The following is taken from a reply I sent to a tn-moths subsciber that e-mailed me with some questions. I thought some of the information might be useful to the some in the group. Larry McDaniel Jonesborough, TN I have used different approaches to what I photograph. Typically, I shot everything I didn't recognize. Of course, at first that was everything. Now I shoot everything I can manage to get a decent photo of. If something looks unusual I just get the best shot I can. I have some blurry images of once only species. The reason I have started shooting everything is that I send every moth shot I take to "Discover Life". They are building a massive data base of moth images and are eager to receive more images (no IDs required). They have a team dedicated to identifying the images. They are trying to establish new study sites with enthusiasts that can continue to send lots of moth images. Check it out at http://www.discoverlife.org/ Browse the site but be sure to click on Projects, then Moths. Let me or Nancy Lowe know if you have any questions about "Discover Life". I use Moth Photographers Group a lot. It's great! I often click on the Try Walking Through The Moth Families button for moths I don't recognize and don't know where to look first in the main plates. This has saved me a lot of time. To get back to the main plates, click on plate series in the main menu. I also use BugGuide a lot. There you can get more information on each species. I typically enter the Hodges# in the search box and go right to the species account. I use the data button a lot to get an idea of distribution. I still use my Flickr site to save time searching. You can look there at http://www.flickr.com/photos/27634081@N06/sets/72157608707935389/ There are now a lot of other similar sites and you should check them out. Merrill Lynch's and Ken Child's come to mind. There are others. "Discover Life" has a fascinating identification key. Click on IDnature guides. If you haven't used ncsc-moths@xxxxxxxxxxxxx or the Facebook site Mothing and Moth-watching you should consider checking them out and/or subscribing to them. Lot's of great information. There are many other sources on line but I spend the majority of my searching in these places. I am very much an amerature and don't spend as much time at some of the more technical sites that some of our more advanced entusiasts do. I have some books but don't use them nearly as much as I do the internet. The new Peterson Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North America, by David Beadle and Seabrooke Leckie due out in April 2012, sounds like a must have. In the mean time I use Covell's field guide. "Discovering Moths: Nighttime Jewels in Your Own Backyard" by Himmelman is a very enjoyable and informative read. I only work by photo but am considering doing a little collecting for the Steele Creek Park Nature Center where I work in Bristol, TN.