On July 4th, are you photographing fireworks?

The U.S. has celebrated its independence with fireworks in towns and cities across the nation since 1777. History tells us John Adams, second President of the U.S. is in large part responsible for the way we celebrate the Fourth of July. In his July 3, 1776 letter to his wife, Abigail, he said that the occasion should be celebrated “with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”

The first Independence Day commemoration occurred the next year in Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Evening Post stated, “The evening closed with the ring of bells and at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks (which began and concluded with thirteen rockets) on the Commons and the city was beautifully illuminated.”

So, you're going on a Photowalk? Help yourself enjoy it!

Some might say that if you take your camera and go for a walk, you're on a photowalk. While it's true you would be making photos while you walk, it's not really a photowalk as it's known today.

These days, photowalks are organized events. They typically involve photography of a specific area or genre.

For example, I lead wildlife photography photowalks at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge ten months per year, as well as travel photography photowalks in Philadelphia, New York, Washington and other cities. I've also led photowalks in botanical gardens for participants to learn about and practice macro/close-up photography, in national parks for landscape photography, at night for night photography, and in cities for street photography.

A critical part of photowalks is their social aspect. Photowalks are for group of photographers, who may or may not know each other. A photowalk permits group interaction to enhance the experience by have participants help each other technically and artistically.

Some photowalks have a leader to organize and lead the walk as well as share their expertise. Sometimes a group self-organizes their own walk, such as a photography club, for a shared photowalk experience.

Photograph the July 4th fireworks well during your holiday vacation

If you're traveling to America’s birthplace, Philadelphia, the only UNESCO World Heritage City in the United States, during the long Independence Day Holiday weekend, you're in for a great concert at the foot of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, with more than a half million people in attendance, followed by one of the largest, most spectacular fireworks displays in the nation.

All over the U.S. on the evening of July 4, there will be fantastic fireworks displays in large cities and small towns, in every corner of the country.

Even though it's not particularly difficult to make great fireworks images, many have a real trouble with it. Problems come because making fireworks images takes thought and planning, and because many don't understand that while it's dark outside, fireworks are extremely bright, so very long exposures only wash out the photos. An exposure of just 2–4 seconds is all that's needed to capture the light, including the fireworks' tails.

What is takes to make great garden photos when traveling

Garden tourism draws millions, across the world each year. Australia's National Botanic Gardens attract 400,000 visitors per year while Britain's gardens attract more than 16 million garden enthusiasts every year. In the U.S., Longwood Gardens, in the suburbs of Philadelphia, welcomes more than a million visitors each year.

Most every garden visitor can be seen documenting their visit with a cellphone, point and shoot camera, or DSLR. Some take their garden photography very seriously, using high end cameras, multiple lenses, tripods and other photography gear.

If you're interested in improving your garden photos, I've have some tips for you, about equipment, lighting, expanding and contracting your “field of view,” choosing when to shoot and three specific hints.

Intro to Night Photography: Cityscapes — Constraints and Equipment

At night in a city, virtually any city, the scene before you changes dramatically. In some locations the architecture and spirit of the city is merely enhanced, shown with a different, though recognizable look.

In other locations, the city at night transforms into a new place, sometimes brighter and more adventurous, sometimes more alive and mysterious.

Either way, making images of cities at night can allow you to often capture a “new city” with a different life than it has during the day. Making photos at night has its own challenges, but it's still subject to the same set of constraints as daylight photography; aperture, shutter speed and light sensitivity. The difference is, these constraints often push you and your equipment “to the edge,” compared to photographing the same city during the day.

Helicopter tours and great scenic photography

More and more often, I hear from travelers who, while on cruises, and land based trips, are planning to take helicopter tours at their ports of call and destinations, and convert the great views they see into wonderful images with their cameras.

Helicopter touring can provide travelers with spectacular views, amazing photographic opportunities, and a chance to visit venues unreachable by other means.

Two great places for helicopter touring are in our 49^th and 50^th states; Alaska and Hawaii. I have two favorite helicopter tours, one in each location.

It's July 4th, and that means photographing fireworks

Wednesday, we in the United States celebrate our nation's birth. In Philadelphia, America’s birthplace and the nation's first capital, that means after a concert at the foot of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, more than 500,000 people will enjoy one of the largest and most spectacular fireworks displays in the nation.

I'll be there. If you're there too, look for me south of the Art Museum.

Here are my updated tips for photographing fireworks using your digital camera:

Tips to capturing aquarium images while traveling

There are amazing public aquariums for travelers to visit for hours of great enjoyment and learning. Some house more than 10,000 colorful and interesting wildlife species.

Photographers in public aquariums encounter a myriad of challenges; fish in constant motion, darkness, dirty glass walls, water which washes out even the brightest colors, and general bans on tripods, monopods and flash use.

Here's my public aquarium photography tips to assist in capturing great images from your visit:

Choosing Lenses for Your DSLR Travel Kit, Part II

In Choosing Lenses for Your DSLR Travel Kit, Part I, I discussed travel photography's many challenges including luggage weight limits, number of luggage pieces permitted, locations with unknown restrictions, bad weather when you least expect it, and others.

I discussed the two major factors that influence which lenses you put in your photo travel “kit,” travel weight and volume, and the varying conditions, limitations and circumstances of your destination's photographic opportunities.

This week, in Part II, I will discuss specific lens choices for three particular travel locations and types of travel you might choose to take which you can use as exemplars.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part VII (Lenses I use and recommend for travel and why)

This week concludes my seven part series about lenses for travel photography, I discuss the lenses I use and recommend for travel. The series is primarily meant for SLR and DSLR camera users, who can attach a variety of lenses to their cameras to support their creativity, and suit the needs of their photographic opportunities.

Currently, I primarily use a Nikon D200 for travel, which has a DX size sensor. I may be moving to an FX sensor (full size sensor) based Nikon camera later this year. For this article I’ll have two sets of recommendations for travelers, one for full size sensor based DSLRs and SLRs, and one for the smaller DX/APS-C size sensor based DSLRs.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part IV (Lens choices for travel photographic opportunities)

This week in Part IV of my seven part series about lenses for travel photography, I’ll discuss choosing lenses for your travels. The series is primarily meant for SLR and DSLR camera users, who can attach a variety of lenses to their cameras to support their creativity, and suit the needs of their photographic opportunities.

There is a large variety of lenses: wide angle, normal or standard, and telephoto lenses, wide angle zoom, standard zoom, and telephoto zoom lenses, and don’t forget there are also zoom lenses which go across the categories as I discussed in Part III of the series. As the great American jazz and popular music singer, Peggy Lee asked in one of her famous songs, “Is that all there is?,” in the world of photographic lenses, the answer is, no.

There are also super telephoto lenses, and super telephoto zoom lenses, as well as specialty lenses such as fisheye, macro (close-up), perspective control lenses, and selective focus lenses.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part III (Choosing between zoom and prime lenses)

This week in Part III of my seven part series about lenses for travel photography, I’ll discuss ideas you can use to help you choose between zoom and prime lenses. The series is primarily meant for SLR and DSLR camera users, who can attach a variety of lenses to their cameras to support their creativity, and suit the needs of their photographic opportunities.

Before you can choose between these two types of lenses, you have to understand the difference.

Simply put, prime lenses are lenses with a single focal length. Prime lenses come in a large number focal lengths ranging from wide angle through super telephoto.

Zoom lenses are lenses which have a variety of focal lengths within just one lens. Zoom lenses can have focal lengths which are all within one class of lens, such as the Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM Lens, which stays solely within the wide angle range of focal lengths. Zoom lenses can also have focal lengths which span lens classes such as the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX Lens which runs the gamut from wide angle, through normal, to telephoto focal lengths.