First, EPS and the Friends of the Loxahatchee Refuge are hard at work putting together the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge 26th Annual Photography Contest. Details for how to enter the contest are now available at the EPS web site. Yes, this is the very same photo contest that I criticized back in February of 2007. So, now I’m putting my foot in my mouth, as coordinating a photography contest is difficult work. Still, we’ve made some changes to avoid some of the more confusing aspects of the contest; and to help improve the contest now and in the future, we’re very interested in hearing your feedback.
Amy and I are also expecting our second daughter in February. Having a pregnant wife and a three year old has made this second time around a bit more challenging, but the rewards of having a family are worth sacrificing those very early mornings in the field. Still, I do miss those sunrises so I’ll be out and about for a few days during my two week holiday break.
About a week ago, one of my Western Digital My Book external hard disk drives, containing all of my RAW image files since 2003, failed. I had a backup on a second hard disk that I store at work, and so I was able to recover the images. It just reminds me that every digital photographer should have a good backup plan in place. You can lose those precious memories in an instant due to a hard disk failure. Although I already had a good backup plan in place, as an extra security measure I’ve now added a Drobo Firewire 800
to my list of backup devices. It should be set up in a week and will add that much more peace and security to my collection of over 600 GB worth of RAW files.Finally, if you’re a PC gamer, I don’t have to explain the time suck that is World of Warcraft Wrath of the Lich King. It’s my escape from my escape. For a while photography became my escape from everyday life, but since I’ve become more active with groups like EPS, the Friends of the Loxahatchee Refuge, as well as photographing events for the College of Science at FAU; I sometimes need an escape from my hobby. Therein lays the problem of incorporating your hobby with your work, because soon your hobby turns into work. But it’s all good, as long as you can set aside some time to yourself.
Happy Holidays!
