And it has nothing to do with trends.

Your style changes so much between middle school and college that of course, they’re going to be some regrettable outfit choices along the way. Everyone has them! But avoiding these common fashion mistakes will help you own your style — sans any major outfit regrets.

1. You spend all your money on the newest trendy clothes and accessories. If you’re constantly buying fast trends that go out of style the next season, you’ll end up with a closet full of stuff you never actually wear. Bye, money! Instead, balance a few new trendy pieces each season with classic items you’ll wear forever, like a goes-with-everything dress and a pair of jeans you love.

2. You wear whatever your friends are wearing, even if it’s not really your style. Sure, it’s much easier to just fall in line with what everyone at school is wearing, but it’s much more fun to stand out with your own personal vibe. It might take you a while to figure out, but if you only buy and wear what YOU like, you’ll feel so much more confident, and over time, you’ll start to develop your own unique style.

3. You wear something just because your mom or dad doesn’t want you to wear it. When it feels like your parents are totally trying to control every aspect of your life, including your style, it’s tempting to wear things you know they won’t like just to spite them. But you know that amazing feeling you get when you win an argument over your outfit? It usually goes away as soon as you realize you actually aren’t into it at all. Like that super-short skirt that your mom didn’t like but you wore anyway to make a point, and then you were uncomfortable all day pulling it down.

4. You buy clothes that don’t fit because you’re worried about the size on the tag. You might be one size in one store and a totally different size in another. It doesn’t mean anything, except that stores can’t get their sizes straight! Don’t even look at the size, and instead pay attention to how it fits. You’ll look and feel your best when you’re wearing something that fits you well, regardless of what’s on the tag. And if you’re really worried about anyone else seeing what’s on the tag, just cut it out!

5. You wear what you think your crush thinks is hot. You might think your crush will notice you if you start wearing mini-skirts, or maybe if you dress sportier, they’ll think you’re hot. When in reality, there’s nothing hotter than showing you’re confident enough to rock your own kickass style.

6. You wear shoes that KILL your feet. No matter how ~gorgeous~ a pair of heels are, if you can’t walk in them, then they aren’t worth it. Flats are just as cute, and won’t stop you from running around all day and showing off the rest of your cute outfit.

7. You have no idea what’s in your closet because it’s so messy. Cleaning out your closet is a huge pain, but you’ll spend half as much time finding something to wear in the mornings if you can actually see all your clothes. Ditch whatever you don’t love or doesn’t fit you well, and only keep what you’re excited to wear every day.

8. You don’t know how to wash your clothes properly, or you don’t pay attention to garment labels. While sorting your clothes or even drying cleaning them (UGH) is such a pain, it could seriously save that shirt you just spent your entire measly paycheck on.

9. You compare your style to your fave celeb’s style. It’s fun to get inspo from Kylie Jenner’s Instagram, but since you aren’t a gazillionaire who gets paid to look perfect, it’s pointless to try to compete (and trust me, it’s exhausting trying!). You don’t have to have a new outfit for every hour of the day or endless designer clothes to look amazing. Plus, celebs often mix in affordable finds, and you can find tons of less expensive alternates to their designer duds at stores like Zara, Topshop and H&M.

10. You’re afraid to experiment with your style. Everyone has regrettable fashion moments in middle school, high school, college and beyond! It’s totally part of finding your style. If you don’t try out different looks, how will you ever figure out what works and doesn’t work for you? Plus, fashion is supposed to be fun, and what’s “in” and what’s “out” is constantly changing. So, don’t be afraid to take some chances. You might cringe when you look at old OOTDs, but that’s all part of finding your style.

11. You listen to to what friends/magazines/ANYONE else says about what you “should” or “shouldn’t” wear based on your body type. Guess what? Your body isn’t shaped like any type of fruit, and no one knows what really looks hot on you. So forget the “rules” about how to dress for your body type, or what anyone says you can or can’t wear. Focus on playing up your fab figure, and highlighting whatever you love, whether it’s your strong legs, or your booty. Bottom line: Wear what makes you feel amazing, and everyone will think you’re *flawless*.

It has happened to many of us: Just when you think you’ve found a great deal on airfare, you realize the price doesn’t include those annoying fees for everything from checking a bag to selecting a seat.

Those little additions can sometimes add big bucks to the ticket price.

However, as Consumer Reports explains, there are some simple ways to avoid them.

1. Research ahead of time so you aren’t surprised by extra costs

Start by checking out the airline’s website to find out exactly what’s included in the price for the type of ticket you are considering. Then decide what extras you’re willing to pay for. Baggage is the most obvious—even carry-on baggage. Others can include a seat assignment and early boarding.

If you’re trying to avoid a checked-bag fee by packing only a carry-on, CR says to remember that there are very strict rules on the sizes of any carry-on items you may have.

2. Search for airlines that have deals

Many airlines have loosened or even eliminated change or cancellation fees. Southwest, for example, allows two free checked bags.

3. Frequent flyer? Airline credit cards offer perks

If you’re a frequent flyer on one airline, consider using that airline’s credit card, which could offer valuable perks such as free checked bags, priority seat selection and boarding, and other travel treats.

4. Book your fare now if you plan to travel this summer

A final piece of advice to snag a decent fare: If you see a fare right now and you think you’re going to be traveling this summer, book it!

Bad weather can hamper many travel plans – especially if that weather involves ice or snow. And given the dangers involved with flying in wintry conditions, it would be smart to check up on how well airplanes can operate in snowy and icy weather.

So, can airplanes take off and land in snow and ice? Yes, airplanes can take off and land in snow and ice – if the right precautions are taken. Plowing the runway, and de-icing both the runway and the plane can make it safe for airplanes to operate in wintry conditions. However, sometimes conditions are too dangerous for any flying to take place. 

In this article, we will take a look at the steps that must be taken for airplanes to take off and land in snow and ice safely. We will also cover the relative safety of flying in snowy weather, and hopefully, we’ll put your mind at ease about flying during the winter.

Is it safe to take off and land in snow and ice?

Some of the busiest airports in the world, like the ones in the United States and Europe, see a lot of snow and ice during the winter season. And coincidentally, the holiday season for both these regions also falls in winter. So reducing air traffic is not an option for airports and airlines during this time. Life has to go on, and in fact, at a higher volume than usual.

To enable air travel in harsh winter conditions, airport officials and airlines have developed certain procedures to make it safe to take off and land during snow and ice.

Unless conditions are extreme, airport officials usually allow for takeoff and landing in snow and ice. However, they do take numerous precautions before approving aircraft for takeoff or landing. As mentioned above, these precautions include plowing and de-icing runways, as well as de-icing planes.

Plowing snow & de-icing runways

As we’ve already mentioned above, it is technically possible to land on an icy or snowy runway. Since airplanes are extremely heavy, it is unlikely they will skid like a car or truck would on icy roads. Also, they can easily pass through snow or slush.

However, these do conditions do greatly diminish the airplane’s ability to apply its brakes. This is why airport officials try to keep the runway clear of snow and ice.

Snow is easy to deal with: it can simply be plowed or shoveled out. Then to remove the remaining slush or the ice that can form on the surface of the runway, airport officials use sand or a chemical that breaks the bonds of ice and snow (like potassium acetate).

Most airport officials don’t allow take-off or landing on snowy/icy runways. If the pavement isn’t completely clear, they will almost always delay outbound flights and ask inbound planes to maintain a holding pattern until the runway can be cleared. And sometimes, if the conditions are too harsh for easy clearing, planes may divert to an alternate runway or airport.

However, in some rare instances, planes are allowed to land on sub-par runway conditions. This will only occur if the plane is experiencing a mechanical malfunction or a lack of fuel. It’s still not unheard of, though.

It’s important to note that merely removing the snow and de-icing the runway isn’t enough for a plane to take off or land. While it is technically possible for a plane to use a snowy/icy runway, there is one other factor that prevents them from taking off in these conditions: ice on the plane itself.

De-icing aircrafts

Airplanes are huge metal tubes, and therefore accumulate a lot of ice on their surface. If not removed, this ice can prove to be more dangerous than landing on a snowy runway.

Aircraft designs are so meticulous and precise that even a small layer of snow or ice on their surface can hamper their performance. This is why airport officials and airlines have to perform a de-icing of an aircraft before allowing it to take off again. If you’ve flown during the wintertime, you most likely have experienced a de-icing delay.

Why is de-icing airplanes important?

To understand why de-icing the aircraft is so important, you must understand how it is that airplanes take flight.

There’s a physical force known as lift that arises when any solid object (like an airplane) deflects the flow of a fluid (like air). The resulting force counters the gravitational pull experienced by the plane, helping it take flight and stay in the air. The propeller or the engine of the airplane helps it move forward.

The aerodynamic design of the aircraft is the most crucial element in helping it stay in the air. Of course, a little bit of ice is bound to accumulate during a long flight. But if proper precautions are not taken, and ice is carelessly allowed to accumulate on the surface of an airplane, it could seriously alter the streamlined flow of air over the aircraft body.

An accumulation of ice on an aircraft can result in some serious turbulence or aerodynamic failure that results in a crash. The tragic crash of USAir Flight 405 is one example of ice causing a fatal accident.

Safety of Flying in snow

There is one more scenario that we would like to discuss in this article: the safety of flying in the snow. What if a plane decides to take off while it’s snowing? Or if it simply starts snowing while the plane is in flight?

First of all, it seldom snows at the altitudes at which your typical commercial airline flies. Most commercial planes fly at between 31,000 and 38,000 feet. And while clouds can form at any altitude up to 60,000 feet, the types of clouds that create snow (frontal cirrostratus, altostratus and nimbostratus clouds) typically form at below the 10,000-foot mark.

Also, the temperature at which an airplane cruises is usually around -70ºF (or -56ºC). This temperature is safe for an airplane to fly in. So unless the visibility is seriously impaired due to bad weather, flying in typical winter conditions is usually pretty normal.

If you want to feel even safer, know that modern airplane pilots are well trained on how to navigate and land an aircraft during extreme conditions. So you can rest assured and trust your pilot to land you safely even if the weather takes a turn for the worse.

Conclusion

It is technically possible for airplanes to take off or land in snow and ice. And in emergency situations where there isn’t enough time for the runways to be cleared, they may actually need to do so. The one major problem with landing in snow or ice is that the braking mechanism of the plane becomes inhibited.

However, despite it being possible to land and take off in snow or ice, airport officials take the proper precautions by clearing the runway beforehand. They may use sand or chemicals like potassium acetate.

But just clearing the runway isn’t enough. One of the most crucial steps in taking off during snow and ice is the de-icing of the airplane itself. Airplanes accumulate ice particles and snow on their surfaces while flying/grounding in cold and icy conditions. The de-icing removes the accumulated ice and helps the plane regain its aerodynamic streamline design, which is necessary for taking and maintaining flight.

Want to improve the pictures you take with your smartphone? These essential mobile photography tips will help

Smartphones are more popular than ever, and many people are switching to them to take their holiday snaps and fill their family photo albums. The best camera phones are small, convenient and always with us – but some moan their image quality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

We say the power is in the hands of the photographer. In the right hands, beautiful images can be captured with whatever smart device you have in your pocket. All it takes to improve your phone shots is to learn a few tips and tricks to get better with your smartphone photography. So here are ten mobile photography tips to get yourself smarter results.

1. Get the right exposure

Usually, all it takes to expose your photo correctly is a click of the shutter button. But occasionally, you’ll find that what you’re photographing (ie your subject) is either too dark or too bright. This is particularly a problem if some parts of your image are much brighter (or darker) than others

To adjust for this on the majority of smartphones, simply tap on the area of your screen where the subject lies, and your camera will automatically adjust the exposure to balance it out. Be aware of bright surrounding areas which will be so bright that their details will be lost; sometimes this effect enhances an image, but you may want to recompose to remove anything too distracting.

2. Get close – but not too close

Most smartphones can focus close to the subject, but all lenses have a minimum focusing distance – that is, a point in front of the lens at which it doesn’t focus any closer.

If you’re very close and your subject is still blurry, back away until it becomes sharp. It won’t take much, perhaps a couple of centimetres or so. This way you’ll have a sharp image of your subject and be able to crop in on it later to increase its apparent size.

3. Use the grid

On most smartphone cameras there’s a built-in grid that shows the screen sliced into three sections, and this stems from probably the most well-known rule in photography: the rule of thirds.

Here, the idea is that if you place your subject along one of these lines, or at one of the intersections, you’ll end up with a stronger composition. With landscapes, for instance, try to place the horizon so that is either a third of the way down from the top of the picture, or a third of the way up from the bottom. And if you are taking a picture of a person standing in a picturesque spot, don’t have them standing right in the middle of the frame – have them slightly to the side.

4. Use window light

The flash on your smartphone is harsh and unflattering. Typically situated right next to the lens, the light comes head-on in relation to your subject and provides you with no dimensionality.

The cheapest and quickest way to get beautiful images is to use the light from your window. If you can, avoid direct sunlight spilling through and opt for the shaded window. Soft, diffuse and wrapping light will complement your subject much better than anything harsh and direct. The simplest way to get great portraits indoors, therefore is to ask your subject to step into a better lit part of the room.

5. Get down level

Most of us are used to whipping out the phone, taking a snap and walking off. Yet, when it comes to photographing children or pets, this is rarely the best approach.

By looking down on the child or pet we’re repeating the same angle in which most of us see these subjects all the time. Crouching down to be at the same level as them, however, gives a viewpoint similar to that of your subject.

Get your lens level with your cat, for example, and you’re instantly transported to their world, with towering doors, high-up picture frame, or enormous trees. Getting down on your knees, or even lying down on the ground, will often give you a more dynamic looking pictures.

6. Block out lens flare

There’s no telling when a good photo opportunity might present itself, and with the smartphone being the camera you’re almost guaranteed to always have on you, it’s likely you’ll snap a picture in less than favorable lighting conditions.

For example, a setting sun might provide you with a lot of lens flare. The solution? Simply block this light with your hand placed alongside the lens – just be careful not to get your fingers in the shot. Similarly, street lights after dark will play havoc with your city scenes, unless you recompose the image to minimize the problem,.

A little recomposing might be necessary to allow your hand to block the light without getting in the frame, but this is a sure-fire way to eliminate flare and glare at a moment’s notice.

7. Put your selfie technique to better use

Don’t just rely on that front-facing lens to make your new profile picture – it’s extremely handy for shooting a variety of hard-to-reach places too.

Trying to capture an image of a ceiling or something else from ground level, for example, can be awkward when using the standard rear-facing camera, as it can often require you to crouch down to an uncomfortable position. With the front-facing camera, however, you can view such a composition clearly and make whatever adjustments are necessary, with all controls easily accessible.

8. Shoot through windows

It’s probably not a good idea to start snapping images through the neighbor’s windows, but shooting through your own can reveal an otherwise-hidden opportunity for some fantastic photos.

Use reflections from outside to frame a portrait or provide a mirror-like reflection for a distorted view on the world. If you happen to come across some stained glass, or windows that are bevelled, even better. Use this distortion to your advantage – just try to keep it minimal around your subject so that it’s still clear what you’re photographing.

9. Give it a wipe

Smartphone manufacturers design their products to be scratch-resistant and fairly hardy over their lifetime, and this is especially true of the camera lens. One small scratch will ruin any and all photos, so it’s no wonder that this is particularly hard wearing.

However, although scratch-resistant, you will need to occasionally clean these. A quick blast of hot breath and a wipe with the shirt usually does the trick, but glass cleaner and a microfiber cloth will do a better job of cleaning the dirt off of the lens. Oh, and don’t forget to do both front- and rear-facing lenses.

10. Search for emptiness

With wide-angle lenses it’s easy to capture everything in the scene, which is precisely why you should seek out areas with large negative space – that is, simple, frame-filling backgrounds. For example: by making a big expanse of blue sky the priority, you’re making your subject more apparent when framed at the bottom of the image.

11. Keep it steady

Unwanted blurred pictures can be a particular problem when shooting in lowlight conditions. But you need to watch your shooting technique in any situation. Don’t take a picture while the phone is moving – hold it steady, and gently press the trigger button. That way you will ensure you are not to blame for any camera shake.

Moving subjects (such as shots of friends and family) can bring their own blur problems… And one of the best tricks here is simply to take multiple pictures. One will almost certainly be sharper and less blurred than others. You can weed out the duff ones before you show everyone your winning shot.

And in some situations, such as for cityscapes after dark, the best pictures will almost always be taken by using a smartphone tripod. And if you haven’t got one of these, rest the phone on a surface (or wedge yourself against a wall) to keep the phone as steady as possible.

12. Explore the angles

Older or more basic mobile phones will just have the one rear lens for you to play with. But the best camera phones available today will usually also give you a wide-angle and a telephoto lens for you to switch over to. This choice of focal length gives you a chance to shoot a wider range of subjects well, and to add variety to your photo album.

However, there is no pressing need to upgrade your handset. There are plenty of add-on lenses for smartphones that will allow you to zoom in that bit closer, or to fit more of the building into the frame. These are a great investment for those wanting to get more creative with their picture taking.