Shortly after I moved into my former home, there was a knock at the door. Standing in front of me was an 8-year-old girl who lived down the street. “I’m selling note cards,” she told me, “I made the pictures.” A second look showed subjects a kid might shoot but others demonstrated that she was thinking about the photographs before making them. I bought several note cards and asked about her camera, which turned out to be borrowed. With her grandmother’s permission I gave her an old, unused digital point-and-shoot. The girl loved the camera and was inspired to keep making photographs and we talked from time to time about her aspirations. Today she’s a young woman with professional ambitions.

Chances are you won’t be photographing in the negative numbers of extreme cold that Layne Kennedy often encounters—we’re talking -15 to -30 degrees Fahrenheit—but his experience with and guidelines for cold-weather shooting can provide you with a considerable degree of comfort no matter what the temperature.

Alien Skin Software has announced Snap Art 4, the new version of its artistic natural media application for photographers. Snap Art 4 transforms a photo into a beautiful work of art that looks completely handcrafted. It features a redesigned user interface and improved speed. Snap Art 4 can be used as a plug-in with popular host software or as a standalone program for even greater flexibility.

The new Nissin Di600 flash has a power zoom range from 24 to 105mm with a maximum guide number of 44 at 105mm (ISO 100). The head rotates 90 degrees left and 180 degrees right. The head also tilts 90 degrees. The Di600 is compatible with Canon E-TTL, E-TTL II, Nikon i-TTL and Sony’s P-TTL auto flash systems.

A few years ago I was reorganizing a closet and discovered cardboard boxes tucked into a dark corner. Much to my surprise, I found dress boxes and shoeboxes filled with photographs from the 1940s and early ’50s. I had forgotten that when my father died I inherited his personal photographs. That afternoon and long into the night, I sat on the hallway floor looking at the pictures and reliving some of those moments. It was like discovering buried treasure, a forgotten family heirloom.

On October 2, 1950, the first Peanuts comic strip appeared in a daily newspaper. As a lifelong Peanuts fan and Snoopy collector it’s fitting that this month’s column is my 2100th published magazine article and I’d like to thank the best editorial team I’ve ever worked with—Shutterbug’s Editorial Director George Schaub and Managing Editor Andrea Keister—without whom none of this would be possible. I would also like to thank all of those readers who have hung in there with me for all these years. You are the reason I do this.

Nikon Inc. has announced the Nikon D610, the latest FX-format HD-SLR to incorporate cutting-edge features and superior operability to help photographers create amazing images and Full HD video. Engineered for those enthusiasts who focus on the color, sharpness and clarity of their images, the D610 provides enhanced performance and image quality improvements, coupled with Nikon core technologies, all in a lightweight form factor. With image quality rivaled only by the 36.3 megapixel Nikon D800, the D610 is an attractive option for those willing to step up to FX-format.

Sylke Jackson is a writer and a teacher with a true passion for architectural preservation. This book clearly expresses that passion as we join Jackson on a virtual tour of the US and Canada to explore lighthouses. This is both an educational and a visual treat since Jackson wisely included a brief and high informative history of lighthouses from the Roman era to the twentieth century and a history of each of the structures photographed.

When I first saw the battery-powered Photoflex TritonFlash at a pro show I was impressed as much by its power output and flexibility as its tiny size. Available in a kit that includes one of the company’s light banks along with everything—except a light stand—the setup can get you started making portraits in the studio or on location with nary an electrical outlet in sight.

Early this year I received an e-mail from Cheryl Zibisky, adjunct professor in technical photography at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She wrote to recommend a student for our Student Union column. Cheryl’s name was familiar, and a quick search of the hard drive revealed why: she was our Student Union subject in the October, 2001, issue.