has anyone found tablets to be useful, or are they just another piece of gear to haul around? Not Wacom I'm talking about the Ipad and all the others that have hit the market recently. If so what apps have you found most useful for photography?
I think they can be useful in a few different ways, but these may not apply to all photographers.
1) Being able to connect the tablet to the camera wirelessly via MyFi for instant photo previews. This is much more useful in a staged fashion or product shoot. Not as much for nature photographers.
2) Using the tablet for slideshows, presentations and to show portfolio work. This is where I'm really hoping to get the most out of the iPad I inherited, though I have yet to download and start playing with the applicable apps.
3) Using the tablet for the business side of things: providing model releases and licensing agreements folks can "sign" on the spot, processing credit card payments at shows or events, and creating and organizing business documents.
It doesn't really work as a storage device, but as a preview/presentation tool I imagine there are plenty of possibilities, and a tablet could be a viable alternative to a laptop in certain cases where lugging a computer along doesn't make sense.
I looked at this pretty carefully when the iPad2 came out, deciding whether to get the iPad or a MacBook Air. There are three major limitations on the tablets at present: (1) Lack of storage for the many big, RAW shots I take each day. The maximum capacity for the iPad is a mere 64GB. That's just not enough. I can get 256GB on a MacBook Air. (2) The lack of decent editing software, although that part appears to be changing. (3) Getting the big files out of a tablet is also surprisingly difficult. Not impossible, but cumbersome. The situation may be different fro other tablets, but at this point, in my opinion, the iPad is only useful to a photographer as a showcase for your portfolio.
Max's points are excellent. If you are a 24/7 connected kind of person, either by desire or otherwise, an iPad makes sense if, as Jim pointed out, you don't need the storage space or the capabiltiy of editing on the road. If you do need to download images and edit on the road, a notbook makes more sense.
The other side of the equation is, how encumbered by technology do you want to be? I spend enough time at the computer, both at home and at work, so when I go out to make photographs, I'd rather not be tied to one of these bloody machines. I don't have storage issues or the need for editing on the road because I shoot film 99.9% of the time I am out.
I looked really hard at them because I have to stay "connected" while traveling, even if not on a daily basis. For that they'd be great. But part of my reason for being connected is writing submissions. I write two newspaper columns plus I do some writing for websites, all with at least weekly submission deadlines.
But the onscreen "keyboard" is hopeless and adding a wireless is starting to defeat the whole purpose. And the "apps" are pretty hopeless for me compared to a full Word program. And since we back up images to portable hard drives PLUS mail DVDs home as a security measure, add at least on external hard drive and an external disc drive/burner. Basically what I would end up with is a portable computer in pieces.
I travel right now with a10-year old 15" MacBook Pro and my wife carries a 13". One of these days mine will croak and I'll replace it with a MacBook Air, perhaps even the 11" to save a few pounds. By the time I bought and iPad2, a keyboard, a disc drive, assorted cords and maybe even another portable drive, I'd have about the same money tied up.
Lets see, I go out shooting, take my camera gear, got 4 - 8gig media cards, shoot, go home, download everything on my computer thru adobe bridge, and back up everything on Xternal drives. Thats it. No need for I-pads, or any other tablets,its like Bill Chambers said, the only tablets I take is for my aching back early in the AM.
Posted by Mike Klarich on June 16, 2011 at 11:33 AM
When I first got my Ipad a couple of years ago I would download my images on it and hand it to people. It was cool because the images look fantastic on an Ipad (don't know why exactly) and people seem to enjoy the tactile sensation of holding an image and touching the glass to whip through the images. Now I just post them on the website and let people pick their images that way. My Ipad has become nothing more than entertainment for me. I use it to keep up on several email accounts, watch movies on Netflix, check the weather, surf the web, read books and watch video podcasts. It's a wonderful tool for things like killing time while you're at the shop waiting for your vehicle to be fixed. Your fist post from Max above is exactly what I told my wife I was going to do with my Ipad. For some reason (not sure why) I did that type of image displaying for people a handful of times then just stopped. Don't get me wrong though, I love my Ipad. I use it daily! It's much nicer to lug around compared to a laptop. I do like Max's idea about the model release form, and there are many apps out there for all kinds of photography needs. Even a free version of photoshop, can't do much with it, but it's free. There are apps out there where clients can rate there images and select what size print they would like, I could go on and on. Everything I've tried though has limitations and can be buggy. There's a great app for watching TV, it works like a remote to change channels and I can read about shows, watch entire sires of shows on the Ipad, and program the cable DVR. It's great for entertainment. I haven't really been able to put into any kind of serious work flow, but I'm sure that's more my fault than my Ipad's. As far as connection to the Internet, I have a smart phone that shares it's 4G connection with up to 8 devices. It's very fast and works very well. It will crash your cell battery pretty fast, but I almost always have my cell charging (wall or vehicle) while it's doing it's hot spot thing. Then when I'm done I have a fully charged battery on my cell phone. Speaking of batteries the Ipad needs to be charged about every other day, but that's with lots of use. The battery is pretty amazing.
thanks for all the replies. It sounds like it would be just more tech that I really don't need and I already have enough electronic toys to keep me going for some time. I'll pass on the tablet; if I get anything it'll probably be a notebook. (or maybe a D7000 )
Posted by Kent Staubus on June 17, 2011 at 12:45 AM
I bought an Aspire netbook at Walmart on clearance for $140 and it's doing what I need it to do. That's mostly quick internet connections at restaurants and showing people a few jpegs. I really can't justify spending money on an iPad. I'd rather put the money on another lens.
Here is what I think is a good review, with pros and cons for photographers, from a newsletter I receive called "Thge Right Way to Travel" - geared to photographers:
Dear Sandy,
It sounds like a dream: ditch your laptop for a snazzy Apple iPad,
with its super-sharp display screen, e-mail and Internet access, and a
weight well under 1.5 pounds.
But how real of a dream is it for photographers?
Your first hurdle will actually be storage space. There’s no hard
disc on an iPad and no easy way to attach one. So, the amount of space
you buy with the machine equals the amount of storage you end up with:
16 Gigabytes, 32 GB, or 64 GB. Obviously, the more memory, the more
photos you can store.
Your second hurdle will be getting your pictures off your camera and
on to the iPad. You can do this with a special iPad Camera Connection
Kit ($29: http://bit.ly/mzbNNH)...
Or you can use an EyeFi X2 SD card in your camera, and set it up to
transfer your images directly to the iPad from your camera (details
at: http://www.eye.fi/products/iphone).
But the real kicker comes after you get your pictures onto your iPad
and start to prepare them for sale…
There are photo-editing apps for sure (Snapseed, Photogene,
Photosmith, and Adobe Photoshop Express among others). But our
experts out in the field warn that, while these are great for editing
photos on the fly for friends and family, they’re not robust enough to
give you a high quality image you can then pass along for a sale.
For saleable photos, you need a real laptop or desktop with enough
processing power to run big photo-editing software like Adobe
Lightroom or Photoshop. And a screen big enough to see exactly what
you’re doing, so that you don’t over-edit and ruin your photo.
So, can photographers travel with an iPad and leave their laptop at
home? Sure.
If you buy one with enough storage space, you can unload your travel
pictures onto it at the end of each day and use it for storage the
same way you would a laptop. And your pictures will look great when
you flip through them on the super sharp screens Apple products are
known for.
But can you replace your regular computer entirely?
No, not yet. Not when it comes to editing your photos for sale.
Still, iPads are a lot of fun. Here are a few apps our pros recommend
if you have one:
From stock photographer, Shelly Perry…
*** CameraBag for iPad is more of a fun app. You can use filters to
make your photos look like retro-styled shots, borders and all. It may
not be fit for photos you want to sell, but it’s a lot of fun. And
great for photos you want to post on Facebook or Flickr for family and
friends.
** EasyRelease is a nice $9.99 investment but ensures you always have
a model release handy in 13 different languages. You can customize
your releases with your contact details. And the model signs directly
on your iPad with her finger. You can also have the release instantly
e-mailed to you, so you never have to fear losing it. I think this
might be one of the best and most important apps for travelers,
especially those who shoot stock.
** Penultimate is great for writers and/or photographers who like to
take notes and make journals. You can take notes, draw pictures,
change colors, and have multiple notebooks. A really great app when
you need to take notes on the fly.
From fine art photographer, Rich Wagner…
** Focalware helps photographers calculate the position of the sun and
shadows any time of day, any day of the year. Just stand where you’d
like to be standing at a future time and date, point your phone in the
direction you’d like to point your camera, dial in the day, dial in
the time, and see where the shadows come from! If you’re
photographing a wedding, you’ll be able to tell when shadows will fall
on the bride. And, if you’re in a location you’d like to revisit at
sunrise or sunset, you can move around until you find the perfect spot
and return later knowing exactly where to stand and at what time the
sun will be where you want it in the sky.
** Viewfinder let’s you see through your phone or iPad what you might
see if you were looking through your camera’s viewfinder with
different lenses (there is Viewfinder and Viewfinder Pro, you don’t
need the Pro.)
** And f/8 is a depth of field calculator. Just enter your camera and
details about your lens collection and see how your depth of field
changes at different settings.
The iPad can’t do everything your desktop or portable computer can do,
but it’s moving closer all the time.
Discussion
12 replies1) Being able to connect the tablet to the camera wirelessly via MyFi for instant photo previews. This is much more useful in a staged fashion or product shoot. Not as much for nature photographers.
2) Using the tablet for slideshows, presentations and to show portfolio work. This is where I'm really hoping to get the most out of the iPad I inherited, though I have yet to download and start playing with the applicable apps.
3) Using the tablet for the business side of things: providing model releases and licensing agreements folks can "sign" on the spot, processing credit card payments at shows or events, and creating and organizing business documents.
It doesn't really work as a storage device, but as a preview/presentation tool I imagine there are plenty of possibilities, and a tablet could be a viable alternative to a laptop in certain cases where lugging a computer along doesn't make sense.
Max
The other side of the equation is, how encumbered by technology do you want to be? I spend enough time at the computer, both at home and at work, so when I go out to make photographs, I'd rather not be tied to one of these bloody machines. I don't have storage issues or the need for editing on the road because I shoot film 99.9% of the time I am out.
-P
But the onscreen "keyboard" is hopeless and adding a wireless is starting to defeat the whole purpose. And the "apps" are pretty hopeless for me compared to a full Word program. And since we back up images to portable hard drives PLUS mail DVDs home as a security measure, add at least on external hard drive and an external disc drive/burner. Basically what I would end up with is a portable computer in pieces.
I travel right now with a10-year old 15" MacBook Pro and my wife carries a 13". One of these days mine will croak and I'll replace it with a MacBook Air, perhaps even the 11" to save a few pounds. By the time I bought and iPad2, a keyboard, a disc drive, assorted cords and maybe even another portable drive, I'd have about the same money tied up.
Enjoy!
Kent in SD
Dear Sandy,
It sounds like a dream: ditch your laptop for a snazzy Apple iPad,
with its super-sharp display screen, e-mail and Internet access, and a
weight well under 1.5 pounds.
But how real of a dream is it for photographers?
Your first hurdle will actually be storage space. There’s no hard
disc on an iPad and no easy way to attach one. So, the amount of space
you buy with the machine equals the amount of storage you end up with:
16 Gigabytes, 32 GB, or 64 GB. Obviously, the more memory, the more
photos you can store.
Your second hurdle will be getting your pictures off your camera and
on to the iPad. You can do this with a special iPad Camera Connection
Kit ($29: http://bit.ly/mzbNNH)...
Or you can use an EyeFi X2 SD card in your camera, and set it up to
transfer your images directly to the iPad from your camera (details
at: http://www.eye.fi/products/iphone).
But the real kicker comes after you get your pictures onto your iPad
and start to prepare them for sale…
There are photo-editing apps for sure (Snapseed, Photogene,
Photosmith, and Adobe Photoshop Express among others). But our
experts out in the field warn that, while these are great for editing
photos on the fly for friends and family, they’re not robust enough to
give you a high quality image you can then pass along for a sale.
For saleable photos, you need a real laptop or desktop with enough
processing power to run big photo-editing software like Adobe
Lightroom or Photoshop. And a screen big enough to see exactly what
you’re doing, so that you don’t over-edit and ruin your photo.
So, can photographers travel with an iPad and leave their laptop at
home? Sure.
If you buy one with enough storage space, you can unload your travel
pictures onto it at the end of each day and use it for storage the
same way you would a laptop. And your pictures will look great when
you flip through them on the super sharp screens Apple products are
known for.
But can you replace your regular computer entirely?
No, not yet. Not when it comes to editing your photos for sale.
Still, iPads are a lot of fun. Here are a few apps our pros recommend
if you have one:
From stock photographer, Shelly Perry…
*** CameraBag for iPad is more of a fun app. You can use filters to
make your photos look like retro-styled shots, borders and all. It may
not be fit for photos you want to sell, but it’s a lot of fun. And
great for photos you want to post on Facebook or Flickr for family and
friends.
** EasyRelease is a nice $9.99 investment but ensures you always have
a model release handy in 13 different languages. You can customize
your releases with your contact details. And the model signs directly
on your iPad with her finger. You can also have the release instantly
e-mailed to you, so you never have to fear losing it. I think this
might be one of the best and most important apps for travelers,
especially those who shoot stock.
** Penultimate is great for writers and/or photographers who like to
take notes and make journals. You can take notes, draw pictures,
change colors, and have multiple notebooks. A really great app when
you need to take notes on the fly.
From fine art photographer, Rich Wagner…
** Focalware helps photographers calculate the position of the sun and
shadows any time of day, any day of the year. Just stand where you’d
like to be standing at a future time and date, point your phone in the
direction you’d like to point your camera, dial in the day, dial in
the time, and see where the shadows come from! If you’re
photographing a wedding, you’ll be able to tell when shadows will fall
on the bride. And, if you’re in a location you’d like to revisit at
sunrise or sunset, you can move around until you find the perfect spot
and return later knowing exactly where to stand and at what time the
sun will be where you want it in the sky.
** Viewfinder let’s you see through your phone or iPad what you might
see if you were looking through your camera’s viewfinder with
different lenses (there is Viewfinder and Viewfinder Pro, you don’t
need the Pro.)
** And f/8 is a depth of field calculator. Just enter your camera and
details about your lens collection and see how your depth of field
changes at different settings.
The iPad can’t do everything your desktop or portable computer can do,
but it’s moving closer all the time.
-- Lori
Lori Allen
Director, AWAI Travel Division