Urban Exploration – When decay turns into art

As we hinted (sort of) in the last episode, the main topic for today’s show is Urban Exploration. As usual, we got a couple of guests really familiar with this topic to help us in the discussion: Sean Galbraith, which was with us on #47, and Sam Scholes (or on flickr). Both Sean and Sam have extensive experience in Urban Exploration, with Sean co-staring on a TV series (PhotoXplorers) and Sam having several exhibits with his UrbEx photos (one coming soon).

Before this, we discussed the new re-design of Flickr, and the upgrade of the Flickr/Getty partnership (if you remember we had an initial discussion about this partnership on episode #21). While the general feeling is that this is good for photographers, the possibility that photo buyers will approach the photographer directly for a license instead of contacting Getty is very very small. What are your thoughts on this? Will you allow photo buyers to request a license through Getty (even at a loss of 80%)?

Also on the table was the upcoming World Wide Photo Walk. It’s on July 24th.

In our Urban Exploration (or UrbEx) discussion we covered a lot of material from the legality of it (since it usually involves entering into private property), to philosophy, some equipment suggestions, safety, and much more. If you are at all interested in the topic, you really need to listen to this one.

As always, any feedback is truly appreciated.

Show Notes

Urban Exploration

• Noel Kerns
• Troy Paiva (we’ve interviewed Troy on #16)
• Roman Solowiej
• The Color of Loss, Dan Burkholder
• Urban exploration in the West
• Sleepy City
• Urban Exploration – technically it’s illegal, but…

Other articles on UrbEx you might like

• Urban Exploration
• UrbEx – The art or Urban Exploration
• Capturing Urban Decay
• Urban decay Tips
• Urban Decay
• Gunkanjima: Ruins of a Forbidden Island
• The Ruins of Detroit

Selected From the Web

• Antonio: CEPIC 2010
• Dave: GlastoTag; Obama Inauguration panorama; FIRST Robotics Competition – GeorgiaDome, Atlanta
• Sam: Opacity; Christopher Pain Photography;
• Sean: Are You Ready For a Portfolio Review?
• Brian: Early Kodachrome film test

Discovering the true value of a photography magazine

For this episode two new voices join us on the show: Sean Galbraith, co-owner of galleryDK and Achim Runnebaum, editor of RAN Magazine.

A few days ago I posted an article on my blog explaining why I don’t subscribe to generalist photography magazines and would rather pay a higher price for a good quality magazine showcasing photography art and documentary, and asking the readers how much would such a magazine be worth for them. This was the same question I brought to the panel for discussion on the show.

We’ve also analyzed some of the new features of Lightroom 3 namely the noise reduction and how it compares to some third party applications.

iPhone 4 anyone? Is iphoneography here to stay with the new improvements (supposed) on the new iPhone’s camera? Everyone seems to think so.

Got some thoughts on the topics? Just drop us a comment…

If you want to submit your photos to the PhotoNetCast group on Flickr, we are looking for your black & white landscapes. Don’t forget to tag them with PNC46.

Very nice conversation with everyone. Thanks again to Sean and Achim. I’m sure we’ll have them again on the show soon.

Enjoy the show…

Show Notes

Sean’s PhotoXplorers show:
• PhotoXplorers Promo Reel
• PhotoXplorers, Episode 1 (Part1)
• PhotoXplorers, Episode 1 (Part 2)
• PhotoXplorers, Episode 1 (Part 3)

• Lens Work Magazine

Selected from the Web

• Sean: Shorpy Historic Photos;  Photography density maps
• Brian: The Attack of the Killer Crystals
• Dave: Scenes from the Gulf of Mexico (Big Picture); Early 1900s Colour Photography
• Achim: Jose Ramos
• Antonio: Captured: The Pacific and adjacent theaters in WWII

Cameras in the mouth of lions… and other stories

Joining us on this episode we have once again William Burrard-Lucas, co-inventor of the BeetleCam. Although we didn’t spend much time on BeetleCam, I could not pass the opportunity to at least ask for a small introduction and letting you guys know about the first field experience of the "little buddy".

Never heard of BeetleCam? Take a look at the teaser video.

BeetleCam Project Teaser from Will & Matt Burrard-Lucas

And here’s an example of what BeetleCam can do. Pretty amazing.

We also discuss the latest copyright issues coming out of Corbis and how this affects photographers represented by that agency.

After a short dip into film chemicals (pun intended, but not funny) we progressed to newer technologies and talk about the iPad and its uses for photographers. Still with Apple, we approach the potential problem that thousands of photographers will have with their flash websites not loading on the iPad. Time for a re-design? Let us know what you think.

Our photography assignments are progressing and following the first topic (we’ll publish the results in the next days) here comes the second one: Landscapes in Black & White. Go out, enjoy the spring time and photograph some beautiful B&W landscapes or go through your library and find what you have. Submit your entries to the PhotoNetCast Flickr group. To help us distinguish submissions for this assignment from regular submissions, please tag your photos with "PNC46".

Enjoy the show…

Photo and video Copyright Burrard-Lucas. Used with permission.

Show Notes

• Will & Matt BeetleCam project
• Copyright issues and Corbis’ bulk registration of photos
• John Harrington on the issue
• New Sony NEX family
• …and the hands-on preview
• HTML5 photo editor
• Steve Jobs’ "Thoughts on Flash" open letter
• Adobe’s response

Selected From the Web

• Brian: 14 Powerful TED talks by photographers
• Will: Photoshelter resources
• Antonio: AIDS in Uganda
• Dave: 30 Years since Mt. St. Helens eruption, Outstanding travel photography

In this episode we have the pleasure of having with us documentary photographer Raul Touzon.

Raul started his career as an underwater photographer but is better known for his documentary / photojournalism work that includes assignments for the National Geographic magazine.

Recently, Raul traveled to Sudan on assignment for the U.N. to document the region, its people and culture. And it’s about this latest endeavor that we focused our conversation with Raul.

Raul is also a photography instructor, producing and teaching workshops for the Santa Fe Workshops and National Geographic Expeditions, and leading photo-adventures at PhotoXpeditions.

We still had time to talk about the new Adobe Photoshop CS5, watching tv with House, and a kind of Polaroid camera that is not quite like a Polaroid camera but it’s called Polaroid.

All photos Copyright Raul Touzon. Used with permission.

Show Notes

• House finale shot entirely with a 5D Mk II
• The real Polaroid returns… sort of
• Suggestions on a bag for our listener
• Brian’s Large format DIY pinhole camera

Selected from the Web

• Dave: Nick Brandt gallery / site
• Antonio: Looking back at the Vietnam War
• Brian: The Making of a Platinum Print

On the past January 12, Haiti got hit by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake that left 230,000 people dead and over 1 million homeless.

In this episode we have with us Felix Kunze, a London based commercial photographer who decided to visit and document Haiti after the tragedy, and follow the country’s steps to recovery.

Working as a volunteer, Felix was no only able to connect with the people and help where help was needed, but also gather a fantastic collection of images that tell stories of tragedy and despair but also hope and cheerfulness.

We also touch on some of the logistics involved in flying to a disaster area with the purpose of documenting it, the required contacts and networking and how to deal with the tragedy and still find joy to shoot.

Our thanks go to Felix for his time and his stories.

Show Notes

• Haiti Preview
• Haiti Overview
• Shelterbox
• Help for Orphans
• The Future of Haiti

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Artists Ain’t Saints: Jim Marshal, 1936-2010
• Antonio: Finding the Sweet Spot
• Dave: Frommer’s Rights-Grabbing Contest Loses Prestigious Judge!

In the past weeks we have been getting some questions from our listeners, which are very much appreciated. Unfortunately we did not have the time to dedicate the time to them as they deserve, so #43 is a catch-up on those unanswered questions.

A wide variety of topics came up, from ISO to stitching panoramas, assembling and printing books on-demand, comparing kit lenses to more expensive ones, Lightroom and bird photography.

To help us with the task, we invited Aggie Villanueva and Joan Hunt to join us on the call. Thanks gals, it was a pleasure.

And here are the questions that we’ve tried to answer:

• Daniel Roberts: Hi photonetcasters. I know that one of the settings in my camera allows it to select an ISO value, for a certain aperture and shutter speed. Somehow this feels like giving up too much control. Are there any benefits or disadvantages for using this setting?

• Isabella Campbell: When I shoot several images from one location intending to stitch them together for a panorama, I get the usual distortion on the sides. What is best, to compensate for the distortion on PS or shoot from different locations trying to get all the frames "front facing"?

• William Watson: Hello photonetcast crew and listeners. I’ve noticed that you don’t approach too much the subject of printing on the show. It would be good to dedicate one show to the topic as I’m sure many listeners would like to know more about it. The question i have for you is, for fine art prints, what paper do you use/recommend? Is there a main brand you use? What about whitening substances, do they affect the outcome of the print?

• Barton Ebanez: Hi guys. I want to print a coffee table style book with some of my work. Is there any service you recommend for this? I don’t want any mass production or anything like that, just a copy or two. Still on the topic, is there any process to help me select what images to include? I have way to many that I’d like to see included. Thanks and keep up the great work.

• Rob Rega: I’m thinking about purchasing lightroom and have a few questions: 1) Can I selectively change exposure of one area of the photo (i.e., assume I have a backlit shot with the main subject underexposed)?; 2) does it include traditional photo editing functions like selecting objects, cloning, removal, etc.?; and 3) does the educational version support raw files from a Canon 40D?

• Mateo Walburn: I just upgraded from a small camera to a dslr and one of the advices the salesman gave me was to invest in some good lenses since the kit one is usually bad. Is this true? And if     so, if you had only one lens that you could buy which one would that be?

• Joseph Miller: Hello. I’m interested in wildlife photography, in particular bird photography. I’ve been reading online that one of the best ways to photograph smaller birds is to assemble a bird feeder and photograph the birds while their approaching or standing nearby. Any of you have any experience doing this? I mean, how long will it take until the birds start coming? I know this is a weird question, but any insight is appreciated.

Show Notes

• Dell and Stock Photography
• Printing on aluminum: Aluminarte

Selected from the Web

• Aggie: Digital Video Production Handbook
• Joan: 10 Deadly post-processing sins
• Antonio: Writing your photography marketing plan
• Brian: A History of Photography, part 1

Social Media for Photographers

In the show we frequently approach the topic of social media and how we are using it. Even here on the show, PhotoNetCast is active on twitter.

My guess is that besides the common downfall of "wasted time", there aren’t many disadvantages for a photographer to be active with social media networks and share their knowledge with a wider audience.

To help us with our discussion, we invited Jack Hollingsworth (@photojack on twitter). Jack, a photographer for over 30 years mainly in the stock photography business, is one of the most active photographers on the popular social network, and explains how he uses it, shares some tips on how to best use it, and why being absent will mean "not existing" in the near future.

Before we got into the main topic, we had the opportunity to discuss some relevant news topics like the announced acquisition of Picnik by Google, the fact that Canon was absent from PMA and the polemic disqualification of an awarded image from Word Press Photo awards 2010.

If you enjoy the show and appreciate our effort, help us spread the word about PhotoNetCast.

And thanks once again to Jack for his time on this one.

Show Notes

Social Media for Photographers

• New Media Photographer
• Social Photo Talk
• Why social media matters to photographers
• Social Media for photographers (Photoshelter)
• Social Media for Photographers (Prodig)

Selected From the Web

• Jack:
• Epic Edits Weblog
• Social Media Photography Survey Results 2009
• Brian: Lightmeter iPhone App
• Antonio: Nuit Blanche (Making of)
• Jim:
• Photographer films anti-terror arrest
• First Look: How Penguin Will Reinvent Books With iPad

Copycats

A photographer from Vancouver, David Burdeny, has recently been challenged by Sze Tsung Leong over the similarities of Burdney’s series "Sacred & Secular" with his own "Horizons".

Despite the  fact that Leong’s images were taken from very popular scenic viewpoints, the resemblance between the two series of works is quite alarming and has led to "copying" accusations and even to the removal of "Sacred & Secular" from the gallery representing Burdney.

You can judge for yourself by looking at the images. You’ll also find a more complete story there.

The issue is not new to photography, and while copying works by previous artists can be a rich source of knowledge, taking the works to exhibition might be considered a different matter, and ethics apart at least denotes a blunt lack of originality and creativity.

Join us for this episode with David Sanger and William Burrard-Lucas as we discuss this story and answer some of our listeners’ questions.

Show Notes

Intro

• PhotoNetCast’s Flickr Group
• Theme: Portraits
• Voicemail line: +1 415 343 5030

Listener Questions

• Brenda O’Neil – I love to take photos of people and I was thinking of offering an on-location photo service to potential customers. The problem is that I don’t have enough photos that actually look taken on a portrait session to illustrate my site with. Usually I go more for the candid approach. My question is, would it be acceptable to offer a few photo sessions to clients just to be able to use their photos on my site? Is there any alternative? Thanks for any help.
• Eddie S. – Whenever I switch lenses I have the bad habit of misplacing my lens caps and have lost a few. This makes mad. What tips can you share not to lose the caps?
• Matt – I’ve recently upgraded from a P&S to the T1i. Other than shooting full auto (what I used to do with the smaller one), what shooting mode do you recommend to minimize the difficulty of getting used to the new camera?

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Photoshop keyboard shortcuts
• Will: World Press Photo Contest
• Antonio: First commercially made camera goes on auction
• Dave: Google Buzz

Including copyrighted works on your photography

We’ve all been there – photographing a nice street scene only to find out later that the art installment on the background is indeed copyrighted by the artist.

While for editorial use this might not be much of a problem, for any other use that photo is pretty much out of bounds. Still, once in a while some horror stories of photographers getting sued for copyright infringement come up.

So, how to deal with this issue? What is fair use and what isn’t? While the definitive answer is too much of a gray area even for the courts, from our discussion you might be able to get a few pointers on what is allowed and what you should avoid.

Many thanks to David Sanger (@davidsanger, David on facebook) and William Burrard-Lucas (@willbl, Will on facebook) for their insights on this discussion.

As you’ll probably notice, the conversation was going and going and I didn’t want to interrupt just for time reasons. In any case, I know that not many people have over one and a half hours for just one episode of PhotoNetCast, so we’ve decided to break the conversation in two. The remaining part (including answering some listener questions and our Selected from the Web) will be released in a few days.

As always, your comments are very much appreciated. Drop them below or use our re-opened Listener Voicemail.

Show Notes

Intro

• Feeling Negative?

Copyrighted Works in Photography

• Photographers beware: This Seattle case opens a can of legal worms
• Broadway sidewalk dance causing another legal two-step
• Mike Hipple’s side of the story
• Public Art Lands Photog in Hot Water (the photo in question)
• The art piece
• Eiffel Tower by William
• Eiffel Tower by David
• Eiffel Tower by William
• Photo Attorney

Shooting Film – A look at film photography

In what was possibly a very overdue episode (at least as Brian is concerned), in #39 we decided to leave digital behind (sort of) and bring you an overview of what is to shoot film.

However declining film photography is, the number of passionate film followers is on the rise and no photography podcast would be complete without a look at the more "old" form of photography.

To help us on the discussion, we invited a friend of the show and film enthusiast Tomas Webb. Together with Brian – our official film expert – we hope that the discussion is good enough to at least have you consider grabbing a film camera and shoot a few rolls.

From film workflow to an overview of the "wet" darkroom, and touching on scanning, there’s lots of good information on this one.

And a question for you: If you’ve never shot film before, would you consider it in the future? Drop us your comment.

Also, don’t forget to vote on our latest poll: What’s your photography budget for 2010?

Due to an annoying sound issue, I’ve had to increase the volume more than on previous episodes. If this is an issue for you, please let us know. If we get no comments on this, I’ll probably keep the amplification at this level for further episodes.

Show Notes

Intro

• Jim’s expanded community: Flickr group and Facebook fan page.

Film Photography

• Are digital cameras destroying photography?
• 10 things I hate about film
• Film is Dead. No Really!
• Tips for finding a film developer
• How to develop black and white film for beginners
• Cross processing tips and suggestions
• The great debate: Film vs Digital

Questions from Listeners

• Jason - "I’ve always shot digital, and so I don’t think I’ve ever really felt (or quite understood) the concept of reciprocity failure in film. Can you guys explain what this is? Does it also apply to digital?" – Reciprocity failure
• Yen Wang – "Is there any way to produce prints from slides?"
• http://www.edbergphoto.com/pages/Tip-slideprints.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internegative
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilfochrome
• http://www.ilford.com/en/products/ilfochrome/index.asp
• http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/ilfochro.shtml
• Mark Salzmann – "I have hundreds of negatives from the earlier days and I have no idea what to do with them or how to properly store them. Any tips? I’d hate to lose all this material, although I probably won’t ever touch them again."
• Patrick – "On a professional level, is there still any reason to shoot film? In the beginning of digital, the high film ISO was a big advantage, but now with higher end cameras allowing for ISO that film could never reach, virtually without any grain, I don’t really see the point"
• ipb (iain) – @PhotoNetCast covering medium format would be good!
• Laurie (@photine) – Would like some scanning software recommendations. The learning curve seems really steep for this step in the process.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VueScan

Selected from the Web

• Tom: Chris Reiner; Which Camera does this pro use?
• Brian: 7 Ways to create powerful photos with color
• Jim: JunkStoreCamera
• Antonio: Joe McNally’s Confessions with Father Krist

Looking at the sky: Clouds and Sunsets

As you’ll probably notice this is a late release from a recording we did later last year (the mentions to Christmas and New Year’s Eve should be a good hint). In this episode we continue our discussion on landscape photography, in particular how environmental elements such as clouds and sunsets can improve your images. There was also time to answer a few listener questions we had regarding what we discussed on our last episode.

As always, if you have any photography related questions, get in touch and we’ll do our best to answer them.

Want to help us spread the word about the show? Rate and/or write a small review on iTunes. If you use twitter, why not telling your followers about the show? Also, PhotoNetCast is on twitter, if you want to follow.

Show Notes

• Jim’s Workshops
• Lightroom 3
• Tom Hoggarty Interviews I and II @ Exif and Beyond

Listeners’ questions 

• Understanding Polarizers – The Luminous Lanscape
• Linear or Circular Polarizer, How can you tell? – Earthbound Light
• Web Browser Color Display – diglloyd
• Firefox 3: Color profile support – dria.org

Clouds and Sunsets

• Create Dramatic Images by shooting for the sky
• 7 Ways to avoid a cliché sunset photo
• Mobius Arch with Star Trails
• Zabriskie Point Sunrise
• Photography, It’s all about the light
• Example of GND photo

Selected From the Web

• Jim:
• Photographer Cries Wolf? Contest-Winning Shot Allegedly Staged
• Antonio:
• AP pictures of the decade (Odd Andersen)
• Brian:
• DIY Film

Yes, a new one is here. In the last episode we mentioned that due to me moving to a new country there could be an issue with being able to release episodes for some time. Unfortunately it took much longer than I ever expected and for that I can only apologize. In any case, here is the latest, and it’s all about landscape photography. We’ll probably going to release a couple more episodes in which we’ll try to focus on specific topics within landscape photography. On this one however, we decided to bring you some more basic tips on how to improve your landscape photography. Just because I’m saying it is basic, does not mean it is not important.

From composition, light, filters and tripods, golden hour and the "rules", we touch a bit on everything.

If you’d like us to approach a specific topic particularly in landscape photography, or expand a bit more on anything you’ve heard on the show, now it’s the time to get in touch.

A special thanks goes to Dave Wilson for taking the guest seat on the show.

Show Notes

Portable Software Tools

• Focalware – sun/moon position calculator for iPhone
• PhotoCalc – depth of field calculator, exposure calculator, sunset/sunrise times for iPhone

Links

• Dave’s Showcase

• Proper Equipment for Shooting Landscapes
• Six Situations Where Tripods Are Essential for Landscape Photographers
• Tips on Shooting Good Landscape
• 5 Lessons from my First Landscape Photography Experience
• Avoiding Clichés in Landscape Photography

Selected from the Web

• Dave:
• Big Picture’s Hubble Advent Calendar
• HDR Timelapse
• Book Launch Parties for "A World in HDR"
• Karl Williams (Shuggie!!)
• Sarah Peters (sarah peters1)
• Barbara Jones (PhotosEcosse)
• Martin:
• Zeitraffer Video
• Antonio:
• National geographic international photo contest
• Brian:
• Ansel Adams in Color

After a longer-than-usual delay PhotoNetCast is back. On this episode we take a closer look at photography projects, both short and long-term.

Having a photography project might be a good way to keep you focused on your photography work, and always having something to shoot.

We discuss the earlier steps of a project and how to decide on the right project for you, how to keep yourself focused and complete your projects on a stepwise manner and finally the output (that, if everything goes according to plan, you have decided on your earlier planning stages).

And as we mention on the show, the challenge is on for you to think about a photo project and describe it to us on the comments section… Do you have a current project? What would you like to shoot? Don’t forget how would you like to end the project (exhibit, book, …).

On this show we also mention the new Canon EOS 7D and it seems that some wild Canon rumors are around.

Hope you enjoy the show…

Show Notes

• Take on a Long-Term Project
• PhotoChallenge.org

Selected from the Web

• Martin: Canon EOS 0D
• Brian: Hypernova Music Video; The Human Side of War
• Antonio: Essay: Chop and Crop

Street Photography pt. II: Joseph Szymanski

As we mentioned in our last episode, we continue our discussions on Street Photography. To help us, we had the pleasure of having with us Joseph Szymanski. Joe is a San Francisco based street photographer with a background in arts with focus on documentary photography.

In our conversation we discuss Joe’s unconventional choice of equipment (at least for the "digital standards"), the state of the business for street fine-art photography, and much more.

We hope you enjoy PhotoNetCast 35 and, as always, we appreciate any feedback you send our way. Also, if you have any questions regarding the topic, we’ll make sure to pass them on to Joe.

Enjoy.

Show Notes

Interview

• Joe’s work
• Eugene Smith
• Henri Cartier-Bresson
• Josef Koudelka

Selected From the Web

• Brian: The PEN Story
• Antonio: Photography Business Resources & Photo Technique Articles

Street Photography

Probably one of the most enticing types of photography happens on the streets. Capturing that unique moment that not only represents the instant but is capable of transmitting emotion requires not only a huge amount of practice but also an extraordinary eye for detail and proficiency in composition.

In this episode we start approaching this topic and we’ll probably expand it with the help of some guests in a future show. From legal issues to equipment and also a touch on the creative side, we try to give an overview of what is capturing "living moments" on the street.

As always, your comments of the topic are truly appreciated. Share your experiences with us.

Show Notes

News

• Lightroom Through Your Lens Contest hosted by Popular Photography
• Police issue London photography guidelines
• Twitter your Flickr

Street Photography

• 11 Tips for Candid Street Photography
• 20 Quick Street Photography Tips
• 5 Tips for Great Street Photography
• 7 Ways to Take Outstanding Candid Pictures
• Obvious Street Photography Tips
• An Approach to Street Photography
• iN-PUBLiC
• 9 Inspirations for Street Photography
• Street Photography Guide
• Wikipedia: Street Photography

Selected from the Web

• Martin: The oldest image on flickr; and the oldest photograph
• Brian: How Film is Made… Then and Now at Kodak
• Jim: 20 Famous Photographers’ Self-Portraits
• Antonio: Photoblog awards 2009

When the time comes to go Pro as Photographer

At some point in our photographic lives, the idea of going pro crosses our minds (specially at those times when the office space starts to feel claustrophobic). But how and where to start?

In this episode we bring you the "adventure" of our guest Neil Creek and his move from a photography enthusiast to a full time professional. We discuss why he decided it was the time to go pro, the problems he’s facing and how he is surpassing them. Neil explains his choices for the beginning of his career and gives a few advices for anyone wanting to thread on his steps.

Iyou have any questions for Neil, make sure you send us a comment and we’ll pass it on to him and keep the information flowing.

And as always, we have to thank all our listeners for all the great feedback, interaction and reviews. You make all of this worth it.

Show Notes

News segment

• Kodachrome goes bye bye…
• PDN Virtual Trade show on demand
• Home (movie) is still available online in spite of previous announced deadline of June 14
• Lightroom 2.4 is out
• Flickr as an interior decorator tool
• The Chris Anderson Plagiarism Controversy
• @photojack is running a poll on who to interview in future Toginars
• Jim’s Photo Tours and Workshops

Going Pro, with Neil Creek

• Neil’s main site
• Free Wallpapers
• Neil on twitter

Selected from the Web

• Neil: Digital Photography School
• Brian: Photojojo’s Guide to Kodachrome
• Jim: getMETAsmart ; Metadata, Photography and Workflow for the Web
• Antonio: Amazing Planet – Filip Kulisev Photography

Questions from our listeners: tripods, assignments, Lightroom and much more…

In the past weeks we have been receiving some questions from our listeners but, usually due to time constrains, we have not been able to provide suitable answers. So, #32 was reserved just for that.

If you have any photography related questions, please feel free to drop them on a comment, contact us using our contact form, email us directly using photonetcast ((at)) photonetcast.com or, why not, follow the show on twitter and send your questions there (can you do it in 140 characters or less?).

Here is the list of questions we answer today:

Jonas Hakins

"I’ve recently upgraded from a P&S to a dSLR. I’ve read much about using tripods to increase sharpness in photos and I was thinking about getting me one. Any advice? Carbon or normal? And what about the heads? Ballhead or plate? Help!!!

Also, I’m thinking that going around always carrying a tripod might not be the best solution. Just the idea of for every photo having to setup the tripod is enough to put me off. What do you guys think about this? Do you always use tripods?

And keep up the great work with the podcast. Cheers."

Fiona Brooks

"Hi. I’m specializing in interior decoration photography and I was interested on your thoughts about giving up your rights on assignments. In the past months I was contacted by at least 3 publishers that wanted me to do some assignment work for them, mostly decoration products and furniture, but on the condition that all the copyrights revert to them on payment. It bugs me that some of these photos could, later on, be sold as stock to other companies. What is the standard nowadays?"

Rolf Kalrsson

"I group my photos per year when importing to Lightroom (and on the PC). I let Lightroom create a folder with the date the photo was taken when importing. Lightroom has created two folders named 2009. On the PC there is only one. When I drag a folder, say 2009-01-01 from one of the 2009 folders to the other, Lightroom says that it already exists. How can I correct this problem without removing the photos and re-importing them. I have already adjusted the photos so I don’t want to re-do that. I would be grateful for your help. Many thanks in advance. /Rolf"

Dave Hook

"I’m not sure if you’ve ever mentioned it or not on one of your earlier shows, but now that you’ve reached the one year anniversary, I was wondering how did the four of you start getting together? It appears that you are all from different locations.

Thanks,
Dave"

Michael

"It would be informative if, at the beginning of each podcast, each of you discussed the last shoot you’d done."

Peter Perez

"Hi guys. First of all I want to congratulate you on your first year of PhotoNetCast. It’s one of the photo podcasts I never find boring. I have a question that you might help me with: I’m thinking about getting one of those Wacom tablets for precision editing inside LR or PS. Although not overly expensive, I’m still in doubt if the money would not be better employed on some other gear like a new lens. Have you used one, and if so, do you recommend it? Looking forward to get many more episodes of PNC."

Mary Jones

"Quick question that you might answer on the show. I’ve upgraded from Adobe bridge to Lightroom (in part due to your recommendations) and now I have the option of storing my files as raw data, tiff or dng. While tiff or dng may sound like a good idea, the amount of storage needed for these huge files makes it almost colossal. Are they really needed or should I just go with the old jpeg? Thanks for your nice conversations"

Makingpixels

"I have a tendency of rejecting a lot of images that others like. How do you stop from being so critical of your own work."

Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this show.

Do you like the show and think that we provide some value?  Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

Show Notes

Tripods and Heads: The Ultimate Ballhead Guide

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Studio @ Home Series
• Martin: What not to do in Photoshop (Ardis-Creative.com)
• Antonio: HOME – Yann Arthus-Bertrand (also on youtube)

The World of Stock Photography and the different Licensing Models, with David Sanger and Rich Legg

When choosing your path into commercial photography, and in particular stock photography, it’s wise to define your business model and know exactly what each of the different approaches will pay off, having into account your style of photography, the market (or niche) you’re trying to break into, and even the investments your prepared to make, whether time or financial.

In this episode we have the pleasure of having with us Rich Legg (@leggnet), a well-known iStockphoto contributor and big name (although he doesn’t want to admit it) in the microstock field, and David Sanger (@davidsanger), an achieved and outstanding travel photographer and Getty Images contributor.

Our guests takes into the inside of the life of a stock photographer (microstock and traditional) and discuss at length their current business models and their reasons for choosing them, advantages and disadvantages, marketing their photography, licensing photography on a Royalty Free (RF) or Rights-Managed manner, amongst other things on what was a great conversation.

And if we have any questions regarding any of the topics approached, please feel free to drop them on the comments sections as both Rich and David will probably take a few minutes to try to develop further on them.

We hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we did and again we have to thank David and Rich for their prompt willingness to join us on PhotoNetCast.

Show Notes

News

• 3 new Sony entry-level dSLR
• DSLR REmote: iPhone App from OnOne
• Pentax K-7 

Selected from the Web

• Martin: Suddenly by Magnus Engsfors
• Antonio: 15 Astonishing World War 2 Photos that Bomb your senses
• Jim: Photography, Video and Visual Journal
• Brian: Shake Your Tree Today

On a personal note, the PhotoNetCast Crew wants to whish a fast and healthy recovery to Bengt Båvegård (paradox66 on Twitter) from Bild och foto, a colleague photographer, blogger and PhotoNetCast listener. Get well soon.

The Free-conomics and how Sharing Photography Works plays with your Business Model

In this show we address a topic that has been and will still fuel intense debates: How can one fit sharing photography works online, and even allowing free non-commercial use, into a business model.

We make some comparisons between photography and the music industry, and how photographers need to deal with the new reality on the web. We look into the benefits and drawbacks, and how the "free-model" can be used to leverage other sources of income.

This was our longest episode so far, but we hope that you take the time to listen to it, and maybe with our discussion we were able to provide some points of view that helps you define your business model.

Enjoy PhotoNetCast #30.

Show Notes

News

• Follow @PhotoNetCast on Twitter for the latest news on our photography podcast
• Polaroid announces Polaroid Two
• Polaroid 1979 commercial
• Polaroid 1981 commercial
• Canon Rebates May 3rd – July 11th
• SEO Kit for the Photographer

Free-conomics and Photography: Does it work?

• Record Deals and The Future of Music with Don Passman
• Music Lessons
• Radiohead Shocks Record Industry
• Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business – Chris Anderson – Wired Magazine
• The end of the free lunch—again – The Economist (courtesy of Finding a Better Business Model – APhotoEditor)
• 1,000 True Fans
• Does Ctein Have 100 ‘True Fans’?

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Symmetry – A User’s Guide
• Antonio: Sony World Photography Awards 2009
• Jim: Pro-Imaging announces the Bill of Rights Supporters Group
• Martin: Wall Street Journal: Pictures Of The Day

As we’ve been hinting in past episodes, we intend to release some shows in which we choose photos submitted by our listeners to be critiqued.

We are planning to release these segments intercalated with our regular episodes, making it one PhotoNetCast a week, something that some listeners have requested.

This is an experimental segment and we are looking forward to your feedback with suggestions on how we could improve it. If you have any ideas that we could implement, please tell us something about it.

Photo Critique #1

The image submitted by our listener chosen for the main critique: "untitled" by Georgios Karamanis.

Photo Highlights

Martin:	Brian:
Antonio:	Jim:

Travel Photography

In this episode that, if no one has noticed yet, marks the 1 year anniversary of PhotoNetCast, we start by talking about what expectations we had (or not) for the show and how we have met them. It has been quite the ride, all the learning process of everything that is related to podcast production, the effort to plan and edit the shows and have them up in a timely manner, and of course, all the great great discussions we had, including the ones that don’t make it to the final cut. The feedback from you, our audience, has been phenomenal and just that makes up for all the efforts. With every episode our listeners’ numbers keep rising, we have pushed an enormous amount of data, and my feeling is that our discussions are getting more dynamic and getting better. Thank you all for your support and for continuing downloading PhotoNetCast.

On the subject of Travel Photography, we discuss some topics that are important while planning the trip, from what gear to take and logistic considerations to equipment insurance, to what to do while you are on-site, including maintenance of the equipment. The laws and cultural aspects of your target destination is also something you should have in mind. And what about some discussion on how to be creative and original with your travel photography, whether you are doing it for business or fun? Yeap, we have it.

As always, comments are welcome. And if you have any questions you’d like us to approach on the show, feel free to send them in.

Enjoy the show.

Do you like the show and think that we provide some value?  Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

Show Notes

News

• New podcast about photography legal issues: PhotoLegal
• First Magazine cover shot with a video camera – Esquire
• Adobe launches Photoshop Marketplace
• XIX TIPA (Technical Image Press Association) Awards 2009

Travel Photography

• Basic Travel Photography
• Travel Photography gear
• 10 tips for taking extraordinary Travel Photos
• 10 Tips when using dSLRs in High Humidity
• Travel photography Tips
• GorillaPod

Selected From the Web

• Martin: Photo that made me crazy yesterday
• Jim: State of the SLR Market -2009; 241543903 (David Horvitz) Flickr
• Antonio: A People in Despair: Haiti’s year without mercy
• Brian: The Lazy Rule of Thirds

HDR Photography

HDR imagery has been a popular trend since a few years. We have with us Dave Wilson to help us explore HDR imagery, including his workflow on the technique, from the capture to tone mapping and further processing. We also discuss the value of the technique in today’s imagery and how it can, at some point, be overused and “abused”. For anyone wanting to start using the technique, this is definitely a must-listen discussion. And as always, we also look at how to apply the technique with film.

As always, if you have any questions or comments regarding the show feel free to share them. And if you have any photography related questions that you’d like us to answer on the show just use the contact form or send them to photonetcast _at_ photonetcast.com.

Show Notes

Intro News

• Silver Efex Pro plug-in for LR2
• Life.com makes a comeback in partnership with Getty with… free photos.
• Online=Free? (Vincent Laforet’s opinion)

HDR Photography

• Our Guest: Dave Wilson
• HDR Notes for PhotoNetCast Listeners
• HDR Tutorial: How to create ‘High Dynamic Range’ images using Photomatix
• HDR Imaging (Wikipedia)
• The Future of Digital Imaging – High Dynamic Range Photography

Selected From the Web

• Dave: Stuck in Customs (Trey Ratcliff); Craig Hickman’s "cameraDemo"
• Martin: Seth Godin: The Power Of A Tiny Picture
• Antonio: Allan Babbitt
• Brian: 43 Photography Hacks, Mods, and DIY Projects

The New Segment

We are opening a new segment on PhotoNetCast in which we intend to critique some of our listeners’ photos. Check how you can submit your images for critique.

Going Beyond your Comfort Zone in Photography

What is it with us that after we have learned how to do something in a certain way we tend to stick to it and it becomes harder to break out?

While it might make some sense, this way of thinking is also a learning stopper. The more time you take to photograph always in the same way, the more harder it will become to go out, break your habits and learn new things.

From Wikipedia:

“One’s comfort zone refers to the set of environments and behaviors with which one is comfortable, without creating a sense of risk.”

And applying this to photography:

“Thirty-six satisfactory exposures on a roll means a photographer is not trying anything new.” – Freeman Patternson

In this episode we discuss how important it is for a photographer to always be a step ahead of the comfort zone and staying on that edge where there is no fear of experimenting and failing, because learning just comes that way.

We are also opening a new segment on the show in which we ask you to submit your photos that you’d like us to critique. Some more details on this to come on a future post, but if you listen to this show you’ll get a pretty good idea of what we are talking about. We’re waiting for your submissions…

Enjoy the show…

Do you like the show and think that we provide some value?  Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

And as always, your thoughts are more than welcome.

Show Notes

Intro and News

• Brian just got hold of the new Kodak’s Ektar 100. If you’re interested in film photography stay tuned to Brian’s blog.
• Jim has recently reviewed the service by Borrowlenses.com. He’s also pushing a giveaway in which his readers can win a full week with Borrowlenses’ equipment. Give it a try.
• Canon launches a new upper-entry level camera. The Canon EOS 500D / Rebel T1i.

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Tax Tips for Part-Time Photographers
• Martin: Furiouxr (Kirk Hille)
• Antonio: High-speed photographs by Alan Sailer; Alan Sailer on Flickr
• Jim: Photography Websites: What Buyers Want: The Video; 4amProject; The Eyes of Kenya

Listener Feedback

Tiago Valente suggested a Wordpress template for wedding photographers, the Kertesz. It’s not free but might be worth a look.

Best Practices for you Photography Site

Ok, you are a great photographer and you have a great body of work… And now what? In episode 13 we discussed some of the marketing approaches you may take to let your work be know, and one of the biggest items on the list was a photography site in which your images are displayed and, if you so wish, sold. But not all photography sites are the same in terms of pleasantness and functionality, and thinking about your business model and re-structuring your site to better serve it is worth the time investment.

In this episode we discuss some of the “best practices” you should follow for your photography site regarding the specific audience you intend to target.

Do you like the show and think that we provide some value?  Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

Show Notes

News

• PMA 2009 – Digital Camera Review
• PMA 2009 – DPReview.com
• New 35mm Kodak Cameras
• David Ziser’s Digital Wakeup Call (and a $20 discount)
• Flickr Collection on Getty (Press release)

Best Practices for Photography websites

• PhotoShelter’s survey
• Photoshelter’s "Killer Websites" Webinar
• Displaying Images in Photoblogs & Galleries
• 10 Tips for Designing Photoblogs

Selected from the Web

• Jim: Was Caravaggio the first photographer?; Shepard Fairey and the democracy of images
• Brian: Develop Film with Coffee and Vitamin C
• Martin: Gerard Laurenceau (Photographer)
• Antonio: 15 Beautiful Microscopic Images from Inside the Human Body

Filters in the Digital Age

One week later than usual (my fault), PhotoNetCast is back. This time we go into the latest mass copyright infringement: how memes are encouraging image theft on Facebook and Flickr. Also, we answer a question by one of our listeners regarding the use of filters to improve digital photography: are they still worth it? And what a great discussion with very dissonating opinions this was. This and more, on PhotoNetCast #24.

Want to help PhotoNetCast? Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

Show Notes

News

Metropolitan police federation show support for photographers

Nikon price increase

Flickr group uses photos for project = Fair use?

Filters in the digital Age

How to use camera filters for photography

Let’s paint the world

Photo filters for black and white photography

Black and white filters FAQ

Filter options for digital cameras

Filters for digital cameras

Minimize the costs of a smash

Cokin

Selected from the Web

Martin: Why Lenses are the real key to stunning photos

Brian: Edit My Photo Project

Antonio: Transform (Zack Arias)

Jim: Facebook Terms of Use Update; Shepard Fairey: Inspiration Or Infringement?

Photographers’ Rights and the new UK Counter-Terrorism Act 2008

On February 16th, a new Counter-Terrorism Act will start being enforced in the UK. This Act is, to a certain extent, an amendment to the existing Terrorism Act of 2000.

One of the sections that most clearly affects photographers is section 76 of the new Counter-Terrorism Act:

Offences relating to information about members of armed forces etc

(1) After section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (collection of information) insert—

“58A Eliciting, publishing or communicating information about members of armed forces etc

(1) A person commits an offence who—

(a) elicits or attempts to elicit information about an individual who is or has been—

(i) a member of Her Majesty’s forces,

(ii) a member of any of the intelligence services, or

(iii) a constable,

which is of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, or

(b) publishes or communicates any such information.

(2) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove that they had a reasonable excuse for their action.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—

(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to a fine, or to both;

 

How this new law will affect UK photographers is still an open question and we’ll probably only start seeing reports some time after February 16th.

To help us with this discussion, we had Phill Price and Darren Hector, two London-based photographers who attended a meeting on February 4th that brought together members of the British Press Photographer’s Association, the British Journal of Photography and the Metropolitan Police.

And if you’re in London, on February 16th in the morning (when this law starts to be enforced), a group of photographers is going to head on to the Scotland Yard’s HQ and… well… take photographs.

Want to help PhotoNetCast? Write a small review on the iTunes store. If you do, please come back and write us a comment so that we can properly credit you on the show. Thanks.

Show Notes

Links

• London Calling Photographers site
• London Calling Photographers Law meeting
• Terrorism Act 2000 (interesting section 58)
• Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 (interesting section 76)
• Counter-Terrorism Bill clause 83 reminder – chilling effect on reporting or speculation about military or intelligence service or police personnel ?

Defining goals for your photography

In an episode that probably steered a little away from the originally intended, we approach the science of setting photographic goals. In a path that can be frustrating for anyone, knowing how to plan your photographic career, whether on a professional or enthusiast level, can be one of the main time and personal investments you’ll ever do. But remember, keeping the fun in what you do should probably be always your main photographic goal. If we managed to provide some help, then our own goal with this episode has been achieved.

Want to help PhotoNetCast? Write a small review on the iTunes store. Thanks.

Show Notes

Intro and News

• Martin’s daughter, Enna, and his baby photography
• Amazing Nature Photo – What are the Odds? A Billion to 1?
• Brian’s Epic Edits Weblog Birthday Giveaway
• Brian’s new e-book… it’s free, so go and take it
• Service Notice: EOS 5D: Main Mirror Detachment

Goal Setting in Photography

• Why Set Your Photography Goals? (Or are you waiting for them to knock on your door?)
• Why Set Your Photography Goals? (Or are you waiting for them to knock on your door?) part II
• Photography Goals
• Goals and Photography
• How to Set Good Artistic Goals for 2009

Selected from the Web

• Martin: Just talkin
• Jim: Nailed ‘Em – Amtrak Photographer
• Brian: Encounters at the Photographers’ Rights Protest in LA
• António: The World’s Longest Exposures; Gizmodo IMterview: Jonathon Keats

The Flickr/Getty Images Partnership

In July 2008 Flickr announced that they would start a partnership with Getty Images in order to ease the process of creating a Flickr Collection on Getty containing only images from Flickr users. This move, either by Flickr or Getty, generated quite a buzz in the stock photography world. On January 21, Flickr made a second announcement stating that invitations to Flickr users to start submitting the “chosen” images to Getty were being sent en masse.

What does this all mean to photographers, either pros or amateurs, and specially to those that are not so much into the photography business and want to get a foot on the door?

In this episode we try to approach the issues and look at the pros and cons of accepting such invitations.

Jim published on his blog his own view where he mentions that he is not going to accept the Flickr/Getty invitations. To provide some balance to the discussion, we have the pleasure of having as guest Dave Wilson, a serious amateur who wants to start monetizing his work and sees the Flickr/Getty invitations a good opportunity.

NOTE: While the show was being edited we got a reply from Getty mentioning that they would probably be interested in having someone on a future show. Let’s see where it leads and if we are able to having someone from inside addressing some of our questions.

We have a poll open asking whether you’ll take the Flickr Getty invitation if you get it. Don’t forget to vote.

And again, a big thanks to Dave for having joined us. You can also follow him on twitter.

For now, enjoy the show…

Want to help PhotoNetCast? Write a small review on iTunes. Thanks.

Show Notes

Links mentioned

Discussion group on Flickr

FAQ on Flickr

The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions: Getty Images Buys JupiterImages

Karma’s a (rhymes with witch)

There’s a sucker born every minute – Getty Images For Sale!

BusinessWeak – Amateur vs. Pros?

Getty Web Use (now discontinued)

Once You License Your Work with Creative Commons, the Cat’s Out of the Bag

After more delay than expected and after a fight with editing and processing, here it is the latest PhotoNetcast.

On episode 18 we mentioned that we would approach the “buying used equipment” subject. With everyone (ok, almost everyone) running a tight budget, used equipment can be a great way to upgrade your photographic inventory. But not only that, sometimes used equipment is the only way to get items that are not in production anymore.

Unfortunately, not everything is perfect with this approach and there are some risks involved. We discuss some of the things you should be aware when buying used equipment and how you can make the best out of your investment.

As always, your feedback is very much appreciated. If you have any other recommendations for online (or offline) locations for buying used equipment, make sure you let us know.

And if you can spare a few minutes, a review on PhotoNetCast on the iTunes store would be great.

Thanks for your support.

Show notes

• Canon EOS 5D Mark II firmware update cures ‘black dot’ ailment

• JPG Magazine says goodbye

• 5 tips for acquiring old cameras

• Your guide to buying old film cameras

• Checklist before you buy used cameras and lenses on ebay

• What’s your newest inspiration?

• www.keh.com

• www.bhphotovideo.com/

• resellerratings.com

• ozcamera.com/

Selected from the Web

Martin: The Commons (on flickr)—>Search it

Jim: DIY Bokeh

Brian: The Sky in Motion

Antonio: Proper Sensor cleaning

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

On the last show we mentioned that #19 would be all about buying used equipment. But the opportunity to talk about the Canon 5D Mark II with people that actually have used it was too good to pass. And besides that we know this is a camera that is sought by many of our listeners.

So, on this episode we have the pleasure of having with us Rich Legg and Phill Price to share with us their experiences with the 5D’ II.

No giveaway on this one… We didn’t manage to convince Rich to gracefully donate his 5D’ II to one of our listeners.

Our thanks go to both Rich and Phill for their availability to be on the show. It was too late in the day for Rich and too early in the day for Phill, but their effort is appreciated. Thanks guys.

And in the last PhotoNetCast of 2008 we would like to thank everyone of our listeners. Without your support and your presence on that side, PhotoNetCast would not continue to exist.

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year…

Show Notes

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

• Canon EOS 5D Mark II: 21MP and HD movies
• Canon EOS 5D Mark II Hands-on Preview
• Tokyo reality (video)
• Canon 5D MKII Pre-Preview
• Sample EOS 5D Mark II Video: Reverie
• 14 days with a Canon 5D Mark II
• Canon 5D Mark II early bug reports : Black-Spot Artifacts

Selected from the Web

• Jim: LR2/Mogrify
• Martin: Big Picture: The Hajj
• Brian: Neil Creek: On the road to full-time photography
• Antonio: Days with my father – Philip Toledano

Interview with Tom Hogarty, product manager for Lightroom

As we had announced before, in this episode we had the pleasure of having with us Tom Hogarty, product manager for Lightroom. The conversation was good and we had the opportunity to take a closer look at one of the favorite applications for photographers. There is so much "behind the scenes" going on with this software, and so much that we could have talked about, that we could have gone for a much longer time but time, as always, is limited.

Of course, we would like to thank Tom for his availability to join the show and all our listeners who have sent questions for Tom. If we forgot some, we’re sorry, but I believe we covered everything you sent our way.

For now, on with the show…

And a new giveaway – Copy of Lightroom 2

Adobe was gracious enough to provide us with a copy of Lightroom 2 to giveaway on the show to one of our listeners. If you still haven’t tried the software this is a great opportunity, not to mention the $299 value.

Deadline:  December 17th, 2008 – 2pm PST

How to participate: For this giveaway we came up with two different ways for you to participate.

1. You can write a few lines on your blog about your workflow and how Lightroom changed/would change it. Link to this post so we can track it. This will count as 2 entries for the random drawing.

2. Don’t have a blog? No problem. Just leave us a comment on this post answering the same question. This will count as 1 entry for the draw.

Easy for the value, no? In either case, make sure that we have a way to contact you afterwards (use a valid email address).

If you don’t win but still want to try the software to see if it’s right for you, don’t forget that you can download a 30-day trial version of Lightroom.

Show Notes

Some links mentioned during the interview

Adobe Lightroom 2

LR2/Mogrify – Watermarks

Adobe Exchange – Lightroom

60% of Photoshop Users are PIRATES!

4 Quick Ways to Boost Lightroom 2 Performance

Adobe TV

Tom’s blog at Adobe

Selected from the Web

• Brian: PresetsHeaven
• Jim: Lightroom Presets. The Ultimate Free List, Constrained Cropping in Photoshop
• Antonio: LIFE Photo Archive available on Google Image Search

If you’d like to listen more about Geotagging in reply to our last episode, and much more, there’s a new photography podcast out there, the Subject, Composition and Light podcast . Try it…

Geotagging revisited – Interview with the developers of Photofinder Mini

On PhotoNetCast #5 we approached the subject of geotagging. We had some concerns regarding the technology and usefulness of inserting location tags into the images. Now, after the launch of Photofinder Mini, we invited the developers, ATP Electronics, to give us some more insights into how geotagging works and what is innovative about their product.

I’ve reviewed their product on Words:irrational in which I go into detail my hands-on approach to their geotagging unit and having them on the show was a good opportunity to address some of the findings I describe, and to give some information on the behind-the-scenes functionality of geotagging for anyone considering it.

For now, enjoy the show… and don’t forget to participate in our giveaway.

Product Giveaway

ATP Electronics has been gracious enough to provide us with some of their products for a contest here at PhotoNetCast.

So, we have for our listeners a bundle of ATP Electronics’ products valued at about US$250.

• 1x Photofinder Mini GPS tagging unit
• 3x 4Gb SDHC cards
• 5x 1Gb SD cards

How to participate

First you need to go to the Photofinder Mini site and note the two main colors of the ATP Electronics logo.

If you have a blog, we ask you to write a few lines on how geotagging would improve your photographic experience and link to this show episode (make sure the trackback is showing up on our comment list). Include also the two colors of the ATP Electronics logo.

If you don’t have a blog, use our contact form and, likewise, write us a few lines on how geotagging would improve your photography, and the answer to the logo colors question.

Prize winners will be selected randomly from all participants with the correct answer.

If you are one of the winners, we’ll contact you to ask for your address, so please use a valid email.

Deadline is December 7th, 10pm PST.

Show Notes

Interview with ATP Electronics developers

• ATP Photofinder Mini – Reinventing Geotagging (Product Review)
• ATP Phtofinder Mini
• Geotagging – Is it worth it?

Selected from the Web

• Brian: RED Modular Camera Innovations
• Martin: New York in Black & White
• Antonio: Photographer offers divorce albums
• Jim: Pictures Taken At Just The Right Angle, Greener Photography

Interview with Troy Paiva, exploring the desert night

It’s another episode of PhotoNetCast, and this time we have the pleasure of having as guest a photographer for whom daylight doesn’t mean much – Troy Paiva.

When Troy started photographing, the night was the time that most grabbed his attention and today, 19 years later, he his a master of night photography. But not only that, he developed a surrealistic style that became his signature.

During the interview we discussed how it all started and progressed to the development of a body of work that has been seen in many exhibitions and led to the publication of Lost America and Night Vision: The Art of Urban Exploration.

Troy also drops a few tips on how to start with night photography and light painting for all those thinking about it. And speaking of how to, his photography technique is well described and explained on his site.

Troy’s work can be seen on his Flickr stream and on his sites Lost America and Troy Paiva Photography.

Show Notes

Interview with Troy Paiva

• Book Review – Night Vision: The Art of Urban Exploration
• Lost America
• Troy Paiva Photography

Selected from the Web

• Brian: In Harm’s Way: War Photographers (and on the CW website )
• Antonio: More Videos from the 5D MKii (via Stefan Neuweger)
• Jim: State Laws on Polling Place Photography – Center for Citizen Media (via Gary Crabbe )

Buying your first dSLR

This is a question that surely many of you have been through and many listeners coming from point & shoot cameras have.

If you’re planning to upgrade to a dSLR there are a few points that you should consider, from camera brand to camera features. Just don’t get too caught up with the technology talk. Many of the cameras on the market have enough features and enough capacity to keep you company for some years. Get it now and get creative.

Show Notes

Links:

• How To Buy Your First Digital SLR Camera
• How to buy your first Digital SLR camera
• How to Choose a DSLR Camera
• 5 Tips on What to Look for When Buying a Digital SLR Camera
• How to Frak Your Next Digital Camera Purchase

Selected from the Web

• Antonio: Orphan Works Panel Discussion
• Martin: Riding with Remotes
• Jim: Earth from Above – The Big Picture, Yann Arthus-Bertrand
• Brian: A Really Big Film Camera

Photokina 2008

As probably most of you were aware, Photokina, the world’s largest photography and imaging trade fair, happened between September 23 and September 28 in Cologne, Germany.

Me and Martin were there for a quick visit and we wanted to bring you some of the feeling of Photokina. Jim also joined us on the show to ask a few questions that someone not visiting might have.

If you didn’t have the opportunity to visit Cologne this year, schedule in your calendar, Photokina 2010 – September 28 to October 3, 2010.

Show Notes

Links:

• Photokina photos posted on Flickr
• Lomography at Photokina
• Official report – Photokina 2008

Photo Management and Marketing

In this episode we answer two questions by our listeners Andrew Morris and Mark Fuller. The first one concerns something that we had already approached on PhotoNetCast #3: organizing your photos. We go more into detail on the software we use to catalog our images (2 Lightroom users, 2 Bridge users, who wins this one?). Mark asks us for some tips on how to start marketing your photos and score a few sales. Basic advice is here, from starting your own web site to possible approaches to your clients. And, as always, our episode feature with another 4 great links.

If you have any more advice for our listeners, both on which software Andrew should choose and how Mark can start marketing his work, please feel free to share your ideas.

Show Notes

Organizing your photos

Links:

• IView Media
• ACDSee Pro 2
• Adobe Lightroom 2
• 3 Reasons why I refuse to use Lightroom
• Lightroom users address concerns with software
• Your guide to Adobe Bridge importing

Marketing your Photography

Links:

• How to Market your photography without really trying
• Market your photography business
• How to market photography
• How to market yourself has a freelancer
• How to market yourself
• Sell your photos by giving them away for free
• 37 Paid gigs that are only a phone call away

Selected from the Web

• Martin: Gregory Crewdson (+ video)
• Antonio: Angola’s Lost Children – Stéphane Lehr
• Brian: Chase Jarvis Raw: Kung Fu
• Jim: In The Zone? – Graf Nature Photography; Reverie Canon 5D Mark II Video – Vincent Laforet

What’s the Future of Stock Photography?

And it’s time for another dose of your audio photography. In the beginning of this episode Brian tells us more about his recent adventures on increasing hard disk space for his photos. It’s something that from time to time we all have to go through and Brian gives a few tips on how to avoid problems in the process.

Due to the recent announcement that Photoshelter Collection will go offline on the next October 10 and Corbis reducing on employees, we decided to share a few thoughts on stock photography. Is the future just really microstock?

And as always, our regular episode feature with another four great articles.

Thanks to all our listeners…

Enjoy the show.

Show Notes

Increasing hard drive space, Brian Auer style

Some of the companies selling products make it easy to increase drive space and keep redundant backups:

• Data Robotics
• Western Digital
• LaCie
• Buffalo Technology

Future of Stock

• Photoshelter Collection is closing – official statement
• and Corbis cuts jobs

Selected from the Web

• Jim: A New Project: Songs For Eating And Drinking, Songs For Eating And Drinking: Arthur & Yu
• Brian: Nikon D3 Shutter Release in Super Slow Motion
• Martin: DPS : Forum member in the spotlitght : Japaslavian, On Flickr
• Antonio: Street Photography for the purist, by Chris Weeks

Zoriah – War photographer

As we announced earlier, we managed to schedule some time with war photographer Zoriah.

To be able to better follow the conversation, we’d encourage you to visit his site at Zoriah.com and take a look at his portfolio and his stories.

In our conversation, Zoriah shares how he decided to become a photojournalist and later on started covering some of the major war locations and how it affected his life. We also discussed the events that brought him and his work to the eyes of the world in the middle of controversy.

As always, comments on the show are welcome.

Great work Zoriah, and thanks again for your time. It was an honor to have you on the show.

Show Notes

Interview with Zoriah

Links:

• Kevin Carter
• Kevin Carter’s suicide
• Baghdad reporter publishes video

Thanks go also to the wolf brigade and Olivier for their questions.

Selected from the Web

Jim: Stranger Photos Have Happened

Brian: Before I Die I Want To…

Antonio: Joe McNally talks about "The Moment it Clicks" at Google

It’s all about Books

Following our last episode about Inspiration in Photography, and since one of our major recommendations to boost your creativity was to look and study the work of other photographers, we decided to bring you a list of books that we can recommend.

Whether on the artistic side or going more into the technical perspective, we’re sure you will benefit from the list. Note that the list is by no means complete. There are many other books that are extremely good and our own collections are always growing, and we can’t stop emphasizing the importance of always using books to study the work of published photographers.

If you have any books that you can recommend, please feel free to post in the comments and share them with us and everyone else.

Also, more to the end of the show, Martin goes more into detail about his work and how he decided to go pro.

On a small side note, the show is being released one day after what was planned. I’m sorry for this.

Show Notes

Our list of recommended books

Artistic

• Century: a History in Photographs, Bruce Bernard
• Icons of Jazz, Dave Gelly
• Night Vision: The Art of Urban Exploration, Troy Paiva (Brian’s review)
• Burning New York, James & Karla Murray
• Examples the Making of 40 Photographs, Ansel Adams
• Edge of the Earth Corner of the Sky, Art Wolf
• A Retrospective, Galen Rowell
• Snaps, Elliot Erwitt
• "In Wildness…", Eliot Porter

Technical

• The Photographer’s Handbook, John Hedgecoe
• Black & White Photography in the Digital Age, Tony Worobiec & Ray Spence
• Complete Digital Photography, Ben Long
• A Comprehensive Guide to Digital Black & White, John Clements
• Black & White : Architecture, Terry Hope

Selected from the Web:

• Jim: Capturing Creativity, via Graf Nature Photography
• Antonio: Photo Shoot in 180 seconds
• Brian: Faces of Beijing Photo Essay & Images of Beijing: food, faces and Yao by Kris Krug
• Martin: Top 10 Wedding Photographers 2008

Inspiration

As in with every other form of art, photography requires a high amount of creativity.The problem is that the "creativity fountain" sometimes dries up.

If you want to be prolific in photography, searching for new sources of inspiration is a must. New angles, new approaches, anything that will get those creative juices flowing again.

In this episode of PhotoNetCast we address this issue and discuss our own ways in the quest for perpetual inspiration.

And sometimes the answer is just in front of us…

We hope you enjoy the show… Try counting the number of times the word inspiration is used

What is your main source of inspiration in photography? Similar to ours or different approaches?

Show Notes

Here are the links we mention on the show.

Inspiration

Links:

• My Top 5 Sources of Inspiration in Photography
• Source Of Inspiration: Gratitude
• Sources of inspiration for your photography
• 25 Ways to Jump Start Photography Inspiration
• Finding Inspiration
• 60 Sources of Inspiration for Photography
• 5 Ways to Spark Your Inspiration
• Inspired Photography

Books:

• Richard Misrach: Golden Gate

Podcasts:

• EXIF and Beyond: Guy Tal
• NPR’s Fresh Air
• LensWork podcast

Selected from the Web:

• Brian: 4000 U.S. Deaths, and a Handful of Images
• Jim: Picturing Excess: Chris Jordan
• Antonio: "…More than 1000 words" trailer; Making of; Ziv Koren

Participating in photo competitions is one of the many ways photographers have to get their work out there. Choosing the right images, the right title, the right print and of course, the right contest can overwhelm even the most experienced photographer. But besides the exposure, participating in photo competitions can also improve you as a photographer.

In this show we welcome David Ziser, a professional photographer with many competitions on his belt, as a participant and judge, to share some of his experience and tips.

As usual, the show got longer than we expected but it’s worth it.

Please feel free to leave us your feedback and if you enjoy the discussion, why not going to David’s site and telling him that also.

Thanks for listening.

Show Notes

Lots of reading today…

Photo Competitions

Links:

• How to win photography competitions
• Photography Contests
• Photo competitions – Judging the art
• How the rights to your photo are being hijacked through photo contests & Social Media
• The Bill of Rights for Photography Competitions
• The Rights On List
• The Rights Off List
• Marketing Photos with Mary Virginia Swanson
• How to Win Photo Competitions – Tips You Must Know
• Critique Boutique
• You be the Judge
• Photography Contests
• Photo Competitions Blog
• Current Photo Contests
• The Art List
• Art Show

David talks about his work

• Digital Pro Talk
• David Ziser (workshops)
• Fine Art PhotoBlog

Selected from the Web

• Brian: 10 Things I Hate About Film
• Martin: Matt Stuart
• Jim: Getty and Flickr: What Just Happened?, How Getty Is Killing the Stock Photo Industry, The Curious Case of Getty and Flickr
• Antonio: Light Painting (author’s site)
• David: What’s Right with the World

Now let’s bring digital into the scene…

From one captured image is now possible to create, within seconds, a multitude of different photos just with a few clicks of the mouse.

For the purists, a deadly photographic sin. For others, an opportunity for explosive creativity.

How far can an image be edited and processed and still be considered photography? And in which situations can an altered image be used?

In this episode of PhotoNetCast we discuss this, and more.

As usual, feel free to leave your comments on the show. You can also drop us a voice message (check the sidebar) or contact us using our contact form. In case you stumble upon something you’d like us to discuss, just tag it on del.icio.us with for:photonetcast.

Tell you family and friends about PhotoNetCast and, if you can spare a few seconds, write a review about PhotoNetCast on iTunes.

Thanks.

Show Notes

Editing and Processing in Photography

Links:

• My Photo Editing Code of Ethics
• Evolution of a Photo
• Avoid Over-Processing by Cleansing Your Visual Palate
• Look Ma, No Photoshop
• Fine art photography or Digital art. Are the borders clear?
• 28 Ways to Interpret a Photo
• One Image – 17 Amazing Interpretations
• Calling Photoshoppers – The Results
• Ethics of Photography: Career Suicide by Photoshop
• Photoshop disasters
• Jerry Uelsmann
• Digital Double Exposures: Blasphemy or No Big Deal?
• Digital Double Exposures: The Poll
• Why I Hate HDR: Photo Technology Porn

Selected from the Web

• Brian: Zoriah: Photojournalist
• Jim: PixChannel – What Makes Photographers Click
• Martin: Lightmark Photography
• Antonio: Photography is not a crime – It’s a First Amendment right

One of the most interesting discussions going around the photography world is the differences between shooting analog or digital. Both have advantages and disadvantages, and in this episode we dwell into this discussion and share some of our thoughts on the issue.

In my opinion, this is one of the best episodes we have released so far, mainly due to the healthy discussion that came out. It was good and got long, so only one main topic for today.

Is analog photography dead? We don’t think so, but listen to the show and take your side.

Also, we tried to (again) improve the sound quality of the podcast. How is it working for you? Did you notice any improvements? Please tell us something about it.

We hope you enjoy it and, as always, we’d like to know your opinions on the subject. Do you shoot mainly film or digital? What influences your decision? Share your thoughts with us and help the discussion grow.

Show Notes

Thoughts on Analog and Digital Photography

Links

• Are digital Cameras destroying photography?
• Is analog photography dead?
• Old and New Photography
• What would Ansel Adams do?
• film photography: 5 things I really miss
• Essentials for Film
• Advantages and Disadvantages of Film and Digital
• 1-Year Cost Comparison for Film vs. Digital
• The SLR Camera: Then and Now
• Ten Reasons to Love Cross Processed Film

Selected from the Web

Links

• Brian: Brent Stirton: Photojournalist
• Jim: Who is Stealing your Photos Online?; EXIF and Beyond: Leila Boujnane
• Martin: Landscapes : The 5 Big Questions
• Antonio: Running the numbers – An American Self-Portrait

Thanks to all that left comments on the previous show and to all that are participating in our poll, it’s a great help for us. The poll will be open for a few more days, just in case you haven’t cast your vote. Afterwards, a new one will come…

Going into the technical side, we tried to improve the sound quality and, although I feel it’s better than the previous episodes, we’d like your feedback on this. Do you notice some improvements?

Before going into the show notes, one of the topics that we are going to discuss on the next show is Analog vs. Digital Photography. I know that this can be a controversial topic and I’m sure you have your opinions on the advantages and disadvantages of each. Which one do you use and prefer and why? Use the contact form or leave us a voice message. We’d much appreciate your input on this.

And now to the show…

Show Notes

Pros and Cons of Geotagging

The subject of Geotagging is popping up more and more. But is it worth the effort? To whom does it provide value? Listen to what we have to say on this.

Links:

• How to Geotag images?
• Geotagging, is it worth it?
• Revealing the Location of Your Photography Through GPS Coordinates & EXIF Metadata
• Still on Geotagging
• Auto geotagging with GPS CF card
• Eye-Fi Explore
• GPS devices

Traditional versus Online Photography Shops

With the increased convenience and often lower prices, online shops are one of the primary locations to look for new photographic equipment. But the traditional shops can still compete, mainly by offering something that online shops will never be able to: personal service.

Links:

• 16 Steps in answering customer inquiry

Selected from the Web

• Jim: Green Photographic Papers; Graf Nature Photography
• Brian: Photographers Stand Up For Their Rights (NPRD Flickr Group)
• Martin: Bert Stephanie – Confessions #7
• Antonio: Free is Killing Me

Keeping your photos safe with regular backups and Embarrassing Moments

After three attempts we finally managed to release a show a little bit shorter. This is probably the length we are going to aim at on future episodes. What do you think? It’s too long still or good enough?

On today’s show we cover the backup procedure each of us uses and share some embarrassing moments / newbie mistakes we made in the field. We hope you like it.

And although we don’t mention it in the show, we have an open poll. We’d like to know a little more about your level in photography. This will help us plan what topics to cover on future episodes.

Also, there is a new way for you to interact with us besides the comments, email or voice messages. Let’s say that you are going through your regular blog posts and read something that interests you and you’d like for us to discuss in the show or at least share our point of view. Bookmark it on del.icio.us with the tag for:photonetcast and we’ll see it for sure.

And now, on with the show…

Show Notes

Backup your Photos

If you remember the last show, we were discussing how to organize your photos and ended the discussion before going into backups. In this show we go right into it and share our way of doing regular backups and what we do to prevent loss of files, even if something goes wrong with the drives.

Links:

• Digital Workflow: Preserve those captures
• Backup your work on the road
• 5 steps to securing your data
• Working the Flow
• Lightroom Podcast 5

Embarrassing moments / Mistakes on the field

Every photographer has, at some time or other, made mistakes that are typical of beginners. In this segment we share your own stories. We wanted to make it funny, but beyond that, we wanted to alert you to some errors that you can easily prevent. We’ve made them so that you don’t have to (well, not really, but you can always keep them in mind).

Selected from the Web

Links:

• Jim: Word Press Photo Award – Photographer Interviews
• Martin: Joe McNally Desert Shoot
• Brian: Studio Equipment Guide
• Antonio: Digital frame shows pics of your pet while holding its ashes

Blogging & Photography and Organizing your Photos

These are the topics that we cover in the third episode of PhotoNetCast.

We hope that you didn’t suffer much waiting for your next dose of audio photography, and here it is.

First of all we’d like to thank all of you who gave us a huge dose of motivation by listening to the show. It was a great feeling to see the downloads numbers going up and the comments pouring in. It’s really appreciated.

There is that little thing with the show length. We promised that we would make them shorter (and we did) but we still are not sure if the show is still too long. Any comments on that are very much welcome.

Also, as you’ll listen, we got going with the photo organization topic and we had to stop just on the backup phase. It’s a huge topic by itself and we want to cover it on #4. But we’d also like to have your participation: what are the best ways to keep your photo safe, your workflow ideas, etc. So, the ball is on your field now. Tell us what you think and besides the comments and the contact form, why not grab your phone and really "tell" us what you think. This goes for any other topic you’d like to see discussed as well.

Enjoy the show…

Show Notes

Blogging & Photography

We share our experience on both fields and discuss the importance of blogging and being involved in the scene on the learning curve of photography.

Links:

• The Building Blocks of Success in Blogging and Photography
• Why you should write about photography (in German)

Organizing your Photos

It can be a nightmare if suddenly you notice that you have tens of thousands of photos and they aren’t that useful since it takes you hours to find the one you want. Better sooner than later is to find an organization system that works for you, whether using photo management software of any other process. We discuss our systems and how they have been working for us. And then we drift and end up taking about prints… the beauty of conversation.

Links:

• 10 Free Photo Managing Software you should at least know
• Organizing Photos with Aperture
• Organizing Photos with EasyShare
• Your Complete Guide to Adobe Bridge
• Organize: Getting to Grips with Image Management

Selected from the Web

Links:

• Brian: Freedom of Speech Photography Video
• Jim: Speedlinks – 05/06/08 – Orphan Works Edition
• Jim: Exif and Beyond Podcast: Gary Crabble Interview
• Martin: Lightmeter, you’re dead to me
• Antonio: Visions of Rock Podcast feat. Bryan Adams

Topics for this show:

• Photographers or terrorists…

• Video on Flickr

• Protecting your online images from theft

And the second one is now here.

If you want to give us some feedback, go ahead, drop us a comment bellow or leave us a voice message. We appreciate it.

And enjoy…

Show Notes:

Photographers or terrorists

Once in a while we hear stories of photographers and authorities clashing on security-related issues. A case of mistaken identity perhaps…

We discuss this issue and share our stories with you.

Links:

• Innocent Photographer or terrorist?
• Thomas Hawk’s Digital Connection
• The Legal Landscape of Street Shooting
• How to shoot photographs like a terrorist

Video on Flickr

Is it a good or bad thing? Will it remove the focus from photography? Listen to what we have to say.

Links:

• Video on Flickr
• Anti-Video Sentiment among Flickr users growing
• "No Video on Flickr" group
• Flickr anti-video show
• Flickr Video: a good thing?

Protecting your online images from theft

It’s also a recurring topic the fact that images published online sometimes are used for very different purposes than intended and without author knowledge or compensation.

But some things can be done to, if not prevent it completely, at least minimize it.

Links:

• Creative Commons: a great concept, I’ll never employ
• Creative Commons: a great concept I’ll continue to employ
• Wall Street Journal lifted my image
• Tips and techniques to protect images on the internet

And the first episode of PhotoNetCast is now available for your listening pleasure.

As always, we’d love to hear from you. Whether you want to comment on the show or suggest topics that you’d like to hear discussed, any feedback is most valuable to us.

Want to get more funky? Leave us a voice comment… The widget on the sidebar allows you to record a message directly from your phone.

Show Notes:

In this brief introductory episode, we share with you who we are, what is our relationship with Photography and why we are joining efforts to bring you PhotoNetCast.

As noted in the show, you can follow PhotoNetCast directly in this site or through any of the RSS feeds. We recommend iTunes to always have the latest episodes directly sent to your computer.

PhotoNetCast thanks PodcastThemes for providing the theme music.