Lightroom 2 training
On Thursday, Dec 4th, I will be spending the day in Los Angeles attending the the Kelby Training Lightroom2 Tour.
Check back here for a full report.
Nikon D3X uproar
Nikon made it official on Monday December 1, the Nikon D3X is the new top of the line Nikon DLSR.
The camera boast an impressive list of features (very similar to the Nikon D3)
- Nikon FX-format CMOS sensor with 24.5 megapixels
- ISO 100 - 1600
- EXPEED-based image processing
- Scene Recognition System
- 51-point AF
- High-resolution 3-inch LCD monitor with reinforced glass
- Two Live View modes
- Picture Control System
- Active D-Lighting
- Electronic virtual horizon
- UDMA-compatible memory card double slot
So why is there so much uproar over the new camera from Nikon. Well, it is the price: $8000
I wasn’t going to write any more about the D3X becasue it is simply not a camera I want or can afford. I don’t do much landscape photography and my clients don’t need images that big. I still use a Nikon D2H on occasion which is a 4 megapixel camera, so a 24 megapixel is overkill for me in those situations.
I am sure there are many working photographers out there that will need one, and get one. The uproar seems to be from a group of folks who think the Nikon D3X is overpriced. A sampling of the comments from DPreview:
Is that price possibly for real?
The economy is collapsing and they want to charge 8 grand for this camera? Did they somehow miss the memo that commercial photographers are in a world of hurt with all the ad and marketing dollars being frozen?
I’d never pay any one $8000 for a camera,…no matter what it does!
I honestly think this price must be a typo. There is zero reason it shouldn’t cost exactly the same as D3. In fact I might even let it be a bit cheaper (maybe 100 bucks) given it has a more commodity sensor. The US press release had a typo on the sensor about being 5.49 um instead of the correct 5.94um, maybe someone goofed the price as well
Over at Photoshop Insider, there were 31 comments on the small post announcing the D3X, 99% of them negative about the price, and when Scott Kelby posted a follow up this morning with comments by Moose Peterson, there were another 42 comments at last count, most of them negative about the price.
Nikon has made a serious error here that will impact their user base and their own long-term fortunes. We are in a recession/depression economy now, and we are a price-aware market. We know that the D3x costs the same to make as the D3. We know then that Nikon is charging an exorbitant premium.
They are offering basically a overpriced, low production model to tell the world they are still in business. They have already cut back on production in China, so it seems to me they are willing to further reduce production on items the public wants because of the world-wide financial crunch.
Follow me here, I think that folks expect the top Nikon camera to always be priced around $5000. It doesn’t matter what the camera does or doesn’t do, $5000 is the top price for a Nikon SLR. The F5 cost $5000, the D2X cost $5000, the D3 cost $5000, so the D3X should cost $5000 and it doesn’t.
Let me reiterate, I don’t plan on getting the D3X, I just don’t need it. It doesn’t suit my needs. Part of that is the price, part of that is that I use the higher ISO range a lot, and part of that is that I get great images from the gear I use now.
Smashing Pumpkins concert shoot
Last night I had the opportunity to photograph the Smashing pumpkins in concert at UCSDs’ RIMAC Arena. I was asked by the venue to photograph the band for use in promotional material by the venue and as a print for the venue offices.
The photo pass request was approved by the Smashing Pumpkins and I was sent a photo release from the bands management. All pretty standard up till now, but when I read the photo release form, I was shocked to see the following line:
Note: You also hereby agree to allow management FREE usage of any and all photographs for merchandise, publicity or any other purpose.
(Ok, I am the one who underlined, bolded and made the word free red, but thats how it stood out to me.) So according to this, the Smashing Pumpkins can use any of my images for anything they want, and I get nothing in return. So lets look at the rest of the photo release and see what it is that I get out of it.
This letter serves to confirm that you, (Photographer) , may photograph (no flash) SMASHING PUMPKINS on the condition that any material arising from the photographic session to be held on (Date) at (Venue) ______________________________, is used for editorial use, in the following publication(s) only:
So the images can only be used in the magazine or publication stated on the form. I can’t sell the images to a wire service or as prints from my own website.
The license hereby granted to you to photograph the artist is limited to the above grant only and NO right to sell, license or reproduce the material for advertising or commercial purposes (e.g., for use as posters, calendars, T-shirts, biographies, etc.) either to be sold, to be distributed free or to be otherwise exploited in any manner whatsoever. Nor may any material arising from the said session be reproduced in any publication devoted exclusively or predominantly to the artist unless prior permission has been obtained from SMASHING PUMPKINS and their management.
According to this, I can’t do anything with the images.
Note: You also hereby agree to allow management free usage of any and all photographs for merchandise, publicity or any other purpose.
Looks like the Smashing pumpkins can do what they want with my images (if they ever see them, that is)
You hereby agree to indemnify SMASHING PUMPKINS, their management and agents against any claims, losses or damage suffered by SMASHING PUMPKINS and their management and agents as a result of any breach by you of the above. Please indicate your acceptance of the foregoing conditions by signing this letter and hand-delivering it to the box office.
I did sign the release and hand it back to the representative from the promoter, but with one small change. I erased the word free. They accepted the release and I shot the show. Three songs, no flash.
The photo pit at RIMAC was really big and not that crowded. Eight security guys and four photographers, but it seemed that the other three photographers were all trying to get the same shot at the same time. This made me want to look for different angles and shooting opportunities.
The lead singer of the Smashing Pumpkins, a bald Billy Corgan, dressed in a black shirt with a spider design on the front and a skirt?? that looked as if it was made from leather roofing tiles was a real challenge to shoot. The lights were changing at a frantic pace and metering was out of the question.
This show was another great opportunity to use the 10.5mm Fisheye lens on the D2X.
The full gallery of this will be posted if allowed.
Nikon D3X specs leaked
New Nikon D3X.
the camera has the same body, AF, metering and main functions as the D3
with a 24.5MP, FX-formatsensor
5fps at full resolution or 10MP shots at up to 7fps
ISO range of 100-1600,
This is why I will stick with the sensor in the D3 and the D700
The ISO range is a step backwards. I am looking forward to seeing test shots that I assume will surface soon.
Nikon D3X images leaked
These images are popping up all over the internet, from Nikon Rumors to Engadget.
Official word on Dec 1st ?
Adobe updates Bridge CS4 Output module
It seems like Adobe is releasing an update a day this week. Today brings a small tweak to the output module of Bridge CS4. The Output Module in Bridge CS4 provides PDF and web gallery creation capabilities from inside Bridge CS4.
This update provides the ability to add header and footer information to PDF files and reduces the size of JPEG files generated for use in web galleries.
The header / footer info is great. For example, it lets you add a copyright to the bottom of each page. Keep up the great work Adobe.
New Targeted Adjustment Tool (TAT) in Camera Raw
I have been playing with this new feature all day. It is addictive in its ease of use and powerful adjustment capabilities. According to John Nack, the Targeted Adjustment Tool (TAT) is used “on-image adjustments (i.e. click and drag on a certain color or tonal range to adjust the corresponding values)”
The new tool is located in the menu bar on the top of the Camera Raw window.
The new tool lets you select any part of the image and then click and slide the mouse to adjust the selected area.
In the following example I clicked on the red vest and moved the mouse to the right to desaturate the red.
Very Powerful stuff.
Adobe Updates Camera Raw 5.2
Adobe has released an update to the Camera Raw Plug-in for Photoshop CS4.
The following cameras are now supported in Camera Raw.
- Canon EOS 5D Mark II
- Canon PowerShot G10
- Panasonic DMC-G1
- Panasonic DMC-FX150
- Panasonic DMC-FZ28
- Panasonic DMC-LX
- Leica D-LUX 4
According to Adobe: Lightroom has not been updated with the new camera support listed below. Lightroom will be updated in December to Lightroom 2.2 with new camera support
According to dpreview.com:
“The update includes enhanced color profiles, output sharpening and a new Targeted Adjustment tool. In addition, users can save all image adjustments and settings as a single snapshot for future reference. ”
I am downloading and updating the camera raw right now. If there is any other changes I will post them here.
Nik Color Efex Pro 3
I recently got to explore Nik Color Efex Pro 3. WOW !!
This is a fun piece of software and the effects are great. It worked great with photoshop CS4 and with Apple Aperture. It is also available for Capture NX2.
I will write up a full review soon, but here are a couple of examples of what can be done with a click in Color Efex Pro 3.
Gov’t Mule concert shoot
Back in 1989, The Allman Brothers added guitarist Warren Haynes and bassist Allen Woody. These two, along with drummer Matt Abts, got together when the Allman Brothers band had the day off to play in a power trio called Gov’t Mule. Since that time, Gov’t Mule has gone through a lot of changes, beginning with the death of Woody and the addition of a keyboard player.
Danny Louis was added as the new full time keyboard player and Andy Hess (no relation, but a great photographer as well) was the new bassist, until the fall of 2008 when Hess left the band to be replaced by Jorgen Carlsson on bass.
On Thursday night, Warren and Gov’t Mule made their only Southern California stop on their Kinder Revolution Tour and I was lucky enough to shoot it. I first shot Gov’t Mule when they opened for Bob Weir & RatDog this summer but since I was shooting through RatDog, I didn’t have to go through the regular channels for a photo pass. This time was different. This time I needed to apply for the photo pass through Gov’t Mule management and was finally given permission to shoot the show less than 24 hours before the doors opened.
I showed up at the venue, a chain of concert halls with attached restaurants that have some very restrictive camera policies, got my photo pass from the band and from the venue. Then came the photo pass release forms, one from the venue, one from the band and since I don’t have a copy of either release, I am not going to name the venue and if the photos from this post all disappear then you will know why.
After a great set by the opening act, Gov’t Mule took the stage. The place was packed, and since the venue had decided that there was no need for a photo pit, I was in the middle of a very rowdy crowd who seemed to have been drinking since the doors opened. There was going to be no way to use a second camera body and I was going to have to be very careful that the exuberant crowd didn’t damage the 70-200mm lens that I had on my camera. I had managed to position my self in front of Warren Haynes, not the best angle to shoot him at, but it did give me a great angle on the new bass player, Jorgen Carlsson.
After the first song ended, I started to feel the crush of the crowd and feared for the safety of my gear. I made my way back towards the soundboard to try to get some shots of the whole stage. This was fine for a while but even the back of the room was getting crowded so I moved to the balcony.
The balcony had a reserved seating section and some great angles of the stage, but I could only be there for a few minutes so as not to disturb the concert goers who had paid for those seats. After a while, I realized that I was not going to be able to shoot anymore and that my camera and camera bag was now a hinderance in moving around the venue. I returned my gear to my car and went back to watch the rest of the show. Since i had asked permission to leave and return before walking out the securit let me back in and I spent the rest of the show as a fan.
The full gallery of images is HERE.
Post Processing
I did all the post processing of this shoot in Lightroom 2 and and used the new “Open as layers in Photoshop” to create the two tryptichs. I selected the three images of Warren Haynes that I wanted to combine and opened them as a single image in Photoshop CS4 with each of the three photos on its own layer.
I then rotated the image 90 degrees and created two new guides, 1 at 33.3% vertical and 1 at 66.6% vertical. This divided the image into 3 equal sections and gave me a guideline as to where the 3 individual photos of Warren would need to be. Then it was a matter of rotating the three layers to the correct orientation and aligning Warren in all three images.
When the resulting image was saved, it appeared in my lightroom directory automatically.
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