Digital Photography SIG Does Video

By Edwin Davidson, Editor - The DataBus

The Digital Photography SIG is one of the best-attended SIGs I have visited.  I think Dave Lundy must go to all of the SIG meetings, or else he’s just a camera stud.  All of the best pictures seem to have him in the frame at some point. 

I thought that SIG leader Millard Mier had bitten off a bit more than the computer could chew.  There is nothing wrong with trying to do a nice little video in a couple of hours, but when there are computer glitches, you won’t get back the time you lost.  As the Digital Photography SIG was already shooting the video before I got to the meeting, I only got to see the energetic group giving a hearty welcome on video.  For Windows XP or ME to finish this task in the time allotted, I think you would have had to have a real time video card, and some luck.

Millard not only wanted to create the video, but also add some animation and stills.  Everyone was having fun, but there were only a few computers editing pictures. They would have had to network all of the computers together to make a finished product feasible that night.  Many of the people who can network their computers together were there, and to get these more elaborate projects finished, I am sure that putting their heads together will make for some fun computing in the near future. 

Having fun waiting around can be part of the gathering, so this was the most relaxed SIG that I have seen gathered since my first visit over half a year ago.  At the upcoming General Meeting on May 27^th, the main presentation will showcase many of the Special Interest Groups we have and remind you of all the extra information you can learn if you can spare some time.  In a nice informal gathering, the time can seem to fly by and you can learn quite a few tips for completing those pesky photo projects, that you have been trying to get done. 

Jessica Corbett, hidden standing behind Dave Lundy in the first photo, was trying hard to implement the desired effects in the allotted time.  The Linux software she was using looked similar to PhotoShop, so the Windows operating system was not the only operating system being used that night.  Perhaps we’ll see some people using Apples one of these times. Lou Childs is one of the people here.  She is able to take a photo and embroider it on your shirt.  If you visit her during her SIG meetings, you might get some tips and tricks for doing some embroidery with your own computer.  Millard made some final announcements before the group broke up this night.  New software comes out so often it can boggle the mind if you try to learn all of it, but with the right group and some time, along with some patience, much can come out of spending a few hours with friends. 

Jim Ullom, in the picture to the left beside Millard, is the President of the Springfield NASAC computer users group, which meets in Xenia.  I came in with my camera to take some pictures of the group for The DataBus.  The talk we had led to me speaking at his last computer function.  Someone had cancelled at the last minute, but who could pass up chance to speak to the Springfield computer group, especially when most of the people go to Young’s at the end of the meeting. 

I mostly use a film camera but then again, my background is in film and lighting, so the light, the lens, and the film are my friends.  I must confess that I have not been into a darkroom in a long time.  The computer has made my photo manipulation a lot easier.  I was able to get most of the people to agree that they had most of what they needed in their old film cameras.  I have a couple of nice scanners that can take in photos at a level easily surpassing most of the digital cameras  under $2,000 today.

I am not about to spend $25,000 on a top-quality, professional-level digital camera, especially when most people are shooting for the web.  The digital camera is most important for getting something out immediately.  The Polaroid is still around because it can give you an immediate photo.  The digital camera is slowly taking its place, but most people are not ready to spend close to $2000 to get a good photo right now.  Scanning is a slow process but I don’t mind.  If I have a good negative, I can make a big picture. 

My digital camera’s memory card is quicker to import pictures to my computer.  When you are in a hurry, there is nothing like a full-fledged digital camera 1.3 megapixels or above.  3600 dpi scans can take a minute or more per frame.  The resulting 44 megapixel image is not easy for most computers to handle unless you have lots of memory, and good hard drives.  I have about 2 gigabytes left on my hard drive, and it is starting to run slowly.  It is time for me to write the information to CD and catalog it to free up my hard drive. 

I am into integrating old and new devices.  I am not about to throw away some very good equipment just because something new is invented.  Film keeps getting better, and is still nice for producing quality photos.  Many old usable devices are able to help you even with the new digital cameras.  The two pictures shown of the NASAC Computer Users Group (Dave Lundy keeps jumping in front of the lens), one with and one without an extra flash.  One of the group was able to help me with this demonstration.  An automatic sensor kicked off the slave unit, which was not needed in this instance, but I wanted to demonstrate how old and new equipment could be used together. 

Make time soon to come out to one or more of the User Group meetings and get some insights, tips and tricks about using your computer for those daily chores.  The computer was once a toy.   It is now integrated into our daily lives.  It is almost impossible to keep up with all of the changes, and our different SIGs can help keep you in touch with the people who use these tools regularly.  Many of the SIGs will be highlighted in these pages over the coming year.  If you have a special agenda or event scheduled at your SIG meeting, don’t forget to invite one of us here at The DataBus (email us at Editor (at) dma.org) to come and write up a story on your meeting.  If you forget to invite us, but have pictures and wish to write your own summary, you are invited and encouraged to send us an article about your Special Interest Group event or meeting.

Picture where slave unit didn't flash	Picture with slave unit

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