LED Lights & Accessories Wholesaler

The great thing about writing this column over the last five years is that I get to hear from you on a regular basis. Many readers send me digital photos they've cooked up based on techniques I've described. Others write in with questions or suggestions for topics. When I see the same question a fe... More...

I've heard it said that life is like the movies, and it's true. I don't mean in the life-imitates-art way, or how people always tell me that I'm a sexy cross between Mel Gibson and Russell Crowe. I mean that our eyes see reality in wide-screen, but our cameras take pictures in pan-and-scan 4:3, like... More...

It's that time again--my inbox is about to burst, so let's look at some of the most common questions that Digital Focus readers are asking. As always, you can send me your questions. I try to answer as many as possible, but I can't always get to all of them. And I reserve the right to use any e-mail... More...

Feature: Photograph a Sunset, Part 1 I read a statistic recently that said sunsets are the single most commonly photographed subjects. I don't doubt it; as I peer into the mailbag, I find that this week alone I have eight sunset photos competing for the Hot Pic of the Week prize. Since so many of u... More...

In the May Hassle-Free PC ("Four Fixes for Memory Card Misery") I explained how to rescue a memory card that fell into salt water. I've had more than a handful of messages asking me to clarify the instructions I gave. The reader who sent the hassle didn't go into detail, but I will, becau... More...

Happy New Year! First, the bad news: still no hover cars, personal space shuttles, or butlerbots. Now, the good news: We're closer than ever to all those things, thanks to levitating fish, Space Ship Two, and Roomba. This year, I thought I'd welcome the new year by laying out a handful of digital... More...

When I was a just a wee lad, my dad explained the basics of darkroom editing to me. One of the first things he discussed was the concept of dodge and burn. This pair of editing tricks is a darkroom fundamental--it has been used by photographers for over a century to improve the exposure of photos af... More...

Feature: Fix a Badly Exposed Photo For all of their amazing abilities, digital cameras still can't seem to take perfectly exposed a photo every time you press the shutter release. That's not too surprising: There are a lot of variables in every scene, and getting the exposure just right, all the tim... More...

If you have ever posted a digital photo to a Web site, congratulations: You're a publisher. You're kind of like a magazine, only on a smaller scale, and in the electronic world instead of print. Last week we started talking about how copyright law affects your photos. This week, let's wrap up our Q... More...

Illustration: Mark Matcho So you made a complete Bass of yourself by dropping a digital camera into the surf? I can help you retrieve the images; I can also help if you accidentally deleted a bunch of photos. The Hassle:My digital camera decided to take a dip in the ocean. Though I recovered it, th... More...

Last week we started investigating how to shop for tripods and other common camera supports. This week I'd like to pick up where we left off--right in the middle of shopping for a tripod--and then look at some other handy accessories for stabilizing your camera. The Head After you've hung out in the... More...

I'm like a little kid: I like to play. I love to discover new programs and Web sites that do something useful, yet are also fun. I've recommended Flickr several times, and I hope you've already tried the service--either to share your own photos or to browse through other people's images. This week,... More...

Photographers are increasingly willing to modify the way reality is depicted in their photographs--and with tools like digital cameras and photo editing software, it's quite easy to do. Of course, that's not always a good thing. Recently, for example, you might have read about the Reuters photograph... More...

Folks are always asking me, "Which is better, the Nikon or the Canon?" Sometimes it's "should I buy the new Sony or the Olympus?" Occasionally, someone will go all out and ask, "What's the best camera on the market?" or "What's the best camera for action photograph... More...

I love this season so much that I wish I could give some sort of digital photo gift to each and every one of my faithful readers. But since I don't have all of your mailing addresses, I'll do the next best thing. This week and next, I'm presenting my annual digital photo shopping guide that you can... More...

Illustration: Geoff Spear Forget baseball--America's real national pastime is taking pictures. Twenty years ago, 110-format film cameras ruled the earth. A decade ago, Advanced Photo System cameras were the kings of the snapshot. But today, unquestionably, digital is it. Thanks to digital technolog... More...

Jebediah Springfield, animated founder of the city in The Simpsons, once said, "A noble spirit enbiggens the smallest man." In that spirit, this Digital Focus is all about how to "debiggen" your photos. Why would you want to make your image files smaller? Well, high-res, many-me... More...

The holidays are upon us: Gifts are being exchanged; the feasts will soon be sandwich fodder; and you'll have a few media cards' worth of photos added to your computer's hard drive. This year, don't let those digital images collect dust--do something interesting with them. I've rounded up some of t... More...

It seems that no matter where you go on vacation, there's some sort of airplane or helicopter tour available to let you get a better view. In fact, as you read these words, I plan to be on vacation, booking a sightseeing charter on a small plane somewhere. (I'll try to send you a postcard.) Even on... More...

Illustration: Mick Wiggins If you think your wireless network is good only for using a laptop in the living room, think again. A slew of new Wi-Fi peripherals promises to send your music, movies, pictures, and even phone calls flying from room to room, no cables required. These days, we're seeing pr... More...