New Powerex Imedion batteries

These days, almost everybody who does a reasonable amount of work with off-camera flashes has switched from traditional alkaline batteries to NiMH rechargeables.  Despite the significant up-front investment, rechargeables definitely save you money in the long run.  The first sets of AA batteries that I bought have been wearing out lately & won't hold a charge very long.  When choosing their replacements, I decided to try a new brand:  Imedion by PowerEx (Maha).  I've only used them briefly so far, but I'm definitely pleased with them.

Canon Professional Services

I've had to make use of Canon Factory Service several times in the five years since I got my first DSLR.  I discussed those experiences in a previous post.  I recently learned that (not surprisingly) Canon has a special program called Canon Professional Services that caters to professional shooters who use Canon gear.  It's a cool program, and anybody who makes money with their Canon camera equipment should seriously look into it.

Remembering war photographers

Rosenthal's Iwo Jima flag raising

It's Memorial Day in the USA--a day when we celebrate those who have sacrificed in the armed forces so that the rest of us may live free.  I wanted to take this time on the Prairie Rim Images blog to highlight some of the better known war photographers from generations past.  Photographers have been recording conflicts since the US Civil War, but it wasn't until after WWI that equipment allowed photographers to really become intimately involved with active conflict.  Many of these photographers have been honored for their work, and many have died while pursuing their passion.

They said it best

Today marks the first anniversary of the first post on the Prairie Rim Images blog.  That was actually just a "welcome" post; the first real meat was posted two days later.  I decided to celebrate by sharing with you all a number of insightful quotes about photography that I've saved over the years.  Some of these quotes did not originally refer to photography, but are nonetheless applicable to creative endeavors.  Hopefully some of these will inspire you to pursue a new direction in your craft as they have me.

Postprocessing software for Linux

As a long time computer nerd, I fell in love with Unix variants early on.  I've run Linux as my primary desktop OS since the late 1990's.  While that decision saves lots of money and allows endless opportunities to tinker, it does present problems when you get into serious photography.  Primarily, it restricts your options for photo organization and postprocessing software.  I've played with a few options over the years, and I wanted to share my opinions with you all.

Old glass: Nikon Nikkor-S.C Auto 55mm f/1.2

Recently, a co-worker brought me an old Nikon F3 body with a Nikkor-S.C Auto 1:1.2 f=55mm lens attached that once belonged to his father.  He knew of my weakness for old cameras and offered to sell it to me.  I declined, but I still couldn't resist putting this ultra-fast f/1.2 lens through its paces for a little while.  After a little experimentation and a little research, here's what I know about this lens.

I'm not dead (yet)

Those of you that have been following along regularly with my weekly (or so) posts here on the Prairie Rim Images blog are probably wondering what's happened.  Rest assured that I'm not dead... not yet, anyway.  I've been busy working on some big stuff behind the scenes that will hopefully be visible here before long.  I've also got a few new posts in the works that should show up shortly.  Thanks for your patience, and I apologize for the gap in fresh info here.