For me, Gordon Lightfoot’s music tells interesting stories while his soothing melodies and talented guitar-playing have kept my attention for more than 40 years. With camera in hand, we went to hear him perform again in concert at the lovely DeVos Hall here in Grand Rapids.

Concerts and Stage Productions
Concerts and stage productions are most often set against very dark backgrounds such as this one. Since the camera sets the exposure by averaging the amount of light in a scene, a brightly lighted face is often overexposed.	The easiest way to prevent the performer’s face from being washed out is to reduce the exposure. For this shot, I used the camera’s exposure compensation to make a -2 (f/stop) adjustment. The face is now clearly visible.

Note: this article was adapted from an earlier one published in March 2010.

So many new and amazing digital cameras, lenses and accessories seem to appear daily that I can’t help but feel overwhelmed with difficult choices about where to invest my hard earned cash in the name of better photography. When I see an announcement for a new camera with its tantalizing machine gun-like frames-per-second or super-fast auto-focusing ability my hands start to get itchy at the thought of feeling a new, sleek camera body; handling a bright, shiny lens or setting up a slick tripod head.

The problem is that I start feeling guilty when the itching starts. Why am I adding to the inventory of photo equipment when I already have an ample supply? I know a few other “collectors of photo equipment” and like them, the compelling draw of the latest and greatest is not unlike the effect that drugs have on an addict.

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Over the past few weeks we’ve been preparing our popular DSLR Stay Focused Guides for the iPad. Starting today, you can now get any of these five apps immediately through iTunes.

Canon XS Canon XSi Nikon D40 Nikon D60 Nikon D3000 Canon T2i (coming soon) Nikon D5000 (coming soon)

Each app presents dozens of easy-to-follow chapters for taking even better photos. We show you both the “before” and “after” pictures and the fully illustrated camera settings that will turn your snapshots into gallery quality photographs. For the iPad, our full-color, 180-page books with easy-to-use navigation, fast thumbnail access and instant bookmarking for recalling your place give you a very convenient way to take it with you. 

You can purchase any of these apps from iTunes and going to our iPad Apps.

If you’d rather read the printed versions of these books, please click here.

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