Tag Archives: iOS

Check Out My Brand New iOS Photography Apps

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App StoreI’m excited to announce the release of my brand new photography apps for iPhone and iPad.

Capturing Action and Capturing Landscapes are both full of photography tips designed to help you shoot better, more dynamic images, whether you use a DSLR, a mirrorless camera, or with the amazing current mobile technologies that are available, even a phone.

Each app features around 30 of my favorite images in that style, as well as detailed “behind-the-scenes” info for every one of the shots. In addition to full camera, lens, ISO, and exposure data, I’ve included a specific technical and/or compositional tip for each photo that highlights exactly what I did, or what I looked for in order to make the shot come alive.

CapActionappiconCapLandappicon

Each apps also features an insider’s look at my Gear Bag, which includes a full list of the current equipment I use, although the images in each app span from nearly two decades of work and a variety of different cameras. Each app is self contained, so you don’t need an internet connection to run them.

Please note, that since these apps use some of the latest mobile technology, they require iOS 8 to run them. I realize that not everyone has upgraded to iOS 8, but for what it’s worth, I upgraded my iPhone 4S so I could preview these apps and so far I’ve had no problems. It runs fine.

Working with Go Mobile Masters, we wanted to create apps that inspire and educate, and I’m very excited with what we’ve done. Just as with my blog, my eBooks and my brand new print book, Outdoor Action and Adventure Photography, my goal is to help other photographers create the best, most exciting outdoor imagery possible.

Here’s the thing- I love photography, and I love it when other people get excited about their own photography.

The bottom line is that it feels the same for all of us when we see an exciting convergence of light and moment in the viewfinder and we’re able to click the shutter at just the right time, so I’m more than happy to share my experience and insight with you.

Both apps are available at the Apple iTunes Store, so either click the links below or search the iTunes store for Dan Bailey Photography. I hope you enjoy them!

Capturing Action – Dan Bailey Photography

Capturing Action – Dan Bailey Photography – for the iPad and iPhone – is an interactive education app that features detailed photo information written by an internationally published outdoor photographer. While flipping through the screens, using Flip Book technology, you’ll view a stunning collection of Dan’s action and adventure imagery, and gather photo tips along the way that will help you get shots like these.

Action1 Action2 Action3Action4

Capturing Landscapes – Dan Bailey Photography

Capturing Landscapes – Dan Bailey Photography – for the iPad and iPhone – is an interactive education app that features detailed photo information written by an internationally published outdoor photographer. While flipping through the screens using Flip Book technology, you’ll view a stunning collection of Dan’s favorite landscape images, and gather photo tips along the way that help you get shots like these.

Landscapes1 Landscapes2 Landscapes4Landscapes3

 

Instagram’s New Terms: Should You Bail?

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Here we go again.

The other day, Instagram released new Terms of Service, which has everyone running for the hills. Essentially, the new terms allow Intagram to use your photos for commercial purposes and keep the money. You have until January 16 to decide if you’ll agree with the new terms or bail, or pull all of your photos from the service and delete your account.

What?!

Surely you’re joking. This sounds like something a bunch of completely clueless lawyers came up with in order to purposefully shoot themselves in the feet. Seriously? We go through this kind of thing again and again.

Here’s exactly how the term reads in the new agreement:

“To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions, you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you.”  The new legal terms also specify that the use of Instagram after the terms take effect on January 16 “constitutes your agreement to the updated terms.”

Of course, the day after these terms were released, a small, yet extremely vocal percentage of their 100 million users threw their arms up in disbelief and threatened to give up our beloved Instagram. And you know what? That was the right thing for us to do.

Mind you, I’m not ready to bail on Instagram just yet. In fact, I’d advice that we all just sit tight for a few days. That said, the freak out was totally called for. We needed to let Instagram know how we feel about this, and that it’s unacceptable of them to swing out such huge rights grab contracts in our faces and demand that we sign them or quit.

Or is it?

Instagram is a very nice company who has let us use their service completely free of charge for how many years now? They’re a business who has said all along that they “intend to make money someday,” they just haven’t been totally clear about how they’d go about trying to monetize the app. Or rather, the new owners who just shelled out a billion dollars for the app hadn’t yet decided how to turn their outrageously large investment into something, oh, I don’t know… we’ll call it ‘profitable.’

To be fair, they have every right to try and make money in any legal way that they see fit. So does a guy who knocks on your door and kindly asks for your car keys so that he can drive away, sell it and keep all the money. Chances are, you may not buy what he’s selling, but he’s if he’s up front with the terms of his request, there’s nothing that says he can’t try.

He may settle for offering to rake your leaves for money, which is much more reasonable. With the incredible uproar by photographers, my guess is that Instagram may decide to settle on raking your leaves as well. The reality is that like any other business, Instragram will need to come up with a model that is attractive, or at least sellable to the masses if they’re going to succeed.

They’ve already backed off and released a statement that explains what they really meant. They’re now saying, “thank you for speaking up, we’re listening and still tweaking things.” You see, as it turns out, it wasn’t so much your photos that Instagram was planning on marketing, as much as your data.

My guess is that they’ll make adjustments and rewrite the terms to make them sound not quite so scary and it will all blow over. Lawyers often come up with this kind of stuff. That’s what lawyers do, and then to PR people follow closely behind picking up the pieces, listening to customers and then telling the lawyers that they need to reword things, because us regular people read complicated legal stuff that we don’t quite understand and then freak out.

It will probably turn out that whatever money making schemes Instagram comes up with will, in the end, not really affect us as much. It will probably be in the same line as all the other content and user based marketing that we’re getting used to in our modern online world. After all, most of us are still using Facebook and Google.

Or, maybe they’ll decide to go the way of 500px and Flickr and charge a nominal yearly fee for their service. Combining this with content marketing and ads makes the most sense, and for those photographers who make heavy use of Instagram, whether for professional social media use or simply for fun, paying, say $25 a year, doesn’t sound so bad. After all, it’s a great app.

On the other hand, perhaps Instagram will decide NOT to rewrite their terms, in which case, everyone is free to bail and go find some other photo sharing service. Flickr just released a super new iPhone app, and Twitter’s latest iOS update features Instagram-style filters. App loyalty only goes so far these days, but before doing anything rash, let’s just wait and see how this one plays out.

Edit- 12/20/2012: After the uproar and apparent misunderstanding, Instagram has changed their terms back and said that they never meant to market user photos in the first place. They’ll go back to the drawing board to try and figure out a new income model.

In the meantime, let me know: Would you pay to use Instagram or just find some other service for your iPhoneography? Share your thoughts.

The Mobile Photographer, Part 2: iPad and Tablets

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This is the second piece in a series about mobile photography and the tools that let you take your photography business/craft on the road.

When it comes to mobile photography devices, the iPad is pretty much the coolest thing around. Aside from the fact that using one makes you feel like you’re finally living in the future, (I’m still waiting for flying cars), and despite its connectivity limitations, the iPad and other tablets are proving to be indispensable devices for photographers of all types.

Studio and location photographers use them to show image captures to clients, and now with some of the wireless tethering tools that are now coming out, they’re being used as “live view” and remote camera control devices. Tablets are great for showing off your portfolio to clients, collecting model releases, reading photography eBooks and magazines such as Photographer’s i, Scott Kelby’s Light it, and Craft and Vision’s beautiful new quarterly publication, Photograph, and keeping in touch with your online peeps through social media.

That’s not all, though. The number of really useful photography apps that keep appearing in the app store each month has made it so you can do just about everything with your iPad. Obviously it doesn’t have quite the same functionality as a full fledged laptop, but for the price and mobility, it’s hard not to consider this option if you want to go on the road with minimal gear. They take up less room in a backpack or shoulder bag, they fit in most camera bags and they’re considerably less expensive than even a MacBook Air. I know of a couple of pro photographers who often use the iPad exclusively when they’re on trekking trips and backpack/travel excursions.

Want to go even lighter? Get an ipad Mini. It does everything the iPad does and takes up even less space. It’s by far the smallest, lightest weight option out there.

Getting Around the iPad’s Limitations

The main limitation of the iPad is that is lacks a USB port. This means that you can’t just hook it up to any portable hard drive and dump photos back and forth. Some Android tablets have USB ports and SD card reader ports built quite it, so for you tablet guys, you can probably skip over this section.

The Apple Camera Camera Connection Kit lets you get photos from your camera and SD card into the iPad, so dealing with new photos it not really an issue. The connection kit also gives you an inexpensive way to shoot tethered to the iPad. With apps like Photosmith (Lightroom utility) and Pixelsync (Aperture utility), Photoshop Touch and iPhoto, you can edit, tag, caption and share new work from camera to iPad with ease. However, even though the connection kit effectively adds a USB input to the iPad, it won’t recognize flash drives or external hard drives.

So, it’s getting those photos off of the iPad that’s the problem. Also, what about brining along your image archive just in case you need to send photo submissions or deliver hi res files to clients while you’re on the road? Not quite so easy, but fortunately, there are a couple of hardware solutions.

1. iPad Compatible Hard Drive: At this point, the Sanho HyperDrive is the only compatible drive that connects right to the iPad. However, they’re brand new and only available for pre-order. The Seagate GoFlex Satellite Mobile Wireless Hard Drive allows you to store and wirelessly stream data from the drive directly to the iPad. Hopefully, we’ll see more devices like this in the future.

2. iUSBPort: The new Sanho iUSBPort, formerly branded as the CloudFTP, acts as a wireless USB port. You can connect any USB external or flash drive to iUSBPort, and then stream your photos to the iPad. Also new and not out yet, but if you can get an older CloudFTP, it’s the same thing, just with a different name.

 

Camera Tethering Tools for iPad & Android

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iPad photography options continue to evolve, and at this year’s PhotoPlus show, I saw the latest in tethering technology: Wireless tethering for the iPad. CamRanger gives you wireless control of your Nikon or Canon DSLR with any iOS device- iPad, iPhone … Continue reading →