Last month, I sold my house in Colorado, which meant I had to go through all of the stuff that I was still storing down there. Basically, in 5 days, everything I own that wasn't already in Alaska had to pass through my hands and be pared down to one of three piles: ship, give or purge. I got rid of a ton of stuff. That's what it was: stuff. Things, some of which I've owned for over 30 years. I live in a small house in Anchorage and just don't have room for very much more stuff. Also, shipping to Alaska can get pretty expensive, so I had to be very selective. 

 

It was a very cathartic experience, getting rid of that much stuff, including tons of old slides. I had boxes and boxes of outtakes going back all the way back to the early 90s, some of which I'd never even gone through after shipping them from Boston to Colorado. I did ship my entire main slide archive back to Alaska, as well all my old film cameras, a few unused rolls of Velvia and a large number of pages of published photos that I cut out of the magazines and catalogs. It was also really cool to go thorough old files and see statements for the very first image that I sold as stock. Big trip down memory lane.

 

During the next few months, I'll be unveiling some of my really old images on the blog; some that that go back over 20 years. I'll be including them with stories, tips, and other tidbits, partly to relive the memories, but partly to show you that photography is lifelong process. We all start out as beginners and then progress along the way. I made some really bad images back then, but I also made some really good ones that I'm still proud of. I'm sure it's the same with you. I hope that you enjoy looking at those old photos as much as I will. Stay tuned.

 

 

Starting in 2014, I'll be teaming up with someone and running destination photography workshops here in Alaska. Our company is called Through The Lens Alaska, and the focus behind our trips will be to guide groups of 8-10 photographers into the Alaska backcountry while providing technical and creative support in the form of intensive workshops, field instruction and area expertise. 

 

I'm really excited about this new venture and hoping that you'll consider joining us during one of our trips. Right now, we have three distinct trip itineraries mapped out and we're meeting later today to finish fleshing out the website. We hoping for an official launch before the end of the year, and as one of my subscribers, you'll be the first one to know as soon as we go live. You'll also have first crack at signing up for the workshops. We'll be doing a number of trips starting in early summer, so if a special photography trip to Alaska is on the menu for you, you might want to start thinking ahead. Again, stay tuned!

 

 

Photo.net has just real eased their picks for best photography books of 2013 and I'm honored to say that my new eBook, ZEN PHOTOGRAPHER made the list! 

 

"This book will literally help you feel empowered!"  That's what the editor had to say about my writing, and I feel that she's right on. That's exactly what I try to do with my blog, ebooks and newsletter, help you feel empowered about your own skills, creativity and photography. We all have it in us, but sometimes it takes someone to help you draw it out of your inner self. If you haven't picked up ZEN PHOTOGRAPHER, why not treat yourself or a photographer loved one for the holidays?

 

 

Holiday deals abound this year with lots of chances for you to save cash. Here are a few of the notable deals that I found this week:

 

 

I think the X20 is the best camera in its class. I use it for everything. I've even taken week long trips with ONLY the X20 and been super happy with my results. Small, simple and tons of fun. Right now, you can save $100 on the Fujifilm X20 from both B&H Photo and Amazon. I have no idea how long the sale will last so don't wait too long.

 

 

If you're in the market for one of the Fuji interchangeable lens cameras, like the XE-1 or XE-2, you can save up to $250 on Fuji XF lenses if you buy either the XPro-1, the XE-2, XE-1, or the XM-1. Any of the XF lenses can be used on these bodies, and while I haven't tried all of the lenses, I've tried the 14mm, 18-55mm, 27mm pancake and 55-200mm telephoto, and they're all fantastic. Check out the savings here.

 

 

Save up to $500 when you buy a body and lens combo. Here's a link to Canon's current Buy Together and Save Rebates. 

 

 

Save up to $240 on Gitzo Tripods, like the GT-2531 Carbon Fiber Mountaineer. We all know that Gitzo tripods are expensive, so whenever they go on sale, it's a pretty big deal.

 

 

Right now Adobe Lightroom 5 is 25% off for the full version, and Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 is 35% off. I don't use Photoshop Elements, but with the new Adobe monthly pricing scheme, which nobody likes, some people are looking for alternatives to the Lightroom/Photoshop workflow. If you don't need the full version of Photoshop, the combo of Lightroom and Elements may be enough for your needs, and both of them come in standalone versions. 

 

 

One year ago, Ian Plant released his massive photography composition ebook called Visual Flow: Mastering the Art of Composition. At 287 pages, it was an ambitious undertaking and a wonderful manual on picture making by a modern landscape extraordinaire. (Read my review of Visual Flow here). To celebrate the one year anniversary of that release, Ian has just released the Visual Flow Companion, Volume 1. 

 

This companion volume is filled with new images, new analyses and new insights.

 

The Visual Flow Companion, Volume 1 contains:

 

• Explanation of the compositions of nineteen of Ian's favorite images from the last year.
• Compositional analysis of images of fellow Dreamscapes bloggers, George Stocking, Kurt Budlinger, and Richard Bernabe.
• In-depth discussion of masterpieces by Rembrandt and Singer-Sargent.
• More of the super-imposed squiggles, lines, and curves that helped make Visual Flow such a hit!

 

The Visual Flow Companion, Volume 1 is only $7.95, but you can save 15% by using the discount code DECEMBER. (This 15% off sale includes every eBook and video tutorial in Ian's Dreamscapes store.) If you don't have Visual Flow, you can buy it combined with the Companion, for $29.95, which gets you more than 300 pages of images, and analysis on how to improve your photographic compositions. Serious insight from a seriously awesome photographer. 

 

 

Self Publishing options seem to increase every single day. Whether for portfolio use or personal memories, people love books made from places like Blurb and iPhoto. Apparently, Flickr has a new book publishing service. Check out Thomas Hawk’s impression in his post My Flickr Book Arrived - it's AWESOME!

 

Here's a beautiful review and image set from Norway shot with the Fuji X-Pro 1 by Doug Chinnery. They've got great light in Norway, it's definitely on my list of places to visit!

 

In a test by DxO Labs, compared with the D800 and D4, the sensor on the new Nikon Df retro style DSLR scored highest in the category of low light performance. Apparently, Nikon was able to tweak even more juice out of the 16MP CMOS sensor. Check out the full review here.

 

The Photojojo store. Who doesn't love all this stuff? Looking for some great photography related gifts like camera lens mugs, an Instagram projector, photo app pins, iPhone lenses or other cool items? Definitely check out this site.

 

What Stock Photographers Can Learn From Napster. Another insightful post about the stock photo industry from expert Jim Pickerell, read on the Black Star Rising blog. When it comes to stock, anything that Jim says is worth reading.

 

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This will likely be my last newsletter before Christmas, so until then, I wish you a very happy holiday season and best regards as we close out 2013. Thanks so much for reading, sharing and supporting my photography.

 

Take care,

 

Dan