Photo ABCs

Firmware update!

I recently returned from a wonderful trip to the Yucatan. While there, my two D7000 bodies performed well, except for two problems. First, my four brand new Sandisk 32 gb memory cards could not be read! (Luckily I brought others). Second, my plan to use the second card slot as a jpeg backup went awry, as the camera kept resetting this function.

I discussed this with a friend of mine, whose first words were "Have you updated your firmware?"

I confessed that this was one task on my list of things to do before my trip which I did not get around to doing. We looked at the Nikon website for firmware upgrades, and these two issues were addressed with the firmware update of November 9, 2011.

I updated the firmware today (easy to do with instructions on the Nikon website), and the problems seemed to have resolved.

Lesson learned!

(Yucatan photos coming soon!)

Clean Slate: Cool App

I try to keep my computer's desktop relatively uncluttered. But as someone who frequently gives slide-show presentations, I don't really want to show my desktop to my audience. What's the solution?

There's a new computer app called Clean Slate. With one mouseclick, all of my desktop icons are hidden! One mouseclick brings them all back. Presto!

The controls can be easily placed on the control bar or in the dock.

Get yours now, it's free until May 8! (After that it will be $1.99, still a great bargain) Available at the Mac App Store.

CF Card Tests

 

Okay, now for a real exciting post, CF (Compact Flash) card test results!

I'm taking a trip soon, and wanted some extra CF capacity, as newer cards are out with higher speeds and capacities and lower prices.

I wanted to know if there was a significant difference in performance in the cards I already owned. 

I now own SanDisk Extreme III 8 gb cards , and Lexar 300x 8gb cards , and one Kingston 133x card 4 gb card.

As the Kingston 133x cards are very inexpensive now, I wanted to know if it made sense to buy more.

I devised a very simple test, which reflected to some degree real world conditions. All tests were with my Nikon D300 camera with a battery pack, with newly charged batteries. (If you have a different camera your results may vary!)

I formatted each card before each test. I then shot the same nearby target (something across the room) until the buffer filled. (ten shots in raw at 8 frames/second, in each test). I then used a stopwatch to record how long it took for the buffer to clear (for the green light to go out), so high-speed shooting could resume. I repeated the test three times and averaged the results.

Here are the results:

Kingston 133x 4gb card: 21 seconds.

SanDisk Extreme III 8 gb card: 7.7 seconds.

Lexar 300x 8gb card: 7.7 seconds.

I then formatted the cards, and simply held the shutter down for thirty seconds, to see how many shots I could shoot. (raw) The results:

Kingston 133x 4 gb card: 32 frames.

SanDisk Extreme III 8gb card: 56 frames.

Lexar 300x 8gb card: 56 frames.

Interestingly, I tried the same test using jpeg-high, and got these results:

Kingston: 55 frames

SanDisk Extreme III: 56 frames

Lexar 300x: 56 frames

The buffer, though, took 28 seconds to clear with the Kingston, and approximately 7 seconds to clear with the Lexar and SanDisk.

I then tested download speeds onto my computer using a Lexar FireWire 800 card reader, timing how fast 56 raw images (733 mb) were downloaded. 

Kingston 133x 4 gb: 38 seconds  (19.3 mb/sec)

SanDisk Extreme III 8 gb: 33.3 seconds  (22 mb/sec)

Lexar 300x 8 gb: 28.5 seconds (26 mb/sec)

These are the only cards I currently use, so these are the only cards I tested.

What do the results mean?

If you shoot sports, and frequently fill your buffer, then you want a fast card. The Extreme III and the Lexar 300x were essentially identical in in-camera performance, in my D300. The Kingston 133x was much, much slower.

If you do not shoot sports, the camera performance of any of these cards is more than adequate and would make no difference whatsoever.

Downloading speeds were not as different as I suspected they might be. The 300x was only 35% faster than the 133x, and only 18% faster than the Extreme III. These results assume a firewire 800 connection. When downloading 8 or 16 gb of data, though, that will mean minutes of extra time waiting with the slower cards.

These tests do not in any way test card reliability!

What do I recommend? If your livelihood depends on getting the shot in sports, then get the fastest card you can afford. 

I plan to try the new Lexar 233X , since Ken Rockwell reports that their performance is nearly indistinguishable from the 300x cards, but the cost is much less. Since my livelihood does not depend on these cards, I will wait for the price to come down before buying SanDisk Extreme IV or Lexar 600x cards.

If you shoot landscapes and never fill your buffer, get the best price for whatever card you think is reliable enough for you. (you rarely hear of a Lexar or SanDisk card failing). But buy from a reputable dealer, counterfeit cards exist, and it would be a shame to lose valuable pictures because you bought a counterfeit card from someone on ebay!

I just discovered that Adorama (see link at left) is offering the Sandisk cards with an increasing rebate; the more cards you buy (up to three), the bigger the rebate. So, the Extreme III and IV cards become a much better buy.

For more cf card testing, see Rob Galbraith's site.

 

B is for Blurb

I'll be teaching a class on self-publishing with Blurb books at the upcoming Sierra Club Photography Section's annual Laguna Mountain Lodge Weekend (September 26-27).

There is still time to sign up for the weekend. These weekends are an inexpensive way to rekindle your photographic inspiration. There will be classes for beginners and experts alike, and lots of time to share ideas and images with enthusiastic photographers. Other instructors will include Steve Cirone, Ken Rockwell, Stephen Burns, Donna Cosentino, and others.

 

And there's lots of good food!

 

Hope to see you there!

 

The road to Foster Lodge:

 

 

 

 

C is for Canvas

I recently ordered three 24x36 inch canvas prints from Simply Canvas, for my bird photography show. It was my first time ordering canvas prints. When they arrived on my doorstep, it was with some trepidation that I opened the box. Even with the 50% off introductory offer, these canvases were a major investment! I wondered how good could a print look when printed at 100 dpi (Simply Canvas instructs users to upload files at 100 dpi).

 

How did they look? In a word, amazing! I stood gaping at the canvas prints for the next ten minutes, they looked so great! I had no idea that my images could have such a presence, but printing them on 24x36 inch canvas made them come alive.

 

The physical quality of the canvas prints is unmistakable. The stretcher bars are robust, reinforced, and looked indestructible. The canvas is stretched taut and uniformly, and the packaging provided excellent protection.

 

I then framed them in Nielsen 14-21 floater frames, for an even more elegant look. 

 

To say I am happy with these prints would be an understatement. I am simply thrilled! Thanks, Simply Canvas!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the prints:

 

 

A small portion of the show at the Mission Trails Park Visitor Center gallery: 

 

F is for Frame Destination

Preparing for my next show, I have placed a number of very large orders with Frame Destination, an online framing store. Over the past two years I have placed over ten orders with them. Each order has been executed in a flawless manner, with all materials arriving in perfect shape, always to the exact measurements, on the exact day they were promised.

Frame Destination was started a few years ago by Mark Rogers, a photographer who wanted framing supplies which would cater to the unique needs of photographers. Many photographers (like myself) print almost exclusively in full-frame dimensions, so need mats with openings with a 2:3 aspect ratio (e.g. 6x9, 10x15, 16x24, etc.) These dimensions are not often found at traditional framing stores without a custom order. 

At Frame Destination, every mat and backing board is available in countless dimensions, including all of of the full-frame aspect ratios. For example, I just shopped for artcare foamcore backing boards. At the store I previously shopped at, they were available in five traditional sizes: 8x10, 11x14, 16x20 etc., with a minimum order of ten. At Frame Destination, they were available in over 50 sizes, with no minimum, all at a lower cost, with volume discounts starting at four boards.

For my most recent order, I discovered that they will custom cut mats, as well. For my upcoming show, I wanted a mat with three openings. All I had to do was email them a diagram of my mat dimensions, and for a very small set-up fee they took care of the rest. A few days later and the mat was on my doorstep, perfectly cut and packaged securely so that damage was not possible. No driving or traffic hassles for me, just great service!

Mark routinely participates in photography discussion forums, taking a personal interest in excellent service to fellow photographers. Their supply of mouldings is somewhat limited, I imagine this keeps prices low. I do wish they would supply white frames in the near future, and maybe a floater frame for canvas, but aside from that, they supply just about all of my framing needs at very low prices. Frame Destination gets my highest recommendation!

Meadowlark Trio, near the Salton Sea, California:

H is for Harman Baryta Settings

After testing most of the fairly new baryta papers, and a number of others, I decided to print my upcoming show on Harman Baryta gloss paper. It has wonderful detail and the gloss really doesn't get in the way of the image. It gives lovely prints on my Epson 3800 printer.

Aside from image quality, I chose this paper because it is one of the very few papers available in 17x25 inches, which is just right for a 16x24 inch image.

After printing the majority of my prints at 10x15 and 12x18 inches, today was time to print some 16x24 prints. I spent hours of frustration as I encountered head strikes, with vertical and horizontal scratches on the fragile paper. (not to mention lots of $ down the tubes). Adjusting the platen gap seemed to have no effect. It may be that because the large paper never lies completely flat, combined with a very hot day today, caused more head strikes than normal.

Well, after a number of internet searches, I finally found a review on Outback Photo with suggested paper settings which seem to have solved my problem. The key was to adjust the paper thickness from 3 to 4 and the platen gap from auto to wide. (These settings are found on "paper configuration" in the Epson printer driver.)

Thanks to Jack Flesher and Uwe Steinmuller for saving me more hours of grief!

R is for Rescue!

What's the quotation about being shot at and missed?

That's the relief I'm feeling now as I'm watching images from my compact flash card appear on my computer.

 

At some point, we will all accidentally format (erase) a memory card before downloading its images onto our computer. Well, my time came tonight. I won't go into why it happened, but it did. The card just happened to contain pictures of Lance Armstrong from yesterday's race in the Tour of California!

 

I remembered I have the program called Image Rescue, by Lexar, on my computer, which came free with a Lexar card. The program works with all brands of memory cards, and all types of image files, which is nice, because the card in question was a Sandisk, and had Nikon RAW files on it.

 

Well, my relief came quickly as the images immediate appeared. It found all 84 images on the card. It is now searching the rest of the card for more images, which it won't find...

 

How do you spell relief? Image Rescue, by Lexar! It's also available for purchase on their website, but it comes free with many of their CF cards, so why not get it that way? It's worth it!

 

Whew!

 

Lance Armstrong chats with Floyd Landis while riding in the rain-soaked first stage of the 2009 Tour of California, with Levi Leipheimer just behind. (click to enlarge)

 

More shots from the 2009 Amgen Tour of California shots can be found here.

P is for (Photography) Podcast!

With the ubiquity of iPods and i Phones, and the scarcity of quality radio programs, it baffles me that I continue to get blank stares when I tell people about the podcasts I listen to.

If you (like the people I hang out with), have no idea what a podcast is, think of it as a radio show (produced by professionals, like the shows from National Public Radio, or by independent creators as well) which can be listened to at your convenience on your computer or iPod.

 

If you have a favorite radio show, there's probably a podcast version. If you have any interest, be it music, language, politics, economics, or, yes, photography (!), there is a podcast about it.

 

The easiest way to search for podcasts is at the iTunes store. You can use the store on Mac or Windows. Here's a summary of how to find podcasts at iTunes.

 

My favorite photography podcasts are these:

 

Thoughts on Photography, by Paul Giguere. I only discovered this podcast a few weeks ago, when he was interviewed on another podcast by Ibarionex Pirello (see below). This podcast is geared especially for the aspiring and emerging fine art photographer. He covers topics such as getting your work in galleries, entering photo reviews, promoting your work, pricing your work, and self-publishing. (all of the things you want to know but nobody seems to tell you!) He interviews emerging and established fine-art photographers. He reviews fine-art photography magazines and books. Most of all, he offers thoughtful commentary from the perspective of "leading a photographic life."  I cannot recommend this podcast highly enough!

 

The Candid Frame, by Ibarionex Pirello. This podcast consists of interviews with established and emerging photographers. What's fascinating about this podcast is that all types of photographers are interviewed: photojournalists, fine-art, commercial, stock, sports, emerging, and established. The great thing is that there's something to be learned from all of them, even if your work has nothing in common with theirs. This podcast is a great way to discover photographers you may have never heard of, or find out more about your favorite photographer. A bonus is that each interviewed photographer recommends another photographer that the listener should investigate.

 

 

Lenswork, Photography and the Creative Process. This is the granddaddy of photography podcasts. Brooks Jensen, editor of Lenswork Magazine (the finest photography magazine around), has been podcasting his thoughts on photography since before podcasts had a name! He is approaching his 500th podcast. His topics include everything under the sun about photography. He can find connections between ordinary life and his photographic life which the rest of us would never notice. Well worth the listen. If you don't subscribe to his magazine, as well, you are missing out!

 

Of the dozens of non-photographic podcasts I listen to, here are four favorites:

 

The Classic Tales. B.J. Harrison brings classic stories to life in his free, weekly podcast. Recent authors have included Arthur Conan Doyle, Charles Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edgar Rice Burroughs, O Henry, Rudyard Kipling, and others. This is my favorite way to pass time while driving to my photographic destinations. I have listened to many professional audiobook narrators, and B.J. Harrison is equal to the very best of them. If you've never listened to an audiobook, you are in for a treat. His voice makes the characters come alive, and how he creates a different voice for each character is remarkable! I encourage you, as well, to use the "donate" button to enable him to continue his wonderful work, or subscribe to his bonus podcasts of more lengthy novels for a very small fee.

 

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day. Add a word-a-day to your vocabulary. Can't hurt your Scrabble game!

 

Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips. Peeved by sloppy grammar, or want to clean up yours? Mignon Fogarty can help!

 

A Way With Words. Language mavens Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett will keep you on your linguistic toes in their entertaining hour-long show.

M is for Macbook Pro!

Until a year or two ago, I used a Powerbook (laptop) for my office work and a Mac Pro (desktop) for my home computing and photography (Photoshop). Probably like many others!

When the Macbook Pros arrived, I decided that they were more powerful than my previous Mac Pro desktop computer, so I consolidated all of my computing into my Macbook Pro, sold my old Mac Pro, (and almost came out even!) My life instantly became much easier. No more trying to synchronize email and other files between computers (despite the .mac accounts, it's a major pain!) 

I always wondered, though, how to optimize my Macbook Pro for Photoshop use, since now and then it seems to slow down. Do I get an external drive to serve as a scratch disk? Do I increase the size of my internal hard drive? And darn, I wish I could put more than 4 gb memory inside! 

I've been considering writing to my friend and Mac-performance guru Lloyd Chambers with these questions. Lo and behold, he beat me to it! He produced an entire website devoted to answering exactly these questions, in a language so simple than even I (not a computer geek!) could understand.

He then linked his recommendations to the OWC (Other World Computing) website, where all of these items are available for easy purchase on a single page!

For many years I have only used OWC as my only source for hard drives and memory, and cannot recommend them highly enough for reliability and service, at a reasonable price.

So, as soon as I can afford it, I will take Lloyd's suggestions, speed up my Macbook Pro, and enjoy my Photoshop experience even more! (It's cheaper than a new laptop, and will give better performance).

p.s.: Lloyd recommends an external e-sata striped drive for a scratch disk, increasing the size of the internal hard drive, and increasing the memory to 6gb (it's now possible, with OWC's new memory!) See his website for details and the link.