Printers ? Laser vs Inkjet

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After only two years with my inkjet, I’ve had to shop for another. Electronics aren’t made to last anymore I think they must be made purposefully to break when they’re exactly two years old! So shopping for a printer was a pretty stressful ordeal with all the options available. Some bullet points about my personal printing needs:

• I never print my own photos. I always send them away.


• I?do?print disk labels


• …and lots of letterhead

So I just needed a general run of the mill home printer. And what’s the first question you get asked when shopping for a printer? Inkjet or Laser. What’s the difference? What’s better for casual use vs. heavy use? Which costs less to maintain? Here’s what I found when doing my research:

{Definitions}

Injket – Inkjet printers are probably what you know as the common household printer. Inkjet printers use multiple cartridges (usually a black and a colour) which release ink onto the paper through little jets, hence the name.

Laser – Laser printers are what you would likely see in your office. And their printing method is quite cool. Laser printers use static electricity and a laser to melt the powdered ink (called toner) onto the paper.

{Cost}

Laser printers typically cost a bit more than inkjet, although this cost can be offset by the lower cost of keeping the machine running. Inkjet printers use up more ink while laser printers use toner which doesn’t need to be replaced as often.

{Common problems}

Inkjet – With inkjet printers, it’s not uncommon to get cartridge errors even when there’s nothing wrong. For me, this led to needlessly buying a new cartridge, then spending about an hour going through every step on the printer’s website and, ultimately, buying a new printer.?Also, the ink in inkjets can actually dry up and so cartridges may need to be replaced even if they haven’t been used up. But this is a problem for the extremely occasional printer, I would say.

Laser – If you’ve worked in an office, you’re familiar with the inevitable paper jam. They happen more often with laser printers.?Laser printers need more frequent maintenance and cleaning than inkjets.

{What you’re printing}

The ultimate decision about what type of printer to buy has everything to do with what you’re printing. Laser printers are know to be excellent with text, while inkjet printers are superior for image printing.

I hope this can offer some help in your decision regarding inkjet vs. laser!

Post from: Digital Photography School

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NHL Photo Contest Winners Announced

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The US National Park Service (NPS) has announced the winners of its 2010 National Historic Landmark (NHL) Photo Contest. The winning photograph, entitled “Mount Rainier in the Morning”, has been captured by Matthew Bell of Lost Delta Photography, Olympia, Washington. “The selection of this year’s winner took some exciting outside-the-box thinking,” said NPS Director Jonathan Jarvis. “When we look at the winning image, we see the natural world instead of one of the many historic buildings on the list of NHLs. Managed—not made—by humans, Mount Rainier National Park represents a landmark in conservation history.”

National Park Service News Release

Results of National Historic Landmark Photo Contest Announced

Winners chosen from record number of entries

Washington, DC – If the most famous writer in the history of the English language wrote a caption for the winning image in the National Park Service’s 2010 National Historic Landmark (NHL) Photo Contest, his brief text might read as follows:

Full many a glorious morning have I seen

Flatter the mountain-tops with sovereign eye,

Kissing with golden face the meadows green,

Gilding pale streams with heavenly alchemy. . .

These four lines—the beginning of William Shakespeare’s Sonnetont 33—bear an eerie applicability to this year’s winning photograph, “Mount Rainier in the Morning” by Matthew Bell of Lost Delta Photography, Olympia, Washington. Under a sky of periwinkle blue and pastel pink, the bulk of Mount Rainer, with its gray face swathed in snow, slopes gently downward toward the lush meadow that occupies the middle-ground of the photograph. In the foreground, a waterfall’s “pale streams,” spectral and smoke-like, course down a wall of rock.

This arresting image depicts Mount Rainier National Park. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1997, the park was the first fully developed product of the National Park Service (NPS) master planning process and remains the most complete product of this process. The initiation of NPS master planning at Mount Rainier in the late 1920s marked a major step in the design and management of scenic reservations in the 20th century. 

“The selection of this year’s winner took some exciting outside-the-box thinking,” said NPS Director Jonathan Jarvis. “When we look at the winning image, we see the natural world instead of one of the many historic buildings on the list of NHLs. Managed—not made—by humans, Mount Rainier National Park represents a landmark in conservation history.

“That said, the images that received honorable mentions—which feature structures, vessels, and other physical destinations that give evidence of human activity and fit our traditional idea of ‘historic’ sites—also dazzle us and keep us from forgetting our rich past. I commend the winners, judges, and administrators of the 2010 NHL Photo Contest, as well as all who participated.” 

Twelve photographs, listed below, received honorable mentions in what is the 11th annual contest. This year’s competition broke the record for number of entries, drawing 500 images of landmarks from throughout the contiguous United States, Alaska, and Hawaii. All images were submitted, per contest rules, through Flickr photo groups. View the winning and honorably mentioned photographs in the Flickr gallery for the 2010 contest, found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalregister/galleries/72157625155997054/. For more information about the contest, please visit its website at http://www.nps.gov/history/nhl/2010photocontest/.

The Secretary of the Interior designates National Historic Landmarks because they possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States. The National Park Service manages the National Historic Landmarks Program, which works with citizens throughout the nation in nominating new landmarks and providing assistance to existing landmarks. For more information about the National Historic Landmarks Program, please visit its website at http://www.nps.gov/history/nhl/. The NHL Database, accessible via the program website, provides information about specific landmarks.

Honorable Mentions

Adventuress (Washington) by Zachary Simonson-Bond
http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsonbondz/4872263215/in/faves-5...

Texas (USS) (Texas) by Chase Fountain

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalregister/galleries/72157625155997054/

U.S. Air Force Academy (Colorado) by Douglas Hawthorne
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53307856@N02/4969906120/

Cincinnati Union Terminal (Ohio) by Sayre Hutchison
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53411695@N08/4928141543/
St Mary’s Falls Canal (Michigan) by Patricia Marroquin, Patricia Pix
http://www.flickr.com/photos/patriciapix/4975522787/

U.S. Capitol (District of Columbia) by Peter Ho
http://www.flickr.com/photos/29785040@N07/4973498598/in/faves-53...

Eastern State Penitentiary (Pennsylvania) by Amber Clausi
http://www.flickr.com/photos/48605762@N06/4978563610/

Franklin Battlefield/McGavock Cemetery (Tennessee) by Violet Clark, MPA/MPP,

Legacy Images
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vtclark/2739887623/

Kennecott Mines (Alaska) by Patrick Gregerson
http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrick515/4879526993/

Boathouse Row (Pennsylvania) by Glynis Gustin
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46025113@N07/4892089890/
Columbia River Highway (Oregon) by Marla Jordon
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53752303@N05/4972559790/

Lewis R. French (Maine) by Arlene K. Harris
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53508902@N03/4952482928/

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Aquatica AN-5

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Cameras Underwater has announced a new underwater housing for the Sony NEX-5 compact system camera.

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Aquatica Housing for Nikon D3 Series

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Cameras Underwater has launched a redesigned version of its Aquatica underwater housing for the Nikon D3 series.

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How Do You Choose What To Photograph While Traveling?

So far I’ve posted 16 out of 21 subjects I’ll be covering in the Travel Photography Subjects series. It’s about this time that I realize I have a clear cut idea of what I like to shoot while on the road, be it work or holiday, but I’m curious about the rest of you. How do you choose what you wish to photograph while on the road?

Do you look primarily for the same thing over and over? Are there certain subjects, or themes, the pique your interests no matter which country you are visiting? Do you actively seek out subjects of interest? Or are you more of the type to flow with the wind?

My answer to all those questions would be “Yes”. I often look for the same subject matter, as evident by my recent posts on travel subjects. But I love letting the feel of a country or location pull me away from that list. It is by no means exhaustive and as a guide it works well, reminding me of themes I am developing for presentations back home. I find great interest in finding a new pattern repeated in a new location and will often add it to the list. For instance, I decided to start a theme of looking for old milk cans after seeing them in a few far flung places (New South Wales, Australia, Washington state, Oregon). Things like that crop up when you’re least expecting them.

Your turn. What motivates your decisions on what to shoot and what not to shoot while traveling?

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How Do You Choose What To Photograph While Traveling?

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So far I’ve posted 16 out of 21 subjects I’ll be covering in the Travel Photography Subjects series. It’s about this time that I realize I have a clear cut idea of what I like to shoot while on the road, be it work or holiday, but I’m curious about the rest of you. How do you choose what you wish to photograph while on the road?

Do you look primarily for the same thing over and over? Are there certain subjects, or themes, the pique your interests no matter which country you are visiting? Do you actively seek out subjects of interest? Or are you more of the type to flow with the wind?

My answer to all those questions would be ?Yes?. I often look for the same subject matter, as evident by my recent posts on travel subjects. But I love letting the feel of a country or location pull me away from that list. It is by no means exhaustive and as a guide it works well, reminding me of themes I am developing for presentations back home. I find great interest in finding a new pattern repeated in a new location and will often add it to the list. For instance, I decided to start a theme of looking for old milk cans after seeing them in a few far flung places (New South Wales, Australia, Washington state, Oregon). Things like that crop up when you’re least expecting them.

Your turn. What motivates your decisions on what to shoot and what not to shoot while traveling?

Post from: Digital Photography School

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How to Maximize your Photography Exhibition experience

A Guest Post by Eva Polak

Having a group or a solo exhibition is without a doubt one of the best experiences an artist can have. Not only can you show off your work, but you also have a unique opportunity to talk to people who have come to see your photography. Apart from developing a great body of work, you need to think about promoting your exhibition. By publicizing your work you will attract the attention of potential buyers, curators, fellow artists and members of the public. With careful planning you can turn this task into a fun and easy exercise.

Image by nanda_uforians

A very important first step is to think of your goals and objectives and write them down. What are you trying to accomplish and how are you going to do it? Without a plan of action and with so many different options available to you it will be difficult to keep track of your task and make sure you are heading in the right direction.

Sometimes you have no control over the dates for your exhibition. But, if you can choose the dates, choose carefully! You’ll get a better turnout if you arrange to have your exhibition not to coincide with major art, music or sport events happening in your region. You obviously want people to come, so it would be easier if you didn’t have to compete not only for your audience but also for media coverage.

You should allow six to nine months to plan your exhibition. Use a spreadsheet or a year planner, note down which activities you will do and when you will do them.

Ultimately you want to tell people about your exhibition. But to maximize your promotion efforts you need to identify your audience. In other words you must have a sense of who’d be interested in your work. When you know your audience it’s so much easier to directly target them using the right channels. If you want to get noticed in a show, it really is up to you to get to know and invite people who could be important to your future like curators, journalist, and gallery owners.

Using press releases is a great way to get the word out to various publicity outlets. Sending a generic press release usually is not going to be enough for a journalist to write a story about you or your photography. But if you come up with interesting story or angle that will attract the target audience of the magazine or newspaper you are contacting, you increase your chances dramatically. There’s no guarantee it’ll get published… but you’ll never know until you try. Using social media Internet and social media is with out a doubt the biggest and cheapest marketing tool available to you. By using sites like Facebook, Twitter or Flickr you can easily select your target audience and measure your results. The most important aspect to remember is that these sites are a social platform first. Don’t expect people to respond to commercial messages. You need to build relationships and that takes time and commitment.

There are so many places on the Internet that you can use to advertise your exhibition for free. First should be your website, of course, then look for the websites of local newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations. Most of them have a section called “what’s on”. You can also use on online event calendars such as Upcoming.com, Craigslist, Yahoo, etc. Research your local art and photography organizations. They can not only advertise your exhibition but also give you advice and support.

Mailing List Building and maintaining your mailing list is crucial. People who signed up for your mailing list are your audience who are interested in hearing from you. What you need to do is to simply send them the invitation.

It’s easier than ever to produce high quality invitation using digital printing. It’s quite important to have it designed professionally. After all, you want to promote your work. When your invitation looks nice, it’s more likely that the people are going to keep it and remember about your exhibition.

Before printing ask a friend to double-check your spellings and dates. You can distribute your invitation in libraries, art centers, coffee shops, information centers, photography stores, etc. – wherever you think is appropriate and will generate interest.

There is no such thing as starting to plan too early. Allow enough time to get everything done.Use only what applies to your specific goal and throw the rest out.Get creative, think outside of the box.Ask for help and advice.Take action everyday. Continuous effort is far more effective.Don’t forget to have fun.

Check out more of Eva Polak’s work at evapolak.com

Guest Contributor This post was written by a guest contributor to DPS. Please see their details in the post above. Become a Contributor: Check out Write for DPS page for details about how YOU can share your photography tips with the DPS community.

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Levis, Film and Corn

Some years ago I was gifted the Encyclopedia of Bad Taste - A Celebration of American Pop Culture at Its Most Joyfully Outrageous. Many of the entries were hilarious and the book provided many hours of entertainment. It's very easy to find things to complain about regarding America in a land of excess and absurdity with examples in virtually every facet of life - supersized meals, morbid obesity, SUVs, shopping malls, monster trucks, Elvisiana, fuzzy dice, lava lamps, aerosol cheese, etc.
The subject of the short comings of the USA was also frequent topic of conversation with a former coworker. On one occasion, rather discouraged, I quipped "what does the USA have of quality anyway apart from Levis and Film?" To which he replied, "Corn." That's true. So I included corn as a 3rd element in the list of quality American products. The trinity became a favorite private joke, included in conversations as we saw fit.
More and more, however, we find that many of the quality products we have in the USA are legacy products, whether they are Levi jeans, Corvettes, Broadway shows, and theme restaurants - such as diners. Many of these legacy products, however, are dusted off, remanufactured and repackaged in a shoddy way, riding on reputation, only to become another manifestation of the "triumph of image over substance" (see story here). Nostalgia is such a strong force and we are drawn to these things. Diners.
I want to love them all. But reality is that many have poor food. And beyond this, the standards for healthy food has risen and much diner food is really out of step with what many want to eat. This is one element that perhaps accounts for such a staggering range of reviews for places like the Jackson Hole Diner in Bayside Queens.
I recently made a visit, after only seeing the exterior on an excursion to Bayside (see All the Way here) in 2009. My companion and I were extremely excited - everything was so retro and perfectly agleam with chrome, steel, glass, neon, polished floors, shiny vinyl seating. The root beer ice cream float was encouraging. The rest of the meal was basic. As I have written before, at least as far as my New York City experience goes, if going to a diner, best to pick your battles and order accordingly. See my stories Diner Beware of the Diner and Greasy Spoon.
I hate to break up a trinity - they are so strong stucturally, whether branches of government, tripods or the Catholic Triune God. So for now, the trinity of America's best stands - Levis, film and corn :)

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Seashell SS2

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The Seashell SS2 is a universal waterproof digital camera case designed for digital compact cameras.

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Nikon D7000 Review

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The D7000 is a new prosumer DSLR camera from Nikon, blending features from the cheaper D90 and the more expensive D300s and adding some new ideas of its own. Taking on the Canon EOS 60D, the D7000 is the first Nikon DSLR camera to offer continuous auto-focus during video recording, and the first to feature a 16 megapixel DX image sensor. Read our expert Nikon D7000 Review to find out if it's the right DSLR camera for you.

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