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Posts Tagged ‘Prevent’

London’s Heathrow Airport installs anti-drone system to prevent threats

16 Jan

Heathrow Airport, based in London, is the United Kingdom’s busiest airfield. After a recent spate of incidents involving drones, including an unsuccessful attempt by climate activists to ground flights, officials have decided to take action. A bespoke anti-drone system, developed by Aveillant Limited, a subsidiary of France’s Thales SA, has been deployed at Heathrow to detect and prevent unauthorized drone use.

‘The safety and security of our passengers and colleagues is our number one priority. That is why we’re investing in this new cutting-edge technology which will enhance our capabilities in the detection and deterrence of drones in and around our airfield. We’re delighted to have this unique system keeping our skies safe and helping passengers and cargo to get to their destinations on time,’ says Jonathan Coen, Director of Security for Heathrow Airport.

A similar system is also in place at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport. Rogue drones can be detected at a distance of up to 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) away. The one installed at Heathrow can also pinpoint the exact location of offending remote pilots. From there, appropriate countermeasures can be deployed, though it’s not yet clear what those will be. Anyone caught flying in a Flight Restriction Zone, which extends out to 5 kilometers of any airport boundary, can face up to 5 years in prison if they have not secured permission ahead of time.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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How to Prevent, Detect, and Recover from Dumb Photographer Mistakes

04 Dec

The post How to Prevent, Detect, and Recover from Dumb Photographer Mistakes appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.

dumb-photographer-mistakes

I make ’em, you make ’em, all photographers make ’em sooner or later – dumb photographer mistakes.

Today’s cameras are now essentially computers, and the saying about computers is, “They do what you tell them to do, not what you want them to do.”  Leave a switch in the wrong position, forget to restore a setting after taking a prior image, or toggle any myriad of other possible things other than they should be and it’ll happen – the “gotchas will getcha.”

I’ve yet to meet the perfect photographer, the one that never makes dumb photographer mistakes.  The difference is learning to quickly discover a problem, determine what the problem may be, and knowing how to quickly recover.  The intent of this article is to cover some of the more common mistakes and perhaps spare you the pain of learning them the hard way.

“Smart people do stupid things. Stupid people don’t learn from them.”
Frank Sonnenberg

Image: We all make ’em – Dumb Photographer Mistakes. When the gotchas getcha, being able to qu...

We all make ’em – Dumb Photographer Mistakes. When the gotchas getcha, being able to quickly recover is key.

The “Happy Idiot”

The worst mistakes you can make in photography are the ones you don’t detect until later, after the photo session, maybe even back home when you finally sit down to edit your shots.

Before digital, this was the kind where you might happily shoot an entire session, get home, open the back of the camera and see you’d forgotten to load any film.

This might still happen in a digital camera if you have the setting “release shutter without card” turned on and then never “chimp” your shots to see what you’re getting.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

When in a store in demo mode, it might be fine to have the shoot without card mode enabled. In all other cases, it’s a very bad idea.

Some photographers will tell you that chimping your shots (checking them on the LCD after taking them), is a sign of an amateur.  Okay,  you “perfect photographers” might not need to do this.  Me?  I chimp whenever I can.  The times when I’ve been burned most often were when I didn’t check.

One of the best things digital photography gives us is the ability to immediately review our images after taking them. We can do so right there in the field where we can immediately detect and remedy any problems.

I still bow to the wedding photographers who used film. They shot an entire wedding and were so confident in their abilities that they rarely had any nasty surprises when they developed the negatives.

There’s nothing worse than snapping away like a “happy idiot,” clueless that you’re just making those dumb photographer mistakes.

Something’s wrong here

In the medical world, they talk about “early detection.” Catch a problem early, and you can reverse it. You minimize the damage and perhaps even find a cure.

So let’s use that medical terminology; symptomdiagnosis, and cure as we look at some typical dumb photographer mistakes you might make.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

Everyone will make dumb photographer mistakes occasionally. A smart photographer can quickly identify symptoms, diagnose the problem, and affect a cure to recover quickly.

Focus Faux Pas

Flubs, foul-ups, and a few other f-words can describe what happens when you fail to get fine focus in your photos. Worse is that while we can sometimes rescue an exposure issue in editing, to date, there is no cure for a misfocused, unsharp, image. Let’s use our terms to address some of the dumb photographer mistakes you might make.

Symptom – The entire image is fuzzy, nothing sharp in the shot

Diagnosis – If you’re using Autofocus, is the switch “on”? Are you half-pressing/holding/getting focus lock and then squeezing the button the rest of the way to trip the shutter?

I’ve seen many newbies either push the shutter button in one quick motion (both shaking the camera and not allowing it to get focus before making the shot). I’ve also seen them half-pressing, getting focus, releasing, and then pressing the button a second time.

Image: Did you forget to turn on the Autofocus switch? Or used Manual Focus and then forget to turn...

Did you forget to turn on the Autofocus switch? Or used Manual Focus and then forget to turn it back on? When you are having focusing issues, this should be the first check.

Another possibility is that the shutter speed is too low. If you’re handholding the camera, remember the “Reciprocal Rule,” which simply means your shutter speed should be at least the inverse or your focal length. So, with a 50mm lens, that would be 1/50th. Out at 400mm, that would be 1/400 second.

You might get away with a slightly longer shutter speed if your camera or lens has image stabilization. However, it’s better to err on the side of a faster shutter speed when you can.

Of course, if you want to freeze a fast-moving subject, a shorter shutter speed will be required.

If you’re manually focusing, such as when making landscape photos, you can go to live view. Use the magnifying feature to check critical focus on a particular spot, and then make your shot. But here’s the “gotcha” with this one. (Don’t ask me how I know about this.) You use that method to make your photo, then go onto making other shots, but forget you’ve turned off autofocus. The camera may still fire, even if the focus is slightly off. While you might not detect a very slight misfocus while in the field, you’ll cuss later when back in edit, you detect your mistake.

Cure – There is no editing cure for photos where the focus is soft.  Yeah, I know Photoshop and other software has some tools that claim to fix blurry photos.  Some are even using  Artifical Intelligence (AI) to do it now.  It sorta, kinda works, but there is no substitute for getting it sharp in the field.  Learn proper focusing techniques.  Let’s look at some other typical focus flubs.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

Understand and use the autofocus points in your camera. Most cameras will default to the center point, and if your subject is not in the center, you may not get focus on the subject you want.

Symptom – Some things in the image are sharp, just not where you wanted

Diagnosis – Did you use the focus-points in your camera and put them on what you wanted in focus? Beginners often don’t know about focus points, merely using the default center point. Then, when what they wanted in focus wasn’t in the center, they wonder why the subject isn’t focused. Another possibility is too wide an aperture giving too limited a depth of field. A good example is a group photo where people in the front row are in focus, but the second-row people aren’t.

Cure – There’s no cure for the shots you already made that are blurry. However, if detected in the field, check to be sure you are using the focus points properly.

If your subject is moving, perhaps continuous (servo) focus might be appropriate. Be sure your aperture selection gives you adequate depth-of-field too.

Image: When working on a tripod, turn off the image stabilization. It won’t help, and in fact,...

When working on a tripod, turn off the image stabilization. It won’t help, and in fact, might hurt image sharpness.

Symptom – You were on a tripod, but your shots are still slightly soft

Diagnosis – Is the stabilization switch on your camera or lens on?

Cure – When working on a tripod, turn off the auto stabilization.  It won’t help and could possibly hurt your images, attempting to compensate for motion that isn’t there.

Switches and buttons and menus, oh my!

There are so many settings in modern cameras that it can be overwhelming. Many of the auto modes can be lifesavers, relieving the “chores” of photography and letting the photographer instead concentrate on being creative.

They are great when they work.

Where they fail is when the camera is “fooled” by circumstances where an intelligent photographer would choose differently, or when settings are inadvertently left on or off.

Let’s look at some examples.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

Spot metering has its uses, but forget to switch back to something like matrix/evaluative metering when you’re done, and you will puzzle over why your images are wildly exposed.

Symptom – The exposure seems completely out of whack, regardless of the mode you’re using

Diagnosis – Did you go to Spot Metering for a previous shot and forget you left that on?

Cure – Many cameras now warn the user they are in spot metering mode with a “!” mark in the viewfinder.  Spot metering has very specific uses, and in those cases, it’s terrific.  In most other cases, it will wildly mess up your exposure and leave you to wonder why.

Image: Auto Noise Reduction works by taking a second black frame and combining it with your exposure...

Auto Noise Reduction works by taking a second black frame and combining it with your exposure. You get to wait while it does that. Decide if that’s acceptable before engaging the option.

Symptom – You make a shot and it seems to take the camera a long time before it’s ready to make another.

Diagnosis – If you have the Long Exposure Noise Reduction feature turned on and are making longer exposure images, the camera will take a second “black frame” image and then use that to reduce noise.  Sometimes that’s great, but realize it will take twice as long for the camera to process and store the image, sometimes making you wait.

Cure – Use the Low Exposure Noise Reduction feature only in special circumstances (perhaps when doing astrophotography where high ISO and noise might be involved). Otherwise, turn it off.

Image: You might use multi-shot bracketing to make images you’ll combine later. Be sure to tur...

You might use multi-shot bracketing to make images you’ll combine later. Be sure to turn it off when done or you’ll get a surprise when making subsequent shots.

Symptom – You click the shutter, the countdown timer activates and then fires off five shots

Diagnosis – You probably set up the camera with a 2-second timer and also for a 5-shot bracket.

Cure – This is a great feature when you want it, but after you’re done, return the settings to single-shot and turn off the countdown timer setting.  Otherwise, when you only want a quick single shot, you’ll wait while the time counts down and then get several.

Image: You might have an occasion to only want .jpg images, but don’t forget to put it back to...

You might have an occasion to only want .jpg images, but don’t forget to put it back to Raw when you’re done. Your editing options are much more limited with .jpg files. You will be very sad if you intended to make Raw images and only come home with .jpgs.

Symptom – You get home from a session and all of your images are .jpg, no raw images to be found on the card

Diagnosis – You probably did an earlier shoot where you only needed .jpg images. You set the camera to do that, and then forget to put it back.

Cure – You can still work with .jpg images, but you will have greatly reduced editing options.  Chimping will not tell you when this is happening as the image you see on the LCD is always a .jpg. So make it a habit to always put your camera back in Raw Mode after a shoot if you’ve changed it.

Return to a standard

I could go on about all the settings, buttons, and dials you might have in the wrong position, what will tip you off, and how to correct such problems. There are dozens of “gotchas” when this occurs.

The common cure is to always return to your personal defaults if you’ve strayed for a special situation. Make it a habit to check and return your settings to your defaults when you put the camera away. Then, when you’re driving down the road on the way home and Bigfoot (Yowie in Australia, or beasts with a few other names in other parts of the world), suddenly steps out of the forest, you can quickly turn on the camera and have a better chance of getting the shot.

Seriously, for any situation where you don’t have time to fiddle with all your settings, you want a standard that will pretty much give you quick point-and-shoot capability. I can’t tell you what that is for you, but it’s your base settings. It’s the place you most often work from and use for a good majority of your photos.

For me, this is the “P” or Program mode of my camera, Single-point Auto-focus, Auto White Balance, and Auto ISO. Sure, that’s quite automatic and perhaps not where I’ll ultimately go. Maybe I’ll be using Aperture Priority, Continuous Focus, and ISO 100 or even Manual exposure mode, but it’s a great default to work from.

My brain might (hopefully) be better, but the camera is quicker. Plus, the engineers that developed auto modes were no dummies. When seconds count, and Bigfoot appears, I can be ready.

Program in specialized settings

I love that I can also have more sophisticated set-ups stored in the Camera User (C1 and C2) modes on my Canon 6D. Many other cameras have this option too, a way to set-up and store various settings and then recall those so that with a spin of the mode dial, you can use all those settings.

For example, should I want that 5-shot bracket with a 2-second timer, Evaluative metering, ISO 200, Auto ISO, Aperture Priority with a f/11 f-stop, and perhaps a few other things thrown in, I can get there with a turn of the dial to C1 or C2, wherever I have that combination stored. When done, I put the dial back to my standard. Quick to turn on, quick to turn off, no “gotchas.”

Mistakes are lessons inside out.”
Matshona Dhliwayo

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

My Canon 6D has two memory storage locations; C1 and C2. They are great for entering more complex camera settings with the ability to turn them on and off with the turn of a dial.

Filter forgetfulness

I wish I didn’t know about this one first hand.

I was shooting earlier in the day with my circular polarizer on. Later that evening, as the light was getting low, I knew I’d have to perhaps raise the ISO a bit, so I did. So why was I still having to use longer shutter speeds and wider apertures than I thought I should? Oh well, I made my shots figuring I could deal with the issue later in post-production.

As I was putting the camera away, I saw my blunder – the polarizer was still on! Arghhh!!

I’d needlessly given up two-stops of light because I hadn’t taken the filter off when I was finished using it. I won’t make that mistake again. The takeaway? Turn your mistakes into lessons so you won’t repeat them.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

Here’s a fun and educational game to play with your photographer friends.

Play “Stump the Chump”

Here’s an exercise I’ve used with photo students to teach them to quickly detect, diagnose, and recover from a camera problem. I take their camera, have them turn their back, and then purposely change a setting, flip a switch, or do something else that will create a problem. I might even swap in a dead battery or a full storage card.

When they turn around, I hand them the camera. They have three minutes and three shots to put things right and make a good image. The fourth shot, when the three minutes are up, must be a good one.

This exercise teaches them the controls of the camera and how to detect and cure camera problems. It’s all too easy to inadvertently bump the wrong button, select the wrong menu item, or leave a setting in the wrong position after a previous shot.

Something else to practice is learning where all your camera controls are in the dark. How many times have you fumbled in a low light or night photo session because you haven’t memorized the basic buttons and settings on your camera? When the situation is fleeting, and you must get the shot now, having to futz around with the camera is the mark of a rookie.

Recover-from-Dumb-Photographer-Mistakes

Take a page out of the Boy Scout Handbook when packing your camera bag for a photo session or trip and Be Prepared! It will head off many dumb photographer mistakes.

Be prepared

It’s the Boy Scout motto – Be Prepared!  You will head off many dumb photographer mistakes by taking the time to check, maintain, properly pack, and re-check your gear before you go.

Here is a checklist that you might want to copy and save:

  • Have the camera bodies and lenses you might use?  Don’t carry more than you need, but also don’t leave home something you might want. Learn how to properly pack for any given photo session or trip.
  • Batteries fully charged?  You wouldn’t start a trip with a half-tank of gas.  Don’t go out with a battery only half-charged.  Don’t be “half-gassed.”  Have extra, fully-charged batteries and charger.
  • Storage cards off-loaded, formatted, and empty before you go?  Always have more storage than you expect to need.  You never want to have to delete photos in the field so you can make more room.  Don’t use your cards for long term storage.  After a session, offload your images to your computer, make a backup elsewhere, and then format your card with the camera.  Deleting images with the card in the camera increases the risk of file corruption.
Image: A smudge on your lens can ruin an entire photo session if it goes undetected. Clean your lens...

A smudge on your lens can ruin an entire photo session if it goes undetected. Clean your lenses before a shoot and then periodically look at them during a session.

  • Lenses cleaned? A big smudge, undetected can ruin an entire session.
  • Have your filters? Digital editing tools have greatly reduced the need for specialized filters, but the one for which there is no substitute is the circular polarizer.  What you want will, of course, depend on what you expect to be photographing.
  • Tripod cleaned, screws tight?  Is your tripod plate or L-Bracket on the camera or attached to the tripod?  Not being able to mount your camera to the tripod, or having something break or fall off, will ruin your day and maybe your camera too.
  • Sensor cleaned?  Yeah, you can remove sensor dust specks in editing, but save yourself the work by checking it before a shoot. Clean it when necessary or have a pro do it if you feel you don’t have the skills.
  • Have your camera strap? When going handheld, the camera strap is your “safety belt.”  Fumbling and dropping an expensive camera has been known to make grown men cry.
  • Have a camera rain cover? Check the forecast, and if in doubt, have a rain cover.  I just keep one in my pack at all times.
  • Have photographer comfort items Hat, gloves, sunscreen, and bug repellant?  When you’re miserable, your photos will suffer.
  • Water and snacks? A happy photographer is a well-fed, well-hydrated photographer.

 

“Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.”
Eleanor Roosevelt

Conclusion

It’s been said that if you’re not making mistakes, you’re not trying hard enough. I would add that if you’re not more adventurous and explorative with your photography, always shooting the same subjects with the same camera settings, in the same way, you’re likely in a rut. You might make fewer mistakes, but you will also make fewer unique and exciting photos.

The same goes for learning what you can do with your camera. If you always work in full Auto or Program mode, always use Auto-Focus, always shoot .jpg or rely too much on your camera to do your thinking, you’ll make fewer mistakes, but just average photos. Be adventurous, go full-manual, try new things, and make some mistakes. It’s okay. When you do, think about what went wrong and try it again.

As for the just plain “dumb photographer mistakes,” the kind we covered here, they are a fact of photographic life. You’re gonna make ’em.

Learning to quickly detect, diagnose, and rapidly recover – that’s the mark of a pro. We can also learn from each other, so be a little humble and share your mistakes here with your fellow photographers in the comments section below. We can all have a chuckle and then perhaps not have to make those same mistakes ourselves.

The post How to Prevent, Detect, and Recover from Dumb Photographer Mistakes appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Rick Ohnsman.


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Sigma offers part replacement to prevent lenses scratching Pentax K-1

13 May

Lens manufacturer Sigma has announced that it will replace parts on its Pentax-mount lenses that are known to scratch the new Pentax K-1 full-frame camera. The company says that certain lenses that it produces clash with the shape of the upper part of the mount on the K-1 and that using one of the listed lenses ‘could leave a small scratch on part of the camera body’.

Sigma has issued a list of current and past lenses that it knows create a problem, and advises Pentax K-1 owners not to use them until the repair is carried out. Three current lenses are included in the advisory: the 30mm F1.4 DC HSM Art, 35mm F1.4 DG HSM Art and APO 50-500mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM. A time scale for the repair service to begin has yet to be announced though.

The company also says that some of its lenses are not recognized automatically by the K-1, and that users will need to manually enter whether the lens is designed for full frame or APS-C sensors via the camera’s menu system. The announcement makes no mention of whether this issue will also be fixed.


Press release:

Use of Pentax mount SIGMA interchangeable lenses when attached to the Pentax K-1

Thank you for purchasing and using our products.

We have found that some SIGMA interchangeable lenses for Pentax mount could leave a small scratch on part of the camera body when they are attached to the PENTAX K-1, released by RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD. on April 28th, 2016. In this circumstance, please do not use the following lenses for Pentax mount on the PENTAX K-1.

We are planning to provide a repair service to replace a part of the lens for this issue. We will make a further announcement on our website when specific details, such as the service period, are finalized.

In addition, please also refer to the usage notice related to this announcement below.

Phenomenon
When some SIGMA interchangeable lenses for Pentax mount are attached to the PENTAX K-1, the upper part of the mount can be scratched.

This phenomenon is due to the interference with the shape of the upper part of the mount on the PENTAX K-1 camera body and it does not occur to any cameras other than PENTAX K-1.

Applicable products
Current Line-Up

  • 30mm F1.4 DC HSM| Art
  • 35mm F1.4 DG HSM| Art
  • APO 50-500mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM

Discontinued Lenses

  • 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM
  • 85mm F1.4 EX DG HSM
  • 24-70mm F2.8 IF EX DG HSM
  • APO 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG OS HSM
  • APO 70-200mm F2.8 II EX DG MACRO HSM
  • APO 50-150mm F2.8 II EX DC HSM
  • APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM
  • APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM

Usage Notice for customers who are using Pentax mount SIGMA lenses on a PENTAX K-1
In some cases, depending on the lenses to be attached on the camera, the angle-of-view cannot be recognized automatically. Please select an angle-of-view that is appropriate for the lenses to be attached from “Crop” in the camera’s menu.

When DG lenses are attached, please select “FF”.
When DC lenses are attached, please select “APS-C”.

We appreciate your continued support for our company and products.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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How to Prevent and Solve a Photography Gear Disaster?

15 Sep

What could possibly go wrong?

Let me be your fall guy here. I’ve been shooting for 25 years, and I’m completely human. I’m also not the most careful person.

I’ve left a SLR in a drybag that unfortunately collected water, then sat soaking for a week. I’ve had a camera slide off the top of a car (like a coffee cup – but much, much worse) then go bouncing across three lanes of traffic. Miraculously, the camera and its lens survived! I’ve opened my car door and had my DSLR fall only 1.5 feet and break off the lens at the mount. My main 28-300mm L lens has gone into the shop twice as the fabric in the locking collar has worn out. I left a lens behind during a hike, and it was gone when I went back for it. I’ve had camera errors while shooting a wedding, and my main desktop computer has been stolen.

Marcus_jb1973

By marcus_jb1973

Bad things happen sometimes. Sometimes it’s your fault, sometimes it’s not.

In this article I want to help you prepare for the the worst case scenarios for camera and lens care. I want to get you thinking about disasters before they happen and also give some advice on what to do when things go awry. Then at the end I’d love to hear your own tales, especially if they are helpful to other photographers.

We will cover cameras and lens mishaps, such as:

  • Theft
  • Lost or missing gear
  • Dropped
  • Moisture incursion
  • Corrupted/error message

What to do before things go wrong

There are steps you can take just in case things go wrong.

Insure it

Pictures Of Money

By Pictures of Money

Whether it’s for business or pleasure, if your camera gear is valuable to you, consider insuring it. For professional photographers this should be a no-brainer, but often those in the freelance realm aren’t bringing in huge paychecks, so they skimp by and avoid insurance. Don’t!

For non-professionals, check with your renter’s or homeowner’s insurance to see if your gear is covered. You might find there is a limit for electronics, but you can always pony up a few extra dollars to ensure all your gear is insured. Also check your auto policy to see if gear left inside a car is covered (while remembering to always lock your gear in your trunk!), it often is not.

Register it

GotCredit

By GotCredit

This is another part of the process many skip. Registering your gear with the manufacturer helps them update you if something should be found wrong with your equipment. We hear about food recalls on the nightly news because they have huge impacts. But did you hear about the Canon Powershot eyecup recall (14,000 units) in 2014 or the Nikon 1 NIKKOR VR 10-30mm recall in 2015?

These kind of recalls don’t make big news and often don’t even make the photo blogs.

Claim it

LensTag is a free service you should consider using to track your gear. The online service allows you to enter camera gear to their database, verify it with a photo of the serial number and search for stolen gear before you buy. We have an article here on dPS that explains the service in more detail Lenstag: a World Without Camera Theft.

In the UK there is a service called Immobilise.com which works in a similar fashion; log your items on the site before they are stolen, alert the service when something goes missing, cross your fingers. This service seems more robust and is checked by police in the UK. You can register more than cameras here as well.

Tag it

Tagging your equipment with contact information is helpful for having your goods returned when they go missing accidentally. I accidentally left a camera on a log on a trail many decades ago and the next day someone had turned it in to the park ranger’s office. Good people do exist! Give them a hand.

Avery, the label company, has a number of options for inkjet and laser printer. For instance, their 6570 label is meant to stay on permanently and can be cut to a useful size. This is a good option, though not perfect, for inkjet printers while the 6576 labels work better on a laserjet printer. You might want to write your information in permanent marker, but know that it will fade and need replacing.

Write it down

Ana C.

By Ana C.

This tip is the most common sense, but I feel it needs repeating. Grab a piece of paper and an old fashioned pencil and simply write down the serial numbers for your gear. Then store it in a safe place. Saving this info online is also handy, via services like Dropbox or Evernote, or email it to yourself, so it can be retrieved from any computer if you are away from home.

What to do after things go wrong

Theft

When I realized my Mac had been stolen during a break-in to my house, my stomach churned to the point of almost throwing up. Luckily, my camera was with me at the time. If it was stolen, I was prepared in a way I wasn’t for my computer. I have my camera serial numbers written down and in electronic form that I can retrieve from anywhere online (while noting it’s pretty easy for astute thieves to scrap off serial numbers).

The first step after a theft is to report it. Whether it is a break-in at home or a snatch and run in a foreign city, any insurance company will typically desire a police report with higher value items.

If you are keen on recovering your gear, don’t trust to the police alone to find it; start looking! In the US places liked Craigslist or eBay are popular choices for thieves looking to offload gear. Pawn shops are another option, but searching them all, depending on where you live, can be time consuming.

You might also want to try services like StolenCameraFinder.com or CameraTrace.com. I have not used either service so I can not vouch for them, but they both have the ability to search for your camera’s serial number (see section about writing down this info). CameraTrace also sells those permanent stickers I talked about earlier to make a reunion with your gear easier.

Missing

Sometime we are our own worst enemy and we misplace things, expensive things. If you never do, then you can skip this section.

Patrice-photographiste

By patrice-photographiste

For everyone else, the obvious thing to do is to retrace your steps. Believe that there are good Samaritans out there (there are!) who want to get you back together with your camera or lens.

If you visited shops, ask the employees if they have seen a camera. The best way for you to get back together with your gear is to let others know you are looking. Leave a card with your contact information everywhere you might have left your gear.

You can also try other online services like CameraFound.com, which will warm your heart when you see how many people are actually trying to help others retrieve their camera or phone equipment. It lists over 1000 found cameras even in far flung locations like Oman and Kazakhstan.

Breaks

Watching my camera fall out the passenger door, in slow motion, had me cringing before it hit the cement floor of my garage. I had reached over to open the door for someone and didn’t see the camera precariously wedged between the seat and the door.

This was a Canon L series lens and I thought I was out $ 1200 to buy a replacement. With a break this bad (the lens snapped off the mounting ring that holds it to the camera body) and no experience with repair shops, I thought I was out of luck.

Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious

By Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious

Many major manufacturers provide free estimates for repairs but you will be on the hook for shipping costs. Ask around at local camera clubs as well to see if there is a trusted local repair shop in your area. They can often save you some money, but make sure they are authorized by your manufacturer. My point is to not despair; get a quote first.

I was happy that the repair for my lens was only $ 200. Spending $ 200 still sucked, but it meant I was back in business, and didn’t need to drop $ 1200 on a new lens because of my own stupidity.

You might want to ask around to see if there is a reputable local repair shop other owners use. I know in Seattle there is such a store, and they can tell you the moment you walk in if your camera is salvageable or a goner. They can often be cheaper than a repair from your manufacturer.

Also, things like cracked LCD covers can be replaced for relatively little money. If the LCD itself is broken, giving you weird colors and streaks, then it’s time to get it repaired. Adventurous photographers have replaced their own LCDs with success, but if you have any doubt, pay a pro to do it.

Moisture incursion

It’s no joke that moisture and electronics make horrible friends. The electronics always get the worst of it, but there are some things you can do to possibly limit or stop damage.

First, shut everything off! Take out the batteries too. Damage to electronics from water happens when the water acts as a connector between two items inside your camera, which normally won’t share power. The power from one circuit uses the water as an excellent conduit to move wherever the water touches. This is the classic short circuit that we think of that smells of melting wires and plastic. In worst cases, things can catch fire.

Limit those chances by shutting everything down, and taking out the batteries, until you are 100% sure the inside of your components are bone dry. This can takes days or sometimes weeks.

Kevin Baird

By Kevin Baird

To dry out equipment on your own, go for a slow fix. Using a hair dryer may work for something like a memory card, but not for a whole DSLR. A time tested method is to use something that naturally absorbs water, like rice or the desiccant packs that come with new shoes. You want to make the new host hungry for the water inside the camera instead of just from the atmosphere itself, so put your camera, and soaked parts, together with the rice or absorbent items inside a ziplock bag large enough to hold them all.

Lenses can be tricky as water might leave a film behind on elements inside as they dry. If after a thorough drying, the quality seems affected, it’s time for the lens to get a professional cleaning.

My personal advice with salt water is to not mess around with home fixes and get the camera in to a reputable repair shop or manufacturer as soon as possible. When salt water dries it leaves behind the salt, and that can corrode your camera’s innards a year from now without you realizing it.

Corruption or error messages

“Err 99” pops up on your camera. What do you do? Freaking out seems like a good option. But better than that these days, is simply googling the error.

Kate Sumbler

By Kate Sumbler

I can’t cover all the errors for all cameras, but I have run into these situations about four times in my 14 years of owning digital cameras. They are nerve-wracking  to say the least.

The first steps are always, 1) Breathe slowly. 2) Power off the camera if it appears any image writing activity is done. 3) Remove the battery (ies) and wait a minute before putting them back in.

Some errors dictate sending your camera in to the manufacturer. Some are cleared by the steps above when your camera simply stumbles over its own circuitry. Google is your friend and will list many remedies. Read forum threads to get a feel if certain suggestions cured other people’s similar issues.

Conclusion

I hope the tips here have helped you start thinking about disasters before they happen in order to lessen their impact. And if things do go south in a hurry, take action as soon as you can to get your gear back in working shape.

Most importantly, I’ve seen a lot of camera and lens gear mishaps, but I haven’t seen them all. I’d like to hear about problems you have had, and what you did to fix them if you think the information might help other readers.

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The post How to Prevent and Solve a Photography Gear Disaster? by Peter West Carey appeared first on Digital Photography School.


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Smart Bikes: Connected Parts Use GPS to Prevent Theft

15 Jan

[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

smart bikes 1

Never lose a bike to theft again with smart, GPS-connected parts that alert you when it’s moved without your permission. Two new bike accessories that can be swapped out with standard parts on virtually any bike not only track your bike’s location, but also provide turn-by-turn, eyes-free navigation so you can get to where you’re going without having to glance at your phone.

smart bikes 2

The first is smrtGRiPS by Boréal Bikes, a connected bike grip that offers haptic feedback notifications and can easily be installed within standard bicycle handlebars. Used in conjunction with an iOS or Android app, the grip will tell you when to turn using vibrations.

smart bikes 3

You can also get the bike to audibly ring if you have trouble finding it, and in case of theft, it’ll notify a crowd GPS network so that when another smrtGRiPS user comes within 100 feet of your missing bike, you’ll get the location. It’ll even have your phone call 911 automatically when a crash is detected.

smart bikes 4

Another product, the Connected Cycle Smart Pedal, alerts cyclists when their bike has been moved via a mobile app. The app will also help you track your cycling activity with detailed statistics about how far you’ve ridden over a selected period of time, which routes you take and how many calories you’ve burned. The pedal fits onto any standard bike and made its debut at CES 2015.

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[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

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Tiffen launches 10-stop ND range to prevent red-tinted long exposures

11 Nov

Tiffen has introduced a new range of neutral density filters that aim to allow stills photographers to shoot extreme long exposures without incurring the red colour cast that is so common with ND filters. The XLE series comprises three 10-stop ND filters with differing infrared-cut characteristics, ranging from none in the XLE Axent, to moderate in the Advantix and complete IR suppression in the Apex. Learn more

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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How to Prevent Photo Horror Stories — 6 Scary Photo Scenarios & How to Get Through Them

25 Oct

Extra photos for bloggers: 1, 2, 3

As photographers, we plan and plan for big shoots.

But, we all have those days. The ones where that black cat that crossed our path, or we accidentally walked under a ladder.

Despite our best efforts, things can go wrong from time to time.

We’ll show you how to ward off those photoshoot nightmares. Our tips will prevent scary photo scenarios like garlic chases vampires away!

How to Prevent Photo Horror Stories

p.s. Take a peek at our Pinterest today for a chance to win a set of Tattly Temporary Camera Tattoos!

No Memory Cards, No Problem

paint-smDear Photojojo,

I booked a photoshoot, and when I got there, I realized I had forgotten ALL of my memory cards! I apologized to the client and rescheduled, but I felt like such a dummy. How do I prevent this in the future?

Love,
Forgetful in Florida

Dear Forgetful,

This happens to the best of us. Here are some simple ways to keep track of your memory!

  • Make a checklist of all necessary equipment. Leave it by your keys the night before a shoot. Check it off in the morning before you leave.
  • Stash extra memory cards in common places. Leave one in your car, a hidden pocket in your camera bag, or in your wallet. That way you’ll always have a backup!
  • Shoot tethered to your laptop! By connecting the USB cable that comes with your camera to your laptop, images will be saved onto the computer instead of a memory card. This may limit mobility, but it will prevent you from disappointing your client.

Sincerely,
Photojojo

Grain, Grain, Go Away!:

paint-sm Dear Photojojo,

I got home from a shoot only to realize I shot everything at 6400 ISO. The grain and noise is insane! What do I do?

Help!
Grim and Grainy

Dear Grim and Grainy,
Here are a few ways to enhance those grainy images.

  • You can use CameraRaw, Photoshop’s built in file converter for RAW files, to reduce noise in the image. The “filter” menu in Photoshop also has a noise reduction feature.
  • Other editing programs, such as iPhoto, Aperture, and Picassa have similar features or plug-ins you can install.
  • Only sharpen the parts of your photo that really need it. When you sharpen an image, it increases the contrast between the light and dark areas. Sharpening the whole image will increase the appearance of those noisy pixels all over. By selectively sharpening certain areas, you can minimize the grainy look.
  • You can also turn noisy color images into black and white. The grain gives it that good-old-fashioned-film feeling, and black and white takes away the distraction of colored pixels.

Keep your chin up!
Photojojo

White Balance Woes:

paint-smDear Photojojo,

All of my photos have a strange color cast. My indoor photos look orange, and outdoor ones look blue.

I’m guessing I have the wrong white balance settings? What is white balance anyway?

Is there anything I can do?
Blue in Longview

Dear Blue,

White Balance can be tricky, even for the most experienced photogs.

  • Your camera has settings to adjust for the temperature/color of light you are shooting in. Set your camera to the correct white balance while shooting, like daylight outside, and tungsten settings for indoors, to keep the color cast minimal.
  • Keep a gray card or a white balance lens cap in your camera bag for setting your white balance on location. A gray card is a neutral, 18% gray. Place the card in your scene for one shot, and remove it for your the next.
  • By doing this, you can set a custom white balance for each particular scene. Or use it when editing images on the computer later.
  • You can also correct white balance settings after the fact. With editing software like Photoshop, GIMP, or Adobe Lightroom, you can correct for a color cast.
  • If your image looks too blue, adding in yellow can help neutralize the tones. If it is too orange, adding a bit of cyan, green, and blue will make it look normal.

Yours truly,
Photojojo

Eyes Wide Shut:

paint-sm Dear Photojojo,

I photograph weddings. It never fails that during group photos, someone will blink or make a face.

Are there any tricks for getting people to keep their eyes open?

Sincerely,
Eyes Closed in Minnesota

Dear Eyes Closed,

It’s definitely hard to get everyone to look perfect at the same moment.
Here are some tips:

  • Make sure your group shot is in a nice shady place facing away from the sun. It’s even harder for people to keep their eyes open when the sun is shining in them (obvi).
  • Here’s another trick. Use a tripod, and take A LOT of photos of the same group. Numbers can work in your favor. For groups smaller than 20, divide the number of people by three if there’s good light and two if the light’s bad. That’s how many shots you need to take. Then use editing software to swap heads if someone is blinking or making a funny face in the group photo.

Happy Shooting,
Photojojo

Constant Callers:

paint-sm Dear Photojojo,

I recently did a photoshoot for a friend, and now she’s calling me everyday to check on her photos. I want to stay friends with her, but her constant calls are driving me crazy!

How do I tell her that editing takes time?

Sincerely,
Aggravated in Arizona

Dear Aggravated,

You are not alone in this situation. Try to stay positive, and remember she is just anxious to see your amazing work.

  • Remind your friend that you want to give her the best product you can, and in order to do so, you need at least a week or two.
  • If you plan to work with clients more frequently, put a section in your contract that explains the turnaround time. Let them know up front when they can expect to see the finished images.
  • Make a mini blog post on your site to give her a preview of those rad photos!
  • Email her or Instagram one pic a day until you get them all finished. She’ll be excited and check her email more than her texts.

Keep calm,
Photojojo

Cry Babies:

paint-sm Dear Photojojo,

With the Holidays coming up, I’ve started booking more sessions with kids and families.

How do I deal with children that won’t quit crying?

Sincerely,
Cranky in Connecticut

Dear Cranky,

  • How bout penciling a sweet ‘stache on that lil cutie?! Keep one of these in your camera bag and everyone will be laughing.
  • Attach a PEZ dispenser to your camera’s hot shoe to get portraits of kids with a little curiosity on their face.
  • Turn the music up, and use the ioShutter release to dance around with the little one and snap away at candid moments.
  • Another secret weapon… BUBBLES! Who can resist?

Dry those eyes,
Photojojo

Still Puzzled?:

  • Have other photo problems? Send us an email.
  • Share your photo horror story or your advice by tagging us @photojojo on Twitter and Facebook.
  • Send us a link to your favorite photo problem-solving forum!

Related posts:

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  2. Photojojo’s Guide to Scary Photo Pumpkins Live in NYC or San Francisco? Come to our Photo…
  3. Best New Photo Gifts of the Season (2 of 2) Dear friends, ’tis our final installment of photo goodies for…


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Windows 8 – For Privacy, Prevent Flash from Storing Local Data

16 Oct

Prevent the Flash plug-inside Internet Explorer from storing local data on your machine, and clear previously-stored data.

The Flash plug-in that runs inside Internet Explorer in Windows 8 can store local information such as game high scores, favorites when viewing groups of information, preferences, or as cookies that can identify when you access a particular website or application multiple times.

While some of this data may be required by certain Flash applications, you may be concerned about your privacy. Thus you can configure Flash to not store data on your machine, and to clear data that may already be stored. Doing so, however, may make it difficult, if not impossible, to run certain Flash apps or visit certain web sites….

Read more at MalekTips.
New Computer and Technology Help and Tips – MalekTips.Com

 
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Microsoft Outlook 2010 – Oops! Prevent CTRL+ENTER from Sending a Message

16 Oct

Prevent Outlook 2010 from interpreting an accidental CTRL+ENTER as a request to send the current e-mail / message.

You may be used to CTRL+ENTER placing a page break inside a Microsoft Word 2010 document. However, this does not work in Microsoft Outlook 2010. The first time you hit it, Outlook 2010 displays a dialog box warning you that pressing this keyboard combination will actually send the current message. If you are the type of person who skims through dialog boxes (ahem), you might accidentally check the box saying that you don’t want to be warned again, and then click the “Yes” button. Or you might do this intentionally at first, thinking it is a useful feature, allowing you to send a message without having to take your hands off the keyboard.

… and then later, disaster strikes when you are composing an e-mail while still in the Word 2010 mindset. You may start typing a draft message, press CTRL+ENTER thinking that you are inserting a page break, and oops! Outlook 2010 sends your draft message! And you know that e-mail is just about impossible to recall once sent. So if this scenario has happened to you, how can you get the dialog box to come back, or better yet completely disable this “feature” altogether?…

Read more at MalekTips.
New Computer and Technology Help and Tips – MalekTips.Com

 
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Windows 8 – Prevent Current or New Drives from Being Defragmented / Optimized

16 Oct

Windows 8 will attempt to defragment current and newly-connected drives on a schedule – learn how to turn this off.

By default, Windows 8 will attempt to defragment, or optimize, your hard disks and partitions every week, an often useful tasks that can speed up your computer by moving data around.

You might determine that certain external hard disks should not be optimized on a schedule, instead choosing to optimize them on an as-needed basis. Also, defragmenting a solid state drive is not recommended and can actually shorten its lifespan. Thus you can configure the Optimize Drives tool to ignore certain drives or not optimize every new drive connected to the machine during the regular maintenance window….

Read more at MalekTips.
New Computer and Technology Help and Tips – MalekTips.Com

 
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