Hi ,

 

You might have noticed that my posting and newsletter frequency has gone down during the past few weeks. I should call this issue, "This month's Adventure Photography Newsletter." There’s a very simple reason for that. It’s called summer. You might have this thing where you live too, and it causes long periods of away-from-the-computer time, also known as “playing outside.”

 

Put simply, I do a lot less writing in the summertime, partially for the reason above, and partly just to give me a break from cranking out blog posts, ebooks and articles for the past eight months. I need a breather from the keyboard, and I would imagine that you do too. Besides, you’re probably outside on vacation and are not as likely to be reading blogs anyway. 

 

If, by chance, you are within reading distance, or if you’re one of those southern hemisphere people, here’s your latest newsletter. Enjoy, as I’m not sure when the next one will come. Take some time to digest this one and the articles at the bottom, as they cover a larger number of posts than I’ve traditionally been putting in each issue. 

 

Notice that I’ve been covering iPads quite a bit lately. Why? Because the iPad is proving itself to be a truly viable tool for travel photographers and people going on the road with their cameras. With a couple of simple adaptors, apps and maybe one of the iPad compatible portable hard drives, the iPad can potentially become your central hub for  travel photography. Like I said, details below.

 

 

Summer is as good a time as any for renting camera gear, if for nothing else to give a kick to your photographic creativity. Maybe you’ve got some assignments coming up and could use a specialty lens in order to impart that extra special touch to your client’s images. Maybe you’re going on vacation and would love some new glass, but don’t have the budget for an additional lenses. Or, perhaps you’re just looking for a way to turbo charge your photography.

 

If you haven’t done it yet, I’d strongly encourage you to go ahead and rent some gear, even if it’s just for a week. That alone will force you to go out and experiment, which is always an ingredient for creating something new. Work a regular rental into your monthly budget and rent a different lens one week per month. I guarantee, you will vastly expand the type of imagery that you create. Also, if you find a particular piece of gear that really fits with your style, you can start saving for it and not have to worry about buying it blind.

 

I’m sure that all the rental companies out there are pretty good. I’ve rented from Borrowlenes.com and have had really great results. Their selection is great, their prices are competitive, and I’ve found their customer service to be quite good. I actually had the chance to meet some of the staff at the PDN Photo Expo last year- nice guys! Also, I recently had a short notice assignment out of the country and had to get next day priority shipping on a lens to Alaska. I called them up and they made sure to get it right out to me. Arrived the next morning. 

 

That alone will keep me going back to them, and thus I can confidently recommend them to you as well.

 

Try it out. Rent a lens. Take some new pictures. Have some fun!

 

 

Whether you’re a new follower or if you’ve been reading these newsletters for quite awhile, I’d like to express my sincere thanks to you for tuning in. I obviously can’t reach out and personally shake your hand, but I can continue to bring you special deals and information that I hope will aid in your eternal quest to move your own photography forward. Here are a couple of exclusive offers that can at least save you some cash.

 

 

As a Lowepro Professional user, I’m able to offer you an exclusive deal on any Lowepro product. Click here and use discount code LP20 to save 20% on any item that you order. 

 

Although I’ve been using Lowepro bags and packs for year, it seems that right now, they’re moving in a great direction and really ramping up their line of technical outdoor camera bags. Check out my full field test review of the new Flipside Sport AW below.

 

 

Learning software can be a very time consuming process, especially digital imaging software. However, as much as you’d like to jump right in and start editing all those shots you took last weekend and the weekend before and the weekend before, you need to know the basics. 

 

If you’re somewhat new to Photoshop and Lightroom, a short video tutorial can go a very long way towards getting you up to speed, and for this kind of instruction, I recommend checking out Phil Steele’s online video tutorials. In his own words, his courses courses are designed to be “well-organized instruction, understandable to an amateur, presented in a logical sequence, by a good teacher, at a reasonable price.”

 

I’ve watched his videos and I agree with both his mission statement and his execution. He does a good job clearly explaining the necessary elements of each program so that you build your own workflow and start moving your own images through the system.

 

This week, Phil’s courses are 15% off. Click here to check out his Lightroom Made Easy course and his Photoshop Basics for Photographers. The Lightroom course is comprised of 24 videos and 5+ hours of instruction that you can watch on any device or computer, and his Photoshop courses is 13 videos and 3+ hours. They’re not necessarily outdoor related, but the topics he covers are universal and both will give you a solid start. Don't wait, though, because this special price is only good for a limited time.

 

 

 

 

I’m pretty sure that said it above, but if not, I want to give you a nod to enjoy your summer, wherever your adventures take you. Remember, this is the payoff, and the time to put all that gear, photo related knowledge and creative techniques to use that you’ve been acquring and honing for so many months now. 

 

Go totally crazy. Shoot photos. Lots of photos. Fill card after card. Try new things. Be excited. Be yourself, because it’s showtime!!

 

See you when I see you. 

 

Until next time, enjoy the articles below and take care,

 

Dan