Fireworks over Yukon Oklahoma on old U.S. 66. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

From the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4, 1776. Written by Thomas Jefferson (1762-1826). 3rd US President (1801-09).

To see an engraving of the original and George Washington’s personal printed copy, go here.

to read the entire declaration, click the page 2 link at the right

Photo © Mary Ellen Mark. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Noted photographer, Mary Ellen Mark, is going to use her last case of Polaroid 20-24 inch film. It is the end of an era. She bought her last batch of the exotic film when Polaroid announced they would end production. She will use the film to photograph the high school prom in Ithaca New York.

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The Phartists (a combination of PHotographers and ARTISTS) are a self-named group of photographers and painters who enjoy each other’s company and occasionally travel and work together. One of them, Jack Perkins, explores what photographers and painters can learn from each other in an article at The Luminous Landscape. The article is worth reading and I think their logo is delightful.

Cemetery, The Presidio, San Francisco, California. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.

Memorial Day began unofficially in a variety of places as people felt the need to recognize those who gave their lives in the Civil War. Memorial Day was officially declared on May 5, 1868, when General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic ordered a day of observance when all Union and Confederate Graves at Arlington National Cemetery would be decorated with flowers on May 30, 1868. One state after another adopted May 30 as a Memorial Day observance until all of the Northern states had adopted May 30 by 1890. Many Southern states had picked different days to honor the Confederate dead.

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“Last month a US court ruled that border agents can search your laptop, or any other electronic device, when you’re entering the country. They can take your computer and download its entire contents, or keep it for several days. Customs and Border Patrol has not published any rules regarding this practice, and I and others have written a letter to Congress urging it to investigate and regulate this practice.” The Guardian

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Photo by Evelyn Cameron. Copyright © www.evelyncameron.com

I stumbled across a PBS special, Evelyn Cameron: Pictures From a Worthy Life. Evelyn left a life of privilege in England and ended up on the Montana frontier. She taught herself photography and documented frontier life from 1894 until her death in 1928.

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Yosemite National Park. Photo © 2006 OldBlueWebDesigns.com, All rights reserved. Used with the permission of OldBlueWebDesigns.com.

A friend sent me a link to “My Beautiful America” and I am passing it along here for your enjoyment. It is a “flash” slide show accompanied by meditative renditions of patriotic music. The images are framed in an outline of the United States. To give you an idea what the slide show is like, the reduced size screen capture above is part of the show. To enjoy the full size images, you can see the show here and see more of his movie clips at MyBeautifulAmerica.com.

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Adobe has recalled Lightroom 1.4. If you have this version of Lightroom, you should uninstall 1.4 and revert back to version 1.3.

More information ia available at Adobe’s Lightroom Journal.

Fall Maple Leaves, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.

Time for a quiet celebration.

Some time during the day on Friday, March 7, 2008, someone viewed one of the pages at JimDoty.com, my primary photography web site. Unknown to them, that was the two millionth page visit since the site went online with a single marker page on November 8, 1999. On June 25, 2000 (the site’s “birthday”) the site was expanded from a marker page to 25 pages complete with photos. Today the site has over 400 pages.

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Winter, Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.

As the sun sets in the west it casts wonderful shadows so sunset is my favorite time of day at the dunes.

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Dusk, Moraine Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.

Don’t put your camera away at sunset. There can still be some beautiful light long after sunset (or before sunrise).

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With Tim Grey’s permission, I periodically reproduce one of his Q&A emails. If you aren’t already on his DDQ (Digital Darkroom Questions) email list and you are seriously involved in digital photography, I would suggest you go here and learn more. Tim used to be George Lepp’s digital guru before going to work for Microsoft. George Lepp is a first class nature photographer and he writes for Outdoor Photographer. I had an opportunity to participate in one of Mr. Lepp’s field seminars several years ago in Alaska.
The question and answer that prompted this post involves the ongoing “film versus digital” debate.

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This week Canon announced the Digital Rebel XSi/450D. The newest digital Rebel features several upgrades, including a 12 megapixel sensor. More information is here and here.

More here.

Deborah. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.

Filmed with a simple two light set up, both lights bounced out of reflective umbrellas. The main light was above the dancer and to the left of her left arm (camera right). The softer fill light was to the dancer’s right (camera left).

Data: Canon EOS 5D with EF 24-105mm lens set at 55 mm. Shutter 1/100 second, Aperture: f/11, ISO 100. Two “Alien Bees” model B800 studio flash units with umbrellas.

Sunstar Over Turnagain Arm, Alaska. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.

May the wonder and joy of the season be yours.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Canon EOS 1D Mark III

I hate to see a great company release a much anticipated, pro-level product with a major defect. That’s been the case with Canon’s EOS 1D Mark III. Early on, highly respected photographer, Rob Galbraith, wrote about significant autofocus problems with the 1D Mark III.

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It is the time of year that I get asked a lot of questions from people who are buying gifts for photographers, or from photographers wanting to drop hints. (In this post, “photographer” means anyone who likes to take pictures.) “What is the best book for . . . ?” “What are the best point and shoot cameras?” “Is there any really good image editing software for less than $100?” Many of those questions are answered in the posts that follow.

Photo equipment is pretty specialized. If you are buying photo equipment as a gift for the photographer in your life, ask for very specific hints (and send the photographer here).

Happy Gift Giving.

The Buyer’s Guide Series – Your guide to the best of all things photographic. There are over 60 articles in this series, making it one of the most comprehensive buyer’s guides on the Internet.

Buyer’s Guide Series: Recommendations For The Best Photography Equipment, Software, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Online Photo Labs and More

SHORT LIST (by camera name, sensor size in megapixels, and the zoom range of the lens):

Canon PowerShot A570 IS, 7.1 mp sensor, 4x zoom lens range
Canon PowerShot A640, 10 mp, 4x
Canon PowerShot A710 IS, 7.1 mp, 6x
Canon PowerShot G9, 12.1 mp, 6x
Fujifilm Finepix F31fd, 6.3 mp, 3x
Fujifilm Finepix F50fd, 12 mp, 3x
Fujifilm Finepix S6000fd / S6500fd , 6.3 mp, 10.7x
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8, 7.38 mp, 12x

HONORABLE MENTION:

Canon Powershot S5 IS, 8 mp sensor, 12x zoom lens range

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One of the best ways to improve your photography is to read some good instructional books and then go out and try what you just read about. My favorite landscape and nature photography books are here and here.

Some of these are out of print but they are still well worth finding on the used book market.

So you want to be a better photographer. Start here.

Some of these are out of print but they are still well worth finding on the used book market.

Short List: Arca-Swiss

The Arca-Swiss quick release system is arguably the best quick release system and certainly the most universal among professional photographers. The system is simple and you can start for less than $80 and use almost any tripod head you now own. . . .

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UPDATE DEC 11, 2008:  This article hs been rewritten and updated here.

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My recommendations for tripods heads haven’t changed for some time . . . . Continue reading →

Looking for a tripod? This is the place to find information, recommended models, and links to more information.

It is best to buy your tripod legs and tripod head separately. The best brands are interchangeable so you can match the legs you want with the tripod head that you want.
For years I have been recommending Bogen/Manfrotto and Gitzo tripods. . . .

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Short List:

SanDisk and Lexar

Memory cards are the “film” for your digital camera. You don’t want to have a card failure and lose your photos. A reliable brand is important.

to continue, click the page links to the right

Don’t lose your digital photos to disc rot or a hard drive crash. Choose the best archival options.

Short CD List:
MAM-A Gold Archive
Delkin eFilm Archival Gold
MAM-A Silver Archive
Verbatim DataLifePlus (with Super AZO dyes)
Taiyo Yuden

Short DVD List:
MAM-A Gold Archive
MAM-A Silver Archive
Taiyo Yuden

Short List of External Hard Drives:
Maxtor
Seagate
Buffalo

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