Pixiq

The Apple iPad has become more than a toy or status symbol, it has become a tool. Here is a tool that can be very helpful to all types of photographers. I am mainly a nature photographer and have found many uses for this mini computer from the get go.

I would recommend getting the iPad version with Wi-Fi + G3 and the largest memory capability (64 GB). Other accessories useful for photographers are the iPad Camera Connection Kit and iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter. My first uses of the iPad were for monitoring weather (I can watch ongoing storm movement with doppler radar sites), getting e-mail on the road (with exquisite color photographs), using the map/GPS features (even Google Earth), and entertaining restless grandchildren with the great apps for kids. These uses are not particularly aimed at photography, but helpful nonetheless. It didn’t take long for new apps and accessories to show up that were more in tune with our picture taking practices. The ability to download images onto the iPad from one’s computer and camera was the start. The screen is very conducive to viewing photos because of its excellent resolution and color. I was soon using it as a way of showing a portfolio of images. I arranged the images into similar groups called albums and was able to display images of Africa or grandkids, depending on the interests of the viewer. Any of the images could be quickly sent out attached to an e-mail. The prospect of viewing of high resolution and excellent color images was what brought me to the iPhone in the first place, but now the screen’s real estate has gotten a whole lot larger. The 3.5-inch screen on the iPhone can’t compare to the 9.7 inches of the iPad. The ability to expand and reduce the image on the screen using your fingers is a real bonus.

 Next came the ability to actually download images from the camera directly and wirelessly to the iPad using a couple of accessories from Apple and some new apps. An Apple iPad Camera Connection Kit modifies the recharging jack into either a SD card slot or a USB jack. This ability to download directly from the SD card has a few restrictions. The images should be JPEGs and you can quickly fill the iPad’s memory with a few downloads. That is why I recommend the 64GB unit. My way of using this feature is to photograph using my Canon EOS 1D MK IV with my main CF card writing RAW files and the adjacent SD card accepting small JPEGs. The SD card can be downloaded into the iPad for quick review and sending a few off as e-mails immediately, if needed. The RAW files are downloaded to an external hard drive with my laptop in the evening. Images on the iPad can be optimized to a degree using apps like Adobe’s Photoshop Express. Other apps that are photography-specific are Photo Touch, PhotoPad, Transfer, Photo-Sort and Artista-HD to name only a few. More show up every day.

 The iPad can also be used as a source to show images using a digital projector. Only a few software programs support this feature where the iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter is employed. A brand new app from Boinx Software called PhotoBox allows the images to be viewed and even enlarged for evaluation by using the two-finger spread on the iPad face. Another app that I have used is WebShow. Here I’m able to project the web directly from the iPad without my laptop. Complete integration where we can show anything that’s on the iPad’s screen still isn’t available. You never know, there may already be an app for that, and I just don’t know it.

 Another function of the iPad is just now being developed. The ability to control a Canon or Nikon camera wirelessly from the iPad is coming with a new version of onOne Software’s DSLR Camera Remote HD. This includes starting, stopping and monitoring video. Some of these controls have been possible from an iPhone, but the video control and larger screen will make this a very valuable use of the iPad for photographers. This new app will be available for the iPad in late November and cost $49.95. For additional information go to the onOne website at www.ononesoftware.com.

 As a bonus I also now receive nearly all of my magazines by way of downloads instead of by paper mail. Some of the magazines I receive on the iPad are Popular Photography, Macworld, MacLife and several British photo magazines, not to mention all my car magazines. Others publications, like Outdoor Photographer are available in part by going to their websites. The price of e-magazines is usually less than the paper versions. One of the better companies I use to download magazines to the iPad is Zinio. They have an app for that.