Think of it this way. Getting a "Donorcycle" out of the garage could seriously contribute to his longevity. And what better way to fill the time and space but making images with the best "L" lenses you guide him to purchase with the repatriated donorcycle funds.

Be sure to go early, before sunrise. The Reno Balloon Festival has a "Glow Show" where they light up the propane burners to inflate the balloons in the dark. The images are spectacular. Take your widest and fastest lenses. After launch, The long tele will definitely NOT be over reach. Many of the Balloons have interesting colors, shapes and artwork that look great isolated against the sky.

Have fun and post some.

My son and I took a Galen Rowell workshop and it was absolutely the best you could expect. He is so very missed.

DeWitt Jones. "Got juice in your camera?????"

And the dodger would still also be producing monochromes with the most salubrious tones your eye and brain could imagine.

Back in my film days, I did a similar thing by attending workshops with DeWitt Jones, George Lepp and Galen Rowell because I liked their work and was familiar with them from Outdoor Photographer.

The instant critique is the backbone of photo education. You can look at somebody else's pictures all life long, but you need someone experienced to show you what would have, like Galen did for me, made my perfectly composed and exposed photo of 2 ducks better IF they were facing the same direction. (Decisive moment, anyone??????).

We had a laugh, and I've never made that mistake again. But it is the interaction and the correction and the improvement.

I also did a week at The Santa Fe Photo Workshops. It was a blast and extremely valuable and influential.

When I shot my real estate photos, I used my wide angle lens (and shadow erasing fill and slave flashes) to get those interior room shots that otherwise would be an opposite corner with a window and no floor space showing. Those end up looking like a window covering advertisement instead of showcasing the roomy interior a buyer will use. The buyer will remember the exterior, but they will be drawn to the part they and their family will use daily.

Rent one of the most promising UW lens suspects, shoot the friend's home, and get the good interiors, including the 4th bedroom from just outside the door. Then, on the way, shoot some good landscapes and see how strong a good foreground or deep background or sky enhances the perspective of the image. Then appreciate the GAS relief.

At the $600 price range of these 8 or 10-16 or 20 mm lenses, you're half way to full frame body territory with a lot of additional advantages--including greater GAS relief.

When I shot my real estate photos, I used my wide angle lens (and shadow erasing fill and slave flashes) to get those interior room shots that otherwise would be an opposite corner with a window and no floor space showing. Those end up looking like a window covering advertisement instead of showcasing the roomy interior a buyer will use. The buyer will remember the exterior, but they will be drawn to the part they and their family will use daily.

Rent one of the most promising UW lens suspects, shoot the friend's home, and get the good interiors, including the 4th bedroom from just outside the door. Then, on the way, shoot some good landscapes and see how strong a good foreground or deep background or sky enhances the perspective of the image. Then appreciate the GAS relief.

At the $600 price range of these 8 or 10-16 or 20 mm lenses, you're half way to full frame body territory with a lot of additional advantages--including greater GAS relief.

I have used a number of Vivitar flashes from my Nikon Manual and EOS film days and plan to still use them in conjunction with my new (to me) Canon 50D. Here is how I avoided the problem, along with accidentally snagging sync cords. Simple optical slaves will trip flashes from the slightest flash from a built in flash. And they're way less expensive than the better, more reliable and flexible radio slaves. So, assuming the 400D is a body with a built in flash, here's what I did.

I cut a piece of black card (gaffer tape works, too) to cover the flash head of the pop-up. I taped it over it to avoid direct on camera lighting onto the subject. Then, the flash that leaked past the corner of the card was enough to trigger the 283 and any other flashes with optical sensors hanging off them.

This provides extra advantages of off camera flash placement (even tied to a bracket without a PC cord) and it isolates your precious electric camera from a potential high voltage strike.

An additional tactic is to cut a "diffusing piece" from a plastic juice or milk carton 1/2 or 1 Gallon variety, and tape it (or 2 of them) over the pop-up. You get some gentle fill lighting without the harsh (red eye causing) directly over the lens blast, and you can trigger the more powerful 283 as a main light placed where it best illuminates your subject. Dialing flash compensation way down works, too.

The Wein device looks like a good addition to my lighting bag, and I'm looking into that, too. But the old timey flashes have presented electrical feedback problems to the low power electric circuits of sophisticated electronic cameras for years, and I'd never connect one to a shoe or a PC terminal.

Another approach, when you're spending is to use one Canon eTTL flash in the shoe or on an off camera cable and then use the 283 as a fill, hair or background light for portraits or "shadow opener" for other subjects.

Thank your parents, again.

Adding on to psergel, The "visualization" goes beyond activating the shutter. It is the ability to see and make a compelling image by using all of the capture tools within a modern camera AND to produce, and reproduce a beautiful artful image using the post tools available to her. Those tools are, today, in the computer. The eventual printing methods and equipment of fine art work, are however beyond the means of all but the biggest Photographers. They depend on delivering a quality "file" to the printer.

So, from a guy who had, to his wife's chagrin, a B&W darkroom for years, go digital. And, for color, digital is really the only practical answer today--and in the past, too.

My editorial comment. She should not have to make this choice as a student. She should look for a program that has an integrated course of study. If it involves a film element for a deeper understanding, then so be it. As long as it is integrated in a course of study that takes a student along a path of artistic and professional, and yes, business development for today and the future.

A final note on the chemical darkroom. The chemicals are toxic, they smell bad and they're bad for the environment. While much progress was made, there is a reason all of the pioneering photographers of the early 1800's died at an early age.

I recall my Photo 1 class assignment, down the road from you at Foothill College. It was, with a 50mm lens ONLY take a full roll (36 exposures) of a scene. Concentrating on every perspective from wide to the smallest detail. Use selective focus. Vary the angle and combine vertical and horizontal orientation. For extra credit shoot half the shots in one lighting condition and the other half in another like bright, cloudy, puffy clouds, sunrise, with and without fog, sunset, night, flash etc. This is a photo 1 course all by itself.

Lessons learned:
Perspective, framing, composition, selective focus and exposure and contrast control. Since my new (to me) Canon 50D comes tomorrow, I plan on repeating this assignment several times to:
Evaluate my 3 lenses with the new body.
Evaluate equivalent exposure values varying each leg of the exposure triangle.

Since you live where you do, pick almost anyplace there where you can shoot unimpeded. Do it soon before you're over run with tourists.

The benefit of this exercise is that you will know what your equipment is capable of delivering in different circumstances (like morning fog) so you don't have to guess. That's why pros are so good. They know what they're going to get and how to get it. You can too, if you put in the work. And yes, plan to be surprised. And every time you want to embark on something new, prepare by doing this assignment. For example, you've got a new lens. Ever shoot monochrome? Make the subject a person or a portrait background.

Good luck with your Nifty 50. I got a lot of shots thru mine and I wish I still had one.

I purchased the Tamron 90mm 2.8 Macro after renting the Canon 100 mm 2.8 Macro for a Workshop. It has and does perform flawlessly. I expect the same for the Nikon mount.

Umbrella is another word for a scrim--which is another undecipherable photo geek word. I use a big golf umbrella and if I am shooting at home, the Patio Table's really big umbrella.

My favorite is a reflector in combination. And if you're using a tripod or light stand, just attach it to 2 legs and it will angle light up into the face. Or, with another flash, bounce it off the reflector.

And speaking of Umbrellas, they're great used in the opposite direction to keep harsh direct squint causing sunlight off your model. Some flash reflector umbrellas allow the removal of their reflective lining, allowing a nice filtered light (like a soft box or cloudy open shade light). And they attach to light stands easily.

When using direct flash, you can also diffuse it by shooting through a handkerchief, tissues, a Stofen diffuser, or a piece of a plastic milk carton. This does 2 things. First, to reduces (compensates) the flash power and also softens the light. Source for the handkerchief trick: Ansel Adams.

Keep them relaxed and looking great!

As long as you keep them out of the frame, your closet and garage is full of tools that don't cost 10 times more at the Photography Store.

Take a big breath and turn the dial to "M" or AV. Push the flash button, go to flash compensation and experiment with -1. -1.5 and -2. Ge the exposure just like you did the focus, compose, and shoot. Experiment on the fill flash to fill the shadows without looking "flashed". Another approach if the ambient light is sufficient is to use a white cardboard, or reflector and angle it into the face.