Year: 2011

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Is Facebook the New “.com”?

photo compliments of iStockphoto.com

Facebook has been growing by leaps and bounds and with over 500 Million Users it's no longer just for kids nor can it be ignored. I've noticed that more and more companies are not only staking out a presence on Facebook, but they are even using their Facebook Pages in lieu of their corporate sites when they advertise on TV and in print. All of these screen grabs (Pepsi, Gerber, Carnival, etc.) were from the last frame of their respective TV commercials…

 

People don't wake up to go your site every day

One thing I came to the realization of last year was that while we may flatter ourselves in thinking that our customers love to come to our sites on a regular basis, chances are the vast majority don't visit your corporate site each day. Think about it. You probably go to most corporate sites when you either have a problem or you're ready to buy something new. It's probably not your daily hangout. You probably don't think to go there to "connect" with the company. On the other hand people go to Facebook EVERY DAY with the sole purpose of connectingt with others. While I definitely appreciate those of you who come here and read my posts, I know that there are millions of people out there that will NEVER come here. In 2010 I had the goal of "being everywhere." What that meant to me was expanding beyond my own .com and placing my content in more places. I was very happy with the results. I now have over 8,000 Twitter followers and over 3,000 Facebook Fans (Likes). I also have over 3 Million views of my YouTube content as well as millions of downloads of my content on iTunes. In most cases many of these users would never see my content on the other/opposite sites. 

 

Why are more companies using Facebook?

Besides the obvious reason of there being a potential audience of 500 million users, Facebook makes it easy for companies to have DIRECT contact with customers without resorting to spam, opt-in policies, building microsites, etc. Also existing Facebook users are more likely to check out their favorite brands on Facebook.com than they are to visit those same corporate sites on a regular/daily basis.

The other benefit is that while many of these companies have their own "forums" for direct communication, users don't have to setup logins for multiple sites. Just log in once to Facebook and visit any company you want and post on their wall. I think that another reason why companies are putting themselves on Facebook is that it's much easier and faster updating a Facebook Page than it is going through the usual red tape, legal, political fronts getting the main corporate site updated. Usually the larger the corporation, the harder it is to get something on the official company website. Sometimes I think the US Congress moves faster! Companies tend to be a little more lax and "casual" when it comes to their social media presence and that's actually a good thing! It feels more "friendly". 

 

You have to be prepared to take the bad with the good

Continue reading “Is Facebook the New “.com”?”

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What Do You Want To Publish To Tablet Devices (iPad)?

Adobe's Digital Publishing Suite (currently in beta) is being well received by the Magazine Publishing industry. However, I've heard time and time again from customers as I present it, "what about us?" Usually this means that they have a project in mind that goes beyond a magazine and they don't have to budget to pay a relatively high monthly hosting cost. Also at the same time these customers don't have the resources to build their own custom Apps and distribution model.

Maybe it's an interactive brochure, a portfolio, a newsletter, a company dossier, etc.? We're entering a world that is moving beyond "static" content and desktop computers. Adobe PDF revolutionized the way companies distributed documents in the 1990s. While it's still a great solution, let's look forward for a moment. What's next?

 

This is your chance to tell me (us) how you would use a tablet based document creation/delivery solution

First of all there has to be a universal way of getting the document onto tablets. With PDF you can be pretty sure that over 90% of the world has the Free Adobe Reader or ways of viewing a PDF. With Tablets/iPad, not everyone is going to want to or need to build a custom App. The current Adobe Preview Tool in the App Store is great because anyone can download it and view your Adobe .ISSUE files. However, loading documents into it currently requires iTunes and syncing if you're not using our hosted solution. Clearly there is a need to make this better and easier. Once we get past the "App" need, what do you want?

Give me some examples of how you would use a solution like this. What kind of documents would you publish? 

Sound off in the comment section and make your case as to "what" you want to publish to the iPad?

Continue reading “What Do You Want To Publish To Tablet Devices (iPad)?”

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Guest Blog featuring Scott Diussa: Basic Audio for DSLR Video Shooters

Hi Everyone! My name is Scott Diussa and I’m the Field Operations Manager for Nikon Professional Services. I want to thank Terry for the opportunity to share with you something that I have been talking to photographers about more and more in the past year or two. If you have been a DSLR still image shooter for a long time and you are making your way into the world of creating multimedia projects with your DSLR that shoots HD video then you have been experiencing quite a learning curve. Now, I’m not say that learning curve has been solely based around how to actually shoot the video footage with a camera that wasn’t originally designed for this purpose, I’m talking about the fact that now you have to be an audio expert just as much as a video expert! It’s sort of like when digital photography first came out, people could shoot the images but had no idea that they now had to be their own photo lab! But, things change and the more you learn the better you get so I’m going to talk to you today about some of the basics of audio and how they relate to DSLR video that I think will help you from here on out with any of your multimedia projects.

First of all, before I went to school for photography I went to school for audio engineering. There I learned a lot, actually too much to retain. But, even thought that was in the late days of analog audio the principles of things such as microphones and levels and editing still remain the same today. This isn’t any different than a photographer coming from film to digital photography. Camera bodies, apertures, shutter speeds and lenses still do the same thing as they did when film was king. So, as you can see there are ways of relating some theories about audio to photography and that’s what I plan to do here to make understanding the relationship between the two easier. So, let’s get started…
 

Microphones (Lenses)

There are just as many microphone choice and price ranges as there are lenses in photography or even more so… It can be a pretty overwhelming task to choose the right one. But, as any good photographer knows, you can’t just have one lens that does it all. Sure you can have one that does a lot but there isn’t one single lens that does it all. This is exactly the same for microphones as well. Also, when it comes to lenses… you get what you pay for. It’s the same with microphones. Of course, there’s always the thought of… get what you need to get the job done… within reason.

There are two main types of microphones available that you will need to understand some basic about, dynamic and condenser.

Dynamic mics are more durable, less sensitive and don’t require any extra power to work. They deliver what known as a “mic level” signal which requires a device such as a mixer at the other end to amplify the sound to “line level” which is what a DSLR camera mic input needs. So, most mics that hook up to a DSLR camera are not dynamic mics.

Condenser mics are a bit more fragile (but not too bad in some cases) and require either a battery or what called “phantom power”. “Phantom power” is delivered to the microphone by a mixer and DSLR cameras don’t work this way. So, mics that you will get that work well for a DSLR camera will require a battery. These mics deliver “line level” output that the camera likes in order to deliver good quality sound. There are other variables in play here, too, but let’s keep it somewhat simple today.

Now that we know we are most likely going to be using mics that require their own power source which type of mic will we need? Just like lenses, it all depends on the shooting situation. If you are going want a “wide angle” type of sound then you would want a stereo mic. If you want a more “telephoto” sound then you would want a shotgun mic. Those are the two main types of mics that you will use on a normal basis. So, if your multimedia piece needs to portray a sound moving from left to right then a stereo mic would allow the sound to go from left to right. If you are needing to capture the sound of a single voice then a shotgun mic will do a better job of picking up that voice and ignoring the competing sound off to the sides of the subject.

Another type of mic that is commonly used in any sort of video interview situation is a “lav” mic. You’ve seen these on every news person on TV. It’s the small mic clipped to the lapel of a shirt that is somewhat un-noticeable. You can have either wired or wireless versions of these microphones. Wireless versions can be expensive but there is a new one coming out by Samson that looks very interesting…

Continue reading “Guest Blog featuring Scott Diussa: Basic Audio for DSLR Video Shooters”

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How to Work with Layers in InDesign and Photoshop CS5

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6TeU-OVXR4

 

Once again I'm addressing a question from my Facebook Fan Page. In this episode I'll show you how to work with both object layers and pixel layers in the various Adobe Creative Suite 5 products. See how to use layers in InDesign CS5 and then see how to composite with Layers in Photoshop CS5.

See more of my Adobe Creative Suite Videos on my Adobe Creative Suite Podcast and get the App here. It features EXCLUSIVE CONTENT that no one else gets to see:

Learn Adobe Creative Suite with Terry White - Wizzard Media

 

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Charge Up To 4 Devices At Once

photo compliments of iStockphoto.com

Last week I told you about a great new home improvement gadget, the U-Socket that allows you to charge multiple USB devices via newly designed wall outlet. However, what if you want to charge multiple USB devices while you're on the road? After all I'm finding more and more of my devices (phone, bluetooth headset, iPod, iPad, camera GPS, etc.) now charge via USB power. 

I do like the Belkin Mini Surge Protector Dual USB Charger, but it doesn't play well on the higher voltage abroad. For this reason it's no longer in my travel bag.

 

Charge Up to 4 Devices via USB On The Go

 

I found this wall charger that charges up to 4 devices (including the iPad) at once. It also can handle 100-240v input, which means I can use it abroad with the appropriate adapter. I like that it has a blue LED to let you know whether or not it's getting power. In my limited testing it works great and has charged everything I've thrown at it. However, make no mistake about it, this thing was cheaply made 🙂 While it make resemble an AirPort Express, they used a lighter weight plastic. However, it looks like as long as you don't beat it up to badly it should last for a while.

The other advantage that this charger gives me is not having to carry multiple USB adapters with me. I can carry one instead of 3 or 4.

You can get it here for $17

 

Got one for the car too

Why stop there? I also found this one by the same company (XTG) for your cigarette lighter socket in your car. 

You can get it here for $12.

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Unleashed GPS Bluetooth Geotagging Solution for Nikon DSLRs

I've spent quite a bit of time reviewing GPS based Geotagging solutions for my Nikon DSLR cameras. You might remember my most recent review of the blueSLR solution, which involves attaching a bluetooth module to your Nikon DSLR and using your iOS device to run their App. The folks over at Foolography saw that review and asked if I would take a look at their solution. Since I have a passion (or geeky interest) in this area I jumped at the chance.

 

The Unleased Dx000 is the smallest one I've seen to date

One of the issues with a GPS device on your Nikon DSLR is that it's not built-in. This means that you either have a module that attaches to the 10 pin terminal port (on the higher end DSLRs) or the GPS port on the side of the body (yes you can have one that doesn't attach and do it later in post, but I hate those solutions). These modules either attach via a cable, which means the module itself has to either sit on the hotshoe (not electronically, just for placement) or on the strap. The potential problem with these types is that as you walk around you're going to bump it and either knock it around or even possibly break the cable/port going into the module (I've done that). The Unleased Dx000 as you can see in the picture above fits very snuggly against the camera body. The only problem in the case of the D7000 is the port door hangs open.

When I first saw this product I almost jumped out of my chair until I realized that this was only one half of the solution….

 

The Unleashed Modules Require a Bluetooth GPS Receiver

While the module that plugs into your DSLR is in fact the smallest I've seen, there is another piece you need to actually Geotag your photos as you take them. You need a compatible Bluetooth GPS receiver.  Luckily there are quite a few to choose from. I received the Holux M-1000C for review. This (Holux M-1000C) module is the actual GPS receiver. It pairs with the Unleashed Dx000 wirelessly via Bluetooth. 

 

How does it work?

Once you pair the Unleashed Dx000 with your Bluetooth enabled GPS receiver, you then just turn on the GPS receiver and your camera. Mine came already paired and ready to go. I charged the Holux via USB and took it out to test it. Per the instructions I turned on the Holux and my D7000 with the Unleashed Dx000 attached. Once the Holux M-1000C locked on to a satellite the Nikon D7000 picked up the location from it wirelessly. At this point I put the Holux unit in my jacket pocket and started shooting. 

 

The Bottom Line

Click the above photo in Lightroom to see where this shot was taken/geotagged on Google Maps

 

This solution worked as advertised. The accuracy seemed a bit off but that may very well be to the placement of the Holux device in my pocket instead of out in the open. For example, when I took the shot above I was outside on the sidewalk across the street. However, when you click the shot above to see it on Google Maps you'll see that it places me (the green arrow) just inside the building. For this reason you're probably going to want the GPS module more out in the open. It would be nice if someone developed a GPS bluetooth hat 🙂

When I went inside the convention hall the module continued to transmit my last known location to the camera. However, this doesn't work indefinitely. After so long the GPS module will no longer transmit your location if it doesn't get an update. It's hard to say when it stopped, but my guess is about an hour inside. This is fine if you're ducking in and out of locations, monuments while shooting, but it's not suitable for prolonged indoor geotagging.

Battery life was great on both units. I kept the Holux on the entire day and the battery was still going strong until I turned it off for the evening. Also there was no significant drain on the D7000, which I did turn on and off as needed throughout the day.
Yes you can also attach a compatible shutter release for those long exposure shots.

 

Which one should you get?

There isn't a Nikon compatible GPS that I flat out don't recommend (although the Nikon branded GP-1 would be on the bottom of my list in terms of features). They all do what they say they do. It really boils down to the features you're looking for and form factors. I look at each solution as having a place depending on the kind of shooting you're going to be doing most. So here are my recommendations:

For the all day landscape shooter

If you're out and about all day then battery life will be a concern. While these newer bluetooth units offer better form factors they do pose a potential concern for the additional battery life you'll need in your iPhone/iDevice or your Bluetooth GPS receiver. So if you're out and about from sun up to sun down I would still recommend the Solmeta N2. It's my favorite all around unit that works with all of my Nikon bodies.

For the on location shooter

This is the person that will be shooting both inside and outside, but they will be shooting inside a lot! Monuments, museums, and other buildings where there isn't a clear view of the sky. For this shooter I would go with the blueSLR solution. Because it gets its GPS location data from your iPhone it stands the biggest chance of geotagging shots that the other solutions will miss! Also with the blueSLR solution you get the benefit of a wireless shutter release from your iPhone including time lapse photography.

For the photowalk photographer

If you are doing a lot of walking with your camera, say on a photowalk and you don't want to have to worry about constantly looking out for the GPS attached to your camera body, then hands down I would go with the Unleashed solution. I like the fact that you turn this on and forget about it. The flush mount design is awesome and again it's smallest on camera solution that I've seen. Prices start at 125 Euros for the Unleashed module and about 63 Euros for the Holux GPS receiver. 

 

The good news is that you can't go wrong with any of the solutions above. Pick the one that's right for you!

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The 5 Things That I Do To Every Portrait

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeVm2Ndc5E4

 

I got an interesting request from my Facebook Fan Page where Craig Marks asked "what are the 5 things that I do to every picture?" I thought it was such a good question that I decided to make it this week's episode of the Adobe Creative Suite Video Podcast. Now of course it would vary slightly between portraits, landscapes, product shots, etc. so I decided to start with the 5 things that I do to every portrait and see where it goes from there. Thanks Craig!

Also if you get my App you'll see a bonus clip where I take things even further:

See more of my Adobe Creative Suite Videos on my Adobe Creative Suite Podcast and get the App here. It features EXCLUSIVE CONTENT that no one else gets to see:

Learn Adobe Creative Suite with Terry White - Wizzard Media

 

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Ask Google

As you might imagine I get lots of questions every day. I get them via the comments section of my blogs, I get them via email, I get them on Twitter, I get them on Facebook and I get them on YouTube. As you might also imagine, while I don't mind answering people's questions, I simply don't have the bandwidth to get to them all. 

 

How do I decide which questions to answer and which ones not to?

It's not really a conscious decision. Like anything in life the easier something is to do the more often we'll do it. To that point if I see a question that I can answer off the top of my head and it's a short answer, chances are I'll answer it right there on the spot. If I know the answer, but the answer is long and drawn out (more than 3 steps), chances are I won't have time to answer it (even though I may want to). Also I tend to answer questions based on how they are asked. If a person is asking a question of clarification on something I wrote or said, then I'm more apt to want to respond immediately. If the person is asking for a 1:1 class via email (show me how to do ______), then chances are I'm not going to respond. It's nothing personal, I just don't have the time. My job here is not tech support or to train you via Q&A. If the question is Adobe related I'm also more likely to respond since I do work for Adobe. However, if I feel that you're just being lazy (see Can you do it for me? below), then I'll probably be less inclined to respond. 

 

What if I don't know the answer?

If I don't know the answer I'll probably just say "I don't know." However, if I don't know the answer and I want to know the answer then chances are I'll look it up because the question you've asked has me curious too. This is what brings me to today's topic! How do I find the answer?

 

I ask Google

Sometimes I feel like I'm on an episode of Star Trek. However, instead of saying "Computer" and asking my question verbally (wouldn't that be coo?), I pop up a browser window and key in my exact question. Long gone are the days of having to use specific keywords and operators between them to get the information you want from a search engine. Sure it still helps to do so today, but more often than not you can just pose your question in simple English. Just the other night I wanted to know if there was a way to convert the OLD Facebook Groups to the NEW Facebook Group format. While I could have searched through the Facebook Help Section, I always think Google first. I do this because 99.9% of the time someone else has already posed the same question online and someone has already answered it OR the very help system that I would have had to search has been indexed by Google and those tech documents show up in the Google results too. I fired up a browser window and keyed in "Can I convert an existing Facebook Group to the New Facebook Group format?" The answer was in the top 10 results that came back and sadly the answer was NO. However, that's just how easy it was to get the answer to my question. I do this multiple times a day and very rarely am I ever disappointed. Not only do I usually get the answer I was looking for IMMEDIATELY, but a lot of times even if the answer is NO, someone has developed some cool work around, setting, workflow or App to solve the issue.

 

Did you try it?

The other thing that kinda bugs me is when someone asks a simple question about something that would be easy enough for them to just try for themselves. This is what I meant above about being lazy. We're so used to relying on people to spoon feed us the answers that we would rather post a question, wait for a response (sometimes days) than just trying it ourselves. This is especially true when it comes to software. Much of the good software out there today is available in fully functional trial form. This means that you can download it, install it and bang on it all you want. Instead of asking is ________ feature better in the new version, why not see for yourself? That's what trials are for. For example, you can download a fully functional trial of Adobe Creative Suite 5. You can test each Application to see if it does what you need it to do and if it does it the way you want it done. If not, then you haven't lost anything other than the time to download and try it. However, at least you know with your own eyes whether or not it works. I love it when someone asks "how will that perform on my computer?" I have no idea. It depends on so many factors not to mention all the other stuff you're running on "your computer." The best way to be sure is to install it on YOUR computer and see for yourself.

 

Can you do it for me?

My favorite (the ones that make me laugh) questions come from YouTube and I swear sometimes that YouTube needs to implement an IQ test before allowing people to post comments or send questions. Granted I know that YouTube is full of kids and you have no way of really knowing if you're dealing with an adult or an 8 year old. However, on more than one occasion I've had someone ask me "I'm having a problem doing ___________ to this photo. Can I send it to you and have you do it?" I literally laugh out loud when I get one of those. I guess it would be pretty sweet if we could all just send our work to someone else and have them do it for us 🙂 I would have had slightly more respect if the person would have said "Hey, I'm having a problem with this photo can I send it to you and perhaps you could use it as an example in one of your upcoming tutorials?" At least then the person would be showing that they want help and to LEARN how to do it themselves and with such a file It could be used to help others. There's no guarantee that I would take anyone up on that kind of offer, but at least I would respect it more. Another favorite is "How much does _____ cost?" In the same amount of energy that it took you to type that in an email you could have typed it in Google and gotten your answer!

 

Someone has probably recorded a video

In this day and age if there is something that you want to learn how to do, chances are there is a YouTube video on the subject. For example, one of the most common questions that I get from new Photoshop users is "how do I remove a background in Photoshop?" When I searched YouTube for this topic 922 videos showed up. I could be wrong, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you'll probably find some good techniques in at least one or two of those videos and if nothing else you'll see lots of different ways to do it. Also you'll notice the titles of the videos are in plain English ie: "How to remove a background in Photoshop".

Speaking of YouTube, check out my YouTube Channel Here. With close to 3 Million Views I'm blown away with the response!

Oh yeah and YouTubers please stop sending me this one: "Where can I get a free download of CS5?" Really? 

 

The Bottom Line

Google is AMAZING and a resource that I would not want to be without. I get so much more done each day because I can easily look stuff up without having to rely on my friends and wait for responses. Give it a shot the next time you're thinking about posting a question somewhere else. You may be surprised at just how much easier it is.