Elastic mouse syndrome...

Ok, I'm a jerk.

It took me over thirty minutes to figure out why my mouse just stopped working (a Logitech wireless Laser something or other).  It was fine this morning.  Tonight, all the mouse pointer does is move about a quarter inch on the screen and bounce back to where it started..

I rebooted.  Un-plugged and plugged back in.  Changed batteries.  Moved it around the desk.  Nuthin' worked.  It might as well be velcro'd to the computer screen.

The culprit?

Stick your Wacom pen in the nifty little holder Wacom provides and put the pen and holder on the tablet's writing surface.

Thank you teacher, I'll just take a zero on this..

Photographer's Rights..

A topic that comes up virtually every time a group of photogs get together is "are we free to photograph buildings, subway and train platforms or other public places without fear of legal issues?"....

It has been my understanding that photography in and of such public places is indeed legal, though I couldn't prove it...until now.  A New York City Police Department Operations Order from April of 2009, titled "Investigation of Individuals Engaged in Suspicious Photography" clearly states that not only is it common to engage in photography within New York City, but that "Given the Cities prominence as a tourist destination, practically all such photography will have no connection to terrorism or unlawful conduct."

That just about covers the legality, but it doesn't help when you are confronted with a police officer who hasn't boned up on his/her Operations Orders, or is just set on making life miserable and demands that you either show your images as proof (of what, I am not sure) or worse, delete your images from the camera, or surrender the film.  The brief goes on to say that a police officer "may not demand to view photographs" without major cause.

I now carry a copy of this document in pdf format in my iPhone just in case I need to support my actions...that said, while I have never been stopped while photographing in and New York City, I were confronted while shooting, I would just take the path of least resistance and show the officer the images..and reserve challenging the officer with the Operations Order for the most extreme of situations...  YMMV.

Click the thumbnail for a larger copy

The dual monitor solution...Maximizing the Lightroom experience

I'm hooked.

I used to think working with two monitors would be confusing and not worth the amount of desktop real-estate you must dedicate to the second monitor. 

But after watching what I think is a great video by Adobe's Julieanne Kost, I must say it has made working in Lightroom much more efficient and enjoyable. 


If you have only one monitor, don't fear...watch the video through to the end and Julieanne will share how the same techniques designed for the dual monitor solution can be applied with a single monitor.

hhmmm...  should this be a Pick of the Week?