The Digital Photography Show #73: DXO Optics Pro, Hot Photographer David Jay and Michael’s Wedding Shoot
The Digital Photography Show #73: DXO Optics Pro, Hot Photographer David Jay and Michael’s Wedding Shoot (44Mb, 63 mins)
November 2, 2007: Welcome to the seventy-third episode of The Digital Photography Show!
On today’s show, we feature interviews with two luminaries from Photoplus Expo.
David Jay is a terrific photographer – ranked as one of the top 15 wedding photographers in the world! David tells us a little bit about his workflow, about how he uses Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and about the almost t00-sweet message on his automatic email responder. Awww, David!
If you want to win one of his David Jay’s products as described in the show, go to David’s site and sign up for his weekly newsletter. (We’ll take you at your word on this, but really do sign up, please.) Send us an email at TheDigitalPhotographyShow@gmail.com that says “David’s sending me mail” in the subject line and we’ll enter you into a random drawing to be chosen on November 30, 2007.
Luc Marin is the genius behind DXO Optics Pro. DxO Optics Pro offers a whole range of features to automatically correct and enhance your images. It eliminates distortion, vignetting, & lens softness through specifically developed camera/lens modules, it removes camera noise and purple fringing and it optimizes your exposure, dynamic range and colors. It’s pretty magical, and, best of all, Luc gives away a copy of this program on today’s show.
For a chance to win this outstanding program, go to to DXO’s homepage at http://dxo.com/intl/photo. On the bottom right of the page, they talk about a tool that gives you “Stunning colors under control .” Send us an email with the name of that tool in the subject line (clue: It’s called “Smart_______[fill in the blank]”) TheDigitalPhotographyShow@gmail.com. We’ll pick a correct answer at random on November 30, 2007.
If you want to buy DXO Optics Pro, remember the 20% discount they are only offering to listeners of this show. Try the program for free, and when you’re ready to buy, use the code DXODPS.
On today’s show, Michael also tells us about his wedding shoot. You can see Michael’s pictures at www.stein.phanfare.com.
We’d love to hear what you thought of the show either here on the blog or at TheDigitalPhotographyShow@gmail.com.
We also appreciate the sponsorship of Wacom (www.wacom.com) and Lensbabies (www.lensbabies.com), two great products for when you want to get creative with your photography.
Wanna participate in the show?
- Send us an email at TheDigitalPhotographyShow@gmail.com.
- Leave a comment at www.TheDigitalPhotographyShow.com
- Call in a voice mail to US 301-637-7767
- Join the listener-run (thanks Laurel and Frank!) Flickr group Friends of The Digital Photography Show at http://flickr.com/groups/thedps.
Thanks for joining us here and remember: While you’re taking your pictures, picture a better a world.
Scott
November 6th, 2007 at 2:23 am
Michael,
Thank you for sharing your experience with the Stowe Wedding. A funny store about the Gary Fong Difusser. Aaron had purchased it for me as a Christmas gift last year. I had no idea what it was when I opened it..I just smiled and said “thank you” and but the diffuser down…I had NO IDEA what it was - but I did not want to say anything at the time. A little later during the evening we were taking family pictures. I had my D70s and put my SB 800 on it to start shooting…Aaron said…why don’t you use your new diffuser? I said…what diffuser!!! The Gary Wong diffuser you just opened up 30 minutes ago…replied Aaron - a bit miffed! Ohhhhh…that’s what it is! Anyway…I highly recommend using the diffuer. I put it right on my SB800 and it makes a world of difference. I don’t use it too much out in public because people look at me funny..or assume I am a “professional” - which I am soooo not! I used the Gary Wong diffuser on the pictures that I took for my MPIX.com Canvas REview on my web site at http://thephotoenthusiast.com/archives/39
Your wedding pictures are brilliant. I love the colors - you not only captured the fall colors - but some great candids. I really enjoyed checking them out!
Cheers,
Laurel
The Photo Enthusiat
Queen of the Photo Contests!
November 6th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
Great show, guys!
I loved the alien invasion in the middle of the show. Made me laugh out loud! But I am glad that they brought you back for the rest of the show, Michael.
Thank you as well for sharing the photos and the learning experience of the wedding shoot. Looking forward to next week!
Blessings,
Holly
November 7th, 2007 at 6:16 am
Very interesting show! I just found out that I am going to be the back up photographer at a family wedding next month, so your discussion was very appropriate, particularly the part about working around the hired photographer.
Thanks!
Leslie
November 7th, 2007 at 7:00 am
Speaking of sponsors, when are you guys going to announce the Wacom winner from the contest three shows ago? :)
November 7th, 2007 at 11:07 pm
Michael; Thanks for sharing your wedding shoot experiences and I can feel it! Hey, your pictures look really great with excellent composures! I recently did a few wedding shoots as a backup shooter and I too have noticed that the professional photographers are taking a firm stand against having anyone taking picture at the formals. I have noticed this more with noted wedding photographers and they seem to be moving the restrictions to most of the ceremony too. They seem to be covering this in their contract with the client…
I spoke with a few assistants (as they seem to be more accommodating) and they mentioned that this was their artistic privilege. They are getting paid to create the poses and scenes, where they do not want distractions. These are their talent and uniqueness being exercised. Some of them not only restrict picture taking, but request that everyone but the party being shot to leave the immediate area. They do take note of people with DSLRs, as I think they feel that you may take the shot along the side of them and come out with a technical “my shot should be kept as it came out better”. This is not their mission and it may discount some of their effort. The professional’s mission is to apply their artistic uniqueness and make the shot. Not to be taken at a technical level where to start nick picking about having multiple photographers so that shots can be compared!…
As a backup (volunteer) photographer, I try to limit my DSLR shooting to the rehearsal where the professional is not in attendance. Unless I really feel the need, I try to limit my wedding ceremony shoots to a point and shoot (maybe high end). I found it to not draw too much attention from the pros. If you are going to shoot any part of the wedding (especially when using a DSLR), please talk to the attending professional and get their clearance. It is quite embarrassing to have them stop the shoot and direct their attention to you, with a request to remove yourself. Believe me, the wedding couple and family will most likely not intervene as they are paying good money for their service and are in a situation of being fully trusting of the photographer’s judgment. Ah, what power digital photography has given each of us and where it has really intruded (and threatened) the world of the working professional…
What David Jay was mentioning about not utilizing Photoshop too much, I too heard this from many of the wedding photographers too. Besides needing to fine tune the exposure and color, they try to make the shots as correct as possible when it is taken. This minimizes their post processing workflow and time is money. They can’t spend a whole lot of time nick picking several hundred shots, where technical perfect corrections would not be noticed by the client. I think they reserve this effort for a few formal shots…
It’s funny that David Jay did mention about the feature he loved most about the new Canon Mark IIIs was the minimum shutter speed / auto ISO. You mentioned this about a dozen episodes ago that you thought this was a cool feature that Nikon’s had for a while (remember Michael)! Well, I learned a lot from what you mentioned and I have found this to work really well with my Nikon D40. This is a must use feature under aperture priority mode…
Keep up the great podcast!…
November 7th, 2007 at 11:47 pm
I am driving to work today…listening in my favorite podcast…and there right at the end, a mention for my little blog. WOOOOOO! Thanks for the shout out guys.
I can’t wait for the interview with Kelby…I must say I have been using Photoshop only 13 days as of today, and with that 7 Point System I am sharking! And to think…I never would have known who Scott Kelby was if it weren’t for this show.
Anyway…love you guys.
November 7th, 2007 at 11:56 pm
By the way…you can use my real name Rosanne Christie. Shrewspeaks is an old left over from days gone by.
November 8th, 2007 at 3:29 am
I had a question for Scott Kellby. I am not a photoshop user but loved his Lightroom book. I bought his CS3 for Digital Photographers book. Should I just skip the chapters on Camera Raw since I use Lightroom?
Probably a dumb question, but I want to make sure I don’t miss anything I need to know.
Thanks,
Jim B
November 8th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
Thanks everyone for the positive feedback about the wedding photos. The happy couple visited the other night and I presented a slideshow to them on the TV. Even though they have a DVD with the image files, I am told the bride is continually visiting the site and watching the slideshow from there, so I guess she is happy with the photos. It has been a big learning experience for me. I have since ordered the Lightsphere set. We’ll see how those go.
Jim, LR and CS3-ACR are both RAW converters which have essentially the same tools. You should be able to translate Scott’s CS3-ACR RAW conversion techniques to LR without a problem.
–Michael
November 9th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
The aliens were OK, but Scotts yawning almost set me off Yawning! Good show apart from sound issues.
November 10th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
I have only come across your podcast in the last couple of months, but have worked my way almost completely through the older shows. LOVE the show!! Really enjoyed the interview with David Jay and was intrigued by the discussion of his Lightroom Settings; I checked them out on the site, but all are geared toward weddings. I am quite keen to know if those settings would work well for more general indoor/outdoor photography of people (mostly my kids). I have searched all over google looking for similar settings files for Lightroom to buy (but for nature - landscape & wildlife) and found nothing. Would love any leads folks have in that regard. Again, fantastic show.
November 12th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Hey guys, what’s with the locked “Finalists” on the Phanfare site?
Thanks
November 12th, 2007 at 11:50 pm
The locked album is just a temporary album for Scott and I to work out the finalists. The album will soon be moved the contest album. Sorry for the tease. Thanks for your patience.
–Michael
November 13th, 2007 at 3:52 am
Michael,
Just a quick comment to the issue of additional photographers during the “formals” session. Sure, there is a bit of a business model thing going on, but it also really is about distractions. You might think you’re being unobtrusive, but the fact is that once you point a lens at someone, even from a distance, there is a temptation for someone to look at it. No one wants to get pictures where one person’s eyes have wandered over to another photographer (nor does the main photographer want to have to waste time trying to fix an otherwise perfect shot in post for the same reason).
As you said at the beginning of your discussion, the very reason you urged them to hire a pro was because this was a once-in-a-lifetime event. Part of what goes along with that is the shooting of the formals and it deserves to be done right and distraction free, and to some extent, it also deserves to be just the pro’s “show,” so to speak.
That’s just my 2 cents.
– Robert
November 13th, 2007 at 5:45 am
Good show guys. I did however take some exception to the smug tone you were taking towards the prices being asked by the professional wedding photographer. When you buy a camera, are you paying what the camera cost to make? Or is the manufacturer making a profit from the sale? Why should a wedding photographer be any different? From shoot to post processing to handling to delivery, there is a lot of work involved in Wedding Photography.
Regarding Gary Fong’s products… NICE! I own the Whale Tale Studio and I am soon to buy the Origami and the Light Sphere Universal. I used to shoot gigs with stands and umbrella’s but I am now confident enough to just travel with just a flash and my Whale Tale.
November 13th, 2007 at 8:02 am
Thanks Michael,
By the by, glad to hear the wedding worked out well. Sounds like you had some really good shots and a lot of fun. Look forward to your next podcast. Good job to all!!!
Tom
November 13th, 2007 at 8:56 am
Robert,
You make a great point about distractions. I have been in situations where I was taking the photo and everyone starts looking at their friend with the camera on the side and suddenly I’ve lost eye contact. On the other hand, another photographer is just one distraction as there are usually many distractions for those being photographed as there are lots of folks around waiting to get their photo taken. Nevertheless, I did not argue with the photographer and totally respected his wishes. It was actually a blessing as it gave me freedom to roam at the cocktail hour where I was the only photographer.
Regarding the cost of the photos. He is free to charge what he wants and I imagine he knows his market. My tone probably came from viewing his photos, and I thought for the general quality the prices were too high, at least for the candids. I would liked to have seen tiered pricing for the formals vs the candids. The formals were really great and were his pieces of art and are worth every penny. I expect only close family members to be purchasing those. For the rest of us guests, especially tight fisted New Englanders, I think folks would think thrice before spending $6 for a candid snapshot. If his photos are selling well, more power to him.
–Michael
November 14th, 2007 at 6:38 am
I am a new “enthusiast” and listener. I look forward to each show and listen to them several times each during my work commute.
I want to purchase some “post” software. Should I jump in with CS3, or will Lightroom do the trick? Would love to hear your feedback.