TWiP #242 – Adobe Gets More Content Aware
This week on TWiP: Adobe shows off their new CS6 content aware move feature , PocketWizard evolves with the Plus III model, and can one man photograph every captive species on Earth?
Hosts: Frederick Van Johnson, Rick Sammon, and Bruce Clarke
News and Discussion
How Rick Got the Shot
Rick was recently featured in the New York Times for an image he photographed in South Beach and later enhanced using a Topaz Adjust filter. The lesson Rick would like to share with the audience is that you never know who's looking at your work so you should do your best to get your images out there.
He also revealed how he made the image by bringing out a hose and soaking down the street to add more visual interest to the scene. Rick encourages everyone to not just take photographs but to make them.
Adobe Releases a Sneak Peek of Content Aware Move
Recently Adobe released a sneak peek of some new features coming in Photoshop CS6. Improvements have been made to the Content Aware Fill feature allowing users to select the area where the fill will come from rather than just analyzing the surrounding area.
Even more impressive is the new Content Aware move feature which allows you to select an object in an image and move it to another location and then have Photoshop fill-in the area where the object was moved from.
The panel shares their thoughts on this new feature and discuss whether we've reached a point where a photograph can no longer be trusted.
During the conversation, Rick also mentioned a video from Dave Cross on how to improve your results using Content Aware Fill which you can check out here.
PocketWizard Announces the Plus III
PocketWizard, creators of popular radio triggers, announced the new Plus III Transceiver. This upgrade to the popular Plus II model, features 32 channels, a back-lit display, direct control over 4 separate zones with dedicated buttons, an improved antenna, and new long range and repeater modes.
In addition, these new units are priced much more competitively at only $139 compared to the $169 Plus IIs and the $269 Multi-Max units.
David Hobby has a review up on his website. Joe McNally also used them on a recent shoot to trigger remote cameras strapped to a dragster in the desert.
Can One Man Photograph Every Species on Earth?
National Geographic photographer Joel Satore is on a mission to photograph every captive species of animal on Earth. Of the 6,000 or so species in captivity, Satore has managed to photograph approximately 1/3rd of them already.
The project called the Biodiversity Project was inspired by a Time Life book called ‘The Birds' that included photographs of several extinct species of birds and he was moved to do something to capture photographs of species that might not exist a few years from now. The goal – to get everyone thinking about extinction by looking each of these animals in the eye.
Rick, Bruce, and Frederick talk about the importance of giving yourself an assignment and how digging into a personal project can help advance your photography.
Listener Questions
Question 1:
Listener Jeremy Lanthorn writes:
I shoot with a D90 (18-105 f3.5/5.6). I always shoot Raw and even with the ISO cranked up to 1250 I have a hard time getting enough light to keep the shutter speed below 1/60s when shooting indoors for things like Birthday parties and Christmas.
…is there a secret to getting more light into the shadows in post or do I need to invest in a faster lens (50mm 1.8) or a speed light?
Rick: I'm not afraid to crank up my ISO as there are lots of great tools in post that you can use to reduce the noise. A fast lens will also definitely help along with a flash.
Bruce: A faster lens will definitely help but if he doesn't need one that often then he doesn't have to rush out to spend money on more gear. A faster lens is something that Jeremy can rent if he isn't shooting in these situations that often. There are also some great things coming in Lightroom 4 that will help you get more detail from your shadows.
Picks of the Week
Rick: PocketWizard Plus III
Bruce Clarke: Adobe Lightroom 4 Beta (Lightroom 3 is 50% off until March 5th)
Frederick: DSLR Filmmaker's Handbook – Real-world Production Techniques by Barry Andersson and Janie L. Geyen
Wrap Up
Follow us on twitter.com/ThisWeekInPhoto. Join the Flickr critique group. You can also join our Facebook group and add us to your circles on Google+.
Rick Sammon: www.ricksammon.info or www.twitter.com/ricksammon or Google +
Bruce Clarke: www.momentsindigital.com/blog or www.twitter.com/bruceclarke or www.bruceplus.com
Frederick Van Johnson: www.frederickvan.com or www.mediabytes.com or fvj.me/plus
Credits
FreshBooks, the easy online invoicing app for small businesses that saves time and gets you paid faster. Join over 3.5 million Freshbooks users, and try the service free for 30-days of unlimited use at FreshBooks.com. Be sure to let them know you heard about it on TWiP.
Pre-Production and Show notes by Edmonton Wedding Photographers Bruce Clarke at www.momentsindigital.com or www.twitter.com/bruceclarke
Producers: Suzanne Llewellyn
Bandwidth provided by Cachefly
Intro Music by Scott Cannizzaro
Photo Credit: TheMuuj
I know that you are moving the discussion to Google+ – but it is not really possible to have a discussion on a Google+ page when there is nothing that you can comment on. There is no “wall” so there is nowhere to post. And the Facebook-page seem to be inactive. And the forum is closed down. So that is why I post this here:
The insanity is here. We are discussing if 36mp is too much for a FF-camera – and then Nokia comes out with a 41mp PHONE! That is simply insane:
https://www.pocket-lint.com/news/44615/nokia-808-pureview-41-megapixel
I just watched the Dave Cross video (of Brian Hughes’ Tip for “Content Aware Fill”) that is linked above. Holy Cow! That is an amazingly useful tip! Thanks for linking to it!
Insanity eh? And software is only getting smarter, and computers faster. Imagine where we’ll be in 10 years. The mind boggles.
Thank you for touching on Joel Sartore’s work. As a fellow Nebraskan, I’ve been following him for a number of years. He truly has some remarkable work out there as well as a couple of books. He put out a copy called “Rare” which has portraits of endangered species and definitely worth a purchase. He also was featured in a PBS documentary called “At Close Range.” Definitely worth watching. Probably my favorite photography documentary out there.
Agreed. His work is humbling. I’ll be checking out “At Close Range”. It’s now in my Netflix queue. https://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/At_Close_Range/70063298
Great show as always. Was particularly interested in your discussion of personal projects and reminded of my own (you even mentioned fire hydrants several times). In 2002, I took a break from work as an advertising creative director and moved into the back of a Subaru Outback. I drove to every state (flew to Hawaii, of course) and took conceptual portraits of fire hydrants – my way of documenting America. The book was eventually published in 2004. You can check it out at http://www.seancrane.com if interested.
What a great project @4976fbf64f9534b14f5ebb1e36760233:disqus , thanks for sharing.
Thanks for having me on the show! Happy to share some photo tips. Keep up the great work Fv.