New Intel Processors

Posted on June 1, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

It’s official—Intel’s 4th Generation Core processors are here.  Why does this matter? Because of improvements in graphics capability and power management.  And yes, they tend to be a little faster too, which never hurts.

Here are some reasons why a portable computer is still important for nature photographers.  If you’re in the field (away from your primary workstation for a day or more) it’s crucial to back up image files.  Having some sort of laptop (or appropriate tablet) makes that relatively easy.  Another good reason is to actually look at your images, at least in a cursory fashion.  Some time ago I was shooting for several days in a fairly remote location in windy conditions and didn’t take the time to do a quick visual edit.  Only later did I find some particularly ugly debris had found its way to the sensor and a whole series of images made in ideal circumstances now needed a lot of time-consuming touch-up work.

To be practical, a computer for field work needs to be small and light and have a lot of battery life as well as the capability to at least run basic programs.  Everything is a compromise, of course, and this needn’t be a machine you’d use as a regular production unit.  But with Intel’s latest processors we’re on the verge of having devices that come awfully close to the ideal, though they’ll be costly for a while.  Get ready for the onslaught of new product with “Haswell inside.”

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Snooze

Posted on May 26, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

After more snow earlier this month made this the longest winter on record, spring has finally arrived in Southcentral Alaska.  Temperatures are closer to “normal” now and birch and cottonwood leaves are beginning to unfold.  Most birds aren’t waiting and are well into nesting mode, and though wildflowers will be a little late, the summer season is on its way at last.

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New Zoom

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

Canon has (finally) officially announced their new EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X zoom lens.  Hardly a secret, info has been floating around since February 2011 and the big questions have been when and how much.  Now you can pre-order it for a mere $11,799.

Nikon has had a 200-400/4 lens in their lineup for a long time which has been immensely popular with nature photographers.  The addition of the 1.4X extender in the new Canon model adds considerable versatility; it also adds weight and cost.  Physically the 200-400 is nearly as large as the EF 500/4 II, and weighs nearly a pound more, which will make it a challenge to hand-hold for any length of time.  And the very high price will be a big stumbling block for many.  I’m confident coming reviews of production lenses will demonstrate excellent optical capability, and it will likely be hard to find for several months, so if this is a tool you really need for your arsenal it’s time to make a deposit and get in line.

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Data Storage

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

In a world focused on mobile consumption, the process of creating photographs still requires some pretty basic tools and methods.  Image files, many of considerable size, need to be stored, managed, backed up, and archived.  Storage media are still a big issue and a constantly moving target.

Mechanical hard drives (HDDs) have been the data storage medium of choice for several years due to cost and capacity.  Yes, optical disks are still around (including M-DISC, which touts permanence as it main attribute), but capacity is the main drawback.  Solid state drives (SSDs) have made big inroads lately and have come down significantly in price, the best example being Crucial’s new M500.  While this isn’t the first 2.5” 960GB SATA SSD, it’s the least expensive so far at about $600, and it’s already so popular it’s hard to find it in stock anywhere.  And early reviews are very positive.

Still on the fence about SSDs?  They certainly aren’t the answer for everything, but the benefits in most circumstances are substantial and as the costs continue to drop and capacities rise I expect they’ll become increasingly popular.

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Forced Change

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

Get ready to say goodbye to Adobe’s Creative Suite.

It’s the end of the road for the array of conventional boxed software applications previously available as individual programs like Photoshop, Premiere Pro, or InDesign, or packaged as targeted suites.  Adobe announced today at the Max conference in Los Angeles that all future development for these products will be solely in Creative Cloud versions.   There will be no new CS applications; for future updates you will have to commit to a subscription with Adobe.

It’s not like this is a total surprise, but it’s going to require some significant workflow adjustments for a lot of users.  Internet connection speeds and usage capacities will become more important, and how best to work off the grid for any length of time has yet to be determined.  Adobe’s not alone in this move; Microsoft (and others) are pushing application cloud subscription service relentlessly, and I suspect it won’t be long before other options are simply history.

Adobe has more detail here and here.  Consider the options carefully as discounted plans will only be available through July.

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Good News

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

With the rapidly changing digital landscape it’s difficult to bank on anything for very long.  When Google acquired Nik Software a while back, there was considerable concern as to the future of the whole family of extremely popular Nik programs like Viveza, Dfine, and Silver Efex Pro.  When Google recently removed support for the desktop version of Snapseed, many saw that as the impending death knell.  But the picture changed dramatically today when Google announced the re-issue of the entire Nik Collection for a mere $149.  No more individual products; you get it all for one price, with provisions for rebates to some who paid much more for it earlier.  Sometimes good things happen.

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Finding the Right Compromise

Posted on March 21, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

One of the most intriguing balancing acts is the set of competing features that makes one camera appeal more than another for a specific purpose.  Size and weight are two important factors, both of which have made m4/3 and mirrorless systems in general so appealing to those seeking the smallest and lightest kit possible while still achieving high image quality.  Not long ago, Canon brought to market their own mirrorless model—the EOS M, but while a competent body it just didn’t stand out from the crowd and hasn’t sold all that well.

Now Canon has just announced a new DSLR—the EOS Rebel SL1—that is not mirrorless, but is purported to be the smallest and lightest APS-C DSLR on the market.  What makes this interesting is the direct challenge to other mirrorless offerings (including their own), somewhat muting the size/weight argument while still allowing use of the full array of EF/EF-S lenses and accessories.  The 18MP sensor and DIGIC 5 processor assure more than adequate performance, and while the body is diminutive, the control layout will be quite familiar to Canon users.

There is another side to the size argument of course and that is that a camera body can simply be too small to handle well.  After all, if it’s hard to use it’s not much good in the first place.  Time will tell whether the SL1 measures up in this regard or not.

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Niche Products

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

Now and then an individual has a particular need in a camera specification that trumps all others and leads to a choice of make and model that might not suit all situations.  A good example might be Canon’s PowerShot SX50 HS.

This is one more in a long line of “superzooms” based on a small sensor with modest megapixels (12.1) and a fixed (non-interchangeable) high-ratio zoom lens.  What makes it really stand out is the maximum zoom equivalent of 1200mm!  That’s more reach than any other camera in its class

Who might benefit from such a long zoom?  Birders would certainly be one category, especially when simple documentation of a siting is really important.  It goes without saying that steady support will be required when using the maximum focal length to get anything like sharp pictures, but the ability to reach out that far with a fairly small, portable package is pretty astounding.

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Small Tools

Posted on March 18, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

When the photographic “negative” evolved from a processed piece of film to a digital file (at least metaphorically, if not in the pure technical sense), the requirement for pieces of gear to complete the imaging cycle expanded greatly.  And among the most mundane small tools are also some of the most useful.

Such as the ubiquitous flash drive (memory stick, thumb drive, etc.).  Just a little piece of solid state memory attached to a USB connector serves as a near universal means of moving files from one device or location to another—a replacement for the floppy disk, for those who remember that far back.  Over time the capacity of flash drives has risen and the cost declined, and now the speed with which they transfer data has increased dramatically too.

Data transfer speed depends on several things—the connector (USB 1.0 was very slow, but still very convenient at the time, USB 2.0 was much better, and now USB 3.0 is really pretty fast—up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0 (5Gbit/s vs. 480Mbit/s), the memory in the drive itself, and the device to which it is connected.  The latest incarnations of flash drives use the USB 3.0 connectivity protocol.  Of course you need a USB 3.0 port on the device you’re connecting to in order to achieve the higher throughput, but there is also backward compatibility to earlier USB versions.  Faster memory costs more but can provide a giant speed boost.  Lexar’s JumpDrive Triton USB 3.0 Flash Drive claims a rate of up to 155MB/s read and 150MB/s write and is available in capacities up to 64GB.  SanDisk’s Extreme USB 3.0 Flash Drive claims an even higher read rate of up to 190MB/s (write not specified).  You’ll pay for the privilege of this level of performance of course, but flash drive prices have plummeted in the last year or so and there’s a lot of performance here for the money.  Should you be interested in a little more technical information, there’s an informative review of these two drives here.

There are many other brands of flash drives as well, and price competition is fierce so shop carefully.  This is a rapidly changing market, but the convenience and capability of portable flash memory has never been greater.

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Another Option

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Chuck_Maas

Once in a while a new device comes along that’s just different enough and has the right combination of features to really stand out.  Enter Microsoft’s Surface Pro.

Tablets aren’t new.  Apple’s iPad has become a runaway success and the standard bearer in that niche.  It’s a fine media consumption device, especially for those immersed in the Apple ecosystem.  But good as it is, it’s not perfect as a field tool for photographers, at least not for my needs.  Specifically, it’s not convenient for backing up images on a multi-day shoot, nor will it work seamlessly within the Office suite of programs.  Now there’s another option.

The Surface Pro is new to the market and hasn’t had time to gain much of a following yet, but I suspect interest will grow because it offers a very attractive feature set that genuinely bridges the gap between traditional tablets and ultrabook-style computers.  Running an i5 Intel processor and Windows 8 Pro (64-bit) OS you can employ touch, type, and draw (using a pressure-sensitive stylus) on a brilliant high-res screen (I wish it weren’t glossy, but I suppose that’s part of the “touch” territory) using the full array of “PC” programs, and easily connect with external devices (via the USB 3.0 port) or an external monitor, all in a two-pound unit.  See an early review here.

Is this the perfect component for field work?  Maybe not in its first iteration, though it certainly meets a number of thresholds.  Hard drive (SSD) capacity is limited to 128GB (256GB would be better), and there’s only 4GB of RAM (actually plenty for most basic work), and the biggest question so far seems to be battery life (after all, there had to be a compromise somewhere).  But the formula is really promising and I expect a lot of photographers not married to Apple will be taking a long hard look at the Surface Pro.  I think it has a lot of promise.

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