The Best of the Best: Recommendations For The Best Photography Equipment, Software, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Online Photo Labs and More

Posted on by
The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

UPDATE: The most recent update and re-posting of this article is here.

I get lots of photo questions and many of them begin with “What is the best . . . .” They usually come from photographers or someone shopping for a photographer.

Here is my list of “best of the best” of articles recommending the best photo gear, software, books, DVDs, calendars, online photo labs, and a whole lot more.

Last posted Dec. 21, 2015. Updated May 12, 2016

Continue reading →

The 3-2-1 Photo Backup Plan

Posted on by

This article has been updated here.

Earlier this week I read about a professional photographer who lost a bunch of photos because they were all on just one external hard drive with no backups. The cost of recovering the photos, if they can be recovered at all, will run between $500 and $5000 depending on the number of photos and the complications involved in the recovery process.

Continue reading →

Seven Southern Utah “Parks” in 46 Hours

Posted on by
One day in Utah

One Day in Utah.

When I left home headed for Northern California I had no intentions of being in Southern Utah. By the time I reached Denver, snow in the forecast for N. Utah, Nevada, and the mountain passes in N. California made a detour much more appealing than fighting snow on I-80, especially since I have never been to the spectacular parks and monuments in Southern Utah.

Continue reading →

Unexpected Gifts: California Poppies!

Posted on by

 

California Poppies. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

California Poppies. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

After a week of clouds and rain, our last morning in Fremont California was the only morning that started out bright and sunny. I needed to pack for our flight home but I made one last quick trip to the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It is one of my favorite places to go early in the morning when we are visiting family in the Bay Area.

Continue reading →

John Muir’s Birthday

Posted on by
John Muir, Royal Arches, and Washington Column, Yosemite Valley

John Muir, Yosemite Valley

Today is John Muir’s birthday. Born in Scotland April 21,1838, he was still a boy when his family came to America. He loved the outdoors and his life and writings had a profound influence on some of my favorite photographers, and even more important, on millions of people who love the natural outdoors. He loved Yosemite and his activism helped preserve Yosemite Valley which is now part of Yosemite National Park.

Continue reading →

2016 Michigan Nature Photography Workshops

Posted on by

CAPTURING NATURE’S WONDERS – Photograph Workshops
Grand Rapids Michigan – May 14, 2016
Lake Charlevoix Michigan – August 19-21, 2016

I am excited about my nature photography workshops in Michigan this year. My one day workshop near Grand Rapids will be May 14 and I will be doing a weekend workshop in Northern Michigan on Lake Charlevoix August 19-21.

Come spend a fun, exciting, action-packed day or weekend learning how to take your photography to the next level. In the intensive classroom explorations you will learn the steps that make the difference between ordinary snapshots and extraordinary images. Minutes later you will be practicing those steps with your own camera. Learn the secrets of the pros and how to apply their tips and techniques to create your own eye-popping images.

Continue reading →

POTD: Rain Drops and Power Tower

Posted on by
Power Tower in the Rain. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

Power Tower in the Rain. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

My mission was to photograph wild birds at the wildlife refuge in Fremont California. That was not going to happen. I had rain. So I made the most of it shooting a power tower through the rain drops on the windshield. I chose to focus on the rain drops rather than the tower.  iPhone photo.

Nature Photography Workshop – OSU, Mansfield Ohio Campus

Posted on by

CAPTURING NATURE’S WONDERS
Photography Workshop – OSU – Mansfield Ohio
May 7, 2016 – 9:00 am to 9:00 pm

***   ***   ***

UPDATE: THIS WORKSHOP IS NOW BOOKED FULL. This workshop also booked full last year well in advance of the workshop. I will be doing a one day workshop in Grand Rapids Michigan May 14, 2016, and other workshops throughout the year.  All of my workshops are linked at JimDoty.com.

***   ***   ***

I am excited. My nature photography workshop in Ohio is next month.

Come spend a fun, exciting, action-packed day learning how to take your photography to the next level. In the intensive classroom explorations you will learn the steps that make the difference between ordinary snapshots and extraordinary images. Minutes later you will be practicing those steps with your own camera. Learn the secrets of the pros and apply their tips and techniques to create your own eye-popping images.

Continue reading →

“How To” Series: Astrophotography with the iOptron SkyTracker

Posted on by
Camera and telephoto lens mounted on an iOptron Sky Tracker and iOptron ball head.

Camera and 70-200 telephoto lens mounted on an iOptron SkyTracker and iOptron ball head.

You would love to take beautiful, long exposures of the night sky, but even with a 24mm wide angle lens the stars start to streak with exposures longer than 20 seconds. And with a 300mm lens the stars start to steak after just 2 seconds. Not that long ago it would cost you well over $1,000 to buy the equipment that would follow the stars and allow you to take longer exposures.

Posted March 21, 2016. Updated November 25, 2018.

Continue reading →

How To Get Critical Focus in “Live View” Mode with a Magnified Image

Posted on by
Tripod mpounted camera in live view mode.

Tripod mounted camera in live view mode. The image is visible on the LCD along with the RGB histogram.

“Live View” mode is a huge boon to digital photographers and magnified focus is one of the reasons why. Focusing this way is more accurate than the camera’s autofocus modes, at least with non-moving subjects, and you will have sharper images. Landscape photography is the usual time to use this technique but sometimes it works for wildlife.

Continue reading →

First Night: Testing an iOptron SkyTracker, Part Two

Posted on by
Orion Nebula and Nebula NGC 1977

Orion Nebula and Nebula NGC 1977. Three minute exposure with a 300mm lens and camera mounted on an iOptron SkyTracker. This is cropped from a larger image.

After a one minute exposure using the iOptron SkyTracker (see the photo in part one), I tried a 3 minute exposure with the same 300mm lens to create the image above (which is cropped from a larger image which you can see below). The Orion Nebula (M42 and M43) shows up quite well and you can even see some of the nebulosity of NGC 1977 just above the Orion Nebula around the 5th magnitude stars Orionis 42 and 45. The iOptron StarTracker is an impressive piece of equipment.

Posted March 17, 2016. Updated Dec. 5, 2017

Continue reading →

First Night: Testing an iOptron Sky Tracker, Part One

Posted on by

Orion’s belt, sword and the Orion Nebula in the middle of the sword. 300mm focal length lens and camera mounted on an iOptron Sky Tracker.

Using a tripod, camera, and lens you already own, am iOptron Sky Tracker allows you to take photos that would be impossible with just a camera and tripod. This is a first look at my first night using an iOptron Sky Tracker and ball head. Details will follow later.

Posted March 11, 2016. Updated Dec. 5, 2017.

Continue reading →

One Location, Four Photos: Aspen Leaf, Autumn Road, Mountain Landscapes

Posted on by
Dew on aspen leaves, moss; evergreen needles, and evergreen cone.

Dew on aspen leaves, moss; evergreen needles, and evergreen cone.

The same photographic area can give you several very different kinds of images in different kinds of light. The morning light had turned cloudy in Rocky Mountain National Park so Bob, my brother-in-law, and I were in the forest doing small scale landscapes and closeups of little forest details.

Continue reading →

Snowy Owl Photography: Solving A Photo Problem (And the Right Way to Exit Your Vehicle)

Posted on by
Snowy Owl, Photo Location 1

Snowy Owl, Photo Location 1

When I am traveling with my highly trained photographic assistant it is his job to remove National Park Service trash barrels when they are in the way, cut down trees that spoil my view, run out into the meadow and scare off the cow elk that are in front of the bull elk I want to photograph, rip boards off of old barns that don’t look quite distressed enough, pull on the whiskers of a sleeping cougar to wake it up, and cut down utility lines that are obstructing a clear view of my subject. But he wasn’t with me on this trip due to sitting in jail over a minor incident in Yosemite. So I had a challenge on my hands that I had to solve myself.

Continue reading →

Snowy Owl Photography: Control the Background for Better Images

Posted on by
Snowy Owl, Photo Location 1

Snowy Owl, Photo Location 1

A simple change of background can turn a disappointing wildlife photo into a great one. Professional wildlife photographers think about backgrounds all the time and do everything they can to improve the background. Less experienced wildlife photographers are so excited to find an interesting creature that they give the background precious little thought.

Continue reading →