Nik Snapseed for Mac – Mini Review

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Master Photographer

When Nik Software released Snapseed for the iPad it got quite a lot of attention. I’m one of those rare people who doesn’t use an iPad for content creation. My iPad essentially serves only two purposes…

1. To show off my portfolio
2. To consume data

I wasn’t all that interested in fixing photos on my iPad. But my laptop? That’s a different story. So when I heard that Snapseed was available for my Mac laptop, I went to the App Store, plunked down my $19.95 and started playing.

While most serious photographers I know (me included) like Nik ColorEfex Pro, Snapseed is much less expensive and frankly aimed at just having a little fun. That doesn’t mean you can’t do real photo work with it. You can. It’s just that it’s not meant to be a replacement for something like Photoshop.

Here are some of the key features:

* Tune Image—Quickly correct photos shot in difficult lighting situations, create depth and vibrancy with Ambience, or adjust White Balance, Saturation, Contrast and more

*Auto Correct—Automatically analyzes your photo and adjusts color and exposure, or you can use the sliders to add or reduce the enhancements

*Control Points—Make precise selections and enhancements in seconds with Nik Software’s revolutionary U Point technology

*Tilt-Shift—Creates a narrow in-focus area designed to simulate depth of field, common in a Miniature Scene look

*Details—Enhances details with traditional sharpening as well as Nik Software’s unique
Structure control found in the professional Nik Software product line

*Crop & Straighten—Rotate or straighten with simple slider controls and select from a variety of standard aspect ratios while cropping

*Grunge—Explore styles and textures without limits and give photos a totally unique look

*Drama—Add custom effects to a photo which range from subtle enhancements of textures to wildly creative and artistic effects

*Vintage—Nine unique nostalgic films, plus controls like saturation, textures and vignettes make any photo look like a vintage color film photo from the 50’s, 60’s or 70’s

*Frames—Add unique borders to photos by choosing styles and textures

*Black and White—Give photos a classic look with this darkroom-inspired filter. Select styles, grain, vignettes, and more for a perfectly nostalgic look

*Sharing—Share photos on Facebook and Flickr, email photos, and print them using your home printer

Some of my favorite tools are Grunge, Vintage, Tilt & Shift and Drama – all of which give photos a cool look very quickly. It is a simple workflow. You just drag your photo into Snapseed, make your adjustments, apply filters, export, etc.

One thing that would make Snapseed better is if it could export directly from Aperture or Lightroom, etc. Now you have to export the image from your editing application then drag it into Snapseed. It’s no big deal but it would be nice if it had better connection with other apps.

Snapseed supports:
• Mac OS 10.6.6 and 10.7.2
• Requires 64-bit processor (Intel Core 2 Duo or later
• JPEG, TIFF (in RGB color mode), and RAW file formats

It’s a very versatile program that is fun and easy to use. Within minutes of opening the program you’ll be an expert. Everyone from casual shutterbugs to serious shooters will enjoy Snapseed and at $19.95 it’s a no brainer.

Highly addictive and highly recommended.

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Mini Review – MacBook Air 13-Inch Laptop From A Photographer’s Perspective

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Master Photographer

The world is getting smaller – as in mobile devices like smart phones and tablets are replacing laptops. The obvious response for computer laptop makers is to try to “catch up” by scaling down. Enter the new Apple MacBook Air.

This ultra-light laptop was the first of its kind. I bought the very first version of the Air on the very first day it was available. It’s come a long, long way since those days.

I recently decided that lugging around my ultra-fast and ultra-heavy 17″ MacBookPro didn’t make sense. I needed a tax write off so I picked up the latest 13″ MacBookAir fully loaded. My test machine for this article is running with a 1.8 GHz Intel Core i7, four gigabytes of 1333 MHz DDR3 RAM, Intel HD Graphics 3000 384 MB and a crazy fast 250GB SSD drive. I also ordered the Apple SuperDrive, Thunderbolt cable and AppleCare.

Coming from Apple’s heaviest laptop to one of its lightest is very freeing. This thing is barely thicker than my iPad. I can walk around on a photo shoot with this in my hand and it’s lighter than most of my cameras.

The connectivity is much improved over the previous versions. There’s a new Thunderbolt port which I use to connect to the Promise Pegasus R6 for 10 TB of usable RAID storage, plus two TB of redundant storage. There’s a port for connecting a CD Rom drive (extra) and two USB ports. There’s a headphone jack and one feature I just love – a fast built-in SD card reader. While I have never been a huge fan of SD cards it’s clear that the manufactures are. More and more of the cameras I use support SD so this is a very convenient feature. Believe it or not, no matter how many card readers I buy (and it seems like I’ve bought dozens) I can never find one when I need one so thanks Apple for saving my bacon with the SD reader.

The ergonomics are better than ever. The screen is bright and easy to read and the backlit keyboard was very important to me since I often write at night. The computer doesn’t get hot on my lap. The touchpad works very well.

For me, the biggest improvement in the new MacBook Air is speed. In everyday use, the 13-inch Air feels incredibly snappy, thanks in large part to the way Apple integrates flash memory into the design. The Air boots almost instantly. Just as impressive, the Air’s flash memory achieved a crazy-fast file transfer rate of 127 MBps!

And the final speed test? Running Aperture. I used to lament the fact that Aperture wouldn’t run on my original Air. Okay it would RUN but not in an acceptable way. It was dog slow and utterly unusable. On this new i7 Air Aperture glides along making the new 13″ MacBook Air perfect for travel.

The battery will last a good six hours or more if you baby it but I love to run full on so I get about half that. It’s comparable with other laptops I’ve used.

The 13″ MacBook Air as I’ve configured it is indeed spendy. I paid just north of $2000 plus tax. But I priced a comparable laptop from Samsung running Windows and the price ended up being nearly identical, with the Samsung being about $50 more expensive.

If you want an ultra-light, small laptop for photography and can afford it, the 13″ MacBook Air is worth a look. It’s fast, well-designed, has decent battery life, a nice display, great connectivity and easy to carry.

Highly recommended.

The Awesome Stuff @ PMA (per me)

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Master Photographer

About two days ago I returned from PMA. Aside from the big camera announcements going on the main CES showrooms (the Nikon D4, the Canon G1 X and the Fujifilm X-Pro1) there were a lot of innovation and coolness going on the smaller booths and the PMA venue.

Actually, for me as a photographer/blogger/inventor some of the stuff that was displayed on the smaller booths was more interesting than (I said you could touch it not grab it) touching new camera models.

PMA

The really nice thing about it, is the most often than not, the inventor would stand in their booth in a way that allows direct interaction. The kind of stuff you can’t get on emails. So you get to ask questions, make suggestions and get instant feedback. nice.

Here is a small round up of the stuff that I found cool on PMA/CES, some of it is new, some has been around for a while. Feel free to add more coolness if you’ve seen it.

Photographers’ Need For Speed – Mini Review Promise Pegasus R6

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Master Photographer

I have more than 100 hard disk drives and arrays laying around. It’s the bane of my existence. Everywhere I step there are hard drives and cables. I’ve tried, used and owned just about every brand of hard drive system in use. I like many of them. I just need to get rid of the rest, but I LOVE the PROMISE Pegasus R6. Here’s why…

The LightPeak technology that provides the underpinnings of Thunderbolt is amazing. Thunderbolt isn’t widely adopted and it’s expensive, but there’s no chance anyone would deny it’s very, very fast. It’s faster than USB 3.0 or Firewire 800.

The R6 supports multiple RAID configurations. It comes RAID 5 right out of the box and ready to connect to your Mac. There are a few things you should know right off the bat. The drive doesn’t come with a cable. At this price, that’s almost criminal. So have a Thunderbolt cable ready if you want to use the R6 on arrival. The next thing you should know is that it takes about 10 hours for the drive to self-configure once you plug it in. After the lights stop flashing, the unit will show up on your Mac like any other drive.

I bought my Pegasus with 12TB of storage – two of that reserved for data redundancy. The unit houses six, two-TB 3.5-inch hard drives. They spin at 7200 RPM and are fast enough for video, audio, you name it. The R6 has that brushed aluminum Mac look that most Mac peripherals use and it’s quite handsome – not that it matters. The footprint is similar to other drive bays on the market which hold 12TB of data.

As a photographer, my main concern with one of these drives is that they are safe and fast. While I’ve only had a week to test the R6 so far, I feel like it’s both. There’s absolutely no denying the fact it’s fast. How fast? REAL fast. As in so fast that you don’t need a fancy software benchmarking tool to know it. I used to chuckle when I’d read posts from the pixel peepers bragging that their hard drive was x milliseconds faster than their pal’s hard drive. This isn’t one of those kinds of things. This drive is many times faster than most drives I’ve tested.

I have some fast SATA3 drives and the Pegasus R6 is AT LEAST four times faster. You read that right four times. I should mention these are internal drives. To further put this in perspective, all my new computers shipped with SSD drives. The R6 is almost twice as fast!!!

I tried to do some real world tests using the software and files I’d normally work with to establish how the R6 worked. I finished up with one of my favorite tests. I transferred the equivalent of a CD full of data in less than four seconds.

We ended up buying six of these R6 units so I was able to test their ability to daisy chain. I only tried it with two units but it worked flawlessly and didn’t appear to slow down transfer rates.

I didn’t test the software that came with the R6 nor did I change the RAID configuration to RAID 0 which should make the drive even faster. While I didn’t quite get 800 MB/s performance promised by Promise’s marketing department, I got close.

There are a few caveats. This unit only works with Macs. The drive is noisy – not that much more than other drives I’ve tested, but too noisy for those in a pro-audio environment to use this without additional sound protection. The other thing to note is the high price. Like the old guy at the race shop used to tell me when I was building hot rods, “Speed cost money son – how fast can you afford to go?” In this case I think it’s worth it.

If you’re a photographer or film maker looking for the fastest data transfer rates available in a device that just plugs into the Mac without the addition of a special card, I believe the Pegasus is the drive you are looking for.

Highly recommended.
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FINALLY! An iPad Photo Portfolio App I Like – Photo Manager Pro 3.2.4

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Master Photographer

I’ve tried literally dozens of photo apps for the iPad intended to help me manage my photos. I use the iPad primarily as a photo portfolio. I’ve mostly relied on the supplied photo app that comes with the iPad from Apple. But to say that app is lacking is an understatement. You’d think it’s very easy to come up with a simple portfolio app that is fast, powerful, convenient, easy to use and intuitive. Apparently that is not the case. All the apps I’ve tried work on some level but almost none of them are convenient or easy. I’d just about given up but someone suggested I try Photo Manager Pro by Linkus. Wow what a find.

I finally have photo portfolio manager on my iPad that does the tablet justice. The latest version (3.2.4) is compatible with iOS5. It allows for multiple folders, screen shots, multiple sized images, and backup.

This $2.99 app lets you use FTP, HTTP, USB, Peer to Peer or just about any other method you can think of to transfer photos to and from your computer. I set up my iPad to show my portfolios. You can have several. In my test I set up one for my photos from Bosque del Apache and another I set up features car racing pics.

Open up the Photo Manager Pro server and you get a special URL to type into your browser. Assuming both your computer and iPad are using the same WIFI network, everything just talks to everything and whatever you do on one device is mirrored on the other. Now THAT is easy.

On my computer I made two folders – Bosque and Car. I then populated these folders with dozens of images. As I worked on this process, the folders and images magically showed up on my iPad. Cool!

If that’s all this program did it would be worth the $2.99. But once the images are on the iPad – you can sort and organize them, display them alone or in slide shows that include transitions and music, or just compare them. You can use password protection, you can share images. You can search on just about any criteria and backup and restore images from/to any device.

The program is fast and stable and best of all, the images look great.

I am sure that these sorts of apps are like pizza. Everyone has their own idea of how it should be made. But for me, this is the best of the bunch. I use this app regularly now and highly recommend it to any photographer who is trying to build a portfolio of images on the iPad.

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Photofocus 2011 Post Processing Software of the Year

Posted on December 30, 2011 by Master Photographer

This is the first time we’ve given this award. It stems from trying to understand which of all the various post-processing packages that are out there are truly valuable.

I’ve tested every single major post-processing suite from companies like Nik, onOne, Topaz, and more. I’ve evaluated them based on how much they cost, how easy to use they are, how powerful they are, how they work with other software and how truly important they are to my workflow. In other words, when you’re someone who’s lucky enough to own every post-processing software suite known to man, which one do you really, really, really use on a regular basis?

It’s a tough call because I think almost all of them are good. I use almost all of them on a fairly regular basis. But there’s just one set that I use every, single day. When I looked back at THAT fact, knowing I had access to everything – I knew I had the answer. And the answer may surprise some. But here it is.

I selected Topaz Labs Plug-in Bundle as the 2011 Post Processing Software of the Year.

Topaz’s products are affordable, easy to use and integrate well into the post programs I use like Aperture, Photoshop and even iPhoto. I love their use of presets. Many of their solutions offer 1-click enhancements that will blow you away. Whether you’re brand new to photo post processing or an old pro, the presets are amazing and will give you the chance to be productive right out of the box. The interface is easy and the speed of application acceptable.

While I’m selecting their bundle, which incorporates 10 different programs, you can buy just one, two or three, etc. and end up with the ones you really like and think you will use.

One of the best things about all Topaz products is that you can download them and try them for free. Topaz offers 30-day, unlimited trial keys. The company regularly updates its software and offers free training. This stuff works and in my opinion, since it’s so easy and affordable, and can be easily purchased in individual or bundle form, Topaz has earned the post-processing software of the year award.

Here’s a break down of the individual Topaz modules:

Adjust – makes faux HDR, adjusts image dynamics and while it’s not intended as a sharpener, I use it that way. I combine this program with Photomatix Pro or Nik HDR Efex Pro when I’m converting tone maps as a finishing tool.

DeNoise – it’s not as sophisticated as some dedicated noise reduction programs, but it gets the job done and is also good at preserving detail.

B&W Effects – While I use and enjoy Nik Silver Efex Pro, this module is much less expensive and very versatile. I like it a great deal.

ReMask – I am not much of a masking guy, but when I need to make a mask I use this tool because it’s just so easy – especially compared with some of the others out there on the market.

Lens Effects – this is one of my new favorites. You can make artificial bokeh, great vignettes, motion blurs, and faux tilt-shift effects with this module.

Detail – this program allows you to restore detail without crating artifacts. I don’t use this one as often as Adjust but I do use it.

Simplify – this was my first introduction to Topaz’ product suite. I am amazed at the artistic effects you can create with this very affordable program. It’s addicting.

Clean – great for creating smooth skin in portraits.

InFocus – this is Topaz’s sharpening program. It’s simple and fast. It’s not as sophisticated as some of the dedicated sharpening programs out there, but it’s affordable, easy and again – gets the job done.

DeJPEG – I’ve only used this module a few times, but if you have to make super sharp JPG conversions, this is the way to go.

You can get purchase information directly from Topaz’s Web site.

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Induro BHL3 Mini Review

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Master Photographer

If you use a tripod and you want maximum steadiness and maximum safety, a ball head is usually the best bet. The problem with ball heads is that they can be big and heavy. Induro has managed to solve both problems with the new BHL series. The BHL1, BHL2 and BHL3 are similar. For the purposes of this test I used a BHL3. It’s the sturdiest of the bunch and according to Induro will support up to 88 pounds. I like to always cut these specs in half to be super safe so I’ll call it 44 pounds. Still, I don’t own any gear combo that is that heavy so I am sure it’s good for any use I’d give it.

The short, squat design lends to the ability to support very large loads without failure. The head lock knob is built snug to the body. It’s very large and easy to find and turn. That’s one of my favorite features about these new heads. The Arca-Swiss style quick release is the gold standard with most professional nature and landscape photographers and Induro even throws in a generic Arca-Swiss compatible mounting plate.

The quick release system has double safety locks in the form of small screws set into the ends of the plate. This acts as a stop gap in case you forget to lock the plate down securely on the head. The screws will catch and keep your precious camera/lens from hitting the ground.

There are built-in degree markings and a bubble level so you can use this for things like panoramic photography and any other sort of photography that requires precise leveling of the camera.

Like all the Induro products I’ve tested so far, the BHL3 is sturdy, well-made, light weight given its rated load capacity and downright affordable.

This is the one going on top of my tripod.

Highly recommended.

My New Favorite Portable Image Storage Device – ioSafe 500 GB External Hard Drive

Posted on December 17, 2011 by Master Photographer

When I am on the road I am terribly paranoid about data loss. Here’s a nightmare scene – you travel to Italy from the U.S., you take your old laptop because you’ve heard horror stories about Customs arbitrarily seizing and holding for ransom various computers, your old hard drive fails with all of your cool new Italy images onboard. Life as you know it ends.

This could have been me…but because I am extra anal about backup…it wasn’t.

I’ve used dozens of different portable hard drive solutions to store, backup and archive my digital photographs in the field, but after extensive testing, I am switching to the ioSafe.

The ioSafe Rugged Portable 500 GB drive costs less than $200 most places. It’s a 5400 RPM 500 GB drive made of billet-machined aluminum and titanium. It’s compact, beefy, well-built, reliable and comes with a Kensington® Lock compatible slot. It weighs two pounds and connects to my MacBookPro with a Firewire 800 or USB 2.0 cable.

The company advertises this as a rugged, go-anywhere drive that’s perfect for harsh environments. Based on my experience, that’s accurate. They boast that it’s even waterproof. I haven’t tested that claim but based on everything else I’ve seen, I’d believe it.

During my testing, I filled the drive with data, then, in a real-world situation, knocked it off my desk onto a carpeted floor. No damage – no data loss. I then got a bit tougher. I took it out into the studio, held it over my head and let go onto the tile floor. Some cosmetic damage to the drive, but no data loss. I am convinced.

The company says that the drive is “crush protected” up to 5,000 pounds. I don’t know what that means but it sounds good. They also offer a data warranty and recovery service which you have to activate when you purchase the drive.

ioSafe specializes in what they call “disaster-proof hardware.” They have made bigger versions of this drive and a version that is USB 3.0 only. All are reasonably-priced given their speed, build-quality and performance. But they are NOT the cheapest portable drives you can buy – not by a long shot. But as my dad used to say, “If you have a $10 head, buy a $10 motorcycle helmet. I consider my photographic data to be my prize possession so I don’t want the cheapest portable drive. I want the best. I was particularly drawn to these drives because of my intended use, i.e., when I am on the road.

While ioSafe seems more well-known in the Mac community, this drive works on our lone Windows PC test machines with no problem.

No drive is perfect and they all fail eventually, but I think the ioSafe is about as reliable as they come.

Highly recommended.

Igus W1080-B Slider Review And Dollarama Bokeh

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Master Photographer

Benjamin Von Wong, Montreal Based Photographer here to bring you guys yet another post for DIY photography!

Igus W1080-B Slider Review And Dollarama Bokeh

Recently, I’ve been looking for simple ways to improve the production quality of my Behind the Scene videos and one of the things I noticed that were lacking were some smooth rail pans that you see pretty much in any professional production. Unfortunately, I did not have the 1000$+ required for a set of real professional sliders such as the Cinevate Pegasus so I began searching for affordable alternatives… which is where I stumbled upon the IGUS Camera Sliders. IGUS is a plastic development company and one of their products just happens to be an oil-free low friction camera slider with various DIY options… even better, they were extremely competitively priced varying between 130-210$ for a 3 foot piece of rail/slider system!

The Official Photofocus Holiday Gift Guide – Top 10 Gifts For Photographers

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Master Photographer

If you have a photographer in your family, or if your significant other is a photographer then in many ways, you have it made when it comes to holiday gifts. There are so many cool products out there that photographers will love.

Everything on this list is something I myself have used or owned at one time and can highly recommend. Companies can’t pay to get on this list and with the exception of the books, there are no affiliate links here. I don’t get paid to recommend any of this stuff. I’m suggesting things I myself would like to receive – but don’t buy me any of these items because I already have them!

Without further ado, here are my picks – in no particular order:

1. The Joe Farace Reporter II Backpack. At under $70 it’s one of the least expensive camera backpacks I’ve ever seen and it just happens to be one of the best. I didn’t pick it because Joe has written a bunch of posts for Photofocus. I picked it because when I need a backpack, this is one the one I most often use. It’s light, very well designed, and extremely affordable.

2. SmugMug Pro. If you’ve got a professional photographer in your household who wants to sell their images online, I’d suggest a $150 year-long subscription to SmugMug. Yes they are a sponsor, but if you look at the Photofocus archives, you’ll note that we’ve been hosting our Photofocus video there for a lot longer than they have been sponsors. SmugMug is a great solution for people who want to sell photos or host video.

3. Visual Stories. If you can only buy one photo book for a friend or loved one this holiday season, Visual Stories is the one you want. It’s by Pultizer Prize winning photo journalist Vincent Laforet. Nuff said.

4. GoingPro. Of course I hope you can afford one more book, and yes this is a plug for my own book. But if I can’t plug my own book on my own blog where can I do it? GoingPro is not for every photographer – but it is for photographers who are or want to make photos for a living. It’s co-written by industry giant Skip Cohen, and speaking of Vincent Laforet, he wrote the foreword. The book is selling well and getting rave reviews. I think it can help anyone who is thinking of going pro or I wouldn’t have spent 22 months of my life working on it!

5. Animoto. For $30 a year, you can buy a subscription to Animoto. This is hands-down, the best, easiest and most impact-oriented way to create slide shows from still and moving images I have ever seen. I have been using Animoto since it first launched. I can tell you it’s my favorite way to share my work. (Use code PhotoDec before Dec 31, 2011 and get three free months of Animoto.)

6. Induro Carbon Fiber Tripod. It’s no secret I am a big fan of tripods. They have many benefits including providing stabilization so serious photographers can get rock-solid images. Most tripods are heavy. This one isn’t. It’s the least-expensive, carbon fiber tripod I’d recommend and while $299 seems like a lot of money, it’s not when you’re talking high-quality, low-weight tripods. Induro’s stuff has served me well. I use the big brother to this one and can highly recommend it.

7. Chimera Triolet, 1000 Watt Quartz Light. If you want to do studio work, there’s no easier way to light than to use a “hot light.” This is what I use in my own studio. The Chimera Triolet is a brilliant piece of gear. If you couple this with any of Chimera’s very large softboxes, throw in a few reflectors or bounce cards (you can make your own if you have a tight budget) and you have all you need to shoot professional portraits or product photography.

8. Tiffen 77MM variable ND filter. This is the most affordable variable ND filter I could find. It helps photographers take creative control over exposure in brightly-lit situations. You can make long-exposure shots even in daylight with one of these and they are absolutely a must-have filter for photographers who shoot video too.

9. KelbyTraining.com. For less than $200 a year your photographer can have access to some of the best photographers, teachers and trainers in the world, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Of all the online training solutions available, I think KelbyTraining offers the best value. They have a 100% money back guarantee so there’s no risk.

10. Topaz Adjust. There are LOTS of Photoshop plug-ins, but few are as much fun as Topaz Adjust. At under $50 it is a big bargain. And ANY of the Topaz products are worth a look, and worth the money. The good news is that all of them can be tried free of charge.

This was a tough list to compile. There are lots of great products out there, but these are my favorites.