What's Black & White & Green All Over?  You!

Article and photos by Betsy Spruill Clarke

This Earth Day, 2009, DC Shot List wants to motivate the green "monstah" in you with a list of sustainable tips with a photography twist.  Whether you are a photo-arts fanatic or a PRO-tographer, these suggestions can certainly benefit you, your photography and yo mamma, lady earth.

Sustainable Charging - Batteries
Rechargeable batteries are definitely the way to go, when it comes to sustainable shooting.  Energizer and Duracell dominate in marketing their products.  However, Marriott International digital imaging specialist, Adam Clarke, recently sent me this list of rechargies, from "METAEFFICIENT" that seem to have the best ratings.

But what about the batteries you have lying around with possible power still inside?  Battery tester, my friend.  They are cheap, easy and tell you the status of life inside of those mystery cells.  DC Shot List recently found a digital battery tester for under $10 at Batteries Plus in Rockville.

And make those batteries last longer.  Remember the days when you used the camera's viewfinder to frame your shot?  Yeah, they still make 'em like that, and using it instead of your LCD display will help.  And to the protogs?  Yeah, you know your f stop and shutter speed magic?  No need to look at the back of the display after every shot...I do it too and I'm trying to break that habit!

Cameras - Reshoot to Recycle
There are many ways to give your old cameras, new life.  Have 3-5 antiques lying around?  Position them together over the mantle for some insta-cool art! Have a perfectly good camera that you just do not use anymore?  Sell it to KEH, a very honest company from Atlanta, that will give you a very fair and decent price for your second-hand shooter.  Or even better?  Donate it to Critical Exposure, a photography program for kids in public schools.

Adam Levner, co-director of Critical Exposure advises, "At this point the only donated cameras we can really use are digital SLRs.  We try to have the same kind of basic digital cameras for all the students in a particular class because it makes teaching the students how to use the cameras much easier."

Make Photo Paper Green
Believe it or not, DC Shot List was hard-pressed to find any info on how to recycle photo paper.  Primarily because it just can't be done, due to the silver, chemicals, etc...  So, here are a few suggestions for misprints and other old photos that just end up in the trash.

Shred 'em up and use as packaging material.  Not only will you avoid those annoying styro-nuts, but you will also have pretty rad confetti cushioning your breakables.

Make a fabulous collage!  Okay, that one is just too easy, but think about how absolutely awesome Aunt Mildred's blown-out and way too contrasty mug would look pasted on ole what's-his-name's body.  Yeah, it's not home decor that appeals to everyone, but it will keep you laughing.

Still Using Film?
DC Shot List commends you but not for any reason that is green.  Just another film grain addict, is all, but I digress...

Those film cannisters can be used for so many, many things:  cutsie packaging for jewelry gifts, paint samples, medicine vial, change containers, etc.  Heck, I've even witnessed the film cannister be used for other "green" past times, but we won't get into that right now.

Recycle & Purchase Ink Cartridges for Your Furry Friends
PetSmart Charities "Recycle for Life" program enables you to dispose of your ink and toner cartridges properly through their recycling program. Purchase your ink and toner through this program and PetSmart Charities will receive a donation of $2 for every ink cartridge you purchase and $5 for every toner cartridge you purchase.  Plus, for every ink cartridge and cell phone, by the way, that you send back using one of their special pre-paid envelopes, PetSmart Charities will receive anywhere between $2 and $5 dollars!

Photo storage, Sharing and Selling
Online, baby!  Not necessary to print out every single photo you have as a keep sake.  Now you can just keep them in an external hard drive with a couple of DVD back-ups.  Plus, you can really be efficient by using Flickr and other sites to share your shots with friends and family.

PRO-togs, sell your images through sites like Zenfolio.  Your clients can now purchase the files to download, instead of a print or CD.

And on the topic of CD's...
if you are going to put some images on one, choose a CD-RW, which means "rewriteable," which means if you screw up and forget a specific shot, you won't have to throw out the disc you just burned.  Just burn...and re-burn.

Well, I hope we learned something here today.  Now, turn off that computer, grab your camera, and go outside and shoot now, while it's not raining! 

Mother Nature is showing you her best side, today!!!