Fresh off the success of his last book, “The Moment It Clicks,” Joe McNally has returned with “The Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light From Small Flashes.” His last book mainly focused on the images and the stories and obstacles behind them, along with some technical details. “The Hot Shoe Diaries,” as the name implies, is completely about shooting and making the most out of hot shoe Speedlights.

The book starts off with the basics. A lot is covered in this section including camera and flash functionality, technique and lighting principals. Joe also talks a little bit about some of his tools of the trade and the rationale behind why he uses them. He does a great job of taking some of the more complex subjects and explaining them in a very simple manner. He also interjects his very funny humor here and throughout the book to keep things interesting.

Once you’ve got the basics down, the book works in a very logical manner: one light at a time. Joe shows what you can do with a single speedlight and stresses the importance of getting the light off the camera in most situations. As the book moves on, more and more speedlights are added into the equation, with the number topping out at a whopping 47 in one scene.

There are a variety of different scenes and each one is broken down in technical (but not overly complex) detail. You’ll see behind-the-scenes shots, before/after comparisons, camera settings, flash settings and diagrams. On top of that, Joe is an excellent storyteller and does a great job explaining why he uses a particular modifier or positioning in each situation.

“The Hot Shoe Diaries” is an absolute must-read for anyone who uses or is interested in using Nikon’s Creative Lighting System. There’s even a very useful appendix that breaks down how to set up all of the CLS-compatible lights for wireless use. While most of the information is Nikon-centric, a lot of it can be applied or translated to any hot shoe flash, making it an important read for anyone who uses multiple flashes on-location.

The Hot Shoe Diaries: Big Light From Small Flashes is available at Amazon.com. If you liked this book, check out our review of A Hands-On Guide to Creative Lighting by Nikon School, a DVD that features behind the scenes video of several of the chapters of this book.

This article gives five simple yet very effective tips for improving the quality of pictures from your point-and-shoot camera.

1. Anticipate the Action/Squeeze, Don’t Mash

Perhaps one of the biggest complaints people have with point and shoot cameras is the “delay” that the camera has between shots. This was a huge problem with older cameras and has improved, yet not been completely eliminated, with newer models. However, the camera is not always the one to blame.

A common mistake with point and shoot users is they want to (literally) mash the button and have the camera respond immediately. The shot doesn’t come out the way the user wants it, and they get frustrated with the camera. While point and shoots may not be able to respond quite as fast as a DSLR, there are definitely ways to improve your “keeper rate.” If you are pressing the shutter as the action is happening, you are already too late. Keep in mind when you press the shutter, the camera has to focus, and make sure the flash is ready (if you are using it) before it can actually take the shot.

First, point your camera where you think (or want) the action to take place. Then gently press and hold the shutter down half way. This allows the camera to pre-focus in the general area that you want the action to happen. Once it takes place, you should be able to gently squeeze the shutter and take the picture. Your camera might still have some hesitation, but it should be greatly reduced when compared to simply mashing the button. It may take some practicing, but this should help a lot.

The do’s and don’ts of holding a point-and-shoot camera.

Ideally, a tripod is the best solution for getting a steady shot. If you don’t have a tripod, use whatever is around you. You can easily brace yourself or your camera against a fence post, rock, tree, trash can, ledge, etc. Be creative.

This picture was shot with Leica D-Lux 4 at a shutter speed of 1 second. I used a railing to steady the camera and achieve a slow shutter speed.

3. Use the Exposure Compensation

Exposure compensation is a very valuable yet somewhat overlooked tool. A lot of point and shoot cameras have a slight tendency to over or under-expose the picture in certain situations. Exposure compensation allows you to override the camera’s decision and intentionally make the picture lighter or darker.

A perfect example of when to use exposure compensation is when shooting outdoors. In this situation the camera will do one of two things. Some cameras will “see” too much bright sky and have a tendency to slightly under-expose the entire picture. Others will brightly expose the foreground of the picture while blowing all of the detail out in the sky. By using exposure compensation, you can strike a balance between the sky and the foreground and make the picture look the way you want it to. Below is an example:

An example of the difference between a shot with and without exposure compensation. Scroll over to see the difference. Shot with a Canon Powershot SD800 IS.

4. Make Adjustments to the Colors

Another simple thing that is overlooked by many people are the color adjustments you can make within the camera. Sometimes this can be the difference between a good and great shot.

Although automatic white balance continues to improve, it can easily be fooled. Adjusting a camera’s white balance to a preset or manual setting generally will give you better results. You can use these settings to eliminate or reduce color casts, or even intentionally warm or cool the picture. You can read a detailed article on white balance here.

Using the camera’s color adjustment is essentially just like picking different film. The default parameters are usually pretty good, but making adjustments gives you more control over the final image. You can do everything from giving the picture more punch to having softer color tones. Here is a perfect example of the difference between the default settings and a quick adjustments.

An example of the difference between the default color parameters and switching to the “positive film” color mode. Scroll over to see the difference. Shot with a Canon Powershot SD800 IS.

We can also combine color adjustments with our last tip to get results like this:

Combining exposure compensation and color adjustment. Scroll over to see the difference. Shot with a Canon Powershot SD800 IS.

5. Use Flash Sparingly

We’ve all seen how unflattering the direct flash from a point and shoot camera can be. Generally your subject looks like a deer-in-headlights and the background is very dark. The simple solution: only use the flash when you absolutely have to. This will definitely take some practice and may not be practical in every situation (ie: moving subjects, dimly lit settings), but generally will lead to cleaner looking pictures.

Using flash vs available light. Scroll over to see the difference.

Another thing to try is using your camera’s “night flash,” when taking pictures indoors (note: this may also be known as other things such as slow-sync, 2nd-curtain sync, or rear-curtain sync). The regular flash mode relies completely on the flash to light up your subject while “night flash” matches the flash exposure with the ambient exposure. The only drawback when using this mode is your shutter speed can be very slow, so you might need to steady your camera or use a tripod. You can read a detailed article on the different types of flash here.

Keep these tips in mind next time you are out shooting. They can apply to virtually any camera. Hopefully these will increase your keeper rate. Happy shooting!

Rick Sammon is a renowned wildlife photographer, instructor and author of many books. His latest, Rick Sammon’s Field Guide to Digital Photography, is designed to be a handbook that fits easily into your camera bag. Despite its small size, the book is jam packed with a lot of useful information and tips for taking great photographs.

Field Guide to Digital Photography contains a lot of the information and techniques found in Sammon’s other books but is more straightforward and to the point. For example: Exploring the Light contained exposure, camera, and lens information for the majority of the photographs in the book.

In contrast, Field Guide to Digital Photography contains technical information only when it is necessary and focuses much more on technique, composition, the quality and type of light, and color. Like his other books, Sammon illustrates all of the material with his excellent portfolio of images.

One of the best parts of the book are the amount of tips for getting shots for various types of subjects and situations. There are sections for everything from people to wildlife, flash to available light, and cityscapes to landscapes. Sammon also has sections on travel tips and etiquette. He gives great advice on approaching people in other countries and making those subjects more comfortable.

Rick Sammon’s Field Guide to Digital Photography is an excellent resource for those who enjoy travel photography and want to get better pictures. The book is broken down into very clear and concise sections, making it easy to pick up and read or reference. Also, its small form factor makes it easy to take along no matter where you are going.

You can almost think of this field guide as a “best of” Sammon’s other books, providing the essential things you need to know. If you’re looking for an easy-to-read book without a lot of technical jargon, then this is definitely the book for you.

Rick Sammon’s Field Guide to Digital Photography: Quick Lessons on Making Great Pictures is available at Amazon.com.

The D5000 is the latest camera in Nikon’s entry level line of DSLRs. The camera inherits some of the D90′s features but keeps things simplified for beginners. It’s also the first camera in the Nikon line to feature an articulating LCD screen. I had the opportunity to play with the D5000 for a few days. Continue reading to see how it shapes up.

Editors Note: This is by no means an exhaustive review but merely my observations on the new camera.

Body

Unlike the last jump in this lineup from the D40 to the D60, the D5000 has had some revisions to the body design. The most obvious is the 2.7″ swiveling LCD screen. The screen flips out and can be positioned below the body or on back of the camera. The swiveling gives some versatility with the live view, and you can almost think of it as a digital waist-level finder.

D5000 Back

I did, however, encounter a problem with the LCD when using a tripod. I used two different tripod heads and both of them restricted the movement of the LCD screen while mounted. Both of these heads used the fairly common Manfrotto RC2 quick release plate. The lack of swiveling seems to differ on a head by head basis, because I didn’t have the problem when trying it on a ball head. It’s still something to be aware of, and I’m sure it will be addressed in the next revision of the series.

The design of the body itself feels just a little bulkier than its predecessor, the D60. The camera also seems to have inherited the slightly higher prism/flash housing similar to the D90 and D700. Even though the body is small, it feels very comfortable in your hand. There’s no question that it feels like a Nikon.

The D5000 uses roughly the same size pentamirror (not pentaprism) viewfinder as its predecessors. The good news is the basic 3-point AF system has been upgraded to the 11-point Multi-CAM 100 AF system from the D90. In my opinion, this makes the D5000 a much more viable candidate against its closest competition, Canon’s Digital Rebel series of cameras.

Controls

D5000 Controls vs D60 Controls

Nikon has taken the “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to the D5000′s controls. For the most part, everything is in about the same place as it was on the D40/60 line of cameras. The biggest changes are the addition of a Live View button and the rear INFO button is now dedicated rather than shared with the magnify button. If you’re used to any of the current Nikons, the latter change is a little confusing at first when playing back your images because you’ll have a tendency to hit the INFO instead of the magnify button.

Menus

The Information display is something D5000 users will become very familiar with. It’s still very easy to navigate, and can be accessed by pressing the INFO button twice. Most of what you’ll want to change on the fly is found in this menu, like the White Balance, ISO, release modes, AF-type and picture controls.

The menu system in the D5000 has been slightly tweaked to resemble that of the D90. The menu hierarchy is broken down into categories (autofocus, exposure, timers, etc.), making it a little easier to find exactly what you’re looking for.

Performance

If the D90 was the little brother to the D300, then the D5000 is definitely the younger sibling of the two. The image quality of the D5000 seemed to be almost identical to the D90, which should come as no surprise since they both use the same low-noise CMOS image sensor. You also get the same Picture Control functionality that is present in all of the recent Nikons.

The pentamirror Autofocus system performs very well, and I didn’t encounter any problems while I was testing the camera. AF in Live View seems to be slightly improved over the D90 but is still a little sluggish in comparison to some of the competition.

Perhaps one of my favorite additions is a minor one, the quiet release mode. I’m sure anyone who has used an SLR knows that the mirror slap can be very loud and obtrusive in some situations. In the quiet mode, the camera reduces the sound of both the shutter and mirror. You can also hold down the shutter after the exposure to delay the release of the mirror. This was a pretty common feature on many film cameras, and I hope it will find its way into the next wave of Nikon DSLRs.

Another first for a Nikon DSLR is the addition of scene modes, reminiscent of most point and shoot cameras. This may seem kind of foolish to experienced users, but I think these modes will help make the D5000 more accessible to beginners. I toyed around with a few of them and while they don’t do a perfect job, they make things a little easier for beginners.

Images

Here are a series of JPEG images directly from the D5000.

Nikon D5000, 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5, 1/400 sec @ f/8, ISO 200

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/500 sec @ f/8, ISO 200

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/6 sec @ f/4.5, ISO 3200

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/15 sec @ f/4.2, ISO 1600

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/15 sec @ f/4, ISO 1600

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/25 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 1600

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/25 sec @ f/8, ISO 200

Nikon D5000, 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR, 1/125 sec @ f/10, ISO 200

Conclusion

Consumers may have a tough choice when picking a Nikon since there are now three entry-level DSLRs. In addition, the D5000 competes heavily with the D90 since the core feature sets are nearly identical. Here are my personal recommendations on who should pick which camera.

First-Time DSLR Users: Unless you’re on a limited budget, I’d definitely pick the D5000. New features like the Live View, Scene modes and Movie mode are all features that will make those moving up from a compact camera feel somewhat at home. At the same time, advanced functions like a better autofocus system, better high ISO performance, and the new picture control system give a little more room for expansion than other “entry-level” Nikon offerings.

D40/D60 Users Looking to Upgrade: Users in this group are probably the most interested in what the D5000 has to offer over their current model. While the camera does offer some nice new features over its predecessors, I would say users looking to grow would be better off taking the next step and moving to a D90 (or even a D300). However, users who still want something small, lightweight and easy to use would most likely be fine with a D5000.

SLR Users Looking for a Lightweight Backup/Fun Camera: Paired with something like an AF-S 50mm f/1.4G or 35mm f/1.8G DX, the D5000 makes an awesome walk-around camera with a lot of versatility. If you own some of the bigger DSLRs and want a smaller rig you can take around, the D5000 is a very viable option. Even if you don’t have auto-focus lenses, the focus confirmation makes manual focusing a little easier.

The D5000 is without a doubt a great addition to the Nikon line-up. It builds on the success of the easy-to-use D40/D60 series camera, while finally adding some features to put it more in-line with the competition.