In the market for a new camera - thoughts?

Okay, folks, I’m in the market for a new camera, and I’m looking for advice and suggestions.

A little background: Way back in the mists of time when I was a reporter, I used a bells-and-whistles camera, plus my husband at the time was a great photographer and we had a proper camera. But over the years, I’ve moved to point-and-shoot (and digital, natch). Now I want to get back to real photography again…but I’ve forgotten a lot.

So the questions of “What do I want?” is hard to answer.

Here’s what I want to use the camera for:

1. concerts. I need to be able to shoot decent pictures without flash, and the camera needs to take pictures quickly with little down time. Concerts mean I’d need a camera without removable lenses.
2. book covers. I need to be able to take reasonably high quality photos for covers (300 dpi for print covers).
3. travel. I want to take nice pictures when we travel. The camera doesn’t need to be waterproof, but reasonably light, small, and hardy are pluses. Extra lenses might be too bulky for motorcycle travel, so again, I’m probably looking for one w/o removable lenses.

I like the idea of having one that has point-and-shoot capability as well as all the manual controls.

I’m somewhat flexible on cost. This is an investment and I’m not necessarily looking for the cheapest camera; however, I want to find a balance between quality/functionality vs. break-the-bank/more features than I’ll ever use. So far, $500 doesn’t scare me; more than that and I’ll have to be convinced the cost is worth the added features.

Thoughts, suggestions, recommendations? Feel free to ask me questions to help me refine what I’m looking for! And thank you!

(And please leave comments here rather than FB/Twitter/G+…that way I don’t have to look four places to compare everyone’s suggestions. Thanks!)


Update 2/20/12: I think I've narrowed it down to the Canon S100, the Sony HX100V, and the Sony HX9V. Which is not to say that I'm still not completely waffling…see the comments for more!

Definitely on the mend - finally!

Yes, I’m definitely starting to feel better. Despite not getting nearly enough sleep last night (O Nyquil, I reach out a trembling hand, but you slip from my grasp…), I’ve been productive and actually have energy today. As in, “Okay, let’s tackle the next item on the To Do list” as opposed to “Oh gods, not the next item on the To Do list…fuuuuck…”

Okay, for the record, I did doze off during my acupuncture appointment. That was a nice rest.

Of course, now I’m battling with the Popcorn Kittens. So many projects bouncing up and down demanding my attention! First orders of business are copyediting (I have two jobs to finish before we leave for Oregon on the 23^rd) and a short story due ASAP. I’m expecting a story assignment by the end of the week (for one of the Oregon workshops) that will then be due ASAP (before the second workshop; I don’t know the exact date, but probably before we hit the road).

Butbutbut then there’s publishing! I just got my second collection out (Five Funny Fantasies) and I’m jonesing to do another. I see that if I publish two more outdoor erotica stories, I’ll have a total of 10, which will be perfect for a collection. I also have a mock-up done of a cover for another fantasy story; I think it’s pretty good, which means I have to buy the art, format the story for the various markets, see if there any nice reviews of the story out there, write the blurb, etc.

HOLY SHIT, DUDES! Apparently the story in question, “Some Old Lover’s Ghost,” was nominated for a 2010 Gaylactic Spectrum Award for Best Short Fiction! It didn’t make the short list, but still!  O.O

Woah. Right. Where was I?

So, copyediting, writing, publishing. I’m also doing the tutorials for InDesign so I can finally get some print books out (oy). I’m behind on work email, too. And a wee bit of promo here and there—a bunch of Cleis Press anthologies I have stories in are now available as audio books, and I’d like to do a post on my romantic stories that would be nice for Valentine’s Day….

Meanwhile, I’ve been pretty good about keeping my home email In Box, which includes bunches of SCA mail, mostly down. But a flurry came in this morning, so I need to deal with that tonight. Today, I’ve also gone to Trader Joe’s, the drugstore, Best Buy (I can has a new little light wee Kindle!), and Jo-Ann’s. Not a lot of house stuff, but some puttering here and there.

What I really want to do is watch the new Styx DVD, but it’s just gonna have to wait a little while longer! Writing calls!

Edited to Add: And tomorrow I’m going back to bootcamp after a couple of weeks off. It’s gonna hurt, but it’ll gonna hurt so good….

First fantasy collection!

Five Funny Fantasies by Dayle A. Dermatis

Five Funny Fantasies is the first collection from prolific writer Dayle A. Dermatis. Prepare to be amused by these five humorous fantasy stories involving dragons and slayers, deals with the Devil, 80s hair metal, and much, much more!

Includes the following stories:

• If the Shoe Fits
• Feline Design
• Famous Last Words
• Hell’s Belles
• What Dragons Prefer

“Dayle A. Dermatis’s ‘If the Shoe Fits’ is a funny (and rather ingenious) semi-modern twist on Cinderella, in which we find out why that shoe was really so important to everyone.”
—Errant Dreams Reviews

“[What Dragons Prefer’ is] a very good short story with a classic twist at the end. This story is very well worth reading.”

—Steve Challis, Smashwords.com

“Simply put, the author's writing style is really, really good!”

—A.A., Amazon.com

“I chuckled aloud at [‘What Dragons Prefer’]. Brilliantly succinct expression of a neat twist!”
—George, Podcastle.com

Cover art © Julien Tromeur / iStockPhoto.com.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

State of the Dayle (and Ken)

We’ve had a much-needed quiet, somewhat catch-up weekend. I’m pretty sure I’m on the far side of my cold; I finally haven’t needed nasal spray to sleep (which I’ve been using since, oh, Christmas) and I’m not coughing much at all. Maybe tonight I’ll try to go without Nyquil…? Which would be sad, because I like Nyquil so very much. It puts me to sleep, and keeps me asleep, and even if I get up to stagger to the bathroom or snort more nasal spray, it puts me right back to sleep. Sweet, sweet Nyquil. Why must you have high fructose corn syrup in you? Of course, as soon as I’m not sick and I try to take Nyquil, it will keep me awake, spinning and spinning. So at least there’s no chance I’ll become addicted to it.

Sadly, Ken’s now been struck with a cold; hopefully it won’t linger as long as mine. Sigh.

My root-canalled tooth still hurts if I try to chew on that side, and I’m hoping that’s because I have a temp filling. My jaw is also still a little achy, but nothing awful.

So we’ve spent the weekend catching up on TV (plus I’ve been saving some stuff to DVD), and I’ve ton a bunch of copyediting and started a short story and answered much work email (and home email and SCA email and…), and Ken’s cleaned off his desk, and we cleaned off part of the sewing table (as well as putting away the air mattress and sheets and blankets from our most recent guest), and Friday night to Saturday morning I slept 11 hours, waking with dismay at 1 pm.

But maybe that’s why I’m finally feeling better. Who knows. I set my alarm for noon today and got up at 11:30, so I’m slowly dragging myself back to a schedule the rest of the world views as “normal.” I’ve got an acupuncture treatment tomorrow morning so I have to be up…

I think my hand’s marginally better, thanks to my babying it as much as possible. The NAMM and Styx/Geoff Tate vacations helped, as does Dragon Dictate. Writing is still slow going, though. I’m handwriting a story and then dictating it in, but I’ve discovered that when I handwrite, I tend to default to notes rather than, oh, actual sentences. Ack.

Okay, off to hammer through some more emails before I curl up in bed with Ken and the latest Sue Grafton!

Who's there?

So it’s 1:30 am, Ken’s gone to bed, and I’m still up sipping red wine and trying to eke out a short story.

We live in an old house, one that creaks and groans and settles.

Just now, the heater (I think) (I hope) made two distinct, sharp knocks into the silence.

And all I can think is, I’m damn well not going to knock back, because I do not want to get an answer.  O.o

Share the Love!

I’ve had several stories published in various Coming Together anthologies. What’s special about these anthologies is that all proceeds are donated to charity—each anthology is for an individual charity, ranging from Amnesty International to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I’ve given my stories to these anthologies for free.

This month we’re trying to raise the profile of these books (there are single-author collections as well!) though the Share the Love Blog Bash. Each day, a different author is writing a blog about their story, their favorite charity, their inspiration, or whatever, and including a steamy excerpt. 

Did I mention there will be prizes? There will be prizes! Many authors are offering a prize on the day their blog is posted (mine is a free copy of my first-ever e-collection). Plus—and this is so exciting I wish I weren’t a contributor so I could possibly win—there are two grand prizes:

1. A $50 gift certificate to All Romance Ebooks to one commenter.
2. A Kindle fire to a person who visits and comments on every one of the 29 posts and shares the post via FB, Twitter or Google+.

Even if you can’t visit and comment every day, I hope you’ll nip in on occaision and see what we’re chatting about, and that maybe you’ll mention the Blog Bash in your blog or social media site.

And even better, why not donate to charity by picking up a book or two? Valentine’s Day is fast-approaching and wouldn’t your lover be even happier knowing that their gift benefitted others as well?

Won’t you Share the Love with me?

All over and up and down and around

Whee! I had a great week with Ken and my friend Sara, running to and fro—literally. We picked up Sara last Wednesday at the airport, grabbed Thai food—because of my cold, I was really grateful for the spicy soup—and headed to Anaheim for the first of several Styx shows. Before the show we hung out in a coffee shop for a bit, catching up on our various electronic devices, before our friends Fran and Thom and Tani met up with us. At the venue, it was a glorious reunion; the first show after a break is a wonderful homecoming with friends: Sheri and Nanci and Lisa and Naoko and the twins and their mom and Maria. Ack, I’m sure I’m forgetting someone! Hugs all ‘round, and then into the show, which was of course awesome. We had dinner afterwards with Tani and then drove home and fell over, exhausted.

The next morning we slept in for a little bit, and then Sara and I fluffed and buffed and headed up to Solvang. After purchasing a yummy cheese at the wine and cheese shop, we went over to the casino to see if we could get tickets for the show that night (we hadn't been able to get any decent tickets when they first went on sale). We weren't lucky, but we had an amusing time wandering around the casino and briefly hanging out with the assistant tour manager. We spent that evening eating cheese and crackers and watching videos.

Friday saw the three of us battling traffic to get to Temecula for the show there. The band again kicked ass (Dragon Dictate insists that last word should be “pass.” I can't wait until I start dictating an erotica story!) and a friend was kind enough to offer me a backstage pass for a brief meeting with Tommy Shaw. Of course, then we all headed out to the buses and got to see Tommy again, along with Todd and Lawrence.  :-)

We stayed in Orange County that night because Geoff Tate of Queensryche was doing a signing at the wine shop; he's partnered with the winery and created a red and the white. Then we hopped back in the car and headed north to San Luis Obispo because Geoff was playing a show there that night. Yes, that's a lot of driving! You should have seen Geoff’s tour schedule! It was all over the map.

On Sunday we rejoiced at not having to put on makeup and being able to stay in our pajamas most of the day. The only time we went out was to pick up groceries—Sara and I made a vat of vegetable soup for dinner.

Sadly, I had to take her back to the airport on Monday afternoon and wave a mournful farewell. Then I came home and mostly collapsed. Actually, that's not entirely true: I paid bills and cleaned off my desk and answered a ton of e-mails. That said, I'm still fighting off this cold and goodness knows bouncing up and down at concerts doesn't exactly constitute “taking it easy.” I spent most of yesterday working, and today Ken and I ran some errands.

I was supposed to have had my root canal this morning, but my dentist was sick. I'm rescheduled for tomorrow morning—keep your fingers crossed. I really want to get this over with while Ken's home and it doesn't interfere with travel!

February should be a relatively quiet month until the end, when I head up to Oregon for two workshops. I'm looking forward to getting my health back, to working out, and to getting lots of work done. I'm still focusing on the publishing arm of my business along with copyediting, but Dragon Dictate is helping immensely with e-mails, blog posts, and an upcoming nonfiction assignment I've just been offered.

Happy Imbolc to you all! We’re halfway to spring and the light is returning.

New fantasy titles available!

I have two new fantasy stories for sale!

"The Devil Went Down to the Sunset Strip"

“Angrrr Management were four talented guys. (They really were. I wasn’t just some starry-eyed groupie; I knew decent music and I knew stage presence.) Talented, yes, and awfully pretty, all of them. And every last one of them was dumber than a post. Had they never HEARD of Robert Johnson?”

“The Devil Went Down to the Sunset Strip” is a hilarious urban fantasy short story about 80s hair metal and selling your soul to Satan.

“The Devil Went Down to the Sunset Strip” originally appeared in Retro Spec: Tales of Fantasy and Nostalgia (Raven Electrick Ink, 2010).

Cover images © iScream Creative / iStockPhoto and Baris Simsek / iStockPhoto.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Blood Relations"

The woman known as the “Vegan Martha Stewart” learns who her infamous father really is…and their relationship threatens to ruin their respective empires. A funny fantasy short story—with a bite!

Cover art © Robert Kohlhuber / iStockPhoto.com.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

Speak and ye shall be…read!

OMG you guys! One of my editors bought me a copy of DragonDictate! How sweet is that?! So far it's been super-helpful with e-mails, and I'm using it for this blog post. I'm not sure how it will work with fiction; I suspect it'll be easier for me to write longhand and then transcribe. (Although really, transcribe is the opposite of what I mean, isn't it? I'm so confused….)

The program really is amazing. I'm stunned by how many words it knows. It'll be interesting to see how it handles erotica terminology, though! I also have to really enunciate “exclamation point…”

We spent the end of last week at NAMM, a music industry convention. We got to chat with several members of Styx, and Ken got to meet one of the members of Iron Maiden, among other artists we ran into. More importantly, we got to hang out with great friends, and we had a wonderful time. Pictures forthcoming on Facebook and Flickr.

Despite the fact that I seem to be coming down with a second cold on the heels of my previous cold, I'm in much better spirits. The vacation really helped. Tomorrow, we pick up our friend Sara from the airport and head to Anaheim for the first of two Styx concerts. Or maybe three; we're going to head up to the Chumash Casino and see if they release any good tickets last minute. If not, we’ll just go to Solvang and drown our sorrows in æbelskivers. We also plan to go to a Geoff Tate wine signing and then see him in SLO for a solo concert. We’re also going to shoehorn in a visit to the Hollyhock House in LA and maybe a whale-watching tour.

Meanwhile, I've been working hard at the publishing side of my job, and have a few new stories already available, plus a new collection almost ready to be published.

Never a dull moment! See you on the flipside!

Sexy fantasies at the office and in hotel rooms

"Working Late" by Andrea Dale

Jack has to work late, but his domme wife has other plans for him. Watching him via webcam, she orders him to pleasure himself at his desk. But what if his sexy new boss walks in? A smoking hot female-domination short story from a legendary erotica heavy-hitter.

"'Working Late'" by Andrea Dale is an extremely hot story about sex over webcams that ends with a mind-blowing twist worthy of The Twilight Zone." (Master Dave, amazon.com)

“Working Late” originally appeared in She’s On Top (Cleis Press, 2007).

Cover art by Shane Kato / iStockphoto.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mirror, Mirror" by Andrea Dale

Have you ever watched yourself make love? Evan and Callista take their sexual relationship to a new level when they check into a hotel with mirrors all around their room. A steamy short story about voyeurism from a legendary erotica heavy-hitter.

“Mirror, Mirror” originally appeared in Do Not Disturb: Hotel Sex Stories (Cleis Press, 2009), one of Violet Blue’s “Best Sex Books 2009” and a 2010 Independent Publisher Book Awards winner.

Cover art by Cokacoka / iStockphoto.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords