So You Got A Camera

So, you just got a camera. And the folks in the store are anxious to sell you an "accessory kit". They're anxious to do this because it's a high-profit item -- put a bunch of low-quality items together, give it a name, perhaps a name for a specific camera model, and sell it for a premium.

Ignore the accessory kits and instead think about what you need. Here are my suggestions:

• A memory card. Probably the one that came with the camera is too small. You need a minimum of one decent-sized card and a maximum of two. The price per GB is constant up to 16GB, so forget the idea of getting more smaller ones. The only advantage of two is the ability to transfer pictures from one card while you're using the other one. Always transfer the images to your computer and delete them off the card. Calculate how much space you need by estimating how many pictures you'll take between opportunities to transfer to your computer and then multiply by the space needed for the size you'll be shooting at.
• Speed does matter. With most cameras, faster cards let you take pictures faster. The cheapest cards off-brand cards seem to be the slowest.
• If your camera uses Compact Flash (CF), consider a UDMA card and a UDMA reader (see below).
• A UV filter, if you have an SLR. The real purpose is to protect your lens if it gets knocked. You don't need to pay absolute top dollar, but the cheapest ones may introduce distortion.
• A bag (not a case). You want a bag to stow the camera in when you're actually using it and possibly when you're using it not at home. I have a small Velocity 7 for active work. You don't want any case that is supposed to be used *while* you're actually taking pictures. They get in the way.
• If you have an SLR with multiple lenses, consider a backpack. I have an excellent one from Kata.
• Stability aka a tripod. You probably want some combination of the the following.
• A tripod. The best recommendations I know of are by Thom Hogan of bythom.com (he also writes great books). Most people can get by with less, maybe even just putting the camera on the edge of a table and using the self timer.
• A small tripod. Gorilla pods aren't bad (get the larger one, not the small one, it also comes in green). Or, maybe a Green Pod.
• A monopod. They're lightweight and good for added stability. Even a really cheap one can make a big difference. I've heard good things about the SteadePod.
• If you don't have one, you need a card reader for your computer. I have a Lexar dual-slot reader that supports UDMA. It does not have an attached USB cord (more convenient for packing) and closes to keep dust out.
• Consider a cheat sheet from Bert's Cheat Sheets. Small and handy. I also got one for my external flash.

Don't get:

• A memory card that's bigger than you actually need. Bigger is not always better: with some cameras, particularly point-and-shoots, larger cards mean the camera takes longer to turn on.
• Additional batteries or an external battery charger. You can always buy them later.
• An external flash, unless you know what you're doing (in which case, you probably don't need my advice anyway).
• Any lens adapter that goes on the outside of your lens.
• Remote control, unless you know you'll use it.
• Anything labeled an accessory kit.

And don't forget: enjoy your new camera!

Be The Change

My wife, Emily, and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary today by signing up to be bone marrow donors. Yes, you read that correctly.

Twenty years is quite a milestone. The average length of a marriage in the United States is just eight years. Knowing how much work it is to keep a relationship working, I can understand that statistic. We've had twenty great years, but not every moment was perfect. It takes work and compromise and love. We spent a lot of time thinking about how to commemorate this special milestone and we both wanted to do something special. But what?

Then I saw a tweet and a blog post from a friend of mine, Scott Porad, who wrote about his cousin Katie who needs a bone marrow transplant. There are 12 million people on the registry as potential donors and none are a match for her. And there are thousands of others in Katie's plight.

Organ donation isn't something that we're new to. Emily and I have both been signed up as organ donors since before we were married. When my sister and father died, tough as it was to make the decision at a time like that, we donated their organs. We heard back in both cases that their organs were used successfully (I don't know if that still happens). We've also both had close relatives die of cancer and we've donated money to cancer research. But we'd never signed up to be on the bone marrow registry. What was stopping us? Mainly lack of knowledge. Not knowing how trivial it is to sign up and how simple the actual donation process is -- in most cases, it's a relatively minor outpatient procedure. Once we learned the reality, it became a no-brainer to sign up, and it seemed like a pretty good way to celebrate life.

It costs money to add people to the registry, so you may be asked to defray the processing costs with a donation. If you can't afford to donate, they won't turn you away, but do think about donating if you can afford it. For us, the donation was an anniversary present to ourselves and two other people we'll never meet who will have their registration paid for. If you're excluded from registration for age or health reasons, I hope you'll consider donating to sponsor the registration of someone else. And, as long as we were at the Puget Sound Blood Center, we decided to donate blood too.

Will our signing up help Katie? Or any specific person in need? Chances are low. Very low. And that's why it's so important to get as many registrations as possible. It's a numbers game and, right now, the numbers favor cancer. Every person who registers helps to change that.

To join the registry anywhere in the US, visit the Be The Match Foundation at http://www.marrow.org/

For more information about Katie, check out http://www.kancerclub.com/

If you tweet about this, please use the hash tag #savekatie and reference @BeTheMatch. The short URL for this blog post is http://j.mp/bethechange.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world" -- Mohandas K. Gandhi

The Message is Love

No, I'm not a day late on my September 11th anniversary blog post. This is a post-9/11 post. In 2001, my wife wrote the following poem shortly after 9/11. You may have already read it as it was distributed fairly widely on the Internet and read at some events and eerily echoed in the opening monologue to "Love Actually".


The Message is Love
by Emily Dietrich

© Copyright 2001 by Emily Dietrich
Redistribution permitted for non-commercial purposes
Contact emily@magentic.org for other uses


Unlike the Titanic and Oklahoma City, this tragedy contained a window, created by a coincidence of technology and a few moments of life before imminent death, that allowed some victims an opportunity. They could send a last minute message, put one more thought out into the world, and they could know it would be heard.

This is what they said.
"I just wanted you to know that I love you."

They said,
"I love you."

That’s what becomes urgent.
That’s what a person wants to say,
wants the world to know when death is certain.

"I love you."

No one called to say
"Get these bastards."

No one spent dying breath to say
"I want revenge."

The calls were made to say
"I love you."

And in 2001, a time when technology has brought cell phones, voices from the sky, we are able to hear their last words. With our own ears, we hear those who will die in seconds say their last words, a rare privilege.

They said,
"I love you."

The answer to hate is love.
The opposite of terrorism is charity.

Let’s cherish the great gift these victims of terrorism have given us.
Let’s honor the promise implicit in the privilege of hearing their final words.
Let’s fulfill the obligation to life that our dying brothers and sisters ask of us.
Let’s use our lives to say
"I love you."

Make a Difference - Play Scrabble

When big companies make big donations to charity, they get a lot of publicity out of it. Today, I got an email from a small company that's giving back in a (relatively) big way. The company is Protiles and, as of June 1st, they are giving 10% of every sale to charity. Even though I've known about this company for a long time and think their products are fantastic, I had no idea what they were already doing for charity.

If you play Scrabble, Clabbers, or Anagrams, check out their products. They're the best Scrabble tiles available and are required use in most tournaments. I like the white injection-molded tiles myself, but they're all good. They have some funny videos too.

Here's the message from Protiles:

For several years Protiles has been selling sets of white tiles with pink letters and a pink breast cancer ribbon on the blanks.  Five dollars from every set sold is donated to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.  

Last year Protiles donated over 240 sets of Protiles to the 2008 Players Championship in Dayton, OH. 

In the last eight months Protiles has donated more than 150 sets of Protiles to school teachers in 15 states for use in their classrooms.  Here's a typical request:  "I am interested in using letter tiles in my class next year to help teach spelling.  Unfortunately, we have no funding available.  Do you ever make donations to a class or give a great discount to teachers?  I teach first grade at Bethlehem Elementary in Taylorsville, NC."

So far Protiles has sent sets of tiles to teachers in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, California, Illinois, New Jersey, Kansas, Tennessee, Florida, Nebraska, Texas, Indiana, Colorado, Arizona and North Carolina.  

Protiles also would like to honor Rose Kreiswirth's memory.  Rose was an expert Scrabble® player for over 30 years and cherished the game for its educational values. An accomplished player, Rose was as well known for her sense of fairness and her congeniality as she was for her competitiveness. The Rose Award will be awarded each year at the National Scrabble Championship to a female player who, in the opinion of the judges, best exemplifies the fierce competitiveness and compassion that we remember Rose for. 

Finally, my local Starbucks store asks customers to donate the new instant coffee, VIA, to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.  The coffee comes in a small packet and works with both hot and cold water, perfect for a cup of coffee away from the comforts of home.  Would you buy a cup of joe for a soldier?

Beginning June 1, 2009 Protiles will donate 10% of the sales price of every set our customers order to these good causes.  We'll send sets to school teachers, we'll honor Rose, we'll support breast cancer research, and we'll send some good-tasting instant coffee to the troops.  

When you order Protiles tell us where you'd like the 10% to go.  If you choose not to choose, we'll choose for you.  Either way you'll know that we're doing something good together. 

The Day That Analog Died

A long, long time ago...
I can still remember
How that TV used to make me smile.
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could see those people dance
And, maybe, we'd be happy for a while.

But digital made me shiver
With every DVD delivered.
Bad news in my email;
I couldn't stand another FAIL.

I can't remember if I cried
When I read about problems denied,
But something touched me deep inside
The day analog died.

So bye-bye, Miss American pie.
Took my telly to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
And them good old boys were watchin' CSI
Singin', "this'll be the day that I die.
"this'll be the day that I die."

Why Won't Dick Cheney Shut Up?

Never before has a disgraced former Vice President spent so much time criticizing the current President, predicting and hoping for failure. As our last President suggested, if he's not with us, he must be with the terrorists.

I think Dick Cheney wants the terrorists to win. His views match Osama bin Laden perfectly. He wants more destruction. He wants another attack against the US. He wants to keep things as polarized as possible. And he doesn't want peace. It's the only way his nutty "torture is ok" and "god is on our side" views have any chance of prevailing.

Dick Cheney, please shut up.

I Almost Hit A Bicyclist

I was about to make a right turn onto a five-lane street. There wasn't much traffic, but I waited for it clear, then started my turn. Right in front of me, there was a bicyclist. Going the wrong way. In the dark. Without a helmet. Without a light. I didn't hit him, but I could have. As he bicycled off, I saw he had a red light on the back of the bike. Not much help that does when he's going the wrong way.

A long time ago, it was recommended that you should bike going against traffic. This stupid advice hasn't been given out for a long time. In fact, in Washington State, as in many states, it's illegal to ride against traffic. The King County web site has a good summary.

Here are the essentials:

• You're harder to see when you're biking the wrong way, both to vehicles in the street and to others.
• Motorists making a turn don't spend a lot of time looking the wrong way before making their turn. Pedestrians move slowly enough that they are usually spotted easily. Not so with bicyclists.
• Your speed relative to other traffic is much greater when you ride against traffic, significantly increasing the risk of an accident and the likelihood of injury in an accident.
• Assume that motorists are not looking out for you, both literally and figuratively. Do everything you can to be visible.
• Always wear a helmet, but know that it will not save your life in a major accident. Do everything you can to avoid an accident.
• Use two lights at night -- one in front and one in back. Lights that blink are a good idea. An extra light on your left leg that moves up and down for more visibility is a good idea.
• Following the law is always a good idea, but it's not enough -- in the vast majority of bicycle accidents, the bicyclists were following the law. It will not do you any good to have been in the right when you're hit.
  

Further reading

• bicyclesafe.com is an excellent, quick read with practical advice. Good to read even if you're not a bicyclist.
• Bicycling Street Smarts is book about "riding confidently, legally, and safely" which is available online.