Setting goals and making lists is all the rage right now. Before I forget, here's wishing all of you a very Happy New Year. 2015 can be big year for you. I know I have grand plans. So, let's toast to both of our dreams, shall we?

One of the ways I dream (and I do day dream a lot) is via books. In fact, I am a lot more protective of my books than I am of my gear. I am kinda weird that way. Books, for me, are the ultimate escape and I am very protective of them. I am not much of a tv watcher (though that show House of Cards is something isn't it?) and my bar-hopping days are behind me. So, I sit with my books and I am easily transported to a different life. It's my exit into understanding the world around me.

In the last week or two, I have read books by Jon Acuff (“Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average and Do Work that Matters” is awesome and I am waiting on his next one called “Do Over: Rescue Monday, Reinvent Your Work, and Never Get Stuck“) and Pico Iyer (“The Art of Stillness”).

I have a special place in my heart for photography books. Being a photographer, I know how difficult it can be to edit, design, produce and publish one. So, when a photographer launches a book, I am typically one of the first to sign up and buy it. But budget is a consideration and I have to be rather picky about which ones make it into my bookshelf.

I am heartened to know that so many photography books were published in 2014. It's the end of the year and there have already been a bevy of photography websites linking to their favorite photography books of the year. Here is a sampling:

Lens Culture
Time Magazine
American Photography Magazine
Art Book
Brain Pickings
Humble Arts Foundation
Aperture
PDN Photo Annual
The Guardian
Flak Photo
PhotoEye
Photolia [A motherlode of links to other lists] Elizabeth Avedon
Microcord
Mother Jones Magazine
Conscientious Photography Magazine

My favorite books – the ones I bought are as follows:

Dan Winters'Road To Seeing
Scott Strazzante's Common Ground
Gregory Heisler's 50 Portraits
Lena Hyde's The Design Aglow Posing Guide For Family Portrait Photography
Ernesto Bazan's Isla
Alex Webb's The Suffering Of Light
Raghu Rai's India: Reflections in Colour
Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb's Street Photography and the Poetic Image: The Photography Workshop Series
Neil van Niekerk's Lighting & Design for Portrait Photography: Direction & Quality of Light
Roberto Valenzuela's Picture Perfect Posing: Practicing the Art of Posing for Photographers and Models

Then there are books that I will buy someday in the near future:

Martin Schoeller's Portraits
National Geographic's The Farmer In All Of Us
Paul Mobley's American Farmer: The Heart of Our Country
Eugene Richard's Red Ball of a Sun Slipping Down
Zun Lee's Father Figure
Marc Wilson's The Last Stand: Northern Europe
Alain Lebloile‘s En attendant le facteur
Chirodeep Chaudhuri's A Village In Bengal
Salgado's Genesis
William A. Ewing's Masterclass: Arnold Newman
Magnum Contact Sheets
Larry Fink's Composition and Improvisation: The Photography Workshop Series
Jason Fulford and Gregory Halpern's The Photographer's Playbook: 307 Assignments and Ideas
Erik Valind's Portrait Photography: From Snapshots to Great Shots
Art Wolfe's Earth Is My Witness

I know some of these books were published before 2014, but I came to know about them only this year. So, at least in my mind, they still made my list.

Buy one or more of these books using the affiliate links above and you get to right them off as a business expense for 2014. But you do have only until December 31st (that's tomorrow) to snag these books and get that tax break. Gee whiz, I might have just sold myself more books to buy before tomorrow!

Ok, your turn now. Which photography books did you buy? Which ones would you like to add to your library? Sound off below.

If you are a photographer who use off-camera flashes to photograph weddings or portraits, you are my kind of people. You like to create punchy images that separates your subjects from their backgrounds and make them truly stand out. Am I right?

The Problem

But we all experience a well-known scenario.

There you are, ready to make some sweet images of a wedding couple dancing the night away at their reception.

Your assistant or VALS (voice-activated light stand) is away in the Bahamas. You need to move that off-camera light down and out by about 32 degrees because your clients are losing themselves to the music and have moved from where you thought they would be to this new spot, near Uncle Bob and Aunt Maddy.

But you are about 30 feet away from the couple and the off-camera light you set up with a PocketWizard or a RadioPopper is another 10 feet away from them, making it near impossible for you to move like Spiderman to adjust the light angle and or direction. You are SOL.

Frustrating, right? I know your pain. I have felt it. Often.

The Solution

Thankfully, there is a new solution coming and it's called Panlight. I spoke with Mike Garrard, its inventor a few weeks back. As a Kickstarter campaign, it has already surpassed the goal he set. With only about 18 hours to go before the end of the campaign, this is the time to jump in and order one of these units. I am doing it myself because this is a tool that will come in handy if you are a wedding or a portrait photographer.

Now imagine you impressing the heck out of your clients by being able to adjust that off-camera flash remotely, from where you are standing. Can you feel that pain melt away? Your assistant could be sipping drinks on a beach for all you care, but you will be making bank with all the great images you will be creating for your clients. Sorry, but VALS may indeed become dinosaurs if you begin to use the Panlight. Plus, you won't have to jump around and get in Uncle Bob or Aunt Maddy's grid, like you used to. And, if those two had cameras anyway, you can wish them the best of luck as you go from one amazing lighting scenario to the next. Who wins? You do.

The Win

Yes, it can be that simple. Skip on out of this blog and check out Panlight now on Kickstarter or on the Panlight website, to learn more. But remember, once the Kickstarter campaign ends, prices will go up.

A special thanks to Kate McElwee, a Boston-based wedding photographer who introduced me to Mike Garrard of Panlight. And yes, she is backing this campaign as well.

Did you know David Jackson was a police officer before he turned to photography? Did you also know that he has penned two of the most popular blog posts in Tiffinbox history>? Seriously, go read this and read this. Mind blown, right?

Dave, as he is known to friends, is a great photographer, teacher of lighting and author. But I have seen up close (visiting him twice in Appleton, Wisconsin), that he is also an incredible father and husband. He is what I would like to grow up to be someday. When you meet him, you'll be easily charmed by his humor and his very humble attitude to what he has achieved since launching his award-winning commercial portrait business in Appleton, Wisconsin.

Dave is also coming back to Inspire Photo Retreats. Want to learn from him? Inspire Photo Retreats, in Portland, Maine, will be the place. He is teaching a day-long workshop (at this time there might still be space in it), where he will be going from concept to shoot and delivery. Pretty amazing! Dave, like other presenters, will be at Inspire throughout the event – that's February 9th, 10th and 11th.

Like other Inspire Interviews, I cornered Dave to chat about his experience last year and what he will be presenting this next time around. It's a short chat (yeah, totally unlike me, right?) so take the time to check it out now:

Click the graphic below and you'll be quickly transported to the Inspire Photo Retreats website where you can find out more about the gathering and you can sign up to attend.

Register NOW for Inspire Photo Retreats!

And, so it begins. Another Thanksgiving day will come and go and you'll find yourself stuffed with turkey and good cheer come Friday morning. Resist the temptation to run out at 2 in the morning to go shopping for that 43 1/2″ HD Cypersonic OLED television. Do all your shopping in your pajamas like I do starting today. I'll curate the best Black Friday & Cyber Monday deals for photographers right here. I would appreciate it if you used my affiliate links on this page to make your time-limited discounted purchases for yourself, your friends or your photography business.

I'll keep updating this page, so feel free to bookmark it and share it with your friends online. For your easy reference copy + paste this link when mentioning any deals: https://tiffinbox.org/best-black-friday-and-cyber-monday-deals-for-photographers/ – Thank you!

This one from Photography Concentrate starts today! It's an incredible deal on all of their tutorials. I have learned a ton from Lauren and Rob Lim over the years. I highly recommend what they have to offer and now at an incredibly low price, for a limited time.

Year in and year ou, I depend on WPEngine to deliver the goods on this website. From my experience, their customer service is excellent and their reliability spot on. Use code: CyberHosting14 – to sign up for personal, professional and business web hosting plans. You get an incredible 4 months added to your new account! Dayuuuum, wish I could sign up for this one.

Photography Spark has reduced its very popular “cookbooks for photographers” by about $60! Regularly $99, they are both being offered for $39, from now through December 2nd!

Everything in Rachel Brenke's Law Shop (think photography contracts and even the BizRevamp course) is a whopping 40% off from today through December 1. Use the code: BlackFriday40.

Preveal, Salesographer and SwiftGalleries are all on sale on Black Friday. Check out all the deals here or click the graphic below.

Design Aglow is my go-to-resource for templates of all kinds. This year the company is offering 15% off its framing and paper shops. Use code: THANKFUL when ordering.

Modern Tog has bundled all of her amazing resources into one product and is offering it from today through December 1st at a ridiculous discount. I would grab these now! Also, she is offering her 6-week marketing course, called Marketog, also at a discount for a limited time.

Get your pricing all wrong and you can kiss your business goodbye. Joy Vertz is all about teaching photographers like you through her 3 Weeks To Pricing Perfection Course (regularly $575). Use code: blackfriday50 and get it for 50% off between today through December 2nd!

Susan Stripling's The Dynamic Range just launched. Did you catch my interview with her? Starting on Thursday, the 27th through December 2nd, she is offering all of her ebooks at 30% off! You don't need a coupon to buy The ThinkBook Compendium, The Business and Marketing Workbook, and Case Studies. Learn from a real pro!

Jenika McDavitt of Psychology for Photographers fame is offering a rare sale on Irresistible Words $199 (reg $249), Irresistible Website for $109 (reg $159) and a bundle that includes both – $299 (retail for both would be $408). These are available only on Black Friday through Cyber Monday.

For the creative person in you or for a friend, consider the preset packs offered by Mastin Labs. November 28th through December 1st, you can snag all of the presets at 40% off! These are the same presets I depend on for my portrait photographs. No code required.

Scott Wyden Kivowitz is a friend and a few months back he released the Wedding Photographer Conversion Kit (regularly $149.97). November 26th through December 1st he is offering it to you for 66% off or $50.99! Use code: GobbleGobble [you can also buy his other ebooks and presets at 66% off using this special link]

Other special offers for photographers will be displayed right here, so please come back and visit and do tell your friends who are just as obsessed with photography as you are! Let's save some money and make things happen for our businesses in 2015!

Do you have a busy portrait studio or a wedding photography business? Then ShootProof is THE proofing option for you. Check out their special offer here for new customers only.

Spencer Lum is no stranger to Tiffinbox, as he was the 2nd Annual Tiffinbox Award winner. As the principal photographer at 5 West Studios, a Brooklyn, NY based wedding photography business and the blogger behind Ground Glass, Lum is a highly sought after speaker and presenter. He will be at forthcoming Inspire Photo Retreats, in Portland, Maine from February 9 – 11th, 2015.

We sat down to chat about his 2014 presentation (which I missed!) and then explored what he will be speaking about at the 2015 event.

If you are still on the fence, please take a look at all the speakers who will be coming to Portland. I believe speakers like Ashley & Rich and others have one mission: to inspire you to do your best work in the near year. Everybody needs that kind of motivation year-in-and-year-out. If you agree, I expect to see you at Inspire Photo Retreats in 2015! Register today.

Next up in the Inspire Interviews series is Arielle Doneson, a film and digital hybrid shooter sought after worldwide for her luminous fine art approach to weddings. Come back and check it out or subscribe to TiffinboxTV.