CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVISITED

The big PMA (Photo Marketing Association) trade show starts today in Orlando. I was checking out the convention schedule and learned that Creedence Clearwater Revisited headlines the “Big Night” performance.

This will date me, but I grew up on Creedence Clearwater Revival (and a lot of other bands from that bygone era). So who is CC Revisited and are they any good?

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NEW CANON DIGITAL REBEL

Canon Digital Rebel XT
Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)

If you are thinking about buying a Canon Digital Rebel (or any other camera, come to think of it), DON’T DO IT. Canon just announded the new Digital Rebel XT (350D). With a new 8 megapixel sensor and compatibility with the new EF-S lenses, this should be a very popular camera. It is that time of year and PMA, one of the biggest photo trade shows of the year, begins February 20. Manufacturer’s are announcing new cameras and lenses right and left.

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NEW!! EPSON R1800 PRINTER

Epson Stylus Photo R1800
Epson Stylus Photo R1800 Printer

The latest Epson wide carriage printer produces true archival quality prints with 8 inks in large paper sizes. This printer could be another winner for Epson.


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“HEU”

Heu
“Heu”, photo copyright Giranthon

I was looking at some of the recent posts at PhotoSig.com and ran across the wonderful portrait above. The expression, the face, the details, the coat, the setting, and the light all come together to create this great photo. Who is this person? What does he do? What is he thinking? I would be proud to have taken this photo. You can see more of the photographer’s photos and a much larger version of this photo by going here.

A GREAT PENTAX DIGITAL SLR

Pentax *ist DS
Pentax *ist DS Digital SLR

At last, there is a fine digital SLR that will take almost every 35mm lens Pentax has ever made. If you have a stable of Pentax lenses and have been wanting to go digital, the Pentax *ist DS may be just the camera you have been waiting for.

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TRAVEL BY WEB CAM

Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley via web cam

No snow, poor light, very little sunshine, and not much to inspire an outdoor nature photographer, so I wandered the U.S. and the world via webcam.

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OLYMPUS EVOLT (E-300) REVIEW

Olympus Evolt E-300

The Olympus Evolt (E-300) is an eight megapixel digital SLR in the 4/3 format with a distinctive optical viewfinder that eliminates the typical SLR viewfinder hump.

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SPYWARE PROTECTION

Do yourself a favor and protect your computer from spyware. Spyware can collect information from your computer without your knowledge. Microsoft’s software can find and eliminate spyware from your computer.

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EVEREST HOME EDITION

I was trying to determine some informtion about my my DVD drive , but Windows only gave me some generic information. I asked my son for help and he sent me to Everest Home edition. I downloaded the free software, ran it and it told me everything I needed to know plus a complete diagnostic report on my while system. More information and download.

TSUNAMI DISASTER RELIEF

Acehnese Girl
An injured Acehnese girl, who lost her entire family when a tsunami hit the region last week, wipes her face as she takes a rest at a hospital in Banda Aceh, Aceh province, Indonesia. (AP/Binsar Bakkara)

The recent tsunamis have created a disaster of staggering human proportions. It is a deeply tragic situation. In the midst of the sadness and suffering, you can make a difference. You can help by donating to the agency or organization of your choice.

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WORDPRESS LINKS

Soon after I was up and running with WordPress, my blog software, I wanted to change the look of the page. I found some helpful links to guide me in the process.

I found some information on CSS at Nuclear Moose.

I found the following VERY helpful tutorial on how to change the look of a WordPress blog .

I needed a good color chart and found a great one at Visibone.com.

If you want to make some simple changes to the look of your basic WordPress blog, the last two links should be especially helpful.

EPSON P-2000 DIGITAL PHOTO STORAGE

Epson P-2000

The Epson P-2000 may be the first truly practical and well-designed compact photo storage/viewer unit for photographer’s who want to download their memory cards on the go. As an added bonus, it supports movie and audio files.

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!


Ski Island. Oklahoma. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

May the joys and blessings of this season be with you now and throughout the coming year!

SURPRISES

Snow and ice has hit our part of the country. 207,000 people in our county are without power and over 300,000 state wide. Melissa’s surpervisor called this morning at 5:25 AM to tell her to stay home, the medical clinic would be closed due to the weather. That was a nice surprise so Melissa had an unexpected day at home. At 9 AM our children who live across town called to tell us their power is off.

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CANON 20D vs NIKON D70

Canon 20D and Nikon D70

Every day people come to my primary website wanting to know which is the better camera, the Canon 20D or the Nikon D70. The answer for most people is that it really doesn’t matter. Let me explain why.


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NWF PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Green Anole
Green Anole, Florida. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

I don’t enter photo contests but a friend talked me into entering the NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION’S annual photo contest this year.

I learned today that I am one of the finalists. Out of over 5,000 entries, my green anole photo is one of 52 that was selected to be featured as a “Photo of the Week” on the NWF website. The photo will appear the second week in July 2005. I was quite surprised!

You can see a larger version of this photo here.

FISH OIL AND THE HEART

My son has been after me to take Omega-3 fish oil. The following article explains why. It is quoted verbatim from About.com.

“Fish Oil and the Heart, From Richard N. Fogoros, M.D., Dateline: April 15, 2002

“Three new studies add strongly to the growing evidence that consumption of fish and fish oil supplements can reduce death from heart disease.”

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GREAT SLIDE SHOW SOFTWARE FOR THE WEB

I have been a big fan of Imagematics software for some time now. This will be a brief review since you can read the details about the products at the Imagematics website. My endorsement is very simple. It is my favorite software for taking still pictures and creating web ready “movies” and slide shows. Imagine the “Ken Burms” movie effect where the camera pans across the scene, but it is add done with still pictures. Or create photo albums online where the photos change like pages turning in a book.

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PACKING LIGHT FOR AIR TRAVEL

PACKING LIGHT FOR TAHITI: LIVING WITH THE NEW AIRLINE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS


Tahiti Nui’s northeast coast. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

With a 10 kilogram weight limit (22 pounds), it was hard to carry all of my photo gear onto the plane to Tahiti. I had to make some hard choices.

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CANON 1Ds Mark II

The recently announced Canon 1Ds Mark II is an extraordinary, 16+ megapixel camera with a 35mm sized imaging sensor. The January 2005 issue of POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY magazine calls it “the new benchmark for image quality in a portable SLR”.

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MY ORIGINAL PHOTO BLOG

Rachel
Rachel. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty. Jr.

My original photo blog is here. I will be copying some of the posts from that site to this one. These will be back dated to the time of posting on the original blog. In the meantime, feel free to browse the old site.

NEW BLOG

Welcome! This is the new location for my photo blog, launched December 9. I’ve copied a few older articles from my old photo blog. The primary emphasis will be photography with random reflections on other topics. My photo website is JimDoty.com.

Swimmer. Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty. Jr.

CANON 10D VS 20D

The Canon 20D, the replacement for the 10D, is now available. If you have the 10D, should you upgrade? If you have Canon autofocus film cameras with EF lenses, is the 20D a good way to go digital? Is this a good time to get a 10D at a reduced price?

Read my comparison and suggestions here.

UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY


Photo copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

Today I got back my photos from sorkeling in Moorea (an island 12 miles west of Tahiti). The snorkeling was fun. The photos were disappointing. In fact, there isn’t a single one that I want to scan and post here. There didn’t seem to be much point in posting a photo and saying “Those little yellow flecks are fish.” Maybe it wasn’t QUITE that bad, but close.

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CANON S70 REVIEW

It looks like Canon has another winner with the Powership S70 digital point and shoot camera. DP Review gave it a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED rating, their highest, in a review posted earlier this week.

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NEW IMAGE EDITING SOFTWARE



Photoshop Elements 3 and Adobe Premiere Elements

The best image editing software under $100 just got much better, and Adobe has released a “lite” version of their superb movie editing software, Adobe Premiere. More good news, AMAZON and ADOBE are giving BIG rebates for purchases through November 1.

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TAHITI


The Pacific Ocean and Point Venus, copyright (c) Jim Doty, Jr.

I am in Tahiti.

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