Blogs

August 26, 2008

I'm no scientist, but I conducted a little experiment over the weekend. From the comfort of my couch, I had one picture printed at four different local printers to try to choose the best quality for the price and speed. (When I say "printers," I actually mean a grocery store, a discount department store and two drug stores.)

Why did I choose the four printers that I did? They were all comparable in price ($.19-.20 for each 4x6" print); they were all close to my house, the furthest only four miles away; and they all allowed for online uploading for pick up in the store.

Here are the pros and cons of the four I tested:

Target:
Pros: The big advantage here is that Target direct prints through flickr.com. We use flickr here at Hammock and I also use it for my personal photos. You simply choose the photos you'd like to print, pick your Target location, and show up there in an hour to get your prints.

I like the paper they use. It's called "glossy," but it's not too shiny.

Each 4x6" print is $.20.

Con: The red looked a bit pink compared to the others.

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Walgreen's:
Pros: There is a brand new Walgreen's about a mile from my house here in Austin. Although they forced me to register on walgreens.com, their online uploader was fairly simple to use.

Each 4x6" print is $.19.

Prints can be ready in an hour.

Cons: Their paper is very shiny. Very.

They forced me to register on walgreens.com.

The navy blue printed with a very dark teal print.

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CVS:
Pros: They earned points immediately by not making me register on cvs.com.

Their prints are ready to be picked up in an hour.

Each 4x6" print is $.19*.

Cons: Their photo uploader is very awkward and was slow for me.

Their paper is very shiny. Very.

Colors were a bit darker than I would have liked.

*Because my total order was less than $5.00, they charged me a service/additional fee of $1.49. So, a single 4x6" print came to $1.68 total.

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HEB: (This is my local grocery store. I love HEB, but I wasn't sure about having photos printed there.)

Pros: Easy to upload photos at heb.com.

They offered the option of matt or glossy finish. I printed one of each.

Each 4x6" print is $.19.

Honestly, the best color quality of the four.

Cons: They aren't printed there in the store, so one-hour processing isn't available. The flip side of that is that they are printed by Kodak and shipped to the store for pick up.

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My scientific conclusion? I will use HEB in the future when I need great quality prints at a great price but am not in a hurry. I will stick with Target for quick prints and just hope the pink/red problem works itself out with a new printer cartridge.

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August 5, 2008

Y'all know I love to run around with a camera or two in hand. And I hate to admit it, but most of the time the fancy settings and fun buttons go unused while I point and shoot in the auto settings alone. Well, I just signed up for a series of five photography and camera classes that I hope will change that.

On Aug. 27, I'll be starting my new classes with "Introduction to the Digital Age." This class will cover basic camera operation, file formats and exporting images for editing and sharing. I'm sure it will be a great refresher on what I've picked up on my own, and I'll be sure to share some of the highlights with you here.

My class lineup also includes a Rebel XT-specific class, a couple of imaging classes that will cover topics such as composition and aperature, and class all about lighting.

I have the camera, and after these classes I will just need the lights and the action!

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July 15, 2008

No email. No Twitter. No blogging while I was gone. But I did do some gambling and got a new iPhone.

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July 11, 2008

clinkclinkclinkclinkclink

I'll be out of the office Monday, July 14, dropping nickels in the slot machines and celebrating the upcoming nuptials of a good friend.

While I'm out, please feel free to contact Laura or Megan by emailing nfib@hammock.com.

I'll be back checking email and counting my winnings Tuesday, July 15.

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July 7, 2008

You've heard us talk about Twitter before, and you probably know we're big believers in social networking and love trying out the tools made for bringing people together. But in addition to providing breaking news and making business contacts, I learned last week that Twitter can be also used for a greater community good.

In the span of just three days, a few folks tweeting in Austin, Texas, decided they should do something to help the community, and the idea for the first-ever Austin Blood Drive Tweetup was born. I signed up to donate with the first "tweet" that I read.

The blood drive was Thursday, July 3, and from what we hear from the Central Texas Blood and Tissue Center, they saw more first-time donors that day than they had in ages and the total number of donors was more than double that of a normal Thursday. Just in time for the July 4 holiday weekend.

Read more about the event, including the initial planning, from the one of the tweeting event planners, Michelle Greer.

And if you're just starting to tweet and want to follow someone who donates blood, takes pictures of her pets and loves Nashville and Austin equally, you can find me @summerh.

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June 30, 2008

I'm not one of those folks who spend their days longing to quit their jobs to become professional photographers. But I do love to run around with a camera. And I love to eat. And I enjoy words. And just last week, I started playing with a way to combine all three.

So often we see pictures -- whether online or in print -- with words beside them or under them to describe exactly what's going on in the photo. But what if we put the words on the photo, right there in the heart of the photo so that your eye sees the image and reads the words all at once?

We do quite a bit of this for hammock.com, and I'm going to continue to play and learn with my own personal photos, too.

Using picnik.com on images that I took of food I actually cooked, here are my first two attempts. Bananas Foster French Toast and a spinach salad with grilled chicken, apples and feta:

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June 20, 2008

Bugsy works on keeping my chair warm while T.J. does some blogging and Thunder chases cats away. It's Take Your Dog to Work Day!

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June 12, 2008

We're back from Washington, D.C., where a team of folks from Hammock spent several days covering the NFIB 2008 National Small Business Summit, using our "association community builder" approach to share the event. Video, text and photos can all be viewed at the NFIB Summit website.

The Summit is always a great time for learning about small business issues and sharing a meal and great conversation with folks from NFIB who are scattered all over the country. Putting email addresses and new faces together is always exciting for me. But a definite highlight for me this year was two seconds with Roger Staubach who spoke at the gala reception Tuesday evening. My Daddy is so proud!

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June 5, 2008

I'll be in our nation's capital June 8-11 for the 2008 NFIB National Small Business Summit. And I'm hoping to find a few minutes to sneak away for some yummy local bites with the politicos. During the scheduled agenda for the Summit, food is plentiful and always good. But if you happen to find yourself in D.C. during the Summit too and have extra time to taste the regional fare while you're there, here are a few local favorites:

• Ben's Chili Bowl and Old Ebbitt Grill. Politicians and lobbyists are regularly seen at both places.
• There are tons of excellent restaurants in the Chinatown/Penn Quarter area, which is very near the Summit location. A local favorite is Matchbox. There is almost always a huge line and at least an hour wait no matter what night of the week you go.
• Also in that area are Cafe Atlantico, Jaleo, Rosa Mexicano and District Chophouse. All are yummy and unique to D.C.
• Friends who work on the Hill say Hawk & Dove and Tabard Inn are also big political hangouts if you're hoping to rub elbows.

If you see me there, say hello. I'll be the one on the hunt for the best cupcake in town.

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June 2, 2008

And I didn't check e-mail. Not even once.

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Summer Huggins

Managing Editor

o: 615.690.3428

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