Will, all set for the prom. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

I was taking a short water break from mowing my lawn and I noticed Will’s sister was having trouble with her camera. I would rather take pictures than mow, so I went to grab my camera. Will was all ready to leave for the prom and we only had a couple of minutes to do a few casual portraits (the style of the portraits is casual, certainly not the clothes). This one is his favorite.

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Mid-May is prime time at Point Pelee National Park in Canada. If you are a bird-lover, bird-watcher, or bird photographer, Point Pelee in May should be high on your “A list” of places to be. It is considered to be one of the five best bird-watching sites in all of North America.

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Where do you go for reliable photo equipment information, especially when so many photo magazines provide information that isn’t really helpful? You want to know how good the item REALLY is before you put your hard earned money on the line. This is my guide to some trusted sources.

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Ben Stein wrote “Monday Night at Mortons”, a column at E! Online. I received a link to his final column, “How Can Someone Who Lives in Insane Luxury Be a Star in Today’s World?” It is a retrospective on his changing view of things and the real stars in our world.

You can read it here.

If the link fails or the column goes away, you can read the complete column on page 2 of this post.

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If you haven’t become acquainted with Tim Grey already, let me introduce you. Tim used to be George Lepp’s digital guru. He taught classes at Lepp’s Institute of Digital Imaging and launched the DDQ email service (more about that in a moment). His articles have appeared in Outdoor Photographer, PC Photo and other magazines. Tim really knows his stuff. He was snatched up by Microsoft a few months ago. Tim is providing a wealth of free information.

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Our Grandson Drew. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

A simple candid photo taken outside in open shade on a partly cloudy day. Canon 20D camera and EF 28-135mm IS (image stabilization) lens.

What is “gray market” (parallel import) photo equipment? It costs less but is it worth it? Is it the same as “U.S. warranty” equipment? What are the risks in buying gray market gear? Does the gray market dealer matter? Learn more here.

Digital cameras have so many menus and options and custom functions, how do you set them up to take pictures? I wrote three articles on how I set up the Canon 20D camera. Although they are about the 20D, many of the settings are applicable to other models and brands of cameras.

Menu Settings
Custom Functions
Top Deck Controls

First there were the rumors, then the brief and “accidental” announcement on a website, then the official Nikon pre-announcement. Today it is official as Nikon announces the D50 and D70s. The D50 is a simpler and less expensive version of the highly respected D70. The D70s is a replacement for the D70.

DP Review has posted a hands on preview of the D50 which is well worth reading if you have a bunch of Nikon lenses and you are thinking about making the switch to digital, or if you want a less expensive backup for your D70. I will keep you posted when full reviews are available.

I was going on a short trip to the store at lunch time. Why take a camera? (I almost always have a camera with me.) How was I supposed to know I would witness an attampted stabbing?

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Today Canon announced rebates on two digital cameras, a bunch of lenses, several flash units, and some binoculars. If you are planning on buying one of these items, you have from now until July 15. More details are here and a list of rebate items follows.

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Due to the field of view crop of many current digital SLRs, the lenses we used on our film cameras behave different on our digital cameras. I have three new articles on my photo website that discuss this.

Field of View Crop In Digital SLRs

Depth Of Field For Digital SLRs

Hyperfocal Distance Chart For Digital SLRs

Good news for photographers with Nikon equipment. Today Nikon UK confirmed recent rumors of two new Nikon digital SLRs that will be introduced later this month. One will be a replacement for the Nikon D-70. The other will be a new and lower priced entry level camera.

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Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)

DP Review has posted a full review of the Canon Digital Rebel XT, giving it a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED rating, their highest. You can read the review here.

Pentax *ist DS Digital SLR

DP Review has posted a review of the Pentax *ist DS. The camera received a “RECOMMENDED” rating, the second highest that DP Review gives out. The camera is better than this rating would appear to indicate.

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Pope John Paul II, 1920-2005

In memory of a remarkable and loving man with deep convictions and high courage.

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Two recent magazine articles compare the following digital SLRs:

Canon 20D
Canon Digital Rebel
Fuji FinePix S3 Pro
Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D (Dynax 7D in the U.K.)
Nikon D70
Nikon D100
Olympus E-1
Olympus Evolt E-300
Pentax *ist DS
Sigma SD10

Get a summary of the results and some recommendations here.

There is some excellent software out there that is cheap or free. Read more at my son’s blog.

Every two year old needs their own digital camera, don’t you think?!

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May the joy of this season be yours!

Do you think $60,000 for a simple, point and shoot digital camera is a bit expensive?

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Sunset over Mo’orea, French Polynesia. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

How long will your digital prints last? Based on the questions I am asked in person, the emails I receive, and the search words that bring people to my website, this is an important issue.

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The Epson 2200 is still one of the two or three best archival printers in the $1,000 or less class and the price is dropping (currently around $620, see farther down in this article).

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Our new grandson Ryan has arrived. You can see photos here or here.

So what happens when the newspaper photographers at the SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER each pick their ten best photos of the year?

Back in the 80’s and early 90’s I did freelance newspaper photography for a small town paper in Oklahoma. Back in those days, everything was shot on black and white film with short deadlines. I appreciate a truly fine, eye catching newspaper photo, especially since the time constraints on newspaper photographers are often severe.

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Cook’s Bay, Island of Moorea, French Polynesia. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

More Tahiti and Moorea photos have been posted at my ImageEvent site.

A Celebration in Music and Dance.
Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

I am regularly asked how I set up my digital cameras. This article in three parts is based on the Canon 10D, but most of it is applicable to other models and brands of cameras.

Part One: Menu Settings
Part Two: Custom Functions
Part Three: Camera Controls

Konica Minolta 7D Digital SLR

DP Review gave the Konica Minolta 7D a “Highly Recommended” rating, their highest. If you’ve been waiting for a digital SLR for your Minolta lenses, this may be the camera for you. Due to a recent firmware update, DP Review retested this camera and recently updated their review. You can read it here.