Hurry Up for Robert Frank

So I know this is late notice, but tomorrow is the last day to see Looking In: Robert Frank's The Americans exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. I stumbled upon it today while studying the architecture of the East Building by I.M. Pei. A very pleasant surprise indeed.

It's vastly easier to appreciate a photographer's work when properly presented; printed from the original negatives, matted, framed, and properly lit. Sure you can see it on the interweb or in a book, but it's surprisingly better when it's the real deal.

Go see it! Even if you're not all that into street photography, you'll enjoy it. The exhibition is on the west end of the West Building.

More info on Robert Frank

Also, I snagged this shot with my Xpan before going through the tunnel from the confusing East Building to the West Building.

Hold the laptop

Next time you take a photography trip, leave the laptop behind. You don't need it. Go get yourself a Think Tank Pixel Pocket Rocket, pop in ten compact flash cards, and go. Take tons of pictures, relax in the evening, and save the post-processing for when you get home.

Ten CF cards at 4 gigabytes each gives you 40 gigabytes. I shoot at about 10 gigabytes per week with a 5D in raw. Even if you're twice as trigger-happy as me, that still gives you two weeks of shooting, sans laptop.

Ken Rockwell pointed out that shooting film actually forces you to save the post-processing (or any kind of processing, for that matter) until you get home. There's no reason this can't be true for digital as well.

This is especially true on international trips. It's just another juicy target for thieves and customs. The price is not just in dollars either; imagine the amount of personal data that's on your laptop. If you really feel the need to stay connected and browse the web, go get yourself an iPod Touch.

There's also the weight savings. For the weight of a laptop, you could carry another lens or two. Better yet, you could just save those extra pounds and be more mobile.

"The things you own end up owning you." Choose wisely.

As as side note, there may be hope for the 1D Mark II after all...