It's July 4th...time for the fireworks challenge.

On Sunday, we in the US celebrate the birth of our nation. If you've traveled to Philadelphia, the nation's first capital and America’s birthplace, immediately after the Life, Liberty & You Concert in front of the steps (Some call them the “Rocky” steps from the Rocky movies in which the fictional character, Rocky Balboa runs up the steps.) to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, more than 500,000 people will enjoy one of the largest and most spectacular fireworks displays in the nation.

That’s my segue for my tips for photographing fireworks. Here’s what you need to do to capture them this July 4^th.

How to travel with a tripod and carry it daily.

Traveling with a tripod is easy, except perhaps when traveling by air where you're limited on the amount of luggage you can take.

If you're traveling by car, train or ship, get a good tripod bag, preferably padded, in case the tripod/bag gets dropped or accidentally roughly handled. You can carry the tripod on the back of your backpack, however, while that's a great way to take your tripod while hiking, I personally don't believe it's ideal when traveling by car or ship. I strongly suggest a tight fitting bag too.

Another reason to use a separate bag is while you're away from your stateroom, or hotel room, during those times you don't plan to use the tripod, you can store it out of sight in the bag. When traveling with the tripod bag, it can be used to carry your tripod for your shooting.

When traveling by air, you have to take into account your luggage limitations. For the most part, you can count on a bag of checked-luggage, a carry-on bag and a personal bag. According to the airline, location, etc. you may be restricted in the number and weight of both your checked-in luggage and your carry-ons.

Photography Exhibition: The Museum of Modern Art - Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography

The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), in New York, NY has some of the most amazing exhibitions of contemporary photography in the US. Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography looks like it will be another in their series of wonderful exhibitions at the Museum. If you’re in the New York City area, don’t miss this exhibition. I plan to go myself, if at all possible. 

The exhibition will through March 21, 2011.

Can I prevent my DSLR sensor from getting dusty and dirty?

Earlier this month, in my article, What do I do about those dust spots on my digital photos? I discussed how to clean your dirty DSLR sensor. Since then, I’ve received numerous emails asking how photographers can prevent their DSLR sensors from getting dusty and dirty.

There are techniques to use to slow down an accumulation of dust and dirt on your DSLR sensor, but if you take enough photos, eventually you’ll need to clean it.

Each time photographers change lenses on their DSLRs they open up the camera to allow dust to enter. In addition, zoom lenses can bring in dust to the camera. Many zoom lenses literally vacuum in dust to the sensor area of the camera when the photographer zooms their lens in and out. Different zoom lenses have different affinities for pulling dust into DSLRs. Consumer quality zoom lenses which use external lengthening/shortening to change focal length are particularly prone to this, compared to pro level zooms which zoom internally.

Photography Exhibition: Museum of Contemporary Photography - Sarah Pickering: Incident Control

The Museum of Contemporary Photography, in Chicago, IL has some of the most exciting exhibitions of contemporary photography in the US. Sarah Pickering: Incident Control looks like it will be another wonderful exhibition at the Museum. If you’re in the Chicago area, don’t miss this exhibition. I plan to go myself, if at all possible.

The exhibition will run through June 20, 2010.

Photography's Seven Deadly Sins

I was recently having a very interesting theological discussion with a friend. Eventually we discussed the concept of “sin.” He mentioned the “Seven Deadly Sins,” to some, known as the “Capital Vices” or “Cardinal Sins.” He told me the final list consisted of: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony.

That discussion got me thinking it might be fun to see if I could take that list and apply it to photography as this week’s main article in the Blog. So here goes. I hope you find the list interesting, and possibly helpful.

Photography Exhibition: California Museum of Photography: ON-SITE

The California Museum of Photography, located at the University of California Riverside has some of the best exhibitions of photography in the country. ON-SITE is an incredibly interesting photographic exhibition, and could be one of the best in the US this year.

The exhibition will run through August 22, 2010.

Do I need “model” releases, and if so, how can I easily obtain them while traveling?

Generally, when people are located in public spaces, they have no expectation of privacy, so the photographer doesn’t violate their right of privacy when taking their photo in a public space.

While that’s generally true in the US, I hasten to add, however, that different states have passed their own laws regarding personal privacy, and the laws of other countries often are considerably different than the US, so you need to know the laws in your specific location.

The “rule of thumb” above, has to do with taking photographs, however, not using them.

After the photo is taken, new concerns of privacy come into play, and one’s person right of publicity. For example, generally, a photographer violates a person’s right of publicity when, without permission, the photographer uses a photo of a person for the photographer’s own benefit, sometimes referred to as “commercial” use as opposed to an “editorial” use. Like many concepts in law, this one isn’t precisely straightforward.

Photography Exhibition: The National Gallery of Art - Beat Memories: The Photographs of Allen Ginsberg

The National Gallery of Art has an extensive collection of photographic images, however, most are not regularly on display. This exhibition, Beat Memories: The Photographs of Allen Ginsberg, takes 79 photographs from Allen Ginsberg’s collection snapshots and professional portraits. It will be treat to see them.

This exhibition will run through September 6, 2010