As an avid proponent of doing due diligence, I’ve always encouraged people to do research on lenses before buying them. Whether it means renting them from vendors like LensProToGo, Rent Glass, or through vendor relationships, it’s a great way to get a first hand look on how lenses perform under a variety of circumstances. This was the case when I’d been the benefactor of a solid relationship with the folks at Sigma. I spent about a month kicking the proverbial tires on one of their latest lenses to hit the market: the Sigma 8-16mm lens. Continue reading “Hardware review: Sigma 8-16”
Tag: technical
Three Reasons You Should Be Using a Card Reader
One of the most surprising things I learned about during our recent trip to Brainerd, MN was that many photographers are tethering their cameras to their computers for transferring photos over for processing. While tethering via cable is always an option, there are many risks to doing so, and during our talk, we took a few minutes to share some reasons why it’s better to use a card reader than to import from your camera. Since there were so many people that seemed to appreciate the insights, I thought I’d take some time to share some of those insights here:
- Speed – Card readers have nothing else to do other than transfer data onto and off of a card to a computer. No camera firmware is required, no menus need to be loaded, and no power is needed. It’s a simple plug-and-play process for practically any computer and you can increase your transfer speeds significantly by taking this route over camera direct transfers. Seriously…with the super fast UDMA cards out there today, you can really see a decrease in transfer times, which gets you on with other things even that much quicker.
- Reliability – Because cameras are such advanced devices that have so many working parts and components, the process of connecting them to a computer does take a certain toll and if the cable is frayed, or a connection is lost, or even power is lost, you can risk losing and/or corrupting your images during the transfer process. Eliminate the risk of losing those precious memories you’ve created and use a card reader!
- Conserving Battery drain – In Minnesota it was cold! We were in negative temperatures for a good portion of our stay, and with lower temps comes decreased battery time. If we had to deal with draining our camera batteries to transfer images to a laptop or desktop computer, they likely would not have lasted. It’s important here to remember that plugging a camera into a USB port isn’t like plugging in a phone or other devices. Plugging in doesn’t charge the batter, it discharges the battery! Something to keep in mind when conserving your battery life.
So, what kind should you get? The answer here (as always) starts with “It depends…” What kind of camera and card are you using? Do you have multiple cameras and multiple card format types? Cards range in size and format from SD, CF, to Memory Sticks, and other proprietary sizes and shares. Formats also include the new UDMA which increases write/read transfer rates, and varying capacities from extended capacity (XC) and other older ones which may require specific types of readers. Check these considerations before making a purchase. My suggestion though is to get a reader that can read both standard capacity cards as well as the XC formatted ones. These can be found for as little as $5 through sites like Newegg.com and Amazon, but the better quality ones are available through camera retailers like B&H Photo, Adorama, and Sammy’s.
There are, of course, other reasons to use a card reader over a camera for data – and I could go on with a quite extensive list here, but would really like to hear from others: what are your reasons for using a particular transfer setup? Do you have a reader preference? Or are you using the camera to tether? Sound off in the comments with your own ideas and suggestions!
It’s high time…
Over the holidays, the SLR was in great demand for the family portrait work, and I pulled it out periodically for some “street-style” photography. I found myself instead getting out my 4 year old P&S camera, which is very long in the tooth to say the least. So, I’ve decided that it’s time to retire the one and venture into new territory. I am currently waffling between three cameras:
The G12 is a compelling camera. The features I am liking are the LCD resolution, the f2.8 on the lens, and the manual controls over the exposure triangle (shutter, aperture and ISO). It helps that I can also shoot in RAW which would fit my existing work flow. The biggest cons for me are the proprietary battery, the MP count (I’d rather have 8 than 10 for this size sensor – makes for better noise handling in my opinion), and the price tag. (Really? $500 for a P&S Canon? I can get an entry level SLR for that price…take it down $100 and you’d have a lot more buyers!)
The Powershot SX130 IS is equally compelling. With the larger 3″ LCD, acceptance of regular AA batteries, and manual controls, it’s tempting to go with this option. The problem is that the Megapixel count is so high. I wasn’t thrilled with the 10MP count above, so 12 here makes me very nervous. After all, let’s face it that Canon’s handling of noise is not at the standard of the Nikonian crowd. Here it’s also not the budget-buster that the G12 is either – a very enticing element to consider.
The Powershot SX 120 IS is no slouch either. Saving a little more coin is always a good thing (it retails $20 cheaper), and is back down to 10MP for the sensor. The problem here? Saving $20 also compromises the ability to control things manually. Frame rate is also noticeably slower too. That’s a lot to lose to save a few pennies. I likely will not go this route as it’s just too much being sacrificed for a minimal short term savings.
So, it’s really between the G12 and the PowerShot SX130 IS. I think I am leaning toward the latter simply because I am not going to sacrifice as much in functionality. Still have to check out some reviews and DXOMark ratings though. A final answer should be forthcoming soon, but that is the upshot of where the Christmas Cash is gonna ching! Of course, new gear is always coming out and Spring time is no exception. That will lower the cost of entry on these current generations considerably, so I might hold off for a month – see what happens in the market to these three!
Some, of course, will ask why I didn’t consider the new SX30 or the A12000. Truth be told, in Canon’s line-up, the A series is a notch below the SX series for a reason…it’s just as beefy! As for the SX30, I read several reviews on it and the noise level at even ISO 400 seems high to what people were expecting. I’m just not willing to throw money at a P&S for no reason other than “because it’s new”.
Let’s turn the perspective outward…anyone out there get any Yuletide Yen they’ll be using for new gear items? What are you getting and why?
Problems with Triggers
As mentioned yesterday, the example self-portrait I took had some misleading EXIF data. The thrust of the post was that EXIF data isn’t always right, and if you read through the comments, you’ll find out most of what was wrong (this is one sharp reading audience – y’all don’t miss a beat! 🙂 ).
What was most glaring though was that the radio trigger didn’t report itself to the EXIF data. I’d noticed this in the past from the Cactus triggers when I first purchased them. It could be due to the economical nature of the cirtuitry (i.e. they weren’t very expensive). Or it could be due to the very nature of the devices themselves. I’m not sure as I’ve not had a chance yet to test the heftier devices like Radio Poppers, Cybersyncs, and of course, the mecca Pocketwizards!
Here’s the part where the reading audience is more than welcome to chime in! Do you own any of the above devices? If so, which ones? And of course, do they report to the EXIF data in your photos? Last, but not least – how regularly do they report? Because one of the things that is very useful in reproducing images (the very mark of a professional) is looking at flash data from one shot so you can repeat those settings again if needed. So, in this vein, I am not happy with the Cactus Infinity triggers. Yes, I got what I paid for, and they work well enough for their purpose…but I feel I am starting to outgrow them even more. Guess it’s time to pony up, eh? Only question is – to what?
Already, some questions are coming in about what kind of lighting was used, what the lighting EXIF was, and several have also asked about the background – some things I had a feeling would come up, so thanks to all sending in email asking for more details…much more is coming! I promise!
In the meantime, take a break (or a photo) and enjoy the weekend. For those of us in the U.S., remember, Memorial Day isn’t just a day of baseball, hot dogs and beer – it’s also a day to remember the fallen heroes that died defending our country…
Putting the Pieces Together, Dream Camera #4
You may recall that a while ago, I decided to start building my ideal perfect “dream camera”! In fact, I devoted 3 blog posts to it, and you’ve patiently waited for the grand finale, so here it is – what rounds out the list for the ultimate dream camera! Continue reading “Putting the Pieces Together, Dream Camera #4”
The long-awaited Drobo review
I’d been waiting for the time to put together all the videos, audio, and pictures for this review for a while and I’ve finally caught up on other projects so am getting this out for the listening and reading audiences to enjoy! For those that subscribe and read via RSS, sorry because this is a video-heavy post and you’re just going to have to visit the blog to get the content today! Trust me though, it’s worth it as I take a look at how the Drobo performs in a real world environment with hot swapping drives, and the perils and pitfalls that surround storage area networks…
Enjoy!
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Please stand by…optimizing
You know these things, right? The hourglass in Windows, the spinning color wheel on the Mac – all signs that your computer is doing important stuff, right? Well, it happened to me last night in the middle of, well….nothing really, I was just surfing the web, reading some of my daily hits. Continue reading “Please stand by…optimizing”
Software Review: PrintKey2000
Many times I have been asked what kinds of software I use to do various things for the blog, especially things like videos, screen captures, audio recording, and all that sort of stuff. One thing that I’ve never really talked about is screen captures…not the videos but actual still shots of things as seen directly on my screen. There are many programs available to do this, some paid for, and some open-sourced, with some being Mac or Windows specific, and a few scattering that cross both platforms.
Well, today, I am going to give a little nod to a Windows-only program, called Printkey. Specifically titled PrintKey2000, and under specific note that this is a freeware program (meaning it is not supported – to use at your own risk.) While I have never had problems with it, the mentality of “let the buyer beware” should always be a consideration when downloading applications, especially freeware.
Those in Apple-land know that there are keyboard shortcuts to do a screen capture of either your entire viewing area, or a specific window, and these can either be copied to the clipboard memory for inserting in an application like Photoshop, or saved outright to your desktop. While in Windows you can always use the Printscreen and ALT+Printscreen to copy either a full screen or active window to your clipboard, the ability to save directly to your desktop does not exist natively. Instead, you have to capture the screen to memory, paste into an image editor, and save out as a JPG if you want to use it. What PrintKey does is fill that void of directly saving to the desktop. This is especially handy if capturing things for posting in a blog, in creating documentation, and other useful learning resource outlets.
To use Printkey, simply download the free application from here, run the executable, and let the program start in your system tray. The entire packaged zip file is half a megabyte, so the footprint is super for those that are space conscious. Here’s a capture of the software itself in action (don’t ask me how I got it – that took a few minutes to figure out! LOL):
While there are many features wrapped up in this handy little application, the ones I use most often are the Save, Rectangle, Print, and then the dialog screen at the bottom of the screen (click the image above to see a larger view). These should be pretty straightforward to those who are familiar with the concepts, but here we go regardless:
- Save – saves the current capture to an image file…you can specify whatever format you prefer (jpg gif, etc.)
- Rectangle – gives you a + sign that you can drag and drop around a custom area for capturing only part of your desktop
- Print – sends the captured image to your printer…(hope that was explanatory enough)
The last one is the bottm details area…I am talking about this little section here:
It’s very handy because it will tell you the dimensions of the image, how large the file is in terms of storage space on your computer, and how much free memory is left out of the total memory. While some many not need all this info, the geek in me likes to have this!
So, there you have it, Printkey2000 in action. I feel that I should also mention another really good counterpart and that is the program, SnagIt from the folks over at TechSmith. With that handy application, you can not only capture images on both Windows and Mac, but you can edit them on the fly, including inserting text, arrows to call out an area, and other fun stuff. Alas, it’s not free though – 30 day trial is allowed before you gotta cough up the $50! (Which for me is not worth it for something like this. I have some friends that use other applications too, especially for video screen captures on both Mac and Windows platforms which include names like IShowU, Camtasia, and much more. Here though, was just a little scoop on a little known application for the Windows crowd out there.
Got your own favorite little unknown program? Have you used PrintKey? Like it, love it or hate it? Sound off in the comments as new little handy utilities are always welcome. Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow! 🙂
One last thing all – don’t forget the Height themed contest for the month of February – get your photos in while the gettin’ is good! Deadline is a week from Friday!
The Life of a Lens
Yesterday we looked at things to consider when getting a new camera body…while the idea is all well and good, lenses are another story, and since we are likely to invest more in glass than in cameras (Have you seen the costs of some of the really good glass lately?), the life of a lens is something worth considering.
In all things technology-related, there is a principle called Moore’s Law which states that technology will advance at a rate of re-doubling roughly every two years. While this principle was developed primarily for computers, we can draw similar analogies for digital photography too, with the sensor being analogous to the transistor. The rate of increase has not quite been on par with re-doubling every 2 years, but the increases can be noted pretty impressively going from a mere 4 in 2001 to a current rate of 21 MP per frame for DSLR cameras (I am only looking at the Canon line-up here:
- Canon 1Ds Mark III = 21MP (2007), Retail
- Canon 1Ds Mark II = 16 MP (2004)
- Canon 1Ds = 11MP (2002)
- Canon 1D = 4 (2001)
Lenses aren’t like that though – focal lengths don’t change that much. Instead, technology has allowed lenses to become faster at the longer end of the given focal lengths. We’ve also seen the introduction of image-stabilization technologies. The addition of new technologies in lenses does not necessarily deprecate previous generations – it merely antiquates them! This means your lens may not have the bells and whistles of future generations, but it should work indefinitely if treated properly.
Keep in mind though that there is a distinction between full frame and crop sensor cameras here though, because Canon has two lens lines, the EF line and the EF-S line. The EF-S line is intended for the crop sensor cameras and cannot be used on the full frame mounts – if you try to use an EF-S lens on a full frame body, the mirror could slap down and shatter the back element of the glass, so avoid this scenario if at all possible! (There are some converters on the market that will extend the gap between the mirror and the element to avoid this, but I’ve not used them.)
Lenses are also different from camera bodies because there are no moving parts that can fail. Well, that’s not entirely true because zooms do have moving parts when you rotate the lens, and these can fail. * However, because the lens is always a closed item, the susceptibility of a lens to parts failure is not as high as it is for camera components. Shutters, for instance, have a certain lifespan for which they are rated, (usually somewhere between 50,000-150,000 actuations). Lenses don’t fail after a certain number of focal adjustments (assuming you are handling the lens correctly), and in the case of fixed focal length lenses (primes), this is even less the case.
So, a lens can literally last for as long as the vendor makes a body that will accept the mounting mechanism, and in the case of most vendors, I don’t see that changing any time soon. I’ve had my kit lens from Canon when I got my first Rebel XT back in 2004 and it still works great on my 40D – it may not be in the lineup anymore (neither is my 40D either, but I digress…), but any EOS body will accept this lens and the image quality has not deteriorated at all over time! Lenses can last forever!
How long have you kept your lenses? Do you have any “go-to” lenses in your bag that you anticipate will always be there? Let me know your favorites!
On a blog administrative note, don’t forget that there’s still a little time left in the Flickr Giveaway thread for December, so if you have any shots (the holidays are good times to capture those “Giving” themed photos), make sure to get one in for a chance to win that $400= prize package! Happy Shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!
*ETA: Special thanks to Marco for pointing out in the comments that there are quite a few moving parts in even fixed focal length lenses. In addition to the focusing ring, there is also the diaphragm that moves which closes down the aperture to the correct setting for every actuation of the shutter, so there are moving parts in any lens, including fixed focal lengths.)
Video Hosting Services Review
With the increasing popularity and discussion of video (we are always hearing about the convergence of photography and videography), I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the different video hosting services, and look at their functionality. So, earlier today I recorded a video using Quicktime Pro on the Mac, and tried uploading it to 3 different popular services: YouTube, Vimeo, and Animoto. Here are the videos in that order, followed by my thoughts on each:
YouTube:
Thoughts
Price: It’s free! Nothing beats free in my book, and with the competitive landscape of technology, this is pretty hard to beat.
Quality: The thumbnail does not look right, but that’s a minor nit…on playback it seems pretty good.
Ease of use: Another pro here as well…it was easy (and quick) to upload. It took less than a minute to upload, and adding the video details was also easy. You do need a Google account to do this though, but since that is also free, the downside here is hard to find.
Accessibility: It was VERY easy to find the embed code to copy/paste into the blog. And YouTube/Google is pretty recognizable as far as things go, so it’s going to be hard to compete here. But, let’s look at the other services…
Limitations: The only one I can find is that you are limited to videos under 10 minutes. You can do HD quality, up to 2GB per video (so no data size limit), with no waiting in line for video conversion or anything like that. At first I thought 10 minute limit was, well…limiting, but after looking at the other two services, not as much.
Vimeo:
Review of Video Hosting from Jason Anderson on Vimeo.
Price: It’s free…kind of. You can go the free route, but there are downsides which I will go into shortly.
Quality: It seems on par with YouTube in terms of video quality,
Ease of use: Also on par with YouTube, and the dialogs are very similar, so kind of a 6 of one, half dozen of the other sort of comparison here.
Accessibility: Vimeo videos are just as accessible as YouTube ones are, anyone can see them if you set them up the same, so kind of an interesting dichotomy here…
Limitations: Your limitations with Vimeo are that you can only upload 500MB of data per week. This may sound like a lot, but when it comes to video, that could get eaten up pretty quick. I didn’t see a length limit on Vimeo, but could be wrong here. Another limitation on the free account is that you have to wait in line for your videos to get uploaded. I uploaded the video 20 minutes ago, and still have another 40 minutes to wait before it will start the conversion for me. If you upgrade your free account to the Vimeo Plus one, you can get 5 GB of content, HD quality, no ads, and for $60/year or $10/month. Not too pricey, but again, in a competitive economy, it’s something to consider…
Animoto:
Not reviewable – as it turns out, Animoto only allows 30 second videos for free – everything else is a paid service. The price is cheaper than Vimeo for the service at $30 per year, and it does seem to have no limitations on video length or things of that nature, but the fact that you can only do a 30 second video on their free service seems rather lame. I realize that we need to be quick and to the point with our content, but 30 seconds? Really? This one gets a major thumbs down from me for this and on that basis would not recommend it.
Self-Hosting
In the interests of being as broad in the review process as possible, I thought it would help to also include the self-hosted option as one worth considering. There are some caveats to this though, as services and limitations would vary from one hosting service to another. I use Dreamhost, and I like their hosting, so figured it would be worth showing that here.(You can sign up from the link or from using the promo code CBPROMO to save 50% on sign-up!)
Price: Free…kind of. You do have to pay the hosting company for hosting your website, but as far as I know ISP’s typically do not charge additional fees for specific types of content.
Quality: Perfect! Since you are uploading the original video, there is no degradation in video quality – but that being the case, you are solely responsible for quality control…fair warning.
Ease of Use: Again, it depends on your host. For me and the blog, it’s pretty straightforward as I am using a self-installed version of WordPress and I am familiar enough with the functions and formats to handle it, but if you don’t want to be bothered with uploading a video via FTP, then referencing that source URL in your WordPress or website with HTML and all that, it could be challenging.
Accessibility: I hate to beat a dead horse, but it also will be a function of your host, and what format you choose to upload your videos. I uploaded the raw Quicktime video, so it will be dependent on people having Quicktime on their computer. There should be a conversion utility (I think it’s called jwplayer) that converts the .mov format to flash for easier viewing on the web, but this may need to be installed in your version. It is free, but could be a limitation as Flash viewers are more common.
Limitations: You are only limited by your own comfort level here – if you don’t want to deal with all the nitty gritty details, then this could be problematic. For those that enjoy managing all their own content, this could be ideal though, it really just depends where on the spectrum you are. For me, I am okay dealing with it, but if I had my choice between fussing over the details and using a service like YouTube to host it for me so I can go back out and shoot more, record more, and research more content, I’d choose the latter.
*****
So, that’s the top three reviewed for your consideration. If I had to vote on one, I would say YouTube gets the nod. Ease of use, lack of expense, and visibility is just unbeatable. But, keep in mind, that’s just my thoughts. What are yours? Anyone have any particular favorites or preferences for video hosting? Any I missed? Benefits and downsides? Sound off in the comments!
In other blog news, don’t forget, the post from Saturday (yes, I made a Saturday post!) allows you to embed your own photos to the comments! Share your own thoughts on the best photos of 2009 – they do have to be online (embedded via URL) but it’s a great way to share your favorites with the community at large.
Finally, time is ticking away on the December Giveaway. Over $400 in prizes including books, prints, paper, and software are up for grabs so make sure you get your “Giving” themed photo to the Flickr thread before the end of the year!
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