GPS photo tagging, also known as geotagging, is the process of embedding a digital photo with latitude, longitude and even altitude data.  I like gadgets and for the past several years I have been searching for an inexpensive but accurate way of geotagging my images. I am a Canon user and while there are many devices for Nikon cameras there are relatively few for Canon.  Ironically the iPhone does a great job.
My search for a device that would work with all my Canon Cameras became more imperative because I was writing a book on Lightroom 4 and it was clear during development that LR4 was going to include a Map Module. I called my friends at B&H on a regular basis and kept asking what do you have for GPS and Canon? I further complicated my request because I wanted to be able to work with Raw files. Finally just before I went to Antarctica in December, my good friend Gabe found me a device to try. The GistePhotoTrackr Mini DPL900 is an inexpensive $49.95 device which works. The Skytrag GPS chipset allows you to precisely record and review your trip. I used the device extensively in Antarctica and then again in February 2012 in Rwanda and Tanzania.

When my device arrived I was totally psyched until I tried to use the software that comes with the device which is nothing less than atrocious. The Gisteq PhotoTracr application required all kinds of finagling to get it to work on Lion Mac 10.7.3 Lion and even after getting it to work the software was tough to figure out and is really suitable for jpegs and not for tagging raw files. I was ready to give up and then discovered an awesome piece of software called myTracks from the Apple Application store. My Tracks was a dream and I was able to geotag my images and export a track log which I was able to import into Lightroom 4 and fully take advantage of the Map Module.

PhotoTrackr Mini DPL900

Nancy Leigh photographed me in a cravasse in Patagonia with the PhotoTrackr Mini hanging recording GPS

Using the PhotoTrackr mini in Rwanda

MyTracks is an awesome application. Here we have a track from the gorillas in Rwanda showing the altitudes during each shot on our hike in the rain forest.

The track log is easily imported into Lightroom 4

LIGHTROOM WORKSHOPS

Lightroom Workshops

 2011 SCHEDULE

New York   Oct. 1-4 2011
Miami Beach Oct. 16-19 2011
San Francisco Nov. 4-7 2011

2012 SCHEDULE

Dallas Jan. 27-30
Miami Beach Feb. 27-March 1
Los Angeles Mar.14-17
NYC   Apr.11-14
Chicago June 3-6
Seattle July 27-30
Boston Oct. 12-15
Miami Beach Nov. 5-8

CREATIVE WORKSHOPS

Creative Workshops 

2011
Seth & Greg Gorman/ Mendocino (Sold Out)
September 11-16, 2011

Antarctica (Sold Out)
November 29-December 10, 2011

Patagonia (3 spaces left)
December 10-December 14, 2011

2012
Gorillas, Chimps, Volcanos of Rwanda (Private Trip)
February 11-February 19, 2012

D65 Africa Spectacular (12 spaces total 7 left)
May 6 – May 21, 2012

Iceland Seth Resnick & John Paul Caponigro (24 spaces,12 left)
August 25-Sept 1, 2011

Greenland and the Arctic- Polar Bears, Walrus,  Fiords (50% full)
September 4-17, 2012

Atacama Desert, Chile
TBA

Right around the time of PhotoPlus, onOne Software released Perfect Photo Suite 5.5   I have been more than impressed with this software and have incorporated it into my own workflow as well as our D65 workflow.  The Plug-in Suite 5 contains Mask Pro 4, PhotoTune 3, FocalPoint 2, PhotoFrame 4.5, PhotoTools 2.5 and Perfect Resize which was previously Genuine Fractals. The Plug-in package works with Photoshop and Lightroom or as a standalone application. Starting in January I will be doing a monthly webinar with onOne. We are offering a special 15% discount which can be used at the onOne Store. For details go the D65 store

KEYWORDING IN THE LIBRARY MODULE

Keywording really shows off the power of Lightroom as a digital asset management (DAM) system. The best way of using any DAM is to take advantage of the application’s ability to find specific images. Proper keywording and fully filling out all metadata is not only advantageous, but essentially the only way of finding specific images in a very large collection. It is one thing to scroll through a few hundred images to find the one you want. It is an entirely different matter to scroll through 50,000 images to find the image you want.

THE KEYWORD LIST PANEL

A keyword tag or “keyword” is metadata that categorizes and describes the key elements of a photo. According to one study, it may take more than 400 keywords to accurately describe an image without actually looking at the thumbnail. Building a Keyword Hierarchy can be a tedious and painful task, but it is essential to digital asset management. Keywords help in identifying and searching for images in a catalog. Keyword tags are stored either in the image files or in XMP sidecar files or in Lightroom Catalog. The XMP can be read by any application that supports XMP metadata.

Keywording Images

To keyword your images, think globally first and then go for local. Think of keywording the same way you would classify an animal. A Spider Monkey would first be a Mammal then an Ape, then a monkey and finally a spider monkey. For example, to classify Miami Beach, you might want to make several keyword hierarchies. One Parent would be Continent with a child called North America. A second Parent might be called Countries, with a child keyword of United States. A third Parent might be called United States with a child keyword of Florida and finally a parent called Cities with a child called Miami Beach.

In my own list, the top level Parent Keywords are in CAPS but they are private metadata and act as a placeholder and do not export with the image. All the child levels have the first letter of each word capitalized.

Location is an obvious keyword but there are many keywords that aren’t as obvious that make finding and organizing images a breeze. We have a Parent called Technique, for example whose Children include items like Blur, Reflections, Macro and Motion. This really helps when looking for certain types of images. We have another Parent called View with Children like Aerial, Fisheye, Front View, and Landscape. Again,the more specific the keyword, list the easier it becomes to find  images that you seek.

Our book D-65′s Lightroom Workbook has arrived and is shipping. If you order it from d.65.com you will receive a signed copy. The book is also available on Amazon. Reviews are welcome…

X-Rite has recently updated the camera calibration software for its ColorChecker Passport target. Version 1.0.2 is compatible with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 and improves both patch detection as well as the resulting profiles it creates for use within Adobe’s RAW conversion products.

To begin the update process, launch an earlier version of the ColorChecker Passport application and it should automatically detect that v1.0.2 is available. If it doesn’t, you can force an update check via the Help menu, or download the update manually here.

I will be speaking at the South Florida Camera Club on Thursday, July 1st 2010 at 7:30 PM. I will be demonstrating many of the new features of Lightroom 3 and it will surely be a blast. This mini workshop is free for anyone to attend that has not been to a South Florida Camera Club meeting in the past, and of course this workshop is free to all South Florida Camera Club members. If you are not a member and would like to become one please go to South Florida Camera Club.

South Florida Camera Club @ ArtServe
1350 East Sunrise Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304

Last night at midnight EST Adobe released Lightroom 3. LR 3 has many new features but some of the coolest are:

• Better overall performance
• Support for video
• Image Watermarking
• New Import Dialog
• Awesome new noise reduction
• Totally way cool Lens Corrections both auto and manual
• Integration with Flickr
• Tethered shooting
• Slideshows exportable with music
• Print packages
• Addition of Grain

We have a brand new book on Lightroom 3 which we will be posting shortly.

best,

Seth and Jamie