Recent Entries

New Orleans

June 4, 2009 | Chris

I was driving through New Orleans in the blistering heat when I noticed a peculiar site on the side of the road. All of the people buried are above ground. Not that I am morbid, but the above ground tombs were rather intriguing and beautiful. I took out the P65+ / Phase 645 w/ 80mm and hand held to shoot. The tonal quality & range is amazing!

Daytona

April 20, 2009 | Chris

Steve Hendrix and I recently visited my old alum, Daytona State College. We demonstrated the power and versatility of Phase One DBs and Capture One Pro 4.7. It was a great to see all of my former instructors … and the Piccadilly lunch! I found out it’s a DSC tradition. I wanted to thank everyone for their hospitality. I also visited Anna Tomczak, another former instructor, at her studio in Lake Helen. She loved the P30+ V that I showed her!

Medium Format TTL?

March 18, 2009 | Chris, Tips & Tech Support

I recently tested the Metz 54 MZ-4i flash with a SCA 3952 adapter to see if it was possible to shoot full TTL on the Phase 645 / Mamiya body. I was a bit apprehensive if it would work, but it worked great! I shot with the flash head straight at the subject and bounced off of the white ceiling and both exposures were dead on. I was not able to test it on all of our MF bodies because that would require specific SCA adapter for each brand. Here is a quick list of the specific SCA adapter for the most common MF bodies: Phase One 645/ Mamiya = SCA 3952 / H1,H2&H3=SCA 3902 / 500ELX, 503CX, 553ELX=SCA 390 / Contax=SCA 3802

CI + Get DPI in San Francisco / Carmel

March 7, 2009 | Chris, News

I recently traveled to San Francisco to meet several Capture Integration clients and show them some of the new hot products like the P65+ and Cambo RS. Ken Doo of Ken Doo Photography and Don Libby of Iron Creek Photography helped coordinate several locations starting in San Francisco and shooting our way down the coast to Big Sur. We also had the distinct pleasure to meet with Jack Flesher, of Get DPI, and have an impromptu class and also pigs in a blanket. Paul Indman, Scott Hoerner and Chris Dauer also joined us at different locations on the trek.

Digi Clean - How To Video

February 8, 2009 | Chris, Tips & Tech Support

When your CCD gets dirty on your Phase One digital back, usually you will utilize a blower bulb to expel any minor particles.  If your CCD requires a more thorough cleaning I might recommend using Digi Clean.

Note that we recommend using only the “Solution B” which is an alcohol for the vast majority of cleaning. If you use Solution A which is a soap you will have to clean with Solution B several times to remove Solution A. So Solution A should only be used when the sensor has some form of (non abrasive) guck on it rather than just some stubborn dust.

A week in Miami

January 31, 2009 | Chris

I spent this past week covering the Miami office while Doug was attending the Get DPI workshop in Moab.  The weather was picture perfect and the highs were in the 80s and lows in only the 50s.  With such great weather I happily walked everywhere the entire week.  It was quite nice to be able to walk down Ocean Drive and pick up a cafe con leche on the commute. On Thursday night I attended a launch party for Shootdigital’s Coyote at Miami’s Ad School.  The Coyote is basically a fully functioning portable studio that includes grip and lighting.  The amenities are quite extensive so I attached a link to their web site so you can read more about it at www.shootdigital.com/coyote/     

FireWire 400/800 adapter

January 23, 2009 | Chris, Tips & Tech Support

Apple recently released a new line of MacBook Pro laptops.  With the new release they have altered the FireWire port configuration to only include 800 (9 -pin)  and excluded any 400 (6-pin) ports.  This has left people with several 400 - 400 FW cables and no way to connect to their new laptop.   One way to help with this solution is to purchase new 400 (6-pin) to 800 (9-pin) cables (which we carry), but we have found another solution.  Sonnet makes a 400 (6-pin) to 800 (9-pin) adapter that will connect the DB to your laptop.  We have found that some adapters will not allow Capture One to connect to the DB.    

Cambo RS 1000 - A User’s Report

January 2, 2009 | Chris, Guest Writers

Moving Platforms

I had a conversation with Chris Lawery while on the way home from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon recently; part of the conversation centered on my thoughts and feelings of Cambos newest technical camera, the RS 1000.

I’ve recently made a move from what was my primary camera kit, Phase One AFD III and P30+ to a technical camera. I was able to test the RS this past October while at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and the test, as short as it was sold me on the camera.  Coming back home to Tucson I returned the test camera to Capture Integration and immediately ordered one along with a 35mm lens.

I’ve had my RS now for just shy of 90 days and while it’s a short time I will state that I believe it to be one of the best landscape kits I’ve ever had the pleasure to either own or use.

It’s the end of December now and as I’ve already said above, I’ve used the RS1000 on two different trips, both to the Grand Canyon and on numerous occasions around Tucson.  The next major trip for me is at the end of January 2009 when I travel to Crescent City CA to photograph the giant redwoods and do some coastal imagery as well.  I plan on using the RS in the redwoods and probably switch to the Phase One AFD III for the coastal shots.

In moving to the Cambo RS1000 I also had to make a move from the digital back I had previously used, a Phase One P30+.  The P30+ had served me well during the time I had it allowing me to capture stunning landscapes throughout the Southwest as well as our recent trip to Alaska however it just wasn’t suited to be mated to a technical camera.  I had originally looked at and almost brought a Phase One P45 when I was researching my first digital back but for whatever the reason had decided to purchase the P30+, a move I never looked back on nor regretted.  Now with making the move to a technical camera I knew from my research I would be faced with either keeping the P30+ and buying another digital back – a move that just wasn’t financially smart or using the P30+ as a trade-up for the P45+ which I did.  Speaking of digital backs, yes the P65 looks great and yes I’d take one in a heart beat if given one (okay there’s a big hint Phase One) however there’s that financial thing again.

One last comment about the Phase One P30+ back as I don’t want to give the impression that it failed me in any way.  This back allowed me to produce a 2-shot image later merged into one panorama at 30×60 which is stunningly clear in ever aspect.  The image is so well regarded that it only hung on display at our gallery for one week before it sold.  And yes I see the same level of detail in the images taken with the P45+.  So here’s the end of this part – if anyone is thinking of buying a P30 or P45 my suggestion and recommendation is do it!  And to be completely honest and aboveboard you need to contact Capture Integration and no I don’t work for them nor do I own any stock in the company.

Continue reading Cambo RS 1000 - A User’s Report…

Testing with the True Wide

December 10, 2008 | Chris

A local Atlanta photographer was picking up a rental recently at our office and noticed that we were about to list a Kapture Group True Wide camera on E-Bay.  He told us that a fellow photographer might be interested in it and wanted to see if he could test it and see if it would fit his style.  This photographer shoots quite a bit of commercial and editorial jobs with a standard Holga and scans the film.  He brought in his Holga and took the lens off.  We proceeded to use artist tape to mount the lens on the True Wide along with a P45+.  It took a little time to figure out the right focus point, but we did get it to work. I was truly amazed that it worked and the nice feel of the images have.  Below are some of the examples of the testing we did.   

Uninstalling Capture One 4 on Mac

November 20, 2008 | Chris, Tips & Tech Support

We have received a few requests on how to do a clean uninstall on Capture One 4 on a Mac.  Currently, when upgrading to a newer Capture One software, it is recommended that you do a clean uninstall and then install the latest Capture One version. Check out Phase One’s Knowledge Base Article 1164 that will show you exactly how to properly execute it.

Update: If you’re a Windows user you can follow this link for Phase One KB Article 1158 on uninstalling on Windows.

Note: Please note that if you are only using Capture One with Phase One digital backs that you do not need to “deactivate” or otherwise deal with licenses or activation. Unlike Capture One 3 DB, Capture One 4 does not need an license key, activation, or registration for use in “digital back only mode”

Note: If you are doing this as part of “reinstalling” - in other words if you plan on using the software on this computer again immediately - then there is no need to follow the “deactivate” step.

Note: This applies to any version of Capture One 4.X (e.g. 4.6.3 or 4.8.1)

Capture Integration’s Further Recommendations

The following two recommendations are rarely required to restore Capture One to full-and-normal operations.

Delete User/Library/Application Support/Capture One/

Delete Proxys

1) In the Finder Select File-Find

2) Push the plus button to add a search critera

3) Search for Name - Ends With - “.cop”

4) Double and then triple check that you are searching only for files ending with .cop. If you’re not 100% sure all listed files are .cop files then stop and do nothing

5) Select All and Delete

Iron Creek Photography

October 21, 2008 | Chris

I wanted to thank Don Libby, of Iron Creek Photography, for being such a great client and good friend.  Although Don and I have not met face-to-face, he feels like part of my family.  I’m looking forward to finally meeting him and truly seeing how tall he is. PS.  Don.. hope you enjoy your new P45+ & Cambo RS!

Brushing up on my dive skills

August 11, 2008 | Chris, Personal Blogs

It’s been over a year since I’ve been diving and I needed to refresh my dive skills. Luckily several of my friends are divers, so we went to an old rock quarry in White, Georgia. Quarries quarries are good for learning skills, but that is about all. They are cold and mirky, but are usually fresh water. Here is a picture of my dive buddy Bryan Vargo.

Kayaking / Rafting weekend

July 28, 2008 | Chris

My brother-in-law, Bill Privette, set up a weekend of camping, hiking, kayaking and rafting in SC with all of the Privette family.  We drove 2.5 hrs north of Atlanta to pick our camp site on the bank of the Chattoga River in Long Creek, SC.  We set up camp, made a fire and relaxed by the fire.   The next day we went to Chattooga Whitewater Outfitter and got outfitted with our sea kayaks. [About Kayaking]. We drove about 4 miles to Lake Tugaloo and put in.  The great thing about the lake is that they do not have any construction on it and do not allow any boats with motors over 20 hp on it.   If you want a quite relaxing lake to kayak or fish on … this is it!  We also found a beautiful waterfall that must have been 100+ ft tall and we also found a great rope swing… reminds me of when I was a kid.

Napa, CA

April 22, 2008 | Chris

My wife and I recently took a vacation to California with our good friends, the Whittlesey’s. We spent several days in San Francisco and then drove up to Napa to tour some of the wineries. Here is a link to the web page we created: http://web.mac.com/clawery/iWeb/Site/Napa.html

Shooting with Mamiya 645AFDII & P30+

April 21, 2008 | Chris, Tips & Tech Support

Over the weekend I was shooting for an old client of mine.  We were shooting small products for their catalog and web.  We were cooking through the shoot when we came to a group of 10 products that were all similar shape, but different colors.  I had my assistant just quickly drop and I would shoot away.  I started quickly popping through them, but at the end of the 10 items, realized that my C1 Pro had shut down.  I was amazed that all I did was re-launch my software and watched my files pop in to C1 Pro.  I didn’t loose any of the shots!

Atlanta’s tornado

March 18, 2008 | Chris, News

I was out of town on vacation when the F2 tornado hit downtown Atlanta. Luckily the SEC between Alabama and Mississippi went into overtime. If it had not, there could have been several thousand people heading back to their hotels or cars and the casualties could have been unbelievable. Our office is only about one mile from where it hit and we were spared, but I wanted to see what the damage was. I’ve attached a few pictures to show some of the damage.

More photos after the jump

Continue reading Atlanta’s tornado…

C1 4.0 launches when I sync my iPhone

February 6, 2008 | Chris, Personal Blogs, Tips & Tech Support

Everyone that I know that has an iPhone loves it. I have found one little bug if you have Capture One 4.0 loaded on your Mac and try to sync your iPhone, it launches Capture One and iTunes at the same time. Here is a work around that Doug Peterson told me:

1. Open Spotlight

2. In the Spotlight window type “image capture”

3. Image Capture should show up under Applications

4. Open Image Capture and go to preferences

5. Under the General go to Camera

6. Choose No Application and this should solve your issue

Who is Chris?

November 14, 2007 | Chris, Personal Blogs

I was born in Springfield, MA, but moved to Florida when I was only 5. Growing up in the South was quite different. The different food, dialects and of course the heat. Growing up in Florida made my holidays very different. Imagine having Christmas dinner and opening presents, then going boating in shorts.

In future blogs, I’ll show you more about who I am and what I do in my spare time. The one thing I’m really missing currently is my diving. I took up scuba diving in high school, but three years ago I took the plunge and finally got my own gear. I went full steam ahead with several buddies and racked up over 50 dives in just a couple of years. We have dove several caverns in Florida and made a great trip to Bonaire.

I’ll have more soon…