This is just a quick follow up post from my Scouting Landscape Locations post from the other day. As I mentioned in that post I had found a few locations that I wanted to try different shots from.

The cold weather we've been having and a few late nights have meant I haven't had the will power to get out of bed before the sun but I have instead been shooting around dusk.

As a result so far I've posted two new images:

Fading Warmth

And.....

Country Clouds (Armidale)

I will be forcing myself to get up early one day before I return home so there will be more images to come over the next week.

It's been far too long so I've created a new post due to the usual work commitments and various other things getting in the way. So, now while I have a few moments I thought I'd quickly put together a new post.

I'm currently in Armidale and have decided to take the opportunity to squeeze in a bit of photography while I'm here. Autumn in Armidale sees a majority of the trees changing colour and dropping their leaves due to the cold. This is something we don't get so much on the Central Coast (due to higher temperatures) and it offers some wonderful colours and photo opportunities.

I have decided on a particular "country" style of shot that I am looking for and will need to get up before the sun to get the best light for the shot. As I don't know the area very well I have just gone out scouting for some good locations. Scouting out a location or two before you go out shooting can often be very helpful and save you from wasting an entire shoot.

The benefits of scouting a location before a shoot include:

• Less "shoot" time is spent looking for your subject when the light is right
• It is much easier to find good locations during the day time as opposed to when it's dark
• You can plan the equipment (filters, lenses etc) you will need better
• You won't have to get up as early if you know where you're going

Some things to look are for and keep in mind when scouting a location are:

• Keep in mind the style of photos you want to create
• Don't get too fixed on that particular style or you may miss other opportunities
• The light will be different when scouting. Think of where the sun will be
• Get permission to shoot from the location if required. E.g. don't just enter someone's private property.
• Is there anything in the way of getting the shot you're after?

Once you've found your location it's all down to how you approach the shoot. If it is a popular location you could also look for other photographs that have been taken in the area. Then, try to shoot something different.

That's all for now. Hopefully the weather and light will be in my favor tomorrow morning and I will come back with some wonderful shots.

I recently bought and read Scott Kelby's "The Digital Photography Book" volumes 1 and 2 on the recommendation of a friend. This post is intended to be a bit of a review of the books and some of my thoughts on them.

Scott Kelby takes a unique approach with the writing style used in these books which seems to make them fairly popular and easy to read. His approach aims to give you the low down on how to achieve certain things in photography without going into all of the technical detail and reasons why. This approach makes the book good for beginners and is fairly engaging for the reader. With one of the books I found myself being unable to put it down. Wanting to continue reading to see what happens next. Rather unusual for a non-fiction book.

The down side of the book's style is that there are numerous sections that are clogged up with nonsensical "humor" which really doesn't add much to the content of the book. I'd suggest skipping the introduction to each chapter unless you have time to waste. Otherwise you will get to the end of the introductions and wonder ":WHY>".

My gripe about the needless padding in the books aside, both books cover some excellent topics for various areas of photography and even if you aren't interested in those particular areas (for example wedding photography) I still feel that anyone can read them and take something away that will help in other aspects of photography. For example the wedding chapters (there's one in each book) both have some great suggestions for lighting and group photos.

I picked up volume 2 at the shops before volume 1 so I read them in reverse order. This didn't matter immensely although the second book is intended to follow on from the first. Ultimately I don't think a second book was really needed as a lot of the content seems to be repeated in both books. Perhaps instead of padding the books with humor, Scott could've condensed them into a single book.

All in all I did enjoy reading both books and would recommend picking at least one of them up if you are beginner to moderately experienced as a photographer and want to learn a few nifty tricks.

Also, if you've read either of these books I'd love to hear what you think about them.

I know I have been a bit quiet lately on this site and redbubble so I thought a quick post would help clear things up. I've taken on a few new web development projects (including www.martialartslife.net among others) over the last week which will be consuming most of my time for a while.

Unfortunately this means that my personal photography and blogging has taken a lower priority so updates on this site will be happening less frequently. I will still be trying to get creative on weekends or whenever I have a chance. The opportunities just may not be as frequent as they were in recent times.

In the meantime please continue to send any photographic requests through. I will make time for any specific requests. Additionally, all of your comments, thoughts and feedback are most welcomed and appreciated.