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Italian accessory manufacturer Manfrotto has released a new app for its Digital Director iPad cradle that allows users to wirelessly control Manfrotto Lykos and Litepanels Astra LED lights. The 2.0 app is capable of handling up to 13 panels via a Bluetooth connection, so brightness levels can be controlled from the camera position. The app can switch the lights on and off as well, and when the BiColor models are in use color temperature can be adjusted between daylight and tungsten settings. Lights can be controlled individually, or in groups, though some models will need a Bluetooth dongle to make them compatible with the system.
The update also brings zebra patterning to the live view display, showing when areas of the image to be captured will be over- or under-exposed, and focus peaking can now be customized with different colors and strengths. In review mode the app can now crop images, either freely or with set proportions, and pictures can be rated in the gallery with stars that are compatible with other desktop software programs.
For more information visit the Manfrotto website, and you can read our review of the Manfrotto Digital Director here.
Press release:
Manfrotto Announces New Digital Director App 2.0
Upper Saddle River, N.J. (December 10, 2015) – Manfrotto, a leading global innovator and manufacturer of premium photo, video and lighting support products and accessories, has launched the Digital Director App 2.0, the updated App for Manfrotto’s Digital Director, which brings new enhancements to professional and enthusiast photographers and videographers who wish to make shooting much smarter.
The Digital Director App 2.0, now available in the App Store on Apple iPads, includes new and improved features, in particular:
REMOTE CONTROL OF LIGHTS
The new Digital Director App 2.0 not only controls all Nikon and Canon DSLR key camera functions, but turns the iPad into an innovative interface, enabling total remote control of Manfrotto LYKOS and Litepanels ASTRA LED lights (up to 13 lights!) via Bluetooth®. Lights can be controlled remotely: you can turn lights on/off, adjust dimming level and color temperature, set up groups and configure multiple scenes directly from the iPad.
FOCUS PEAKING & ZEBRA FILTER
From the Digital Director App 2.0’s general settings, in the Digital Director Options, it’s possible to set up new features. The implemented Focus Peaking Filter presents new options: the possibility to adjust the intensity of the filter and to select the desired color for the peaking (red, blue, green, yellow). In addition, the new Zebra Filter helps to adjust exposure through striped patterns that indicate the overexposed and/or underexposed areas of the image.
INTUITIVE POST PRODUCTION IMAGE ADJUSTMENT
The new App 2.0 offers new tools for post production: cropping free or with proportion, blur and saturation. Together with the existing functions (rotate, contrast, light, checking histogram and EXIF information), it may also allow you to make final adjustments on the image in just a single touch of your finger on the iPad screen.
The App 2.0 integrates new and improved features such as control of new Manfrotto LYKOS LED lights and Litepanels ASTRA, new Focus Peaking settings, Zebra filter, new post-processing tools, gallery photo sorting and image rating that is included in the .jpeg file shared from Digital Director via FTP and email. With these upgrades, Digital Director can better help professional and enthusiast image makers make their shooting workflow more effective and intuitive.
DIGITAL DIRECTOR
Manfrotto Digital Director is the only Apple certified (MFi – Made for iPad Certification) electronic device that connects your camera and iPad, via USB cable, to help manage the photo and video workflow from the setting of your camera (Canon and Nikon DSLR) to sharing your pictures. It features a built-in Apple microchip that works with the 600MHz 256MB DRAM ARM® Cortex®-A8 microprocessor, simultaneously, in order to ensure the perfect communication between the iPad and the camera. The result is perfect control of all shooting parameters of different DSLR cameras, a smooth and consistent video streaming between devices with extremely low latency time, and an ultra-fast, high-quality image download onto the iPad.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)