When Diana, Princess of Wales, died in a car crash in a Paris tunnel,any remaining illusions I had of charmed lives for princesses did too. I was a teenaged Anglophile, one of the millions who woke up extra early to watch her wedding day on tv, and felt real sadness - whether I should have or not - in the years after as that initial fairy tale story crumbled.

One of the greatest things about reading is that it can take you virtually anywhere without ever having to leave your house (or library or park bench or wherever you happen to find yourself.) An equally great thing is to be inspired to go and see the places described in books - to use them as inspiration for seeking out these places beyond their pages.  

The summer solstice puts the actual season a few weeks away, but the May and June proliferation of graduations, weddings, beach trips and barbecues mean summertime even if the calendar hasn't yet caught up. Since so many events often mean much capturing of memories on memory cards (and film? Yes, please?), it seems like a good time to make a little list of Ten Entirely Subjective Commandments for Successful Summer Photography. Let's shoot, shall we? (Sorry.)

Before last night, I had watched Jon & Kate Plus 8 once, and vowed to never watch it again. And except for following the most basic of information in Tweet exchanges with my friend Jodi, I did not.  Until last night. Right.

Say "awkward family photos" and the first thing that comes to my mind is my grandmother's house, any Thanksgiving between the years of, say, 1978-2004. We were all forced to gather around one end of the table in a too-small dining room, while she tried to operate a camera that always - always - malfunctioned (Disc cameras, even, for a few of those years. Remember those? See Boing Boing's "Bad Old Days: Kodak Disc 4000 Camera" for a refresher and then give your PowerShot a big kiss. )