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How to Choose the Right Color Profile For Sharing Images Online

01 Jul

Many people have problems with the color of their photos when they publish them online. There are several reasons why this might be so, but the most common culprits are the color space of the image and whether or not the profile is embedded. Both color settings can radically affect web browser color and how your photos look.

Let’s look at some of the potential pitfalls more closely.

The Importance of Embedding the Color Profile

Whenever you edit your photos in an editing program like Photoshop, you are doing so using a specific RGB working color space. To be sure of preserving the color you see when you’re editing, you need to embed the profile before saving the image.

In simple terms, the ICC profile is a translator. It enables different apps and devices to interpret the color as you intended. If you get into the habit of embedding profiles into your images as you save them, you’ll reduce the chances of color looking wrong on the web or in print.

The rich color in this ProPhoto RGB image will look okay in many browsers despite not being sRGB as normally advised. If it looks muted and drained of saturation to you, it’ll be because you are viewing it in a non-color-managed browser. By embedding the profile, I’ve given it the best chance of looking as intended to the majority of people. On a wide-gamut monitor, the colors will pop a bit more.

Embedding the profile into an image adds about 3-4 kB to the file size, so the only time it makes sense to exclude it is when you’re uploading vast quantities of photos to the Internet.

If you must leave the profile out, making sure that the image is in the sRGB color space will limit any resulting damage. Two or three of the more popular browsers will still display the color faithfully because they automatically guess the profile correctly (i.e. sRGB).

Although most browsers have improved in their handling of color recently, it’s still good practice to embed the profile. Don’t leave it out without good reason.

Because the profile has been left out of this same ProPhoto RGB image, the brightness and color will look terrible in most browsers and on most monitors. By contrast, a missing profile for an sRGB file would be undetectable to a large number of people.

How to Embed the Profile

Embedding the profile into images is usually just a case of checking a box when you export the photo. If such an option doesn’t exist, the default will either be the predefined working space of the program, or it’ll be sRGB for web-specific output.

If you want to check the color of your web images before publishing, open them directly in a browser (preferably a reliable one like Chrome) and see how they compare to the original in your photo-editing program. Be a little wary of uploading images to platforms that strip out the profile, though these will not typically be photo gallery sites.

Embedding or stripping out profiles usually only requires you to check or uncheck a box when saving. This is the “save as” pane in Photoshop.

Converting to Profile

You can use “convert to profile” in Photoshop to create an sRGB image, which is the safest color space choice for the web. Be sure not to overwrite the original file and save it this way, because larger color spaces are a better choice for outputs such as inkjet printing.

Do not use “assign profile” for profile conversion, as it causes a color shift and is not meant for this purpose.

Using “assign profile” in Photoshop to convert between profiles will cause a color shift. Color in the right-hand image above has gone flat as a result of assigning an sRGB profile to an Adobe RGB image. You must use “convert to profile” if you want to create an sRGB version of your photo for the web.

Why Monitor Gamut Matters

Color management needs at least two profiles to work (image profile and monitor profile in this case). If you publish images without profiles embedded, you’re relying on the viewer’s browser to guess the color space correctly.

When color management is absent from the browser or app for whatever reason, the following statements are true:

An Adobe RGB image looks roughly correct on a wide-gamut display.
An Adobe RGB image looks muted in color on a standard-gamut display.
sRGB images look roughly correct on a standard-gamut display.
An sRGB image looks oversaturated in color on a wide-gamut display.

Note that an Adobe RGB image without a profile embedded looks muted in most situations and must be avoided. Browsers will guess the color space to be sRGB if they guess at all.

The graph above shows the difference between a standard-gamut Dell monitor (colored outline) and the sRGB profile (dotted outline). Even on a regular desktop monitor, some colors are quite likely to exceed the sRGB color space and look too saturated when viewed in Microsoft browsers.

In the monitor above, it’s reds that are most exaggerated in that situation. If you haven’t profiled your monitor or if the gamut of the screen is contained by sRGB, you won’t encounter this.

Browser Behavior 2018

To understand color profiles, it helps to know how different browsers behave with color. I tested five browsers for this article to give you an idea of what to expect. Feel free to query this if you think any of these observations are wrong:

Google Chrome

Chrome is a fully color-managed browser that assigns sRGB to any “untagged” images (i.e. those without profiles embedded). It reads all embedded profiles.

Opera

Opera is a color-managed browser that automatically assumes photos to be sRGB if the profile is missing. Like Chrome, it reads all profiles, including Adobe RGB or ProPhoto RGB.

Firefox Quantum

You can configure Firefox to assign sRGB to any untagged photo. It reads all embedded color profiles.

If you happen to run two monitors, Firefox does not maintain full color management across both of them. For optimum color, you must dial in one monitor profile then stick with that monitor. This only applies if your monitors have custom profiles.

Microsoft Edge/Internet Explorer

Microsoft Edge has a half-baked solution to color management. It reads different color profiles and converts everything to sRGB for display. The main problem is that it doesn’t use the monitor profile. Thus, it works best if your monitor does not exceed sRGB in gamut. Otherwise, you’ll see wayward colors.

Safari (for Windows)

Safari can read profiles in images and uses the monitor profile (unlike MS Edge or MS IE), but it does not assign a profile to an image if one is missing. In that situation, it displays color wrongly as Microsoft Edge does.

In Photoshop, you can use “Monitor RGB” proof colors to show you what the photo will look like in Internet Explorer on your own monitor. You’ll need to convert the image to sRGB first. If colors look brighter than they do without proofing, it means your monitor’s native gamut exceeds the sRGB profile.

A second experiment is to view the proof colors of an Adobe RGB or ProPhoto RGB image using “Internet Standard RGB”. This will show you how photos in bigger color spaces look on the internet if you omit the profile.

Choosing sRGB for the Web

The reason why sRGB is a safer choice of color space for the web is that most displays or monitors are not wide-gamut. Thus, if the profile goes astray or is stripped out, or if a device or app doesn’t support color management, the color will still look okay. This is what Microsoft’s browsers rely on to work.

If you want the color of your photos to look “okay” to the widest possible audience you need only do two things:

Make sure the image is in an sRGB color space either by using it as your working space or by converting to sRGB before uploading to the web.
Embed the sRGB profile into the image before saving.

Photoshop’s “Save for Web” lets you convert to sRGB at the very last moment by checking a box. If you leave the box unchecked, the photo is saved in whatever color space you edited it in. You can’t strip the profile out with this checkbox: it’s purely for conversion.

Other Choices: Adobe RGB and ProPhoto RGB

Since most popular browsers are now color savvy, the possibility of using other color spaces on the web exists. You could, for instance, publish photos with an Adobe RGB or ProPhoto RGB profile embedded, and they’d still look good to most people. To a minority, they’d look better.

The color of wide-gamut monitors typically exceeds Adobe RGB in places. Hence, there is theoretically a reason for publishing photos in ProPhoto RGB. However, this is offset by the dire color that results when the profiles are missing or ignored. It’s high risk.

Adobe RGB is an interesting prospect for the web because it still benefits users of wide-gamut monitors. Importantly, it doesn’t look as bad as ProPhoto RGB when things go wrong. However, if you publish in Adobe RGB, you’ll still be doing so for a relatively small audience.

If you do use these wider-gamut color spaces for the web, you absolutely must embed the profile. As soon as that goes astray, the color in your photos will look a bit flat to many people. In the case of ProPhoto RGB, it’s likely to look awful.

This 3D diagram (above) shows the sRGB profile encompassed by the profile of a wide-gamut monitor. In particular, you’ll note the extended range of cyans and greens in the latter.

The idea of using larger color spaces on the web is appealing, especially if you’re a landscape photographer for whom these colors are often truncated. It means you’d be making more use of your camera’s capabilities. However, it’s inherently riskier and you’ll be playing to a relatively small audience. The safe choice is still sRGB.

In Summary

Although modern browsers are more flexible, sRGB is still the safest choice of color space for the web. Again, this is because it roughly matches the gamut of most electronic displays. Using bigger color spaces risks draining your photos of color, especially on tablets or smartphones that may not be color-managed.

I hope this has been of some use. Feel free to ask questions if you need any clarification.

The post How to Choose the Right Color Profile For Sharing Images Online appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Really Right Stuff updates its entire tripod line-up with new features, better ergonomics

12 Jun

Tripod manufacturer Really Right Stuff has released updates to its entire product line. The company, which recently moved its operations from California to Utah, has revamped all 17 of its tripods, with improved components and features from top to bottom.

Like all of its previous tripods, each Really Right Stuff tripod is hand-assembled in the United States. The ‘Mark 2’ versions include both ergonomic and feature changes compared to the original versions.

One of the most notable changes is the addition of multiple 1/4″-20 sockets around the base of the tripod. These additional sockets provide more options for attaching accessories, such as Really Right Stuff’s phone mount and optional carry strap.

Speaking of attaching stuff to the tripod, Really Right Stuff has also added a weight hook to the underside of all 17 tripods. This not only gives you a convenient place to store your bag, but also acts as a ballast to keep your frames steady in windy environments.

The legs of the tripods now have sealed twist locks for extending and retracting the legs during use. Really right Stuff says ‘the new sealed twist lock minimizes the amount of contaminants, such as sand and grit, that gets caught inside the twist locks.’

Computer rendering showing the internal structure of Really Right Stuff’s new sealed twist lock.

Also, opening and closing of the legs should take less effort due to an added vented clevis. Really Right Stuff notes that the added air vents ‘prevent pressure gradients from building up, allowing smoother leg extraction and collapse.’ To show just how much thought went into what seems like such a small detail, Really Right Stuff explains how the ‘inward-facing vents also ensure air flow is directed towards the center of the tripod and away from mounted lens elements.’

The new tripods are also designed with interchangeable feet, which can be swapped out to one of the three options Really Right Stuff offers.

Lastly, the Mark 2 version of the tripods now feature an updated Sure Grip that uses the same hex screws as Really Right Stuff’s L-plates. So, if you’re shooting with a lot of Really Right Stuff gear, you’ll now only need to carry around a single tool.

To view more information on the second-generation tripods, head on over to Really Right Stuff’s announcement page. B&H is now taking pre-orders for the Mark 2 tripods, which start at $ 500.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Choosing the Right Camera Bag for Outdoor and Wildlife Photography

11 Apr

Choosing a camera bag as a photographer can seem like a never-ending task, with no single model ever seeming to fit perfectly for all types of occasions. As wildlife and nature photographers, we are outdoor people. So predominately a backpack certainly makes the most sense in terms of getting our gear to the location, in a safe and comfortable manner, while also freeing up our hands for shooting or negotiating tough terrain.

Of course, a decent bag is essential when carrying and transporting heavy and expensive equipment. Protection is a key consideration, not only for the expensive gear, of course, but also for your back! Poorly designed packs that lack adequate padding and harnesses can be real torture on a long hike. If fitted wrong, long term that can manifest as back problems, something none of us want to increase our risks of getting. So picking a good camera bag is certainly worth spending some time on.

Wildlife photography camera bag

Load Capacity

One of the first questions you need to ask yourself when choosing a camera bag or backpack is about the load capacity. How much photographic gear will you take, how much personal stuff do you need, do you need a laptop, or other items as well as your main kit? These are all considerations to think about.

Camera bag layout 24 wildlife

A good way to gauge the size of bag that you need is to lay out your camera gear as if it is going to be in a bag.How would you like it to fit, what cameras would you want to kit up in which combinations? Laid out on the floor, it will give you a good representation of the size of camera bag you’re going to require and what sort of size main compartment you’ll be in need of to house your core gear.

If you use long telephoto prime lenses, often you’ll find you need the largest of packs in order to fit them all. Especially if carrying additional lenses and back up bodies is something you require.

Strong durable materials.

Customize the Inside

Of course, for those of us who work with a variety of kits, from large lenses to smaller landscape packs, customization is also a factor. If a bag is solely focused on telephoto shooting, and maximizing on camera gear, it can seem cumbersome on days when you only require a single camera and pair of short lenses. To handle this issue, bags that have flexible inserts can be a great feature. They have the ability to swap out camera gear for personal gear, or just strip down the bag for a smaller load.

Internal dividers help organization - camera bag

In regards to the internal compartment’s design, most camera bags offer movable, custom dividers. These allow you to make sections within the main pack for housing and organizing your gear while protecting it from knocking and banging around while in transit.

In some models, the dividers are thinner to maximize gear space, with others offering more protection. However, I often find that due to the fact most companies use a velcro system (hook and loop) for repositioning the dividers, you can mix and match to get that perfect setup across bags. Yes, this is because you’ll probably end up buying a few camera bags.

Padded inserts camera bag

Travel-Friendly

In addition to simply considering the capacity of a new camera bag for your gear, it’s also important to consider the size for travel. If you’re planning to use the pack when flying, be sure to check that it falls within the airline’s maximum allowance for carry-on luggage. There’s nothing worse than potentially having your bag gate checked because it’s too large.

Companies such as ThinkTank have a range of options for those who fly regularly, but for wildlife photographers, they are less practical for field work, once at your destination.

Another great option from the F-stop range of packs is removable inserts which then allow you to check the main bag, taking out the photography gear within the insert and safely storing it on board. A great best of both worlds solution. However, in my experience, camera bags with a noted reference to airline carry-on compatibility are rarely a problem.

Side access camera bag

Wildlife photography camera bags 22

Harness System

The carrying system is one area I can’t stress the importance of enough. When you are carrying heavy loads (my pack can often be over 20kg / 44lbs) having a comfortable and supportive back system is key to aiding in comfort and protecting your back!

With heavy loads, a padded waist belt is a must. When carrying a fully loaded kit, you’ll want the weight to be taken by your hips and not your shoulders. Waist belts can range in padding from thick to thin, with the former being great for longer hikes and heavy loads. However, the latter is better when traveling and pushing your bag into an overhead locker on a flight.

Good systems will have a strong buckle. Some even feature pockets on the waist belt that are handy for fast-access gear, such as a compact camera, trail snack, or a spare battery.

In regards to the shoulder straps, padding is less of a problem as long as they fit well (as the weight should be taken by the hips). Personally, I find straps that are too wide with too much padding uncomfortable. So I prefer the thinner, hiking-style designs of the more outdoor geared packs.

Companies such as F-Stop and LowePro offer good options. However, they are still not up to the perfection of true outdoor packs such as Osprey. In addition, some packs offer the customization of the back length. That is key to getting a perfect fit, adjustable heights in the back system means less stress pulling over the shoulders, again reducing fatigue on the trail.

If you hike a long way, these added features really make a difference. When testing the harness systems you’ll need to do it in person. So take your gear to your local camera store, load the bag up with weight, and get it fitted properly. Adjust the length of the back (if you can) to your height, so the waist belt is just above your hips and the shoulder straps come neatly over without pulling upwards, keeping tight, but not strained to your frame. Adjusting the sternum strap will keep them in position and aid in fit.

Extras

Pockets for accessories

In addition to the main compartment and harness, there are also a number of extra features to look out for.

Rain Cover

Rain covers are great for working in the elements as they add extra protection, from rain dust and sand, as well as also being handy to pull out and use as a dry/clean place to set your bag down on the ground. I prefer the type that is sewn into the pack, as they are less likely to be lost or forgotten and also are always there when you need them!

Camera bag rain cover

Outer Pockets

Of course, in addition to camera gear, we photographers also need personal supplies. External pockets are important for additions like spare layers, coats, as well as food and water to keep us going.

Personal storage

Tripod Carrier

Of course, you most likely haul a tripod on location, so having a decent attachment system on your pack is extremely handy for carrying your three-legged friends any extended distances. Lots of packs have options to carry a tripod on the side or back of the bag, depending on your preference. Having this ability to free up your hands when hiking is brilliant.

Laptop Sleeve

If you work on your laptop or travel a lot, a compartment to store or protect a laptop is an important addition for when you’re on the road. Some bags include padded sections designed for a laptop at the front or rear of the bag. Those that have them close to the harness area can make bags seem stiff and uncomfortable for any length of hiking, so are best used only when getting through an airport.

Hydration Pack Compatibility

For an extended hike, a hydration bladder is extremely handy for re-hydrating on the go. Packs that feature sleeves to keep the bladders separate often have them water sealed to help protect your gear from leaks. However, I always place mine in an additional dry bag for added precaution.

Custom Bags

Sometimes no matter how hard you try, you just can’t find the perfect camera bag or one that suits your style, needs and fit. In that case, another option to think about is that of customizing a regular bag for use with cameras.

Take a well-designed hiking bag with many of the features you need (good harness, lightweight, the right size, and ruggedness) and team it up with a way pod protecting your camera gear inside. This could be through the use of an insert, such as those made by F-stop bags or Tenba, or through the use of simply wrapping gear individually in padded camera wraps, to store your gear safely.

This is a super option for when you want a high volume of personal gear for hiking, traveling, and exploring but still want to carry a DSLR with a number of lenses safely. I’d also recommend looking into a small organizer case as well for organizing any miscellaneous items such as batteries and memory cards.

Custom bag

Conclusion

Overall, choosing a camera bag for wildlife photography can be tough. With so many options and requirements, in many ways, there will never be one perfect bag. However, by working through the list above, deciding on your most important and specific needs, you’ll certainly find a great option. One that suits you and keeps your gear safe on location for all your photography adventures.

A backpack is a simple essential for wildlife and nature photography. Spending time to make the right decision choosing a camera bag will be something you’ll certainly be glad you made the effort to do!

The post Choosing the Right Camera Bag for Outdoor and Wildlife Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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How to Choose the Right ISO for Landscape Photography

08 Apr

In this article, I will give you some tips on how to choose the right or best ISO for landscape photography.

The challenge as a beginner

Choosing the ideal settings in different scenarios is quite challenging as a photography beginner. We’ve all been there and I certainly know your frustration when your images don’t look as good as you want.

There’s so much to think about including; the composition, the perspective, the camera gear, do you need filters? And what about the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO? Don’t worry, though. It takes some trial and error but soon enough it will be a piece of cake!

How to Choose the Right ISO for Landscape Photography

Since my camera was mounted on a tripod I could use a low ISO of 80 for this image.

I hope to make one of these questions a little clearer through this article, though. Choosing the ideal ISO is crucial for the image quality, and it has a direct impact on both the shutter speed and aperture.

Always use the lowest possible ISO

I won’t go too much into detail regarding how the ISO works in this article, but to simplify, the ISO expresses your camera’s sensitivity to light. The higher the ISO number, the more sensitive it is to light, while a lower ISO makes the camera less sensitive to light.

Please note: This is a simplification for beginners. It is actually much more complex than this but you don’t need to understand all the science behind the scenes to use ISO correctly.

While a higher ISO is good when aiming for a quick shutter speed, it also introduces a significant amount of grain or digital noise into the image. That’s something you want to avoid, and it’s the reason that you’ll often hear that you should always use ISO100.

To achieve the longest possible exposure I could use an ISO of 64 here.

Now, I agree that you should aim to use ISO100 for most stationary landscapes, you shouldn’t make the mistake of only using that setting. It took me several years before I managed to accept that there’s not only one correct ISO in landscape photography. In fact, I was pretty much an ISO100-nazi, and except for night photography, I stuck to it.

In later years I’ve learned that this isn’t necessarily the best practice.

First of all, you aren’t always able to use ISO 100. Here are a few scenarios where you might need to bump up the ISO:

Photographing handheld.
When trying to freeze moving subjects.
When photographing at night.

ISO 640 was the lowest ISO I could use here in order to achieve a quick enough shutter speed to get a sharp handheld image.

These are just some of the scenarios where ISO 100 might not be possible. However, there are other, and less talked about, times where you need to increase the ISO as well:

When adjusting the shutter speed for capturing the perfect motion/flow in water.
If you need to freeze elements moving in the wind (such as bushes, branches etc.).
When you’re using a telephoto lens handheld.

In other words, you should always aim to use the lowest ISO possible but that doesn’t always mean ISO 100 (even though that’s the “ideal” ISO quality-wise).

Adjusting the ISO at night

I briefly mentioned that ISO 100 is not ideal for night photography. Let’s look a little closer at that and find the best option. Remember that a higher ISO is more sensitive to light. In other words, that means you need less time (a shorter exposure) to achieve a correct exposure when it’s increased.

Now, at night there’s not a lot of light which means that you need more time to capture a well-exposed image. However, just setting the shutter speed to 30-seconds and leaving the ISO at 100, will still result in an underexposed image.

I had to increase the ISO to 4000 to get a well-exposed shot of this night scene.

Instead, you need to sacrifice some image-quality and increase the ISO. Exactly what ISO you need depends on the moon phase and overall brightness of your scene (for example, being close to city lights or other light sources will have an impact on your choice).

The first steps in my night photography workflow are to set the Aperture and Shutter Speed I’m going to use. Next, I use my base ISO for night photography, 1600.

However, just as with ISO 100, it’s not the only one you should use. ISO 1600 works as a starting point and after taking a test shot I’ll often make small adjustments. Most of the time you’ll use an ISO between 1200 and 3200 for night photography (though a full-moon or Aurora session might allow for an ISO as low as 800).

Adjusting the Aperture or ISO for a Quicker Shutter Speed

The most difficult part of manually adjusting settings is to learn what adjustments you need to make in certain situations. Should you adjust the ISO, Aperture, or Shutter Speed? I remember this being one of my biggest frustrations when first making the switch to Manual Mode.

ISO 100 – f/10 – 0.4 seconds.

While leading photography workshops I often tell the participants to adjust the settings as they normally would before I help them. I often notice that many are photographing with an aperture of f/22 and ISO 100. However, when they need a faster shutter speed, their first instinct is to increase the ISO.

That’s when I ask the question; “Do you really need an aperture of f/22? Will an aperture of f/16, f/11 or f/8 give you similar results? If so, then leave the ISO alone.

Remember, always use the lowest ISO possible. In this scenario, the image will benefit from using a wider aperture and maintaining a low ISO.

Let’s Summarize

I hope that I haven’t made you even more confused than what you were before. Understanding the ISO and choosing the correct one is a little tricky, as there isn’t always one correct choice. However, what I hope you take away from this article is that you should aim to use the lowest ISO possible in each given scenario.

For regular daytime photography, I typically use an ISO between 64 and 400 – the latter is when I’m using a telephoto lens handheld, which requires a quicker shutter speed to keep sharp. For night photography, I typically use an ISO between 1200 and 3200.

I used ISO 400 to capture this sharp handheld shot with my 200mm.

Most DSLR cameras are able to take relatively noise-free images at ISO 400 but I recommend spending some time getting used to your camera and finding its limit.

So, as the final word, there isn’t one single correct ISO for each and every scenario but aim to use the lowest possible.

Learning how to choose the ideal settings takes some trial and error to learn. In my eBook, A Comprehensive Introduction to Landscape Photography, I teach the techniques you need to know in order to capture beautiful images, and how you easily can master them.

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Canon got it right on International Women’s Day

09 Mar

Photo by Mario Calvo on Unsplash

“For International Women’s Day, Canon…” as I read the subject line of the email, I cringe at the possible endings to that sentence.

Not outside the realm of possibilities is something like, “Releases Commemorative Pink Camera Strap!” In 2018 I think we’re better than that. Probably. I keep reading.

“…Lends Support to ‘Women Photograph'” is how it ends, and I feel a real sense of relief. This was an organization I knew and had covered in the past. It aims to ‘elevate the voices of female visual journalists,’ offering an additional resource for editors as well as grants and workshops for female photographers. I read on.

“Canon will work with Women Photograph to aid their travel grant program which funds female and non-binary photographers to attend workshops, hostile environment trainings, festivals, and other developmental opportunities.”

If you’re a brand looking to grab a slice of the #MeToo pie, you could definitely do much worse than this. Case in point: McDonald’s put on a master class this year in getting it wrong. The fast food giant announced that it would be turning its logo upside down to recognize International Women’s Day… a “W” instead of an “M”… for women… get it? Critics spoke up quickly, pointing out that it felt like an empty gesture coming from a company that can afford to do much more.

The upside down arches were on my mind when I started reading that press release from Canon this morning, so it felt very reassuring to see the brand pledging real support behind an effort created by, and created for, women photographers. Sure, it’s all marketing at the end of the day, and I truly hope Canon’s support of Women Photograph doesn’t begin and end with a one-time workshop. Issuing a press release is cheap. Following through, and staying committed in the long term isn’t.

But if you’re going to talk about supporting women on International Women’s Day, please don’t just give us an empowering logo and a T-shirt. Instead, put your money where your mouth is.

CANON U.S.A. LENDS ITS SUPPORT TO WOMEN PHOTOGRAPH, AN INITIATIVE CREATED TO PROMOTE THE REPRESENTATION OF FEMALE PHOTOJOURNALISTS

Association Will Help Elevate the Voices of Female and Non-binary Photographers

MELVILLE, N.Y., March 8, 2018 – In conjunction with International Women’s Day (IWD), the global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is excited to announce their association with Women Photograph, a movement created to promote the representation of female photojournalists. Canon will work with Women Photograph to aid their travel grant program which funds female and non-binary photographers to attend workshops, hostile environment trainings, festivals, and other developmental opportunities.

Launched in 2017 and founded by photojournalist Daniella Zalcman, Women Photograph is an initiative to shift the gender makeup of the photojournalism community. A private database that includes more than 700 independent female documentary photographers based in 91 countries, any commissioning editor or organization can utilize the database for their photojournalistic hiring needs.

“I can’t think of a better way to celebrate this year’s IWD than to support an initiative that is enriching the professional advancement of female and non-binary photojournalists,” said Elizabeth Pratt, director of professional client development and support and Canon Professional Services. “Women Photograph has created a home for professional women photojournalists to showcase their work for potential clients and Canon is honored to help continue the momentum of this initiative.”

Canon Professional Services will host a Women Photograph Workshop at the Canon Customer Experience Center in Orange County, CA in December. Dates and details will be provided by Women Photograph.

“Canon is an ideal strategic partner as we ensure that our industry’s chief storytellers are as diverse as the communities they hope to represent,” said Daniella Zalcman, founder and director of Women Photograph. “So much of breaking into the photojournalism industry relies on networking and professional development events that can be prohibitively expensive and the generous support from Canon will help our photographers access these resources.”

For more information about Women Photograph or to learn more about the travel grant program and the upcoming workshop, log onto: https://www.womenphotograph.com/.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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RAW Versus JPEG – Which one is right for you and why?

04 Mar

Most cameras today can shoot pictures in one of two main formats: RAW versus JPEG. The debate about which format to use is as old as digital photography itself and the internet is rife with articles, blogs, videos, and seminars illustrating the differences between the formats as well as opinions regarding which one to use.

Ultimately the question of which is the correct choice becomes steeped in subjectivity. There is no single objective correct answer, which is a lesson I learned over the course of many years. Instead of asking which option is right, the real question should be which option is right for you.

RAW Versus JPEG - Which one to use and why?

Straight-out-of-camera JPEG file.

Differentiating between the formats

Understanding the difference between RAW and JPEG file formats is a bit tricky since both appear somewhat similar at first glance. Afterall, when you load either file type into Lightroom or another photo editor you see pretty much the same thing.

However, when you take a picture in RAW you are saving as much data as your camera sensor can possibly collect. Whereas a JPEG file discards some of the data in favor of creating an image that takes up less space on your memory card and is easy to share. With RAW files you gain a huge amount of flexibility in terms of editing the file, and a lot of photographers prefer this as a way to get the most out of their images.

RAW is somewhat comparable to analog film in that RAW files can be manipulated, massaged, and modified to bring to life details from dark areas, recover crystal-clear clouds from what you thought was an overexposed skyline, and improve images dramatically in almost every way.

JPEG files don’t offer nearly as much flexibility, but they do have some significant advantages in their own right. The most notable of which is a much smaller file size and ease of sharing, since JPEG files don’t need to be converted in a program like Lightroom, Photoshop, Luminar, etc.

It wasn’t RAW or JEPG that helped me get this photo. It was an understanding, developed from years of practice, of how light, aperture, focal length, and other parameters can be manipulated to create a compelling image.

The important thing to note is that neither format is inherently better than the other and each has its uses. To illustrate what I mean I’m going to share a bit from my own experience.

Starting from scratch

My own journey through the RAW versus JPEG continuum started shortly after I got serious about digital photography many years ago, in a manner not dissimilar from many photographers. When I got my first DSLR I didn’t know anything about RAW and instead fiddled with different JPEG settings in order to find a balance of quality and quantity.

I eventually settled on the Medium size and Medium compression so as to make sure I could take well over 4000 images before running out of space on my memory card. I had heard about the RAW setting but ignored it since it would only let me fit a couple hundred shots on my memory card which seemed silly compared to several thousand.

RAW Versus JPEG - Which one to use and why?

As months went by, I became intrigued with the flexibility offered by the RAW format despite the larger size of each image file. I learned to edit my pictures in Lightroom by changing White Balance, boosting the shadows, editing color filters in the black and white mode, and even applying Radial and Gradient filters.

I soon realized that the trade-off in file size was worth it because I could do so much more with my images in post-production. “Who wouldn’t want to shoot in RAW?” I asked myself. I also often engaged other aspiring photographers in the discussion of shooting RAW versus JPEG while believing that RAW was clearly the superior format.

RAW Versus JPEG - Which one is right for you and why?

Original picture, shot in RAW format.

Finished version after some editing in Lightroom. If the original was shot in JPG I never would have been able to get a final result like this.

It didn’t take much longer until I was shooting everything in RAW. My kids eating breakfast, my family vacations, formal portrait sessions, random nature shots of animals and leaves…you name it, I shot it in RAW. Shooting in JPEG, I told myself, was for suckers who didn’t know any better!

Each time I loaded yet another round of my RAW files into Lightroom (while getting something to drink and finding a place to put my feet up while the initial previews loaded) I knew that no matter what the pictures looked like I had the absolute best photo quality money could buy.

I was enamored with the RAW workflow and editing flexibility. Shadows too dark? No problem, just lighten them with a few sliders. White Balance a little off? Sky looking a bit too gray? Spots from dust on the lens? Too much noise from shooting at ISO 12,800? All these worries could be erased with a few clicks and sliders, and my images would be ~~instantly~~ slowly transformed from adequate to awesome.

RAW Versus JPEG - Which one is right for you and why?

Cracks in the facade

As the years went on I found myself learning, growing, and changing as a photographer, but ironically enjoying the editing process less and less. I recall the distinct and overwhelming feeling of photographic oppression settling in as I returned home from family trips only to load my RAW files into Lightroom and be faced with hundreds of minor edits to make on each one before I was satisfied with the results.

To combat this I made a develop custom preset that contained basic adjustments such as highlight/shadows, sharpening, and clarity and applied that to every single one of my pictures upon import.

Weeks would often go by before I would be ready to share my pictures because I was stuck in the rut of meticulous editing. Even a simple birthday party for my son’s friend turned into a month-long wait because I didn’t want to share any pictures unless they were adjusted to perfection. With a family and a full-time job, the act of tweaking my images became more of a burden than an enjoyment.

I did not like the idea of tweaking hundreds of RAW files just to enjoy pictures of my family.

What I came to realize after years of doing this was that I simply wasn’t interested in reaping the benefits of shooting RAW for my own personal photography. For client work, I continued to shoot RAW in order to make sure the end results were as good as they could possibly be.

But for nearly all of my own personal pictures, I got to a mental state where I simply didn’t care about editing each and every single picture. Occasionally I would make some cropping adjustments, but I realized I was pretty happy with the results I was getting straight out of my camera.

I didn’t dare shoot in JPEG though because Real Photographers Shoot RAW…or so I thought. I didn’t want to admit that RAW wasn’t really doing much for me, and I thought shooting JPEG was tantamount to admitting I didn’t know what I was doing. That I couldn’t handle the ropes of what it meant to be a true photographer, a true artist.

A revelation occurs

This state of confusion and self-doubt continued until late 2017 when I came across this video from Tony Northup.

Watching that was somewhat of a revelation and helped me realize that I wasn’t any less of a photographer if I shot in anything but the RAW format. While there’s certainly something to be said for capturing images in the highest possible quality, there is also something to be said for speed and convenience – both areas in which JPEG excels.

What I have realized as I looked back over my images from the past several years is that I’ve gotten significantly better at the aspects of photography that shooting in RAW can’t fix at all. I’ve learned about composition, lighting, capturing emotions, when to shoot, how to ask for permission from strangers, and even how to share images online in a more effective manner.

I have learned to put my camera down and enjoy the moment, and I’ve learned that not everything in life needs to be photographed ad infinitum. RAW can’t help if my kids are out of focus or if my angles are bad, and I’ve learned to pay better attention to my light meter and exposure settings so I don’t need to recover highlights and shadows in post-production like I did when I started out.

Straight-out-of-camera JPEG.

Permission to be imperfect

More importantly, I have come to a place as a photographer where I don’t need each and every one of my pictures to be perfect. When I look through photo albums from when I was a kid almost none of the images are ideal. Many are a little under or over-exposed, the framing isn’t always right, and there’s plenty of red-eye issues that could use fixing thanks to my dad’s copious use of his external flash. But it’s the emotions, the feelings, the memories, and the people in those images that really matter the most to me.

When I scroll through images from 15 years ago when all my wife and I had was a cheesy little pocket camera, I don’t care that most of them are low-res JPEG files. It’s what’s in the pictures that matter, and nowadays I’d rather spend my time capturing good photos than editing my RAW files.

A photo of my friends and I on a high school trip to Disney World in 1997. It may not be perfect but I don’t need it to be. It’s the people and the memories I care about, not whether it was shot in RAW or JPEG. (Spoiler: it was shot on film!)

Enabling the JPEG option on my camera has felt like a breath of fresh air, and I’m back to enjoying photography in a way I haven’t done in years. I’m experimenting with my Fuji camera’s built-in ACROS and Classic Chrome film simulations, and I’ve even created what basically amounts to a Lightroom preset in my camera by adding some highlight/shadow/sharpening adjustments using the various menu options. It’s great fun, requires no extra Lightroom editing, and I’m back to enjoying photography the way I used to so many years ago.

Choose both

Above all else, it’s important to understand that shooting in RAW versus JPEG does not have to be a strict dichotomy. It’s taken many years, but I now feel comfortable knowing when to use RAW, when to use JPEG, and understanding the benefits and drawbacks of each. Even though I mostly shoot JPEG for casual snapshots I’ll occasionally switch over to RAW if I think the situation demands it.

I chose to use RAW instead of JPEG for this snapshot because I knew I would have to deal with some bright highlights and dark shadows, and I’d be able to finesse the image in Lightroom to get it how I wanted if I shot RAW.

Finding a solution that works for you

The reason there is no answer to the question of whether to use RAW or JPEG is that every photographer must figure out his or her own approach. For me, shooting JPG is just fine in most situations. One could argue that I’m not getting as much out of my images as I could be, and perhaps that is indeed true.

But if using RAW causes me to dread the process of editing and abate my photography altogether then I would say shooting RAW actually results in me getting less out of my photos than I could be if I were using JPEG.

When doing formal sessions for clients I always use RAW even if I think I might not need it. It’s a safety net that has come in handy far too often.

Conclusion

I should also note that many cameras can offer the best of both worlds by letting you shoot in RAW+JPEG mode. If you like the JPEG file, great! And if not, you have the RAW file which you can edit to your heart’s content. If you’re on the fence this might be an option to consider, but beware that it will fill up your memory cards much faster than you might realize.

As I close I want to offer one final piece of advice, or rather, reiterate a point I hinted at earlier. Don’t let anyone tell you that your method, approach or viewpoint is not valid. If you like RAW, great! Go ahead and use it. If you prefer JPEG, you are no less of a photographer than someone who swears by RAW.

I would recommend learning as much as you can and experimenting with available options so you can make an informed decision. But at the end of the day, if you like the results you’re getting from your approach then, by all means, go ahead and do it. Now stop reading, get off the internet, pick up your camera, and go out to take some photos!

The post RAW Versus JPEG – Which one is right for you and why? by Simon Ringsmuth appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Which Street Photography Lens is Right for You?

25 Feb

The correct lens for the correct photo is a debate often heard among many photographers. In this article, you’ll see the various merits of three different street photography lenses. The 50mm lens is often thought of as the perfect lens for street photography, perhaps even the only one.

Using different focal lengths can dramatically change the type of photos you take, though. So let’s take a look at which street photography lens might be right for you!

Which Street Photography Lens is Right for You?

This photo was taken at 135mm. There is still plenty of context in this scene, even at the longer focal length.

Wide-angle to get in close

This class of lens is usually thought of as a landscape, or architecture photography lens. That may be true, though using it for street photography is equally valid. So why might you use a wide-angle lens in your street photography work?

Get close – That famous Robert Capa quote that I’m sure you’ve seen, “If your pictures are not good enough, you’re not close enough.” Well, when you use a wide-angle lens for street photography you’ll have to get close. This will get you closer to the action and will lead to the following.
Tell more story – Capturing a wider scene will allow more context to come into your photo. If you can avoid the photograph becoming too cluttered, and you retain a clear focus on the main subject you will likely have a great photo.
Interaction – Getting close to your subject means interacting with your subject, most likely a person. They’ll now know you’re taking their photo. How you use this to your advantage depends on you. Building a positive relationship with your subject will enhance your photo, even if that relationship is short.

This photo required a wide-angle lens to capture the whole scene. It was photographed at 17mm, and I was close to the people I captured in the image.

The nifty fifty, the classic street photography lens

The icon of street photography, it really is one of the best lenses out there. There are several different options for this lens along with the more expensive variety having a larger aperture. What makes the 50mm lens such a good choice for street photography then?

Normal field of view – This lens gives you a field of view that’s close to what your eyes see, a trait desirable for street photos. So you’re not dealing with a distorted view when using this type of lens. This assumes you’re using a full frame camera, crop sensors will give you a longer focal length of around 75mm on a 50mm lens.
The Depth of Field – As a prime lens with a fixed focal length these lenses have a large aperture of at least f/1.8. This allows you to create a shallow depth of field, and to blur out the background. This control can really help you take better street photos when it is applied well.
Comfortable distance – With this lens you’ll be close to your subject, but not in their face. A 50mm will also include enough of the surrounding scene to allow context in your photo.
Fast lens – This lens can be used in low light conditions. The combination of a wide aperture and mid-range focal length make this a fast lens and a good option to use at night.

There’s no getting away from it, the 50mm lens is GREAT for street photography.

Long focal length for the unobtrusive photographer

At the longer focal lengths, you’ll be positioned farther from your subject, far enough that they may not spot you taking their photo. This type of lens is the choice of the paparazzi, although it’s unlikely you’ll be using a lens with the same kind of focal lengths (really long!).

So what are the advantages of standing a bit further back?

Capture the moment – When the person you’re photographing is oblivious to your presence, the chance of the moment being natural is a lot higher.
Compress the scene – This allows you to focus much more on the subject, but the risk is that you don’t include the area around them so you lose some of the story. It’s still possible to provide context at longer focal lengths, you will just have to stand even farther back.
Avoid confrontation – Not everyone wants their photo taken, and photos taken without permission can cause a confrontation if you’re caught. While it’s better to build a relationship with the person you want to photograph, sometimes what they don’t know won’t hurt them. In this case, using a longer telephoto lens allows you to get the photo, without causing a scene.

This photo was taken using a 135mm lens. You can see the street vendor preparing food, the outside scene isn’t visible though.

Extra tip

When taking street photos with a long focal length you can sometimes take advantage of a shard of light. This will typically happen when there is a gap in the roof, perhaps in a market. Underexpose your photo at -2 or even -3 EV, with just enough exposure to give detail to your subject, but make the rest of the photo black. This will give some minimalism to your photo, which is a nice effect.

This image was photographed at 180mm, on a camera with a crop factor of 1.6x. The shard of light was used to make the background black, as it is underexposed.

What’s your preferred street photography lens?

Many people will stick to the 50mm lens as their street photography lens of choice, but there are alternatives available. To this day, my favorite street photo was taken at full zoom with a 70-300mm lens.

How about you, do you have a favored lens for street photography? How about trying a different lens, and see how that changes the types of photos you get?

Here at dPS, we love to hear your opinions, so let us know what you think. We’d also love to see your examples of street photos, together with the lens you used to take that photo. Please share in the comments section below.

Here is a selection of lenses that could be used for street photography.

This is a scene captured using a wide-angle lens, photographed at 17mm.

The scene was photographed at night. The 50mm lens is fast, and ideal for this type of scene.

This scene also shows the 50mm lens in action.

Even a fish-eye lens can be used for street photography. Though admittedly this photo is also architectural.

The post Which Street Photography Lens is Right for You? by Simon Bond appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Really Right Stuff is moving from California to Utah to escape rising costs

22 Feb

Camera accessories company Really Right Stuff (RRS) has announced that it will be moving both its headquarters and its manufacturing operations to Lehi, Utah, where it will have access to a building that is 2.5 times larger than its current location. The company points toward increasing costs in California, where it is presently located, as the reason for the move.

“We love beautiful San Luis Obispo, but our employees can’t afford to buy a home,” RRS CEO Joseph M. Johnson explained in a statement on the company’s website. Most of RRS’s employees will be making the move to the new Utah location, which is 35 minutes from Salt Lake City.

This is good news for customers who will ultimately benefit from the location change. Speaking to Fstoppers, RRS Assistant Product Manager Nathanael Brookshire said the new building will open the door for a larger workforce and expanded production: “The move comes with expansion on every level.”

Press Release

RRS Is Moving To Lehi, Utah

San Luis Obispo, CA, 16 February 2018 – Really Right Stuff, LLC (RRS) is pleased to announce it is moving its manufacturing operations and headquarters to Lehi, Utah by the end of summer 2018. The move to a new, 2 ½ times larger building enables continued growth and allows RRS to better serve its customers.

CEO Joseph M. Johnson, Sr. commented, “Continually rising costs in California make it tough for a small business to compete in the global economy. We love beautiful San Luis Obispo, but our employees can’t afford to buy a home. The business-friendly environment and low cost of living in Lehi, Utah made it a clear choice for us to best serve our customers and employees long-term. I’m happy to see most of our employees coming with us, keeping our RRS family largely intact.”

Located 35 minutes south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front of the Rocky Mountains, Lehi is an ideal location for Really Right Stuff. It is the fifth fastest growing city in the country at the center of the high tech “Silicon Slopes.” Lehi’s beautiful natural surroundings provide easy access to hiking, mountain biking, fishing, camping, skiing, hunting, and, of course, excellent outdoor photography that spurred the birth of RRS. Six national parks are within a 4-5 hour drive from Lehi, including Yellowstone and Zion.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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The right tool: why one photographer brings only an iPhone to document his trips to Nepal

04 Feb

Chitwan National Park, Nepal. iPhone 8 Plus in HDR mode.
Photograph by Robert Rose

Robert Rose has operated the Brant Photographers portrait studio in Bellevue, WA for almost 35 years. He is an active member and past president of the Bellevue Rotary Club, a service organization and part of Rotary International. In 2006, he founded The Rose International Fund for Children (TRIFC.org), a nonprofit aimed at helping children and young adults with disability in Nepal. Also, he’s my dad.

The emotional and storytelling potential of a powerful image remains as strong as ever, regardless of the tools used.

At least once a year, dinner at my parents’ is a bittersweet affair as dad prepares to embark on another six-week (or longer) trip to Nepal. During these trips, he’ll lead tour groups whose members have raised funds for TRIFC, he’ll check in on project sites and, most importantly, document the positive impact that TRIFC is having on some of Nepal’s most vulnerable youth.

His documentary camera of choice these days? An iPhone 8 Plus.

This came up as we were chatting about DPReview’s recent iPhone X review, and I couldn’t help but be a bit bemused that my dad, a man who built much of his portrait business decades ago with a Hasselblad 500C, was using a phone for all of his documentary travel work.

But the more we talked about it, the more I became interested in – and began to appreciate – how the phone is really the perfect tool for the job he’s trying to do these days.

The transition

iPhone 8 Plus in portrait mode. Photograph by Robert Rose

My dad started regularly traveling to India and Nepal in the late 1990s (I would make my first trip with him as a fourth-grader in 1999). In those early days, he was partnering with existing nonprofits and local Rotary clubs, and volunteered his time and expertise as a photographer to help them tell their stories.

Back then, he traveled with a 35mm film SLR (a Canon EOS 650, if you’re curious), a zoom lens and a lead-lined bag stuffed with film. Sure, film was a pain what with worrying about x-ray machines and incredibly hot temperatures, but the results were far better than what was possible with digital at the time. This was especially important as he started displaying and selling prints to help fund projects.

Australian Camp, Pokhara, Nepal. iPhone 8 Plus.
Photograph by Robert Rose

Print sales helped raise a good amount of money for a while, but as digital photography took off, the monetary value of individual photographs came crashing down. No longer feeling as though the print exhibitions were worth the effort, dad started leaving the film at home – but he didn’t stop taking photographs. He just started taking them for different reasons.

Today, between events, marketing, social media and other forms of outreach, TRIFC brings in the vast majority of its funding through individual donations. But to reach people, you still need to give them a reason to donate, and you need to tell them a compelling story, and the emotional and storytelling potential of a powerful image remains as strong as ever – regardless of the tools used.

The right tool for the job

Sima was born with blindness, and today, her education is sponsored through one of TRIFC’s programs. iPhone 8 Plus in portrait mode.
Photograph by Robert Rose

For my dad, the camera used is one of the least important aspects of a photograph. Whether he’s using his Nikon D610 or his iPhone, he’s looking for the right light, the right angle and the right expression. He stays in the moment, endeavoring to honor whatever his subject might be by taking the best photograph he can.

The resolution of the iPhone isn’t much of a limiting factor these days; even when he’s giving presentations, the images hold up well when blown up on a projector screen. And it goes without saying that even 12 megapixels can be overkill for social media and email marketing.

Perhaps most importantly, my dad finds photography with the iPhone to be refreshing, fun and freeing. And as he turns 60 this year, he definitely isn’t missing the bulky DSLR swinging from around his neck.

Pokhara, Nepal. iPhone 8 Plus.
Photograph by Robert Rose

Then there’s the workflow advantages; On his most recent trip, dad went with only his iPhone and a bluetooth keyboard. Backups are taken care of automatically via the cloud, image editing is intuitive and non-destructive. He can choose an assortment of images or video clips, write a short Facebook post and publish it right then and there in a matter of minutes – all without a laptop, a hard drive or a ton of easily misplaced memory cards.

Convenience can be a huge plus, especially when you’re at altitude, fighting jet lag and trying to keep up with emails at the end of a long day.

But not the tool for every job

Niraj Acharya, a student with hearing impairment, poses for a portrait. iPhone 8 Plus in portrait mode.
Photograph by Robert Rose

My dad is quick to point out that, as transformative as a good smartphone camera has been for his travel and documentary work, it hasn’t changed much at home here in the Seattle area. Sure, it’s great to have a decent camera with you all the time when you happen upon a neat opportunity, but he’s not going to be doing corporate headshots with an iPhone any time soon.

For us photographers, it really comes down to personal preferences and purpose.

And though dad’s a big fan of portrait mode, he admits he’d like it to work a bit more reliably and he sees the lighting modes as ‘gimmicky.’ Contour lighting can add interest to an image that lacks great lighting to begin with, he says, but when you’re looking for good light every time you take a photo, augmenting that light digitally can look a bit phony.

Lastly, as we reported in our review, dad found that the low-light performance of the iPhone is pretty poor – images can be blurry, noisy, or both. The Google Pixel does some clever image stacking to offer far better results (keep an eye out for our upcoming review), but since Dad’s invested in (and really enjoys) the Apple ecosystem, he’s hoping that low light quality is something that Apple’s working on for the next generation of iPhones.

What’s next?

Bhoudanath Stupa, Kathmandu, Nepal. iPhone 8 Plus.
Photograph by Robert Rose

I’ll admit this was an enlightening conversation for me – after all, the last time I went to Nepal with my dad, I brought a D700 and constantly swapped between two lenses the entire time. I also ended up with some images I’m really happy with, and I think I’m just too much of a gear nut to travel somewhere like Nepal without a ‘real’ camera.

That said, it’s really hard to argue with the convenience, the compactness, the ever-improving image quality and the overall capability of smartphones for the seasoned world traveler. In fact, it’s not uncommon to go along on one of these trips and encounter someone who has just bought a camera for the purpose of this new venture, only to find that they mostly use their phone because they hadn’t bothered to practice or read the manual for their new device.

Kathmandu cucumbers. iPhone 8 Plus. Photograph by Robert Rose

My dad thinks that, while we’ll still continue to see cell phone cameras improve, there will always be a market for real cameras and lenses, though it may continue to shrink for a while. But for us photographers, it really just comes down to personal preferences and purpose.

There’s no doubt that a camera with a full-frame sensor will produce technically better images than a smartphone, but the resulting photographs depend much more on the hands that camera is resting in, and the perspective of the person hitting the shutter. And in the end, it’s the photographs – not the camera – that matter most.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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Review: Rylo is a 360º camera done right

06 Jan

The Rylo camera captures a 360º spherical image. Its companion mobile app makes it possible to export standard HD video from anywhere in the image.

Over the past couple of years I’ve tried quite a few consumer-oriented 360º cameras, and while I’m generally excited about the future prospects of 360º photo and video, I’ve also been of the opinion that applications and technology need to improve before it really gets traction with consumers.

Part of my ambivalence towards 360º video stems from the fact that few of the cameras I’ve tried really do anything unique. Almost universally, they capture spherical video that requires a VR headset to view, or which requires the viewer to drag around an image to find the part of the scene they care about.

The Rylo Camera ($ 499) takes a different approach. Although it captures 360º photos and video, it does so with the idea that you can later select a region of the image from which to create a standard 16:9 HD video. It’s basically like an action cam that lets you decide where to point the camera after you’ve shot your footage.

It’s basically like an action cam that lets you decide where to point the camera after you’ve shot your footage.

On the hardware side of things, the Rylo looks much like any other VR or action camera. It has two fisheye lenses and records 4K spherical video or 6K spherical photos. The body is aluminum and feels very solid – much more so than most action cameras I’ve used. A small door provides access to the MicroSD card and battery, and a small display shows remaining battery and recording time.

However, it’s the software that makes the Rylo really interesting. Video is copied to your mobile device via the included cable, and the camera’s companion app provides numerous opportunities for getting creative.

Before you even begin working with your footage, the app applies automatic horizon leveling and image stabilization. You don’t even notice how effectively this works until you turn these features off, but once you do so it becomes apparent that this correction is really good.

This video shows the same clip with the Rylo’s image stabilization and horizon correction turned on (left) and turned off (right). It works very effectively.
Video by Dale Baskin

To begin editing a video, you simply open a clip and select your desired framing within the app. You could export your HD video at that point, but you would be ignoring the software’s best feature: the ability to direct the camera after the fact.

One way to do this is to tap and hold the screen, then select the option to ‘Look Here’. Doing so locks the camera at that position and creates a keyframe. It’s possible to create multiple keyframes at different locations throughout your clip, and the software will virtually tilt and pan as needed to transition between them.

Even better, you can let the software do the work for you. In addition to ‘Look Here’, there’s also a ‘Follow This’ option that locks onto a subject and tracks it, smoothly panning and tilting like a virtual camera on a gimbal. I found this feature surprisingly effective, and it produced very natural looking footage.

My friend Stu West offered to take the Rylo skiing with his family for a day. In this video we used the app’s Follow Me feature to track the skier down the hill. Stu pointed the camera straight ahead through the entire run; most of the camera movement is the result of virtual panning by the Rylo app.
Video by Stu West

If you want to see the world a bit differently, there’s also a ‘Tiny Planet’ view that shrinks the entirety of your world down into a small sphere.

In addition to motion control, the software also includes the ability to trim clips and perform basic corrections including highlights, shadows, vibrance, and tone (WB). It’s fairly basic, but enough that you can generally adjust the footage to your taste.

The biggest challenge I ran into when shooting video was adjusting my own behavior. I had a tendency to point the camera at my subject as it moved around, much like you would do with an action cam. That actually made editing a bit more difficult, so I had to learn to hold the camera still, then virtually change my camera direction later using the app.

This clip shows an example of the Rylo’s Tiny Planet mode. (Note: the camera records sound in this mode, but we chose not to include it.)
Video by Stu West

The Rylo can also be used for still photos, but I found the experience less satisfying. There’s no way to remotely trigger the shutter from your phone; instead, you have to physically press the shutter button, meaning that your hand is guaranteed to cover much of the photo. As with video, you can select your framing after the fact, but the largest image size is 1080p video resolution, though in practice resolution appears to be somewhat lower than that.

Of course, the Rylo is also a 360º camera that can be used to export spherical images or video. In that sense, it doubles as a VR cam if you want to share a VR experience.

Battery life is respectable. Rylo claims 60 minutes of continuous recording using the interchangeable battery, which is just about enough to fill a 64GB memory card, and based on my experience that seems about right.

The Rylo captures 6K spherical VR photos. It’s possible to export framed images at resolutions up to 1920×1080 pixels.
Photo by Dale Baskin

Speaking of memory, one thing you’ll need is a lot of free space on your mobile device. At its high quality setting, the camera records at a rate of approximately 1GB/minute, and your phone will need enough free space to copy all the footage.

As much as I enjoyed using the Rylo, it’s not perfect. The 1080p video files it exports are, in reality, somewhat lower resolution. That’s not surprising considering that total resolution for the entire spherical file is 4K. That said, it looks very good on a smartphone screen, so if you’re sharing to social media where people are likely to watch on a mobile device it will look fine.

…the camera records at a rate of approximately 1GB/minute, and your phone will need enough free space to copy all the footage.

It would also be nice if the camera were waterproof. The included ‘Everyday Case’ with handle is well designed and very effective, but if you want more protection you’ll need to spring for the ‘Adventure Case’ ($ 69).

The Rylo is a great example of a 360º camera done right. Rather than just capturing spherical video and expecting your audience to view it as such, it provides a set of tools that allow you focus in on telling your story, as well to share that story in a way that’s comfortable and familiar to most people. Sure, I wish the video quality were a bit better, but I’d likely choose the Rylo over many action cameras because it provides such an easy way to direct the action after the fact.

It’s also a reminder that there’s a lot of potential opportunity for 360º cameras if manufacturers are willing to think outside the box. Or, maybe I should say outside the sphere.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

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