This is The Digital Story Podcast #586, May 30, 2017. Today's theme is "Wide Glass Can Save Your..." I'm Derrick Story.

Opening Monologue

Clients can put you in the tightest spots, and I don't mean just with scheduling. Physically, I've found myself with big shots to capture and virtually no room to record them. Then there are the times your arms aren't long enough, the steps aren't high enough, and room just isn't deep enough. How does one survive such tight squeezes? By going wide, my friend. And that's the focus for today.

Wide Glass Can Save Your...

When I'm walking around exploring the world, I typically have a standard zoom mounted to the camera. With my Pentax KP, I like the 20-40mm HD. On the Olympus Micro Four Thirds, I favor the 14-42mm EZ zoom.

But I dare not attempt a pro shoot for clients with just my standard zooms. Sometimes I need longer lenses, but the ones that have really saved me are the super wides. And here are a few stories about them.

My Favorite Wide Lenses

There are some great wide optics on the market today. Here are five that have caught my eye.

• Venus Optics Laowa 7.5mm f/2 MFT Lens - $499 - This A super wide and fast rectilinear lens has really sparked my curiosity. It's due for release in mid-June.
• Rokinon 7.5mm f/3.5 Ultra Wide-Angle Fisheye Lens - $299 - This one is a fisheye, but it has saved my bacon on numerous shoots. Hold it perpendicular to the subject, and the results can be stunning.
• Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX DC HSM Autofocus Zoom - On Sale for $449 - This optic is available in Canon, Nikon, Pentax, and Sony alpha mounts. I have the Pentax version and I love it.
• Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM Lens $1,999 - I depended on the version II of this zoom in my Canon days, and adored it. Version III looks even better. A true pro optic.
• Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED Lens - $1,896 - Nikon shooters can go even wider with this top shelf zoom. This will bale you out of some tight situations.

Exposure Even More Important for Video Work

As helpful as an external light meter is for our still photography, it's even more critical for movie making. And anyone who has ever had to correct exposure in post knows exactly what I mean.

The Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter has full HD Cine and CINE modes, with the ability to measure from 1 to 1000 fps or shutter angles of 1 to 358 degrees. One of the features that I really like, is that you can hold down the meter reading button and see continuous readouts as you move the meter around the scene. This will help you choose the best overall aperture for that take.

If you want to learn more about the Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter, visit the link in these show notes.

Red River Paper's new Palo Duro Etching paper aims to recreate look and feel of fine art darkroom prints

Via Imaging-Resource.com.

Texas-based Red River Paper recently announced a new fine art paper, Palo Duro Etching. The new paper is a 100 percent cotton rag paper and is free of optical brightener additives. The paper is designed to offer warm white tones, deep blacks and a subtle texture to accurately recreate traditional darkroom fine art prints.

Red River Paper owner Drew Hendrix says of the new paper, "Our new Palo Duro Etching paper is one of the finest photo papers we have ever produced. From its subtle-textured surface and quality 'feel,' to rendering warm natural tones and deep rich blacks, Palo Duro Etching will satisfy even the most critical eye." The museum-grade paper is produced to deliver this high quality over a long period of time too thanks to its acid free base stock and coating. Further, the paper has a thickness of 21 mil and a weight of 315gsm.

The textured matte paper is said to offer deeper blacks than most traditional matte papers thanks to a special barrier coat that is placed between the paper base and the inkjet receiving layer. This ensures that the ink remains in the inkjet coating rather than bleed through into the paper base, which would diminish the richness of the black ink.

Palo Duro Etching paper is available now in both sheets and rolls. The sheet sizes are: 4 x 6, 5 x 7, 8 x 10, 8.5 x 11, 9 x 13, 11 x 14, 13 x 19, 17 x 22, 17 x 25 and 13 x 38 inches. Fifty-foot rolls are available in 17, 24 and 44-inch widths.

Updates and Such

Big thanks to all of our Patreon members! I was able to pay for the podcast server and the backup system from last month's pledges. Your contributions are making a positive impact.

Registration invitations have gone out to Reserve List members for the Autumn in Wine Country Photography Workshop. If you are on the Reserve List, but didn't get your invite, please contact me. You can learn more about the workshops by visiting the TDS Workshops Page.

B&H and Amazon tiles on www.thedigitalstory. If you click on them first, you're helping to support this podcast. And speaking of supporting this show, and big thanks to our Patreon Inner Circle members.

And finally, be sure to visit our friends at Red River Paper for all of your inkjet supply needs.

See you next week!

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Sekonic Light Meters - Learn more about the amazing Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter by listening to next week's show and visiting the Sekonic web site.

Red River Paper - Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

The Nimbleosity Report

Do you want to keep up with the best content from The Digital Story and The Nimble Photographer? Sign up for The Nimbleosity Report, and receive highlights twice-a-month in a single page newsletter. Be a part of our community!

Want to Comment on this Post?

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

For those who visit Sonoma County regularly, such as for my workshops, another must see stop while in town is the California Indian Museum and Cultural Center.

Greeting card by Eric Wilder, a Kashaya Pomo Indian of Northern California. You can see more of his work at ericwildergraphics.com.

Among its many treasures, is a gallery of portraits by well known photographer of Native Americans, Edward Curtis, educational materials, many outstanding displays of Native American works, and a truly interesting museum store.

A display in the Precious Cargo exhibit, California Indian Cradle Baskets and Childbirth Traditions.

The museum staff is both knowledgable and open to spending time with visitors to answer their questions. Admission is free, but you can make a donation or purchase a keepsake in the Museum Store. It's definitely worth a visit.

The Museum Store is filled with artwork, gifts, housewares, smudge sticks, ointments, and more.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

If you've never explored the Skin Tone tab in Capture One Pro's Color Editor, you're in for a real treat.

Unlike trying to adjust skin tones with the more generic white balance setting, Skin Tone in the Color Editor is designed just for portraits. In addition to hue, saturation, and lightness just for the complexion, you also have smoothness slider that makes everything look just a little better.

But the real magic surfaces with the uniformity sliders that help you offset areas of color shift, especially in the shadows. And what a difference these controls make in the professional appearance of your portraits. Take a look at this free training video that walks you through the entire process.

This is just one of the videos from my latest lynda.com/LinkedIn Learning course, Capture One Pro 10: Retouching. I focus on portraits and product photography in this course. And there are lots of handy tips, like the magic uniformity slider, for you to discover.

Master Capture One Pro

Start with Capture One Pro 10 Essential Training that will quickly get you up to speed with this pro level imaging application.

Then drill down into mastering the editing tools with Capture One Pro 10: Retouching and get supremely organized with Advanced Capture One Pro: Catalog Management.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

At first, I thought that infltr was just another filter app for my iPhone. But after a little testing, I've found it to be quite the creative workspace.

My initial interest was to find something new for my Instagram shots. And infltr is quite good for that purpose. You choose an image from your camera roll, select a filter, then tap on it and move your finger around the shot. As you do so, the filter changes. When you see something you like, stop and publish. You can also save your creation as a custom filter.

But the app goes well beyond that, including features such as:

• Saturation, brightness, contrast & filter intensity.
• Crop: 17 different presets.
• Transform: rotate, straighten, flip horizontally & vertically, perspective horizontally and vertically.
• Undo edits & view the history of your edits.
• Metadata screen that includes camera type, lens, ISO and more.

Plus, infltr allows you to edit photos, Live Photos, videos, and GIFs. In other words, just about any type of visual content on your iPhone.

Other handy features include a built-in camera function, iMessage App and Apple Watch compatibility, and the ability to connect to Adobe Creative Cloud and Dropbox.

For a mere $1.99 investment, you will breath new creative life, and functionality into your iPhone photography with infltr.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

This is The Digital Story Podcast #585, May 23, 2017. Today's theme is "The Crossover Shot" I'm Derrick Story.

Opening Monologue

How many times have you held back a shot because you thought it was too cliche? Or maybe it featured what we call a mature subject, such as a sunset or the Golden Gate Bridge. But, maybe, just maybe, it's more artistic than you realize. And it's even possible that both photographers and the general public would admire it. That's what I call the crossover shot. And it's the first topic for today's show.

The Crossover Shot

I want to start by telling you a story that happened just a few days ago. Seven of us were reviewing 3 days worth of pictures that we had captured on the Northern Sonoma Coast. This is postcard territory for sure, and one of the biggest internal struggles group members were having was choosing eight original images for the final class presentation.

Among the various subjects, everyone had a sunset shot. Yet, not one of those dazzling twilight images made it into the final presentation. And afterwards, as we talked about our choices, each photographer felt that it was either too cliche or that someone else would present theirs. So no-one did.

This gave me the opportunity to talk about the crossover shot. Images that appeal to both the hardened photographer as well as the Mom with loving eyes. And from that discussion, I have five key points to share with you today.

• Just Because It's Common, that Doesn't Mean it's Bad - Most of us are leery of photographing postcard subjects. But that doesn't mean that you can't add your own artistry to them.
• Just Because It's Difficult, that Doesn't Mean it's Good - Yes, we're proud of those images that we had to work really hard to capture. But...
• We're Often Not the Best Judge of Our Own Work - Having non-photographers review and comment on our photos helps bring balance to our final selects.
• Consider a Mix for Your Final Choices - If someone lobbies hard for an image that you feel isn't artistic enough, consider including it with one that you also feel strongly about.
• Respect for Those Who Achieve Crossover - And learn from them. Just because someone is popular, that doesn't mean they've sold out.

A Remote Trigger As Well

In order to accurately measure the flash output on your subject, you want to measuring from that position. So how do our trigger the flashes?

The Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter also is compatible with optional radio triggering modules for PocketWizard, Elinchrom EL-Skyport system, and the Phottix Strato/II protocol.

These modules provide multiple zones, flash power control (except for Phoenix), and model light control (except for Phoenix). And since this is a radio system, you can stand just about anywhere, inside or out, to trigger the flashes and take a reading. The Speedmaster also provides the old school PC terminal connector for those who use wired systems as well. And if you don't want to mess with any of that, there's a tripod socket in the bottom of the unit, so you can mount it on a stand.

If you want to learn more about the Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter, visit the link in these show notes.

More Stupid Photographer Moves

Here are some of my favorites from the TDS Facebook comments on last week's podcast.

Mark: Yup, I've done the 'Went out with a spare discharged battery', and I can add one 'Formatted the wrong card' (fortunately without erasing any good images that mattered!).

Carl: Realizing half way through a shoot that the only memory card I have is nearly full because I failed to format it. Now that I think about it this is two stupid mistakes.

Richard: I often leave the house with just a camera and lens...and no memory card. Then I'm just carrying jewelry.

Rob: My doh moments: camera still in bracketing mode from the day before, and I wonder what is wonky with the exposures.

Jim: I routinely found myself with a bag of discharged batteries. Now when I charge a battery I wrap an elastic band around it. Now the discharged ones are easily identifiable because they are the ones in my bag with no elastic on them. It also has a side benefit in that it prevents anything in the camera bag from shorting the terminals.

Jerry (from our recent workshop): Yes, I put my batteries in their chargers on the power strip before I went to bed. Problem was, the switch on the power strip was off. So I was looking at a day of exciting workshop shooting with a batch of dead batteries.

New Capture One Pro 10 Training Videos

lynda.com and LinkedIn Learning have just released Capture One Pro 10 Essential Training. And I talk about this title, and those related to it, during this segment of today's show.

Updates and Such

Big thanks to all of our Patreon members! I was able to pay for the podcast server and the backup system from last month's pledges. Your contributions are making a positive impact.

Registration invitations have gone out to Reserve List members for the Autumn in Wine Country Photography Workshop. If you are on the Reserve List, but didn't get your invite, please contact me. You can learn more about the workshops by visiting the TDS Workshops Page.

B&H and Amazon tiles on www.thedigitalstory. If you click on them first, you're helping to support this podcast. And speaking of supporting this show, and big thanks to our Patreon Inner Circle members.

And finally, be sure to visit our friends at Red River Paper for all of your inkjet supply needs.

See you next week!

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Sekonic Light Meters - Learn more about the amazing Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter by listening to next week's show and visiting the Sekonic web site.

Red River Paper - Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

The Nimbleosity Report

Do you want to keep up with the best content from The Digital Story and The Nimble Photographer? Sign up for The Nimbleosity Report, and receive highlights twice-a-month in a single page newsletter. Be a part of our community!

Want to Comment on this Post?

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Capture One Pro is a powerful imaging application that combines photo management, RAW conversion, and post production all under one well-designed roof. And version 10 ups the ante by adding features such as output proofing and 3-step sharpening.

In this course, I embark on an in-depth exploration of Capture One Pro 10. The teaching structure mirrors the design of the software itself, with chapters that step through each of the tabs in the program, from organizing to editing to outputting images.

Highlights include:

• Organizing assets in the library
• Correcting color casts with the Color Editor
• Understanding the HDR sliders
• Straighten lines with keystone correction
• Diffraction correction
• Using a gradient mask to fix a sky
• Soften skin with a brush
• Output proofing
• 3-step sharpening

Here's an overview movie that will give you a good feel for the course.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Having just spent 3 days on the rugged coastline of Sonoma County for our Northern CA Coast Tour workshop, I had the opportunity to photograph the bounty of spring.

I was packing my Pentax KP with a 1998 SMC Pentax-FA 100mm F3.5 Macro lens mounted on it. I had purchased the lens used for $90, and I wanted to see how it performed on the state-of-the-art KP digital body.

As I was looking at the previews on the back of the camera, I thought, "Hmmm, those look pretty good." So I kept shooting. The autofocusing was relatively swift, although not as quiet as with modern systems. The lens itself was very light, so it was easy to hike with. And I could turnaround and capture a landscape shot with it when I wasn't tracking down flowers. In fact, I like looking a landscapes at 150mm (cropped sensor) for a change of pace.

When I got back to my room and reviewed the images in Capture One Pro, I thought again, "Wow, these are alright." So my $90 purchase for a autofocus macro lens with a maximum aperture of f/3.5 seemed like a good investment. A very good investment.

We all have our "go to" optics that we buy new and pay top dollar for. They serve as the foundation for our work. But it's fun to have a few speciality optics too. And finding them at bargain prices is even better.

More Articles About the Pentax KP

The Pentax KP Review: The Final Verdict

Pentax KP Review - Part One - Top Deck - An overview of the Mode dial, Function dial, and other controls on the top panel of the camera.

Pentax KP Review - Part Two - The Back Panel - An overview of back panel controls and the menu system for the Pentax KP.

Pentax KP Review - Part Three - Image Quality - A hands-on look at how the camera performs with Pentax Limited Edition optics.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Capture One Pro 10 -- a professional, robust image editor and organizer -- allows you to handle all of your post processing in the same application that manages your images.

In this course, learn techniques for improving your images using Capture One Pro 10. Join Derrick as he demonstrates how to create uniformity in skin tones for professional portraits, use the Curve tool to adjust a specific tone, convert a selected color into a mask, and sharpen specific areas of an image. He also explains how to speed up your workflow by creating styles and presets, and using variants for different looks. When you wrap up this course, you'll have the knowledge you need to get the most out of the retouching features.

Topics Include:

• Using brushing tools in the Local Adjustments tab
• Adjusting a specific hue with the Color Editor
• Minimizing an offending color in the Color Editor
• Fine tuning hues with Color Balance
• Exploring Color Balance presets
• Addressing a specific tone with the Curve tool
• Exposure adjustment tricks
• Making color corrections to specific areas
• Speeding up your workflow

Take a look at this intro video that provides you with an overview of the course.

If you've wanted to improve your image editing chops with this professional level photo app, then take a look at Capture One Pro 10: Retouching. I think you'll be happy you did.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

This is The Digital Story Podcast #584, May 16, 2017. Today's theme is "The Stupid Things I Do" I'm Derrick Story.

Opening Monologue

Photography isn't about getting some of the settings right; it's about nailing all of them. If there are 10 things you need for a great shot, and you accomplish only 9, then guess what? You're probably going to be disappointed. I was thinking about this after my latest blunder, and realized that there are a handful of mishaps that have plagued me repeatedly. And that's the theme for today's show.

The Stupid Things I Do

After I had just missed a cool shot because of one of my classic dumb moves, I asked my son, "Do you ever do stuff like this?" You see, I have this misguided belief that millennials never make tech mistakes. Instead, he replied, "I do that all the time."

This got me thinking. Maybe I'm not the only ten-thumbed photographer on the planet. So I thought I'd share my top five bonehead moves, then have you submit your favorites on our TDS Facebook page.

• Stuck in Self-Timer Mode - I love using the self-timer for group shots and long exposures on the tripod. But I hate it when I forget to turn the drive mode back to normal single shot.
• Over-swipe to Video - It's hard to see the iPhone screen in bright contrasty light. And in those situations, sometimes don't realize that I've swiped from photo mode to video.
• High ISO Landscapes - Sure, if you want to have your landscapes look like something that NASA has sent back from Mars, leave your ISO at 6400. But if you don't like that lovely grainy, denatured look, you might want to ratchet it down a few notches.
• Rangefinder Lens Cap Left On - Maybe I though use through-the-lens cameras only?
• Backup Dead Battery - I always carry a backup battery. Whether it's charged or not is a different matter.

The Practical Benefits of High-Speed Sync (HSS)

Generally speaking, our cameras top out at 1/250th (or slower) for flash synchronization. This is fine for indoor and low light work. But if you need to freeze action at a higher shutter speed, or if you want a wide aperture in bright light outdoors, you'll probably need a faster shutter speed, such as 1/1000th or more.

By using HSS, you can raise the shutter speed and still get a proper flash exposure. Instead of firing the flash at the start of the shot, HSS pulses the flash throughout the whole exposure, trying to simulate the effects of a continuous light. Many camera systems can do this, including Canon and Nikon. But your range is limited because of the weaker output, and the flash unit can really heat up using this technique.

That said, you can also create some amazing portraits and action shots because you're able to combine flash and high shutter speed.

One of the very practical features of the Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter is that it can measure flash output from one or more units when using HSS technique. This enables you to balance the flash output with the ambient light to create the exact look that you're after. This is particularly important for shoots when you don't have time for a lot of experimentation. You need to set your camera and flashes right the first time, and hope you capture the shot you're after.

"The L-858D-U is the first meter of its kind that can measure the stroboscopic pulses fired from strobes when they are used for Hi-Speed Sync. Finally, photographers now have an accurate way of measuring their lights when they want to overpower the sun or achieve a very shallow depth of field through using HSS."

If you want to learn more about the Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter, visit the link in these show notes.

Federal Jury Awards $900K to Plant Retailer in Photo Theft Lawsuit

Petapixel reports: "An Oregon-based plant retailer was just awarded almost one million dollars in actual damages by a federal jury in one of the biggest photography copyright wins of the year so far. Despite the strange circumstances of this case, it's being called, "a huge win for artists, photographer, and creators."

According to PDN, the case revolves around the unauthorized use of 24 copyrighted images captured by Under a Foot Plant Co. president Frances White for use in marketing a product they came up with called Stepables--basically, plans that can be walked on.

White and co. were able to show, in court, that competing company Maryland-based Exterior Design used 24 of White's images in marketing materials ranging from Web pages, to posters, to brochures for their own Treadwell Plants, infringing on White's copyright a total of 133 times from 2011 until the suit was filed in 2014.

Despite several cease and desist requests sent between 2011 and 2014, Exterior Design continued using the photographs, leaving White no choice but to sue for unauthorized use of the photos, unfair competition, and unjust enrichment. Exterior Design denied all claims, but a federal Jury in Maryland ultimately sided with Under a Foot, awarding the company either $900,000 in actual damages or $300,000 in statutory damages. It's fair to say the plaintiff will probably pick the former.

"These photographs were the result of countless hours of time, attention, planning and preparation," White said in a statement. "This was a huge win for artists, photographers, and creators."

Updates and Such

Big thanks to all of our Patreon members! I was able to pay for the podcast server and the backup system from last month's pledges. Your contributions are making a positive impact.

Registration invitations have gone out to Reserve List members for the Autumn in Wine Country Photography Workshop. If you are on the Reserve List, but didn't get your invite, please contact me. You can learn more about the workshops by visiting the TDS Workshops Page.

B&H and Amazon tiles on www.thedigitalstory. If you click on them first, you're helping to support this podcast. And speaking of supporting this show, and big thanks to our Patreon Inner Circle members.

And finally, be sure to visit our friends at Red River Paper for all of your inkjet supply needs.

See you next week!

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Sekonic Light Meters - Learn more about the amazing Sekonic Speedmaster L-858D-U handheld light meter by listening to next week's show and visiting the Sekonic web site.

Red River Paper - Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

The Nimbleosity Report

Do you want to keep up with the best content from The Digital Story and The Nimble Photographer? Sign up for The Nimbleosity Report, and receive highlights twice-a-month in a single page newsletter. Be a part of our community!

Want to Comment on this Post?

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

Sometimes it's the little things that make our Mondays just a bit easier. Like automatically straightening a horizon with just a single click (or tap). Let's start with Photos for macOS

Nice grab shot with the iPhone. Unfortunately, the horizon is a bit askew. Photo by Derrick Story.

Open the image in Photos for macOS, and hit the Return key to enter editing mode. Click on the Crop icon, then click on the Auto button. The horizon will automatically level out.

Click on the Auto button in the Crop tool, and the horizon levels out.

It's even easier if you're using Photos on an iPhone. Just open the crop tool and Photos will automatically fix that horizon without you even asking it to. And in either case, if you don't like what you seen, just tap on Reset. Also, regardless of where your make the correction, the edited image will be saved to all of your devices via iCloud.

Bonus Tip: Polarize the Sky

I also added a little bit of oomph to the sky. I used just three sliders to achieve this. Here's how.

In editing mode for Photos for macOS, click on the Adjust button. In the Light panel, move Brilliance to the right. Then, in the Color panel, move the Saturation and Contrast sliders to the right, as shown below. These sliders are also available on your iPhone in Photos.

Make that sky even prettier.

What a difference just a few seconds of editing makes. You can see the Before and After by pressing the M key on your Mac, or by long-pressing the image with your finger on the iPhone. Now, your picture is ready for sharing.

Book or Videos: Photos for macOS

Explore the world of modern photography with my The Apple Photos Book for Photographers that features insightful text and beautiful illustrations.

And if you'd like to cozy up to a video at the same time, watch my latest lynda title, Photos for macOS Essential Training.

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.