Category Archives: Preparation

Handling Flash Cards

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I have a Nikon D300 camera so I use compact flash cards. I have CF cards in the following sizes: 8GB, 4GB, & 3 1GB. I keep each card in its individual case until the one in use is full and then I switch them. The problem is twofold. First, it takes time to take a fresh CF card out of its plastic holder and then swap it with the current one. Second, once cards are filled it can be confusing to which ones are still empty. I do try to keep the empty cards in my right pants pocket and the filled cards in my left pocket. Only once have I ever inadvertently formatted a card that full of photos. It hurt to lose these photos and prompted me to seek a better procedure in handling flash cards.

So what do you do? How do you handle your flash cards? Could you please explain the process you use? I’ve been thinking that a case to hold all of my cards could be helpful, but what do you do when handling flash cards?

Getting Ready for the Craft Fair

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I will be displaying some of my photographs this Saturday at the Holiday Boutique. This is a craft fair held at Stroudsburg United Methodist Church and features a variety of craft vendors. It is a great place to see crafters displaying their beautiful work and do a little early Christmas shopping.

This week I am making last-minute preparations for my display. Just today I received a shipment of my Pennsylvania Elk Calendars and a Photo Flip Book. Last week I received a photo mug and holiday greeting cards. These items will be on display so orders can be placed with any of my photographs. I will have 4 elk calendars for sale and they turned out beautifully if I do say so myself.

I also have to print some price lists, frame some photographs, and refine my tri-fold plywood display so everything will be ready to be set up on Friday. It is an exciting time and I always enjoy seeing what the other crafters will be displaying.

If you are in the Poconos on Saturday, stop in to look around. I will be there and I’d love to see you!

The Value of a Spreadsheet

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Do you know how much a spreadsheet can help your photography?

Most people assume that spreadsheets are only for working with numbers, but nothing could be farther from the truth. I use spreadsheets for all sorts of things. For example, I have one spreadsheet with my photo equipment dream list. One one sheet I prioritize the items I hope to buy in the future. On another sheet I track my savings for the next piece of gear. I can even compare features of several lenses side-by-side.

I use spreadsheets for upcoming photo events, too. I can list shots I don’t want to miss, create to do lists to make sure I am ready for the event, and even track my progress by using little check marks and highlighting what still needs to be accomplished.

Spreadsheets can be a great tool for the photography. Give it a try!

Batteries Charged?

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I have a  photo assignment tomorrow and I just remembered that I need to charge my batteries before the big event tomorrow. There is nothing worse than packing for a photo trip and realizing that the batteries need to be charged.

My protocol calls for charging to be done the night before a photo outing. I also purchased an inverter for my truck so I can charge my batteries when I am away from home or out away from electricity for extended periods of time. I always pack my charger and its power cord in my photography bag because I never know when I might need it.

Today’s tip is short and simple–charge your batteries so they are ready when you need them!

Where Do You Learn?

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School? Home? Neighborhood? Church?

Where do you learn?

I am fortunate to have a solid upbringing in a loving family and was privileged to graduate from both college and graduate school. These 7 years of post-high school higher learning were wonderful and gave me the opportunity to learn a whole lot. I sometimes look back on those years fondly and even wish I could recapture the joy of living in those years.

But I am discovering the joy of learning something new just about every day.

I don’t think it is so much the place that provides learning as it an attitude and lifestyle. How many people do you know who hated school? For all those who enjoyed the process, like I did, there were probably and equal number of students who absolutely hated the learning process.

I had great teachers, too. They taught me not only the subject material but great life lessons as well. I am grateful to them for their dedication and willingness to share these lessons with me. And I will never forget them nor be able to repay them.

Learning now is less formalized in my life. I occasionally attend continuing education events and seminars, but I find myself turning to the internet to learn more. Photographically speaking, I have discovered a wealth of online websites that have literally tons of information on the subject of photography. I will eventually be posting some of these links on my website.

So, where do you learn? Do you even want to learn anything anymore? If so, where will that learning take place?

Passion and Desire

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What drives you to be out there with your camera? What motivates you to keeping going behind the viewfinder? Why do you keep taking photographs?

People have a lot of passions that drive them to do a variety of different things. Passion is defined as “intense emotional drive or excitement” in Webster’s Dictionary. You can spot someone with passion a mile away. It comes pouring out in obvious ways that cannot be missed.

Passion is what drives you when the going gets tough. Passion keeps you up late at night figuring out how to do better what drives you so much. Passion is what keeps the fire burning.

Too many photographers give up after they have a great start. But passion will keep us going.

There nothing quite like being behind the viewfinder when the action is in full swing. This weekend I photographed 3 baseball games. I cannot believe that some people honestly believe that baseball is a boring sport. The action is quick and if you blink you are sure to miss the shot. Anticipation and preparation are definitely the name of these games–both baseball and sports photography.

As a baseball coach, I learned to instruct the players to always be ready. They could blow bubble gum bubbles or whatever in-between pitches, but when the pitcher was about to go into his windup each player was to take a prep step and present their glove to the ball, thereby being in a totally ready position.

Photographers must be equally prepared and ready for the next action shot. Knowing when and where the action is about to take place can go a long way in helping to capture the action shot desired. There is nothing I like more than freezing the ball in place just as it is about to fielded by an infielder, or as the ball is about to be hit by a batter!

The next action is out there ready to be captured by your camera. The only question is will  you be ready to capture the action?

Checklist

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Have you ever been in the middle of a shoot and realized your camera’s white balance was set in the wrong position?

This happened to me a today. Of course, this is one of the many reasons why shooting in RAW makes so much sense, because you can quickly correct this mistake in post processing. The problem is much more difficult when shooting JPGs.

The scenario is pretty common… you shoot one event with a specific white balance setting, say incandescent lighting. Then on your next shoot you are in bright daylight. After awhile when you are looking at a photo on the back of your camera you see that the photo is much too blue.

Other settings can also be set incorrectly and cause problems in a shoot. This is why a pre-shoot checklist is such a good idea. I’ve decided to make a checklist and keep it n my camera bag, right on top of my camera so I have to see it before I use my camera the next time. Hopefully, this will prevent me from using the incorrect settings.

Time to Get Organized

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Is your office clean or messy? How about your desk?

Are your flash cards empty and ready to be filled or do you have images on them and wonder if you uploaded them to your pc or not?

I have several projects in the wings. Life is busy, but good busy. I am slowly learning how to keep track of projects to see them through. This is helpful in my professional life but also my life here at home, too. Write it down! This is the strong suggestion of David Allen of “Getting Things Done.” He says that we should write things down to clear our mind to stop worrying about everything and be open to creativity.

Sometimes my mind is going 100 miles per hour, worrying about this project and that detail and this phone all I have to return. When we write things down we can allow our mind to stop trying to remember all these details and be open to more creative purposes.

Of course, the trick is to have a system where you regularly re-visit the places where you wrote things down. It does no good to write something down but then forget where you put that piece of paper.

I am learning how to use Outlook and spreadsheets to help store these important pieces of information. Admittedly, I am still learning how to make this work but I am committed to seeing it through so I can be more efficient and keep projects on track.

What about you? Are you seeing projects through to completion or is your mind filled all kinds of details, tasks, and dates not to forget? Stop it! Clear your mind by writing these details down somewhere. And then re-visit the places you parked that information so you can keep on track.

It’s time to get organized!

Getting Things Done

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Years ago I learned the Franklin Planner system of accomplishing tasks. I watched the 8-hour video and learned a lot about how to accomplish tasks in a timely manner. This process actually transformed they way I did business on a daily basis. For the next  year I used the Franklin Planner notebook but then in the following year I switched to using an electronic version on an HP Palmtop. My boss was reluctant about me using this electronic version, but it proved to work exceedingly well.

Now, some 16 years later, a lot has changed. Email has become part of our daily routine, voice mail in-boxes are filling up quickly, and computers are standard issue in just about every business. The bottom line is that our workflow has changed quite a bit.

So, today I was listening to a podcast entitled “The Camera Dojo” and the topic was “Tools to Help Manage Tasks and Productivity.” It was enlightening to say the least.

The one tip that I took to heart was how to manage the flood of email messages many of us receive on a daily basis. My email in-box had over 6,800 messages this morning. The idea that was so helpful was to sort through each email and give it a home–move it to a specific folder, trash it, or put it in an @Action folder. This last option was the one that intrigued me the most. I used to keep email messages in my in-box that need a response or action from me. This idea of creating a new folder for emails that need action was just what I needed. The idea of putting the @ symbol in front of the folder’s name puts it on top of the folder hierarchy and constantly in front of me. I took this great idea to heart and while I still have some work to do, my in-box only has 29 messages in it!

What are you doing to get things done?

Are Your Batteries Charged?

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Digital photography is great. It is relatively inexpensive since you don’t have to purchase and have film developed. Instant feedback is also possible. I made the switch to digital back in 2003. I confess that I still miss some of the film experience, but I am almost entirely digital now.

I have an assignment tomorrow so I have some preparation to do tonight. First, I have to be sure that my batteries are charged. I know I have one camera battery to charge and 4 flash batteries to charge as well. I just put them in their chargers now.

The second thing I try to remember to do is re-format my compact flash cards. The other day I was getting ready for a shoot and my main compact flash card had images on it. At first I wasn’t sure if I had uploaded the images to my computer. It didn’t take too long to realize that I had indeed accomplished this task, but I decided right then and there that I should reformat my compact flash cards before leaving for an event or, even better, right after I am finished up loading the images to my computer.

The main idea here is to always be prepared. Freshly charged batteries and empty flash cards are just some examples of this. Having everything with you is another example. Do you have your tripod or monopod? What about your flash?

Being ready is important. So, are your batteries charged?