.”

Fortunately, for most photographers who wear glasses, there are both equipment solutions and techniques to help with focusing and image composition.

We need to start with the photographer's glasses. Prescription lens glasses are either single-focus or multiple-focus. Multiple-focus lenses can be bifocals, trifocals, and progressive lenses. Of these, the most difficult to use while photographing are trifocals and progressive lenses.

Photography Exhibition: The Getty Museum - In Focus: The Sky

The Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California, regularly has extraordinary photographic exhibitions. In Focus: The Sky is no exception.

This exhibition will run through December 4, 2011.

“With its immensity, immateriality, and variability, the sky has been an enduring subject in art history, fascinating and challenging generations of artists.

As soon as the medium of photography was introduced in 1839, photographers attempted to represent the sky and its natural phenomena.

Statue of Liberty to close for year

New York City (NYC) is one of the prime travel destinations in the world, and a location with a myriad of outstanding urban photographic opportunities. One of the great photographic opportunities in NYC is the Statue of Liberty National Monument.

If you're traveling to New York City in the fall, or planning a trip to NYC between late October, 2011 through late October, 2012, please be advised that from October 29, 2011 through approximately October, 2012, the Statue of Liberty will be closed to the public.

Liberty Island itself, on which the Statue of Liberty is located, will remain open during the project, and most of the time, most of the outside views of Lady Liberty will remain unobstructed.

Ellis Island has been undergoing restoration and renovations for a number of years, and there have been a number of erroneous reports in the press that Ellis Island will be closed. While the buildings which have been undergoing construction will remain closed until complete, the Immigration Museum, and the famous Great Hall on the 2^nd  floor of the Museum, where so many immigrants to the US waited for their interviews with immigration inspectors, after finishing their medical exams, will remain open.

In fact, it's only the Statue of Liberty itself which will close starting this coming October.

Photography Exhibition: The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Night Vision:Photography After Dark

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City, is one of the premier art museums in the world. When they have a photographic exhibition, you can be sure of its extremely high quality and its careful composition and construction.

At the turn of the last century, night photography came into its own as an artistic genre. In the early years of the medium, capturing images under low-light conditions was nearly impossible, but by the early twentieth century, faster films, portable cameras, and commercial flashbulbs freed artists to explore the graphic universe of shimmering light and velvety darkness that reveals itself in the hours between dusk and dawn.

Night Vision: Photography After Dark examines the work of the night camera artists.

This exhibition will run through September 18, 2011

Some photography gear is a waste of money

Often photography equipment, especially a DSLR with lenses, many travelers purchase to capture high quality memories of their treks, isn't inexpensive.

Sometimes, after spending substantial cash to purchase equipment some photographers try to conserve their remaining expendable photo gear money by augmenting that gear with “inexpensive” (read that “cheap”) gear. More often than not, when that occurs, some purchases turn out to be a waste of money.

In my early years of purchasing photo equipment, before I knew what I was doing, I goofed purchasing camera bags which didn't last or meet my needs, tripods which didn't hold my camera/lens steady, and filters which diminished my image quality.

I've got a list of some of the classic purchase errors photographers sometimes make to save some money. Unfortunately, in the long run, these purchases are too expensive, because they either need quick replacement with better gear, or are permanently relegated to a drawer or closet

Photography Exhibition: Philadelphia Museum of Art - Unsettled:Photography and Politics in Contemporary Art

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has become one of the foremost exhibitors of fine art photography in the nation, especially since the completion of its Perelman Building. Unsettled: Photography and Politics in Contemporary Art is a very special photography exhibit I strongly recommend to anyone who lives or is traveling to the Greater Philadelphia Region.

This exhibition will run throughout the summer of 2011

Choosing photography equipment bags for travel - Epilogue

I've been getting many queries about choosing bags for travel, for photography gear. The two major domains in which photographers carry their gear on trips are “in-transit,” and during shooting.

In Part I, I discussed the problems of “in-transit” travel, which also affects how you pack for your trip.

In Part II, I discussed the specifications for bags for carrying your gear while “in-transit” which must be considered when choosing bags for that purpose.

In Part III, I discussed bags for carrying your gear while shooting.

I created this blog to offer helpful information for travel photographers; general tourists capturing beautiful memories, through advanced amateurs intent on sophisticated travel photography. I'm not writing articles to induce readers to use the same equipment I prefer, merely because I use them.

So, with reluctance, due to many emailed requests, I will reveal below which bags I currently use for my travel photography, and why. I hope everyone will concentrate on the why, and not the particular bags themselves.

Smartphone Apps for Photography: Depth of Field Calculator

Have you ever taken a portrait, or a close-up of a flower or insect and wished that either more of it had been in focus, or the exact reverse, that less had been in focus?

I sure have. When shooting wildlife, such as birds, I normally want the entire bird in focus, but sometimes I don't close down my aperture quite enough to ensure that that my depth of field enables me to accomplish that.

In order to know what will be in and out of focus, you'll need to know what your “depth of field” is.

Choosing photography equipment bags for travel - Part III

I've been getting many queries about choosing bags for travel, for photography gear. The two major domains in which photographers carry their gear on trips are “in-transit,” and during shooting.

In Part I, I discussed the problems of “in-transit” travel, which also affects how you pack for your trip.

In Part II, I discussed the specifications for bags for carrying your gear while “in-transit” which must be considered when choosing bags for that purpose.

In Part III below, I'll discuss bags for carrying your gear while shooting.

The decision when purchasing a bag for carrying photographic gear while “in-transit” is dominated by the stowage options of transit companies, the physical size of their stowage areas, their bag restrictions on the physical size and weight of bags, plus the transit companies' limits on liability.

On the other hand, the decision when purchasing bags for carrying your photographic gear when working or shooting is dominated by bag characteristics which affect their use, protection for your gear, comfort of the photographer, and issues of quality and purpose.

TSA sends letter to NPPA assuring photographers' rights at airports

If you've been following the problems of tourists and professional photographers with TSA (Transportation Security Administration) at airports, you already know that there have been reports that travelers have been harassed, and intimidated by TSA TSOs, when trying to photograph at TSA checkpoints in airports.

Ryan Miklus found out about getting into trouble if you try to take a photo, or make video at a TSA checkpoint when he flew from Phoenix to Reno with his parents earlier this year.

Choosing photography equipment bags for travel - Part II

I've been getting many queries about choosing bags for travel for photography gear. The two major domains in which photographers carry their gear on trips are “in-transit,” and during shooting.

In Part I, I discussed the problems of “in-transit” travel, which also affects how you pack for your trip.

In Part II, below, I'll discuss specifications for bags for carrying your gear while “in-transit.”

In Part III, I'll discuss carrying your gear while shooting.

As already discussed in Part I, whether traveling by bus, train, ship or plane, the issues of “in-transit” travel are similar. When traveling solely by car, the traveler is restrained only by the car's capacity and the traveler's personal convenience, so whatever works for other transportation modes, will work for automobile travel.

In Part I you learned it's essential to stow photography equipment in “carry-on” bags while traveling, due to breakage, and liability issues, and the ability to take photos, even while “in-transit.”

There are three general constraints for any “carry-on” bag, including photography gear bags; size, number and weight.

Fort Lauderdale bans public photography, then agrees to lift the ban after judge orders it!

I've written about the craziness directed at photographers in Florida before. Well they're at it again. In Ft. Lauderdale Florida, they decided it was alright to ban all photography, filming and video by everyone on public property in part of the city. According to Ft. Lauderdale officials, it's all spelled out in City Ordinance Sec. 16-1.

It seems as though to many government officials, taking photographs in public, from public property such as streets and sidewalks, is a criminal offense. I guess these same government officials haven't read the laws they have sworn to enforce, or perhaps they are just incapable of understanding them.

I'm certain they haven't yet read the US Constitution, or if they have, the believe it doesn't apply to them, or the American public.

Choosing photography equipment bags for travel - Part I

Lately I've been getting many queries about choosing bags for travel for photography gear.

There are two major domains in which photographers, much like all travelers, carry their gear on trips; “in-transit,” and during shooting. In Part I, below, I discuss the problems of “in-transit” travel, which affects how you pack for your trip. In Part II, I'll discuss bags for carrying your gear while “in-transit.” In Part III, I'll discuss carrying your gear while shooting.

Whether traveling by bus, train, ship or plane the issues of “in-transit” travel are similar. When traveling solely by car, the traveler is restrained only by the car's capacity and the traveler's personal convenience, so I'm won't concern myself with auto “in-transit” issues.

By “in-transit” I mean when you are traveling from home to a destination, between destinations, or returning home at the end of a trip.

Protect your photographs: Read your gallery and online storage companies' terms of service!

Do you use Twitter, the real-time information network which can permit you to connect to others to offer them timely information, news and data they might find useful?

Do you share photos or videos via your Twitter feed? Where do you store your photos and videos in order to share them via Twitter? Do you use TwitPic in order to share those photos and videos?

If you've answered yes, my advice to you is simply, dump TwitPic, and immediately delete your photos and videos from the storage service!

Even if you are a photographer traveling to make photographs ...

In my description of this Blog I state,

“Travel, whether on a vacation to the shore, or a 'trip of a lifetime' to exotic locations like the Galapagos Islands can be one of the most rewarding experiences we can have, whether we are photographers or not.

 Meeting new people, experiencing new cultures, learning about our 'Blue Planet,' or viewing the infinite variety of Earth's majesty, and it's wide range of flora and fauna is an incredible opportunity for broadening one's knowledge and viewpoint.

Travel promotes understanding and amity among people, and not only enhances, and enriches the life of the traveler, but encourages a better world in the ever increasing integration of the societies of our planet.

The friends one makes, the places one visits, and the experiences one lives while traveling provides incalculable value for us all.

Travel photography is the best way I know to preserve the memories of the journeys taken. It provides a concrete method of commemorating our new friendships and knowledge.”

Smartphone Apps for Photography: Tide Graph

One of my photographic passions is wildlife photography, I've traveled to many locations in the world and the US to see and photograph wildlife. When home, you'll generally find me visiting the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge for a number of hours each week.

An important part of wildlife photography is understanding the conditions you'll encounter when visiting a particular location. I'm often visiting wildlife locations with tidal bodies of water, such as harbors, rivers, or tidal marshes, such as you can find in the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge.

Knowing the tides is important along harbors and tidal marshes, so you'll know what kind of birds you might expect to see at various locations you're visiting. If you want to maximize your chances of seeing smaller shore birds such as sandpipers yellowlegs, and dowitchers, you try to visit during low tides.

Keep your DSLR/lens safe in May's "April Showers"

I don't know what it's like where you live, but in the US' Northeast those “April showers bring[ing] May flowers” have come a month late. It's been raining daily since Friday night, and its expected to continue until the coming weekend.

When we travel, rain or shine, our visits to parks, historic locations, museums, and other locations continue. Travelers get out umbrellas, rain coats, and other foul weather gear and trudge on.

Unfortunately, when it rains, many travelers leave their cameras at the hotel, or at best, put them in their pockets, except for indoor photos. I'm well aware that even inexpensive DSLR cameras and lenses aren't “cheap,” and if they're caught in a storm, they could be ruined. Not only would that be expensive, you wouldn't have their use for the remainder of your trip.

Smartphone Apps for Photography: Focalware

One of the ideal times for taking photographs is during the golden hours, sometimes known as the magic hours, essentially the first and last hour of sunlight during the day.

The wonderful tones you can get in your photograph due to angle of the sun during those times is amazing.

Focalware is one of the best Sunrise/Sunset apps for the iPhone I've found. It's not currently available for Android smartphones.

Coping with electrical devices while traveling

There's an issue which keeps coming up for international travelers. Years ago it wasn't like today, where everyone seems to be carrying equipment needing to be plugged in or charged to work.

Traveling abroad in the '60's through 80's, I only had to worry about having extra alkaline batteries, and if my hotel had a bathroom adapter for my electric razor.

Today, my list of travel and photography gear, needing an electrical outlet to work or get charged, seems to go on forever. My travel electrical needs, like so many travelers, is significant.

Just as most every country has its own language, and currency, and definitely its own culture, countries have their own electrical power specifications. Travel photographers, like any traveler, need to be aware of the electrical milieu of the countries they're visiting, so they are prepared for their stay.

Smartphone Apps for Photographers: iBird Explorer Pro

One of my photographic passions is wildlife photography, I've traveled to many locations in the world and the US to see and photograph wildlife. When home, you'll generally find me visiting the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge for a number of hours each week.

An important part of wildlife photography is properly identifying the wildlife you encounter, both flora and fauna. Sometimes, especially if you've not visited a location before, identification isn't easy. I'm often visiting wildlife locations with well studied wildlife enthusiasts, or wildlife experts, and they are very helpful in identifying wildlife, but sometimes I'm out alone and need some help.

I used to carry several books with me when out, bird guides, wildflower guides and butterfly guides, for example. These can get heavy, and sometimes you get so busy thumbing through their pages, you miss seeing and photographing some wildlife, because you're unaware they're in front of you.

Now I use a number of wildlife guides on my iPhone.

Protecting your lenses while traveling

Immediately when purchasing it, most everyone considers protecting their camera for travel and home. Typically, everyone purchases a camera case or bag to haul it around. Some travelers purchase a camera strap with a steel cable in it to prevent slash and grab thefts.

The same travelers rarely think about protecting their SLR or DSLR lenses from being damaged, which when you think about it, makes little sense.

SLR and DSLR users generally own at least two lenses for their camera, and often have more. Looking at many vacationers' stable of lenses, I often see a wide angle zoom, a normal-telephoto zoom, and often a fast prime lens. Sometimes they also own a macro or telephoto lens.

If you add up the cost of the lenses, even when they own just two, they will equal or more likely exceed the value of their camera.

I was in Paris a few years ago. I went to the Eiffel Tower one evening to take night photos. The crowd at the tower was huge. After finishing we walked back to the Metro to return to our hotel along with many who had visited the Tower that evening. The neighborhood is filled with row homes having front steps with metal railings.

Along the way I was accidental pushed into one of those railings by the crowd. The front of my lens hit the railing. Despite the lens cap on the lens, the UV filter atop the lens was smashed.

And we thought the Florida law was bad?

A while back I wrote about a proposed law in Florida which would make it a first-degree felony to photograph a farm without first obtaining written permission from the owner.


Wilton Simpson, a Florida farmer said the bill is needed to protect the property rights of farmers and the "intellectual property" involving farm operations. Simpson, also said the law would prevent people from posing as farmworkers so that they can secretly film agricultural operations.

Of course, Simpson couldn't name a single instance when that happened.

The originally proposed bill was so crazy, it even would have made it a first degree felony to photograph a farm from a public road, where the farmer enjoys no expectation of privacy whatsoever.

Choosing Lenses for Your DSLR Travel Kit, Part II

In Choosing Lenses for Your DSLR Travel Kit, Part I, I discussed travel photography's many challenges including luggage weight limits, number of luggage pieces permitted, locations with unknown restrictions, bad weather when you least expect it, and others.

I discussed the two major factors that influence which lenses you put in your photo travel “kit,” travel weight and volume, and the varying conditions, limitations and circumstances of your destination's photographic opportunities.

This week, in Part II, I will discuss specific lens choices for three particular travel locations and types of travel you might choose to take which you can use as exemplars.

Maryland Judge: Videotaping Cops in Traffic Stop is Allowed

There was some good news recently concerning the civil rights of photographers. It happened in Maryland where a Judge dismissed charges against a photographer who shot a video of police and posted it on YouTube.

The judge stated “Those of us who are public officials and are entrusted with the power of the state are ultimately accountable to the public. When we exercise that power in public fora, we should not expect our actions to be shielded from public observation.”

Thank goodness someone has some commonsense, understands the idea of “expectation of privacy,” and that a free and open society needs to protect those who scrutinize public officials, to ensure they remain accountable to the public.

Choosing Lenses for Your DSLR Travel Kit, Part I

Travel photography has many challenges. Among them are unpredictability, luggage weight limits, number of luggage pieces permitted, locations with unknown restrictions, bad weather when you least expect it, and many others.

When planning for a trip photographically, one of the most important decisions anyone must make is what lenses to include in your travel photography “kit.” Destinations usually have a variety of photo opportunities which may require a variety of lenses to meet their challenges.

There are two major factors which militate the amount and choice of gear you choose for your photo travel “kit.” The first is travel weight and volume restrictions, and the second is the varying conditions, limitations and circumstances of your destination's photographic opportunities.

Florida Photography: A New Law Gone Mad!!!

You're traveling in Hamilton County Florida and see a gorgeous farming landscape with hay bales shiny from the setting sun, and get a great photograph of the scene. Perhaps you come across a great river scene along the Indian River in Florida, with rows of orange trees in the background, and snap a photo of it.

Come this July, you could be charged with 2 counts of first degree felony photography, punishable by serious jail time, if a proposed Florida statute becomes law.

Florida State Senator Jim Norman (R) (Tampa) has proposed to make it a first-degree felony to photograph a farm without first obtaining written permission from the owner. A farm is defined as any land "cultivated for the purpose of agricultural production, the raising and breeding of domestic animals or the storage of a commodity."

Preventing your photos from being lost while traveling

It's happened to me and many photographers I've known over the years since digital took over from film photography. It even happened to me just last year. Has it ever happened to you?

I'm talking about memory card failure while traveling.

Fortunately, I've lost very few photos, but others I know haven't been so lucky. Losing precious images you've carefully crafted while traveling can be especially disagreeable because travelers often never return to many locations, especially when away on one of those “once in a lifetime” trips, the really special journeys.

Whether I'm on a two week jaunt to some exotic locale, a day trip to a local wildlife refuge, or any kind of photo shoot, long or short, I take the same measured precautions to protect the images I've made.

Photography Exhibition: The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston - Modernist Photography 1910–1950

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, periodically has terrific photographic exhibitions. Their current my photography exhibit, Modernist Photography 1910–1950 features approximately 40 American modernist photographs representing highlights from the Museum's own collections.

If you're in the Boston area, this exhibition is well worth visiting.

This exhibition will run through July 3, 2011.

Have JetBlue and the Port Authority gone off the deep end?

A late December snow storm in the northeastern US caused havoc at airports from Washington north through Boston. The northeast storm caused delays and cancellations across the US, and seriously affected international flights.

The storm was a tough one, to be sure. At one time or another, seven major northeastern airports were closed due to the snow, some for more than a day. No where, it seems, was affected more than New York City's airports. At John Fitzgerald Kennedy International Airport (JFK), commonsense seems to have been thrown out the window more than anywhere else.

Photography Exhibition: Florida Museum of Photographic Arts - Naked City

The Florida Museum of Photographic Arts holds some of the best photographic exhibitions in the southern United States. Their current exhibition Naked City: Photographs from the Vassar College's Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center is a wonderful exhibition of many major photographers of the twentieth century.

The exhibition runs through January 29, 2011.