Photography

I had a great time at DragonCon this year, actually got to play Dungeons & Dragons Adventure League on 3 mornings in a row! More pictures are over at my SmugMug site.

We had a good time at DragonCon this year. It was a strange year and I felt kind of off the whole show. But I had a good time talking with friends and taking pictures. The Costume Contest and Masquerade were great, seeing the BSG folks and Karen Gillian was great, and listening the Jim Butcher is always fun. Steranko was a crack-up and the American Horror: Freak Show folks were a blast. The Georgia Philharmonic Orchestra was amazing and Rasputina was delightful. ...

As a volunteer at DragonCon one of my current responsibilities is getting the computers setup for use by the photographers and the librarians. This year I had to re-learn a lot of what worked so well last year as my notes were not complete, so I decided to write them up more thoroughly this year and post them hear so that I will not loose them. At the 2014 DragonCon we used a total of 5 computers, 3 for the photographers to drop off photographs at and 2 for the librarians to use for key wording. The computers were running Windows 7 and required a lot of Windows updates and video driver updates before they were ready to use, luckily the internet connection at the show was fairly fast on Thursday afternoon when I was setting them up. ...

We had a great time at DragonCon this year. The costumes were amazing, the photography staff did a great job capturing the event, and we actually got some sleep. Our son Eli stayed with the grandparents where he got to run wild and play with new toys. My favorite costumes were How to Train Your Dragon, the Music Box Dolls from Chitty Bang Bang, and The Dreamer. [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-w6CtMvx) [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-Rp4Fdrh) Bobbie made a great costume from a lost episode of [Doctor Who named "The Celestial Toymaker"](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Celestial_Toymaker). [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-RwbJvgZ) [](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/galleries/p0122z2l) My favorite panels were Colin Baker, [Ron Glass](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-zPHCpsX), [Jeri Ryan](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-zHs3Q82), [Terri Gilliam](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-B5Kn4d4), [Evanna Lynch](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-PhcGgxm), and [Sparkfun](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-CqQCkVD). [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-zPHCpsX) [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-zHs3Q82) [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-B5Kn4d4) [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-PhcGgxm) [](http://photo.davenelson.com/DragonCon/DragonCon-2014/i-CqQCkVD)

I read this book on Safari Books Online using the Safari Books app on an iPad. I am not a big fan of using flash in the type of photography I usually do, but I am trying to improve my skills with speedlites and strobes. I have an old Canon 550EX and a pair of Yongnuo cheapo flashes with Yongnuo wireless triggers. ...

I read this book on Safar Books Online using an iPad and the Safari Books Online App. This is the 4th Scott Kelby Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for Photographers book I have read, and they all have been worth the time. These books have been where I have gotten most of my personal photography workflow from and why I made the switch from doing all of my post-production in Photoshop to doing it all in Lightroom. In fact I only open up Photoshop to do quick panoramas (I have other software I use for large intricate panos) and for extensive retouching or composites. ...

I bought this book from Safari Books Online and read it using the Kindle app on my iPad. I really like Zack Arias as a photographer and a person. He is very open about what he does, why he does it, his triumphs, and his troubles. Photography Q&A is full of questions that amateur and professional photographers have asked Zack with his honest and heartfelt answers. So much good information here, it is an amazing amount of information. ...

I read this book on Safari Books Online using a web browser and an iPad. I have read the “From Snapshots to Great Shots” for the 7D and the G12 and they were pretty good. So I decided to give the one for the 5D Mark III a try and it did not disappoint. Unlike the books “Canon EOS 5D Mark III by James Johnson” and “Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Field Guide by Charlotte K. Lowrie” this book tells you not only about the features and functions of the Canon 5D Mark III but also tells you why you may choose one setting over another. ...

I read both of these books using Safari Books Online by O’Reilly Media. They are very similar books and both of them are very similar to the owners manual that comes with the Canon 5D Mk III. But they do present the information in a way that is much easier to understand and retain than the manual. What is missing here is an answer to the question, “Why would I use that setting instead of the other?” You will have to find some other book or better yet books to explain that. Even better, get out there and experiment like crazy. Buy a cheap mannequin off eBay to use as a practice subject and take pictures until your camera stops working. ...

I read this book using Safari Books Online from O’Reilly Media. Brian Smith is an amazing photographer and has a personality to match. He is able to quickly make a personal connection with people from all walks of life and create photographs that highlight their personality and emotion. “Secrets of Great Portrait Photography” gives us insight to the methods Brian uses to get close to his subjects and capture images that make the client, usually magazine creative directors, and the subject happy with the results. ...