Custom photo gifts good idea year-round

Although this year's main gift giving season has just past us by this idea is good for any birthdays, anniversaries or special events that come up during the year.

Recipients Treasure Custom Photo Gifts: Kodak Survey
More than 90 percent of people believe that sharing experiences through photographs helps them bond with others. And, according to the survey, "a nearly identical amount feel that it's important to take photographs to remind their children of their youth." More than tree-quarters of the respondents also wished they had pictures of family members from when they were younger.

It is a great personalized way to keep in touch with family and friends. I know that the restored photos I have done of ancestors have become treasured gifts. Once other family members see the work, they will ask for copies for themselves. It is usually a big hit.

Redecorate a room in '07

The new year is quickly coming upon us. Many of us take this time for renewal, making resolutions for the coming year, or other changes in our environment. How about redecorating a room? iVillage which is always a good resource for tips and ideas on how to get started on a project like this has an article 8 Decorating Rules to Try -- and 8 to Trash. I am glad one of them made it to their 'try' category.

Rule #7: Try to stage a surprise
An element of the unexpected will do wonders for your decor ‑- an oversized picture, a shelf hung lower than usual, a red pillow in a green room, a teacup turned on its side, a wall of family portraits. The backyard and patio areas are great places for surprises. Don't be afraid to do the unusual.

Occasionally...

... We post to something that isn't directly a photographic post. This link at Lifehacker could prove a very nice little tool for those who would like a simple year at a glance tool for making plans.

Download of the Day: 2007 Compact Calendar (All platforms) - Lifehacker

Order Prints Right from Your Flickr Photos

We did it! We now have several ways for you all to print your images easily and right from your browser. This evening we are announcing our Flickr tool. Just choose images from a set in your Flickr account, and we will upload them, print them and mail them to you in 2 days. Oh, and shipping is free for now. Pretty cool, huh?

Here is where you go to order your prints straight from your Flickr site.
Mighty Imaging - Order Mighty Big Prints

LaCie Lego-like Hard Drives

We use LaCie monitors here in the shop. I have been a fan of their products for years. This is a new and creative twist on the normal ho hum external computer equipment scenerio. And just like the real Lego's, they are stackable. Genius! Review provided by CNET.

Setting up the drive is a simple task and can be done in a matter of minutes, if not less. It comes with a single USB cord and an external AC power adapter. One downside we found is that the USB cable is rather short--about 24 inches--so you will have to park the drive very close to your computer, perhaps even on top of it if you use a desktop that sits on the floor. Some users will be fine with this, but we'd like a longer cord to have more flexibility in positioning the drive. LaCie throws in some disk management software for just about any operating system imaginable which is a nice bonus. It also comes with 1-Click software that allows you to easily set the target folders and default sources for easy copying, all at the touch of--you guessed it--a button.

Photo projects for the New Year - Lifehacker

We think that the ideas on Lifehacker are good for all photographers. We would respectfully add that after you have all those great photos, you should print a whole stack of 'em big... 16x24 big. 20x30 big! Yeah, that's what we think!

Hack Attack: Photo projects for the New Year - Lifehacker: "Take a picture every day: Project 365

If you really want to improve your photo skills and put together a well-documented year-in-pictures, you might want to participate in your own Project 365. The idea of Project 365 is that you take at least one photo every day for an entire year. The photo should be of something unique each day, and by the end of the year you'll not only have a great collection of photos documenting your year, but you'll also have vastly improved your photog skills (or at least that's the idea)."

Get a sneak peak at Photoshop CS 3

Although the final version of CS 3 is not due to come out until Spring of '07 you can check out the beta version now.

Users with a valid registration and serial number from one of the Creative Suite 2 digital imaging applications can use the Photoshop CS3 beta until the final version is released. Others can download the application (for Windows and as a Mac Universal Binary) and use it for 2 days.

The latest version of the application comes with some interface enhancements, improved ease of use, and enhanced speed.

New spacewalk images added to NASA gallery

Some amazing images have been added for purchase from our NASA galleries. One of them is from the space walk taken by the shuttle team just a couple of days ago. They are available in 16x24 and 20x30 sizes. These are a perfect tool for educators or students of astronomy to have in their classroom collections. Check back for more images of current and future missions to be added.

Tibet: Photography Paradise

A wonderful story with amazing photos at Photos by Martin.

Photos by Martin - Stories: "The Friendship Highway is definitely not a highway. It's hardly even a road by most definitions, but a rough dirt track that begins in Kathmandu, traverses the steep terraced valleys of Nepal, climbs over the highest mountain range in the world, the Himalayas, weaves through the desolate high-altitude desert of the Tibetan plateau, and ends in Lhasa, the mythical capital of Tibet. It takes a week to make the thousand-kilometer journey, sometimes driving as much as twelve hours a day.

Our Tibetan guide (let's just call him Tashi to keep him out of trouble with his wife) met us at the border with Tibet. Striding around confidently with an air of authority, he seemed to know all the officers at the border, as well as every official in every town between Lhasa and Kathmandu. Surprisingly for a guide, Tashi showed little enthusiasm for explaining the sights that we passed. But he showed plenty of enthusiasm for talking about himself (especially with some of the women in our group)."

Art History 101

ArtandCulture website has a wealth of information not only about photography, but anything pertaining to art and culture. From graphic design, literature, film, music to performing arts it is here. There are interactive essays and endless articles and on the history and movements of each genre as well as new and evolving artists. I could spend hours looking and admiring the work here. It is a really well done site and worth spending some time visiting.

'Fly me to the moon, and let me play among the stars...

Thanks Frank. This is an incredible image. What a presentation! Another world, or at least another place other than earth. This panoramic shot is simply amazing on many levels. The black and white image gives the image a sense of higher purpose. Hey, this would make a killer panorama! We love big images at Mighty Imaging. (Just send us this image through our 'MightyBigPrints' form and we will get it right out to you!) Additional images of the cosmos here.

APOD: 2006 December 10 - Apollo 17 Panorama: Astronaut Running: "What would it be like to explore the surface of another world? In 1972 during the Apollo 17 mission, astronaut Harrison Schmitt found out first hand. In this case, the world was Earth's own Moon. In this recently compiled panorama of lunar photographs originally taken by astronaut Eugene Cernan, the magnificent desolation of the barren Moon is apparent."

Really Big, Really Inexpensive Images

Free to use big images. This is an interesting way to increase visibility and interest in your work. I love the aerialsl around the bay area. Being familiar with a place and then being able to see it from the air is kind of fun, in a puzzle sort of way.

If you want to use a picture in a product that you intend to sell, or to promote your business or organization, please contact me for permission (USD$ 50 for a nonexclusive license). Very large versions (at least 4MP) are available upon request.

Mounting Photos

We love forums where information is freely exchanged. Here's a good forum on mounting large images.

Mounting Photos - Page 2 - Large Format Photography Forum

Marketing Photos/MARKETING ART « Marketing Photos with Mary Virginia Swanson

Welcome to the Blogoshere Mary!

Marketing Photos/MARKETING ART « Marketing Photos with Mary Virginia Swanson: "When considering the marketing of your photographs, I encourage you to aware of the current climate for marketing ART. It is my strong belief that the newest buyers of photography have been buying art for some time now, and are beginning to add photography to their collections."

PDF help for Printers

This is another great resource from Adobe.

Adobe had started a new online community of Acrobat users called Acrobatusers.com. It offers articles, blogs, tips, help, and a variety of support resources. You even get a free newsletter. To sign up, go to www.acrobatusers.com

Art and wine

One of our artists Bonnie Mitchell will be having a reception this coming Tuesday December 12th at the 56 East Wine Bar & Kitchen in Chandler. It is a great opportunity to see hre work in person as well as Natasha Matveenkova who will be sharing the space. If you plan on attending, it is limited seating, a reservation is recommended.

THE ARTISTS

BONNIE MITCHELL Bonnie is a long-time resident of Arizona and embarking on her third career. All of Bonnie's artistic images begin as a photograph. At first, changing an image beyond recognition of the original seemed inappropriate. But as fascinating images began to appear, those feelings soon dissappeared. Look closely at the images, you might see faces, animals, or a variety of objects. Bonnie's artwork is available for purchase on the Mighty Imaging website at: http://www.mightyimaging.com/artists/bonnie_mitchell.html


NATASHA MATVEENKOVA Natasha Matveenkova is a Siberian born artist that lives and works in Arizona. Her talent shows through in all the styles she works in - abstract, figurative, floral and landscape paintings in a variety of mediums. She began her art career in 2002 and has participated in numerous art shows and exhibits in the United States. Her work is included in various private collections across the country. Natasha continues to show her work in galleries, various art spaces and online. To see more of her art and keep current on upcoming shows visit her website at: www.5thCornerArt.com

Beat the high cost of giving

We Mighty Imaging folks would like to add one more to this list of ten ways to watch the bottom line at Holiday time.

#11. Give Photos: Big photos. A gorgeous 16x20 image of the kids, or the grandparents or the family at the zoo would make a wonderful gift. With the images running at less than $16, and a frame at about $15 - 20 you have a wonderful gift.

Giving a personal image, or one that has personal memories attached can also make warm wishes warmer. Have the lab turn the image into a soft sepia, or try scanning an old image of Grandma and Grandpa and print it big and B&W on metallic paper. Wow.

And if you need a gift for a budding astronomer or car enthusiast, take a look at our easy to purchase galleries of photographic art. Photographs make wonderful gifts, and big images are, well, even better!

Beat the high cost of giving - 11/17/06 - The Detroit News Online: "The holidays are stressful enough without wondering how you'll pay those January credit card bills.

Shopping smarter can help ease that stress. Here are 10 quick and painless ways to cut your holiday spending on gifts."

A Good Article on Selling Photography

I like the point of having several channels for selling. A website is just one channel and having shows, direct mail and gallery work adds more levels of reaching the clients.

Selling: "Having decided that you want to sell your work (and why) you are ready for the next fork. How do you want to sell your work? There are basically three venues offered to you: you can sell wholesale, or through consignment, or via shows where you are personally present. I chose the third option so far, and I sell my work myself at shows. This involves direct contact with the public, long hours of presence at the show, and hard work setting up and taking down displays and photographs. I personally enjoy this approach but I realize this is not for everyone. First it is difficult to have a second 'real' job (I don't). Second, you have to enjoy working with the public and answering many questions all day long (I do). Third, you have to charge sales tax and pay it back to your state. Fourth, you need to carry a relatively large inventory consisting of framed and unframed photographs in matted sizes of 8x10, 11x14, 16x20 and 20x30 or larger. The framed pieces help sell the unframed pieces so you should expect to sell more unframed than framed pieces. Your choice of frame and matting is very important and should fit the type of home decor your photographs will fit in."

At Luminous Landscape

JPG Magazine has relaunched.

Kind of a cool idea. Check it out!