Tom's Gallery

Archive for September, 2011

Enumerate to me the ways to earn from photography: 1) photography studio; 2) photo contribution to prints like newspaper, magazines; 3) event photo documentation like weddings, parties, conventions, conferences, seminars, trainings and other social and business events; 4) photo editing; 5) photo printing; 6) photography classes; 7) camera repairs.

Well, above were old earning ways of photography. Kodak is introducing one through their Kodak Gallery affiliate program. Eighth is just spreading about the Gallery through your website and earn.
The Kodak Gallery affiliate program is definitely a sell-out because almost everyone is now into photography with cheaper digital cameras and mobile phones with cameras that are equally capable of the regular cameras. Proof: mushrooming of photography clubs and the massive uploads of photos in the internet, especially in social networks.

Though Kodak has not pioneered in digital photography, it has pioneered a photography-related affiliate program management.

The Gallery is a premier online photo service, with easy photo sharing, print and home-delivered gifts features. Joining, like any affiliate program, is also free and easy.

After registration, Kodak Gallery will give you banner ads, buttons and links to place on your website. When a user visits Kodakgallery.com through your site and becomes a customer, you earn cash rewards.

Earn varied commissions from new customer purchase ($10), return customer purchases (7%) and purchases from your own personal gallery. There are also non-cash incentives like 60-day cookie, consumer promotions and sales and contests.

The value added under the Gallery is that not only you benefit from being a Kodak affiliate, but your customers too. Photo prints and sharing becomes easier and more secured to them. They too have 20 free prints if they are new customer, free Kodak Easyshare software, exclusive Martha Stewart-designed photo products, and large selection of personalized products, including photo books, cards, mugs, calendars and photo gifts. They also open their Idea Center for creative inspirations and offers convenient in-store print pick-up.

The downside though is it is only available in United States of America and you only get your check after you accumulated $25.00 or more.

But, hey! Kodak is giving you another source of income. So, say cheese!

Your beautiful bathroom picture gallery

I’m always surprised when I hear of people who embark upon lengthy and expensive bathroom remodeling projects but don’t bother to record progress in any way. It only takes a few minutes to photograph all aspects of your bathroom especially if you have a digital camera, and the results will serve you well as both a tool in the redesign and as a talking point and reminder for the future.

What you must remember when you’re about to begin your bathroom remodel is that your bathroom is never again going to look like it does now. Once all the fixtures have been ripped out, all the ceramic tiles hacked off the wall and the floor covering is lifted, it’s never going to look the same again. In fact you won’t even recognise it.

Try to look forward a few weeks to the point in time when your bathroom remodel is complete and you are admiring it for the first time. You are going to wish that you had taken a few pictures of the bathroom before it was remodeled because you’re already having trouble remembering what it used to look like.

Bathroom remodeling picture – Before work starts

Why should you bother to record a picture of bathroom renovations in this way? Well first of all you are going to forget what your bathroom looked like before the redesign. You might not think it now but you will and even if you don’t you’re going to have a hard time explaining what it looked like to anyone that asks.

If you take pictures of your bathroom before remodeling then you will have a permanent record of what it looked like to refresh your memory and to show to your friends. The pictures that I took of my small bathroom before remodeling began are a constant reminder to me of how bad it was and they more than justify my decision to spend the money on the bathroom makeover.

The before and after bathroom remodel picture gallery from my small bathroom renovation can be viewed at Pictures of Bathrooms Before and After Remodeling

Bathroom remodeling picture – While work is in progress

I like to make a visual record of any major work I have done by taking pictures at regular intervals as the work progresses. If you photograph your bathroom say once a day it will give you the opportunity to review the work as it evolves in your own time. Pay particular attention to any detailed work being carried out and be sure to photograph any new pipe work that hasn’t been boxed in yet.

Pictures of pipe work and other detail that hasn’t yet been covered up can come in very handy later if you ever need to have more work done on your bathroom. The pictures will show you exactly where the pipes and other concealed features are located. You will also be able to examine the quality of joints and bends in the plumbing and identify any problems early.

You might also want to use some of your pictures to point out to your contractors any problems that you want them to correct. I like to take work-in-progress pictures like this when the contractors aren’t around so that I can poke around in places they might not want me to go.

Bathroom remodeling picture – After the dust settles

Any new bathroom picture that you take after remodeling has been completed will be amongst the most satisfying of all the pictures in your visual record. At this time your bathroom looks clean, bright, uncluttered and the ceramic tiles are gleaming. You will want to refer to these pictures often to make sure that you keep your beautiful bathroom looking the same as it does now.

All your friends will be interested in seeing your before and after bathroom remodeling pictures especially if they are considering doing something similar themselves. Make sure that you show off the dream bathroom picture that you have created for yourself and be proud of it.

If you’re an infrequent visitor to London and plan to hit the tourist trail then the last thing you’ll want is to be pointed in the direction of the underwhelming, the uninspiring or the instantly forgettable. There’s enough of that where you live, which is why you’re visiting London!

Our guide features London’s best galleries, museums, landmarks, historical sites, shopping areas and entertainment zones, all guaranteed to provide the ultimate London tourist experience. The attractions we’ve highlighted are unashamedly well known, but do you really want to be returning home to tell your friends about the fantastic thimble shop in Pimlico you visited? Or would you rather rave about the phenomenal view of one of the world’s great cities from the top of The Eye, or that you’ve actually seen the beauty of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers with your own eyes?

London has a multitude of varied and exciting attractions but these are the ones without which, your trip just wouldn’t be the same!

Oxford Street
Britain’s busiest high street and London’s best known shopping area is chock-a-block full of the largest branches of the nation’s most popular shops – over 300 in fact. Many of the biggest high street names have their flagship stores here and the street also boasts the oldest record shop in the world (HMV at number 363). It’s not all hardcore shopping though – light entertainment is often provided in the form of chanting Hari Krishnas skipping along the pavement. If you can’t find what you want to buy in Oxford Street, you haven’t got much of a hope elsewhere.

Nearest Tubes: Marble Arch, Bond Street, Oxford Circus, and Tottenham Court Road

Camden Market
If you’re after a more bohemian approach to shopping than the Oxford Street experience, then get yourself up to Camden. One of London’s coolest areas has a seemingly endless array of shops and stalls selling such items as clothing (new, second hand and retro), customised Doc Martins and trainers, jewellery, bootleg CDs and DVDs and craft ware. Open daily; it’s a multi cultural experience with some great little food outlets dotted all over.

Nearest Tube: Camden Town

Tower of London
Built by Billy The Conqueror nearly a thousand years ago, this is one of the best preserved and most famous historic landmarks in the world. Full of the history of executions and imprisonments and offering the spectacle of the Beefeaters, the ravens and the crown jewels as well as the majesty of the building itself, this remains THE essential place of historic interest to visit when in London. camelotintl.com/tower_site/index.html

Nearest Tube: Tower Hill.

St. Paul’s Cathedral
Britain’s best known place of worship and certainly one of its most recognisable buildings, having so often been the centrepiece of state occasions. The cathedral was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built 300 years ago following the destruction of the previous building by the Great Fire Of London. An awe inspiring feat of architecture, steeped in history and featuring works of art, monuments, mosaics and the Whispering Gallery, the Cathedral is also still a busy working church. So booking your wedding here during the summer months might just be a bit tricky.

Nearest Tube: St Pauls

National Gallery
The National Gallery is home to one of the greatest collections of European art in the world. Featuring works painted between 1250 and 1900, the collection includes such well known pieces as Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, Botticelli’s Venus And Mars and Constable’s Hay Wain. Sadly, the work of the great Rolf Harris is too recent and too Australian to be included – see the Tate Modern.

Nearest Tube: Charing Cross. Admission: Free

British Museum
Founded over 250 years ago, it could be said that the British Museum is one of London’s oldest and most prized exhibits – the museum building itself is one of Britain’s greatest architectural landmarks. Housed inside is a collection of art and antiquities from ancient and living cultures the world over spanning two million years featuring the Rosetta Stone, the Easter Island statue and the earliest known image of Christ.

Nearest Tubes: Tottenham Court Road, Goodge Street, Russell Square & Holborn. Admission: Free

London Eye
Undoubtedly the quickest way to take in all of London’s major attractions is by jumping on the Eye. There’s not much of the city that can’t be seen from the top of what has become one of the London skyline’s most dominating features. To further enhance your flight on this modern day feat of engineering, you can even order champagne to be served in your capsule (not recommended for the easily nauseas). http://www.londoneye.com

Nearest Tubes: Waterloo & Westminster.

Tate Modern
If random blobs of paint on canvas and piles of rusty old engine parts is your idea of art, then get yourself down to the Tate Modern. Created in a disused power station on the banks of the Thames, the gallery has become one of London’s most fascinating attractions since opening in 2000. The collection features works by Picasso, Matisse, Dali, Pollock and Warhol and represents all the major movements since 1900. Sadly, the work of the great Rolf Harris is too art like to be included – see the National Gallery.

Nearest Tubes: Southwark & Blackfriars. Admission: Free (however donations are gratefully received)

Covent Garden
Formerly a fruit and vegetable market, ‘The Garden’ is now a constant and varied hive of activity. It has a hugely diverse selection of shops, eateries, bars, a market selling art, crafts, antiques and souvenirs, historic buildings, theatres, the Royal Opera House and fantastic free entertainment provided by street entertainers and musicians. If you can’t find something to capture your interest at Covent Garden then you must be harder to please than Simon Cowell on a bad day.

Nearest Tube: Covent Garden.

Trafalgar Square
Undoubtedly one of the most famous sights of London without visiting which, a trip to the capital would be incomplete. Not only are tourists drawn to see Nelsons Column, the fountains, the lions, the annual gift of a huge Christmas tree from Norway and the pigeons (dirty little so and sos), but it is where the masses flock to in times of national celebration or when there is cause to demonstrate. Trafalgar Square truly is the meeting place of the nation.

Nearest Tube: Charing Cross.