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Nixplay is excited to present the first in-depth article of Explore More, a series of content pieces that revolve around unique photo-taking adventures, creating moments and chronicling memories. Be creative, try something new and Explore More. Stay tuned throughout 2018 to further unleash your sense of adventure and love for photography.

Special Note: Part 2 will be published on Monday, February 15 and will provide you an ultimate guide to how to take photos of space.

2018 is setting out to be an exciting year for all space buffs that are fascinated with a galaxy far, far away and we don’t mean the latest Star Wars movie. The year has already started out with a big bang thanks to the appearance of the year’s first supermoon on none other than New Year’s Day, a phenomenon that allows space geeks to see the moon 14% larger and 30% brighter, making it one of the easier space events to photograph. For those who were recovering from the flows of champagne and confetti, don’t fret, there will be an astrological event nearly every month – plenty of opportunities to get your inner geek on. The list below shows some of the highlights of this calendar year and when you should me making that giant leap out of your door and onto prime space gazing real estate.

Jan 31^st: Super blue moon eclipse
Feb 10^th: Line of planets with moon in between
March 31^st: Second blue moon
April 22^nd – 23^rd: Lyrids meteor shower
May 6^th – 7^th: Eta Aquarids meteor shower
June 27^th: Saturn at its closest to sun
July 31^st: Mars closes to Earth (next event with such a close proximity will happen in 2025.)
Sep 7^th: Neptune at closest approach to Earth
Oct 21^st – 22^nd: Orionids meteor shower
Nov 17^th – 18^th: Leonids meteor shower
Dec 12th: Comet 46P/Wirtanen passes by Earth

You probably remember thinking about how amazing it would be to experience space from daydreaming at school to looking in awe at the ever-growing catalog of space documentaries. This awe at the immensity of our solar system makes it a fascination to many and it is that awe that has seen a rapidly increasing contingent of star gazers that want to go beyond simply looking up at the stars, creating a trend of space photography. The digitally disruptive world of today has made this hobby accessible to a winder audience. Yet many people who try their hands on capturing stars and planets in the night sky often struggle with issues ranging from struggling to find and capture a planetary sitting or eclipse due to distance and lack of visibility to not knowing how to get the best shots when there is movement. Then there are those who, probably like you, thought this was a job for the professionals. And here’s the surprising bit: it can even be done from a smartphone.

In part 1 of our series, we list out the key highlights of space watching in 2018. Find out what’s hot and gassy or bright and beautiful for space photographers. At the same time, we will act as your guide and act as your de facto GPS for finding the best perch to get that award-winning shot. No, it’s not Pokemon Go, but a guide for the stars, planets and moons of 2018 – or at least those within site

If there’s one thing in common between US president Donald Trump and NASA, it would have to be location, location, location. When wanting to film one of these events, you can’t just leave your house, look up and expect to see these wonders of our Universe.

There is an interplay of location based factors that range from the part of the world you live in to the environment around you. Firstly, and this may seem like an obvious one for many, is light pollution, a common occurrence, especially in the world today, where for the first time in human history, the majority of the population now live in cities. The Big Apple is a bad apple for space photography.

Positioning yourself right in 2018 starts with the Lyrid meteor shower, peaking in the morning just before dawn on April 22. The general direction to look is east, although to be more precise, there is a table that can help calculate your exact positioning; whilst this website should also help. It’s best viewed from the northern hemisphere, with the mid-southern hemisphere coming in a close second. Eta Aquarids is the most inclusive when it comes to viewability as you can witness the spectacle from anywhere in the world, whilst our latter couple in November can be seen from both hemispheres after dark; for the Leonid’s your best bet it to look between the east and the point right above you, whilst for the opulent Orionid all you is look straight up above your head.

Saturn, shines brightest, or is in opposition on June 27. Its general behavior on the day is much like the moon’s, rising at sunset, appears at its brightest south at midnight (give or take a couple dozen minutes) and sets in the west once sunrise hits. Generally, it should be right on the other side of the sun. Location-wise, as long as you’re sensible and are in a dark area without any light pollution and where it’s not overcast, your chances of witnessing this wonder is quite high. This site gives you exact coordinates of where to find the gassy planet in your location – make sure your device’s location settings are enabled.

Saturn with its rings. Photo by NASA JP-Caltech Space Science Institute.

If you ever get stuck or feel hopelessly lost in the hunt for shooting stars, the best tip would be to look at what constellation the meteor appears to radiate from seeing as each meteor is named after one. In less scientific language, constellations are groups of stars that form an image – some of the names may even be familiar to you. Alternatively, you can download an app known as ‘Starglobe’ on your phone

As for catching our comet, you’d be best placed in the Northern hemisphere. Do keep your expectations realistic seeing as scientists cannot pin-point how bright it would be at present, but they do believe it’ll be the brightest comet in over 5 years, passing 7.2 million miles away from earth. It can be located quite easily as it passes winter constellation Taurus, the bull. Searching for and printing out the constellation would be the best way to prepare for the day.

Whilst we are summarizing this without going to an encyclopaedia of GPS coordinates, we have sifted through the data and provided some useful tips to get you on your way and explore something new. Once the cosmic event occurs, be sure to take as many photos as you can, to maximize your chances of taking a good quality photo.

Touch-ups

Many of the photos that you see related to space on a lot of the top photography journals and other publications are not one-shot wonders. Professional photojournalists that partake in various space photography often do a lot of editing to the shots they get. Let’s face it, shooting movable objects in pitch black is not easy even for the most experienced. Whilst your mind may wonder to programs such as Photoshop, a truly successful space image will go beyond that with sequencing and layering. To find out more, stay tuned to our article to be published on January 15, where we explore the best ways to edit and build upon photos long after the camera is packed away.

Share Your Discoveries

Want a good opportunity to show off and gain likes? Your space-filled gallery will be a guaranteed winner; instantly share photos with anyone in the world through your social media apps, messages and as we recommend, the Nixplay app, which manages photos and albums on digital picture frames. It would also be irresponsible of us not to note that starring into the sun directly – an exciting photo taking opportunity can become a tragedy. Like a good astronaut, a good photographer of the Universe is universally ready – get the right gear, prepare, plan thoroughly and enjoy the ride!

Why is Nixplay the Perfect Gift this Christmas to Connect your Family?

By Beatrice Bisais

On December 17, 2017

In Gifting Guides

Christmas is a time of family gatherings, where people can appreciate, rejoice, gift. We’re sure that you can think of lists of verbs to describe all the precious memories of years past. Many of you would even have photo albums with smiling family members watching with joy as her grandchildren unwrap their Christmas goodies with sheer elation on their faces.
Yet, the chronicled memories of yesteryear may not be recorded for much longer as photo albums are increasingly becoming confined to the history books as your family members, particularly younger generations take Christmas selfies, send them on Snapchat or to a few friends through messaging and social media platforms only to be disappear or get deleted before the arrival of the new year.

Despite such changes, some are finding opportunities in this new, connected world. Fred and Beva, a couple, that had recently retired in Minnesota wanted to buy a product that they could show off their love for photography, opting for a WiFi digital frame, the Nixplay Edge, designed and developed by Nixplay.

They joyfully discovered that the product they bought was much more than a simple digital frame to display pictures, but a tool that built precious memories as they noted: “We have relatives across the country and wanted to be able to easily share our family memories. When our family visited and saw our frame in action they all were impressed and fascinated with them. Nixplay offered the best technology, sharing capabilities and ease of use. They have been a perfect gift to share all the family fun and memories.”

For the couple, that have been together for over four decades and recently relocated from Pennsylvania, this connection was something that money couldn’t buy. Having family scattered across the U.S., with their 95-year old grandmother living in Florida, a sister in South Carolina and two children that also live in Minnesota. They were determined to maintain the precious connections with their loved ones and saw Nixplay’s digital picture frame offerings as the best tool for the job.
“When our family visited and saw our frame in action they all were impressed and fascinated with them,” they said. “Nixplay offered the best technology, sharing capabilities and ease of use.”

The happy couple added that they were pleasantly surprised with the frame’s capabilities, particularly after the negative experiences that they had with digital frames from other brands.

Essentially, Nixplay has allowed them to find an ecosystem to meaningfully connect in the digital age: “Sadly, we often atomize knowledge into pieces that don’t have a home in a larger conceptual framework. When this happens, we surrender meaning to guardians of knowledge and it loses its personal value.”

The immense personal value that the Nixplay Edge frames gave Fred and Beva was highlighted by the joy that it brought to their grandmother: “It’s absolutely the best family gift. It’s the next best thing to being there for distant relatives. Grandmother has her frame on her end table and spends hours watching her great grandchildren. Now she feels that she doesn’t miss any special times and feels more connected than ever.”

It was a magical moment for them to witness how the connected ecosystem that the Nixplay Edge frames offer allows them to share all these special moments in real-time such as birthdays, holidays and fun events. The unrivalled ease of use that the technology offers is one significant element that Fred lauds when talking about the digital frame: “My wife is the administrator for all the frames and she posts new pictures after all events. We preloaded the frames with playlists and then mailed them as gifts. The only thing the family had to do was connect the frame to their internet and they were set to go. There are always new pictures added at least weekly.”

The cheer was spread, in a true Christmas-like spirit through Nixplay’s innovation in technology has allowed them not only to pursue their passion in photography, but allows them to chronicle, organize and keep record of this. Fred and Beva praise the fact that they can easily sort their photos in playlists, segregate photos by categories and customize playlists for different family members. The product solidifies itself as a true leader in the field by its mobile app where photos can be uploaded, allowing Fred and Beva’s loved ones to add photos real-time.

Christmas is a time of giving, sharing and creating family moments. Nixplay has not only created a digital frame, but a priceless tool that adds value by being an emblem of love, togetherness and happiness; making it the best investment in this season of giving.

Grandmother Jennifer Shows us how Gifting a Nixplay can Connect Family in Different Countries

By Beatrice Bisais

On December 8, 2017

In Customer Testimonials, Gifting Guides

Have you ever seen memorabilia with “Best Grandma in the World on it?” We have, and we immediately associate it with Jennifer Van den Hoek. Jennifer is an Australian, living in The Netherlands- an expat far away from home. Her story begins about twenty years ago, when she moved with her husband and four children.

Imagine moving miles away from home in the late 90’s, “ Communication was a little difficult and certainly very expensive.” For anyone who remembers, this is when the dial up connection had started picking up ( who can forget that sound!) Internet and long distance phone calls were expensive, “ The fax machine became our friend,” it was the only way to get news around instantly, especially for expats. Through the years, two of Jennifer’s children embraced the expat life and stayed back in the Netherlands while two moved back to Australia. Fast forward to 2016, where there’s no excuse not to keep in touch. Social media, email and mobile phones make it near impossible to stay away from family. 20 years later, Jennifer has just gotten news that she is becoming a grandmother soon!

The only problem- her pregnant daughter Jessica resides in Australia, while 2 of the other siblings live in Amsterdam.To add to the distance factor that expats face, pregnant Jessica lives far away from all her relatives- her closest relative is 2 hours away. The closest relatives being the baby’s aunt great grandmothers. Jennifer had a task: to connect her new grandson to the great grandparents.

She found that the best way to connect the great grandmothers to their new great grand baby was through pictures, so they could see his growth. But sending pictures through messages on the phone wouldn’t cut it for the great grand mothers. Images needed to be seen on a physical, big device, like a digital photo frame. That’s when she hit gold, she found the Nixplay Seed through thewirecutter.com. Her criteria for choosing the Nixplay frame was the number and quality of reviews. As a test, she decided to ask for the Nixplay frame as a birthday gift for herself. She loved it, she says,” I truly love my frame and each and every morning as I enter the living room, it lights up with (mostly) photos of the smiling face of Sebastian my grandson and photos of the latest and greatest adventures of my 2 daughters in Australia!”

Seeing how well the frame connected Jennifer to her family, her son in law decided to buy one for his mother too. The family grew from one Nixplay frame, to five! A whole expat family of Nixplay! “We feel so connected through these photos and other members of the family don’t seem so far away when they can see what is going on, on the other side of the world. The brothers often ask if there are any new photos lately.”

Nixplay frames are wifi enabled digital photo frames. You can send images using your mobile, email or social media straight to your frames. The best part about Nixplay is that each member in your family should have one! With the Nixplay app you can create playlists to send to multiple frames. There’s a “friends” option where your friends and family can directly send photos to your frame. “ I also very much enjoy the convenience of the Nixplay app on my phone so I can put photos in files or delete them easily from the frame. I also can easily bring up the photos, on my phone to show others when I am away from home .”

Jennifer has found the perfect gifts from expats and is gifting two frames to her mother and mother in law and she’s excited to hear, “the sounds of delight once my mother and mother-in-law receive their frames and start receiving photos from their children and (many) grandchildren … they will once again feel connected over such great distances.” While we do not sell our frames in Australia, Jennifer is a testament of a great, loyal, expat customer. She bought the frames in Holland and then took them with her to Australia, where she bought an Australian adapter to be able to use the frame there. She is truly a dedicated grandmother, daughter and mother and we are proud to have her as a customer. You too, can bring your family closer by gifting them Nixplay digital photo frames this Christmas.

Christmas Gifts my Parents might actually Use this Year!

By Beatrice Bisais

On November 30, 2017

In Customer Testimonials, Gifting Guides

Ryan Negri wears a lot of hats; a son, a husband, father (to two lovely dogs) entrepreneur, innovator, philanthropist. Among all this, it’s a wonder how he has time to think about Christmas gifts for parents. Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for parents to receive gifts they never use, or even open; What a waste!

Christmas is an important time period for Ryan. Ryan cannot join his parents physically for Christmas, not because he’s unable, but because it’s too cold and it’s basically a 50/50 chance they make it there. To make up for it, the gifts needed to top all the years before and he had to make sure they would actually use it! Ryan is based out of Vegas and his parents live all the way in Northern Wisconsin and as he says, “My family hasn’t used my last three Christmas gifts, this year should be a lot easier.”

In comes Nixplay digital photo frame, a WiFi cloud connected solution Ryan says, “This one provided a way for me to load the photos for the technically unsavvy.” The Nixplay photo frame is an easy to use digital photo frame. You can send images directly from your phone, social media or email to your digital frame. Moreover, it comes in different product lines with distinct features, sizes and colours! It’s a great gift for empty nesters. Ryan bought two Nixplay Iris 8 Inch frames, for both sets of his parents. Nixplay Iris offers a sleek, chic design that is designed to shine from every angle. It fits in perfectly with any home.

For Christmas, Ryan preloaded albums onto his parents frames. The digital photo frame was a great “turn on and set up and leave it alone.” For families like Ryan’s it’s hard to make sure all your memories get shared, especially when they live so far away. Having dogs that grow and change everyday adds to this challenge, because most parents love to see what the most active members of the family are upto. Also, since due to his active lifestyle he’s always out and about seeing, experiencing and taking pictures of new things. With so much done, it’s a waste to leave pictures lying on the phone when they can be displayed and shared on his parents frame. With the Nixplay digital photo frame, Ryan could tell if his parents turned on the frame and were online- this way, he could make sure they’re using their gifts ( and catch them if they weren’t!)

Indeed, both sets of parents used the frame. Another benefit of being part of the Nixplay family is 24×7 customer service. Ryan says,” My mother in law wasn’t pleased with the stand, so the wonderful customer care rep, Klaudine, overnighted her a seperate one to you.”

Now, after buying Nixplay as a gift for his parents. Ryan has realised the connectivity it brings and he’s planning to buy another frame for a family member who is a photographer, so everyone can make sure to see her stunning photographs. The Nixplay Edge is a great product for photographers because it allows SD card functionality along with the WiFi functionality. ( We know how many pictures that continuous shutter can bring in, so with Nixplay Edge just insert the SD card in straight away instead of going through the process of sorting and editing.)

Apart from spending time with his dogs and his beautiful wife Amy, who is an avid photographer- Ryan’s hobbies include golfing, hiking, and traveling. He’s the founder of Laicos, a Technology Startup Studio at Laicos.com. Find him personally on RyanNegri.com and twitter, @RyanNegri.

Family gift pack sale: Mix & match on all Seed and Iris orders with tiered discount: 20% off 2 products; 25% off 3. Discount will automatically be applied at checkout, no other existing discount code can be used in conjunction with this sale.

Campaign period: 4 – 10 December.

How Becky (Expat) can Connect with Her Loved Ones using Nixplay Digital Photo Frames

By Beatrice Bisais

On November 24, 2017

In Customer Testimonials

To say Becky ( well known as Cuddle Fairy) is a woman of many talents, is probably an understatement. She is a famous blogger, an expat, a mother of three and a wife. Talk about women that make sure they have it all.

Becky moved away from her hometown in the United States to West Ireland eleven years ago, she has been living the expat life since. At the time, there weren’t many ways for expats to keep in touch with their families. She would go to the local internet cafe for emails. Now, however, things have changed. With social media, mobile and email- it’s easy to get connected. But with an overload of information, it’s also hard to make sure you don’t miss out on the important memories.

It was really hard for Becky to find a way to keep in touch with her family and make sure that she displayed and shared memories with less tech savvy family members. She says, “ Setting up the frame is as easy as turning it on & entering your wifi code. Then pop onto Nixplay website to create an account & sync the frame to your account.” This was where the Nixplay Digital Photo Frame came in for this expat. It was “super easy to use & allows family & friends to stay in touch through sharing photos.”

When different members of the family have a Nixplay photo frame so they can share memories with each other. With three kids, Becky can use the Nixplay frame to send images to her family in the US. She sends pictures to her parents and her uncle and aunt. She can take pictures of the kids on their travel trips, their days out and at school events to send to the family through the Nixplay app. Playlists are easy to update and can be sent to multiple frames.

Being far away from home, a lot of expats have a fear of missing out. “ I hate missing out on birthdays & occasions with family in the US so this is a new easy way for them to keep me posted through photos!” For expats, the Nixplay frame is a great way to keep in touch and make sure that your family doesn’t miss out on any important moments. It’s also a great way to make sure you don’t feel homesick.

A Photographer’s Guide to the Universe Part 1

Why is Nixplay the Perfect Gift this Christmas to Connect your Family?

Grandmother Jennifer Shows us how Gifting a Nixplay can Connect Family in Different Countries

Christmas Gifts my Parents might actually Use this Year!

How Becky (Expat) can Connect with Her Loved Ones using Nixplay Digital Photo Frames