Happy New Year 2014

Happy New Year Everyone, I hope 2014 brings you every happiness. I thought I'd give you a kick start to the year with a quick rundown on some tech tools I found handy in 2013 and maybe you'll find them useful too. I've also put together a photo essay of my 2013 (with a little inspiration from my daughter Jess, she did one first :-)) I hope you enjoy it, but first here are my seven favourite apps for 2013. Just click on the images to go to the app. If you are using an Android device, many of these apps are also available to you. The eGuide to Australian Birds is essential if you love photographing birds. I don't profess to be a bird expert by any stretch but I do like to know what I have photographed and this app is brilliant. Works on iPhone and iPad and worth every cent. Snapseed by Google (previously NIK) is my goto app for processing images on my phone or iPad. Has all that you need to enhance your basic images and make them a little bit special. It'll break the bank too at $0.00!!! Just get it. If you are new to photography or struggling with the concept of Depth of Field (DOF) then this app is for you. I still use it to demonstrate to workshop participants just how aperture, f-stops and DOF all come together. Well worth the 99 cents :-) If you are heading off for a shoot, landscape, birds, wildlife, portrait or any outdoor subject, then it pays to know what the weather is doing. This app automatically provides the weather for your location giving you sunrise and sunset and also access to tide tables and radar. Great if you are trying to capture those amazing storm front images. Another very handy tool for the landscape photographer The Photographer's Ephemeris or TPE. You can download a free version for your laptop or desktop computer but the mobile app is far more useful. TPE shows you exactly where the sun and moon will rise and set on a satellite map and even allows for geographic interference (sunrise down in a valley will be much later than at the top of the ridge). Great for planning ahead. 500PX is the place to go for inspiration or just to enjoy some amazing photography. Make sure you 'Follow' me once you log on :-))) Good old iBooks comes with your Apple device but one use you may have overlooked is the ability to view and store your PDFs. Especially useful for your camera, flash and lens manuals (yes lenses come with manuals and some really need it too!) I personally find it invaluable for this purpose so that when running a workshop I have most popular camera model's manuals on hand. Oh, and its great for reading ebooks too :-) So there you go. Seven very handy apps for any photographer and now here is my 2013 Photo Essay. Have a fantastic 2014!! Cheers, Mark