Vanguard Up Rise 45 review by Steve Davison

We recently held a competition on David Fleet Photography with a great prize of a Vanguard Up-rise 45 camera backpack up for grabs courtesy of Vanguard.

The lucky winner was Steve Davison, a landscape photographer based in Yorkshire and after an extended amount of time with his new Up-rise 45 he has been kind enough to provide with his Vanguard Up Rise 45 review which I thought would be helpful to anyone considering a new camera bag.

Here’s what he had to say:

“I’ve given the Vanguard Up-rise 45 backpack a thorough test through a few of the Dales in all sorts of weather conditions and pleasingly there have been no leaks, which is a great start for a very stylish looking backpack.

The generous padding, cushions the small of my back and shoulder blades well so for comfort of carrying its scores a resounding success. The strapping is easy to adjust and holds the backpack comfortably in place.

Whilst access to all storage pockets is not a rapid exercise, compared to other bags, it is easy and multiple access to the main gear storage pocket is a really clever idea. The main access is cunningly concealed in the cushioned “Air System” padding on the rear. The pockets themselves are very generous in size and comfortably held all the gear I would wish to take with me on a field trip, that being a Canon 50D body and 3 or 4 lenses.

External support pockets and concealed strapping unzip to connect a tripod. The expandable front panel allows extra gear to be accommodated inside and maps, timetables and notepads fit easily in the front pocket. A large extra pocket at the top is plenty big enough for smaller gear such as filters, batteries and flash units.

A rain cover is concealed in one of the padding pockets on the back. The Up-Rise 45 was found to be well constructed and stood up well to some rigorous treatment. The construction materials are sound and clean easily. In 3 months of testing I have had no cause for concern with any part of its construction with all zips, straps and buckles standing up well.”

Want even more storage space?

So it sounds like a resounding thumbs up for the Vanguard Up-Rise 45 backpack from Steve. It’s great to hear what a photographer thinks of kit like this after thoroughly testing it out for an extended period of time.

Steve did provide one note which may interest to those of you who like to take your laptops with you on trips:

“Whilst I am extremely grateful for the generosity of David Fleet Photography and Vanguard in providing me with this prize, I have just one misgiving. Had I been buying it myself I would have bought the Up-Rise 48 which would have housed my laptop. Having said that, if you don’t need to carry a laptop with you I can thoroughly recommend this product”

Thanks again to Steve for his feedback , you can check out his website Steve Davison Photography

If you found this review helpful then please purchase your Vanguard equipment or anything else for that matter through our links as the small commission we get helps to keep the site running, it doesn’t cost you a penny more.

Was Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Worth the Wait?  A Lightroom 4 Review

With the long waiting period over, Adobe has finally released its latest version of Photoshop in the form of Lightroom 4.  This highly anticipated release follows the release of the Beta tester a few months ago which met to rave reviews from its early critics.  Now that we’ve had a few weeks to test out the improvements and new features in Lightroom 4 and compared them to what we saw in the beta release, we’re finally ready to publish this Lightroom 4 Review.

(After the review, please make sure you buy your copy of Lightroom 4 through my links which really helps us keep the site running!

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Review

We start off this Lightroom 4 Review with an update on the system requirements from Adobe.  No longer does Adobe Lightroom 4 support 32-bit Macs or Windows XP.  In order to run Lightroom 4 you’ll need a 64-bit Intel processor and OS 10.6.8 and up or for Windows you’ll need Vista or Windows 7.  This system upgrade has been implemented to meet the new updates incorporated in the Adobe’s new Photoshop program, ensuring that you’ll be able to run all the features smoothly and without any glitches.

With that announcement out of the way, on to the fun stuff!  First, I’m going to get into some of the features that really stood out to me in both the Beta testing and the actual release.  Then, we’re going to go into a few of the other features.

Process Version (PV) 2012

The Develop module’s Basic panel tools have undergone a huge upgrade in Lightroom 4, opening up a wide array of new options and tools to users.  Presets are now arranged in categories along with six new slots for video with others are available for download.  But perhaps the biggest change is the sophistication and maturity of the Develop algorithms.  Because of this change, sliders in the Basic panel are rearranged (which took a little getting used to) but the improvements are well worth the additions.

Shadow detail and highlight are much easier to manipulate and focus into fine detail and the dynamic range of your digital files are extended for higher detail and realism.  Recovery and Fill are easier to manipulate and the odd effect they sometimes had on shadows has been eliminated.

I also really like the changes to the Histogram as it is now easier to keep an eye on your exposure.  Hover features on the Histogram allow you to instantly pinpoint which control needs to be adjusted and the overall usability has become artist-friendly.

Map Module and Geotagging

Employing a much needed upgrade on Aperture’s mapping system, Lightroom 4 makes tagging simple and fun.  An essential part of many of our jobs (and a fun pastime when we’re at home) the location-tagging function is fantastic.  By importing a GPS tracking log in .gpx format, you are able to map an image route for a trip or project, allowing you to see a point by point interactive map of the area.  Tools like these save time and money while being attractive to customers and clients.  You simply input the difference in times between the shots and Lightroom 4 maps out the route for you.  Very cool!

RGB Point Curves

Finally, Lightroom 4 has implemented a Tone Curve panel from which you can make Point Curve edits on individual RGB channels.  No more switching over to Photoshop to make these separately.  Now, you can simply click on the “Edit Point Curve” icon in the Histogram window and go through the Channel menu to find which RGB curve you want to change.  Thanks to the TAT (Targeted Adjustment Tool) and exact control for RGB curves, it’s much easier to fine-tune balance, perfect color, switch between positive and negative images and many other options that weren’t available before.

Spot Proofing Feature in Lightroom 4

Perhaps one of my personal favorites, the spot proofing improvements help Lightroom to automatically detect my ICC profiles from my user folder, allowing me to easily make proof copies to work on in the develop module.  Because of relative colorimetric rendering, colors are matched to an almost perfect hue but the perceptual rendering makes smoother gradations while giving up accuracy.  In Lightroom 4, I’m saving myself time and money by spot proofing with greater ease. This is one of the main functions which persuaded me to upgrade from Lightroom 3 and it’s such a useful function to anyone who prints their own images.

As I print fine art prints this upgrade alone is worth the price of upgrading to Lightroom 4.

Enhanced Video Support

Although I rarely shoot video I couldn’t forget to mention this!  The increased options now available for video files makes Lightroom 4 one of the best releases by Adobe in a long, long time.  The ability to scrub video and playback in Library or trim clips with image editor makes this worth the price alone.  Plus, .moc and .mp4 are now supported as are .mts files which are generated from AVCHD.  This makes video editing on the go much easier and gives the ability to upload vlogs and YouTube vids straight from your laptops in the field.  Exporting direct video from Lightroom can be done with DPX, H.264 or in the existing format of the file.  Plug-ins are available for publishing to Flickr and Facebook, making this a great Social Media Marketing tool.

Other Features of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4

Like I said before, those are just a few personal favorites that Iwanted to highlight for Lightroom 4.  There are many other features that make this program (or the upgrade) well worth its price.  In working with Lightroom 4 over the past week and a half, here are some other features that I found which make Lightroom 4 go above and beyond the call of duty:

• Advanced tonal recovery updates make Lightroom 4 an investment in progress
• Improved and increased localized adjustments
• Basic video editing is simple and helpful
• Improved Book layouts make adjustments a snap
• Lower price than Lightroom 3
• Clear interface design
• Workflow is smooth and uninterrupted
• Lens and camera based corrections make Lightroom 4 an editor’s dream
• Email directly from Lightroom 4 with email of your choice
• Presets fully utilize new processing technology

And that’s just the beginning.  Really, if you want to find out about all the features on the new Adobe Photoshop program, Lightroom 4, you’re going to have to pick it up for yourself and dig right in.  After all, that’s what being a photographer is all about, right? I will also be adding more Lightroom 4 tutorials to help you get to grips with Lightroom 4 and perfect your workflow.

So, if you’re ready to increase your income and decrease your workload at the same time, the all new Lightroom 4 from Adobe is exactly what you need.  So don’t forget to pick up your copy through our links, it really does help us to keep adding more articles to the site, thanks to all those who buy through our links.

Lightroom 4 collections

Don’t forget to pick up your copy of Lightroom 4 through my Amazon link below. It wont cost you anymore but allows me to earn a small commission which helps towards the upkeep of the site. Thanks to all those who buy anything at all through my links, no matter how small it all helps. Adobe Lightroom 4.0 (Mac/PC)

Ok, so now you have managed to import all your photos in our last Lightroom 4 tutorial (see my previous tutorial) you’re probably wondering how you are gong to go about keeping all your best photos or similar photos nicely organised so you can quickly see them.

Well this is where one of Lightroom 4′s best features comes into play, Collections.

By using collections you can tell Lightroom 4 to group all images that display certain criteria together, whether they all have the same keywords, are shot with the same lens, you literally have hundreds of combinations to select from  and with smart collections you can tell Lightroom to do this on future images that that meet the criteria you specify.

To create a new collection just check all the photos that you want to add to your collection then click the ‘plus button’ in the collections drop down menu in the library module and click ‘create collection’

Then just name your collection, choose if it will be a top level collection or part of a collection set and then check the ‘include selected photos’ box.

Smart collections

This is where the really good stuff happens in Lightroom 4′s library feature and its something that will save you loads of time.

Using ‘smart collections’ enables you to set criteria by which Lightroom 4 will organise your photos into collections and even keep them updated with new photos that you import.

I use smart collections to keep all my images in order and in one place. For example I have smart collections for my landscape images, another for black and whites and others for stock shots and simply completed images. It really is a great tool because once you have defined the criteria for the smart collection it manages itself and you can just forget about it until you want to find say, all your landscape images and they are all in the smart collection you created.

To create a smart collection click on the + button on the collections menu in the library module and then click ‘create smart collection’.

You will then be asked to name your smart collection so make sure it is something obvious to you so you won’t forget what images are supposed to be in it.

You can choose to place the smart collection as part of a set of smart collections or not, then you are able to define the criteria for which images will be placed in your smart collection.

You can choose to use all sorts of criteria to pick the images including keywords, title, capture date, camera name, which lens you used, what aperture, shutter speed or ISO the images were taken at. There are hundreds of possible combinations however I would advise trying to keep it as simple as possible to avoid forgetting to add the correct keywords etc to your images in the future.

So as you can see above, my landscapes ‘smart collection’ adds all images to the collection which have the keyword “landscapes” and it has the option “has adjustments” ticked, so the only images that show are the ones I have actually worked on and completed (made adjustments) and I have added the keyword “landscapes” to.

Obviously you can choose whichever options you like but I would suggest having a bit of a think to see what will suit your work flow.

Quick Collections

For me smart collections are probably the most important collections in Lightroom 4 but you can also use ‘quick collections to great effect when editing your images.

Quick collections allow you to group together photos at the click of a button. I use it when I have imported photos from a new shoot and I am selecting which ones are possible keepers. I simply add the best images to a quick collection to separate them from the others. I can then go and look in more detail at the best shots and work on them without having to trawl through the shots that I don’t want.

The reason I use this method rather than just deleting the images I don’t want immediately is because sometimes you can make a mistake deleting an image and it’s easier to remove an image from your quick collection than it is to have to import the backup of the one you just threw away.

It’s really easy to make a quick collection, all you have to do to is click the little circle on the top right hand corner of the thumbnail (if you hover the mouse over it, it says “add photo to quick collection”) or you can simply click on the thumbnail and press the B button.

When you are ready to view your quick collection just click the catalogue drop down and click on quick collection and the images you have just selected will be shown all in one handy place.

Ok so that’s just about it for using collections in Lightroom. Hopefully you are now able to easily organise and manage your photos in Lightroom 4 which means you have more time to get out and shoot.

If these tutorials have helped you then it would be great if you buy your equipment and software through my links. It wont cost you anymore but may pay me a small commission which helps to pay for articles like this. Thank You to all those who have bought anything through the links, no matter how small.

Photoshop Lightroom 4 Tutorial

So I recently upgraded to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 because I liked some of it’s new features including soft proofing and the ability to make localised white balance adjustments. After having used Lightroom 3 for a number of years for my work as a professional landscape photographer and written a number of tutorials on it I thought it was time to update them and create this new Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 tutorial.

You can buy your version of Adobe Lightroom 4.0 (Mac/PC)
through Amazon at a great price.

Organising your Images in Lightroom 4

One of the main benefits of using Lightroom over Photoshop is it’s excellent Library function which allows you to do everything from importing to key wording and organising your folder structures. I’ll quickly take you through how to import your photos from your camera and how to set up your folders to keep them organised as well as automatically back up your images and add important meta data and copyright information to keep your pictures safe from theft.

Now to start off we should choose where we want to save all our images. The default is to store them on your main hard drive, usually the C: drive but I would recommend saving your images to either another internal drive or an external one because your main hard drive will quickly fill up. It is also better to have a dedicated drive just for your images if possible to keep things organised.

As you can see I have quite a bit of hard drive space but most people wont need this much. I store my images on my D: drive and have lightroom automatically back up to my external F: drive which in turn is then backed up to the G: drive. A separate backup is then made to another portable hard drive which is kept off site and a final backup is made to the cloud. Now this is certainly overkill for the majority of people but being a professional photographer means my livelihood depends upon those images so I am very paranoid about saving them. One backup will be enough for most people.

Keeping things simple

I would recommend storing all your images in one folder and then creating sub- folders within it. My main folder is called ‘My Lightroom Photos’ and then I have sub folders named by year and then date within it.

To keep things simple I would recommend moving all your existing images into this main lightroom folder so that Lightroom can keep all your photos easily organised.Simply drag and drop them into your new folder.

Now for images already on your computer all you have to do is tell Lightroom 4 where they are by importing them. Click on the import button in the Library module (Press Ctr+Shift+i) and you will be taken to the photo import screen.

Now just select the folder with your images in that you want to import into Lightroom. You can also deselect any individual images that you don’t want to import by unchecking the check box in the top left of the image thumbnail.

You also have the options to move the files, copy them or simply add them to Lightroom’s catalogue and leave them in their existing position. If you have already dragged and dropped your images as previously explained then you can simply choose the add option.

I usually leave the check box ticked for ‘don’t import suspected duplicates’ which helps to avoid creating multiple copies of files.

Now just like in Lightroom 3 you can setup Lightroom 4 to automatically apply keywords and/or copyright information to your photos on import which is a great time saving tool.

Simply click on the meta data drop down and select edit pre-sets on the “apply during import” menu and you can define the settings and meta data that you want to apply.

Here you can see I have added copyright information as well as my contact details so should someone find this image somewhere illegally on the Internet and want to use it they have no excuse for not getting in touch and requesting permission.

Importing Photos from your camera

Ok so you have now imported and organised existing photos but here’s how to get your beautiful new images from your camera and into Lightroom 4′s library.

Well it’s pretty much the same as importing images from your PC except you select a different source in the top left hand menu. In this case it’s called EOS Digital

Once you have plugged in your memory card to the computer Lightroom will see it and you can choose to import images from the card.

If you’re not sure if you want to import all the images then you can check them before importing by double clicking on the thumbnail to check for sharpness, composition etc. and simply uncheck the box in the top left corner if you don’t want to import a particular file, the thumbnail will then be darker than the others to show Lightroom will not be importing it.

Remember I mentioned earlier that I get Lightroom 4 to make and extra backup copy of my images automatically? Well here’s where you do it. Tick the check box in the top right hand corner in the file handling section that says ‘make a second copy to’ and simply select where you want Lightroom to create your backup copy. Simples.

Finally I normally add a custom name in the file renaming section to help me remember which shoot the images are from. I use something like Luskentyre Winter Sunset but choose whatever works best for you.

So there you have it, your images should now be nicely organised in Lightroom 4 and safely backed up as well as being protected from copyright theft. Next up I’ll show you one of Lightroom’s best features and one that will save you so much time. Next Lightroom 4 tutorial

Dont forget to pick up your copy of Lightroom 4 through my Amazon link below. It wont cost you anymore but allows me to earn a small commission which helps towards the upkeep of the site. Thanks to all those who buy anything at all through my links, no matter how small it all helps.

Looking for a cheap Canon 550d ?

If you are looking for a cheap Canon EOS 550d then you have come to the right place as we have sourced all the cheapest deals on the internet so you can stop looking and start shooting with your new camera.
I have bought from all the stores that we recommend and have always found them to be the most competitive in terms of pricing and all offer excellent customer service.

 


If you want cheap deals on other cameras you can find them below:
Cheap Nikon D7000

Cheap Nikon D3100

Capture your story in stunning detail with the EOS 550D. With the creative freedom to capture the decisive shot, see all the detail of your holiday sunset or follow action in the local football match.
Features

18 MP APS-C CMOS sensor
DIGIC 4
ISO 100-6400, H:12800
Up to 3.7fps shooting
Full HD movies
7.7cm (3.0”) 3:2 Clear View LCD with 1,040k dots
iFCL metering
Quick Control screen
Ext. Mic socket
Movie crop

Stills or movies, capture your story

18 MP CMOS sensor
Ideal for those who want to create large, poster-size prints – or crop images without losing any of the detail necessary for printing – EOS 550D’s 18MP CMOS sensor is outstanding in low light, and produces images with incredibly low noise.

DIGIC 4
Canon’s DIGIC 4 processor works with the CMOS sensor to deliver 14-bit image processing, for smooth gradations and natural looking colours. DIGIC 4 also powers advanced Noise Reduction when shooting at higher ISO speeds, plus split-second start-up times and near-instant image review after shooting.

High ISO for low light
When light levels fall, the EOS 550D offers an ISO range of up to 6400 – expandable to 12800 for those environments where using flash is undesirable.

Full HD movie recording
The EOS 550D combines exceptional still shooting with the ability to shoot Full HD (1080p) video. To satisfy your creativity the EOS 550D features full manual control and selectable frame rates. You can also shoot high speed 50/60fps movies at 720P for when the action is really fast. An HDMI connection allows High Definition playback of footage and images on any HDTV. Also with compatible TVs playback can be controlled using the TV’s remote control.

7.7cm (3.0”) 3:2 Clear View LCD
Detailed checks on images and video are possible with a 7.7cm (3.0”) 3:2 Clear View LCD screen, which features an ultra-high 1,040,000 dots for increased clarity. Switch to Live View mode and use the real-time visual feed to shoot from awkward angles.

iFCL metering system
A new 63-zone dual layer metering sensor analyses Focus, Colour and Luminance information, providing accurate and consistent metering.

Quick Control screen
Accessible using a dedicated button it provides easy access to commonly used functions, ensuring that you are ready to take the shot as it happens.

External Microphone Socket
Add an additional microphone for better quality sound using the 3.5mm stereo jack socket.

Movie Crop
Shoot VGA movies with an effective zoom of 7x. Movie crop uses only the centre part of the sensor and allows long distance shooting without having to change lenses.

Create a shooting system as unique as you are
The EOS 550D is compatible with Canon’s full range of EF and EF-S lenses and EX-series Speedlites.