Tag: Ensure

by David Burgess on November 5, 2022 0

How To Use Your Arlo Pro 2 Camera

Arlo Pro 2 is a versatile camera that can be used for a variety of purposes.

Here are some tips on how to use your Arlo Pro 2 Camera to take better pictures:

1. Use the right settings.

There are a few different settings that you can use on your Arlo Pro 2 Camera to take better pictures. If you’re taking pictures of a person or object that is in motion, you’ll want to use the “Action” setting. This setting will help to freeze the action and prevent blurring. If you’re taking pictures of a still object, you can use the “Still” setting. This setting will help to capture all the details of the object.

2. Use the right lens.

The Arlo Pro 2 Camera comes with two different lenses: a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens. The wide-angle lens is great for taking pictures of large groups of people or objects. The telephoto lens is great for taking pictures of distant objects.

3. Use the right lighting.

The Arlo Pro 2 Camera has a built-in flash that can be used to take pictures in low-light conditions. However, if you’re taking pictures in bright sunlight, you’ll want to use the “Sun” setting. This setting will help to reduce the amount of glare in your pictures.

4. Use the right composition.

When you’re taking a picture, you’ll want to make sure that the subject is in the center of the frame. This will help to ensure that the subject is the focal point of the picture. You’ll also want to make sure that there is some space around the subject. This will help to create a more pleasing composition.

5. Use the right editing tools.

After you’ve taken a picture, you can use the editing tools on the Arlo Pro 2 Camera to make some final adjustments. These tools can be used to crop the picture, adjust the exposure, and even add some special effects.

By following these tips, you can use your Arlo Pro 2 Camera to take better pictures.

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by David Burgess on October 31, 2022 0

The Exchange Of Vows: What To Say And How To Personalize Them

Your wedding vows are the most important part of your wedding ceremony. They are your promises to each other, and they will be a lasting reminder of your love and commitment.

There are a few things to keep in mind when writing your vows:

1. Keep them personal

Your vows should reflect your relationship and your love for each other. They should be something that you both feel comfortable saying, and something that is meaningful to you both.

2. Keep them short

Your vows don’t need to be long, in fact, shorter vows are often more impactful. Keep them to a few sentences, or a paragraph at most.

3. Make them your own

You can use traditional vows as a starting point, but make sure to personalize them to make them your own. Add in your own words, thoughts, and promises.

4. Practice, practice, practice

Make sure you practice your vows before the big day. This will help you to feel more comfortable saying them, and will ensure that you don’t forget what you want to say.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

“I promise to love you, to cherish you, and to always be there for you. I will laugh with you, cry with you, and grow with you. I will support you and encourage you, and I will always be your biggest fan. I will love you unconditionally, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.”

“I take you to be my husband/wife, my partner in life, and my best friend. I will love and cherish you, and I will always be there for you. I will support you, encourage you, and be your biggest fan. I will love you unconditionally, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.”

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by Leland Richardson on November 8, 2021 0

Must-Have Camcorder Accessories

One from many hobbies that will give you not just satisfaction but also financially that is photography. I know, the cam is not cheap, if you want the best one, but it is worthy.

After dropping a few hundred dollars on a camcorder, you may not be eager to part with any additional cash on accessories. But there are some add-ons that are crucial to protecting and enhancing your camcorder and the videos it’s recording. Here’s a look at some must-have camcorder accessories.

A Case

A high quality camcorder case is among the most important accessories you can buy for your camcorder. A case will protect your camcorder from the elements and make it easier to carry your camcorder on long journeys. A quality case will have plenty of room for your other extras, such as memory cards, tapes or disks and even personal items such as cell phones, music players and keys.

Extra Memory

If you own a DVD, Mini DV or Blu-ray disc camcorder, you’ll need to have plenty of extra disks and tapes on hand for storing your recorded videos. Blank DVDs and Mini DV camcorder tape are widely available in a range of retail stores and online. Blank Blu-ray discs are not as widespread, but can be readily found online.

If you use a flash memory camcorder that does not offer internal memory, you’ll need to buy an SD/SDHC card or a Memory Stick Pro Duo card (if you own a Sony camcorder) to store your photo. When shopping for a card, try to buy the highest capacity you can afford. The higher the capacity, the more video it will store.

Tripod

There’s a reason why professional photographers and videographers use tripods (and single-legged monopods): they’re useful!

Of course, they’re also large and not always convenient to carry around. Still, for certain occassions like long sporting events and recitals, using a tripod can not only make things easier on you arms but also improve the quality of your video.

If you’re filming a game from the top of the bleachers or a concert from the back rows and using your camcorder’s optical zoom lens to get closer to the action, it will be very sensitive to motion. As steady as you think you can hold your camcorder, you can’t hold it steady enough to prevent camera blur (even if you camcorder has optical image stabilization). A tripod will ensure that video is steady.

DVD Burner

No matter what storage format your camcorder uses, burning a DVD of your video is still one the best ways to store it for the longer term. Many camcorder manufacturers sell accessory, standalone DVD burners that connect directly to the camcorder via USB cable or Firewire. A DVD movie of your footage can be burned directly from the camcorder without using a PC.

Many camcorders will feature a dedicated button for burning a DVD when connected to a burner from the same manufacturer. For this reason, it usually makes sense to purchase a burner from the same manufacturer as your camcorder.

Of course, if your computer has a DVD burner built-in, there’s no need to run out and purchase one. So be sure you don’t have an internal DVD burner in your desktop or laptop before buying an external burner.

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by David Burgess on July 20, 2018 0

The Latest Trend in Corporate Trophy Trophies and Plaques – Three Dimensional Effects

Corporate trophies and plaques have been given out since time immemorial. Initially carved out of wood, today corporate trophy is made from different materials, come in different shapes and are given for different reasons and on different occasions. As clients keep searching for unique ideas to make their trophy the most prestigious, designers have come up with the latest – 3D trophies.

So after movies and TV, now you can even have 3D corporate trophy in your house (of course you need to win it and not just buy it off the shelf if it is to be of any real value). Corporate trophy trophies and plaques are essentially not advertising or marketing material but they still do carry brand value. When you choose the 3D corporate trophy to represent your company you send out a message that you are not only forward thinking in ideas and technology but in the way you treat and recognize your employees too.

3D corporate trophies definitely look state-of-the-art but do not cost a lot compared to its peers. Initially the 3D effect was used only in promotional materials like paper weights. But with the arrival of latest technology three dimensional engraving has become cost effective. This has aroused great interests in the corporate world and many of these ideas are currently being used in form of corporate gifts and marketing material. The visual impact of a three dimensional trophy cannot be undermined. It connotes high tech capabilities.

The three dimensional image in a trophy is generally given form using laser engraving devices. These are invariably sophisticated. The images or logos or words to be engraved are first produced as a draft image in a computer file. This file is then fed into the engraving device which ultimately brings out the 3D effect in the trophy. It is very important that the first draft image is perfect keeping in mind the effect the final 3D image will bring out. It is also important that the high quality laser engraving is done by professionals only and not by any fly-by-night operators. After all it represents your company and you definitely do not want to settle for anything sub-optimal.

When designing the file for the three dimensional image focus on the follow criteria

– The message you want to communicate should be direct and relevant to your target audience. Avoid designing abstract figures, vague messages etc
– Avoid having big messages as the font will become smaller and the ultimate 3D effect will be lost
– Ensure that only trained technicians are working on your designing and engraving or the ultimate result on the corporate trophy will be less than acceptable.

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by David Burgess on July 20, 2018 0

Staff Awards that give your employees recognition

For companies that are interested in starting an employee recognition program here are some tips that will help you along. Firstly you need to you need to evaluate how management deals with your employees and evaluate if they operate on an open door or closed door philosophy and also evaluate the atmosphere as to whether it is business like, production driven, fun filled or customer orientated. You also need to define what the current mood is in the office and define if the employees trust management. Once you have established these factors then the second step is to determine the objective of such a program, by defining if such a program will benefit your employees and your company.

When setting up a recognition program you need to define the behaviours and performance you would like to encourage, as the certain type of behaviours you want to encourage will likely be repeated, not only the staff member you are issuing staff awards but your entire staff will start following this example. Make sure you get input from your employees and management with regards to the expectations required for a recognition program to be put into place effectively. Allow your management team and employees to make suggestions as to the behaviours and performance they would like to see rewarded and then use these suggestions as guidelines to identify the type of performance that will be recognized and rewarded with corporate Trophies and Plaques.

Once you have an agenda then discuss this with your staff to see if the measures are reasonable and worthwhile and most important if the program will increase productivity and incentive. Once you have a program in place then you need to define who will be eligible for each awards program and make sure once the program is running that there is no misunderstanding or misinterpretation. Define clearly if only certain divisions are eligible for awards or if all employees are eligible for awards. You then need to appoint a decision maker of which may vary depending on the type of program put in place. For example, you do not need a decision maker for people receiving awards for their extended services.

An ideal situation would be to distribute the responsibility and authority among as many employees as possible and at the same time demonstrate the type of work behaviour that will warrant employee awards, which will make it far easier for them to judge and understand the required outcomes. By distributing the responsibility, this will ensure timely recognition, as it is vital that employees are thanked for their effort promptly, otherwise such program will lose their effectiveness.

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by David Burgess on April 27, 2018 0

The best camera for sports photography

Improve your action images with the best camera for sports photography

The best camera for sports photography will improve your sports and action images no end. If you are looking for the best camera for sports photography you have come to the right place since this article focuses solely on the best camera for sports photography as well as all the lenses and accessories you are going to need to capture those awesome sports and action photos.

Sports is an excellent subject to photograph but due to the speed and fast nature of sports capturing those stunning images can be a real challenge. If you want to increase your hit rate and the number of “keepers” you need the best camera for sports photography. This is obvious, but what is the best camera for sports photography? Carry on reading, and you will find out.

So, if you are looking to improve your sports photography and need a new camera make sure you read this article before parting with your hard earned cash.

When choosing the best camera for sports photography there are a couple of key things you need to consider.

Sports and action photography is fast and quick moving. In order to increase the number of usable images, i.e. your hit rate, you need a camera with a high burst rate. The more photographs you can take in quick succession the higher the chance of getting the shot.

Full frame digital cameras with a high burst rate are very expensive and can cost several thousand dollars. Many people simply don’t have this amount of money to spend on the best camera for sports photography, or can’t justify spending this amount of money on a digital camera. Fortunately, there are some very good crop sensor digital slr cameras with burst rates that offer great image quality and are far more affordable. If you want the best value for money, and want to get the most bang for your buck these crop sensor cameras are the ones to buy.

If you want a camera specifically for sports and action photography a digital slr camera is the only digital camera you should consider, so don’t even bother investigating point and shoot cameras or micro four thirds and mirrorless cameras.

All the major camera manufacturers sell at least one digital SLR camera that is ideal for sports and action photography, so there is something for everyone. For the best sports photography cameras take a look at the products below:

Best camera for sports photography – Canon eos 7d

In my opinion the Canon 7d is the best camera for sports photography for the masses. The Canon 7d is tough, durable and, what I consider bulletproof. The magnesium body and seals ensure it is dustproof, waterproof and shockproof, which makes it ideal out in the field

The Canon eos 7d

The Canon 7d has an impressive 18MP sensor that allows you to capture high levels of detail and images that can be blown up real big. This makes it possible to crop and enlarge every photo taken, which is ideal for subjects that you consider “too small” in the frame because they were just a bit too far away for the focal length of lens used to take the photograph.

The Canon 7d has an impressive 8fps burst rate that allows you to fire off loads of shots all in one go, so you will never miss the action again. Just remember you are going to need to have plenty of spare and make sure you have some backup batteries.

The Canon 7d is affordable and the best camera for sports photography for budding sports photographers on a budget. The Canon 7d is an awesome camera and I highly recommend it, and it is for the reasons above I consider it the best camera for sports photography.

Best camera for sports photography – Canon 1DX

The Canon eos 1DX is the flag ship of the Canon dslr range and when you look at the specifications of the 1DX it is easy to see why, I mean 18MP full frame sensor, dual-digic 5 processors for a staggering 12fps burst rate, tough magnesium alloy body and an ISO range of 100 – 51,200 (which is expendable to 204,800) is jst some of the features.

Whilst I don’t own a Canon eos 1DX I have been fortunate to use one and I can say it is an awesome camera. The 1DX is bullet proof, the burst rate is something else (although it does eat memory cards), and the images it produces are exceptional, but would I pay the $6,000 + asking price?

If I were a professional photographer and could make a living out of sports photography I would, but as I am not there is no way I could justify the cost. Buying the 1DX is one thing but then there are the lenses to go with it. The 1DX doesn’t have a crop factor so if you need a lens over 400mm you are going to have to buy a lens extender (which is not ideal for sports photography because it leads to a loss of light and hence slower shutter speeds) or spend a few thousand bucks on a long reach lens, such as the EF500mm.

The Canon 1DX is a camera for professional photographers or enthusiasts with exceptionally deep pockets. A cheaper alternative, and one that is best suited to enthusiasts.

Nikon D7000

A popular camera for sports photography

Best camera for sports photography – Nikon D7000

The Nikon D7000 is a popular camera with sports photographers and it is easy to see why. The first thing you will notice about the Nikon D7000 is the build quality, which is superb. This is a tough and durable camera that is built to last, which is a good job given sports photographers spend a lot of time out in the field.

With a 16.2MP sensor the Nikon D700 is a powerful camera that is capable of capturing some stunning sports images that will impress family and friends. Sports photography requires a lot of cropping and with this impressive sensor it is possible to get 100% crops and still get excellent image quality.

The 39 point auto focus points helps to ensure the Nikon D700 finds the target, locks on and stays locked on and it does this very well. The Nikon D700 has a fast Expeed 2 processor which is essential for sports photography. This sensor allows for 6fps, so you can fire off a lot of images in quick succession, which is vital to ensure you don’t miss the shot.

One of the best things about the Nikon D700 is the twin SD card slots, which means you don’t have to faff around swapping over memory cards and can continue to capture the action as it unfolds instead.

Overall the Nikon D700 is an excellent camera and therefore has to be included as a best camera for sports photography.

Top Sports lenses for your digital slr camera

Capturing awesome sports and action photographs requires more than the best camera for sports photography. Oh yes, if you want to capture the best sports photographs possible you also need the right lens.

When capturing sports photographs you are likely to be quite far away from the action, therefore a long reach telephoto lens is needed. If you want to “freeze” the action and still get sharp shots you also need a fast lens, which allows you to keep the shutter speeds up.

There are plenty of great sports photography lenses available for all brands and models of digital slr camera. It doesn’t matter whether you shoot a Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony or Olympus, there is the perfect sports lens for your particular digital slr camera.

For some of the best sports and action photography lenses currently available check out the lenses below:

Best Canon lens for sports photography – Canon 100mm – 400mm L IS USM

Canon 100mm – 400mm L IS USM Lens

My most used lens for motorsports photography is the Canon 100mm – 400mm f4.5 – 5.6L IS USM lens, which is awesome. This lens is tough, durable and built to last. This lens is also fully sealed, which means it is weatherproof making it excellent for out in the field. This lens isn’t particularly fast but then given the affordable price tag this is to be expected. Besides, the image stabilization technology is awesome and helps to ensure tack sharp shots each and every time.

One of the best things about the Canon 100mm – 400mm is the push/pull zoom which makes it super quick and easy to change between focal lengths. With this lens it is possible to zoom right in close and personal or pull back to capture more of the background.

The image quality of this lens is simply superb and it is possible to capture some awesome images. If you want the best sports photography lens to go with your Canon digital slr camera the Canon 100mm – 400mm f4.5 – 5.6L IS USM lens is the lens to buy.

Top rated Nikon sports lenses

If you shoot a Nikon digital slr camera there are a few long reach zoom lenses available to buy, although the best (and most popular) are detailed below.

nikon 70 – 200 2.8

nikon 80 – 400nikon

nikon 300

Top rated Sigma sports lenses

Canon and Nikon branded tele lenses are expensive however there is a cheaper alternative, which is a Sigma lens. Sigma lenses are tough, durable, well made and the image quality is very good. Sigma produces lenses that will fit both Canon and Nikon digital slr cameras, so it really doesn’t matter what you shoot.

For the best Sigma sports and action photography lenses check out the products below, all of which are worth looking in to if you want to buy a Sigma sports photography lens.

Sigma 70 – 200Sigma

Sigma 150 – 500 Sigma

Sigma 120 – 400Sigma

An essential bit of kit of sports photography

The Monopod
Sports photography with big zoom lenses requires some support, otherwise you are going to experience camera shake and get some blurry photos. There’s no doubt about it, a tripod is the best type of camera/lens support you can buy however a tripod is not ideal for sports photography. Focusing on a moving object using a tripod is nigh on impossible, besides most sports venues prohibit the use of tripods.

The best camera/lens support for sports photography is the monopod, which is an upright pole that screws in to the bottom of the camera or the lens ring. The foot of the pole is place on the ground, hence providing a support for big and heavy lenses. The monopod is small (when collapsed), light and easily transportable, which makes is a doddle to carry around all day long. The monopod is a simple but very effective product that doesn’t cost much but will improve your sports photography photos no end.

Compared to other types of photography monopods aren’t expensive however it does pay to get the best one you can afford. Cheap monopods are heavy but made out of inferior materials that tend to flex and bend once loaded up with a heavy camera/lens combo. The best monopods are made out of carbon fibre and these are both lightweight, but most importantly strong.

Manfrotto are well known for making top quality tripods and their range of monopods is equally as good and the 680B is one of Manfrotto’s top rated monopods. This monopod is very strong and can easily support the heaviest of camera/lens combinations. I always use a fully gripped 7d combined with a 500mm prime (a seriously heavy set up) and the 680B can easily cope with this and never bends or flexes.

The weak part of all monopods is the joints, however this is not the case with the 680B . The joints on this monopod are second to none. The isn’t the cheapest monopod but it is worth every cent.

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