Photo.net Newsletter: November 23, 2010

Hi %%First Name%%,

3 reasons to enjoy this week: time off, good food, and gear sales. To those of you who live in parts of the world where these 3 reasons don’t happen till next month, I’m sorry. Black Friday is this Friday, watch Adorama’s web site for deals and discounts on photography gear.

Time for our special unveiling… announcing the 2010 Photo.net Holiday Gift Guide, hot off the press. Check it out for gear recommendations in all price categories. Start compiling those wish lists for yourself, and prepare your ideas for photography-lovers in your family.

This 2nd November issue is a little lighter in content, as I’ve been hard at work compiling the Holiday Gift Guide. But we do have a very special feature: an exclusive interview with Kevin Kubota on branding your photography business. And… a branding contest hosted by Kevin in which one lucky winner will get a Kubota Image Tools Studio Pak (value $1200USD). See below for the contest link. Also in this issue: a review + tutorials of Nik HDR Efex Pro, and a Gizmo and Gadget review.

Don’t miss the deals and discounts from Adorama (scroll down). Also, share your thoughts about editorial, community, photography, and anything in between on the Facebook Page, Photo.net Blog, and Twitter Feed.

As always, if you have any questions or suggestions, please send them to us directly at contact@photo.net. Enjoy the newsletter!

Sincerely,

Hannah Thiem, Managing Editor, and Josh Root, Chief Admin, Director of Community, Mop & Bucket Man

Photo.net Holiday Gift Guide

Happy Holidays from all of us at Photo.net! We put together this guide to aid you in your holiday gift selections for your loved ones—those who are into photography, for the best selection of tried and true photography gear. This guide can also serve as your own personal wish list. If you don’t know what’s out there, or what we at Photo.net love as far as gear goes, how will you be able to ask for exactly what you want? We have plenty of friends and relatives just getting into photography, or looking to improve their skills and gear. Thus, there’s something for everyone in all price categories in this Photo Gift Guide. Find your price bracket, but don’t be afraid to go higher (or lower) than your spending limit.

• Under $100: stocking stuffers, gadgets, important small-priced items
• $100-500: mid-range accessories ideal for the casual photographer, the hobbyist, enthusiast, whatever name you’d prefer to use
• $500-1000: perhaps you have a large budget, or you know someone verrrrry special, check out the lenses, p&s cameras, and other gadgets that are for a special someone
• over $1000: items for the professional photographer or a hobbyist with a very rich long-lost aunt, advance your career with these must-have big-budget items

Read the entire Photo.net Holiday Gift Guide from beginning to end for the best round-up of photography gift ideas.

Editorial Highlights

Photo.net Interview with Kevin Kubota on Branding

We’re honored to tap Kevin Kubota’s brain on his techniques and strategies on branding your photography business. He shares tips on managing your business, your image, your production, and keyword activities on branding yourself. Kevin is a world-renowned wedding photographer, as well as the visionary behind the brands Kubota Image Tools, AsukaBook, and Red Boot Design. In this exclusive interview with Photo.net, he shares tips on how to better brand yourself and focus your photography business for building and growing your client base. (Also see below for Kevin’s Branding Contest.)

Read Photo.net’s Interview with Kevin Kubota.

Nik HDR Efex Pro Review

HDRI (High Dynamic Range Imaging) is one of the more controversial techniques that has emerged on the photographic front. Its core purpose is to expand the shadow and highlight details in order to create a more balanced exposure with, increased dynamic range. It’s easy to overdo this technique and create overprocessed images. Regardless of your position on realistic versus surrealistic HDR techniques, the process with this new software plug-in from Nik is to help you realize your HDR goals. Theano Nikitas takes a good look at the software and includes a few tutorials on using the software to its full potential.

Read Nik HDR Efex Pro Review.

Gizmos & Gadgets: Lensbaby Macro Kit Review

The Lensbaby Macro Kit is an inexpensive yet creative addition to your photography gear bag, especially if you already like to use Lensbaby products. The macro kit consists of two screw in optical lenses, one a +4 and one a +10 diopter, that look a little like fat UV filters. Anyone who is has ever used a close-up lens as a budget macro lens on their SLR will know exactly how this lens is supposed to work on the Lensbaby. These filters are not hard to use, but will encourage you to see the world in a different way, more up close and personal. This short and sweet review by Josh Root includes a few example images he shot with the Lensbaby Macro Kit.

Read the Gizmos & Gadgets: Lensbaby Macro Kit Review.

Kevin Kubota’s Branding Contest

Photo.net is proud to host this branding contest, to be judged by none other than Kevin Kubota himself, a pro wedding photographer and visionary behind Kubota Image Tools, AsukaBook, and Red Boot.

Criteria: Gather images of the following 4-5 branding items you currently use for your photography business:

1. Logo
2. Business Card
3. Website homepage
4. Blog page (if applicable)
5. One image you consider a “signature” image for your business

Create a gallery in your workspace and upload your logo, a 450px-wide image of your business card, a screen capture of your website homepage and blog page (if applicable), and one “signature” image for your business. Important: TAG ALL 5 branding images with “kubota branding contest”.

Then, post a 450px max version of your logo to the contest forum thread, along with your business name and location, and add a link in the same post to your gallery of branding images you just uploaded.

Prize: One winner will be selected by Kevin Kubota, and will receive the Kubota Image Tools Studio Pak (value: $1200USD).

Follow this link for more details and rules, and to submit your logo: Kevin Kubota’s Branding Contest.

Community News

YOU can support Photo.net!

Server space, programmer time, hours and hours of customer service all cost money. Photo.net is a business and we have to keep our head above water. How can you contribute to make sure that Photo.net keeps growing and improving? Here are four easy ways.

How to help support Photo.net

Top 10 Deals and Discounts from Adorama this Week

Note: these specials have a limited availability and tend to fly off the shelf quickly.

1. Iomega 320GB eGo Helium Portable Hard Drive
[sale price: $59.95 and free shipping, regular price: $69.95]

2. Nikon D7000 DSLR Camera Body, with Nikon 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED-IF AF-S VR II
[sale price: $1949.95 and free shipping, regular price: $2249.95]

3. Flashpoint 39.5×59in Collapsible Disc Background
[sale price: $29.95 and free shipping, regular price: $39.95]

4. EcoSol Powerstick with 8GB Memory, Portable Power Source for Mobile Devices
[sale price: $49.95 and free shipping, regular price: $59.95]

5. Vanguard Alta and 224CP Carbon Fiber Tripod with PH-22 Panhead
[sale price: $179.95 and free shipping, regular price: $219]

6. Elinchrom Ranger RX Speed AS Asymetrical 1100 W/S Battery Operated Power Pack Kit
[sale price: $1799.95 and free shipping, regular price: $1825.95]

7. Flashpoint CS770 Light Kit Case
[sale price: $99.99 and free shipping, regular price: $149.99]

8. Canon EOS 7D DSLR Kit, with EF-S 18-135mm and EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro
[sale price: $2309 (after $160 instant rebate) and free shipping, regular price: $2469]

9. Tiffen 67mm Color Graduated Filter – Sunrise
[sale price: $36 and free shipping, regular price: $42.50]

10. Flashpoint WSA-62 Water Tight Hard Case Medium
[sale price: $59.95 and free shipping, regular price: $79.95]

Find great deals on thousands of other products at the Photo.net Adorama Store.

What’s Happening In Our Forums

• Casual Photo Conversations (117 Responses) Film vs Digital: How much cleaner is it ?
• Nikon (68 Responses) Dilemma: D700 or D7000?
• Nature (8 Responses) advice on handheld insect photography at medium distances
• Pentax (22 Responses) Pentax 645D best Canon 1DSMIII and Phase One MF
• Canon EOS (101 Responses) Canon Thursday Pic 2010: #13

Go To Photo.net Forums. »

Editors’ Picks

And this month’s editors’ picks is… Landscape Photography.

Samples:

Also, take a look at what the Editors found visually interesting in the previous months—perhaps one of your images has been selected…

Also, take a look at some of the most popular Editors’ Picks from previous months:

• Flower Photography
• Baby Photography
• Night Photography