cameras 'n' photos

I always have a camera or two with me. And I use them too. A lot.

My day-to-day, always in my pocket point'n'shoot is a Canon SD1100IS. Little too auto for me so I'm looking at CHDK, Canon Hack Development Kit. CHDK is a free firmware addon that supercharges Canon cameras, unlocking lots of new features and capabilities.

If you ride a bike and want to do photography, still or video, at the same time you need a bicycle camera mount. Here are easy instructions on making your own bike camera mount.

Are you ready to photograph a bullet? Yeah, just like Doc Edgerton. Do have a pile of slides somewhere? Now's the time to digitize them on the cheap.

If you're feeling paricularly ambitious, try making your own DIY remote shutter release. These instructions are call for a wireless doorbell and a MOC 3020 or MOC 3040 chip.

Slightly less ambitious is an Arduino-based time lapse trigger. Won't work with my camera but if yours has an IR triggered flash it may be just what you're looking for.

I've always wanted a copy stand. Oh my fancy schmancy Manfrotto tripod does it but it's a pain to setup. All I want to do is suspend my camera, hovering over the item in question, parallel to the table. Here are instructions so straightforward I don't have an excuse not to do it.

Other times you want to hold your camera steady as you move. A steadicam is what you want, whether you can afford one or not is another matter. Some homebrew approaches use weights to even out motion. This guy's approach seems more elegant and refined. (Yes, I bought a Poor Man's Steadicam online. No regrets.) Of course, here's a quick'n'dirty steadicam. What's this? Another DIY steadicam? OK...

Do you have a memory card that's unreadable? Would you like to recover the photos on that card? Try PhotoRec. You can thank me later.

You don't need much to do creative things with your camera. A box is really all you need to get started. In the same vein here's a list of DIY flash & lighting hacks.

Ben would love this: a Pringles can macro lens hack. Pringles Ben, Pringles...