I love the Philippines. I married into a Filipino family, and some of my favorite trips are visiting their family and friends back home. I won't lie; Manila isn't the top of my list for prettiest cities in the world; in fact it's far from it. As a gateway to the rest of the country, however, it arguably takes you to the most beautiful places you'll ever go in your lifetime.

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Sometimes in photography it takes more than a single photo to tell the whole story. If we're shooting portraits or an object in a scene, we might take one picture to features the details, with a wider shot to give those details context. Using a diptych, we can display both images side by side to create an interesting composition which lets the viewer explore the subject more completely. Try it yourself using these tools and tips to expand your compositional tool kit with diptychs, triptychs and more.

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I've never flown in a hot air balloon, but I have a major soft spot for them because the Texan aeronaut Lee Scorsby is my favorite character in the His Dark Materials trilogy. When I saw Madeleine Sargent's handmade hot air balloon mobiles in last month's issue of Milk, I thought fondly of ol' Lee and his adventures in the sky. More

Have you found that the best vacation photos you end up taking are the ones post-edited through Instagram? The size and shape of Instagram photos make them a less-than-desirable candidate for standard print sizes and photo frames, so what to do? More

The noise of fireworks might freak me out each & every year, but oh, I do love the sight. When the sky drips with gold, my heart flutters, and the world is a bit more magical. In keeping with my philosophy of Seasonal (Not Holiday) Decoration, I've rounded up my favorite works of art featuring fireworks.. More

Fireworks displays come around just once a year (except for whenever the Giants win, or the Golden Gate Bridge turns 75, or whenever your rowdy neighbors feel like it), but the fun of fireworks can continue in your garden all summer long, and even into the fall. Firework-esque flowers are festive, much quieter than actual fireworks, and don't freak out your dogs… More

Sometimes, it's all about your perspective. Photographer Menno Aden used this concept to create Room Portraits, a series of aerial photos of everyday spaces that look extraordinary when seen from above.
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This DIY fad has been picking up steam lately, and we have done our fair share of featuring it as well. But we think a fairly simple process that can produce stunning custom artwork deserves a lot of attention. This particular method produces super-fine results, and the fact that the example used was hung in a nursery sealed the deal for us. More

What if you could see the world from an overhead perspective similar to playing a video game like The Sims? The unique view is the focus of photographer Menno Aden's photo series titled, "Room Portraits", showing various mundane home and private business spaces from an overhead we rarely see in the real world. More

One of my favorite things to do at this time of year is to visit the local farmers markets that are so abundant in New England. From the rows of fresh fruit and produce to bundles of cut flowers, it's as much a treat just to visit as the fresh produce I take home with me is to eat. I've rounded up some fresh products and ideas inspired by local farmers markets below the jump. More