Sep 10

Much Afoot and–Oh Yeah–Canon vs. Nikon

Alas, there is much afoot at the moment. I know a handful of things:1. I'll be delivering the keynote address in Atlanta on October 2nd for the PDN series On The Road. It just so happens that it coincides with the very cool annual festival Atlanta Celebrates Photography. Consider registering for one of the On the Road tour stops. If you're tired of hearing me yap, at least check out some other photogs I enjoy,... read more ›
357 reads
Aug 15

Chase Jarvis TECH: POV Photography

The Backstory Innovation is key to making visible, recognizable images. And there's almost always an option to photograph something from a cool angle or a unique perspective. One of my favorite techniques to take advantage of this involves creating killer point-of-view (POV) images. While the thought of strapping a large, expensive camera to a model, your buddy, a bike, car, etc, may seem like nothing more than a good way to break some gear, this... read more ›
3K reads
May 21

Rate Your Point and Shoot – I Need Help

It's no news that digital point-and-shoot cameras are the bees knees. Everybody loves 'em and I'm no exception. They're great for snaps. I've had many in my day but tend to break or lose them a little too easily. We still have one, although Kate is on the road with it for quite a spell, so I am again without. So far I think I've had one Nikon, three Canons, and--hold your breath--one Casio. Which... read more ›
250 reads
Mar 27

Photography Laptop Case

PROBLEM: As a pro photographer specializing in ‘location-based’ advertising images (which is photo-speak for shooting in-the-field instead of in-studio), I often face the challenge of shooting under conditions that do not allow for the comforts of Mac Pros and Cinema Displays to review images, download cards, or shoot direct to the hard drive. (We often have to helicopter into locations, are out in the remote without option at generator, or find ourselves in... read more ›
3.5K reads
Dec 28

How To Back Up Your Photography: The Basics

More than a few aspiring photographers and hobbyist shooters that caught my earlier (very hardcore) post outlining back-up strategies for professional photography, videography, or design studios, have asked me to advise on a more basic solution for backing up their images. Since there are numerous ways to accomplish the goal of backing up your work, I think it's best if I focus the discussion to the THEORY of backing up, and let each individual adapt... read more ›
1.3K reads
Dec 16

Important: Storage and Backup Solutions For Your Photography

I'm taking it as an omen...Earlier in the week, I read a story online about some poor photographer soul who lost his entire photo library when his hard drive failed. Following that, I was chatting with a friend in the /Pro division at Apple Computer -- he was shaking his head about how few photographers (pro and otherwise) seem to "get" the principles of backing up and storing their image libraries.So with that in mind,... read more ›
2.1K reads
Nov 10

HP “Slimming” Feature – Comedy, Accessibility, Social Commentary?

Select HP digital cameras can now make subjects look skinny. Seriously. Check out this link to the 'slimming feature' on the HP site.So let's contextualize this. In advertising photography image makers go to incredible (sometimes ridiculous) lengths to maximize how great a product or lifestyle should look. Put the zippiest finish on this image or that. Photoshop is the tool of choice here, noting it's ubiquity and massive success. Professionals use it all the time--nearly... read more ›
340 reads
Oct 25

ScanSnap, Tool of the Century

Okay, the title of this post might be a slight overstatement, BUT of all the technology we've added to our office recently (and believe me, we're geeks...always up to something), this little device has really made life better: The ScanSnap by Fujitsu ($450). What is it? The ScanSnap is a high speed, compact scanner that converts hardcopy documents to PDF in a flash. It digitizes both sides of a document in a single pass, in... read more ›
260 reads
Sep 26

Photokina – New Cameras from Nikon and Hasselblad

As many of you photo industry enthusiasts know, the huge yearly Photokina Trade Show is happening this week in Germany. While trade shows don't really blow most people's minds (mine included), it's worth noting that manufactures often unveil their new offering at these things. That said, Nikon today previewed their new N 80 "semi-pro" camera. A link to the release can be found here. If you're an aspiring pro or a serious amateur and you're... read more ›
433 reads