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I've seen keywords separated with - and | and even >, and in my opinion, the separator you use shouldn't affect search rankings.  It may have an impact on click through rates within any given search engine result page, so you should try to find the one that is most visually appealing.

Also, in general I like to try to be a bit more creative than "KEYWORD1 | KEYWORD2 | KEYWORD3 - SITENAME".  In my opinion, something like "KEYWORD1 and KEYWORD2 Tips and Advice, at SITENAME" is much better.  It feels less spammy, and I'm convinced results in a higher CTR.  I think most people are trending this way, lately: considering the user a bit more than the search engines.  I don't think you could have said the same thing a few years back.

They're probably positively correlated, but I wouldn't say there is causation.  Naturally, any website ranking well for a given long-tail term is probably doing a lot of things right.  That doesn't necessarily mean that they will be competitive for a short-tail term, however.  Oftentimes, long-tail terms are of such low competition that a website can rank well for them with on-site elements in the right places and perhaps a link or two.  Short tail keywords, especially the most competitive ones, oftentimes require very extensive linkbuilding campaigns.

I'd pay the monthly PRO membership fee just for access to the Keyword Difficulty Tool, alone.  I think, value-wise, SEOmoz is the best investment as far as any web-based SEO tools are concerned.  Plus, the PRO ability to ask Private questions and get them answered by actual SEOmoz staff?  Absolutely in-friggin'-valuable.

I was very active in SEOmoz's Q&A forums today and completed my profile - raising my Moz points from 0 to 50.  On my profile, however, I am still listed as Unranked.  Also, I do not appear on the SEOmoz Top Members List next to other users with 50 points.

I'm guessing this is something that is updated once a day or so, and the rank will update tomorrow.  Is my suspicion correct?

I think the new way you have the categories set up is the right way.  If you want to really focus on a specific locale, consider creating separate landing pages for each of these locations.  The landing pages can feature a map and some images of the area, links to your blog posts featuring weddings you shot in that area, and general information about weddings in that area: popular halls and venues, etc.

If you're going to do this, it's important that each page have GOOD, UNIQUE content about that specific location.  Otherwise, you'll create way more problems than you solve.

In my experience, use of rel="canonical" is more related to consolidating external link juice.  If you're concerned with getting all of your products indexed, focus on creating a good XML sitemap and verifying it in Google Webmaster Tools, and finding ways to create both internal and external links to your deep URLs.  I would make the canonical page the one that you want to send visitors to.

I doubt the drop is a result of the videos.  As far as Panda is concerned, I would focus my rehabilitation efforts on:

• Fixing Duplicate Content (ESPECIALLY on your own website!  get well acquainted with how to use rel="canonical")
• Cleaning Up Your Site (focus on making a cleaner experience for your visitors and simpler code for the search engines)
• Fix Your Technical Issues (fix any problems that SEOmoz is telling you about, any crawl errors in Google Webmaster Tools, any page speed problems in Google's Online Page Speed Tool, and potentially any HTML validation problems from W3C)
• Content, Content, Content (create more original content and refresh your evergreen content)

Be warned that there haven't been a ton of verifiable Panda recoveries to date, which may be in part due to the fact that (as Matt Cutts verified) Google isn't updating the "Panda factor" very often.  Recovery may take weeks to months.  The best article available on the subject, in my opinion, came out last week: http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/40851/10-tips-for-beating-google-panda

I've never used TextBroker, although I too have heard good things.  I think their services are a bit overpriced, in my opinion at least.  For a 3-star quality article, a 400 word piece would cost you $6.40.  I think that's on the high end.

For my lower quality content creation (lower quality here meaning anything I don't write myself), I use freelancers.  I shopped out a couple of gigs to Fiverr, found a freelancer that did really good work, then approached her for a bulk order outside of Fiverr.  She does great work for me, and I pay $2.50 a piece for good quality 400 word original articles.  I've also had luck with freelancers from oDesk, or you can find a local college student from Craigslist.  I think no matter how you do it, you can get better quality articles for cheaper than what TextBroker offers.

I agree with EGOL.  When people say that your best content belongs on your website, I always ask myself - why are you spending time creating content that isn't your best?  Whether you intend to put an article on your website or use it for a guest post opportunity, you owe it to yourself to only put your name on the best quality work you can produce.  You'll create way more opportunities for yourself down the road as you start to be seen as an expert in your niche.

It's certainly possible that this strategy can help you rank well for your target keywords.  It's also a short-sighted strategy that more than likely will cause headaches down the road.  We're seeing Google continue to move in a direction that favors unique, socially engaging content, and there's nothing to suggest that this trend is going to change anytime soon.  Your best bet would be to take the advice of a certain company known for their linkbuilding expertise: http://www.seomoz.org/article/the-professional-guide-to-link-building-2011

Another, less biased, answer is: it depends.  Perhaps your goals are right for a more short-term approach.  Perhaps you have a very high risk tolerance.  It is the opinion of many that SEO is not really an ethical issue, but more of a business decision, and in that vain, the best course of action is whatever is right for your company - including black hat approaches.