Scott's Photo Blog

Show Notes for Digital Photography Life #18: How to Deck Out Your DSLR, DPL Style

What do you buy when you want it all? Today, Michael tells us not only about the hot new Nikon D300s he just picked up, but about all the swag he got to deck it out, Digital Photography Life style.

Michael is a power user, so I guess it's natural most of his gear is about keeping his new toy charged up and ready to go. Here's the gear he picked up for double and triple redundancy:

• Camera Grip: The Nikon MB-D10
• Next generation rechargeable NiMH batteries by Eneloop
• Hi-tech battery recharger from MAHA: The Ultimate Professional Charger (their words, not mine!)
• Battery Pack for the Nikon SB-900 External Flash, the Nikon SD-9

Of course, I can't blame Michael for upgrading his gear - I'm totally hot for the upcoming Canon 7D, which we talk about in some detail. Great specs - we can't wait to see if the output matches the camera's potential.

We also discuss two high-end cameras coming out from Leica - theLeica M9 andLeica X1 - nice sounding gear, but with the price tags to match. The M9 has a list price of $7,750 for all its rangefindery goodness, and the fixed focal length high end point and shoot Leica X1 lists for $2,200. I'm not saying they're not worth it, I'm just saying: Wow.

But not everything good in life has a high price tag? How about these savings from SmugMug - our favorite place to host and sell out photos?

SmugMug has two fantastic offers just for our listeners:

• 50% off your SmugMug service at any level (enter code "Flickr" at checkout). This is a fantastic discount and you should take advantage of it in time to share your holiday photos!
• A free camera strap to any listener of Digital Photography Life: This one is just crazy. A high-quality camera strap that replaces the neck-slicing piece of canvas that your camera's manufacturer condescended to include with your DSLR. Get your freebie here.

Remember, when it's time to clean the gutters, we're no where to be found, but you can contact us everywhere, including:

• Digital Photography Life on Twitter
• Digital Photography Life Email
• Digital Photography Life listener group on Flickr
• Digital Photography Life on Facebook
• Digital Photography Life on SmugMug
• Michael on Facebook
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on MySpace

Thanks for listening!

Show Notes for Digital Photography Life #17: Take Great Landscape Shots with Pro Photographer Marc Muench

Take your landscape photography to new heights with great tips from pro photographer Marc Meunch on today's show. Marc covers the best gear, shooting techniques and digital processing tricks to give your shots that cover-quality magic.

Marc is a fantastic guest, which you'd expect given his outstanding resume. Marc has photographed for book publishers including Time Inc. He's represented Canon Cameras in several ad campaigns, and appeared on ESPN's "Canon Photo Safari" for eight season. He's published and co-published several books of photography. He's also "artist in residence" at SmugMug, our favorite photo sharing and selling service.

Would you like a real expert to tell you how to improve your photography? Check out Marc's "Muench University," hosted by SmugMug. Follow the instructions there to join the forum and send in your pictures. In the body of your email, mention that you heard Marc on Digital Photography Life and he'll give special consider to critiquing your work!

Marc tells us how he got into the photo biz and gives tips for those of you looking to break into it, While Marc is accomplished in many areas of photography, in our interview we focus on landscape shooting, particularly, how to get outstanding shots in autumn, when the explosion of color gets every photographer's fingers itching to snap.

Marc's tips include the best equipment to buy and use, the two lenses he considers must-haves and how to use a flash to achieve the perfect balance of light. We also talk filters, tripods and cameras.

Marc recommends Photomatix for HDR work, as many serious photographers do. I've used the program, too, and it is definitely the standard in the field. On the show, I mention Ben Willmore's terrific DVD on HDR. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be available anymore, it's not listed on Amazon or on Ben's web page. If you find a copy somewhere, put a note in the comments!

Marc's a big fan of Gitzo's Carbon Fiber tripods (you can see a $700 one here, or a more affordable $400 version here). But like all of us, Marc likes a bargain, too. He also likes Slik's more affordable line of tripods. Here's a Slik carbon fiber for a comparatively reasonable $230, or a "super titanium" model that has an average 5-star review from 48 buyers on Amazon and only costs $138! That model also has a built in ballhead, which saves your even more money. If I wanted a starter tripod at this point, I might get that one.

Speaking of ballheads, you'll need one if you go with a Gitzo or other headless tripod. Marc uses Really Right Stuff's ballheads, a pretty consistent favorite among the professionals with whom I've talked. Michael has one, too. Poser.

Marc was recommended to us by SmugMug, and we're really grateful for the hookup. SmugMug is our favorite site for sharing and - should you chose to accept this assignment selling your photos.

SmugMug has two fantastic offers just for our listeners:

• 50% off your SmugMug service at any level (enter code "Flickr" at checkout). This is a fantastic discount and you should take advantage of it in time to share your holiday photos!
• A free camera strap to any listener of Digital Photography Life: This one is just crazy. A high-quality camera strap that replaces the neck-slicing piece of canvas that your camera's manufacturer condescended to include with your DSLR. Get your freebie here.
;

I'm getting ready to shoot some fall pictures, but every once in awhile, you may find me or Michael in one of the cyberspaces below:

• Digital Photography Life on Twitter
• Digital Photography Life Email
• Digital Photography Life listener group on Flickr
• Digital Photography Life on Facebook
• Digital Photography Life on SmugMug
• Michael on Facebook
• Scott on Facebook
• Scott on MySpace

Thanks again to Marc for an outstanding interview. We had so much fun talking that we chatted for twice as long as we'd planned to. Hopefully, it was fun for y'all to listen to, too. Let us know below and we'll be back with a new episode soon.