In the meantime, I've been getting back out taking more pictures lately. This has always been a popular feature of our newsletters so I will share some of those with you now.

On Friday, November 20th, my son participated in a Battle of the Bands competition. It wasn't really a competition, per se. It was actually a fundraiser for one of the local schools and all funds raised went to benefit the school.

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Out in rural Maryland, the Conowingo Dam is a hydroelectric power plant on the Susquehana River. Immediately down river from the dam is a winter nesting ground for bald eagles, golden eagles and dozens of other magnificent birds. About 45 minutes from my home, I drove out there to photograph the eagles.

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As with many holidays, Thanksgiving is a time for friends and family to come together. It is a time of celebration, filled with cherished moments to remember. The photographer in us may want to preserve some of those memories as photos. With that in mind, here are a few tips to getting more satisfying photos from such gatherings.

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1. Embrace the chaos.

Any gathering of people...

2. Shoot the preparations.

The making of food...

3. Focus on relationships.

A child sitting in grandma's lap...

4. Eat when everyone else does.

No one looks...

There is an important exception to this rule...

5. Hide in plain sight.

It is the rare person who...

6. Let others take a turn.

Many photographers are loathe to try this but...

That will make the holiday better for everyone.

Dating back to the early days of film, there is a rule which states that...

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It's more common than we realize for entire countries to change their names or to simply cease to exist. Below is a list with many old country names you might recognize but which no longer exist.