I wrote this article almost two years ago. The purpose of this cross country journey was to deliver an auto to Phoenix. Whenever possible, I try to record my travels through photographs. Since I’m planning another repeat of the drive from the Midwest to the Southwest in a few weeks, I wanted to refresh my memory to see how I might stuff even more photos into my next trip to Phoenix.

Written: November 2008.

Here’s some rambling about nothing in particular.

When the weather starts cooling off in Michigan, Mom starts thinking about going to the warm environs of her Winter home in Arizona. Normally she waits until after the Christmas Holidays, but this year she decides to travel early.

Here’s where I come in. She flies and I drive. As the designated driver, I drive her car from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Phoenix, Arizona to use for the months that she is there. I don’t mind, in fact I look forward to the 2000 mile trip. After delivering the car to Phoenix I’ll fly back to Grand Rapids.
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Over the past few weeks we’ve been preparing our popular DSLR Stay Focused Guides for the iPad. Starting today, you can now get any of these five apps immediately through iTunes.

Canon XS Canon XSi Nikon D40 Nikon D60 Nikon D3000 Canon T2i (coming soon) Nikon D5000 (coming soon)

Each app presents dozens of easy-to-follow chapters for taking even better photos. We show you both the “before” and “after” pictures and the fully illustrated camera settings that will turn your snapshots into gallery quality photographs. For the iPad, our full-color, 180-page books with easy-to-use navigation, fast thumbnail access and instant bookmarking for recalling your place give you a very convenient way to take it with you. 

You can purchase any of these apps from iTunes and going to our iPad Apps.

If you’d rather read the printed versions of these books, please click here.

Here in Michigan, we still have an abundance of snow. Rather than lock ourselves inside, we’ve decided to brave the winter weather and “enjoy”. After all, there’s plenty of life in the brisk cold.

Winter Wonderland
Here Kris is celebrating the completion of her snowman. Although the sun is shining, the yard is in the shade of the trees thereby keeping her face in the shade.	Simply by using the camera’s exposure compensation and increasing the exposure by +1, we’ve reduced the effect of the shade and made her smile standout more.

A common belief among users of digital cameras is that if an image isn’t captured perfectly, it can be fixed with software. Yes, there are plenty of competent software packages that can perform magic on images that are in need of help.

I’ve been “saved” more than a few times by Photoshop (or Photoshop Elements, PaintShop Pro and Picassa too). But the idea that I can “fix it in Photoshop” should not be a license for me to practice lazy camera techniques.

Today’s digital cameras have a vast array of adjustments for capturing quality photographs under a wide variety of lighting conditions. Adjusting the camera for the best capture produces a better image than a sub-optimal capture that has to be fixed by software post-processing. Starting with a properly exposed image directly from camera should be the goal, even if you choose to enhance the color, tweak the contrast or lighten the shadows with software afterwards.

Wedding? Birthdays? Anniversaries? Reunions? It’s the natural place to snap photos to record your memories. We have a few hints that we’ve used to improve our snaps.

Beware of the Light
To capture the special day, we chose a quiet, scenic area. The wedding couple are relaxed and cheerful. While we have a nice pose, if you look closely, you’ll see that we haven’t done justice to the bride’s expensive wedding dress - the detail is lost.	To avoid turning the wedding dress into a blanket of snow, for this photo we’ve reduced the exposure so that the fine and delicate features of the gown are clearly visible. We’ve adjusted the exposure compensation to about -1 stop.

Great photos are born in the camera.

You’re here because you love taking pictures. Read on and you’ll find helpful hints and tips for turning your snapshots into gallery quality photographs as we show you how to get it right in the camera.

All of these tips are short and right-to-the-point. Click on any of the photos to enlarge. We’re sharing these tips with you so in hopes that you’ll discover new ways to enjoy your picturetaking even more.

Click on tips in the Tag Cloud (sidebar).

With a history dating back more than 30 years, we’re here to help you take even better photos.

We are part of Abacus, a company that was founded in 1978. As a pioneer in the personal computer and publishing industry, we’ve served millions of readers with quality books and software products worldwide. With decades of professional  photography know-how, our editorial staff stands ready to share its in depth experience with you.

Our group at Stay Focused Press is charged with delivering “how-to” for the digital photographer. We’d like to help you solve common picture-taking problems so that you can turn a mere snapshot and a great photo.