How To Save Money While On Vacation

A holiday does not have to cost you an arm and a leg if you know how to look for and take full advantage of the many exciting money saving offers that are available to you throughout the internet. Many companies offer specific online savings and packages that you cannot find anywhere else. These online savings and offers are available to you online only, so you will have to visit their websites to take advantage of them, and they are not made available to those who visit them offline.

Many travelers can enjoy a bundle of savings by booking hotel reservations, airline tickets, or car rentals online. Additionally, they can also find packages that will allow them to do many things they will enjoy for a fraction of the cost. These packages can often include many exciting attractions you can see within an area, hotel, transportation, and sometimes certain meals are included with in the packages. Packages are geared towards every interest, for example, they could be geared towards specific destinations world wide, such as Paris, Italy, Florida, Hawaii, and the like.
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Other packages could be geared towards specific events or activities, such as hiking, camping, jungle adventures, cruises, singles events and trips, couples geared outings, musicals, major shopping trips, or site seeing in exciting new places. There are many websites on the internet that are available to you by simply using one of the many popular search engines. Websites like expedia.com offer a one stop shopping source for flight tickets, trains, car rentals, and hotel reservations. In addition, they offer advice on traveling, points of interest, and an easy to use online reservation request.
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The internet has made it so much easier to plan a trip that the whole family can enjoy, you can plan your entire itinerary right on the internet and find some excellent travel and safety tips that you could use. If you need to purchase new items to take with you on your holiday you can also do that online with many special deals from online retailers that sell the products you need.
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Take full advantage of all the internet has to offer by booking your entire holiday online and safe a ton of money in the process. After all a holiday is enjoyed so much more, when it is a bargain and money saving one. It will leave you more money to spend on necessities and fun things you want to do.
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Jeff Lakie is a contributing author at our website where You can get a free Secured Loans Quote right now. Take a moment and see for yourself.

A Holiday Loan For Your Dream Vacation

Human body is just like a machine. Just like any other machine, our body needs time to refuel and revitalize it. The best way to rejuvenate all your senses is to go on a holiday trip. However, not everyone's pocket is steady enough to bear the escalating expenses of holidays.

A holiday package does not only include travel expenses but also includes cost of lodging and boarding at the holiday destination, commutation between hotel/inn and tourist spots, and meals. Holiday tour operators take care of all these expenses so that you do not have to bother about making payments. You can pay a lump sum amount to the tour operator.

In recent years expenses of going on a holiday have increased like never before. This sudden rise in the prices has forced most of the people to drop their plans of going for their dream holiday. This is where Holiday loans come into play. There are many lenders who offer Holiday loans . They offer a variety of holiday loans of different amounts and having different interest rates and repayment terms.
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You can take out a personal loan to pay for your holiday trip. It is very easy to obtain a personal loan. Lenders are almost always willing to grant personal loans. There is a big market for personal loans in the UK. This is because many people require loans for one reason or the other and personal loans can be used for a number of purposes. The amount of personal loans varies according to the requirement. You can get small as well as large amount of personal holiday loans . A personal loan is also an ideal loan to pay for a holiday trip because it is a short term loan and can be repaid over a short period of time. The problem with personal loans is that since they are usually unsecured loans, they carry a high rate of interest.
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A secured holiday loan can take care of the problem of high interest rates. In case of a secured holiday loan, the borrower puts up his property as a security that can be repossessed by the lender if the borrower fails to repay the loan. Because of this, lenders charge low rates of interest on secured loans.
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The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Shakespeare Finance as a finance specialist. for more information visit at http://www.adverse-credit-holiday-loans.co.uk.

A Vacation Trip On Unsecured Holiday Loans

Every person wants to take time off from busy schedule to enjoy life. But there is a big hurdle in taking a loan for the purpose especially for those who do not own property. They can now go on enjoying holiday trip without bothering about the financial aspect of the tour. These people can take unsecured holiday loans and at easier terms. Unsecured holiday loans are carved out especially for borrowers like tenants or non-homeowners as they usually do not have a property to take loan against. Those people, who have property but for fear of its repossession do not want to place it as collateral with lenders, also avail unsecured holiday loans.

Lenders always need a security for giving loan. With unsecured holiday loans the clause of collateral is absence and therefore borrowers should provide the security through other means. They can satisfy the lenders regarding security of the loan by providing proof of steady income source and sound financial position. Another way to take unsecured holiday loans at good terms and conditions is your sound credit score.
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To find out where your stand credit score wise, know that a credit score of 720 on FICCO scale is considered risk free for offering loan, while score of 580 and below is bad credit. Good credit score enables you in asking for not only a larger amount of loan but combined with sound repayment capacity, the interest may also be availed at lower rate.
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Those borrowers who have unfavorable credit score can also win back confidence of the loan providers if they show seriousness about improving their credibility. They should consult a reputed credit rating agency to ensure that there is no error left in their credit report. Make extra efforts to clear off easy debts as it substantially improves your credit score.
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Usually unsecured holiday loans are given for a shorter duration and the loan amount also is limited. A larger loan depends on repayments capacity and sound credentials of the borrowers. Monthly installments of the loan can be chosen by the borrowers as according to their repayment capacity. So it is solely up to the borrower that he availes the loan in a beneficial way.
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To avail unsecured low rate holiday loans at better terms, one should search for the lenders online. This way they get numerous loan offers and can pick up the package having lower interest rate.

Unsecured holiday loans are meant for giving you a holiday trip free of worries on financial front. Ensure that the loan comes to you as part of your enjoyment mood and does not become a debt burden later.
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Tim Kelly is an expert in finance having completed his LLM in Finance (Master of Laws in Finance) from Institute for Law and Finance at Frankfurt University. He is currently working with BadDebtPersonalLoans as a financial advisor. To Find unsecured holiday loans, UK secured holiday loans, UK holiday cash loan, holiday loan quote that best site's you need visit http://www.ukholidayloans.co.uk

Using Travel Cards Like Disney For Vacation Saving

When you use your Disney credit card to buy products or services online or in person, you automatically earn points, or Disney rewards, that accumulate in an account with each purchase. As your point count increases, you qualify for certain point reward packages. Each level entitles you to shop for various items at the Disney Store, Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, Disney Cruise Line, the Disney catalog, or DisneyStore.com. You can redeem your points for merchandise like Disney toys, clothes, DVDs, and collectibles. As a travel credit card, the Disney card also features a benefit that allows you to redeem your reward points for vacation packages. You can select packages that include travel to your favorite Disney theme park. Your points are good for parking permits, admittance to the park, and discounts on Disney hotels and resorts.

Drawbacks

Unfortunately, as you accumulate the sought after Disney rewards, you also accumulate credit card debt. If you are not skilled at managing your finances, you may be enticed to use your Disney credit card in excess of what you are capable of paying back. This type of incentive program could cause you painful repercussions in terms of debt and poor credit scores if you are unable to make prompt payments on the balance.
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The more you buy with your Disney card, the more rewards you qualify for. But remember that the more you buy, the more interest you pay on these purchases as well, especially if you are unable to pay your balance in full each month. As your interest accumulates on purchase that you made with your card, you credit card debt rises and your credit rating plummets.
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Special features

On the bright side, the Disney credit card has a unique card design that will delight families: Mickey Mouse on a sparkling red background. The card is a great way to allow any family member to contribute to future vacation plans or holiday gift times. You might consider giving the travel credit card to younger members of the family as an emergency credit card to be used for expenses away from home. The rewards can be added to the family's reward account and enjoyed by the whole family.
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The reward points for the Disney credit card are more flexible than with many other reward cards. The points can be redeemed to gain entrance to a Disney theme park or parking privileges. But you can also purchase merchandise online, at store locations, or from the catalog. You can even use the points to purchase items once you are inside the Disney theme parks.
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Javier Polanco offers expert advice and great tips regarding all aspects concerning Credit Cards. Get the information you are seeking now by visiting http://www.obtaineasycredit.com.

Using Your Credit Card While On Vacation

Aiming to save money on our credit cards should be something that we all should be doing. This can be done by switching your credit card to one that has a 0% interest free offer on balance transfers and purchases, or simply playing a credit card game such as "stoozing". The term stoozing is used to describe the practice of using the credit limit you receive on a credit card to make money by transferring the balance to high interest savings account.

It can be so much simpler to save money without having to go through all of these games and switching from one credit card issuer to the next. Many people while on holiday use their credit card to either make purchases or to withdraw cash from an ATM. This is one credit card usage you should always avoid.
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Your credit card will incur a load of different charges when it is used abroad, which will be adding up on the bill when you return from your trip. Many of these charges you will not even be aware of, as many of us do not even realise that the charges exist.
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Every purchase incurs a foreign usage fee…

Did you know that you could be charged by up to £2.00 a transaction on your credit card for every transaction that you make or £1.50 if it's a debit card? This is bad enough, but you could also be getting charged interest from the moment that you have made the purchase, even though when you are back home you will not be charged interest from anything up to59 days. So if you have purchased goods or paid for your meals using your credit card when you first arrived, then depending on how long you are away the interest has already built up by the time that you return home.
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Every cash withdrawal from an ATM is charged interest immediately…

If you use the card in an ATM, you could be facing further charges, as we already know we are charged for using our credit cards in a hole-in-the-wall here. So it is going to be much more expensive to use the card in an ATM on your vacation in a foreign country and are charged at a higher level than a credit card transaction in a store or restaurant.
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The best thing to do is contact your credit card issuer and find out where they stand regarding the charges that they make when using your credit card abroad. When you add up the details, you may very well find that travellers cheques or changing the your cash to the currency of where you are travelling to will be a whole lot cheaper and easier on the finances.
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Remember…

1) Avoid using your credit card to withdraw cash from an ATM (you are charged interest immediately) 2) Every you make with your credit card incurs a foreign usage fee (there are some exceptions) 3) Some credit card issuers charge interest on foreign purchases as soon as they are made
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Peter Kenny is a writer for creditcards-gb For additional articles and an extensive resource for everything about credit cards, please visit us at http://www.creditcards-gb.co.uk and http://www.creditcards2go4.com.

5 Good Reasons a Self-Employed Professional Should Take Vacation

So you think you're not justified in taking time away from your business because you're self-employed? Here are five great reasons why you should definitely take a vacation:

1. Physical down time You work hard to grow and maintain your business. Trying to be superhuman will certainly take its toll if you allow it to. Give your body a break by taking in some R&R.

2. Mental down time Your days are filled with busy, sometimes even hectic, day-to-day activities related to your business. If you don't allow yourself to get away from it once in a while, your peace of mind and general well-being will most definitely suffer. Get out and play. Your mind will thank you!
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3. Spend time with loved ones Your family and friends see you working, working, working, sometimes rarely coming up for air. Both you and they will appreciate spending some quality time together.

4. See the world (or your own back yard) The important thing is to do something you enjoy, whether it's traveling or, if that's not your cup of tea or you don't have the budget for it, spend time at home. If you also work out of your home, this could be challenging. The key is to stay out of your office during your vacation time. Try getting creative with this. Make your office "off limits" by closing the door and placing a sign on it. Do whatever it takes to keep your mind off working. How about a hobby or a day trip to the beach? Think of what you can do within your budget that's fun. Or do nothing at all!
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5. You have a life Although this one is a no-brainer, it surprises me how many small business owners don't feel as if they deserve time off. There is too much to do, and not enough hours in the day to get it all done. Well, I've got news for you. It's always going to feel that way! Only you have the power to allow yourself time off. Even if you prefer only to take a day here and a day there instead of a week-long (or longer) vacation each year, that's a whole lot better than never taking time off. Trust me, you'll feel better about yourself and your work if you take regular vacation time. You'll be healthier, too!
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© 2005 Cynthia Morse, Virtually At Your Service. All rights reserved.

You're welcome to reprint this story. If you do, please include this reference: Cynthia Morse, CAP is a Virtual Assistant, and the owner of Virtually At Your Service, http://www.virtuallyatyourservice.biz She offers remote administrative support to small business owners and other busy professionals from her home office, allowing them the time to focus on what they love and do best. Sign up at http://www.virtuallyatyourservice.biz to receive her e-zine "Virtual Service Connection" for monthly tips and resources benefiting small business owners.

Franchisee; Vacation Managing

Do you own a franchised business? Over 400,000 franchised businesses currently operate in the United States, which is a true testament of free enterprise. There are many advantages of franchised businesses, which anyone who owns a small business has thought about. One thing they probably have not considered; whether they are franchisee or not is that in a franchise system; your local franchise runs as store exactly like yours. They are aware of every single aspect of your business. So it makes sense that if you want to go on vacation you should have the closest franchisee watch your store for you and you can return that favor for them later.

When a franchisee goes on vacation, they may or may not have a person who is capable of handling their entire business. As any business person knows, this isn't easy. You must stay on schedule, keep up the quality and still make every customer coming thru the door happy. There are vendors, phone calls and new business. You might make a deal with your neighboring franchisee to help them with their overload and keep an eye on things while they are away. If you work out a trade, they can help you when you will be away. You should also call your regional director and alert them as well. That way, between your arrangement with a neighboring franchisee and your regional director of the parent franchise corporation, your business will be safe and productive while you are gone.
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If you are not in a franchised business this is not a possible option. Think about it, think about a franchise.

Lance Winslow

How To Get Your Customers To Pay For Your Vacation

Let's say that you are going on vacation. You're going to Vegas! Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday the store would be closed. You have 2 choices: Worry about how much money you are losing by not being in the store, or using your trip as a way to get a boost in business. This is what we did; About half an hour before we left for the airport, almost on a whim, I took a piece of typing paper & put a sign on the store's front door. Here's what it said;

"My wife Cheryl & I are on a vacuum cleaner buying trip ( & mini vacation ) to Las Vagas, Nevada. The bad news is that the store will be closed Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday. The GOOD news is; If you were thinking of buying a vacuum cleaner within the next year COME BACK SATURDAY! We'll have prices slashed & lots of FREE STUFF for anyone who buys a vacuum from us on SATURDAY. WARNING; When you get here Saturday, the store may be full of people looking for a vacuum cleaner at a great price. PLEASE WAIT YOUR TURN! The longer you have to wait, the better the price. WE ARE ONLY DOING THIS ONCE THIS YEAR. Saturday from 10AM-6PM. Monday, our vacuums go back up to our regular ridiculously high prices. so COME BACK SATURDAY! WE PROMISE IT WILL BE WORTH THE WAIT!"
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That was the sign. After the dust settled on Saturday ( about 7PM ) we had sold $4,118.65 in Vacuum Cleaners. I wonder if I'll do the same thing next year?

If you will invest a few cents in a piece of paper (or two), place the sign by your door, you'll have a waiting mob of buyers, greeting you the day of your return. Won't that be fun?
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"Sign-up now for my FREE Retail Marketing course "Unfair Advantage Retail Strategies ". About once a week, I'll provide you with valuable retail marketing strategies that have been proven and tested, (mostly by me).

You can opt-out at any time ...and don't worry, I will not share your information with any 3rd parties."
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http://www.claudewhitacre.com

Take A Vacation Like This On Your Motorcycle

Are you an adventurer? Do you have the spirit of a wanderer? If so, then the hottest new trend in vacation travel, a motorcycle vacation, may be just the ticket for you. Whatever countryside you enjoy, and whatever bike you ride, a motorcycle vacation promises great fun and entertainment.

Imagine a history buff that uses a motorcycle to explore old Civil War battlefields. Wilson's Creek in southwest Missouri, Pea Ridge in Northwest Arkansas, and the site of the battle of West Port near the Plaza in modern day Kansas City are all easily accessible by bike. Or, if exploring the west is more your thing, take a trek out west, starting in Sedalia, the scene of the first recorded cattle drive in history. Then on your bike trace the other cattle towns of the old west like Wichita, Parsons and Dodge City in Kansas. Then keep heading west to Colorado the mile high state and visit Estes Park. Go a little south and visit Colorado Springs, park your bike for a day and take a tour of the Air Force Academy and look at the grounds of Cheyenne Mountain, home of Norad.
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Still yearning for more western adventure, then you can ride your motorcycle to New Mexico and visit Lincoln County where Billy the Kid and his Regulators raised a ruckus in the 1880's. New Mexico has great camping in the mountains near Cloudcroft, so be sure to take the opportunity to visit and if you feel up to it, sleep under the stars, with your trusty motorcycle near you, like a cowboy's horse.
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While in New Mexico the Apache reservation at Riodosa offers a chance to try your luck at slot machines and the wheel of fortune. Then a visit to a great Mexican restaurant and on to the town of Roswell, site of the 1947 UFO crash that some people say made history. When you get to Roswell you can either take your bike to a campground, or park it at a nice reasonably priced motor hotel so that you can spend some time in the UFO Museum and Research Center on Main Street. While there you can visit with some witnesses to the crash and hear some fascinating stories, and take a side trip out to the ranch outside of town where debris was found, and some say small alien bodies were recovered. When you've seen all the UFO sites you feel like seeing, you can visit the Robert Goddard Museum next door to the Town's convention center. Goddard is the father of modern rocket science. He performed many of his experiments in the desert near Roswell and the museum is great fun. When you get done in Roswell, then hop on the bike and go to Albuquerque near Holloman Air Force Base, and then on down to White Sands rocket test ground. New Mexico is full of interesting sites. If you head up north, be sure to his Santa Fe and appreciate the Native American arts and crafts on display.
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Next stop on your bike tour should be Las Vegas, Nevada. The most exciting town on earth is just a hop, skip and bike ride away. Here's a chance to really gamble, or if you don't like to bet, then just stop in at one of the casinos to try a very low priced, delicious buffet. It seems like all the casinos have great buffets and try to outdo each other. You'll enjoy them all. Remember too that this is a town made for entertainment. Try one of the shows on the strip, or a comedy club or magic act.
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Now, after visiting Las Vegas, it may be time to go on to the one place that no motorcycle vacation can be complete without visiting, Sturgis. The town of Sturgis, North Dakota is legendary among those who ride motorcycles, and the town people know how to make a biker welcome. Stop in for a root beer and buy a T-shirt as a souvenir of your trip. You'll be glad you did, and you'll remember your motorcycle vacation for years to come. Hop on your biike, be it hog or Honda, and enjoy the ride.
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Gregg Hall is a consultant for online and offline businesses and lives in Navarre Florida. Get motorcycle gear and accessories at http://www.motorcyclegearandaccessories.com

Tips for Vacation Photos

Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help you capture vacation memories you will treasure for years to come.

PLAN AHEAD

Make sure your digital camera is in good working order before you go, and keep it in a water- and shock-resistant case. Bring two sets of rechargeable batteries and don't forget the charger and relevant cords. Make sure your camera has enough memory. Packing an extra memory card is wise, as there is nothing worse than running out of room for pictures halfway down the Grand Canyon. It may be tempting to lower the resolution so you can store more pictures, but you will regret this later as it may result in poorer quality prints, or you will be limited to smaller size prints. Set your camera at its highest quality JPEG setting and get more memory if you have to. You will appreciate this when you're viewing and printing your photos after your trip.

TAKE LOTS AND LOTS OF PICTURES.

With a digital camera you can always erase the photos you don't want. Take pictures of anything you find interesting and try to focus on some of the details such as an attractive doorway or a colorful market, not just panoramic scenes or major landmarks. Let your pictures tell a story by creating a visual diary of your trip. Include street scenes, interesting signs, people you see along the way. For variety take both vertical and horizontal pictures.
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READY FOR YOUR CLOSE-UP?

When taking people shots, don't make the mistake of standing too far away. You want to be able to recognize the people in your photos. Get close enough so you can see the expressions on your subjects faces. Zoom in on individuals or capture them from the waist up. Pictures are often more interesting when you can catch people at candid, un-posed moments. In posed photos, try to incorporate some of the background into your shot. Try snapping from interesting angles rather than simply head-on.
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USE YOUR FLASH

When photographing in bright sunlight, setting your camera's "fill" or "forced" flash is very helpful, particularly when photographing people. Brilliant sunlight often makes people's faces look harsh, casting dark shadows under the eyes and accentuating wrinkles. The daytime fill-in flash will soften the lighting and make the images more flattering. Your family and friends in the photos will thank you!
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EDIT AND ENHANCE YOUR FAVORITE SHOTS

When you get home you can edit, crop and enhance your favorites using photo editing software such as Foto Finish, Ulead or Photoshop Elements. Consider adding drama to your images by turning some of your color photos into black and white or sepia tones and then upload all your images to an online photo printing service like Ofoto or Shutterfly for fast and convenient prints. You can take your best snaps and use your photo editing software to create a photo calendar or make photo cards for personal notes, or to email your favorites to family and friends.
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Most of all have fun with your camera!

About The Author

Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website http://www.digitalphotos101.com featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.

Online Photo Sharing: Not Just for Family and Vacation Photos

You may have joined the photo-sharing craze to share your family vacation photos, but have you thought about other uses for photo sharing?

Here are just a few ideas:

Scrapbooking: Show off your creative projects. You can design scrapbook pages and enhance them with clipart using software like Paint Shop Photo Album or FotoFinish and then upload them to a photo sharing site for everyone to enjoy. Hobbies: Perhaps you belong to a cross-stitching club or the other end of the spectrum, a motorcycle or classic car club. You can share your best cross-stitch projects or pictures of you with your Harley or '57 Chevy with other club members.

Class Reunions: What better way to share reunion photos with former class members across the miles than in an online photo album, so all can view and reminisce.
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Arts and Crafts Portfolio: Do you design jewelry, paint or make woodcarvings or other crafts to sell? A digital photo gallery is a great way to show off your pieces, and you can add your own captions, prices, etc.

Genealogy: If you are in charge of recording your family's history, organize old family photos in a digital album to share with distant family members. Chances are, old photos will need some repair for cracks, fading, spots, etc. You can easily repair photos yourself using photo software like Photoshop Elements or Paint Shop Pro.
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School Events: Create an online album for pictures of football or basketball games, proms, graduation parties and other school events to share with classmates.

Weddings: You can design an elegant photo album and let those who couldn't attend the wedding see the bride walk down the aisle and "virtually" experience the conga line at the reception. Weddings were made for photo sharing!
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Rubber Stamping Designs: A photo gallery of your rubber stamp creations is a great way to showcase them for fellow stamp artists.

Okay, you get the picture. Use your imagination and you'll find dozens of opportunities for sharing your photos.
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PHOTO SHARING SITES AND SOFTWARE

The next step is how do you do it? That's easy too. With the digital camera craze comes a proliferation of photo sharing sites and software. The top sites include Ofoto, Shutterfly and Snapfish, which give you simple, free software so you can make basic edits such as adjust the contrast, crop and remove red-eye. You can quickly upload your images to their website and put photos in different albums, name the albums and add captions. Then you just email your friends the link to your album. The good news is it's free; the down side is that some sites limit the number of photos you can share. These sites, of course, will also print your photos for as little as 22 cents each and mail them to you; those who view your albums can also order prints.
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There are some great services dedicated to photo sharing that offer unlimited photo storage space for a nominal fee. These include Pixagogo, which is a web-based service for sharing, organizing and storing your digital photos inside instant albums that can be viewed by anyone you want. It's an easy way to share photos with others, and an excellent means of backing up valuable photos or publishing illustrations on a web site or a market place. For a $5 monthly membership fee, you get unlimited secure storage of your original images of any size for as long as you want. Pixagogo's features include easy drag & drop photo uploading, the ability to create elegant online albums and full screen slide shows, share selected album links with family and friends via a simple email link, and a self-organizing photo timeline. You can also order prints on Fuji paper at competitive prices.
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There are also several inexpensive software applications for photo sharing on the web, including FotoFinish and the SendPix sharing feature of ACDSee 6.0. With both programs you can email photos directly from the application at sizes you specify. FotoFinish also gives you 20MB of free personal web space to upload and share your albums or individual photos. ACDSee lets you share up to 50 photos in an unlimited number of albums on their server at no charge for up to 30 days. It also has an HTML photo album generator so you can create web page photo albums to upload to your own site.

Whatever method you choose, sharing your pics on the net is a great timesaver with lots of opportunity for creativity.

Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website http://www.digitalphotos101.com featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.

Give Your Creative Mind a Vacation

One day you will have renewed vigour and inspiration. I cannot tell you when that will be but it will come. And then you will gambol like a lamb with a newly found spring in your step and before long you will develop superb images.

We all have periods of relative inactivity. It can be hard to get motivated. It can be a struggle to venture out with all that equipment. And it can be difficult to think of a suitable subject to take photographs of. And this feeling can eat away at you like a cancer. Digital photography, for all its benefits, becomes a viper. Snapping at your very sinews. Everything is a trial and a drudge. Nothing feels fresh or clean and sometimes, just sometimes, you can feel like giving up altogether.
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But don't.

It's okay to take a rest or a break. The images and all your equipment will still be there when you return. The space will refresh you and you will be back - stronger and creatively inspired!

It can help if you accept the fact that this scenario will happen. That you will lose some interest and desire and that you will produce substandard images whilst you creative mind is on vacation.
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Let it pass and look forwards to your return. It will be worth it.

Eric Hartwell runs the photography resource site http://www.theshutter.co.uk and the associated discussion forums as well as the regular weblog at http://thephotographysite.blogspot.com.

The Top Five Tips For Taking Your Digital Camera On Vacation

One of the most common places for people to use their digital camera is while they are away on vacation, and no wonder, because we all want to preserve those special events and memories as much as we can. But digital cameras require their own advance preparation for the trip. So here are the top five tips for taking your digital camera along with you on vacation. 1. More so than any other camera, digital cameras rely on a good solid power source, usually its batteries. If you haven't used your digital camera in a while, the batteries you have may not be sufficiently charged for your entire trip. And even if your current batteries are sufficiently charged, it's a very good idea to have extras along with you on the trip because you just don't know how much use your camera will get and you don't want to be caught short at the wrong time. Sometimes, batteries for certain digital cameras can be very specialized too. So it's always a good idea to buy batteries before you leave to have them handy with you on the trip.
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2. You'll want to give attention to your storage cards before you leave as well, and be sure that you have enough for the trip. Remember, storage media is sort of like film in that if you have no way to upload the photos each day, it will eventually get full and you will need a replacement to continue shooting. Also before you leave check the storage card that you have in the camera to see what images are currently stored there. If there are photos on the card that you wish to keep, now is the time to upload them while you are still at home and then wipe the card clean for use on the vacation.
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3. Taking a camera on any vacation or trip can subject it to a lot of use and getting banged around if you are not careful. So having a good camera bag to put your digital camera in while on vacation will be very important. If you have a digital SLR camera, then you may even want to take extra lenses along with you on the trip. If so, be sure that the camera bag can handle all the equipment that you need to take with you, and that it is comfortable to carry along with you each day. It's good to have storage capacity in your camera bag for extra media cards, lens cleaner, and any other accessories that you find useful too.
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4. A very useful accessory for both film and digital cameras that many people forget is a tripod or mini tripod. Handholding a camera is one of the largest reasons for blurry unfocused photos. This is a common problem with many people, and it can all be solved with the use of a tripod. Obviously, you can take a large tripod with you on some excursions as it would just be too heavy to carry, but here's where a mini tripod can come in very handy. Many times they can fit right in your camera bag with you and be set up quickly and easily on a flat surface. The use of a good tripod is guaranteed to help you take sharper, better photos.
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5. If you plan on bringing your laptop computer with you on the trip, don't forget to bring along the necessary USB cables to connect to your camera and upload your photographs at the end of the day.

If you take just a few minutes before you leave to organize your digital camera and accessories, you can assure that you will be able to have plenty of opportunities to record the fun and good times that you will enjoy while in vacation.
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Thad Pickering writes on many consumer related topics including digital photography. You can find a digital photography tutorial and the digital photography basics by visiting our Digital Photography website.

How I Spent my Summer Vacation

One of the best parts of a vacation is the positive outlook you derive from pleasant anticipation. Another benefit is the afterglow, allowing you to feel right with the world. A general guideline I have is to live in the present and not yearn too heavily for the past or future; but making brief exceptions for things like vacations can bring some of the benefits of the vacation itself to your daily life. Thinking briefly "Yeah that was great!" or "I am really going to enjoy this trip!" Can add to the lightness of your day, assuming you don't lean on that as a requirement for your happiness. Going around stressed out and telling yourself "I'll be happy in 6 weeks when I'm on a beach" really doesn't help you live lightly in the moment, and may even create pressure for performance on your vacation and disappointment afterward. Instead don't pack or return with emotional baggage; but view your vacations as an addition to the wonderful existence you are building. Here are some memories from my last trip. I flew from Dayton to Baltimore with a newer airline. Nice all new jets. Their large overheads made it easy to stow my one big carryon I'm still mystified why it was so heavy. Probably my big socks... Reading Popular Science in-flight I re-visited my teenage fondness for that magazine. Oh how I now yearn for the garage of the future.
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In Baltimore I rented a sharp new sedan with a Wall Street Journal on the dash. Nice touch guys but no more reading for me that day! I was on the beach at Ocean City by noon seeing the storks flop dive; watching the children advance toward the water and retreat shrieking with the waves.
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I hadn't been to the beach for a couple years and I noticed one thing was different. Used to be when walking the waterline you would be careful to walk in front of a bent over little boy digging in the beach because odds were sand would be flying out backwards between his legs when you least expected it. Now everybody has their own shovel; and not the little plastic handled ones that come with your beach pail. we're talking wooden shafts and D grip handles. It's very important to dig a hole when you arrive at the beach.
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One of the arcade places on the boardwalk at Rehoboth beach was called Funland. A sign said "There is no smoking in Funland". I kept imagining a parallel universe sign..."There is no fun in Smokingland"
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The motel in Salisbury was an old 50's type place. It was actually its last week of operation. The owner was friendly, happy to be retiring, and shared a few stories now and then. Next year a shopping center will be there. The wide-open spaces and driveway lamps in front provided the type stage a mockingbird prefers. One seems to be following me. I would be checking the accuracy of his repeated calls every morning as I packed the car for my day trips.
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Saturday I made a big rookie mistake. I had slapped on some sunscreen leaving the car and then wandered around in search of a decent cup of coffee. Looking at the menu board of basic Italian fare I asked the Russian girl behind the counter which item she thought had the best sounding name. I was delighted when she brightened up and without hesitation pronounced slowly and dramatically lengthening the oh sounds of "calzone pepperoni" A little thing like that can put a bounce in my step and make me feel pretty carefree, which is the whole point of the trip. So kicking off my shoes I headed down the beach thinking lunch at the Ocean Club a few miles away would be nice. Later I realized I hadn't put any sunscreen on my feet.
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My feet were fried of course. Out in the sun for most the day, I may as well have put them in a microwave oven for 20 minutes. The slightest brush against them the next day brought searing pain. I picked up a big bottle of Aloe Vera gel and kept slopping it on. They were so swollen if I loosened the laces and left my shoes open they were still tight. Now here is the interesting part…and really let me assure you this didn't ruin a single day of my vacation…when I stood up there was this explosion of deep pain more severe than anything I've ever felt; The kind of thing that tells you to black out, fall to your knees, scream, panic, anything to make it stop. I'm thinking "I know if I sit back down it will feel better but this is the second day of my vacation and I am not going to sit in the motel all day!" Taking a step it felt better in the lifted foot. Putting weight back on it was like I'd just placed the foot under a wheel of a moving truck, so half buckling at the knees with each step I kept moving and the most incredible thing…all pain was gone after 3 or 4 steps! I guess the walking helped pump the blood back out of my already nearly exploding swollen feet.

My choice for the next few days was clear; Keep moving or stay off my feet. I kept moving, walking miles every day. If I stopped walking for even a second the pain bombs would detonate in my feet. So if I was standing in line for food or at a theme park I would appear to be really enjoying the music, bouncing around from foot to foot. At a urinal I probably looked like I really had to go, settling for the medium pain associated with shifting my weight from foot to foot standing there. The right foot was a little worse than the left and by the 3rd day I found I could stand for a half-minute on my left foot if I raised my right leg behind me. The highest absurdity occurred when I found myself balancing on my left foot right leg arched up behind me as I stood over the toilet. I imagined I must look like a clownish roman fountain. I was so focused on pushing the foot pain envelope it didn't occur to me till then I could sit down. What can I say? We guys are weird.

I took the Lewes / Cape May Ferry north and checked out Wildwood. There was a shooting range amongst the midway type games. The sign said "Wack the Iraq". Paint ball guns were fired on live targets wearing Saddam and Osama masks. I was so amazed at its existence I had to turn around and look again, stopping later to take a couple pictures. I'm in favor of the war on terror, but that blatant racist targeting was pretty surprising. Just a few steps down the boardwalk and the normalcy of hermit crabs and frozen custard would return. I was walking so much I didn't worry too much about diet. Ice cream, boardwalk fries, chocolate covered strawberries, and calzOHnee pepperOHnee.

I enjoyed the landscaping at Busch Gardens on a semi rainy day, cooled my jets at the water park of Kings Dominion, and walked around Virginia Beach one evening. The main street there is populated with paid entertainers and a few were pretty good. Still unable to stand still without the kind of pain that would send me to the pavement I circled around the area where a decent jazz trio was playing, enjoying all the sights and sounds.

The 4th of July I spent at Ocean City. "The Navy Cruisers" A group of Navy musicians was performing on the beach and they were sounding pretty good. I walked through the crowd and sat down in the sand right in front of the stage. The Navy concert band followed; real music by real musicians. Anthems can really get to me; make the tears well up. They did some "Guys and Dolls" stuff and "Grease"…but when the lady singer from the Cruisers came out and sang God Bless America it was awesome. Such a strong voice…a crowd behind me on their beach blankets at twilight waiting for the fireworks. A couple kids to my right were lying in their freshly dug holes facing the band in open-mouthed amazement. To my left a Coast guard boat was rocking in the waves just offshore, keeping the pleasure boats safe from the fireworks and protecting the thousands on the beach from who knows what. She hits the peak at the end of the song high and strong with this amazing orchestration being conducted behind her, shouts whistles and applause rising up at the songs apparent end and then the phrase is repeated singing higher clearer and stronger "God Bless America" with the band rising up to the new tonality with the full range of tingling bells, strings, cymbals crashing, all trumpeting, soaring and filling thousands of souls on that beach with the depth of sound. It was beautiful.

The fireworks paled in comparison. Walking away during the beginning I found myself enjoying the way the bombs echoed in a side street. Leaning against a signpost during the finale I still had a pretty good view. A homeless looking gentleman was sitting motionless on the ground nearby. Next to me a teenage boy relaxed on his bicycle. The fireworks finale was a satisfying 5 minutes of constant multiple explosions. After a few seconds of silence following the last barrage the homeless man looked up at me and the kid on the bike, laughing maniacally. The distant cheers rising from the beach mixed with the chorus of car alarms triggered by the bombs. Everyone loves a spectacle. I smiled and walked a couple miles back to my car enjoying such spectacles as the too drunk to walk man and the amazing lady who walked almost as fast as I did…I complimented on her on her speediness.

Now if I had oversold the vacation in my anticipation the sunburn might have made me miserable. And I'd still be whining instead of looking back with amusement. But I was able to roll with it and have one of my better vacations ever. Mainly it was sand sun and waves leaving me fully recharged. I don't have to do it again to be happy…but I probably will.

A garden center manager, writer, musician and webmaster; Lee Goins is often called on as an expert in landscaping and gardening. Residents of Shelby County Ohio have been bringing him pieces of trees, moldy leaves, and jars of bugs for 8 years in spite of the well publicized knowledge he prefers chocolate. His gardening help has been featured on TV, Radio, Newspapers and websites like http://www.shelbylandscaping.com