Midwest Photo Safari
Midwest Photo Safari Newsletter April, 2010 - Vol 1 Issue 16

Click HERE to view as a web page

In this issue:

• what's new at MPS
• photo tip of the month ... A Collection of helpful hints on cleaning and caring for your digital camera
 • safarian "image gallery"
• our current safaris
 • history tidbits

WHAT'S NEW AT MPS?
   Due to increasing demand for our spring, summer, and fall safaris, our Mall of America, Light Rail, and Minneapolis Skyway safaris have been changed to seasonal. These 4 tours will now run November 1st through April 30th.

OUR CURRENT SAFARIS NOW INCLUDE:

On another note, For those of you doing the morning Heritage Trail Safari, please note that the start time is now 8:30 AM instead of 8:00 AM.

All of these safaris, except those that include the Skyways, run Tuesdays thru Saturdays. The Skyway Tours run Tuesdays thru Fridays

for complete schedules, visit our Web Site

  Get your Digital Camera ready for the "Busy" Season

A Quick Spring "Tune Up"

Clean the LCD. Smudges and fingerprints make viewing an image on the screen much more difficult. I use a home made solution to do general cleaning on my cameras. It consists of  4 oz. of rubbing alcohol (91% isopropol) with 4 oz. of water in a plastic spray mist bottle. Place the lid tightly on the bottle and shake well to combine. Label the bottle with its contents to avoid confusion later. Include the date when the solution was made. I only keep the solution 6 months. Store the bottle in a cool, dry place, away from children, when not in use.

Use a soft cloth to apply the alcohol solution to the LCD screen. Gently wipe in one direction, and then back in the opposite direction. Do not move the cloth in a circular motion. Make sure you handle all moving parts of the camera with care. Never force hinges, buttons or dials. Always turn off the camera before removing or disconnecting the power source or a cable, or removing the battery or memory card.

Here are some do's and don'ts on general camera care:

ALWAYS...

(A)  keep your camera dry and free from condensation. Store your camera correctly if it isn’t going to be used for a long time. Keep it in a cool, dry place with packets of silica gel to prevent condensation. Remove the batteries.

NEVER...

(A) Subject your camera to knocks, vibration, magnetic fields, smoke, water, steam, sand or chemicals.

(B) Apply lens cleaning fluid directly to the lens. If fluid must be used, place a few drops on the a camera cleaning cloth. Micro fiber cloths work very well.

(C) Store your camera in hot, humid, or dusty places.

(D) Place your camera in direct sunlight for prolonged time or in a car when it is hot. Also...pointing the camera lens towards strong sunlight for a prolonged time can ruin the sensor…as well as your eyes.

(E) Scratch the camera with hard or sharp objects. Watch when you place a camera unprotected in your pocket. Keys and loose coins can damage camera and LCD surfaces.

(F) Drop it in water. In all likelihood, it will be damaged beyond repair particularly if it is salt water.

(G) Use canned air. Most consumer digital cameras are not air-tight. Canned air may blow dust into the inside of the lens. Use a micro fiber cloth or a lens pen instead.

 

SAFARIAN IMAGE GALLERY

Coming up in June is our Spring trip to Duluth and the North Shore!

Our April Image of the month comes from our fall tour in that area. Kelly B. from Brainerd, MN snapped this image in Split Rock State Park. We spend about 3 hours there on our Safari 8. Nice job Kelly! and thanks for sharing your image with us!

HISTORY TIDBITS FROM OUR SAFARIS

Our State Capital Building
This is the third state capitol building. The first two buildings were located in downtown St. Paul on a city block bordered by Wabasha, Exchange, Cedar and 10th Street. The first capitol was destroyed by fire. The second was too small and poorly constructed.
The Minnesota State Capitol is 434 feet long. 229 feet wide. 223 feet high.
The Capitol was built at a cost of $4.5 million. Construction started in 1896.
Alexander Ramsey laid the first cornerstone in 1898. The dome was completed in 1902. The building opened in 1905.
The steps and ground floor exterior stone of the capitol is St. Cloud Granite and the upper stories and dome is made of white Georgia marble.

Our Capital building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

We visit the capital building on our Safari # 3... The St. Paul Capital Walk (morning session) running April 1 through October 31.

 
 
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