Quick Shutter Speed Chart (Related to High Speed Flash Sync)

1/100 sec = f/16

1/200 sec = f/11

1/400 sec = f/8

1/800 sec = f/5.6

1/1600 = f/4

1/3200 = f/2.8

Favorite Photography Books

The Moment It Clicks - Joe McNalley
Digital Photography Books 1-3  - Scott Kelby
Master Class - Tom Ang
Fashion Photography - Bruce Smith
Digital Portrait Photography - Steve Sint
Complete Guide to Light - Mark Cleghorn

Lighting for Outdoor Location - Jeff Smith
Posing Techniques for Location Portrait Photography - Jeff Smith
Corrective Lighting, Posing, and Retouching - Jeff Smith
Professional Commercial Photography - Lou Jacobs Jr.

Sculpting with Light - Alison Ernest
Fashion Photography Course - Eliot Siegel
Monte Zucker Portrait Handbook - Monte Zucker
Magic Lantern Nikon AF Speedlight System- Sim Stafford

Professional Modeling Portfolios - Billy Pegram
Idiots guide to being a model - Roshumba Williams
Break into modeling - Judy Goss
Idiots guide to Portrait Photography - Kathleen Tracy
Nikon Digital Field Guides - David Busch
Master Lighting Guide for Commercial Photography - Robert Morissey
99 Photo Ideas - Annabel Williams
500 Poses - Michelle Perkins

Essential Software

Lightroom 2
Photoshop CS2
ACD SEE 2009
Corel Draw 12
Opanda Efix
VSO Convertx to DVD
DVD Fab
VLC LAN Video Player
Nero Start Smart
WinRAR 3.90
Malwarebytes
MS Word 2003
CutePDF

How to test a new lens

For Sharpness
1. Shoot in the middle of the zoom range
2. Stop down to f/8
3. Mount on tripod
4. Use one focus point
5. You'll now be able to find the lens' hot spot, If any other images are considerably worst you may have a bad copy.

For Focusing
1. Aim at focus point
2. Take photo
3. If the focus point was in the foreground, but the background is more in focus, then the lens ahs focusing issues.

DIY Ring Flash

1. Find an Angel Food Cake pan with a large enough hole to fit a lens through

2. Then take tin snips and cut a hole in the side for the flash head to poke through

3. Next, line the hole with duct tape until it fits snugly around the flash

4. Now press tin foil along the inside of the cake pan

5. Finally tape wax paper over the front for diffusion.

Using a Widescreen Monitor

On a widescreen display to accomadate for resolution increase display setting to 1360x768 (or 1440x900) To prevent distorted/stretched images.

Build a DIY Diffusion Panel

5x6 Sheet of White Rip-Stop Nylon stretched over a PVC Frame.