There are places to volunteer to shoot portraits of military families to send to their loved ones deployed overseas.

http://www.pmdaportraitsoflove.com/families.php

Each year thousands of animals are dumped off at shelters and, if no homes are found, are euthanized.  Many animal shelters have been hit hard by the economy and are struggling to get by.  The photos they post of their guests are grainy and unlikely to draw in a new owner.  There are now shelters getting photographers to donate their time and produce studio portraits of the animals allowing them to be adopted more quickly. 

http://animaltracks.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/30/10271873-professional-portraits-reveal-shelter-animals-true-selves#

My own personal project has been Operation Photo Rescue. http://www.operationphotorescue.org/

This non-profit group goes in where disasters have struck to try and salvage the damaged pictures.  Few of these images are great photographs, but each of them is a precious memory.  I really enjoy restoring old pictures.  It is time consuming and challenging trying to undo the ravages of water, mold, scratches, etc.  As a volunteer, you download scanned images and do your best.  The restored photos are then uploaded back to the website, printed, and returned to their owners.  http://www.operationphotorescue.org/forum/gallery/888_06_05_08_8_20_18.jpg

Last year I didn’t get to help much, but this year I will do better. Get out and give back.

I just got back from Alaska, and it was cold!  It was -48 when we stepped off the plane.  I had lots of plans for the trip.  They didn’t pan out.

Why would anyone go to Fairbanks in January?  I really wanted to get some shots of the aurora borealis.  I’ve seen the northern lights many times when we lived in Alaska, but I never had a camera with me in those days.  You need a nice clear night, a night without ice fog.  I hoped  to get lucky while we were there.

The ice fog obliterated the sky for five of our seven nights; the other two, the lights weren’t out.  Yes, I’m quite aware that a big solar storm lit up the night sky right after we left.  Like I said, my plans didn’t pan out.  Here is the ice fog thinning out at 3:30 pm one day.  Notice how low the sun is?  We got less than five hours of daylight each day.

The real reason to travel north in the middle of winter was the arrival of our most recent grandchild.  We scheduled our trip two weeks after the due date, but he decided to come a couple of days after we arrived.  We just hung around the house and waited with the dogs.

When he finally arrived home, I just took a few snapshots and held the boy (when I could get him away from my wife).  It was a wonderful, relaxing week with the family, which just grew by one more.  Doesn’t get better than that.

The boy goes by the nickname of Dodge.  I may sprinkle some shots of him into the blog now and then.  We sure were glad to see him.

Our plans to get home didn’t pan out, either.  But the re-routed flights and misplaced bags came with a silver lining – airline dollars to return in the spring when the weather will be warmer and the boy crawling.  Anyone want to travel north in May?  It’ll be fun….

There are an increasing number of really useful apps available to work with the pictures.  It is important to remember that the iPad is not nearly powerful enough to do serious photo editing, but Photoshop Express will let you perform basic adjustments and has some special effects features.http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/adobe-photoshop-express/id331975235?mt=8 

Looking at other photographers’ work can help improve your own skills.  Both Flickr and 500Px have apps which let you browse and even upload.  For those not familiar with 500px, it is a site by photographers for photographers.  You can get it from the iTunes store here. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/500px/id471965292?mt=8

Flickr is more “Hey I got a camera for Xmas too”, even if there is a lot of really good stuff there.  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flickr/id328407587?mt=8

There are lots more apps out there and we would love to hear what you are using.

http://photoshopworld.com/

The 3 days of classes are grouped into tracks focusing on lighting, photography, lightroom, creative design, video, the photo business and of course, Photoshop.  The workbook itself is the size of the phonebook and contains the material from every single course and session.  Since there are over 100 classes, you can’t hit them all—trust me I’ve tried.

Each year they have a theme, last year it was fashion photography, but this year in DC in an election year…it’s a new party!  Oh yes there are parties at PSW.  Just what you need after 12 hours of classes!

I can’t begin to tell you how much you will learn by attending.  My head hurts for days just trying to remember all the tips, tricks and cool techniques. To top it all off there is the Expo floor.  Industry leading vendors such as B&H, Midwest Photography Exchange, Wacom Tablets, Epson Printers, MPIX printing (they print all my images), Nikon and Adobe all have booths with great deals.  Last year the Westcott Lighting people brought in live models, and the crowds were 7 deep trying to snap the interesting costumes and makeup. 

It is not inexpensive, that is true, but it certainly delivers in value.  The longer you wait the more the cost goes up.  Come see us in DC this year, heck, come and visit.    This will be my 6^th PSW and I learn more each time.

I am happy to say that my people shots have gotten better.  Something I have been working very hard to improve.  In fact 3.5 of the photos are people shots—the half because it is a mannequin from the Marine Corps museum.  It does help that the others are cute kids.

I was pleased both with my animal shots and how I processed them in Black and White.  I spent a lot of time working with Silver Efex Pro this year, because it gives such creative control and more important is so easy to use.  They actually implement Adams’ zone system for exposure and using it is a lot simpler than working it in the darkroom like I learned. 

I usually have more Flowers and Nature images atop my list, but this year, only these two made the cut. 

Finally, there was one image I kept coming back to because it moves me.  The reflection of the flag on the coffin of Sergeant Timothy Sayne still haunts me.  It was such a privilege to witness the precision and dignity which the 3^rd Infantry Division “Old Guard” soldiers demonstrate when they bury one of their comrades.  The tragedy of the family’s loss is heartbreaking.  The service to honor him is a fitting tribute for a fallen warrior.