Happy Vampires

Can you imagine a world was no borders? Wouldn’t it be great if we can get rid of all the man-made lines drawn in the sand, which were done so or determined through corrupt governments and bloodshed of war? But what about our own borders in the United States of America with Canada and Mexico; two fine neighbors considering all the conflict in the world with other nations and we’re very lucky to have them next door and also grateful to be able to trade with such neighbors where civil unrest is rarely heard of.

However, there is a problem when one nation takes advantage of another nation and in our current case with Mexico the president of Mexico, Vincent Fox is telling his citizens to come to the United States and work and send money back so their economy will grow. And it is certainly growing very fast well over 5 to 8 percent per year and that he is extremely good growth for Mexico. Now then, an open border would be great and I had discussed this in 1999 in an article that I wrote regarding the legal immigration below

“For all open border economists and Freedman Economist extremists Xs 2, we must remember the disease, birth control, birth rate and education levels. If proper training is done we will succeed. But one thing that makes the US so great is the creation of the middle class. Destroying the foundation of the middle class through incoherent immigration enforcement and lack of action will destroy the fiber of America. Including the buyers of the SUVs, soccer moms, College system, and general welfare services. We are treading on thin ice and we need to pay attention to these things as they affect our daily lives. We are told of this great era we live, we are told of the great economy, but look closely and see where we are headed and it does not look so rosy.”

You see, the problem is not with open Borders the problem is with corrupt governments. Currently there are 24 million illegal aliens in our country and 60 percent come from Mexico and they are coming at a faster and faster rate each year as they are told to come here by their own governments. Something must be done and we must protect the United States of America from these invaders to prevent economic loss in our civilization. It is a serious issue and yes these folks are only coming to build a better life, but can we afford it? Consider all this in 2006.

“Lance Winslow” - Online WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/ Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; WorldThinkTank.net www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Everything you see is the result of selective reflection of various colors from the visible spectrum of light as they leave an object and enter the human eye for interpretation. Whether the format used as film or digital imaging the end result is a “picture”, which is first captured by a device and then transferred to a piece of paper, plastic or a combination of the two. Some forty-five or so years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency determined the chemicals used to create pictures caused problems with our soils and streams. The EPA began controlling the make up of chemicals used in the manufacturing of photographic materials. The same is true for various ink jet papers that now saturate the retail market place.

The kind of light, ultra violet, that causes skin cancer and destruction of the ozone layer is also considered the best solution to controlling the harmful effects of these “color” chemicals as they accumulate in landfills. Given enough “natural light” heat and time, the breakdown of color simpler and safer chemical compounds makes for a cleaner environment.

Unfortunately, the color photograph on the wall that looks so wonderful today has limited life span. The more light it gets the faster it will self-destruct. Some prints gradually begin to take on a red cast others turn green. As various chemicals in the printed picture break down, the viewer sees only the reflection of colors that remain. There is no stopping of this process of deterioration.

Before the color photograph, as we know it was invented, photographers used a silver process, true black and white, or a sepia process, silver and sulfer, in combination with oil paints to achieve “natural color”. Because the prints made were essentially metal with added oil color, the stability of the image is now considered permanent and archival in quality. Due to the color in oil pigments not deteriorating with exposure to light the viewer can expect these images to last many times longer than ones created using contemporary technology.

Today there are studios that reproduce old and new photographs of lasting quality using the time tested methods of archival printing and oil tinting. Because of the labor-intensive nature of this type of work it requires a higher cost. In today’s marketplace, many prefer quantity and low costs to quality and permanence. Unfortunately, the vast majorities of color image collectors really don’t know the difference between archival prints and color imaging and don’t understand the process of color deterioration. The retailers and manufacturers of color products offer little education voluntarily on the subject as their profits are best reflected in volume sales. Little consideration is given to the customer base, that views archival preservation as essential in photographs.

When shopping photo processes and vendors, ask questions about how the product you are about to buy. Will it last? How is it made and what are the guarantees and limitations? Ask how long they keep negatives and always try to archive your images.

William Heroy – Owner of Old Photo Specialists – Founded in 1973

If you would like more information:

Visit Our Website
oldphotospecialists.com oldphotospecialists.com OR email us at mailto:oldphotospecialists@triad.rr.com oldphotospecialists@triad.rr.com

Old Photo Specialists is a highly specialized restoration studio. We provide a variety of services including original restoration, digital restoration, archival black and white and sepia tone printing, hand oil tinting, oils on canvas and a large variety of photography services. We educate our clients on how to take care of, preserve, and archive their precious family photos.

Write to Our Studio
Old Photo Specialist
909 N. Elm St.
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(336) 271-6960

Why is there so much concern about Katie Couric moving to the evening news? The problem is that she’s considered too “perky”.

Perky women have problems being taken seriously because their quick and friendly approach makes them seem less thoughtful than their quieter colleagues. Perky people can be very serious, but they feel that it’s important to keep the atmosphere light and friendly.

That’s what causes a problem for Katie Couric. Her friendly approach seems perfectly suited for a morning show. The evening news is a different story. Many viewers don’t want friendly people presenting the evening news. They want serious newscasters.

So how can someone like Katie Couric appear serious enough to do the job?

This is the same issue that many other women in business face. If you’re a perky person, you may be concerned that people you work with are not taking you seriously. Fortunately, there are some slight adjustments you can make to help other people see you in a different way.

Facts vs Feelings – Perky people tend to focus more on Feelings. They may share their feelings more quickly and be concerned about other how other people are feeling. Their faces and body language show their emotions.

In order to look more serious, perky people may want to control their facial expressions and smile less. They may also want to limit the personal information they share with other people.

Thinking vs Action – Perky people tend to be more Action-oriented. They talk and act quickly. This may give the impression that they don’t take time to thoroughly think through what they do. In fact, they just may think very fast.

If you want to look more serious, take more time before you answer a question or take action. Add more pauses to your conversation and let people know that you need some time to think the information over.

You can get a full list of suggestions in the book, “Why Can’t You Communicate Like Me? How Smart Women Get Results At Work”. You don’t need to change who you are, however, you may want to make small changes in how you communicate so people will take you seriously and pay attention to what you have to say.

So if you are perky and friendly like Katie Couric, don’t be afraid to show your more serious side. It may make doing your job much easier.

Laura Browne is the perky author of a practical & easy-to-use book for women, Why Can’t You Communicate Like Me? How Smart Women Get Results At Work. To register for Laura’s Free Teleconferences, go to getheardatwork.com getheardatwork.com (This book is available at the website and at Barnes & Noble online.)

When Laura isn’t writing, she helps women be more successful through WOMEN Unlimited, a nationally recognized resource for cultivating leadership excellence, women-unlimited.com women-unlimited.com

Card counting strategies range from fairly simple to absurdly complex. This article provides instructions on creating a card counting strategy and in doing so describes the various characteristics of counting systems. It may be of interest even if you don’t wish to create a strategy but want to learn about the make-up of such systems.

Creating a new strategy is not difficult if you start with an existing strategy. If you wish to start from scratch there is a bit more work. There are plenty of strategies in the books. But, many people do like to at least modify a current strategy to better fit their needs.

Card Counting Tools

The following tools are needed:

Efficiency Calculator - Tells you how efficient a particular count is
Index Generator - To create new playing indexes
Simulator - To fine-tune and measure the effectiveness of the new strategy

Card Counting Tag Values

First you need to settle on the card point values. If you have already done this, you can skip to the Index Generation section. Although reading this section may add to your understanding. Each card has a point value like 1 or -1. There are several characteristics of counts as follows:
True Count vs. Running Count - As cards are seen, you keep a running sum of the card tag values. Running Count systems use this count for both betting and playing decisions. True Count systems require that you divide the RC by a number representing the number of cards that have been seen. There are various methods of converting RC to TC (e.g. division, multiplication, tables.) TC systems generally use this TC for all playing decisions. Most also use it for betting decisions. There are exceptions to both of these rules. RC strategies are generally easier to use and TC strategies are generally more accurate.
Balanced vs. Unbalanced - In a balanced strategy, all of the point values sum to zero. In an unbalanced strategy, the sum of all the cards is positive. Unbalanced strategies have an advantage because they can be used in the easier running count systems. Although they can also be used in TC systems. Balanced strategies have an advantage in that they are generally a bit more accurate (there are exceptions) and the count hovers around zero making counting easier and betting strategies easier.
Ace-Reckoned vs. Ace-Neutral - Generally the Ace is counted as a negative number (Ace-reckoned) or zero (Ace-neutral.) Ace-Reckoned strategies are generally better for shoe games and Ace-Neutral strategies are generally better for single and double deck. (Not always true.) There are compromise strategies (e.g. Zen, UBZ II) where the Ace is counted at half of the normal value. This is particularly good for double-deck and not bad for single deck or shoes. These days, Ace-reckoned strategies are more popular.
Level - The level of a strategy refers to the highest value assigned to cards. Level 2 and 3 card counting methods are more efficient, but quite a bit more difficult for most people. Level 3, 4 & 5 strategies also exist. But this is overkill. The most popular strategies these days are level 1. In a level 1 strategy, tens are counted as -1 and some or all low cards are counted as 1.
Side Counts - Some strategies use one or more side counts. The most common is counting the Aces in a separate count to make betting more accurate in Ace-neutral systems. This is because Aces are large cards for the purposes of betting but small cards for the purposes of playing when you don’t have a Blackjack.
Suit/Color Aware Counts - Some count will have different tag values for red and black cards. Examples are Red7 & KISS. The attempt here is to gain most of the advantage of a higher level strategy without the higher range of counts. I would expect the error rate would increase somewhat but have no figures for this.
Other ease of use considerations - The fewer the number of cards counted the easier the count. Also, the more card pairs that add to zero the better. This is because most counters count pairs of cards when possible. If you see a 1 and a -1 card at the same time, you automatically ignore them since they sum to zero.

Now, how do we decide on the card tag values? First you need to decide on the above characteristics. Second, it is good to take a look at the popular strategies that exist. Next, you need to understand Betting Correlation, Playing Efficiency and Insurance Correlation. These are terms created by Peter Griffin in Theory of Blackjack. Reading this book will help you a great deal. These terms are defined as:
Playing Efficiency - PE indicates how well a card counting system handles changes in playing strategy. Playing efficiency is particularly important in hand-held games (one or two decks.)
Betting Correlation - BC is defined as the correlation between card point values and the effect of removal of cards. It is used to predict how well a card counting system predicts good betting situations and can approach 1.00 (100% correlation.) BC is particularly important in shoe games (six or eight decks.)
Insurance Correlation - IC is defined as the correlation between card point values and the value of cards in Insurance situation. A point value of -9 for tens and 4 for all other cards would be perfect for predicting if an Insurance bet should be placed.

Index Generation

Once you have your card values, you need to generate indexes. First, you need to make a few general decisions:
Initial Running Count - The IRC is the count you start with after a shuffle. Balanced strategies nearly always have an IRC of zero. This causes the count to hover around zero. A few people start with a higher number because they don’t like to count negative numbers. This has no effect on the efficiency of a strategy. Unbalanced strategies usually have negative IRC’s. This is because the count rises as the shoe is played. The IRC is often set so that there is an advantage after the count becomes positive. Also, different IRC’s are generally used for different numbers of decks. This is not necessary but makes it easier to remember playing and betting decisions since the count has to rise significantly farther for shoes than for single-deck. Some people use zero for unbalanced IRC’s to avoid large negative numbers.
True Count Calculation - You need to decide how to convert the running count to the true count if your strategy uses True Count decisions. The most common methods are to divide by the number of full decks or half decks remaining. There is little difference in overall effectiveness. Full-deck is slightly better for betting and half-deck is slightly better for playing. HiLo Lite and the 1998 version of Zen divide by quarter-decks remaining. This makes betting a bit easier; but a bit less accurate. (You can see this explained in Blackbelt in Blackjack by Arnold Snyder when the next version is printed. It is currently out of print.) Some people use multiplication instead of division. Another method is to use a table of True Counts by shoe depth and running count. This is described in Blackjack Bluebook II by Fred Renzey.
Rounding/Truncating/Flooring - Nearly everyone uses integer index values for playing decisions. So, how do you round the true count after division? It doesn’t matter greatly as long as you use the same method for play and index generation. But, Flooring is currently preferred. That is, if there is a fraction, round down to the next lower value.
Which indexes - In older strategies huge numbers of indexes were used. But, most indexes have very little value. You can find a discussion on this subject in Blackjack Attack by Don Schlesinger. (You should read this book for many other reasons.) See the discussion on Illustrious 18 and Catch-22. Theory of Blackjack also has a discussion on the value of indexes. But, it is concerned primarily with single-deck and doesn’t take into account the frequency of decisions.
Risk-Averse vs. Expectation Maximizing Indexes - Older strategies generally used expectation maximizing indexes. (There are exceptions.) Such indexes result in decisions that give the greatest average gain for each bet. But, this is not always the best bet as the gain is so small in some cases it may not be worth the extra risk as in close doubling down decisions. Risk-Averse indexes reduce the risk which reduces the variance which allows you to slightly increase your betting levels. This provides a slight overall improvement in results. RA Indexes are now preferred since they perform a bit better with no extra effort. Blackjack Attack contains a discussion on RA indexes.
Index Compromises - Older strategies used the best possible indexes they could calculate at the time. Some newer strategies make compromises for ease of use. For example, the double down indexes for 9 vs. 2 and 9 vs. 7 may not be the same; but they are so close you can compromise and make them the same. This makes them easier to remember and use. If you wish to use compromise indexes you will need to first generate the correct indexes using an index generator and then use trial and error with simulations to test various compromises. Red7, HiLo Lite, Basic Omega II and 1998 Zen use compromise indexes.
Rules Compromises - Stand on 17 vs. Hit on 17, Multi-deck vs. Single-deck, Double after Split vs. no DAS. These all affect indexes. You need to decide if you want to go through the effort of using different indexes or determining what games you will most often play and just use those indexes. Or, compromise by using indexes that are in-between.
Composition Dependent indexes - These are indexes that look at the exact composition of your hand (8, 6, 2 vs. 10) instead of the total of the hand (16 vs. 10.) They add slightly to system effectiveness. But, few people use them.
Multi-Parameter Indexes - These are used along with side-counts to improve playing decisions. MP Index Tables are rarely used today.

Once you have created the indexes, you will want to run sims with different rules and penetrations to test your system. The best method of evaluating the overall strength of a strategy is by the SCORE as described in Blackjack Attack.

Hints and Tips
Read The Theory of Blackjack by Peter Griffin. Particularly chapters 3 and 4 as they will explain the value of card tags and indexes.
Some strategies use compromise indexes. Hi-Lo Lite and Red 7 are examples. These are indexes that are changed so that many decisions use the same index. To create these, generate the accurate indexes first and then run sims with different indexes to see which ones can be changed without impacting overall SCORE. These sims must be over two billion rounds.
Indexes do not make a huge difference in shoe games. The more decks, the less value you get out of accurate indexes.
The gain from using risk-averse indexes is really quite small. But, there is no downside.
To accurately calculate the SCORE, you must use an optimal betting ramp.
Some Split indexes are very strange. Splitting or not splitting goes back and forth as the count changes. This is because they are both offensive and defensive. That is, sometimes you split to make more money and sometimes you split to lose less money. 2, 2 v 3 or 3, 3, v 7 for example. It really doesn’t matter much what you do with these hands.
Indexes can change as the penetration changes. This is particularly true with unbalanced strategies, but also true with balanced strategies.

Norman Wattenberger Author of the Casino Verite Blackjack suite of card counting software products. qfit.com qfit.com

The sound of soda being sipped, the smell of fresh popcorn in the air, the scream or laugh the whole room has burst into, the actor saying the line he’ll be remembered for his entire career and a while after it – simply put, the movies. Though we’ve always been fascinated by going to our local multiplex or movie theater, are we getting the same chills and thrills, twists and turns as our parents were, not 20 years ago?

I’m not sure if this is an all-out phenomenon, but I’m sure there are some people that can to me when I say the movie industry has reached a standstill concerning interesting new products. Over the years we’ve seen actors get shrunk, cars come to life, we’ve explored new corners of the galaxy and the world of women as seen through a man’s eyes, so can anything still surprise us? The answer is yes, but producers are unwilling to search for our new desire, to experiment, to take a gamble and see what happens. Most things we see in movies today are inspired from other, much older movies and filtered through the director’s eyes. Is this actually a Hollywood conspiracy? Do they wait long enough to suspect people have forgotten the original and then do a cheap remake? Honestly, I don’t think this is the care, but it can’t be far from it. They must believe the original was a flop because of the poor special effects, but the truth is, the story was its downfall.

In contrast to the previous category, another type of movies does boast an original story, but using concepts from older ones. In this category we have zombie movies, most monster movies and hey, let’s admit it, even some action movies (Avp for example). Although this isn’t always a bad idea (Avp again, which I found fairly satisfying), the basic concept behind the character they “borrowed” from other movies changes slightly with each new adaptation. Most directors in this category prefer to inspire themselves from the most recent production involving the myth they want to use, so their idea will stray even more from the original than the previous one has. It is sometimes nice to see a myth evolve, but enough is enough!

I will admit that making a movie isn’t all too easy and coming up with an original idea is becoming increasingly difficult, but the fact remains: if it’s already been done, you will never get full credit for your work. Sadly, this is what happens with most “new” productions, because they found their stories on older ones. This is why more and more people exit the movie theaters disappointed, having hoped for something better. Or maybe it isn’t the movies that are changing….maybe we’re just getting harder and harder to please…

Read more articles on articleset.com/Music-and-Movies_articles_en.htm Music and Movies.

Born 1988, I have devoted my time to studying languages even as a toddler. The result of my work is a literature career that never started and a desire to perfect oneself that never ends. Although poetry is my first choice, having a collection of unpublished poems to account for that, I now write articleset.com/ free online articles.

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April 4, 2007

You might be astonished to hear that but that’s true. It is not an April fool’s Joke but it was really hard for Google Employees to find a snake. The incident took place on April4, when an email was received by a Google employee that a snake has just entered in Google’s New York office. The email came from the owner of a 3 ft. long ball python snake that disappeared from a tank on Sunday and entered the Google’s New York office. The email also warned that “Please do not attempt to touch the snake, instead, call security immediately”. Although, the snake was not poisonous but the fear of snake cautioned the employees of Google.

The news of this incident was first confirmed by a Technical news blog. According to them, an email was received by Googlers, short term of Google employees that a snake has entered in their premises. After that all the Googlers started searching for the snake but it became really impossible for Google Googlers to find the snake. Although Google Googlers declined to provide additional details but many bloggers and other forums are writing about this strange incident, presenting the fact in their own way.

After spending the whole day, all the employees lost hope about finding the snake. Thanks to the Kaiser’s (name of the snake) owner who was with the employees of the Google, Kaiser was finally caught in the night by the owner himself and all the Googlers could work with peace. The email also reminds Googlers that Dogs are the only pets that are allowed in Google’s New York office.

Visit genericarticles.com/” target=”_new GenericArticles to view news related to this topic and any other topic. You can also earn money by posting articles at genericarticles.com/” target=”_new GenericArticles. Read the Faq’s page.

Hemant Gupta, the author of this article is currently working as a freelancer and had produced a number of creative articles for many websites. If you are interested in getting content for your website or on any topic, you can always contact the author by using the contact form available at GenericArticles.com GenericArticles.com

Inversions

What are inversions? An inversion is a different form of the same chord. For instance, the C major chord is made up of the numbers 1-3-5 of the C scale which results in the pianist playing the following notes on the piano C-E-G simultaneously. An inversion of the C chord would be created when the C note that is currently on the bottom of the chord is moved to the top of the chord resulting in the C chord being played as follows: E-G–C Notice that I put two lines between the G and the C note. That represents the two notes that are not played on the C scale. If you continued to move the note on the bottom of the C chord to the top, you would then move the E to the top and create the following inversion to C chord: G–C-E

An example of inversions of the C chord are below:

First inversion is: C-E-G
Second inversion is: E-G–C
Third inversion is: G–C-E
First inversion is: C-E-G

All chords including major, minor, seventh, augmented, diminished, second, sixth, etc. have inversions.

A seventh chord will have 4 inversions because there are four notes in the chord. Below is an example of ʥ chord inversions.

First inversion is: C-E-G-Bb
Second inversion is: E-G-Bb-C
Third inversion is: G-Bb-C-E
Fourth inversion is: Bb-C-E-G
First inversion is: C-E-G-Bb

HOW ARE INVERSION USED?

Wow, that’s a loaded question. Anyone who has played the piano for any time at all realizes the importance of inversions! When I teach my students piano (and as taught in Piano By Ear for Beginners DVD) as soon as the student learns the chords, C, F, and G, they are taught the inversion rules and how to identify them. Then, over and over, they practice them until they can be played with ease and identified easily. Anyway, back to how inversions are used.

The two main ways that inversions are used are 1) chording with the left hand and 2) adding chords to the right hand melody. Since these techniques are covered in another newsletter, I will only touch on it briefly.

1) Using inverions on the left hand allows the pianist to use inversions of one chord near inversions of other chords when changing chords during a song. Using inversions provide a smooth and easy transition between chords. (DON’T WORRY…THIS WILL BE COVERED IN GREATER DETAIL ON AN UPCOMING NEWSLETTER)

2) Adding chords to the right hand melody helps the songs sound fuller and richer. You should always remember to keep the melody on top of your chord. (THIS WILL ALSO BE COVERED IN AN UPCOMING NEWSLETTER).

Inversion are used on the left hand between chord changes. Let’s say a pianist is play a song in the key of C. Since the three main chord changes for the key of C are C, F, & G, the pianist will be switching the left hand back and forth between those chords. If the pianist used the first inversion for each chord witht the left hand while chording, he/she would be playing:

C-E-G for the C Chrod
F-A-C for the F Chord
G-B-D for the G chord

When looking at the keyboard you will notice that moving from the C chord to the F chord is quite a jump. In fact, you would have to go pass the notes D, and E to get to F. So when changing from the C chord to the F chord, since chord changes happen quickly, the pianist could move from the first inversion of C chord to the third inversion of F chord. That way the pinkie finger on the left hand could remain on C and only the E-G would move up one note each to F-A like this:

C-E-G - first inversion of C chord
C–F-A - third inversion of F chord

That’s a comfortable switch without having to move all the fingers four notes higher like you would if you switched from the first inversion of C chord to the first inversion of F chord.

Using this technique, one can make chord changes with the left hand nice and smoothly applying this to all chord inversions and using the inversion of the next chord close to the current inversion you are playing.

See my complete biography at my website at thepianobyear.com www.thepianobyear.com

In 1998 Lord Edward Davenport acquired 33 Portland Place, a 24 bedroom mansion located in Portland Place. There are few properties that stand out as an example of fine architecture. Number 33 Portland Place is Lord Edward Davenport’s formal residence, however, the property is also used for special events for London’s elite.

33 Portland Place was acquired following negotiations with the Sierra Leone government. While the Sierra Leone government was complacent seeing their London embassy being bought by Edward Davenport, they later retracted this statement and dropped a court case against him. Portland Place is located in Marylebone, one of the most exclusive and grand avenues in London.

When Lord Davenport is not working on investments and overseeing his other concerns, he is in his second home in Monaco. He is listed as one of the richest men in Britain with an estimated wealth of £133 Million. He is also ranked as one of the richest men in Monaco.

33 Portland Place attracts controversy, partly due to the fact that Lord Davenport has transformed it into a grand residence where wild parties involving peers, royalty and A list celebrities take place.

Number 33 Portland Place was a house designed for entertaining The highest social circles from around the world - kings, queens, politicians, leaders and wealthy tycoons from all denominations - congregated here for business and for pleasure. As queen Victoria once remarked, on one of her frequent visits, “… this place has a palatial spirit!”

33portlandplace.com 33portlandplace.com
For more information on the property, please review the official site:
33portlandplace.com 33portlandplace.com

There are several answers to this question, depending on whether you live in the USA, China or Iraq. I choose to be facetious because many American photographers, in these times, seem to forget that they still have First Amendment Rights. There are enough discussions exhibiting confusion about model releases in the Kracker Barrel Archives to fill several volumes. All of it, like all legal matters, is open to interpretation.

My comments on the subject of model releases are always directed to the use of your photos in editorial situations.

The real test of this question about whether you should be trying to get a release for photos of children in public is the book, newspaper, or magazine publisher (the basic customers of editorial photographers) who would be the target of a legal case. A community art show or photo exhibit is not unlike your local newspaper publishing a feature photo in its Home Life section, or on its website. And in my forty years of observing editorial stock photography it’s very rare that a parent (or the child) doesn′t enjoy seeing their child’s picture in an exhibit or published in a magazine or book. No attorney on a contingency basis would ever accept a case where real invasion of privacy is of concern.

Our USA First Amendment covers this issue.

Frivolous lawsuits of this nature used to happen, it seems, more often back in the 70’s or 80’s. You’d think it would happen more now– what with all the sensitivity and fear that’s prevalent in our society these days. It may be that there are fewer instances — that many stock photographers have become gun-shy. They believe that they will get some “grief″ from parents if they photograph in public and then exhibit the photos at a show, but failed to get a model release.

What’s the result if you, as a stock photographer, photographing in the area of child development, domestic violence, social issues, child abuse, child safety, child welfare, etc. - if you don′t capture poignant scenes of what’s happening in your community?

What happens is, the other side wins. The pictures are not published and the corporate or governmental interests who would wish you didn’t expose their blemishes are happy.

Eugene Smith, Henri-Cartier Bresson, Margaret Bourke-White, never walked around with a model release pad in their pocket.

I repeat again, it’s the publisher not the photographer who gets in trouble if an irresponsible art director uses a picture in an insensitive way in the magazine’s layout, in a way that distorts or misrepresents the original nature of the picture. In other word’s, your neighbor’s child’s picture is used in a story about teenage gambling. Then a parent should rightfully take that publisher to court, and win - if the implication indeed is not true.

This would usually hold true also at a neighborhood art show or photography exhibit. When in doubt, apply the Golden Rule and ask yourself, “does this picture embarrass a friend or neighbor?” If it does, you might choose not to exhibit it.

True, there are always extenuating circumstances, and different interpretations of the law in different parts of the country. You’ll often find burly security guards demanding that you not take pictures in their shopping mall. Well, it so happens that’s where you’re going to find excellent subject matter on the subject of community life. For a security guard to attempt to take your film or camera or even hassle you unnecessarily, calls for a phone call to the police on your cell phone; the guard would be arrested for attempted theft of your camera.

By the way, be sure to carry around a “Bust Card” in your camera bag. It’s available in PDF form at < joshdale.com/bustcard.html> It’s a card you can carry with you and refer to on any encounter with the police.

But to be timid about photographing a child in public because “you′ve heard stories that you could get in trouble, is to deprive the viewing public of your talents and the way you see the world. You have to ask yourself the question, “Is this picture worth it? There’s a 1% chance that it′ll result in great hassle for me, and a 99% chance that it′ll belong in a retrospect of my work.”

Editorial stock photography is not easy. If it were, everybody would be doing it. Here’s a challenge for you (I give this challenge about every five years because a new crop of photographers emerges who have heard (usually by uninformed photography instructors and photo columnists) that they shouldn’t be photographing children (or adults) in public because the photographer needs a model release for that picture to be published.

So here’s the challenge.

If you can document a case for me where a photographer was taken to court (whether they won or lost), for publishing a picture (regular editorial usage) without getting a model release, I’ll reward you with a year’s subscription to any of our services here at PhotoSource International.

Take note that I’ve said, “documented,” and regular editorial usage (not sensitive misrepresentation). Photographers, Internet gossips, and my fellow photo columnists continually perpetuate the myth about model releases and all the trouble you can get into when taking pictures in public. But when asked for follow-up documentation, it’s never forthcoming.

So there. Photograph in public freely. Exhibit your work and sell your images in the spirit of “informing the public.” No judge in a court of law is going to fault you for that if you are sincerely interested in editorial photography. It’s your right. Even more so, it’s your duty to protect that right, by challenging those who would jeopardize it.

Rohn Engh, veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of “Sell & ReSell Your Photos” and “sellphotos.com,” has helped scores of photographers launch their careers. For access to great information on making money from pictures you like to take, and to receive this free report: “8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer,” visit sellphotos.com sellphotos.com

You may have been using your camera for holidays and family affairs and thinking from time to time that you one day should attempt to use it for other beneficial purposes. This is an attempt to show you some ways you can benefit from your camera but without touching on the commercial areas that we have discussed before. I have simply focussed on the overlooked areas that are beneficial to you on a day to day basis.

Make your photos look better before uploading to an online dating service;

Online dating services are just getting more and more popular. You may be considering this option to meet Mr. or Ms. Partner. You’ll want to look your best to capture the attention of your potential partner, so how about brighter eyes and whiter teeth? It’s so easy to enhance your digital photo using inexpensive photo editing software such as Foto Finish, Photoshop or Jasc Paint Shop Pro. You can adjust the overall brightness and contrast to generally brighten the image. Zoom in on your eyes and using the software’s polygon or magic wand tool, select just the whites of your eyes. Then use the ‘adjust color′ or ‘adjust exposure’ tool to make your eyes brighter and less red. Similarly, you can zoom in and select your teeth, then adjust the color and exposure. And there you have it! A fresher, more alert and attractive-looking you.

What about improving the sale of goods on eBay

I’m sure you’ll agree when I say that research shows that merchandise with attractive photos sell at better prices. People are naturally drawn to appealing images. To show your items at best advantage, you can rig an inexpensive tabletop “studio” using a sheet of non-glare white plastic and a PVC pipe for support. The important points to remember are having a uniform background behind and below the object and even lighting, either with shop lights or natural sunlight (through a window—it’s best to shoot indoors). You may need to adjust the white balance on your digital camera, which is easy to do on most new cameras. Then you should watch the auction bids rise on that item you’re trying to sell.

Store pictures of your personal possessions in case of fire, theft or loss

Before too much time and risk passes, you can quickly and easily take photos of your personal possessions such as TVs, DVD players, stereo equipment, furniture, computers and other expensive items so you have a record of them for insurance purposes. Be sure to log serial numbers and keep a record of purchase prices too. For safekeeping, transfer the images to a CD and keep it in a safe deposit box, or upload the images to an online photo storage service that offers unlimited storage, such as Pixagogo.

Your Own Digital Photography Scrapbook

This can be great fun and is always rewarding - digital scrap booking, or computer scrap booking, is the newest way to preserve your family memories. Using inexpensive, easy-to-use scrapbook software, you can create complete scrapbook designs and add fun fonts and graphics to take your scrapbook project to a new creative level. Computer scrap booking has really taken off in the last year because people are finding it is less expensive, fast and takes up less space (no more taking over the family dining table) to make a computer generated scrapbook versus traditional scrap booking techniques. Most people already have a computer and digital camera, and once you have a scrap booking graphics software package and perhaps invested in a scanner for older photos, you’re ready to go. You can easily color correct images, lighten dark photos, crop out old boyfriends, and even erase scratches from old photos. Most software programs come with special effects so you can enhance your photos and pages with antique sepia tones, torn or burnt edges, crinkles, soften or fade the edges, add digital picture frames, and much more.

Remember that your camera is not just useful for work and vacations and enjoy.

This article has been supplied courtesy of Roy Barker. Roy often writes and works closely with profitable-photography.com Profitable Photography Business. This site is dedicated to coaching you in starting your own photography business but places a strong emphasis on profitability issues & guidelines. You can also gain many photography resources (some free) from profitable-photography.com/resources.php Digital Photography If you seek further guides, helpful hints, articles and news, you can go to photography-business-tips.com photography-business-tips.com which also has a Photographers Forum for exchange of views with other photographers.