Tag: News

Photo Montage Tuesday

Jason3 Comments

Normally, I start the week with either a hardware review, a software review, or something along those lines, but there’s a couple things that have bumped the traditional schedule.  So, check these tidbits out to start the week:

First off, Scott Kelby has announced the 3rd Annual Worldwide Photo Walk!  It’s a pretty big deal now as there are some major sponsors that contribute prizes to this, and it’s just a super cool time.   There are usually a couple that start up for the Denver area, and if you’ll be around, let me know and I can post which group I’ll be in so you can join (or avoid) as needed! 🙂

Next up, I am having a couple really exciting podcasts coming up in future weeks, so my one that I recorded over the weekend will never see the light of day – it was a solo run, so not as much fun as, perhaps talking to Rob Sylvan (Also a NAPP Helpdesk writer) or Martin Bailey!  They are coming up soon, and we’re recording soon, so get your questions in via comments, email, or the free 800 line:  866-809-8663!

In other blog news, you may notice three new sponsors in the sidebar:  Adobe, NAPP, and Red River Paper!

  • Adobe – So, if you’re trial version of CS5 is almost up – order the full version here and you can still take advantage of great savings.  Just come through the side panel link here to get the same pricing as elsewhere, and when you do, you’ll be helping me keep costs to a minimum on the blog and podcast!
  • NAPP – For the NAPP link – you can sign up for a membership through this affiliate link and get lots of special bonuses, and the referral also helps to keep costs down too…(I think you get like 2 additional months free or something like that).
  • Red River Paper – These guys are terrific – not only have they donated prizes in the past to monthly giveaways, but their continued support and service to both myself and readers/lilsteners is now available through the affiliate link in the sidebar.  Enjoy (especially their latest Pearl Metallic paper – totally rocks!)!

Finally, speaking of contests, the May giveaway entry deadline has passed and the winner of the free copy of PTGui Pano Software is:  AlinNZ!  Congrats to him and to Alin – if you contact me via email, I’ll get you in touch with PTGui to have them send your license key to unlock the software!  Great photo, and thanks to all for participating!

May Contest Winner - AlinNZ

Click the photo to be taken to his photo stream and comment on his excellent body of work there as well.  Congrats, and for those interested in the June contest – the news is posted on the Flickr site with all the details, so head there for more info.  I’ll go into more details on it later this week, so keep on feedin’ on the blog!  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

First Lightroom then CS5!

Jason5 Comments

Yesterday Adobe shared the news that they were releasing a second Beta of the upcoming Lightroom 3 – and it’s got a lot of cool new features for us to try out in this public beta, including managing video, point curve, tethered shooting, luminance noise control and much more.  Today, I understand that Adobe has made yet another software announcement:

Creative Suite 5 will launch on April 12th!

Since I just got wind of this late last night, I don’t have a lot of details on the products (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, etc.) but there are some sneak peek videos over on their launch site, and Adobe is encouraging folks to follow the hashtag #cs5 on Twitter.  Evangelists like Terry White, Julianne Kost, and many more will be talking about various aspects of the suite of products, highlighting some of the snazzier features and functions.  It looks pretty cool so far, and I think I am probably sold for a couple of reasons:

  1. Indesign – As you know, I like to write, and I am putting more and more content out in PDF and eBook form.  The ability of InDesign to assist me in that regard to put together professional looking material and to help with layout is well worth it.
  2. Photoshop – I am still on CS3, and I did not do the upgrade to CS4 knowing that I would probably upgrade every other iteration.  So, now is the time to upgrade.
  3. Business Catalyst – I’d not heard of this, but the improved layout for the CB store sounds appealing by using this software interface rather than hacking through code all the time.  Will want to check this out!
  4. Dreamweaver – An old school coder, I’ve always used text-based editors because I was a “purist” of sorts.  With the development of HTML5, the new features of CSS and XHTML, there’s a lot to get up to speed on, and when I want to just put something out to the web, Dreamweaver is becoming more and more of a consideration.

Here’s the launch page for all the detailed information on the new CS5 Suite:  Have you checked out some of the features of the CS5 suite yet?  What do you like?  Are you going to upgrade or take the plunge?  Sound off in the comments with your thoughts and feedback!

Last but not least – don’t forget that we are in the final week for the Cheetah Quickstand Giveaway – share your photos over on the Flickr Contest Thread!

Contest News and Announcements

Jason3 Comments

Congratulations and kudos go out to the winner for the February contest – the theme was Height and the winning image came from Sue90ca!  To see all the images submitted for February, check out the thread here with all the images.  Some really great ones were included, and as always, it was a tough decision.  Nevertheless, Sue90ca’s “Crayons” was selected as the winner.

Sue90ca's Crayons

You can see the rest of Sue’s portfolio on her Flickr stream here…

Before anyone asks, the March contest info is not up on FLickr yet, but I should have an announcement for that later on tonight.  I’ll give you a WILD hint though about the subject and the prize!  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

P.S.  Sue, if you could email me at jason <at> canonblogger <dot> com or message me on Flickr, I need to get in touch with you about the prize delivery for February…congrats again! 🙂

What Next?

Jason4 Comments

As 2010 gets underway, I am trying to take a proactive approach to the blogging (writing further in advance of blog posts) and podcasting (recording further in advance) outlets.  To do so, means that for a couple weeks or so now, I have been getting the blog posts up later in the day, and on a few occasions, no blog post at all.

When you don’t see a blog post, it means I am hard at work at my regular job, and then taking time after that to research, write, and contact people for things like the monthly giveaways, podcast participants, and much more.  With that in mind, I am ready to go on a pretty long stream here now of blog posts, giveaways and podcasts with various people in the industry.  But, at this point, you know what would be really helpful from the readership?  YOUR THOUGHTS!

I have three questions for you to consider between now and the end of February:

What types of content do you want to see on the blog? (Articles, subject matter, tips and tricks, videos, photos, techniques, etc.)

What types of prizes would you like to see in the giveaways? (Be realistic – Adobe Photoshop CS4, SLR cameras, and the like are likely out of my league…unless Adobe, Canon, Nikon, Pentax, and others are reading this and interested in becoming a vendor contributor [psst…email me: jason <AT> canonblogger <DOT> com]…)

Who would you like to hear from besides me talking on the podcast?  (Again, be realistic.  People like Scott Kelby, Joe McNally, and other industry heavyweights are not likely to be available – although you coulda knocked me over with a feather when David DuChemin agreed to come on a show…)

Thanks in advance, and I’l look forward to your comments here on the blog and to me via email.  Have a great weekend, happy shooting, and we’ll see you back here again on Monday!

December Winner!

Jason4 Comments

The trumpets sound!  The chorus rings, and the internet shall stop and take notice!

Why you ask?  We have a winner for the December Giveaway!  I am happy to announce that the winner of the December Giveaway Bonanza is none other than:

Frank Sammut!

Frank’s shot of a childs hand, offering up a gift perfectly symbolized the concept of giving, and his blurred bokeh of the holiday theme in the background was just beautiful!  He’s got some great work on his Flickr page too, so stop by and check it out and tell him congrats!

December Giveaway Winner - Frank Sammut

Congratulations to Frank for winning the giveaway package!  Frank, if you could drop me an email:  jason <AT> canonblogger <DOT> com, I’ll get you all the information and relay you to the donors for the giveaway.  Thank you to everyone for participating, and especially to the sponsors, including:

  • David DuChemin (for a free copy of both Within the Frame, and VisionMongers)
  • MPIX (for a free 16×20 gallery wrap print of Frank’s choice)
  • RedRiver Papers (for the specialty paper bundle)
  • HDRsoft (for the license to a copy of Photomatix Pro)

It’s also time to anounce the theme for the January giveaway.  We’re going to move away from the seasonally tied themes, so people don’t feel restricted there as different areas are in different seasons.  Instead, we’ll be going with something that is going to inspire some dynamite entries for sure:  Circles

That’s right, we’re going with a shape!  It should be interesting to see what comes in.  As always the standard guidelines apply:

  1. Make sure your image is between 600-800px on the longest side.
  2. Try to keep things within the current month.  Archives are okay, but preference will be given to current photos
  3. Images should be family/work safe
  4. Should be posted to the Flickr thread for the current month contest
  5. Deadline for entries is Friday, Jan. 29th (again, 3 weeks)
  6. The folks at HDR Soft have been very generous and have offered up another copy of their Photomatix Pro bundle for the January winner – so if you are into the HDR craze, or are interested, there’s another chance to win your very own licensed copy!

The January Flickr thread is up, live and ready for entries, so get out and shoot!  Happy New Year and Happy Shooting!

P.S.  Can anyone tell me anything different about the site?  (For you feed readers, come on over and check things out – something is different! 🙂 )

Podcast #35 is now live!

Jason1 Comment

The latest episode of Learning Digital Photography is now live and ready for your download and listening pleasure.  As always, there’s news, interviews, and listener questions and answers – and this time it’s a theme of Treats, Travel and Tips.  I had the pleasure of bringing Andie Smith back to the blog/podcast and we actually had a chance to sit down and really chew the fat on a lot of stuff.

  • News
    • Nikon Contest – $100,000 Giveaway!
    • Saturday Night Live recorded on a Canon
  • Techie Tips for Shooting at Holiday Events
  • Interview with Andie Smith
    • AndieSmithPhotography.net
    • Andie.Smith on Flickr
    • @AndieSmith on Twitter
  • Recommended Reading
  • Listener Questions and Answers
    • Gift Ideas
    • Monopod Recommendations
    • Why the 800×600 Aspect Ratio for Giveaways?

That’s it for today – make sure you go grab the podcast from either the folks at PLM or via the iTunes feed.  I’ve now added a page (check the top header) where you can go grab them if you forget… 🙂

Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

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December Giveaway News

Jason7 Comments

A few days late, but the year-end giveaway is quite exciting as there is just a ton of good stuff going into this giveaway.  Here’s the inside skinny on what the winner is going to walk away with in December:

  • A free copy of the “Within the Frame”, the wildly successful and great book donated by David DuChemin!
  • A free copy of “Visionmongers”, the latest book from none other than David Duchemin!
  • A free copy of Photomatix, the software known for its HDR processing, donated by the folks over at HDRSoft!
  • A free 16″x20″ gallery wrap of a print of your choice, printed (and donated) by the folks over at MPix!
  • and as if that is not enough, the folks at Red River Paper have also expressed interest in joining the gievaway frenzy, so it looks like there will be a paper bundle in the mix too – (more details on the bundle specifics as those come in!)

With over $400 in free stuff, this is surely going to generate a lot of interest, so this go around, the guidelines are a little stricter than normal.  Here they are:

  1. Limit of one photo entry per person.
  2. Also, please make sure your photos are taken during the month of December.  I know – there’s a few days missing, so it’s less than a full month to shoot, but the theme is somewhat appropriate…more on that in a minute. Just remember, no archives!
  3. The  longest side of your image should be no larger than 800px or shorter than 600px.  Don’t confuse this with a 800×600 aspect ratio – the second side of the photo can be any length you want – just make sure the longest side is no larger than 800px and no shorter than 600px.  All entries should be posted in the Flickr Contest Thread.
  4. All entries must be live before midnight December 31st.

So, the theme is all that remains.  Since it’s a season of holidays far and wide, we’re going to go with the theme of:

GIVING

That’s it – interpret however you like.  Just tie in that theme somehow, and enter your best photo in the Flickr thread.  Good luck all, and may the best shot win!  Happy shooting, and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!  Many thanks to David DuChemin, Mpix, HDRSoft, and Red River Paper for their generous contributions.  Now, let’s wow them with some amazing photography!

P.S.  Just a little reminder that the blog is still taking donations to not only help offset the cost of maintenance, but also now to help pay the bills – the “curveballs” referenced the other day was an abrupt notice that my position was being terminated.  So, please help to keep things alive and online through the holiday season!  I am going to try to get some extra special content out there for everyone so you can also get some use out of this feeble old mind for any donations (or purchases…) but no guarantees there yet.  (Special thanks to Rob Jones from Towner Jones Photography who has already donated very generously to the cause though…)

December Calendar and blog alert

Jason2 Comments

Happy Tuesday folks!  A few curve balls have been thrown my way recently, so the content may shift a little and be more sporadic as I make some adjustments both professionally and personally.  However, in the interests of keeping things positive, the December Calendar is ready for download!  Enjoy the Christmas-themed desktop:

December Wallpaper
December Wallpaper

Here are the dimensions available:

1600×1200 px

1280×1024 px

1024×768 px

And for those of you that know the specifics of the curve ball – there’s a donation button on the sidebar!  If you like the desktop calendar download, feel free to help off-set the curveballs from there directly!

[wp_cart:Calendar:price:2:end]

More content is coming soon for all too, so be sure to stop back regularly!  Enjoy the rest of the week and keep on shooting! 🙂

Do My Eyes Deceive Me?

Jason7 Comments

This week is shaping up to be an exciting one here at CB/LDP.  Here’s what’s in store for the upcoming week, both on the blog, and for the podcast:

  1. Hardware Review
  2. Software Review
  3. Podcast Publication
  4. Comment Giveaway for Scott Kelby Digital Photography Book, Vol. 3

So, with four days of the week already accounted for, what the heck am I doing on here talking about it rather than doing it?  Well, if you are reading this via feed, then get yerself on over to the blog, because something should look drastically different to you!  That’s right, the blog has gone through a major update in layout and design change.  As you can see, the upper right has a rotating gallery of images, so each time you come back, you will see a new image featured in your browser.  You will also notice the headline looks a lot cleaner with tabbed links to major sources of content, including an About Page, a Flickr Page (for contest news and such), and soon to come is the Digital Photography page.  A slight shift in layout is taking place there in development mode and will roll out soon with dedicated galleries, client contact forms, and bunches of other stuff.  I will also be incorporating a podcast link across the header so you can get your latest fix of podcast news from there as well.

I know, it’s a lot to take in, but I seriously would like some feedback.  Is there anything substantial missing that you used to like or enjoy?  What about stuff you would like to see (excluding the teaser info above about what’s forthcoming)?  Is it too empty?  Need more color?  I am trying to take advantage of the appeal of “negative space”, but at the same time, don’t want it to be too boring.  What would you (the readership) like to see?  Sound off in the comments, and who knows what may come of it! 🙂

Here’s a sample view for the feed readers to entice you to seriously stop in for a critique-style visit to the blog:

newlook

With the blog updates nearly complete, and the schedule kind of “leaked” a little early for the week, I’ll leave you in the dark as to when each item will come out, so just keep on stopping in for your daily fix.  In the meantime, keep on shooting and we’ll see you back here tomorrow for…well, you’ll have to stop in to see, won’t ya? 🙂

Don’t forget the Flickr contest now underway…it’s linked in the header (remember that?) navigation, but here’s a quick link for the less adventerous:  November Contest