chad_gordon

<p>I just had my D200 converted by Lifepixel (arrived today).</p>

<p>Lifepixel says they will replace the sensor they took out if you want to go back to shooting the visual light spectrum. The cost is around $150 or so.</p>

<p>Tim,</p>

<p>I'd rather not mention the other color experts that came into our office. We had someone come in this morning who was very, very helpul. He is helping us with our image cataloging. We are a design studio. He recommended Extensis Portfolio. We are going to test the free trial. This is strictly cataloging software though, which I think willl work well for our design workflow. It has no editing feartures and is really not meant for photographers. We do our editing and retouching in Photoshop.</p>

<p>There is a market for color specialists/manager. At our design studio, deadlines are fast and furious and we need prints from our inkjets to mimic offset sheetfed printing as close as possible to present to our clients. As designers, we don't have time to be monkeying with color settings all day. That stuff just needs to work. Our client's don't understand the differences in color output vs. on-screen representation, etc. Most think the color is going to look exactly the same on screen as it will inkjet printed and then offset printed. It is something we have to constantly educate them on. This is particularly a problem with Pantone spot colors.</p>

<p>Like I said, we've hired people to come in to calibrate our monitors with our printers. We have never gotten it to work to our high standards. And the experts would be here for hours trying to get it to work (at $150 or more an hour). So, I have a bad taste in my mouth about these color "experts".</p>

<p>This new guy today gives me hope. He is clear and concise in his communication.<br>

-------</p>

<p>Gonna try to calibrate my home monitor tonight. We'll see how it goes.</p>

<p>Thanks Neil! I am printing all of this out. I'm going to try out the Spyder2 tonight.</p>

<p>I've been learning Lightroom and it is a pretty nifty program. I set white balance in my camera but you can adjust white balance in LR. I will be shooting RAW. LR handles RAW files but the LightRoom book I bought suggests converting them to .DNG. The authors recommends this becasue it is Adobe's opensource file format and it creates smaller files. I don't know if there is any image loss though... so that scares me.</p>

<p>Godfrey... thanks again. I just need a basic foundation of knowledge to build from and you helped tremendously. I suspect that I will customize from there. But a great starting point.</p>

<p>Tim, I ordered a used version of Color Confidence from Amazon. Thanks for that tip as well. I will be looking into some of the other books that some of you others recommended as I move forward.</p>

<p>From my experience, it seems like this is a highly customized process and not an exact science. I've been working in design for 15 years. We have so-called color experts come in every now and then to "calibrate" our monitors and printers. Nothing ever seems to really work. I have come to the assumption that there are a whole lot of people that don't really know what they are doing with color management... yet they call themselves experts. And the more different resources I read the more confused I get. Because there appears to be no standards (or too many standards from which to choose.) Many of the "experts" talk in too technical terms for the layperson (mass user). I've given in to the idea that I'm going to have to figure this out primarily by trial and error with the equipment I have. (sorry about the mini-rant... color is as critical in the design business as well and it frustrates me to no end when a color expert comes in and talks way over our heads and nothing ever works as expected. Especially for the money we pay for their services).</p>

<p>However, this is a hobby for me at this point (albeit a serious one). I don't have the time to get that deep into detail. Nor the money to sink into hundreds of sheets of paper testing prints. The more concise information I can get now helps me tremendously. Thank you guys for your input. It is much appreciated.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Excellent! Thank you Godfrey.</p>

<p>I am using a MacPro at work with a Apple 20" Cinema Display. The Epson 3800 printer is located at work as well. I know, this isn't ideal, but until I can afford a quality printer for home use, I have to bring my image files from home, load them onto my MacPro and print from there.</p>

<p>Lightroom is housed on my home computer (the new iMac) where I store and edit all of my photos. So, I hadn't thought of this, but am I going to have problems transferring my images out of Lightroom at home and bring them to work to print? (I am just learning Lightroom as well... of course)</p>

<p>I'm sorta new to the digital photo world. I'm slowly building a "digital darkroom". I bought a new 24" imac that I'll be using to PP images. Bought Adobe Lightroom 2 and own Adobe Photoshop CS3. I bought a used D200 and have a D70s. At work I have access to a Epson 3800 printer on which I will be making my prints. Yesterday, a sales rep of ours gave me a free version of Colorvision Spyder2Pro.</p>

<p>Now what? How do I make all this work together so what I am shooting on my D200/D70s, seeing on my imac monitor in Lightroom and Photoshop, and printing on the Epson 3800 looks relatively consistent?</p>

<p>I don't know where to start. Do I pick a color space to work in first? Is there a better color space for my system or shooting style (nature, primarily black and white, but some color). I want to calibrate the monitor, but what am I calibrating it to? What kind of paper should I use on the Epson for best results? I've been researching as much as I can but am a bit overwhlemed by the amount of (differing) information.</p>

<p>Where can I go to find EASY, step-by-step color management instructions/info?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

<p>When I went to college I no idea what I wanted to study. My dad was a photojournalist so I though I might as well be a photographer too. Once at school, I found that I liked graphic design just as well. I ended up earning degrees in both (Photo Illustration and graphic design), but had no idea which direction I wanted to head in the real world. So I interned for one summer at a photo studio and a graphic design studio (alternating days of the week) to hopefully figure it out.<br>

What I realized was that the day-to-day life of a professional photographer was not for me. It simply came down to a matter of artistic control. The art directors that came into the photostudio were the idea generators. The photographer was basically the technician that executed the art director's idea. I wanted to be the idea generator... which is why I'm an art director today.</p>

Thanks Godfrey. I have been working Photoshop for many years and am extremely comfortable with it... and own CS3... so

I'll be using that for most of my editing. However, I have no experience with RAW files, which leads to my confusion. I'm

going to try Lightroom for cataloging.

Thanks, (yes, I'm only on Mac) to summarize:

CS3/4 - for heavy duty editing and possibly RAW conversion

Lightroom - for cataloging and possibly RAW conversion

Is that all I would need? Is there a better RAW converter I should be looking at?

I'm putting together a digital darkroom and am confused about what software I need. I don't understand the

workflow. Can someone point me to an article or book that explains this in simple terms. I will be getting a new

iMac this week and already have Photoshop CS3 and may possibly purchase CS4. I'm going to be shooting Raw files.

I know that I need some sort of software to convert the Raw files (or do I?)

Would that be LightRoom? What is LightRoom? Is that different than Adobe Bridge (which we have here at work, but

I've never used). Then there is Nikon Image Capture... or Nikon Capture? And I've read about others. I just don't

know what all this software does or what I would need.

Thanks

I'm about to purchase an imac with the purpose of processing my digtial images. (I've been a Mac guy for 20 years, so that is what I am

comfortable with).

My budget is about $1900 total.

Here are my choices:

20" iMac with 2.66 Ghz, 4mb ram, 320gb storage (priced as low as $1399)

24" iMac with 2.8 Ghz, 4mb ram, 320gb storage (priced as low as $1699)

(I will update the Ram through Crucial.com)

I was dead set on the 24" until I started reading about people having problems with the glossy monitors and the excessive brightness of

the LCD for photo processing. So, now I am considering going with the 20" and buying a Viewsonic Optiquest 22" as a second monitor for

easier calibration. (I've read good things about the Optiquest from other photographers and the price tag is under $300.)

Also, this may allow me to upgrade the 20" to a 500GB hard drive. Should I? (I'm also getting an external HD for backup - Lacie)

I won't be able to afford calibration tools right out of the gate, but in the near future what should I be looking at?

I shot 4x5 in college. That's my only experience with large format. Love the idea, but moving away from film with this

purchase. Hasselblad may be in my future, but not now. My dad had a couple of Hasselblads. Unfortunately he sold them

years ago.

A big chunk of my money will go to the new computer... which i will not only use to process my own images, but I need for

my freelance design work (which is where the money came from for this purchase). So, $3400 can't all go to camera

equipment.

Ahem, some of us can't afford a Hasseblad. And I said I'd like the OPTION to print at 20x30. If I don't like the results, I 'll stick to smaller sizes. I certainly don't see myself making prints that large on a regular basis. It all depends on the image of course.

Sheesh, now I remember why I chose graphic designer over photographer as a career path after earning degrees in both. Photographers sure are a snarky bunch.

Thanks to those that responded with helpful insight. I'm looking more closely into the D200s now.

Here is LifePixels response to metering after the infrared filter is inserted:

"The metering will work as usual. Keep in mind that the amount of infrared light varies from scene to scene even if overall brightness is the

same. Since the camera light meter senses only visible light you may need to dial in some exposure compensation, example: +1.3 stops."

Invest? These purchases are a tax write-off for me.

I already own a D70s and I want to keep that as my "normal" camera. Infrared is my passion and the format I shoot

to create my art (sell prints). I want to purchase a new body and convert it to IR at Lifepixel. I am looking at

the D80, D90 and D200.

I want to be able to make fairly large prints. Possibly up to 20x30. But most likely in the 11x14 range. I'm

worried that the D70s won't give me MP to allow for the large prints.

I have a bunch of old AIs lenses (300mm f4 /105mm f2.5 / 24mm f2.8 / 50mm f2 / 180mm f2.8). They work on my D70s

but without metering and I of course have to manually focus. I also have the 18-70 kit lens that came with the D70s.

My total budget is $3400.

Lifepixel conversion = $325

iMac = $1800 (I sorely need to upgrade my computer)

That leaves me with $1275.

Latest prices I've seen at Amazon (all new/body only)

D80 = $619 (Leaving me with $656)

D90 = $899 (Leaving me with $375)

D200 = $799 (Leaving me with $475)

With the leftover I want to purchase a lens. I REALLY like the Nikkor 60mm 2.8 AF-S ED micro ($476 Amazon). Is

there another lens I should be looking at with whatever $ I have left? (I could also sell off my old lenses to

buy a new AF telephoto)

How should I spend my money?

Thanks

Thanks Joseph. I'm not interested in color infrared, so I was thinking of going with their "Deep BW IR" filter, which they say is equivalent to a Wratten 87C. The sample image on their site is what I am looking to do. If I wanted to add my own color afterward, I am proficient enough in Photoshop that I could colorize myself.

Frankly, I'm tired of messing with filters in front of the lens. I like the idea of normal exposure times and not always having to lug around my tripod... and being easily able to compose my shot in the viewfinder.

Thanks... After all my typing, I forgot to ask for input on which camera would everyone recommend for my purposes. Any thoughts or input will be greatly appreciated.

I'm also wondering what would be some recommended lenses for my purposes as well. (Urban and natural infrared landscapes as well as Macro shots - I don't shoot much "normal" or mid range. I like wide angle as well). I will still have the 18-70 and my old manual lenses.

I am leaning toward the D80 to convert to infrared. I'm about three to four weeks away from being able to purchase though. I hope there are some left.

I've been shooting infrared film off and on for years. I've sold a few prints here and there, and have been contemplating ramping up into the

digital infrared world. The cost and growing scarcity of film, as well as finding someone to process has become a hassle. Growing up, I had

the luxury of having a darkroom in our house. Those days are long gone but I miss the complete control of the process.

I grew up shooting a Nikon FM that my father gave me. I love the simplicity of the FM. The in-camera meter never worked, so I used a

handheld meter, but I got to the point where I could guess fairly well what my exposures should be. I still have the FM and a bunch of 25-30

year old, manual focus lenses (Nikkor 50, 24, 105, 135, 300). This was the system I've shot with up until now, and I can't complain. I just used

the infrared filter in front of my lens.

I bought a D70 over a year ago (with the 18-70 kit lens), with the idea of purchasing the necessary filter to shoot infrared at some point in the

future. (We also use it as the "family" camera.) I've since found out that I can have a camera converted at Lifepixel (or do it myself) to solely

capture infrared light (or near-infrared). It was an "a-ha" discovery for me.

My ultimate goal is to make and sell my B/W infrared prints (well... I want to make great art first, that will hopefullly sell). I sell 4 x 5s and

8x10s now, but would like to be able to expand to 11x14 or even one or two steps larger if necessary. Being an art director/designer (as my

full time gig), I'm proficient at Photoshop. And I eventually want to design my own infrared website. Two local gallery owners are interested

in my work, but I just don't have enough of it yet. Nor the time to get it all together.

So, I've freed up time for this endeavor, and worked some freelance jobs to pay for some new equipment. I need to upgrade my home

computer system which doesn't necessarily come out of my camera budget . (eventually, I will want to buy a professional Epson printer to

make my own prints, but that is a ways off... but my company owns one that I can fiddle with in the meantime).

ANYHOW, my question is what should I do about my camera? I want to keep a normal functioning camera body and purchase one for

conversion. I do not have an unlimited budget (about $2500). The conversion will cost me $325 at Lifepixel. I Could convert my D70 and buy

a new "visible light" body, but I'm afraid the MP aren't enough to allow me to print beyond 11x14 when I want.

So, for IR conversion purposes...At first I looked at the D60 because of the price (and the package of two lenses that come with it in some

cases), but when I checked it out at the local camera store, I hated the feel... and I don't think my old lenses will work on the D60 (they DO

work on my D70, albeit everything is manual). So, I'm looking at the D80 and D200 bodies and possibly the D90 (new and used for all). The

further below $1000, the better. I'd like to save SOME of the $ for the computer and a lens or two.