Photocrati is a distributed company, which means our employees are not all in one office. We all work out of our homes, which can be overwhelming at times.  It is easy to get distracted.  So I wrote up a blog article recently which talks about my ways to stay organized and get things done.

I’m going to summarize the items here, but I’d love for you to visit my original blog article to read the details about each point.

1. Create a daily to do list
2. Start early in the morning
3. Give yourself a creative space
4. Clear your desk
5. Sit and stand
6. Start with the essentials
7. Use email organization software
8. Give yourself regular breaks
9. Schedule social media time
10. Drink a lot of water
11. Distraction free writing with ia Writer or equivalent
12. Organize your thoughts with Evernote equivalent

If you’d like to read more about each of these points, in detail, please head over to my website.

DSLRemote allows the user to control most Canon and Nikon DSLRs directly from an iPhone (or iPod Touch.) The trick is that the camera must be tethered to a wi-fi enabled computer. That computer needs to be running a copy of DSLR server (which is a free download.) The download and installation of the server software were quick and painless. My initial tests were in the studio where I have a wireless network running. Subsequent tests using an ad-hoc network went smoothly as well.

I connected my Canon 5d to the computer, turned on the camera then launched the remote server application on the laptop. The server found the camera straight away and asked where I’d like to save the files (as opposed to on the cf card in the camera.) The server software also gives the option to save a duplicate of the image files for import into Lightroom. It’s important to note that when running the DSLR Server software you’ll not be able to run the manufacturer’s remote capture software. You can still use Aperture, Lightroom or other application to view your images, but you won’t be able to control the camera from the computer.

With the server software up and running on the laptop I launched the DSLRemote app on the iPhone. The first screen comes up asking me to identify the computer and camera I’d like to access. For our initial test we only had one tethered pair up and running so there was only one option. After selecting our networked computer we were directed to the meat of the application, the control window.

The user interface is dominated by the image display area with a large fire button and smaller control buttons filling the rest of the screen. Tapping the fire button fires the shutter very quickly, There’s certainly a bit of shutter lag but it’s much quicker than using the space bar. Once the image is shot the display screen shows them image in about five seconds on my system when shooting raw. When shooting in Large Fine Jpeg it took about 2 seconds. The app takes advantage of the built in accelerometer in the iPhone. If you rotate the device, the view will rotate as well, allowing for a better view of horizontal images. Viewing vertical images is a bit cumbersome as it requires you to rotate the iPhone to the horizontal position, wait while the os catches up, then rotate the phone again to an upside down position.

The app is available in Pro and Lite versions. Both will allow for remote firing of the camera, review of shot images, battery status and memory remaining (number of shots.) The Pro version also allows for control of shutterspeed, aperture, iso, light balance, image quality (raw, jpg etc.) and exposure compensation. There’s an intervalometer (which can be used as a self timer) and an auto-bracketing scheme. You can also indicate whether or not the camera should save images only to the computer, or to both the computer and the camera. On cameras with a live view function you can view the veiwfinder via the app. Once of the nicest features of the pro version is the zoom in feature. While reviewing a recently shot image, double tap the area you’d like to zoom into and the app will show you a 1:1 view — great for checking focus!

All in all this is a great app for impressing clients when on a shoot. I used it recently and had the client take the phone from my hand and walk it in to her boss to show her how cool we were! At $19.99 for the pro version, it’s a bit on the pricey side for iPhone apps, but the lite version is $1.99. Still, 20 bucks to have a client go “Wow!” is well worth it in my book. Remember, it’s all about keeping clients in awe.

You can learn more about DSLRemote here

By artificially darkening the corners and edges of images we can direct the viewer’s eye toward the center. The trick is to not overdo it, but to have it be subtle. If you look at an image and think, ‘Oh, darkened corners,’ you’ve most likely gone too far. There are several points along the way where you can employ this trick, but my preference is in Photoshop, after the image has been cropped and the contrast adjusted.

My personal method involved the Quickmask tool and an Adjustment layer. On you image, enter Quickmask mode (Q key command) and select a round paint brush of appropriate size. Then simply mask the majority of the image. Remember this is a mask, not a selection, so the areas you paint will not be affected by the next step.

After you’ve masked the appropriate areas, exit Quickmask mode (Q key command again.) The areas you haven’t masked will now be selected. Add a Curves adjustment layer (Layer, New Adjustment Layer, Curves) and bring the mid-tones down to the appropriate point. I usually use 10% as a good starting point. This is the area where you can go too far if you’re not careful, so take your time.

The great thing about doing this on an adjustment layer as opposed to directly on the image is the ability to edit the curve as well as the layer mask after the fact.

Sometimes we simply have to go with the situation presented to us. Those situations don’t always allow for full control at the time we shoot. But using a number of little techniques and gimmicks can really help a shot pull through.

One of the most common questions I get when teaching my Adobe Lightroom workshops, is whether Lightroom is enough. The answer to that question depends on your needs and goals. But it is worth spending a bit of time reviewing reasons a photographer who has Lightroom 2 might also want to invest in Photoshop:

• Graphic Design: If you are authoring your own web site or other publications, you may want Photoshop (or other tools) for laying out text over images, and so on.
• Healing Tool Differences: There are some really nice things Lightroom can do that Photoshop can’t (like synchronizing correction spots on identical compositions), but Lightroom’s spot removal tool works best on small spots. Photoshop’s healing brush seems a more powerful option for larger scale healing, such as removing linear defects like branches or cracks in scanned images.
• Soft-proofing: In general, color printers cannot reproduce the full range of colors that might appear in your images.  When printing from a color-managed workflow, Photoshop provides the ability to see an emulation of what your image will look like when printed, and similarly can provide a warning of where the colors of your image have exceeded the range of  what your printer is capable of. Lightroom currently lacks this facility. (This would be my first choice for “features  we might see in Lightroom 3.0.”)
• CMYK printing: Lightroom lacks the capability of producing or adjusting CYMK images, which are still a primary part of working with printers when producing greeting cards, postcards, and the like.
• Correcting Perspective:  Occasionally, I’ll photograph trees and find that the way the tops of the trees appear to converge near the top due to perspective is a problem. Lightroom doesn’t have a tool for correcting this, Photoshop does (the “Lens Correct” filter).
• Correcting Barrel or Pincushion Distortion: Photoshop’s Lens Correct filter can also correct for curved horizons caused by lens distortions, Lightroom doesn’t have the capability itself.
• Panorama Stitching: Photoshop has some integrated tools for stitching together images into a higher-resolution composite, Lightroom doesn’t. (Lightroom does have excellent integration with Photoshop on this feature if you have both, though.)
• High-Dynamic Range (HDR) Imaging: Photoshop has integrated support for creating and  manipulating  high-dynamic range images out of multiple original exposures, Lightroom does not.
• Focus Blending: Photoshop has integrated support for merging images of the same scene with limited-depth-of-field into a composite that emulates a wider depth-of-field. Lightroom does not.
• Automation Tools: Both Lightroom and Photoshop provide a number of ways of automating some types of tasks, but Photoshop’s actions and scripting interfaces provide a more general interface for automating complex tasks. While many, even most of the tasks that I used actions for in Photoshop can be handled by pull-down menus in the export dialog, other tasks (such as automatically producing different sizes of each of a set of images, segregated into different folders by size) can’t be completely automated in Lightroom.

These aren’t the only ways in which Photoshop has a tool that Lightroom lacks, just those differences that are both frequently important to photographers (as opposed to, say, digital artists, graphic artists, web page designers and folks doing photo restoration) and that really accomplish something in Photoshop that would be difficult to accomplish in Lightroom.

Despite the length of this list, many photographers do just fine using Lightroom  sans Photoshop, many of these tasks just aren’t that important for many photographers. And many of these gaps can be filled in with software from other sources, such as PTLens, Panorama Factory and Photomatix.

Lastly, I’ll add that Lightroom has a number of features Photoshop (and Bridge) lack. Lightroom is far, far more than Photoshop’s little brother. The point of this list is just to help folks using Lightroom understand the ways in which Photoshop might be able to add to what they can accomplish. Let me know if you can think of anything I’ve missed!

For more great Photoshop tutorials check out the MCP Actions Blog. And for shortcuts to better photographs using Photoshop actions, check out the MCP Actions Shop.

A callsheet is a transfer from the film industry. It basically lays out who needs to be where when and for how long. I also like to put contact info on my call sheets as well so if anyone is late, or if there’s a last minute change we’re able to contact those involved while on location.

A sample call sheet…

2:45 – Kristen M (asst.) arrive at photo studio; cell 410-555-1221

2:45-3:15 – Kristen and Steve B (photog) pack equipment; cell 410-555-1212

3:15-3:45 – Kristen and Steve travel to location (123 Main Street, Annapolis, MD); Homeowner Bob 410-555-1222

3:45-4:00 – Kristen and Steve unpack and begin initial gear setup

3:45 – Monica (MUA) arrives; cell 410-555-1213

4:00 – Debbie and Laurie (clients) arrive on location; Debbie 410-555-1224, Laurie 410-555-1225

4:00-4:45 – Continued lighting and shot setup

4:30 – Manny, Moe and Jack (subjects) arrive; Manny 410-555-1226, Moe 410-555-1227, Jack 410-555-1228

4:30-4:45 – Subjects in makeup

4:45-5:00 – Subjects on set

5:00 – Subjects and clients released

5:00 – Strike set

5:15 – Makeup released

5:30 – Kristen and Steve depart location

5:30-6:00 – Kristen and Steve return to studio

6:00-6:15 – Kristen and Steve unpack gear

6:15 – Kristen released

6:30 – Steve enjoys IPA (Sierra Nevada)

Ok so I won’t put that last item on the sheet, but you get the idea. The callsheet gets distributed to everyone on the shoot the day before. If I don’t have email addresses for everyone I make sure it gets to them somehow. I don’t mind the client seeing the front and back end of the work like packing and unpacking. Many clients assume that if they show up for a shoot and it only takes 15 minutes to get the shot that it’s easy. Letting them see the work that goes into putting everything together blunts the objection that says “Hey, it only took 15 minutes, why are we paying this much?”

Second, it reminds everyone that there are lots of other people relying on them to make this happen. We’re all busy, and often we’re dealing with real people as subjects for our photos. If a bank president is running late and he only thinks he’s holding up the photographer and his assistant it’s not a big deal. But if he’s running late and he sees that he’s holding up the photographer, his assistant, the makeup artist, two other bank officers, two people from the ad agency and a homeowner, he might hustle things a little. Finally it sets you, the photographer, up as the one in command. After all, it’s your reputation and fee that goes away if something gets screwed up. The fact that it wasn’t your fault is irrelevant.

I’ve said many times before that this business is great because it’s creative, it’s fun and it’s continually changing. But it’s a business. Business is all about communication. A callsheet helps everyone stay on the same page (sorry about the pun) and can move things along smoothly.