So here I am at 11 p.m. organizing some images after upgrading my Lightroom Classic to 8.3, and I see on the top of my Mac's menu bar a giant block of blue. You see, I'm running a little tool called iStat Menu, a hardware monitoring tool that shows nerds, like myself, temperatures, CPU activity, Read/write speeds and so forth. On that wonderful menu bar, I see all 20 threads of my Mac Pro's processor being used. I scrambled for a bit as I tried to recall what I had Lightroom do — I had moved a bunch of images, moved catalogs around, cleared … [Read more...] about Did Adobe actually add functional multicore support for Lightroom Classic?
performance
eGPU: Why you should or shouldn’t get one
eGPU's, external graphics cards connected over the relatively new Thunderbolt 3 connection, are fascinating pieces of hardware that enable Thunderbolt 3 equipped laptops to use high performance desktop graphic cards. With an entry price point of around $400 for a plug and play system for both Mac and PC, you might want to see if it's worth the money for your laptop. These devices range in sizes but are typically smaller than the average desktop computer and come either prepackaged with a graphics card or come as an enclosure only. The latter … [Read more...] about eGPU: Why you should or shouldn’t get one
Symphonie Fantastique: Behind the scenes at a most unusual performance
At most plays, musicals, concerts and dance recitals, photography during the performance is strictly forbidden. That doesn’t mean most photographers don’t itch to capture the emotions, expressions, gestures, and action and wouldn’t jump at the chance to shoot during the show. I’m no exception. In New York City, I recently had the chance to go behind the scenes at a most unusual workplace. The scene was a theater in downtown Manhattan, the HERE multi-arts center, home to the Dream Music Puppetry Program. As part of the celebration of the … [Read more...] about Symphonie Fantastique: Behind the scenes at a most unusual performance
The Vello BG-N19 Battery Grip for Nikon D850
I recently added a Nikon D850 to my arsenal, and more recently, had the opportunity to test it out with the addition of a Vello BG-N19 battery grip. The battery grip was provided to me by B&H for the purposes of this review. What is a battery grip? There are generally two different types of battery grips, one built-in (e.g. Nikon D5) and the other an add-on accessory. A battery grip allows for near seamless transition from landscape to portrait orientation, with a redundant set of camera controls and more battery power. The battery grip … [Read more...] about The Vello BG-N19 Battery Grip for Nikon D850
Dock & Cool Your MacBook for Max Performance!
Docking your MacBook to a screen at your home or office gives the best compromise between portability and performance! I've been docking my MacBooks to monitors at my home office since my first MacBook Pro from 2010! So, why wouldn't you? The MacBooks are fantastic little machines that can pack a punch while being so portable-- but the 13" or 15" screen can leave one desiring more real estate to play with. So why not get the benefit of having a desktop setup with a laptop and bump up the performance while you're at it with a SVALT Dock? Things … [Read more...] about Dock & Cool Your MacBook for Max Performance!
X-Rated – The Solution to Understanding X-Speed Memory Card Speeds.
Dang it, why isn't there a universal tech language out there?! I mean seriously, as photographers and videographers, we already have to deal with all sorts of random vocabulary to understand our craft, why must there be even more to decipher? Now that my rant is slightly over, let me share the super secret code that may help you understand the write performance of the card you have, and the cards you'll perhaps end up buying in the future. First and foremost, we're going have to understand what "x-speed" is -- Companies note the maximum … [Read more...] about X-Rated – The Solution to Understanding X-Speed Memory Card Speeds.
Photographing Ballet for Pleasure or Profit
The picture above is of my daughter Francesca and was taken with in camera softening and a simple studio lighting set up. The diffusion is created using a thin silk chiffon gauze stretched over a skylight filter. I like to get the look right in camera to save post production time later. Here are some ideas from my ballet portrait promotions that I usually put on at this time of year. There are simple lighting tweaks between sitting, kneeling and standing positions just to raise and lower the lights as required. I also swap the key light … [Read more...] about Photographing Ballet for Pleasure or Profit
