I sometimes go weeks at a time without viewing Flickr on my computer. That's because the mobile experience is so good. Both Android and iOS devices have excellent versions of the Flickr app, and I thought I'd give you a tour on an Android smart phone today (just for fun!).

In this video, I show how easy it is to view pictures from our contacts, then branch out to explore the wonderful, visually rich Flickr universe. If you find a photographer that really sings to you, you can add that person to your contacts list and continue to enjoy their images. I also upload and manage my photos using the mobile app, and I cover those techniques in other movies in this training title.

But for now, let's view the work of others on an Android device.

I explore the entire Flickr universe, mobile and computer, in my lynda.com title, Flickr Essential Training. Stop by and take a look.

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Many photographers shy away from harsh, midday light because they feel that they can't produce attractive images that time of day. But schedules and assignments don't always align with your lighting preferences. Plus, it's just not true. You can capture great environmental portraits any time of day.

This portrait of Francesca Parnigoni by TDS Workshop attendee Stephanie Skiff was captured midday in contrasty lighting conditions at the beach. The trick to controlling the light is to add a top diffuser, such as a collapsable Westcott 40" white diffuser available for $29.

The diffuser is positioned between the sun and the subject.

If you have a second set of hands, you can add a fill light from another collapsable disc on the other side. One of the many advantages to this technique is that you can shoot in burst mode because there's no worry about flash recycle times.

Flickr Essential Training 2013 - I explore the entire Flickr universe, mobile and computer, in my lynda.com title, Flickr Essential Training. Stop by and take a look.

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This week on The Digital Story show: An f/1.8 zoom, bad form! and a recap of the TDS Sonoma Coast Photography Workshop - All of this and more in today's photography podcast.

Story #1 - The Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM zoom for Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony Alpha, and Sigma features a constant super fast aperture through the entire zooming range. I've been testing this fascinating optic, and report on its performance.

Technical highlights include equivalent focal length: 28.8-56mm (Canon APS-C), internal focusing, fast AF, well-damped zooming and focusing rings, and compatible with the Sigma USB dock. Retail is $799 US, which is an excellent value for this lens.

Image captured with the Sigma 18-35mm zoom on a Canon 60D during the Sonoma Coast Photography Workshop, August 2013. Photo by Derrick Story.

Story #2 - Bad Form! I've just learned, thanks to an email from Diane, that the Send Me Info form on the TDS Workshops page has been broken. That means those of you who have tried to get on the reserve list for the upcoming TDS Fall Color and Safari West workshop in October, or the Aperture Intensive in November, have not been acknowledged. This is terrible! I discuss where to go from here in the second story of today's show.

Story #3 - A recap of the TDS Sonoma Coast Photography Workshop that just concluded. Oh my gosh, talk about some beautiful photography and a group of wonder people. Here why.

Listen to the Podcast

In addition to subscribing in iTunes, you can also download the podcast here (30 minutes). You can support this podcast by purchasing the TDS iPhone App for only $2.99 from the Apple App Store.

Monthly Photo Assignment

The August 2013 photo assignment is Street Scene.

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

iPad for Digital Photographers

If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks versions.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper -- Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

Make Your Photos Sizzle with Color! -- SizzlPix is like High Definition TV for your photography.Special Summer Sale! Just add "TDS: in the comments space of your SizzlPix! order, and you will get 20 percent off the entire order. Limited time offer. Take advantage now.

Need a New Photo Bag? Check out the Lowepro Specialty Store on The Digital Story and use discount code LP20 to save 20% at check out.

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Eight photographers experienced wind, fog, sun, coastline, and an energetic model during the 2013 TDS Sonoma Coast Photography Workshop held on August 16-18 in Northern California.

Photographer Emerson contemplating a scene on the Sonoma coastline.

Each participant presented their favorite images each day, and everyone agreed, the imagery was amazing. On Saturday, we focused on environmental portraiture with a model. We practiced a variety of lighting techniques using reflectors, diffusers, and fill flash.

Model shoot at the beach using a gold reflector and a top diffuser.

Then on Sunday, we worked the Sonoma coastline from Bodega Bay to Fort Ross. The mix of fog and sun against the rugged scenery produced stunning photographs.

Stephanie capturing a morning scenic during the workshop.

The Sonoma Coast workshop will be included in the 2014 season. If you want to get away from the daily grind and immerse in your craft with other talented shooters, them mark your calendar for August 2014. Dates for next year's workshops will be announced this coming November. Stay tuned.

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It's a common question, especially from new photographers trying to get their business started: "How do I protect my work and promote it at the same time?" We spend some time tackling this question as today's Photo Help Desk topic.

As Jeremy Verinsky points out, there's always some risk when publishing your work on social networks. You can take steps to protect yourself, such as formerly copyrighting your images or using a service such as Digimarc.

But as I see it, the trick for each photographer is finding a balance between protecting their images and creating new ones. Each person has their own comfort level.

Take a look at our response on Photo Help Desk. And if you have more to add, you can comment there.

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Managing your images in Lightroom, then publishing them on Flickr, is an easy workflow. I've discovered, however, that many photographers are not taking full advantage of the tools built into Lightroom to share their images online.

Lightroom allows you to establish, what is in essence, and "online collection" that is wired directly to your Flickr account. Using this collection in similar fashion as you would any other in Lightroom, you can move photos to your Photo Stream. In this movie, I show you how it's done.

Lightroom includes connections to other social networking sites, such as Facebook. So even if Flickr isn't your thing, the workflow is essentially the same.

Flickr Essential Training 2013 - I explore the entire Flickr universe, mobile and computer, in my lynda.com title, Flickr Essential Training. Stop by and take a look.

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You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Wirelessly transferring Raw and Jpeg files from a Toshiba FlashAir WiFi SD card or a Transcend 32 GB WiFi SDHC card just got a lot easier thanks to the new PhotoSync 2.0 for iPad and iPhone ($1.99).

In addition to PhotoSync bringing their smart "ease of use approach" to WiFi transfer, photographers can capture in RAW+Jpeg mode, then choose exactly the file type they want during the transfer process.

The process is easy. Turn on the camera with the WiFi card installed. Go to Settings on the iPad and choose your Toshiba or Transcend card that appears in the Wi-Fi menu. Launch PhotoSync and tap on the red "sync" icon in the upper right corner. Tap on Receive at the bottom of the popup menu. Swipe through the options until you locate your FlashAir or Transcend Wi-Fi card (see the top illustration). Tap on the icon and PhotoSync will connect with the camera. It literally takes seconds to do the whole process.

From this point, simply choose the images you want to copy to the iPad and sync. You can choose to have them land in your Camera Roll or in a specific album you've established for that camera.

And this is only one of 50 new feature in the PhotoSync 2.0 app. Essentially, you can move photos from any device to any device with PhotoSync, now including WiFi SD cards. It's essential gear for mobile photographers.

iPad for Digital Photographers

This is the kind of stuff I write about in iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks format.

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You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Finally, a clear night in Santa Rosa, CA. I mounted my Panasonic 25mm f/1.4 Leica Aspherical Lens on to the Olympus OM-D E-M5 and set the aperture wide open with a shutter speed of 6 seconds at ISO 1600.

I saw 8 shooting stars while I was setting up my camera. Now, all set to go, here's my Perseid meteor shower experience (26 second video).

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You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

iPad for Digital Photographers

If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks versions.

This week on The Digital Story show: Gloom and doom camera sales, an LCD-only existence (I think not!), notes from the field - All of this and more on today's photography podcast.

Story #1 - Gloom and Doom Camera Sales - the reports have been filing in: Nikon rethinks 1 System and cuts 2013 forecast citing poor sales, Olympus stems losses but PEN sales disappoint, and Weak demand for mirrorless cameras hurting major manufacturers. So what is going on here?

We've already seen the decline in compact camera sales, and that trend seems to be creeping into mirrorless and even DSLRs in certain price ranges. At the same time, smart phones are getting better and seen as a viable alternative to dedicated cameras.

This could present an interesting opportunity to enthusiast photographers who are willing to use interchangeable lens cameras and can produce images that look different than what can be captured with a smart phone.

Story #2 - An LCD Only Existence? I've just spent a couple weeks testing some excellent compacts. Although their picture-taking prowess is impressive, the big drawback was composing on LCDs in bright conditions.

Personally, I'm not ready for an LCD only existence. Even when shooting with compacts, which I love, I need a built-in or accessory viewfinder for those times when an LCD just isn't practical.

Story #3 - Notes from the Field - During my recent work in Santa Barbara, camping at Sugarloaf, and exploring the island of Oahu, I am more convinced than ever that traveling light improves my creativity. I explain why in the third story of today's show.

Listen to the Podcast

In addition to subscribing in iTunes, you can also download the podcast here (35 minutes). You can support this podcast by purchasing the TDS iPhone App for only $2.99 from the Apple App Store.

Monthly Photo Assignment

The August 2013 photo assignment is Street Scene.

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

iPad for Digital Photographers

If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks versions.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper -- Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

Make Your Photos Sizzle with Color! -- SizzlPix is like High Definition TV for your photography.Special Summer Sale! Just add "TDS: in the comments space of your SizzlPix! order, and you will get 20 percent off the entire order. Limited time offer. Take advantage now.

Need a New Photo Bag? Check out the Lowepro Specialty Store on The Digital Story and use discount code LP20 to save 20% at check out.

Want to Comment on this Post?

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Regardless of which camera I'm using on location, I pull out my iPhone for a finishing shot. Why? Because with the iPhone I also capture the geotags and correct time. I can apply this information to my "regular camera" shots later on in Aperture or iPhoto. This is especially handy if I forgot to change the timestamp on my DSLR while on the road.

Oahu at Sunset - panorama captured with an iPhone 4S and displayed in iPhoto. Photo by Derrick Story.

To simplify this process, I use Photo Stream to backup all of my iPhone images to iCloud. I've then set up iPhoto on my Mac to import all of the Photo Stream pictures into the iPhoto library for safe keeping. (And thanks to the unified library, I can open all of this in Aperture too.)

When I return home and open up my Mac, everything is there waiting for me... geotags and all.

More Aperture/iPhoto Tips and Techniques

To learn more about using Aperture and iPhoto together, visit my Using iPhoto and Aperture Together on lynda.com. Also, take a look at our Aperture 3 Learning Center. Tons of free content about how to get the most out of Aperture.

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You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.