Throwing Knives

Knife-throwing developed from throwing wood, which was used as both a tool for hunting and a weapon for battle. In North Africa, the evidence of throwing wood goes all the way back to approximately 6000 B.C. In Egypt, throwing wood was found in the grave of Tut-anch-Amun (approximately 1340 B.C.). After the emergence of iron about 600 B.C., throwing wood gradually developed into the throwing knife.

The throwing knife became popular in America in the early 1800s. The knife-throwing battles of James Bowie, an American soldier during the Texas Revolution, are legendary. In fact, knife-throwing was popular with many Confederate soldiers as a method of fighting. It also became popular as a form of entertainment for them.

A drawing titled “Camp Life in the Confederate Army” shows Confederate soldiers throwing knives at a mark on a tree. which first appeared in 1861. This is considered the first evidence of knife throwing for entertainment.

As early as 1890, knife-throwing appeared as entertainment in the theater. The performer  Monsieur Bushnell used knife-throwing in his variety act. As early as 1902, Victor F. Cody and Miss Lillian Cody joined in the fun and performed knife-throwing acts around the country.

Today, a lot of emphasis is placed on the throwing knife in movies. However it is still used as a weapon by many military units around the world. Throwing knives have also developed as a popular competitive sport.

Several people have asked us what brand or type of tomahawk was used on the History Channel TV show, Top Shot episode. The name was not mentioned on the show. It looked similar to a Cold Steel Pipe Hawk Frontier Hawk , but the head looked more like stainless steel, rather than the drop forged steel of the Frontier Hawk.

The Centre Ridge Neighborhood of Centreville, VA

Centre Ridge is a beautiful single family home and townhome community located in Centreville in western Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. Buyers will find single family homes for sale, and townhomes for sale. Numerous community amenities exist, ranging from community centers with pools  to trails for jogging, bicycling and walking in Centre Ridge Park, Isaak Walton Park and nearby Bull Run Regional Park. Restaurants, stores and even a multiplex theatre are within walking distance for most residents. These amenities plus the area's convenience to major commuter routes, shopping and employment hubs make Centre Ridge very attractive to those looking for houses for sale in Northern Virginia.

Centre Ridge Homes have an exceptional location in terms of its proximity to Washington, D.C. as well as employment centers. Nestled between Routes 28 (also known as the Dulles Technology Corridor) , Route 29 and I-66, Centre Ridge is only 25 miles from Washington, D.C. Those looking for Centre Ridge houses for sale will find that Dulles International Airport is conveniently located only 7 miles from Centre Ridge.

The Centre Ridge community is located adjacent to numerous government and private businesses which employ large numbers of people. The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) is minutes away, as are other notable companies, many of which are located in the Dulles Technology Corridor. The exceptional location of Centre Ridge Homes has made it easier than ever for people to live close to their jobs, thereby enabling them to spend more time with their families instead of having to endure a long commute to and from work.

The high quality of the public schools in this area is another compelling reason to consider purchasing a house in this part of Fairfax County. The Centre Ridge community is served by the Fairfax County Public Schools. This school system is the largest school system in Virginia and the twelfth largest school system in the country. Fairfax County also has two well known higher learning institutions: George Mason University and Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC). NVCC is the second largest community college in the US.

If you are looking for Realtors in Northern Virginia to help you buy one of the homes for sale in Northern Virginia, or sell a home in Northern Virginia, the Equity Rise Real Estate team has extensive experience with real estate in this area. You will find that now is a great time to buy a house in Centre Ridge because of the community's ideal location, proximity to both government and non-government jobs, and access to one of the nation's top-notch public school systems. These factors taken together make this Northern Virginia community a very attractive consideration and a smart choice.

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Real Estate Camera Equipment

Real Estate Photo Equipment Packages - What Do I Need???
I know some people like to immerse themselves in research and analysis and details. I'm not one of those people. I like bullet points and bottom lines. If you're like me, you may be saying, "Just tell me what to buy and what to do with it as quickly as possible."

Let me first say, "You're my kinda guy/gal!" Here's the short version. Here are two equipment packages. One I'll call the "standard", and the other I'll call the "Premiere". Standard is for those agents who drive minivans and want the best bang for the buck. The Premiere is for those of you in the Mercedes and Lexus SUV's who want the finest name-brands, AND who want to be able to tell your listing prospects that you use the finest equipment available.

While this may look like a lot of money, remember that this is an important (and tax deductible) investment in your real estate career. You can pick up a few pieces at a time as commissions come in if you need to. Also, it pays for itself quickly in getting listings sold more quickly or when divided by the one-time fees of hiring a professional photographer.

The first thing you need is my Real Estate Photography Class. No really. I know this sounds self-serving but we created these lessons for a reason. Before you buy equipment, you should know what you're planning to do with it. The classes are all broken down into 2-5 minute segments so you can learn what you need as you need it.

	Standard Package	Price (estimate)
Camera	Canon EOS Rebel DSLR Body	399.00
Lens	Sigma 10-20mm Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon Cameras	479.00
Main Flash	Canon Speedlite 580EX II Flash for Canon EOS Digital SLR Cameras	449.00
Slave Flash	Vivitar Zoom /Swivel /Bounce Flash for Canon	114.95
Tripod Legs	Manfrotto 055XPROB Pro Tripod Legs	160.00
Tripod Head	TacShot Pistol Grip Ball Head	32.00
Case	Canon 200DG Digital Camera Gadget Bag	54.95
	total	1688.90

	Premiere Package	Price (estimate)
Camera	Nikon D3000 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera Body	440.00
Lens	Nikon 10-24mm Wide-Angle Zoom Lens for Nikon DSLR Cameras	899.00
Main Flash	Nikon SB-900 AF Speedlight Flash	495.00
Slave Flash	Vivitar Power Zoom /Swivel /Bounce Flash for Nikon	115.00
Tripod Legs	Manfrotto 055XPROB Pro Tripod Legs	160.00
Tripod Head	Manfrotto 322RC2 Joystick Head	100.00
Case	Jill-e Leather Camera Bag	229.00
	total	2,438.00

All of these can be substituted, but this list will get you going. You'll also need some batteries and memory cards.

Brett Monk is a media consultant
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Real Estate Listing Photos

We've all seen them... Listing photos that are so poor that you'd almost laugh at them. Right after that comes all the listings with just one photo of the exterior. I understand that not everybody considers themselves to have "talent" as a photographer, but taking good pictures is now both easier, and more important than ever.
In today’s real estate marketing environment, the photos of the property are the foundation of all other advertising, including:

• Your MLS Listing, which attracts Buyer Agents
• All the websites that are fed from your MLS listing, which attract Buyers
• Your website slide show and virtual tours
• Social media used to market a listing or your business
• Your brochures and other printed materials
• Your listing presentation to prospective sellers
  

In other words, having great listing photos complements and turbo-charges all your other systems and training, while having few or poor photos can render them useless.

Home buyers (and their buyer agents), especially when searching on the Internet (or the MLS), are more visually-oriented and have lower attention spans than ever. Many people are calling this the "Post Literate Society", where people are going back to icons (look up where that word came from) and other visual media rather than reading long blocks of text.

If your listing has few photos, no photos, or poor photos, many of the the online buyers will just move on to the next property.

While it’s great to learn how to promote yourself on social media, how to do a listing presentation, and how to market on Craigslist... if you miss the foundation, you miss it all! Every agent must learn how to take great pictures - or have someone on the their team who can.

Those who fail to change with the times get left behind. It happens in all industries. The key to success is to look for the trends, see what’s coming - and in this case, what’s already here! Photos of real estate listings are more important than ever! If you don’t have great photos of your listings then you will be passed by. And as time goes on, you will lose potential listings to the agents who demonstrate that they take excellent pictures.

The good news is that with digital cameras and training, such as that from our online Real Estate Photography Classes, anyone can learn to take great listing photos that attract buyers, drive in traffic, and get homes sold.

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