Everybody gives out tips for better photography. Well, maybe not your boss or the guy who fixes your furnace (although mine does), but most photography websites, forums and magazines fill their pages with tips for becoming a better photographer. There's a reason there are so many tips out there: photographers want them. On the other hand, we who have some little knowledge like to give them, too. Most people like to pass on what they've learned. I've been a photographer for nearly four decades. I've published thousands of photographs. I write a photography column (Photo Curmudgeon). I love photography. I read tips from other photographers often. Sometimes, I read something new, or at least put in a new way so that it sparks an idea. No one can tell you how to develop your photographer's eye. Only you can figure that out. What I can do is give you some pointers about how to develop your own photographer's eye, and how to get better as a photographer.

Photographer and writer Shawn M. Tomlinson, author of the Photo Curmudgeon column and books, makes creating black and white and toned photos simple with this how-to guide. "In a world dominated by colorful images, black and white and toned photographs can stand out as something different, something somehow more beautiful," Tomlinson writes. "To really work in the 21st century, a black and white or toned image must be special. It must express something not there in color. There must be a reason to change the reality of the image by turning it grayscale, not just that you can. All that said, there is absolutely nothing like a truly great black and white image." The author covers the basics of B&W and toned photos including processing techniques, printing, presentation in eBooks, and much more. This is an expanded and revised edition of the original eBook and trade paperback editions.

Outside was crazy. The thick, coming storm weighed me down. It could come any minute: thunderous, hurricane rain, followed by all kinds of hell. I dashed across the lawn, into The Lab and up the stairs. The bookcase was locked. Most of our books anyone can look at. Some, we donÕt think would be wise to let out. I fumbled the key chain, looking for the tiny key that could open the door. I managed to get it near the keyhole when the electricity died. Cara may curse my pipe, but right then, I think sheÕd have been glad I had a lighter. The lighter helped me again. The deep, old books were a window to the past. We had read few. That would entail things like dying horrible deaths. Instead, we had a collection of Òabout books, Ó essays written anywhere from last year to a thousand years ago. The one I was looking for was deep red, 'AichlanÕs Deimos.' In it I hoped to sort out how to send Xith back to wherever the hell it came from before it ate Lily Dale, or whatever it does.

A lot has changed since I wrote and published this first volume of what became this guide series. One thing hasnÕt. I still have the same enthusiasm and joy in photography I had way back at the beginning of the series. I have a lot more knowledge and experience now and, occasionally even get close to taking good photographs. ThatÕs the thing, see. I didnÕt know a lot when I originally wrote this guide. I had been working in photography since 1982 professionally. Everything I knew, pretty much, was self-taught. In general, thatÕs still true. ThereÕs no need for you to do it all by yourself, too, though. This book and this series are meant to help you get going with the basics fast. Yes, OK, I tend to relate my own experiences, but that, too, is meant to help you avoid some basic mistakes I made. And, perhaps, I write in a tad too friendly manner, but think of it as sitting down with me to have a friendly talk about a passion we share: Photography!

In the Realm of the King is volume four of my complete shorter fiction collection. It contains some finished stories, but largely it contains a collection of unfinished pieces. Either I got stuck at certain points of the pieces or just stopped writing them. I first collected some unfinished tales in my chapbook titled 'Tales Without End Vol. 1' way back in 1995. It was, in fact, one of the last few chapbooks I published. This volume is an attempt to get most of my unfinished tales into one book. Who knows? I may complete some or all of them one day, or I may not. In any event, they are here for what theyÕre worth.

ÒJust like me to never have any money when the end of the world comes, Ó thought Martin Fahy as he walked through the bitter, ceaseless rain. He laughed slightly and wondered what he was going to do now. Sure, he had been the one who always knew The End was coming soon, but he just couldnÕt convince anyone else. He wasnÕt a religious fanatic or anything and his predictions of the coming doom had nothing to do with apocalyptic visions or cultist beliefs. It was based largely on his continual observation of scientific predictions. And now, it all was happening. Fahy realized what heÕd always said was his prime philosophy still was true: The only way out is throughÉ