Signed and Released: Side Projects Are So Good
Common thinking in the photography industry is to always have a side project going in addition to your main job. Work, even photography work, is tough. You've got to have a personal project going to keep you sane.
Turns out having a side project can lead to some really good work too. Just ask Google about their 20% rule.
After a long time of not following this sage advice, I am now fortunate enough to announce two.
The Vancouver Project
A good friend of mine, Andrew Burton, and I have been talking for a couple of months about the rise of DSLRs with video capability and what it the implications for sports photographers.
Andrew had the foresight to see that this new technology would come to head in the very near future – namely the coming winter Olympics in Vancouver. Exploring thought, we also realized that this Olympics would be the first since the rise of the real-time web, live video broadcasting from cell phones, Google Wave, and, and, and.
Our realization lead to a plan of action which we're calling The Vancouver Project. Stop by and check us out.
Shameless plug: if you're in a position to help by spreading the word to the right people we'd love to hear from you.
Linked Photographer
In other news, I'm writing a book.
That is a very weird sentence for me to write. I write posts, tweets, cutlines… not books. But, apparently, that's happening :)
An excellent friend of mine, and phenomenal fashion photographer, Lindsay Adler, approached a few months ago saying that she was looking into writing a book, would I be interested in co-authoring?
Today, I signed the contract. We'll be writing a book that's got the tentative title Linked Photographer. It will be part treaties, part howto, and part reference on how photographers can use social media for business. It's a bit more than a for-dummies book, but
We'll be launching linkedphotog.com soon, so stay tuned!
LIVE | NPPA Photo Workshop
I'll be livestreaming the Syracuse University NPPA photo workshop at 4:00pm EST. Click the link to watch here, or go straight to the Mogulus channel at mogulus.com/cutline.
Lightroom or Aperture?
Image via Wikipedia
This gets filed under the old news category, but I thought I'd share a demo I did on Lightroom several months ago. (oh, and that's my first submission to slideshare!)
Why the Nikon D3 Sucks (and What the D4 Oughta Be)
I love me the Nikon D3. It's the first camera that I've used where I feel confident going into any situation. The high ISO performance, huge LCD, dual CF card slots, 9 FPS, and 12MP files are amazing. Safe to say, Nikon hit a home run with this camera.
That said, I've got some complaints. Call it a wish list if you will. But after using this camera for about 6 months in a wide variety of situations, it's pretty safe to say that the tool isn't perfect.
With the release of the D3x, I've come to realize that Nikon is advancing technology, but is clearly holding out for the next release to do anything drastic. I might/probably am too late to get into the D4 product cycle, but nonetheless…
What could be fixed for the Nikon D4
The D90 gets the OK button right. Why can't the high ends cameras that came out after it follow suit? (Looking at you D3x)
The OK button is useless. There are two ways to confirm a command in the menu system: hit OK, or hit the center of the 4-way dial. However, most things only require you to hit the 'right' button on the 4-way dial. The OK button, aside from being repetitive, is out of the wa
I'd like to see a repeat of the D90's solution. Replace the 'push the center to confirm' option of the 4-way control with the OK button. This reduces clutter and makes menu navigating a more one-handed operation.
Death Valley Photos
I've got my Death Valley trip photos up on flickr. Not too bad on the time too! Took me 6 days to work up the courage to sort through the nearly 1000 photos I shot, cull, edit, caption, and keyword them all.
No GPS on this trip, so Geotagging is out. Bummer.
The World Is Our Studio
-NEWS! - Nikon announces D3X digital SLR
Alright… so the megapixel war is old and worn. It probably doesn't really matter too much anymore, but it sure is amazing to see some of these new cameras. 24 MP is a boatload of resolution. Bringing down the base ISO to 100, a really smart move for studio shooters. But, if the rumors are to be believed, this will be a $8000 camera - aimed at medium format shooters.
Makes sense… the ease of use of a SLR is really convenient in a studio. Digital backs are really hiRes, but are equally as hard to work with. Not to mention, you can use the Nikkor lens system.
It's a bummer that they didn't change the layout of the buttons a bit. I like the D300 method of putting the OK button in the center of the command dial.
I'll most likely go back and edit this post soon, but for now, I'm exhausted from a 8 hour marathon to finish a Knight News Challenge grant for CoPress.
Update: click here for sample of the D3x at high ISOs. (thanks to Trusted Reviews)
Red DSMC
The Red EPIC, configured as a still camera. (I think)Well, someone finally did it. You can finally build your own camera. Cobble together all the parts you want with Red's new Epic or Scarlet systems and you get a custom configured video/still camera.
It's a shame the thing is so darn expensive. As far as I can see:
Pros
- Dynamic range: 11+ or 13+ stops!!
- FPS: 30+!!
- Unless you go real low end, you'll be getting really good resolution.
- You can use Canon and Nikon Lenses!
- If you've got the money to put into accessories: configure your 'brain' as a still camera one day and then a video camera, the next.
Cons
- Price, you're gonna have to spend a boatload to get a decent setup. ($7000 to use Nikon or Canon Lenses)
- Judging from the configuration above, this is gonna feel like a medium format camera – the fast and light of a DSLR might be outa the question.
- The earliest we're gonna see anything is Spring 2009, and most likely won't see the whole line until 2010.
Things I still wanna hear about
- Storage: 24MP at 30FPS is gonna add up fast. Are we storing on harddrives, huge flash drives, what?
- They claim this huge dynamic range: trust, but verify.
- Will there be an optical viewfinder?
- How much do accessories like the DSLR grip cost?
- What about flash? There doesn't seem to be a hotshoe.
Best Practices
This is a little old now, but worth mentioning: I've won an awarded a 'best practices' recognition from the Poynter Institute for the Light the Night audio slideshow above.
I'm not really accustom to positive re-inforcement, but it did feel good to be told "good job." Especially from an organization like Poynter. I'm grateful, thank you.
Now let me bite the hand that feeds me. I would never have put this particular show up for 'best practices.' I think that it's a really poor example of an audio slideshow. The photos have nothing to do with the audio, the audio is poor, the interview is poor, and the whole thing is too short for the story involved.
But, I'll use one of my favorite words here: meh… whatever. Cheers to the recognition, and let's hope someone looks at the article and finds it helpful.
The Power of “the Fourth Effect”
If you haven't seen it yet, take a few minutes of your time to view this amazing example of the "fourth effect".
Reverie: The Future
no time for words - let’s let the moving images do the talking
-Without further ado: Reverie « Vincent Laforet’s Blog
Click here to see the video.
This is the future. It's astounding. Amazing. Phenomenal. [Insert your adjectives here.]
Things that stand out to me:
- Wide angle glass (the car scene) distorts in a funky way on video. I'm sure Laforet used a 16-35mm lens to shoot from the hood of the car – it gives a really cool perspective, and the distortion (pretty significant on that lens to begin with) is something else.
- The low light capabilities of this camera are amazing.
- The dynamic range on this camera is just astounding. See: the rearview mirror shot, the shot from the hood of the car.
- The camera can shoot high-speed no problem. See: the tunnel shot.
I probably missed a thing or too, but I'll end with this: I'm really glad it's DSLRs are merging still photography and video instead of video camera companies tackling the problem. It's true that I'm just more used to the DSLR workflow than video camera workflow, but I really think that video cameras have developed some bad practices that I don't like to deal with. Some of these:
- Poor low light performance, the solution has been just to add a light to the top of the camera.
- Using tapes. Video went digital but brought analog tapes along with it. This means slow import times, no-reusability of recording media, the need to use tape, etc
- Video camera lenses tend to do telephoto better than DSLR lens do (they're smaller and lighter), but still camera lenses have much more creative flexibility (eg. fisheyes, wide-angles, lower f-stops, etc). I know some indie videographers that have setup systems to use still camera lenses on their video cameras.
Cheers, to Canon, it looks like you've got a real winner here – let's hope Nikon can replicate the performance.
The 5D Mark II
Vincent LaForet has said it the best: "Something very interesting is coming…both to this blog and to our industry."
Check out DPreview's review here.
Drooling: RED DSLR?
I'd really like a Nikon D3
. It's a shame my budget can't afford it right now. The D3 is an amazing, break through camera – for a variety of reasons. It's the camera that has some photogs regretting their switch to Canon (translation: Folks not shooting Nikon are kinda jealous right now).
As amazing as the D3 is, I'm starting to feel pretty good about not having one right now.
See, if I owned a D3, then I wouldn't have a justification for purchasing a newly rumored RED DSLR.
I'm literally drooling over the prospect. If RED can do for the still camera industry what it's done for the video, we've got a heckuva camera on our hands
.
Reading between the lines, and applying a little RED history 101, we expect to see a stripped-down still camera with modular add-ons, a very sensitive and film-like full-frame sensor and some crazy shooting speeds due to the RAW compression.
-RED Takes Aim at DSLR Market, Photographers Salivate | Gadget Lab from Wired.com
My speculations on features:
- 20+ FPS
- 12mp
- video capablities
- able to use the existing RED glass
Following Obama
The New York Times has a really nice piece on Barack Obama's campaign. Check it out here: Photographer’s Journal: Following Obama - The New York Times
I especially like some of the unique perspectives shown – and the interesting insight, that despite his lack of hair, Obama actually has a very unique profile, and is easy to silhouette.
Nikon D90: I Thought This Was at Least 5 Years Out
-Chase Jarvis Blog: Chase Jarvis RAW: Advance Testing the Nikon D90
I'm an happy Nikon fan-boy.
I've been saying privately that still photography will be dead in 10 years. It will simply be easier to shoot video and take a frame from the capture after the fact. Cameras like the Red ONE (and soon, the Red EPIC) are revolutionizing the video capturing field. With 12mp capture at 60fps and really good dynamic range, the stills look fantastic. As soon as storage in the field gets figured out (trust me, 12mp video files are huge) this camera becomes a snap for photojournalists.
But…
Now Nikon has gone and tackled the problem from the still image end. The new D90 shoots video – 720p video, and apparently it does it fairly well. You get all the advantages of the D300 sensor (that's right, it's high ISO video time baby!), and the awesome depth of field of still camera lenses.
This is the revolution! The D90 is a phenomenal camera that every PhotoJ is going to need to have in their bag – though if you're on a budget, I'd wait a while, seems like Nikon's rate of innovation (that seems like it needs an acronym) is increasing – I'd bet we get a higher-end model that shoots video within the next 15 months.
I do have a coupla questions:
• can you attach a mic to the camera? Do we have to wait for a higher end model than that?
• how much does the GPS suck battery life?
• 720p video is huge – how much can you fit on a puny SD card?
• what's the lag time for setting up video on the camera? Can I switch between video and still easily?
• can shutter speed and aperture be adjusted while the camera is shooting?
• how much does shooting video drain the batter?
• Jarvis shows the D90 with a vertical grip – are we getting vert. grips on the prosumer line now too!?
Signing off,
– a very happy New Media photog (and Nikon fan-boy)
Update
Nikon has posted some sample video. Nothing ground breaking but interesting to see. Things worth noting:
• there is no autofocus in movie mode (not too surprising, but a bummer)
• The high ISO performance is outstanding
• I'm excited to see the D400 (with movie mode), heck, the D4 (with movie mode)
• still don't know if attaching an external mic is an option (doubtful)
Some Photogs Can Write
I am a very lucky man. I've spent the last 24 years at the Los Angeles Times as a photographer and a photo editor. I can tell you what it's like in the eye of a typhoon, in a firestorm, under an offshore oil platform or the wrong side of the green line in Mogadishu. I know what a whale feels like and I've buzzed icebergs. I've had lunch with rock stars and seen President's sweat. I've tried to get Carolyn Cole out of jail, even.
When I die, I hope I have a bag of popcorn, because if my life flashes by, it's going to be a hell of a show.
Best of all, I've had the pleasure of your company. I can't imagine a more engaging, talented and dedicated group of people anywhere. Years ago, I was cooling my heals at some news event next to a New York Times reporter who had worked here. She said, "Oh! The Los Angeles Times! The New York Times is warm on the outside but cold on the inside. The Los Angeles Times is warm on the outside and warm on the inside."
Civility. Kindness. Fairness. Intelligence. These are the qualities that pervade the Los Angeles Times. Stay here for a while, and it get's in your blood.
Those folks who pine for the demise of the gatekeeper media don't know squat. What people really want out of the news business is a fair shake. We do that here. We worry about the truth and getting it right the first time.
There were 1,200 of us, but now there are a little more than half of that. I like to think that the Los Angeles Times is not so much diminished as dispersed. All those folks who have left the building still carry the Los Angeles Times spirit around with them. It's my turn to join them.
I am a very lucky man.
Bob Carey
-Laid off LA Times photog, Bob Cary, via Tell Zell: Bye Lines, LA Times
National Geo’s Photo Editor: Great Photography
-David Griffin on how photography connects us | Video on TED.com
Canon Might Be in Trouble
Canon has mistakenly released the specs of their yet-to-be-announced 50D.
- 15.1 megapixel CMOS sensor
- DIGIC 4
- 1.6x crop
- Dust Reduction
- Auto Brightness Processing
- 95% viewfinder .97 magnification
- 9 point af (All Cross Type)
- 35 meter area equipped with high-precision sensors
- AF Fine Tuning
- ISO 100-12800
- 6.3 fps (high speed) 3fps (low speed)
- Buffer: 16 RAW - 60 JPG - 10 RAW+JPG
- 920,000 points VGA 3.0-inch LCD monitor
- 100,000 cycle shutter
- Rugged magnesium alloy body
-Canon 50D Info Leaked - REAL SPECS! - Digital Camera Reviews, News and Resources | Photography Bay
As presumably the successor to the aged 5D, the 50D has a lot to live up to with new competition from the Nikon D700. Unfortunately for Canon, it looks like Nikon's got them beat in everything buy megapixels (Canon: 15mp, Nikon: 12mp), fps (Canon: 6.3 fps, Nikon 5-8 fps), and body material (Canon: metal alloy, Nikon: polycarbonate). Nikon's still going to run the table with their higher ISO, faster auto-focus, and more fps (with vertical grip).
I Bet the CIA Could Do This 10 Years Ago…
Academic research has developed a technology that allows video and photographs to be combined to produce stunning results.Just… wow.
These videos are rather academic, and would be boring to watch, but their content is so amazing that I was entertained the whole time. The ease and quality of the result is simply astounding.
Using Photographs to Enhance Videos of a Static Scene from pro on Vimeo.
War in Georgia
Georgian soldiers race past an apartment block in Gori after Russian warplanes dropped bombs on the city. GLEB GARANICH / REUTERSFor whatever reason, the US was caught unawares when Georgia attacked Russia last week. We've been slow dealing with the situation.
First off, we don't really understand it. Most Americans still don't understand the difference between Sunnis and Shiites – that's been seven years now. This conflict came out of nowhere, and the average American (myself included) really doesn't understand the reason for the fighting, or even who's really involved.
Update
The NYT has an article explaining some of the background.
To make matters worse, we've got a juicy political sex scandal in Edwards, a tight presidential campaign, and the Olympics going on right now. Needless to say, our sex-crazed media is on top of all that instead of a war that no one understands.
Reuters has done a remarkably good job of doing what they do best – keeping foreign agencies so that they can respond to something just like this. Right now, this is a bigger story than Afghanistan and Iraq. In my opinion, it beats out another sex scandal, a tired presidential campaign, and a sporting event. This is about a war between two countries who's people don't live in the Bronze Age.
When I first looked at TIME's collection of photos my first reaction was: "meh, more war photographs."
But here's what's different: this is a modern war. Fought with modern tanks, modern armies where both sides are uniformed, and civilian casualties that no one is apologizing for. This is a big deal. Once you get past your seven-year familiarity with war photos, these photos reflect their own importance.
Update
The Denver Post also as a rather good collection of AP photos.
‘Olympicpix’
©Vincent Laforet for Newsweek-Visions of China: A 2008 Olympics Picture Blog
Newsweek has their photographer's blogging their experiences at the Olympics. Very cool for photo junkies (like me). There are some interesting photography anecdotes, and a lot of the stories give you a glimpse into how China is running their Olympics.
Read the blogs here.
I Leave for a Week!
I leave for a week to go backpacking (and photographing … as much as one can while being exhausted), and Adobe goes and releases Lightroom 2! What a treat to come back to! My favorite reviews here and here.
My favorite new features:
- filter bar
- localized corrections
- it's a localized correction, but the graduated filter wasn't in the beta, and is AMAZING
- keywording interface
There are of course other new features too!
Oh, and photos of the trip coming soon.
War Photographer: Aftermath
Casualties: In March 2003, photographer Warren Zinn took this photo of Army medic Joseph Dwyer with wounded 4-year-old Iraqi Ali Sattar. Dwyer struggled with PTSD and died June 28 of substance abuse. (Warren Zinn - (AP Photo/Warren Zinn, The Army Times Co.))The WaPo has a rather touching article about the aftermath of being a war photog. I'd highly recommend the read.
I thought I'd put photojournalism and war behind me four and a half years ago when I traded in the dusty battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan for law school in Miami. But those words reminded me that you never truly leave the battlefield behind.
Disembedded: Marines Send a War Photographer Packing
The audio slideshow is fantastic. The story is good. And it's another example of the Fourth Estate getting screwed. Keep shooting Zoriah (and by the way - I love your quote).
"They embedded a war photographer, and when I took a photo of war, they disembedded me," Zoriah says. "It's as if it's okay to take pictures of them handing lollipops to kids on the street and providing medical care, but photographing the actual war is unacceptable."
Audio Slideshow: Afghanistan’s Ongoing War
Members of D Company search for weapons in the village of Kajaki Olya. Many areas which the troops can patrol without incident by day fall under the sway of the Taliban at night.Some great photos and a really good script for the narration. Zalmai does a decent narration, but her voice lacks some of the emphasis that a good narrator requires. Well worth the watch, and worth hearing the story.
