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Archive for December, 2018

Day 4 Delivery from The Photography Express

21 Dec

The post Day 4 Delivery from The Photography Express appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

Day 4 The Photography Express

Regardless how we celebrate this time of year, we generally want to spend time with the people we care about. Which makes for excellent, and sometimes rare, opportunities to capture those memories.

Today’s deals from The Photography Express will hopefully provide everything you need to learn about taking family photos (hold the awkward) and amazing portraits of friends and loved ones. Say no to poorly lit or composed shots that will never make it into a photo frame or quirky family calendar.

Want to go straight to the deals?

Choose from our entire Portrait Photography collection up to 60% off
Grab the Dynamic Natural Light Set-Up Mini Course for just $ 9.99 (save 80%)

Deal #7 Massive dPS Portrait Photography Sale

Everything you need to take amazing portraits in the Holidays and New Year! Pick and choose to create your own Portrait Photography Bundle with up to 60% off our portrait collection. There’s a video course, presets, and eBooks from top professional photographers from just $ 9. Already have a few? Then just grab the ones you don’t!

Save 50- 60% for the next 24 hours only! Offer ends 03:00AM PST Friday 21st December.

Shop the collection now

Deal #8 Dynamic Natural Light Set-Up Mini Course with Cole’s Classroom

The “missing link” to giving you jaw dropping, powerful natural light photos. Discover how Marissa transforms ordinary, flat and boring natural light indoors to powerful, flattering and beautiful light that anyone can learn how to set-up.

Dynamic Natural Light Set Up

Valued at $ 59 you can grab the Dynamic Natural Lighting Behind the Scenes + Complete Set-Up Video (Downloadable) + Quick Guide with Lighting Diagrams, Gear Used, How to Set-Up & More (PDF) for just $ 9.99.

Just $ 9.99 (Save 80%) for the next 24 hours only! Offer ends 03:00AM PST Friday 21st December.

Grab this deal now

Have fun implementing what you learn to take gorgeous portraits these holidays and beyond.

Both deals come with money back guarantees (dPS 60 days and our trusted partner Cole’s Classroom 30 days), so you can easily buy now to secure the deal and if you don’t think they’re for you, you’ll get refunded.

Don’t miss the next two deals – sign up here for The Photography Express!

Disclosure: We receive a commission from our partners if you buy via our promotion, but it is at no cost to you. In fact, you’re getting an even better price than usual!

The post Day 4 Delivery from The Photography Express appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darren Rowse.

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The 10 most inspiring drone images of 2018

21 Dec

The 10 most inspiring drone images of 2018

Thanks to camera drones, it’s easier than ever to capture stunning photos from an aerial perspective. Whether through careful planning, or clever editing to create interesting art, drones can be used to push the boundaries of creativity. Here, we present the 10 drone images that inspired us most this year.

Above: Reuben Wu

This image is part of musician and artist Reuben Wu’s Lux Noctis series. Taken in the Vermillion Cliffs of Arizona at night, Wu used a drone with a powerful DIY LED light attached to it to achieve a halo effect above the peaks.

He set up a digital medium format camera positioned high up from across the pinnacles. A single drone was used so he could operate the camera and flight simultaneously.

Fabien Barrau

French photo editor and photographer, Fabien Barrau, mixes photos taken with his DJI Mavic Pro and stock images to create landscapes that oscillate between reality and fantasy.

Inspired by the phenomenon of pareidolia, he creates animal faces within the elements of the landscape. Barrau spent more than 60 hours in Photoshop to realize this image of the night owl.

Martin Sanchez

What’s most remarkable about this image of a group of hippos, taken in Tanzania with a Mavic 2 Pro, is that a drone is the only possible tool that can capture these animals in such close proximity, from above, without disturbing their natural habitat.

Mole Media

Danny, an Australian-based remote pilot from Mole Media, was inspired by legendary photographer Demas Rusli who created a similar image.

He used a Mavic Pro for his take on a classic, found an intersection in Penrose State Forest, shot in RAW, and used Photoshop to individually recreate the seasons and add different layers of objects and clouds. The result, a 4 seasons in 1 day illusion.

Reed Plummer

Reed Plummer happened to capture this school of salmon in perfect circular formation, no post-processing needed. The image was captured on the coast line of Wamberal Beach in New South Wales.

Marc Le Cornu

Marc Le Cornu used a DJI Phantom 4 Pro with an ISO of 100 at 1/1000 shutter speed and f/8 aperture. He wanted to catch his local ferry in full flight for ages, so after some careful timetable planning, he flew from a rocky point close to the shipping lane and managed to race out to get in position as the ferry approached.

There was only one chance to capture the perfect top down due to the speed of the ship. When he initially edited the shot in Lightroom, he thought it resembled a starship. That sparked the idea of creating the illusion of a rocket blasting into space. The final image was created in Photoshop, adding a few stars and lens flare.

Henry Do

Using a Mavic Pro Platinum, Henry Do shot a series of images using Automatic Exposure Bracketing. This process of capturing these shots starts with a horizontal scene at a straight angle, followed by repeatedly turning the lens down slightly and shooting, repeating the process until the camera is pointing down at 90 degrees.

Do uses a combination of Lightroom and Photoshop to merge these images into a portrait, splits individual images, such as day and night in this view of Barcelona, and merges them again to create this effect.

Micah Fitch

Micah Fitch perfectly captured this image of a recent Space X launch with an Inspire 2, Zenmuse X5S, and the 25mm f/1.8 Olympus lens (50mm equivalent on the X5S’s M43 sensor). He took 3 shots as quickly as possible in the 4:3 aspect ratio and stacked them vertically, overlapping about 30% from shot to shot.

The goal was to also frame the Huntington Beach Pier in the foreground to add a sense of scale. Micah combined 3 RAW files using Lightroom’s panorama mode, matching the exposures up. The overall intention for this image was to edit it so it would mirror what he saw with his own eyes.

Costas Spathis

Costas Spathis created this image with a Mavic Pro. The settings he used were ISO 100, shutter 320, and a f/4 aperture. The original capture was a simple line of ships located in a calm Marina in Greece.

To create this particular illusion, Spathis used a tool called Polar Coordinates in Photoshop. Much of his work is inspired by the sea and his love of symmetry.

Kristina Makeeva

Moscow-based photographer Kristina Makeeva creates magic with her images, many where she relies heavily on Photoshop to produce surreal effects.

What makes this image particularly remarkable, besides the fact that she placed one person with a yellow raincoat in the center of a fall-color-lined street for a striking, unique composition is that she used Automatic settings on her Phantom 4 with minimal editing. This image was taken in Ontario, near Toronto, Canada.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography

21 Dec

The post 5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.

Rickshaw rider, Kathmandu, Nepal © Jeremy Flint

Photography can be a wonderful way to express your creativity and artistic flair. Artistic expression is all about you and allowing yourself the freedom in your photography to satisfy your visual curiosity. Fundamentally, it is a means to fuel your imagination and a way of being artful, according to your mood. The subject matter is entirely your choice, whether you decide to capture wildlife, landscapes, architecture or abstract scenes.

You can apply photography techniques that inspire you, from motion blur to creative arrangements. Alternatively, work with what you find.

Here are 5 ways you can use artistic expression in your photography to capture some memorable shots:

1. Sharpness and blur

Freezing the action of your chosen subject can be achieved with short exposure times and result in sharper images. Photography doesn’t have to be about capturing the beauty of a scene in its sharpest and most natural form. You can be playful in your creations and apply a bit of artistic blur from time to time. Adding artistic blur is a great way to put some art and movement into your photographs.

Sharp images are dynamic and provide an obvious and real static representation of a scene. However, using blur can make an image more compelling. Using a slower shutter speed helps to provide motion and movement to photographs while adding drama and vitality.

Hyena Pan, Tanzania © Jeremy Flint

2. Light trails at night

At nighttime, as darkness falls, lights come on and provide excellent subjects to capture. Roads become lit by light trails from vehicles that give unique patterns.

Fairgrounds are great for artistic shots. This is due to their unique atmosphere, as well as the fairground’s color and excitement. Be inventive and artistic in your approach to capturing these scenes. Look for elements such as the vibrant and attractive Christmas lights and car light trails as shown in the image below.

London Xmas Lights © Jeremy Flint

3. Shoot a silhouette

While many shots taken during daylight hours tend to show all details in an image, get creative by shooting a silhouette. You can achieve a silhouette by mainly photographing a subject’s outline and making it featureless against a bright background.

Stonehenge, Wiltshire, UK © Jeremy Flint

In the image example here, I have used the famous landmark of Stonehenge in the UK with a vibrant sky behind. Make sure you choose a strong subject for a silhouette such as the distinct shape of a person or animal. The best way to shoot a silhouette is to position your subject in front of a bright background and to expose for the background, rendering your subject dark and underexposed.

Silhouettes are an interesting way to convey drama and energy into your images and makes them stand out.

4. Shoot an abstract

Abstract photography can be made up of several characteristics. Usually, abstraction takes place when a photographer focuses on a section of a natural scene isolating it from its context. This could be a color, texture, line, shape, geometry, symmetry or reflection of a scene. The photographer changes our perception of the real and familiar subject or object. The viewer doesn’t immediately recognize it.

Abstraction facilitates a move away from the specific, the concrete and the obvious. You achieve abstraction by isolating, or eliminating an object and its texture, shape, and form. Color and tones can become strong elements in an abstract photograph.

Slot Canyon, Arizona, USA © Jeremy Flint

Details can be used to create abstract photographs by moving closer to our subjects. Alternatively, you can achieve abstraction through movement. Through subject motion, photographer motion, camera movement or a combination of any of these, information gets reduced, and impressions are created. For example, moving the camera upwards or downwards when photographing trees leaves behind colors, patterns, and lines.

5. Find patterns

Patterns are a wonderful way to add interest to your abstract photography. Our day to day visual life consists of patterns, shapes, and textures that evoke a certain mood or atmosphere.

We are visually drawn to patterns because they provide us with a graphic element that looks appealing and interesting.

Photographing patterns can make for good compositions. For example, you could show a small area of a broader subject. Macro lenses can be used to get in close and add more interest.

Conclusion

Learning to apply artistic expression in your photos can be a great way to create intriguing and unusual images that make a viewer stop and think about your image. Try out the 5 techniques outlined above and share your images with us below.

The post 5 Ways to Apply Artistic Expression for Memorable Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Jeremy Flint.

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Sony fixes data loss issues with firmware v2.10 for a7 III, a7R III cameras

21 Dec

In October 2018, Sony released firmware version 2.0 for its a7 III and a7R III mirrorless cameras. Two months later, in early December, firmware version 2.0 was removed from Sony’s website unexpectedly, due to an issue where some users were experiencing lost data when using an SD card that had already been used multiple times.

Specifically, Sony cited the following reasons for pulling firmware version 2.0 for the a7 III and a7R III cameras:

In rare cases, your ?7R III or ?7 III model may stop functioning while writing RAW data onto an SD card that has already been used multiple times.
With the ?7R III, taking a picture while using the Auto Review function may occasionally cause the camera to stop responding.

At the time of the firmware removal, Sony said it would ‘provide updated system software addressing the above issues in mid-December.’ Well, mid-December is here and as promised, Sony has released an update fixing the aforementioned issues.

Firmware version 2.10 features the same upgrades and features as firmware version 2.0, while addressing the data loss and Auto Review issues that plagued the update.

Users can upgrade to firmware version 2.10 for the a7 III (Windows, macOS) and a7R III (Windows, macOS) mirrorless cameras on Sony’s website.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Rogue drones cause chaos at London’s Gatwick international airport

21 Dec

Aircraft stands at the North Terminal — Martin Roell from Berlin, Germany CC BY-SA 2.0

London’s Gatwick airport has been in a state of perpetual disruption since Wednesday, December 19, after ‘rogue drones’ forced officials to close down the runways. According to Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, the drones would reappear each time officials attempted to reopen the runaway, leaving the airport in a state of ‘chaos.’

Grayling explained to the press that officials were dealing with a ‘very serious ongoing incident in which substantial drones have been used to bring about the temporary closure of a major international airport.’

Gatwick was forced to ground flights around 4PM ET / 2100 GMT after two drones were seen flying in the airport’s airfield. More than 20 police units are searching for the individual(s) responsible for the drones, according to Reuters, and The Guardian now reports that Army officials have responded to aid with the situation.

Eurocontrol, the European aviation agency, at this time states that Gatwick will not reopen until 10PM local time at the earliest. Though police sharpshooters are on site, they were not authorized to shoot down the drones due to the risk of a stray bullet causing injury. Tens of thousands of passengers traveling over the holiday season have been impacted by the closure and more than 800 flights have been cancelled.

Gatwick airport chief executive Stewart Wingate has released a statement on the matter, saying in part:

Although not for today, these events obviously highlight a wider strategic challenge for aviation in this country which we need to address together with speed – the aviation industry, Government and all the other relevant authorities. It cannot be right that drones can close a vital part of our national infrastructure in this way. This is obviously a relatively new technology and we need to think through together the right solutions to make sure it cannot happen again.

Nations around the world have scrambled to develop regulations covering consumer drones and the potential risks they pose, including possible damage to commercial aircraft. Many countries have restricted the use of drones in the airspace near and above airports to avoid collisions during takeoff and landing.

Earlier this year, the University of Dayton Research Institute published a controversial video showing the damage a small drone caused to an airplane wing in a simulated environment. Though there haven’t been any substantial incidents resulting from drone-plane collisions, there was a helicopter crash earlier this year that may have resulted from a wayward drone.

A number of methods for deterring and capturing unauthorized drones have been developed, but few are in use. Existing methods include net-based drone take-down launchers and systems that disrupt a drone’s ability to communicate with its operator. No single, universal, rapidly deployable system has been developed, however.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Google photos expands album limit to 20,000 photos and videos

20 Dec

In early October this year Google announced Live Albums for Google Photos. Live Albums is an automated way of creating albums in your Photos accounts. The system is capable of identifying specific people and pets in your images and moving them into dedicated albums, without the need for any user interaction.

However, it seems with the new feature the limit of 10,000 images and video per album was way to low. Turns out, people take a lot of pictures and videos of their favorite people and pets.

Thankfully the limit has now been bumped up and family or pet albums, as well as all other albums, can now contain up to 20,000 image and video files. The change has been confirmed by Google to Android Police and documented in the support pages.

The new limit should prevent the need to remove content for a while, but in the event space is at a premium, users can choose to exclude older photos in the album creation process to fee up a little space.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm F4 D II ED lens with rare grey color appears on eBay

20 Dec

A new eBay listing details a rare grey Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm F4 D II ED lens in ‘very good’ condition with included case and accessories. According to the auction listing, the lens is fully functional with only ‘minimal to moderate’ signs of use on the barrel. ‘The glass is clean,’ according to the seller midwestphotoexchange, an authorized Nikon seller with a 99.8% positive rating with more than a thousand transactions. ‘The aperture blades are oil and corrosion free, and their action and control are snappy.’

The lens features the Nikon F mount and is compatible with all of the company’s SLR and DSLR models, though the seller warns it won’t meter on camera bodies made before 1977. The telephoto lens was manufactured in Japan at an unknown date and notably features a grey body overlaid with a prominent, bright red Nikon logo.

The lens is offered with a CT-502 hard case, HK-28 lens hood, both the front cover and rear cap, lens and case straps, and an extra drop-in filter holder. The seller, who will ship the item from Columbus, Ohio, is offering the lens bundle on eBay with the Buy it Now price of $ 3,995 USD, though the listing also allows interested buyers to make an offer on the item.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Why we haven’t taken a stance on in-body stabilization vs OIS – and why that has changed

20 Dec

DPReview has never taken sides in the row over whether image stabilization should be provided in-body or in the lens. But we’ll now list the absence of in-body stabilization as a Con in our camera reviews. We’ll explain what’s happened to change our stance.

For at least the last decade, our internal policy has been to have no preference between in-body and in-lens stabilization. It’s an approach that was sometimes seen as fence-sitting but was driven by two logical precepts:

Our primary reasoning was based on our guiding principal that it makes more sense to concentrate on the photographic impact, rather than which technology was used. For many years, a majority of users bought DSLRs that came with a stabilized lens and had essentially the same experience as those users who bought a camera body with stabilization. The in-body advocates talked a good game about ‘every lens being stabilized’ but we didn’t hear reports from thousands of distraught DSLR buyers wondering why their shots were blurry.

There are genuine advantages and disadvantages to both approaches

Secondly, there are genuine advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. As a broad generalization, in-body stabilization does a better job of correcting the translational movements that affect close-up and wide-angle photography, while in-lens designs cope better with the large pitch and yaw corrections needed with long focal lengths. So why would we give credit for one and ignore the benefits of the other?

The result was close enough to a wash that we felt it was inappropriate to have a preference.

So what’s changed?

That’s now changed, again for two main reasons. The first is prevalence: for our review Pros and Cons, we tend to recognize a new feature as a Pro if it’s rare or exceptional but then acknowledge its absence as a shortcoming, once it’s become a common (and hence expected) feature. So, for example, we started off seeing USB charging as a ‘Pro’ (with an associated ‘Con’ if it was used as an excuse to leave an external charger out of the box), when it first appeared. But, now that it’s become commonplace, it’s the absence of USB charging that would be seen as a negative.

Now that Ricoh, Olympus, Panasonic, Sony, Fujifilm and Nikon all offer in-body IS on at least some of their interchangeable lens cameras, its omission starts to look like a factor we should highlight to would-be buyers.

The second factor is the growth in importance of video. There may have been little difference in performance between in-lens and in-body stabilization when it came to stills, but the same can’t be said for video. Watch TV or movies and you’ll see all sorts of camera movements, but what you won’t tend to see is roll: left-and-right rotations that cause the horizon to tilt. In-lens stabilization can correct for pitch and yaw but it can’t correct for roll: which gives in-body stabilization an immediate advantage.

There may have been little difference in performance between in-lens and in-body stabilization when it came to stills, but the same can’t be said for video

We’ll still test each camera to see how well its IS works: our approach of assessing effect, rather than technology means we’ll check whether digital stabilization in concert with in-lens stabilization provides a good degree of correction. But don’t be surprised if you see Cons highlighting the lack of in-body stabilization in our future reviews.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Nikon Japan officially lists the D5500 and D7200 as discontinued

20 Dec

The Nikon D5500 and D7200 DSLRs have officially been discontinued, according to the Nikon Japan website.

It’s been rumored for some time now, but as reported by Nikon Rumors, Nikon Japan has confirmed both APS-C cameras are discontinued on its website.

The D5500 and D7200 were launched in January and March 2015 and were superseded by the D5600 and D7500, respectively. Another fun bit of trivia is the D5500 was the first Nikon DSLR to feature a touchscreen when launched.

As Nikon’s APS-C lineup dwindles, it’ll be interesting to see how much Nikon invests into its crop sensor DSLRs going forward. Nikon Rumors also notes there hasn’t been much hearsay in the rumor mill regarding any potential APS-C mirrorless systems.

It’s also worth noting that while listed as discontinued by Nikon Japan, the D5500 is still available for purchase at Adorama and currently listed as back-ordered on B&H, while the D7200 is still in stock at both Adorama and B&H.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients

20 Dec

The post How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.

Whether you are an enthusiast, beginner photographer or an established professional, all photographers produce images. Regardless of whether you are sharing or selling images, or working on a commission, you need to get your image to the destination. Beautiful images need a delivery method in a format that people can use. That’s where things can get technical and a bit tricky.

Santa’s little helper

Considerations

There are many considerations to factor into how and what you provide to your client, including how to get them into your client’s hands as quickly as possible. Everyone has busy lives and getting together can be difficult.

For the image itself, you need to consider format, file size, resolution, and color space. Are you sending proofs? Are you using a watermark?

Once you have decided that, the next question is the delivery method. For people selling their images, consider what you want to happen after you send your client their images. Do you want to sell prints or albums after an initial proof set? What about images for social media?

Christmas is often a time crunch for delivery of images

So many details

In this age of digital media, it seems easier than ever to deliver digital media. But, is it? Nowadays, modern digital cameras create high-resolution images anywhere from 16-megapixels to 50-megapixels. Larger megapixel images correspond into larger file sizes. The problem with higher resolution image files is it taxes our ability to send and receive the images. So, where do you start? Let’s consider the file size and space followed by delivery options.

Modern digital cameras produce high-resolution images

File size and format

There are many file formats: jpeg, tiff, png and more. As you advance as a photographer shooting in RAW becomes commonplace. RAW shooters often dismiss shooting in jpeg. However, the reality is jpeg is probably the number one format people consume digitally. It is important to remember that most people consume images on digital platforms (few people print images anymore).

Size is the enemy of large-scale delivery

Although RAW is a preferred file format for shooting because of the flexibility it offers in post-processing, it is an impracticable format for digital delivery. Firstly, RAW images need a RAW processor to be able to view them. Secondly, RAW images record exactly what your camera sensor sees. They require some form of post-processing to make them look finished. Finally, the file sizes are enormous.

JPEG at quality level 10

JPEG at quality 2

Not all professional photographers avoid JPEG images. Some high-volume photographers often shoot only in JPEG and many photographers shoot in both RAW+JPEG. School photographers, for example, deal with the logistical nightmare of taking very few images of uncooperative children intended for parents with high expectations. In these cases, the logistics of image delivery is the ultimate priority. If image ordering and delivery are too complicated, there are no orders. Shooting in JPEG mode allows photographers to address this issue. Similarly, some sports photographers shoot in JPEG to allow for quick delivery.

Image consumption

The first step in addressing digital delivery is to consider the end use of the images. If the images are for social media distribution, small file sizes are your best option. If the images are too big when used on a website, the images load too slow, damaging the site speed, and ranking. These limits change with time and technology. However, for the time being, there are reasonable limits to image size you need to work within.

Similarly, many social media platforms (like Facebook or Instagram) automatically downsample your images to a manageable size. Meaning, larger images are unnecessary because that extra data gets discarded.

Instagram is where many images will end up being posted

The format

Printing

When you are printing images, you should consider your image size in both dots-per-inch (DPI) and width and height resolution (pixels). Printers generally use 300dpi (or ppi) as their resolution for printing to paper. This guide is the actual printer resolution which prints in dots, rather than pixels. A handy guide to figure out your photo resolution for printing is this: if you would like to print your photo at 8″ x 10″ at 300dpi; your photo needs to be 2400pixels x 3000pixels (8 x 300 = 2400, 10 x 300 = 3000). You take your size dimensions and times them by 300 (dpi), to come to your pixel size. That means, if your photo is 2400pixels x 3000pixels and only 72dpi, it is fine for printing at 8″ x 10″ at 300dpi. The file size of an image at this size can range from 3-7megabytes, depending on the amount of detailed information in the image. The more fine details it has, the larger the size.

Digital

For digital delivery for social media consumption use JPEG. While it is an old standard, it is the most reliable and compatible image format for all computers (Mac, Windows, and Chrome). It is a compressed format so you can make small file sizes. However, you should be aware that jpeg is a lossy format, which means that every time you edit and resave the image, you lose data in the image. As a final product, this isn’t a problem as long as you don’t edit the image.

There are other formats, that may be technically better; however, they are not as well used or practical. Most cameras offer JPEG as an image file format.

For most social media platforms, the maximum size you really need is 1500 pixels on the long edge. If someone decides to print your image, at the 300 dpi printing resolution, it is relatively small at only 5 inches (remember, 1500 divided by 300 is 5″). When saving your JPEG images, to reduce your overall image file size, reduce the quality number. The quality number is between 1 and 12. 1 is the lowest quality, and 12 is the highest.

Physical media

Gone are the days of recording CDs and DVDs for clients. Most computers aren’t equipped with readers anymore, and both mediums don’t offer much storage. What’s worse is that writable CDs and DVDs are not a permanent medium and degrade over time.

USB memory sticks are smaller, offer larger storage capacity and are more flexible. Memory sticks can be personalized to your brand and allow you to physically hand over the fruits of your labor to your client. Not the fastest delivery mechanism, but the one-on-one contact is excellent for further sales or connections with your client.

USB Media

Basic digital delivery

If you are only sending one or two images, attaching them to an email is an option. However, there are limitations to the size of an email you can send. Email can be unreliable because each email provider and ISP has different attachment limits and they change from time to time. Some platforms allow you to send large files (up to 10-megabyte files), but your recipient’s email provider may not accept the image and often has limits. Emails not received may take a while to bounce back, and your client won’t even know you tried to send them something.

Email as a delivery mechanism

Digital document delivery

Digital delivery of electronic files is not new and has been problematic for many businesses. These businesses need to send documents in digital format to their clients, but these documents are not necessarily image-specific. They are broadly divided into two methods – FTP links or document repositories.

Digital File Repository

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol and is intended for transferring digital documents. There are many free services for transferring documents, however, you don’t see the images until after they are completely received. Some examples of FTP services include Sharefile, WeTransfer, TransferNow, and Send Anywhere.

WeTransfer allows for digital file sharing

Some services allow a cloud-based location for your digital files. From the cloud, they can be used to create links for people to pick up documents. Some examples of these services include Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive. These services are great but sometimes require logging in or creating accounts on the platform to allow you access to the images. Often they have a limited amount of space for free, or you can upgrade to more space for a fee.

These services work well, but they aren’t just geared toward photographers solely for image delivery. They transfer documents, and images are simply a type of document.

Photography-specific image delivery

For image specific delivery methods, there are two different approaches. Firstly, you can use a customized website that allows for a gallery to be set up with your website. This feature is set-up in the back-end of your website. Secondly, you can use a photography-specific gallery system. These systems allow for the delivery of images with lots of bells and whistles.

A photographic website from Format

Using the back end of your website to create galleries can be a great way to deliver but can be complicated to set up and maintain. Custom-built websites are costly, and any changes usually result in extra charges. More recently, there are some excellent website builder services such as Squarespace, Format, Smugmug, WIX, and WordPress that all provide great pre-made templates for websites that allow you to create galleries for your clients.

I have personally used Squarespace, Smugmug, and Format, however, there are many great platforms. However, you may also be limited to the amount of space you have with your web hosting, and storing large printable files may fill this space quickly.

Pixieset Website Gallery

Another option is photography-specific image delivery systems. These delivery systems are designed with the needs of wedding photographers in mind. There is a need for digital delivery of images in a slick, easy to use and easy to navigate website. Additionally, wedding photographers want a proofing gallery that allows visitors to select favorites, download images for social media, purchase high-resolution images or get prints.

These image-proofing services include such brands as Pixieset, Shootproof, PicTime and Pass Plus. I personally really like this method because it allows for the simple uploading of images into pre-configured galleries that simplify the delivery of images to clients. They look slick, and they let your clients see the images, all while letting you control what they download and how they download. You can also set up galleries for clients to see photos but not necessarily download them. These are all paid services, but if you are frequently delivering images, this method is excellent. I use Pixieset, but Shootproof and PicTime are also good services.

Conclusion

Taking beautiful photographs is often what most photographers focus on; however, the final product is the image delivery. With digital images, there are lots of technical considerations regarding the delivery of images to your intended recipients. Knowing the format, size, and delivery mechanism simplify your ability to deliver your photographs quickly and efficiently.

What systems have you tried out? What works for you? Let us know in the comments below.

The post How to Deliver Digital Images to Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.