fun summer activities 2020

How To Have The Best Summer Ever In The New Normal

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On June 30, 2020

In Lifestyle

The summer of 2020 will go down in history as an unforgettable one…and not really for a good reason. With people hesitant to leave their homes and social gatherings frowned upon, it’s safe to say that a lot of the summer activities we enjoy will get canceled or postponed. It’s a sad thought, but we couldn’t afford to take risks right now.

In the meantime, there are still plenty of ways to make the most of the next few months. Here are some suggestions:

Go to a secluded beach

Please avoid going to popular beaches, no matter how beautiful they are. They will most likely be crowded, and you don’t want to gamble your health in exchange for some sun, sand, and surf.

However, if you know of a secluded beach in your area that doesn’t get a lot of visitors, you can definitely go there as long as you follow stringent social distancing measures. Try to go during off-peak times to minimize the chances of sharing the area with other people.

Have a pool party at home

Don’t have a beach nearby? Replicate the experience in your own backyard! Having a swimming pool is the best scenario right now, but an inflatable pool works in a pinch as long as you’ve got the space for it. Bring out your favorite swimsuit, put on your sunglasses, and enjoy your homemade waves as you bask in your makeshift tropical paradise.

Create Your Favorite Summer Drinks

There are few things in life as refreshing as a watermelon shake or a cold lemonade on a sweltering afternoon, don’t you agree? If you want a more grown-up version, you can try your hand at margaritas, mai tais, and mojitos–all classic cocktails that, for some reason, seem to taste even better during summer.

Whatever your preferred beverage is, one thing’s for sure: Summer would be incomplete without sipping at least one ice-cold drink, preferably with a cocktail umbrella.

Get a tan in your backyard

Nothing says “summer” quite like a gorgeous tan. Don’t let the pandemic get in the way of your bronzed dreams. Take out your beach towel (a yoga mat can also suffice), spread it out in your backyard, and soak in the rays while reading a fun book. Don’t forget to apply (and re-apply) sunscreen: the goal is sunkissed, not sun-damaged!

Send summer-themed postcards to your loved ones

Do your loved ones live far away? Make your summer more interesting with snail mail. Send them summer-themed postcards with sweet messages just to say that you wish they were with you. It’s a simple, thoughtful sentiment guaranteed to brighten up their day.

Create a summer photo playlist

Reminisce about carefree sun-soaked days gone by with a  summer-themed photo playlist. Add your favorite photos and videos from past summers to create a nice slideshow that you can view when you need a quick pick-me-up. If you have a Nixplay Frame, you can even ask your friends and family to collaborate with you on a playlist by sharing their own photos. This way, you can all reminisce about the good old days.

Don’t have a Nixplay Frame yet? Now’s your chance to get one: We’re having a major Summer Sale on our UK and Germany sites. This is your chance to enjoy huge discounts on our bestselling frames, so don’t miss this!

Jodi Bondy How Nixplay became one of my Favorite Photo Devices

How Nixplay became one of my Favorite Photo Devices

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On June 29, 2020

In Customer Testimonials

I am the oldest child in our family. I am a mom of three and a grandma of five. Life can get hectic, and keeping track of photos should not cause stress and headaches for anyone.

The Nixplay frames we have purchased have been one of the best investments we could have made. Let me tell you why.

As I was growing up I was always an organizer; cleaning cupboards, closets, and keeping mementos from trips and important events. I was fortunate to have a large extended family, and listening to their oral history was a wonderful way to spend a lazy summer afternoon on the breezeway eating homemade ice cream. I  loved hearing those stories but did not give it much thought to ever write them down. After all, there wasn’t going to be a test at the end, right?

So years passed and the storytellers began to leave this earth, and with them, their stories. I decided I needed to capture them so that I could pass them onto the next generations and incorporate them into my scrapbooks (when I would finally be ready). So I spent several days interviewing my Papa and recalling all the things he told me (I believed them all to be true). Because of this, I will now be able to share my father’s memories with my grandkids, even if I don’t have the pictures to “show” the story.

Fast forward to when my husband and I became parents for the first time and lived over 20 hours away from our families. Of course, we were taking tons of pictures to document our new addition, and Mom would be asking weekly for new photos. So I would dutifully head to the photo store to get double prints and then send one set off to Michigan.

However, this process started to become a burden. Chasing a toddler around took more time than I planned. A lot of times, the photos didn’t get printed or they didn’t get sent.  

I tried to keep it up, but it was not a priority for me and the next phase of sharing photos became a calendar for the upcoming year. And the photos were from LAST year. It was at least an easy way to send photos, but it was not very timely. Mom and Dad didn’t seem to care, but I was bothered by the fact that they were now seeing memories from over twelve months ago. It was not a perfect solution, but it was the fix of the day.

Our kids have since graduated, moved out, married, and started having children of their own. Now I was the grandma, and I WANTED those pictures to see my littles doing everyday things. And the funny thing is that we lived within an hour of our kids still, but did not see them on a daily basis. So I would ask them to email me some photos.

Usually, I would not get any (was I that daughter to my mom?). Then I joined Facebook to see the photos they would post (so I can blame my kids for getting me hooked on social media!) and then try to save the ones I felt were memory-worthy. It was a difficult task, as each snapshot fit the bill.

I was trying to keep up with sending photos to our family in Michigan so they could be engaged in our lives, but it was just not the most efficient way to do things.

Then along came Nixplay.

I bought a frame for my parents, set it up, and I kept control over the account so all they had to do was to plug it in and connect to the internet. I shared the email for the frame with my kids, my sister, and her kids.  I told them all to send photos when they took them. Now I did not have to be the middle man! 

And they did share. Maybe not immediately on the day when the photos were taken, but they would send pics from their phones when they had the chance to sit down and review them. And I was able to scan some older photos from our collection and share them. This was a gamechanger.

I can go into the account from my computer and remove duplicates (because my mom still adds photos she sees on Facebook when they have already been sent to the frame) and make sure photos are showing up on the correct frames. Yes, frames, plural: My family now maintains two frames, one in Michigan at my Mom’s, and one at our home in Indiana. I am able to add captions to the photos if the sender does not–it’s necessary as those little girls all look alike at some point in time. We love being able to sit and watch the frame, and it’s usually better than what is on television.  And it was such a wonderful way to keep my parents engaged in the lives if their grandkids and great-grandkids.

When Dad was battling cancer, the frame brought him great joy while it displayed photos of the people he loved, and I felt like my kids did a great job of keeping them updated. Now that he is gone, Mom is able to have family “moving” through her day on the screen.  

Our Nixplay is one of the first things our grandkids run to when they arrive at our house. They love to watch the pictures scroll through the collection. And this is how they have been able to learn the names of the members of our family and how they knew about their grandpa. Even though some of them have never met my dad, they know who he is and will talk about him.

I love to watch the kids watching the frame. It makes my heart fill with love. I am so glad I found Nixplay, and it is now like a member of the family. And because of our frame, other family members and friends have also purchased frames of their own and have brought them into their lives.

I am so happy to see that visual history is now being recorded, and that there will always be stories tied to these photos that need to be recorded for future generations. Photos deserve to be displayed–now, think about how many images would still be locked away in phones, online clouds, or boxes if we didn’t have Nixplay.

increasing productivity tips

The Best Productivity Apps You Should Be Using Right Now

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On June 26, 2020

In Lifestyle

Hundreds of books have been written about the importance of productivity: How you need to work smarter, not harder; how you need to make every second count; how to keep improving every day.

But there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to productivity. Some methods that may work for you may not work for your friends, and that’s fine. That’s why we’ve listed a few apps that can help you achieve your productivity goals, no matter your working style.

Hootsuite

Juggling several social media accounts? Why not use Hootsuite to manage them all from one dashboard? This game-changer lets you update your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn accounts from the same screen, saving your time and energy. It also lets you schedule your content in advance, making it the perfect tool for your influencer aspirations. And you don’t have to worry about logging into each platform every time and remembering your passwords. Speaking of passwords…

LastPass

If you’re always forgetting your passwords (and we’re probably all guilty of that), then LastPass might just be your new best friend. It’s a password management tool that generates secure passwords for all your accounts and keeps track of them in a vault which you can access using a master password–the only code you should remember. If you want to improve your digital security, LastPass is for you.

Toggl

One measure of productivity is the time spent working on a project. This is where Toggl comes in. This time tracker gives you a breakdown of the hours or minutes spend on a task, giving you the opportunity to adjust the way you work in order to become more efficient. It’s especially useful for freelancers and project-based employees who bill clients by the hour.

Evernote

Evernote is one of the best note-taking apps out there. It lets you keep track of your ideas easily by typing lists, adding photos, sketching doodles, or uploading PDFs. It’s smart, too: if you’re looking for a particular idea you had about, say, blueberries, Evernote will scan through all your notes–including the drawings and images–to give you what you’re looking for. And if you’re working with a group, you can use the app to share notes and collaborate easily.

Stayfocusd

It’s so easy to get caught in distractions when you’re supposed to be working on a spreadsheet, creating a presentation, or typing a paper. Enter Stayfocusd. This Google Chrome browser extension, when enabled, blocks websites that can pose a distraction while you’re trying to work. You can also set a schedule so it’s automatically enabled during your work hours, and set time limits for your social media fix.

how to photograph fireworks

How To Photograph Fireworks Like A Pro

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On June 25, 2020

In Photography

With the Fourth of July coming up, it’ll be good for you to know how to take great photos of fireworks. They’re one of the most majestic things you can see–and one of the most challenging subjects to capture on camera. If you want to improve your fireworks photos, here are some tips to get you started. 

How To Photograph Fireworks Like An Expert

Scout for a great location

When shooting fireworks, it’s crucial to secure a good spot from which you can capture the magic without obstruction. Location matters, and if you can find an elevated space away from the crowds (to make sure that people’s heads or limbs won’t be in your shot), that would be perfect. Your location also plays a huge factor in your photos’ background. Do you want to shoot fireworks against an unobstructed night sky, the city skyline, or the mountains? Where you’ll be shooting can spell the difference between a good fireworks photo and a great one.

Use a tripod and a remote

Now that you’ve secured your location, the next thing you need to do is to secure your camera so you don’t end up with blurred shots. This is especially important for fast-moving subjects: when every split-second counts, you want to make sure you’re prepared. A tripod should come in handy, and controlling shots using a remote can further reduce camera shake.

Think about your framing

First things first: Are you shooting landscape or portrait? The former is great if you’re including the surrounding scenery, while the latter is better if you want to highlight the fireworks.

You also have to remember that different types of fireworks have different heights. Adjusting your camera constantly to get the fireworks in the frame could result in missed shots. Instead of trying to take photos of every explosion, it’s more efficient to just focus on a particular section of the sky and capture the action there. 

Use slow shutter speeds and shoot at a low ISO

Long exposure shots are perfect for capturing the fireworks’ movement. Try to keep the shutter open from the moment the firework starts to explode until it finishes exploding. But don’t try to keep it open too long, lest you overexpose the shot.

Shooting at a high ISO will result in brighter but noisier images–something you don’t want if your goal is to capture the contrast between the fireworks’ bright lines and the inky sky as cleanly as possible. 

nixplay secret sale

Don’t forget to display your fireworks photos on a Nixplay Frame! We’re having a Secret Sale on our US site right now: Get up to 25% off selected frames, only until July 12!

love in the time of social distancing

Keeping the Love Alive in the Age of Social Distancing

By

On June 23, 2020

In Lifestyle

These days, being in a romantic relationship when you’re not living in the same place as your partner can be difficult. But even if physical contact is discouraged, you shouldn’t abandon your romantic pursuits. Sure, staying connected is more challenging, but it’s all part of the fun. Here are some ways to keep the love alive despite the six-feet-minimum distance.

1. Say it via snail mail

In the age of email and instant messaging, snail mail is practically a relic of the past. But you have to admit, nothing compares to the thrill of receiving a handwritten letter via post. Send each other love letters, sweet notes about your day, drawings, and postcards–this can be the start of a romantic tradition that’s unique to you.

2. Have a virtual movie night

On a more modern note, you and your partner can have a virtual movie date within the comfort of your respective homes. Third-party applications such as Netflix Party and Watch2Gether let you watch Netflix shows, YouTube videos, and other content at the same time.  

3. Talk on the phone

Remember the good old days, pre-emojis and social media, when you’d spend hours on the landline talking to your friends about schoolwork, your crushes, your favorite TV shows, and every little thing that held your interest back then? It’s the best time to bring it back. Use your phone’s minutes to whisper sweet nothings to your partner. Plus, you don’t have to worry about looking your best on camera the whole time.

4. Share photos via Nixplay Frames

We’re living in an interesting time that will undoubtedly go down in history, and you should document everything for posterity. Take photos of your activities, your day-to-day life, and the new normal around your neighborhood, and share them with your partner via Nixplay. It’s the easiest way to stay connected visually.

PS: We’re having a Secret Sale right now in our US Site! Get up to 25% off selected frames, only until July 12! 

5. Have food delivered to each other

When you can’t go out for a proper dinner date, the next best thing to do is to recreate the experience of dining out at home. Mark special occasions by having your favorite restaurant deliver your favorite dishes to you and your partner’s respective homes, setting up a video call, and eating your meal while enjoying the conversation. Take it up a notch by dressing up and decorating your background, and uncork a bottle of wine to up the romance.

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