Ladies and Gentlemen … Start Your Backups
Sweetie!?! The computer is making a strange clicking sound.
What’s that smell? Is something burning?
Weren’t all your pictures on that computer?
Oh, no!
Don’t be a loser … like me. I am talking about loss, data loss. In terms of digital photography I am talking specifically about the pictures of your life that are more than likely all stored in one place only: the hard drive of your computer.
Life gets busy and it is easy to just collect data, take pictures and make movies, write documents and put our financial data in our checkbook program. We just collect all that stuff in one place (our PC’s) and just think its always going to be there for us forever, just like a good friend. Well, just when you least expect it your technology can turn on you. I’ve lost important pictures and let me tell you huge gaping hole in my heart that I experienced. I was a looser. My first thought was, do I have my stuff backed up? My response was “no”, then “OH, NO!”
How much are your digital photos worth to you? A hard drive failure could cost between $300 and $3000 to recover the data depending on the severity of the hard drive crash, if in fact your data is even recoverable.
Here is a short list of things you can do to protect your valuable photos, videos and other personal data:
Buy and Keep Your Antivirus Software Up To Date
Malicious viruses can erase your hard drive. Use a system that is updated automatically every day with the latest virus definitions.
Keep Your PC Serviced
When dust collects in and around your hard drives, they overheat and that will shorten the life of the drive. Your PC is one big electrostatic air filter. Have it serviced by a professional at least once a year and keep them off of the carpeted floor, away from dust and pet dander.
I recommend getting an air filter and keep it in the room with your PC. Your PC will not breathe in as much dust, and as an added benefit, the air will be fresher and you will breathe less dust at the same time.
Keep Your Data and Photos Backed Up
Backing up your photos and data over the web is becoming a very popular choice for data backup. This was formerly a pretty expensive solution for the convenience, but with the lowering cost and expanding capacity of hard drives, many web based services are popping up.Online backup is like buying an insurance policy for your digital photo archives.
Here are the advantages of backing up to the Internet:
You can backup securely over any high speed Internet connection.
Since your data is stored on a server offsite, you are covered from events such as PC theft, fire or hard drive failure. You might consider what would happen if there is an earthquake, flood or other natural disaster wherever your backups are stored.
Mozy.com is the online backup system that I use. Recommended by PC World Magazine, it works equally well on PC and Mac. You can back up to 2 Gigabytes for free and you can backup unlimited data from your home computer for only $4.95 per month (even less with an annual subscription). They have a pro version as well for your office computer.
Many online backup companies offer a low cost data backup only to charge you on the back side to restore your backup data. Not so with Mozy. They have no hidden charges! When I asked their tech support to confirm, they told me “We don’t hold your data for ransom.”
Don’t be a loser. Take your digital photo library seriously, save early and save often, and make data backup a critical part of your digital photography processes. One day (maybe even tomorrow) you will be glad you did, or sorry you didn’t.
You might even encourage your friends to back up their data (send them a link to this article!) You may become one of their biggest heroes the next time they experience a data loss event.
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November 27, 2008
Photo Ideas for a Pregnant Woman
A maternity portrait is an awesome way of capturing the beauty and magic of your pregnancy. Many women are embarrassed by their shape, or no longer feel pretty, but it is a miraculous time of life, and one to be remembered by photos.
Maternity photos have become increasingly popular in the last few years and many photographers come up with innovative maternity photo ideas to make the photo shoot unique for the parents. Pregnancy is one phase of life that will never come back to you in the same form. Do not miss out on the opportunity to keep your memories alive through these photos.
Some Unique Maternity Photo Ideas
One of the unique maternity photo ideas that you can do is a nude pregnancy picture at around the 37th week of your pregnancy. This idea was made famous in August 1991, when Demi Moore appeared nude on the cover of Vanity Fair under the title More Demi Moore. Annie Leibovitz shot the picture while Moore was seven months pregnant. Have your spouse pose with you and he can pose half naked as well, holding your belly from behind. Depending on your thoughts and views, it is common for the mother to cover her breasts with her hands.
Yet another idea is to wear a bikini and cool shades. This will make you feel really pretty and confident. You can hold your tummy with both hands and give a side pose smiling at the camera. This will show your confidence and warmth.
If you have other children, then one more maternity photo idea is to involve your kids. Your child’s face and your tummy can be a part of the photo. You can also paint a face on your tummy and make it look like a baby. It will truly be a memorable experience as a family.
Perhaps you are uncomfortable posing nude, but at the same time want to use your entire body in the shot. A good maternity photo idea is to drape yourself with a sheer material. It will be really flattering and results will be an amazing combination of dark and light colors. You should stand sideways so that the shape of your belly is clearly visible. Hold the material at the breast, and optionally at your back as well. White drape looks elegant and sophisticated.
Using candlelight is a great maternity photo idea that will highlight your belly and give a dreamy effect. Take this photograph from the side with your hands holding your tummy. You can tilt your head a little with a slight smile which will reflect the warmth within you.
Let’s not leave the dad out!. With you standing sideways, he will kneel down and kiss your belly, while at the same time looking into your eyes and gently holding your belly from below. You then place your hands on his. This will show the amazing connection between you, your hubby, and the baby.
One more maternity photo idea is to have the portrait done outdoors. It can capture some unique bright colors of nature including trees, flowers, and sky.
One final idea is to do an internet search for “maternity photo” or “maternity portrait” and see what some other photographers are doing. It is amazing how many professionals will show samples of their work, giving you fresh ideas. This is especially good if you are doing your own portraits, rather than using a professional. Your search may also find additional articles full of ideas not covered in this article.
November 20, 2008
Medium Format: Do You Need It?
If you’re like many photographers, you’re always looking for the perfect image. In addition to a good, well composed photo, you want the best technical quality. You want your photos to show the fine textures, subtle hues, and crisp edges of your subject matter. You want the ultimate image.
Medium format photography can help get you this image. Medium format, in contrast to 35mm, uses a much larger film size. By using a larger film area, medium format cameras, such as the famous Hasselblad 500 series can capture significantly more information, and therefore a much sharper, more vibrant image. A larger slide or negative will always give a better image, all other things being equal, as it simply allows for that much more information to be stored.
Additionally, since medium format cameras a generally all “professional” cameras, the quality of the lenses used is very high. Some of the best lenses ever made have been for medium format cameras. You’re not going to find much cheap, low quality consumer grade glass in the medium format world, though TLR cameras like the Rollei TLRs can be a little cheaper. The best lens makers in the world have made som awesome medium format lenses. Some of these lenses are a wonder to behold, and can help you create some spectacular images.
All these factors add up to give you an amazing quality image that will blow away any 35mm image taken under similar conditions. If you look at a medium format negative or slide under a loupe, you will be shocked by the magnitude of detail that is visible. It’s hard to describe, but the difference is immediately visible and striking. This is not a small quality improvement that is visible to only an elite few, this is a radical change in the quality of your photos.
Indeed, it is this quality that leads many professionals to deal with the added cost, size, and weight of medium format gear. To be sure, its not the most convenient and affordable of formats. The larger negative requires a larger, more complex camera to deal with. A larger lens is required to focus enough light to expose the medium format film pane. These larger, more complex cameras and lenses are also significantly more expensive than 35mm cameras. For the amatuer, medium format is not ideal. Rather, it is for the professional or advanced photographer who demands the best looking images possible at the cost of portability.
So, should you go out and buy a medium format camera today? Given the nature of most medium format cameras, probably not. If, however, you demand only the best, medium format is the way to go.
November 19, 2008
Finding The Best Digital Camera: What You Need to Know
HOW TO FIND THE BEST DIGITAL CAMERA
It seems that every month, if not every week, different manufacturers are coming up with the latest digital cameras to entice potential clients. And it’s just not working for us!
After spending sizeable amount of time at the mall figuring out which is the best digital camera for us, we finally have enough money to buy for that eye-popping, 7 mega pixel, 10x digital zoom, potable, candy colored, up to 512MB expandable memory of super hi-speed SD memory card and not to mention very portable, (that will be the envy of almost everyone we know). We march to the mall armed with our life savings and lotsa pride in ourselves, when we pass by a new display - an eight mega pixel, up to 1G expandable memory, with built it mic and stereo surround, video playback capable, with 22 scenic modes kind-of-camera. And we sigh because the producer of this amazing gadget claims that this is the best digital camera yet out in the market. And so as we always want to have the best, armed with our life savings and a few credit cards, we buy the “best digital camera.” But then again, that doesn’t last too long, after two months or so, there’s another “best digital camera.”
And so it confuses us. What makes a digital camera, the best digital camera?
When looking for the best digital camera, there are certain features we can choose from to help us make a good choice
MEGAPIXELS. One of the most important features of digital camera to make it into the best digital camera category is its mega pixel property. The higher the mega pixels the better the actual photograph will come out. A mega pixel is equivalent to one million pixels. The resolution of your image is based upon the mega pixel property of your camera. This means that as you enlarge the picture, you would get more detail and less blurry colors.
LCD SIZE. A good digital camera will have a nice, bright, large, and colorful LCD. Some cameras have touch up and image editing features accessible from the LCD. A 1.5-inch display is average, a 2-inch LCD display is good, but the best LCD size would be 2.5 inches or higher.
ZOOM. Most digital cameras have both digital and optical zoom. A higher optical zoom is always better than a higher digital zoom. Digital cameras are usually furnished with optical of between 3x to 10x. The better the optical zoom, the higher it climbs up to the best digital camera category.
MEMORY CARD. Be sure that you get the right type of memory card for your camera. There are different types of memory card like the xD, SD, Flash card and the likes. Be sure you get the right type of card for your camera. of course memory storage is also up there in choosing the best digital cameras. Getting the right amount of memory is critical. Memory cards can go up to 1G.
The key point to find the best digital camera is to find one that will best fit you and your lifestyle. Don’t just buy the latest or the one that claims they are the best digital cameras out in the market. You wouldn’t want to buy a cheap digital SLR and use it with your home activities or family outing and have to lug it around?! Or you don’t want to buy the latest point and shoot camera when you’re serious about being a professional photographer. (Of course, you can use this for starters, but if you’re not a novice photographer anymore, you wouldn’t want to get this kind of camera.)
Actually, the best digital camera is the one that you will enjoy and use. Not the type that you’ll just leave rotting in its box or after a few weeks of usage or so, up there in the attic.
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