Tag: Checklists

Unboxing strategies…

Jason1 Comment

The folks over at This Week in Photography (aka TWIP) had a post earlier this week that gave a suggested checklist to follow when unboxing new gear.  As you all know how much a fan of checklists I am, I started giving this some thought about what sort of unboxing strategy would work best in my own patterns of gear management and setup.

Then toda at work, we got in 23 new computers.  This means we now have:

  • 23 CPU’s
  • 23 Monitors
  • 23 keyboards
  • 23 mice
  • 23 VGA cables
  • 23 USB cables
  • 23 power adaptors
  • 46 power cords (one each for the computer and monitor)
  • and 46 boxes (one each for the computer and monitor)
  • 23 Reinstallation CDs
  • 23 Owners Manuals

We needed a strategy!  So, we opened three of the boxes, took all the acouterments out.   With three boxes now empty, keyboards began piling up in one, power cables and adaptors in another, then mice and VGA cables in the third.  It became an assembly line of sorts.  Thank God we had a tech room to sort it all out.  By the end of the day, all but the first three boxes were cleared out.  Tomorrow, the switch will be set up so that these can all be prepped with our standard image over the weekend and we’ll have 23 new happy end users (that’s what computer geeks call everyone else in the world).  Then come the new laptops… *sigh*

I belatedly thought I should have taken a picture of the before, during, and after.  Instead, you’ll just get an end result tomorrow.  (It looks kinda cool after all was said and done!)

The point today though, is that with a checklist and a strategy, you can make pretty much any task go easier.  You will get more consistent results with whatever the task is, and the chances of being able to repeat your results will also increase with practice.  So, make sure you are always practicing your technique, because the same concepts hold true to photography.  Thanks to the good folks over at TWIP for the creative genesis for this post today.  Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here tomorrow (with pics!).

Photowalk checklists

Jason3 Comments

As all the hubub over the Scott Kelby (NAPP) photowalk hits a fervorous peak, we are all getting everything together for the walks, looking forward to meeting new people, visit old friends, shoot in new areas, and just enjoy the camraderie of a photowalk with your friends and peers.

However, this is still an occasion where you are taking your gear out on a shoot.  So, it is always good to stay organized and make sure everything is ready to go.  What does this mean?  It means prepping your gear beforehand.  And of course, checklists can be a handy way to make sure all your gear is ready to go.  So, here are ten things to do to prepare for a photowalk.

  1. Charge your batteries, and the spares!
  2. Clean your lenses, wipe them down and use lens cleaner to get everything spiffy.
  3. Decide what items you will be taking with you and what you’ll be leaving behind.
  4. Pack your gear and make a list on a 3×5 card of everything you will have.  That way you can check against that at the end of the day to make sure you return home with everything you took in.
  5. Check the weather beforehand and plan your clothing accordingly.  This also means perhaps including some protective elements like towels and such for your camera gear in case there is a chance of rain.
  6. Get a good nights sleep.
  7. Verify the starting time and place for the shoot.
  8. Print out a map of how to get there, especially if the location is unfamiliar to you.
  9. Pack a few munchies (granola bars, pretzels, etc.) and maybe a bottle of water or two.
  10. Have fun!

SO, check your lists.  Twice.  And have a good photowalk this weekend, wherever you are.  Happy shooting and we’ll see you back here Monday!

Rituals – Cleaning your Gear

Jason3 Comments

Checklist

Rituals are an important part of many cultures and belief systems. Yet rituals can also be patterns of behavior. We drive the same way to work every day, we tend to eat similar meals from one week to the next, and we do certain things each and every day, like brushing our teeth, taking a shower (hopefully anyway!), and a host of others. Well, just like other rituals, many of us become very fastidious about our work flow. We color manage things, we duplicate images, back them up, and save in multiple locations. Yet I’ve not seen anyone really talk about establishing rituals over cleaning their gear. In that area, I feel that I am something of a loner, because I do clean my gear in a very ritualistic pattern. It may be overkill to some, while to others it may not be enough. Nevertheless, cleaning our gear is something we should all consider making a part of our recurring activities.

Tomorrow is the second Friday of the month, and since I’ve set that date (just an arbitrary date, no specific logic behind the date other than I didn’t have anything else “scheduled” for that date at the time I came up with this) as my monthly camera cleaning date. I clean every piece of equipment I own. It takes a few hours, but that way I do maintain a regular schedule of maintenance for all this gear. So, today I am sharing my cleaning schedule with you.

My Gear Cleaning Ritual

  1. Part One – Wipe Down This can take anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours depending on amount of crap in my bag! I first take the battery out of camera and insert in charger. While camera battery is charging to full capacity I use lint free lens clothes (you can get a 12-pack from WalMart for $1) to wipe down the camera body, the lens casings, my CF cards, my flash cards, everything! Then I take out all the velcro dividers from my camera bag. With the bag empty I use canned air and spray out my camera bag. Then I wipe everything down with a only slightly damp paper towel. I’ll also pick any fuzzies I can see off my velcro tabs.
  2. Part 2 – Glass cleaning This takes about 20 minutes, depending on whether certain lenses need multiple swipes. I Use the Eclipse/PecPad/Sensor Swab kit for all my detailed cleaning. First I remove the lens caps (front and rear, and dust them off with my canned air. Setting these aside I take a PecPad out and dab a few drops of the Eclipse solution on it. In a light circular motion I wipe from the center of the lens to the edge and swoop it away in a fluid motion. I then return the caps to the glass.
  3. Part 3 – Card clearing and formatting I lightly tap the CF cards with the holes facing down and stack them label side up by my card reader. After each is tapped, I run them through my computer, copying any images off into a folder titled “Unsorted”. Once the content is safely moved, I then format the cards from the OS command prompt (for me it,s format E: /FAT32)
  4. Part 4 – Air cleaner I take my Giottos Rocket Blower and with battery compartment open I pump twice into chamber, and then close. I then turn the camera sensor side down, uncap and repeat in that chamber with the blower. I recap the body then and lay it sensor side down on a pre-placed static bag.
  5. Part 5 – Sensor Cleaning I prep the sensor swab according to instructions with firm tight folds. I take the now fully charged batter, insert in the chamber, turn the camera on and move the menu to sensor cleaning mode, flip the camera over and lay it down on the bag. Then I dab two drops of Eclipse onto the edge, uncap the body and angle the wand to 45 degrees, placing the edge against the sensor. and in one motion move it from the first edge to the far edge. Without lifting the wand, I then shift the wand to the opposite 45 degree angle, slide it up and align the top edge of the PecPad to the top edge of the lens and in a single light motion, slide it back across the top of the sensor mirror. Using the same fluid motion I then lift the swab off the sensor, replace the body cap with my other hand and set the swab down on the static bag. I then turn the camera back over, and power down.
  6. Part 6 – Accessories check I take the now mostly de-charged camera/battery combo and insert my CF cards back into the camera. All cards are formatted in camera. Once the formats are complete, I then insert back into computer one last time and copy the low res contact info image back onto all CF cards. The battery is then taken back out and recharged again. (I do have spares too that get charged, and I take this opportunity to also charge all AA’s and stuff back in my camera bag. I’ll check my notebook for enough paper, my pen for ink, flashlight for batteries, business cards in front pocket of bag, ensure I have at least 5 model release forms, and I’ll wipe down my Krages card and cheat sheet (two laminated sheets of info I keep in my bag).
  7. Part 7 – Repack Reassemble Velcro dividers and insert everything back into my bag
  8. Part 8 – Tripod Maintenance Take legs off tripod and wipe everything down there. Remove all quick release plates and do the same. I then re-assemble the tripod and tighten down all the legs again.
  9. Part 9 – Inventory List Print out checklist inventory and insert in camera bag (when travelling).
  10. Part 10 – Relax Drink an ice cold beverage!

So, which of these rituals do you include in your gear maintenance schedule? Did I miss anything? Does anything I am doing sound weird or wrong? What do you think? Share your cleaning schedule in the comments or via email: jason <AT> canonblogger <DOT> com In the meantime:

  • Happy Friday 13th
  • Happy Fathers Day Weekend
  • and Happy Shooting (watch those apertures!)