Real World Workflow

All rights techs, grab a beer and settle in for the European version of the “Thrilla in Manila Copenhagen”!!!

While most of us are on set using Canon or an H2 (jealous of those of you using a sliding back), the two remaining MF industry heavies are gearing up for another round of rockem’ sockem’ digital goodness.

In the left corner, we have the new Phase One DF, with ultra fast sync speeds (1/1600!!), and three new leaf shutter lenses with Schneider glass in lengths of 55, 80, and 110mm all with a F2.8 aperture. If they get the shutter lag right, we could have a contenda’ for a serious Hassy challenging MF system, though I’m still wondering if they’ll bring back my beloved AFi (for all two of us that got to actually use the system). At least we may soon see Leaf back compatibility with C1, hopefully by PhotoPlus.

I don’t want to sound like an old grouch, but ya’ll better be working on/with C1 4.8.2 at least by now, because as much as C1 3.7.9 is a stalwart, dependable capture app, C1 5.0 is around the corner and hopefully will become the goto app we need it to be. I find C1 4.8.2 to be pretty stable and have been using it more and more lately with no (knock on wood) ill-effects or complaints from my clients. If anything, they love the better previews, and I do think the processed files are better as well.

Phase One 645DF

And in the right corner, we have the new Hasselblad H4D, with it’s APL, “Absolute Postion Lock” that claims to improve off center focusing with a sensor that follow the movement of the camera and corrects phocus (sorry, couldn’t resist!) focus using data from the lens as well. Hassy has some big guns now, with their Tilt/Shift adapter, 28mm wide and beautiful back display. As much as I’m not a fan of their closed system approach, I have to say that they continue to improve their offerings, and it does make me wonder what the future holds. (Vertical grip guys?)

I will say that if you’re working with Phocus, make sure you have a good graphics card in your machine as it leverages the GPU significantly and works smoother with a high-end card.

Hasselblad H4D

As the referee, all I can say is that I’m glad we have some serious competitors in the arena, and I look forward to testing these systems to separate fact from fiction. While headed in the right direction, I still feel the need for a true ground up MF digital camera (like the AFi) that will incorporate all of these improvements and place MF digital where it should be–at the very top of digital imaging heap. With Canon, Nikon and Leica grinding their way up the fight ladder, the competition ain’t going away anytime soon and could still steal the title belt from the MF digital heavyweights.

So stay tuned techs, I’ll let you know when the pay-per-view is released.

I can’t figure out why my layout image, when doing an overlay in CaptureOne 4.8, is always in landscape (horizontal) format, even though the image is vertical?

Any thoughts and how to correct it?

Thanks,

Paul

I recently worked with a photographer who, while a very nice guy and easy to work with, would ignore my warnings about his exposures. Several times, shots would either to be too bright or too dark, and my voiced concerns about this were dismissed with “That’s how I shoot”. In all fairness, I’ve seen the final product that this client prints, and the files look good, even though I felt the files were a bit dark or light at times.

The question is, at what point do you just shut up? I’ve known some techs who would throw a hissy fit if things are out of range, and demand that it be rectified. My personal approach has always been that I’m there to provide you with this information and the ramifications that could arise, but its up to the photographer to decide what to do with that information. To that end, I’ll gently point out the issue 2 or 3 times, depending on how its received. What do you guys think?

FYI, on this particular shoot, since it was still life, I had the assistants shoot a bracket afterwards, in case they need some areas that were too dark/light stripped in later.

Well this is an interesting piece of gear, comes with a variety of targets, and most importantly, a case that is not made of cardboard or vinyl.

MSRP is $99.00 and I’ll do a review as soon as I can get my hands on one. Link below:

ColorChecker Passport

Which is awesome. Now we need to see what will happen with LC, and when we might have Leaf backs integrated into C1.

Oh, and 3.7.9 is being relegated to the dustbin of OS Leopard, so factor that in accordingly.

One keyboard shortcut that I can’t recommend enough for C1 v4 is adding option+h to show/hide the viewer. In a one monitor situation it allows you to quickly switch back and forth between thumbnails and the selected image(s). Sure I’m used to the little side thumb strip or two, but I find it faster to work with a full screen view of thumbs when I’m doing heavy lifting and processing of a job.

Phase One 4.8.3

9/11 here in NYC is always a time for quiet introspection. I went down to the WTC site a few days ago to pay my respects, and while I’m glad that the great big hole in the ground is showing some signs of progress, it’s still hard not to feel the raw emotion that wells up there like a wildcat oil gusher. Honestly, no matter what side of the political fence you’re on, 9/11 will always be a seminal event that must be learned from and most hopefully never repeated anytime or anywhere.

On a much different note, I’m taking advantage of the quiet am time to jot down a few thoughts about this crazy world of digital techdom. Junior is quietly snoozing in his bassinet, and the dog is snoring, so it seems like the perfect time to weigh in on a few things I’ve noticed as of late:

First off, circle the tech carts, because things have fundamentally changed in this new post-recession order.

The wild salad days of techs pretty much naming a rate are gone. Besides slashed budgets, the fact is that photographers are much more comfortable with digital nowadays, and the associated insecurity that used to provide many of us with a comfortable cushion has gone by the wayside.

Out to pasture, so to speak.

More and more photographers are looking for that new breed of assistant who also knows their way around a digital workflow and is willing to take on that additional task without much of a corresponding bump in income, which is wrong on more than a few levels. If you’re going to take on the responsibility of the photo lab as in years past, you better get compensated for it because the margin of responsibility has shot up exponentially. Blowing up a power pack is one thing. Losing images from a shoot is a whole world of greater hurt.

The other attack on tech world is that of the in house studio. More and more, I’m seeing studios demand that photographers use their own in house digital services, much in the same way they require grip and lighting equipment to be rented through them. Which is fine if all a shooter requires in a tech is a glorified mouse pusher someone competent enough to run the digital side of things on set.

Now this is not a dig on the in-house tech. If anything they are on our side, and I would advance the notion that forming an alliance with a studio can be a very productive and stable revenue stream for us, but I’m getting ahead of myself here. What I want to say is that once again it’s up to us to make ourselves an order above just that of average tech and become a valued, somewhat indispensable member of the creative team. In doing that, I’ve had clients go to bat for me and get me on the set anyway. Studios know that techs can often be more than just operators, and much in the same way they don’t require in-house assistants, they really shouldn’t require an in-house techs either.

What I’m trying to say is, don’t bow out with a whisper. On the contrary, make some noise and negotiate.

When offered a low fee always (politely!) push for a higher rate than is offered, and back it up with how much more you bring to the shoot, whether it’s because you can provide offsite backup and storage, or have mad retouch skills that can translate the shooters vision to the AD while on set, or just because gosh darn it, people like you. The worst that can happen is that they say no, but even in that case you’ve at least opened the door a little for future negotiations and given yourself credit for the hard work and experience you’ve accrued.

It may be a new world order, but that does not mean we should acquiesce to the downward pressure in fees that is occurring. This recession will end one day and we don’t want to spend the first few years of recovery trying to get back to where we were.

Lastly, don’t forget polishing your skills, whether on the software or hardware side. C1 4.0, LR, DAM and Sync solutions, never mind Snow Leopard all could use a little time to make you a faster and better tech on set. Keep an eye out on video too, these 5DMKII and Red cameras are not going away, if anything they are the future.

So there you have it…my world at the moment, both micro and macro. If you can, take a moment today to reflect where this all is, has been and is going. Not just in techworld, but in the bigger picture as well.