Thursday, December 19, 2013

Android Tablet: My Photographic Secret Weapon!

Actually; I didn't know. I had a tablet, but I wasn't using it. My wife uses tablet(s) in relation to school. The kids did school work, AND play on theirs, but me......? I've had a tablet for some time now. Got it just about for free, AND it's a nice one too! 
But other than playing Solitiar or Ma Jong Tiles while waiting for the kiddos to finish some activity: PeeWee Baskball practice, Cub Scouts, little girl birthday party, about the only thing I did on it was read. Zinio (when it doesn't crash) has been nice. I've basically ended all paper magazines and switched to the electronic version. Not only is it cheaper, but I don't feels as guilty for contributing to the landfill.Other than that......? You could hear the crickets chirp.
OK, I do use it as my Bible, and I've gotta tell you, it's GREAT for that. I use eSword, which is free, and it's so much easier to find things, plus you can also switch between translations, find maps, get commentaries, and dictionaries as well. All kinds of stuff. It's really awesome in this application....., but again the reading. So is it just a reader? That was the question that I was asking myself not too long ago. That is until, I found it's true purpose in my life.
Photography! No, I don't mean this....., which might be the dumbest thing out there right now.
I mean using a tablet as a repository of photographic tools! Gracious! It's awesome for this! I've just started scratching the surface, but it appears the number and variety of APPs out there are ridiculous, and the vast majority appear to be free. 
It all started with this; the Weston Master III. It was produced from the late 50's into the 60's, and I have one that I love. I was thinking the other day, that using the D40 with the old manual lenses requires me to set everything manually on the camera. That's all fine and good when you aren't in a hurry and can just take several images, checking each and making the necessary adjustments. What if you don't have time, or just want to shoot a few photos and run? I needed a light meter for that. So I started digging around in my drawers to see what I could come up with, and this was the best available. It's old, but it still works. Unfortunately, these old selenium meters aren't the best for low light. What to do? I could get out there and try to buy a newer CDS, or Silicone cell meter, like a Gossen Luna Pro, but you never know whether it's going to be working either! Plus, many of them used mercury batteries which aren't available any more. As this idea was rolling around in my head, I was reading some of my photography magazines (electronic version of course), when I ran across mention of Android App light meters. Further more, I found a YouTube video comparing a few of them.
After a little research and trying out a couple, I found this: The LightMeter App. It struck a cord with me, because it's graphic UI is basically set up like the old style meters that I'm used to using. Of course, this really isn't a good example since if you've probably already figured out, this sort of thing isn't really conducive for use with a big tablet, they are designed for a Smartphone (on which I've already downloaded a few). But that's just an example of what's out there.
There are lots of things; like this field calculators such as the PhotoTools App that can help a photographer calculate depth of field as related to aperture and focal length of lens, Sun Surveyor Lite and Golden Hour to help you know exactly when the light will be the best and the angle that the sun at in your location at a given time. There's Map-A-Pic that you can use the GPS and store good locations for future use for yourself or share with others.
Then there are organization (and sharing) apps so you don't have to wait to get home to see your images on something bigger than 3". There are any number of image editors to allow some level of adjustment in the field before you put your cherished photos out there for everyone to see.
And then, there's the whole world of remote control via smartphone/tablet. I've used the Helicon Remote which seems to interface fine with my Nikon D300, but I haven't tried it with the D40 yet. I've also come across one called the DSLR Remote that's supposed to do either cable or IR. So now, when I go out with my camera(s), there's virtually always, a table or a smartphone with me.




No comments:

Post a Comment