If you’re planning to visit Chicago, summer is the best time. Check out these photos and you’ll see a city that comes alive in warm weather. It’s nowhere near my favorite American city. But I still had a decent time.
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Scenes from Fountain Hills, Ariz. – The McDowell Meltdown
On Jan. 22-23, the MBAA Arizona state championship mountain bike race series got started at McDowell Mountain Regional Park just north of Fountain Hills, Ariz. The park is one of the best outdoor recreation assets in the state, and the weather cooperated to make it a great time for racers and spectators
Stop Taking Boring Travel Photos – Yes, You!
Most vacation photos stink. That’s the hard truth. But you don’t have to be “Scary Boring Vacation Photo Taker.” You just need to learn a few tricks to make your own luck. Some could be posts on their own, but here’s a quick overview.
1. Know How to Pick a Camera
A cell phone camera or even a compact will not get you a great photo, no matter how many megapixels it has. Megapixels are a salesperson’s best friend, not a buyer’s. See, the size of the image sensor is the real issue. Compact cameras have postage-stamp size sensors. Superzooms are a bit bigger, and SLR cameras are even bigger. Give me a 5-MP digital SLR over a 10-MP compact any day. The bigger sensor will capture more color and detail.
2. Crank the Quality
When you’re on a big trip, resist the temptation to take small photos. Some people try to cram as many onto their memory card as possible. Big mistake! You can easily buy more cards – but if you take a photo of beautiful scenery on a low image setting, game over. You can’t do anything to re-capture the lost detail. If you’re camera shoots in RAW format, go for it! Otherwise, just choose your biggest JPEG setting.
3. Befriend the ISO Setting
The ISO setting tells the camera how much available light there is. Many cameras range from ISO 64 (for super-sunny conditions) to 1600 and beyond (nighttime, caves, indoors, etc.). Use ISO carefully - high setting increase grainess (or “noise”). ISO 200 and [...]
