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What's New at Story Photography!

Digital Photography Hacks is a Most Unique Photo Book

Digital Photography Hacks is your passport to taking the kind of digital photos you've always aspired to. It goes beyond the standard fare of most digital photography books -- such as camera basics, understanding memory cards, and when to use a flash--to the things that professional photographers have learned through thousands of shots' worth of experience, years of experimentation, and fiddling and hacking. The book includes a foreword by photographer Rick Smolan, author of America 24/7.

With exquisite, full-color photos throughout, the book presents a collection of tips, tricks, and techniques for photographers ready to move beyond the basics. And if you don't have the latest in digital camera photography, this book will show you how to extend the life and functionality of your existing camera. All the hacks in the book are platform-agnostic, designed for use on both Mac on Windows-based computers. You'll find 100 proven techniques in the areas of:

  • Daytime and nighttime photo secrets
  • Flash magic
  • Digital camera attachments
  • The computer connection
  • Photoshop magic
  • Weekend photo projects
  • Camera phone tricks

This book is for the photographer you are now, and the one you want to be. Digital Photography Hacks is for the creative adventurer who resides in each of us.

You can download 10 free hacks from the book by visiting the O'Reilly catalog page.

Stay Current with "Story Photo Notes"

If you haven't read my new weblog, Story Photo Notes, then I encourage you to check it out. I cover the latest in digital cameras, software, and photo technique. I'll also use it to announce my upcoming digital photography workshops.

Second Edition of Digital Photography Pocket Guide

The Digital Photography Pocket Guide, 2nd Edition gives you the tools and the knowledge to take the kind of pictures you've always wanted. Consider it your quick-reference photo mentor that explains each of the camera's components, shows you what they do, then helps you choose the right settings to accomplish your goal. When you want to ask an expert, "How can I get that picture?" simply pull this handy guide out of your camera bag or back pocket, and you'll find the answer quickly.

The 2nd Edition is completely redesigned and in full color. It includes updated equipment specs, new discussions such as RAW vs JPEG format, and additional technical data too. If you have a question, this guide most likely has the answer.

Black & White Bay Area Wedding
This early October wedding was photographed in both color and black & white. The B&W images allow the essence of the event to shine through. Take a look for yourself.

The Digital Video Pocket Guide for Great Videos

If you're feeling a little unsure behind the camcorder, you might be interested in my latest book, the Digital Video Pocket Guide. This full color reference guide fits nicely in your camera bag and provides you with everything you need to know to shoot fantastic video. It even includes a complete set of reference tables for color balance, exposure, and filtration. You can download an excerpt (.pdf) that shows you how to overcome backlighting.

Candids from Juan and Veronica's Summer Wedding
Even though this wedding was primarily shot with film, I kept a digital camera around my neck to capture candid moments to share with friends and family as soon as possible on the Internet. Within hours of the reception's conclusion, these pictures were online. We believe that candid photos add spice, and pleasure, to any wedding album.

See the gallery here!

Photographer's Review of the Canon 10D Digital SLR Camera

The concept of digital photography is exciting. But in reality, shooting with a typical digicam elicits a raft of frustrations, from shutter lag to those miserable optical viewfinders. The Canon EOS 10D digital SLR changes all of that. It's a photographic tool that distinguishes itself as a capable camera first, then amazes you that it uses CompactFlash media instead of film. Here's a photographer's look at what might be your next digital camera.

Debut of the DigiCam Chronicles

The DigiCam Chronicles is an ongoing series dedicated to taking great digital images in a variety of settings. Today's stop: San Francisco for beautiful architecture and interesting people. I took these shots in between teaching sessions at Macworld Expo. The photo essay includes 10 images with notes about how they were captured, plus a QuickTime movie.

Favorite iPhoto Tips from My Macworld Class

Even though the release of iPhoto 2.0 is just around the corner, there's still lots to talk about with the current version, especially since not that much is different in the new release. Here are a few of my favorite iPhoto tips that I discussed during Macworld. Enjoy!

Updates to the "People of Technology" Gallery

If you haven't visited the cast of characters on the People of Technology page, then now's a great time to take a look. I've just added galleries for Richard Stallman and David Pogue.

New Article! Top Ten Digital Photography Tips

You have a digital camera and have recorded the typical shots of family and friends. Now what? Here are ten tips to make your next batch of digital images so impressive that people will ask: "Hey, what type of camera do you have?" Guess what? It's not the camera.

Nikon 2500 vs Canon S200 Pocket Digital Camera Shootout

They are two of the hottest pocket digital cameras on the market today. Is one of them right for you? Take a look at my latest product review to find out more.

New iPhoto Resource Page

Apple's cool digital imaging program, iPhoto, is attracting lots of attention from professional and casual photographers alike. To help you master this Mac OS X application as quickly as possible, we've just posted an iPhoto Resource page that's full of tips, tricks, and examples. I've also joined forces with David Pogue and Joe Schorr to publish iPhoto: The Missing Manual. This 300 page guide not only shows you every nook and cranny within iPhoto, it also contains three full chapters on digital photography with dozens of professional secrets. You can save 30 percent by ordering iPhoto: Then Missing Manual from Amazon.com.

Digital Portrait Gallery

Some people prefer a comfortable indoor environment for their portrait session. Our Santa Rosa studio provides the perfect setting, and our digital cameras allow you to see instantly how the shoot is progressing. After the appointment is over, you can share the proofs with friends and family via online photo galleries. So what do these galleries look like? Well, here's an actual client gallery. Also, don't forget to visit our Portraits Main page for more samples.

Derrick's Interview on Mac Show Live!

Recently I was invited to sit in on "The Mac Show" and talk about the latest version of Photoshop, Mac OS X, and a variety of other topics too. If you'd like to listen in on this 20-minute segment, I've captured it with QuickTime and have made it available on my mac.com site. You'll need a current version of QuickTime to listen in, but I think you'll enjoy the conversation.

iPhoto Review -- A Powerful Digital Imaging Program for Mac OS X

Apple's latest software addition to the digital hub is iPhoto. The slogan is, "Shoot like Ansel Adams; organize like Martha Stewart." I'm not sure how much iPhoto will help your shooting, but if applied with some forethought, it can definitely help you better manage your images.

In my article for O'Reilly's Mac DevCenter, Inside iPhoto, I explain some important techniques to help you get started on the right foot with this very cool, and free, digital imaging application.

Unusual Vineyard Landscape

From the "I hate it when that happens department," a Cessna 210 hit power lines and crashed into a vineyard on Christmas Eve. The pilot noticed that he was low on fuel and wanted to make an unplanned landing at Sonoma County Airport. He fell about a mile and a half short but sustained only minor injuries.

New "People of Technology" Section

I've been covering tech conferences for a couple years now, and I've finally put together a page that contains links to dozens of pictures of tech notables including Eric Raymond, Larry Wall, Tim O'Reilly, Larry Lessig, Bill Joy, and many more. See for yourself by visiting the People of Technology section.

How to Make Movies with Your Digital Still Camera

Ever wonder about that "Movie Mode" on your digital still camera? Well, you can make compelling QuickTime movies with just a little practice. I show you how in my two-part article on O'Reilly Network.

Sonoma County Wedding Pictures

Wine country is a wonderful place to get married. This happy couple celebrated their union in this beautiful setting on a balmy summer day. See for yourself by visiting Gallery Three.

A Wedding Weekend

This new gallery begins with the wedding rehearsal, then on to the dinner afterward. We pick up the story the next morning with the flower girls getting ready. Then we move to the church for the ceremony, and finish our weekend at the country club with lots of celebration. It's a bird's eye view of an entire wedding weekend.

First of Its Kind PDA Movie

The Handspring Developer Forum recently featured the movie, Bubbles, as an example of the movie-making capability of a Handspring Prism PDA. Bubbles is the first synchronized audio/video QuickTime movie shot entirely on a handheld PDA. I've added the clip to my Multimedia Video Page along with other QuickTime movies. If you want to read how I made the movie, take a look at the article, Shooting Digital Video PDA Style, on the O'Reilly Network Mac DevCenter.

Shawn Fanning, Napster Founder, at P2P Conference

I spend a great deal of time covering technology conferences these days. I shoot everything with a digital camera, usually an Olympus C3030 or a Canon G1, and upload the pictures to the O'Reilly Network web site the same day. At a recent conference, I caught Napster founder, Shawn Fanning having a casual discussion with Freenet founder, Ian Clarke. You can see that picture and many more over at O'Reilly's P2P conference coverage page.

New QuickTime Movie of Palm Robot

So what so you do with your Palm computer once you've completed the address book and mastered all of the games? How about building a Palm Robot! That's what we did over at O'Reilly. If you'd like to see a QuickTime movie of it in action, jump over to my Digital Stories page.

Your Photos on a Palm PDA?

It's true, you can download a free application that enables you to convert your regular Jpegs to .prc files that you can display on your Palm OS device. Learn how in my article, Palm Shots: Digital Slide Shows on Your Palm.

24 Hours With a Wireless Palm Vx

Recently I had the opportunity to use a Palm Vx with a wireless modem while attending the Web2000 conference in San Francisco. What I learned was much different than I expected. You can read about the experience and learn about the equipment involved by stopping by the Mobile Edition of Story Photography (text only), or by reading the story complete with graphics at the O'Reilly Network.

Happy Bride

Sometimes you can just feel how happy the bride is on her wedding day. This was the case with during a lively wedding in the South Bay.

Mother and One Year Old Son Portraits

Young children don't follow posing instructions very well, but sometimes that makes for great pictures. See for yourself in the Portraits With Children gallery.

New Mobile Edition of Story Photography

Yes we've created "Story Photo on the Go" for Palms, PocketPCs and other handheld devices. Our Mobile Edition features complete contact information (phone, pager, e-mail), wedding photo ideas, portrait tips, digital camera reviews, and even a request form for asking questions and requesting quotes.

To see for yourself, just point your handheld's browser to www.storyphoto.com, and click on the "Mobile Edition" link on the home page.

You can also set up an AvantGo channel for Story Photo by logging in, going to the Channels page, clicking on "Create New Channel," and entering this link:

http://www.storyphoto.com/mobile/mobile_index.html

Enter 75k for maximum channel size, enter "2" for link depth, click "yes" for "include images," and click "no" for "follow offsite links. For "Refresh," choose once a week. Story photography will now be a part of your AvantGo channel line up

Soccer Salsa!

Girls soccer league action set to salsa music make this sports flick spicy hot! QuickTime Movie runs 46 seconds and is a 490k file.

Six Great Things About Photoshop 6

Photoshop 6 Review -- Adobe has made this professional imaging editing application even more web-friendly with their latest release. Read about six of its best features.

More Resources at derrickstory.com

Think of it as "one stop shopping" for article links, schedules for classes that I'll be teaching, new photo projects, and files available for downloading -- it's a new site at derrickstory.com. Of course the Story Photo site (this one) is the first link on the page, because after all, photography is my favorite past time.

If you have a moment, jump over to derrickstory.com and take a peek. Let me know what you think.

New Photoshop "How To" Articles Available

Two new Photoshop articles are now available to help you enhance your digital imaging experience. These writings are part of my ongoing "Darkroom to Desktop" series. The first new article explains traditional darkroom techniques and covers the basics of how to make a print. The second article shows you the five "must know" Photoshop techniques to improve your pictures, and ties those techniques to the traditional methods explained in the prior piece.

This package was published first by Webreview.com, then again by ArtToday.com.

A Moving Bee Story

Here's a video you've got to see -- the story of a beehive being removed from an old house and safely relocated. You're right there in the middle of all the action. Don't miss A Moving Bee Story!

New Digital Photography Section!

We have so much digital photography stuff that we had to create a whole new section for it. Now you can survey the latest in photo equipment, pick up valuable shooting tips, and discover where you can take a great class on digital imaging.

New Portraits Section!

Family portraits, pictures of kids, images of actors at work ... we have them all in our new Portraits section. It's a great place to help you figure out what type of portrait best suits you.

Photoshop's Fascinating History

Photoshop has been an indispensable multimedia tool from the beginning of the medium. Many people don't realize that this early "killer app" is more than 10 years old. The story of its development is the story of two brothers who grew up in a household where art, science, and curiosity were instilled at a young age. You can read about it here:
From Darkroom to Desktop—How Photoshop Came to Light.

Emerald Swift Movie

Watch an entertaining group of Emerald Swifts enjoy the company of dozens of Pinhead Crickets. QuickTime movie runs about 2:30.

Butchart Gardens Panorama

Butchart Gardens is the crown jewel of Victoria, BC. We take you there via a 360 degree panorama using QuickTime.

Thanks for visiting Story Photography. Please enjoy your stay.