Will the iPad spike MiFi demand?

Or, said another way, do I really need another data plan in my life?

I haven’t heard too much chatter about running an iPad through a MiFi card but it seems to be an excellent path to connectivity. I have been using one of the Sprint MiFi cards for about a year and look forward to connecting an iPad next month.

I’m wondering if there will be a spike in MiFi demand at Sprint and Verizon (the two carriers currently offering the wireless router). This seems like a solid strategy for people who would like to have only one data plan. A standard cell phone (with no data enabled) plus a MiFi card through which all Wi-Fi enabled devices can connect to the internet could make the single data plan a reality.

Also, according to Apple, the initial iPads will only be available in Wi-Fi versions.

 

Adventures in tone mapping

Tone mapped image of street car.

Tone mapping  (AKA high dynamic range photography) is typically done by combining multiple images to achieve a wide tonal range in one photograph. It’s also possible to do this with a single RAW capture. The results are not the same as combining multiple images but it’s nonetheless interesting to experiment with. See the gallery here.

Already the iPad is at work

I had a dream last night that I’d tethered an iPad to my Nikon D3 and was using it as an external viewfinder. Several of us had gathered around the device to watch the shoot unfold. And there was this really cool Gorillapod-like device that held the iPad on one end and wrapped around the tripod legs on the other.

In the dream, I’d set up a D3 for RAW captures on one card and for processed jpegs on the second card. So, the jpegs were actually being imported into the iPad (a 64 GB maxiPad, of course) shortly after being written to the card. (In dreams, all the tech works flawlessly.)

Now, in the cold light of day I’m wondering if this could ever happen. Still, what if you could position a camera on a monopod and remotely view captures as the camera is held high above your head? Or, low below your feet? What if you could remotely view captures from a small Eye-fi equipped camera hung from a kite? And on and on.

I’ll take a 64 Gig maxiPad and keyboard dock

The new iPad is everything I thought it would be with one surprise. I thought the keyboard would actually be a bluetooth accessory from a third party. The Apple keyboard dock for the iPad  is very cool and reminiscent of the little folding keyboard for the Palm IV.

Now, I’ll need a new 9.56 x 7.47 inch pocket sewn in to some of my clothes.

The dancing eye: seeing in wide angle

Even though the human eye covers about the same angle of view as a 20mm lens (35mm format) the lenses new photographers often gravitate to are the telephotos. There are many reasons for this which I’ll get to in a minute. But first: seeing in wide angle.

It’s not as easy as it might seem given the aforementioned angle of  view by the human eye. Translating a wide angle of view with a camera into a photograph can be tricky business. Mostly this is because you end up with all kinds of extraneous things in the shot that dilute the point of the picture.

Anything that does not contribute to the message should not be in the frame. This is why many beginning photographers gravitate to the long lenses. With the telephoto’s short depth of field and telescopic ability to isolate a single element, long glass is an affective way to leverage your version of  reality. Additionally, there seems to be a direct relationship between the wish to be taken seriously (as a photographer) and the size of the lens protruding one’s camera. Bigger is better.

But many photographers begin gravitating to wide angles eventually. Wide angle scenes are typically more nuanced and inviting the viewer to “read” the image. Wide angle images can have more depth and take on a three dimensional quality giving the viewer perspective.

But the wider the glass, the more discipline  it takes from the photographer. Edge and straight line distortion can often distract from the message. And the photographer must constantly check “the corners” to make sure unwanted elements are not creeping into the frame.

The combination of these actions often has the eye dancing around the viewfinder checking for distortions, unwanted elements and the status of the main subject. Just writing about it is making my eye tired.

Apple tablet: want to do a three-way?

Much has been written about Apple’s expected announcement of a tablet device next week. iLounge has a collection of speculation about the device here.  Pretty much everyone agrees the device will connect via  WI-FI  but many think there  may also be optional GSM or CDMA connectivity offered.

Which brings me to the three-way.

Let’s say you already have a MyFi device and your shiny new Apple tablet  is also GSM compatible. You can now, presumedly connect via your home or fav coffeehouse WiFi, via your MyFi device (WiFi plus CDMA) or with a wireless carrier like AT&T via GSM signal.

This scenario is most interesting to me since I’m already using a Sprint MyFi wireless router.   It would also seem to be real boon to travelers since it would up the odds of connecting if they encounter a wireless dead zone.

Can Wednesday come to soon?

Convergent points for video and stills

Video/stills come together.

Freezelight offers two amazing videos that provide examples of how video and stills could converge in the future. I’m sure the process is tedious especially given the fact that probably all of the light writing is done in reverse. Writing as one would at a chalk board would place the body between the camera and the light source for part of the image. I can’t image having the patience to pull this off.

The most significant part of this though, is the preview it provides for video/still convergence. It’s difficult to visualize how the convergence will happen until you see videos like these. The possibilities are endless.

The Tablet will take off where the Kindle stops

I always tend toward the obsessive end of the continuum….especially when it comes to new technology. I just wish the tablet would come out so I can stop thinking about it. This Wired piece is a reminder why this device (assuming it happens) will become a tool I use every day. Even though the Kindle has become my go-to device for consuming books and keeping all my equipment manuals within arms reach it fails miserably at reproducing photos and illustrations. The Tablet portends to change this.

The Apple tablet probably won’t change my photography book-buying habits. I collect these and can’t image an electronic version ever replacing dead tree media. However, I also buy a lot of books that rely heavily on photography to communicate the message. Two that come to mind are Joe McNally’s “The Hot Shoe Diaries” and David duChemin’s “Within the Frame: The Journey of Photographic Vision”. Neither one of these is available on the Kindle but I wouldn’t want them in that format.

These are instructional books that I’ll refer to over time and would like to have in my bag when I’m traveling. (As a strategic traveler there is little room in my bags for bulky, dead tree media.) Being able to have a library of this material on a portable device that can display photography in a meaningful way will be  huge for me. I already pack travel books on my Kindle but these fall short many times since I’m interested how a place “looks”.

Get me out of here

The gallery

A trip to escape the holidays

Why photographers will love the Apple tablet

A ten-inch, color screen for starters. Actually…for enders, too.

If you’re like me, showing images on an iPhone/iTouch doesn’t provide enough screen real estate and dragging out a laptop is often inconvenient. On a plane it’s impossible. The convergence of portability and viewer experience seems to point to a tablet device.  This is the number one reason I want a tablet. (If you have only caught snippets of the coming of the Apple tablet, John Siracusa has an excellent primer at ars technica).

The biggest problem I predict I’ll have with the tablet  is one I already have. And, that problem is getting images out of Lightroom and into iPhoto for syncing to my iTouch. Right now I’m exporting jpegs out of Lightroom and then re-importing into iPhoto for syncing. I can live with this now but I expect to have a much larger selection of photos on the the tablet. I’d be interested in how other people are handling this.