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Gear The Best Drone is the DJI Inspire 1 PRO Quadcopter

February 16, 2016 Donald Scarinci

If money is no object, the DJI Inspire 1 PRO Quadcopter with Zemuse X5 4K Camera is the best photography drone on the market, hands down. From ease of use to image quality, the Inspire 1 simply can’t be beat. DJI Inspire 1 PRO Quadcopter is aimed at professional photographers and cinematographers. When DJI announced the model last fall, Eric Cheng, DJI’s Director of Aerial Imaging, stated: The professional applications of the Zenmuse X5 are almost endless. In addition to shooting professional-quality photos and 4K video, the new camera can be used to create high-quality aerial maps and 3D models,…

Gear The iPad Pro Is Not Quite a Photographer’s Dream Device

February 1, 2016 Donald Scarinci

Since its introduction, the iPad has been an essential tool for many professional photographers. It is incredibly useful for displaying images during a shoot, showing portfolios to clients, and even light editing. For photographers hoping to leave their laptops at home, the introduction of the iPad Pro held a lot of promise. While the new model is an impressive upgrade, the tablet still lacks some key features that professional and enthusiast photographers have come to rely on. Starting with the good — the new iPad is fast and powerful. It features a high-resolution 12.9-inch Retina display, 4GB of RAM and…

Gear What Drone Should I buy?

January 18, 2016 Donald Scarinci

Selecting a drone can appear complicated at first. There are many makes and models. The first decision is to choose the company. The next decision is to choose the model that is right for you. DJI manufactures some of the most popular drones on the market. While they are more expensive than other drones, Phantom drones are among the easiest to fly and pack the most features into a small device. The drones also became a lot more affordable in the New Year with DJI announcing significant price reductions on their Phantom 3 Standard and Advanced. The Phantom Standard is…

Gear What is the Law for Drones?

January 11, 2016 Donald Scarinci

Just in time for the holiday gift giving season, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) launched a mandatory registration program. For drones. It applies to even entry level, first time buyer drones. Under the new rules, anyone who owns a small unmanned aircraft that weighs more than 0.55 lbs. (250 g) must register with the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) registry before they fly outdoors. People who previously operated their UAS have until February 19, 2016 to register. While many have questioned the effectiveness of the new system, the good news is that registration only costs $5, covers any number of…

Software Is Aurora HDR the Ultimate HDR Software for Mac?

December 28, 2015 Donald Scarinci

In November, Trey Ratcliff and Macphun introduced Aurora HDR Pro software. After a few short weeks, photographers are already calling the app the “ultimate” HDR software for Mac users. So what’s all the hype about? The app is designed to help photographers combine multiple exposures into “high dynamic range” (HDR) images. Macphun, which is known for its award-winning Mac photo software, teamed up with renowned HDR photographer Trey Ratcliff, to come up with what they call “the most advanced HDR software in the world.” So far, the reviewers largely agree. According to PetaPixel: “The tool is designed to be both…

Lenses Nikon Lenses to Wish For

November 16, 2015 Donald Scarinci

Now that Nikon has refreshed the classic 24-70 f./2.8 and included VR, what other Nikon lenses do photographers want most? Sigma has been catching up to the quality of Nikon optics. Many consider the new art series Sigma 35mm and 50mm prime lenses superior to their Nikon equivalents. Perhaps a good way to approach the “what next” question for Nikon would be to anticipate Sigma. Nikon has a hit with the new technology they are using in the 300mm f./4 lens VR2 recently released. This could become a line of fixed lenses—400mm; 500mm and 600mm. Even if the focal length…

Gear The DxO One iPhone Camera is a First Generation Breakthrough Product

November 2, 2015 Donald Scarinci

The DxO One ends any excuse photographers might have to miss the moment. This palm-size device uses the same one inch 20.2 megapixel CMOS sensor in Sony’s RX100 111, and even takes pictures as a standalone camera without taking the seconds needed to attach it to an iPhone. DxO has been known primarily as a software company, but with the introduction of this little, almost spy-sized camera, that will soon change. Every photographer needs a good travel camera on hand. Unfortunately, even the Panasonic or Leica portable camera is a bit too large for a back pocket. The DxO One…

Software Topaz ReMask: Digital Scissors that Cut

October 19, 2015 Donald Scarinci

Creating masks and selections within photos can be tedious and time-consuming, even for professional photographers that edit images every day. Topaz is taking the pain out of mask making with ReMask, its new plug-in for Photoshop. While there are many editing tools that allow photographers to switch backgrounds, make composites, and selectively adjust images, ReMask is arguably the best. It not only creates a flawless final product, but also is extremely easy to use. In many cases, creating a perfect cut out requires only a few digital brush strokes. To mask an image, the user first outlines the subject that he…

Photographer Calibrate Your Monitor With Datacolor’s Spyder5 Pro

October 5, 2015 Donald Scarinci

Whether you use a Mac or Windows, your computer likely came with a very clear warning: “The color on the printed document may not match the color that you see on your monitor.” For photographers, the difference between what you see on the monitor and the images you print or post online can be significant. It can also be extremely frustrating to spend hours editing an image only to have the printed photo look nothing like you intended. The problem comes from the fact that standard settings for most monitors are extremely bright and often oversaturated. In addition, ambient light…

Photographer Getting the Most Out of Flickr

September 21, 2015 Donald Scarinci

Flickr is one of the most popular websites for posting and sharing photographs on the Internet. However, despite the application’s widespread popularity, many users are unaware of the full range of features web site offers. Flickr allows users to upload up to 20 MB a month for free. If users want additional storage and features, the application offers an upgraded Pro Account for only $25/year. To get started, simply create a profile and upload pictures using a web browser on your computer or directly from a camera phone using email. Last year, Flickr also introduced an iPad app, which was…