Nikon D4 - 5 Years in the Making

As someone who has been a long time Nikon user, I have spent the last 5 years blissful in my use of the Nikon D3, and then, when I needed video, the D3s. I too have had (and still do) a line of Canon lenses and cameras for some time - which was my answer to the failings of the D2X until the D3 came out. I know that there have been some folks who felt a demand and desire for the larger D3x files, however, for my applications, the extra size wasnt critical for me.

I encourage you to take a read of Joe McNallys blog here, for his take on the amazement of the camera - I think he and I are on the same wavelength in that we both saw the D3 as the answer to our needs. The D4, seems to be the answer to our dreams. Rob Galbraith has an exhaustive review of the specs, and comparisons to the previous D3 line, which is well worth a read, here. And a head-to-head on the D3 v. EOS 1D X (interesting - the " " (space) otherwise defines the EOS 1D X against the old old Nikon 1DX. Youd have thought Canon would have thought about that) appears here. Nikon Rumors has a comparative spec sheet here.

Corey Rich put together a really exceptional video here:


Because of Vimeo compression has some purists asking questions, all of which are answered by the fact that Vimeo has compression limitations. Rich promises a behind-the-scenes video next month, and at some point the uncompressed version will be available that will put to rest the questions being asked.

We look forward to getting our hands on a D4 once there are more than 10 of them in the world (an interesting insight gleaned from Richs comments on his video) and it can be used outside of a conference room (as indicated by the PDN blog post here).

Here are a collection of videos we like that give you more insights into the camera. And, if you want to pre-order one online, you can sign up to be notified of its availablity on Amazon here.

Nikon D4 Product Tour here:





Wireless shooting with iPad here:




Nikon Movie - I AM PUSHING THE LIMITS here:




Nikon D4 Menu Walk-Through here:




David Hobby, Mr. Strobist himself, has decided he is Bailing on the Nikon D4. Hes gone, instead, going for a used medium format camera. Hes spent $10k to make the leap, and for what it seems like from what hes described, it works for him.

One point that David made in his post was " If I were still shooting daily sports, Id probably be lining up to preorder this camera just like everyone else." Frankly, there isnt so much of a market for this now, to be honest. Ask any sports photographer and they will tell you that theres no money in sports photography, thanks to the likes of US Presswire, Cal Sport Media, Icon, and so on. Unless, of course, youre staff somewhere, or just so happen to have a sweet contract with a major sports magazine. A freelancer who shoots sports will have to be selling internal organs to be able to afford this camera - not because the cameras too expensive - its not - but because they just dont have the money. However, if youre staff, youll just put in for your next camera to be a D4, and hope you have a friendly editor who will let it through - or orders you a D3 now while you can still get them.

For anyone who is in Nikon, the notion of switching to Canon is really now a non-starter, if they were thinking that. If you own a D3, you will eventually own the D4 if for no other reason than youll need to upgrade your camera in a few years, and with a 5 year cycle for new bodies, the D5 wont be out when you need the D4. The multimedia, for so many reasons, does trump the Canon, and I am interested to try out all my Nikon primes on the D4.

Lastly, consider the cost-justification. If the life-cycle of the D4 is 5 years, thats 60 months. At $100 a month ($200 a month if you have a backup camera, which you should) if you cant justify a $100 a month expenditure for the primary tool you use to create your images, then are you really a professional? Its a tool, and if you need it, then buy it. If, however, you are considering it as just the latest and greatest toy, then dont. Thankfully, if youre a member of Nikon Professional Services, they were kind enough to send out an email to facilitate working professionals getting the camera before all the non-professionals.



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* Note - We have, in the past, been a sponsored speaker by Nikon through professional organizations.

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LicenseStream - Evaporating Into Thin Air?

For several days recently, the LicenseStream website has been down. ImageSpan (Which changed its name to LicenseStream in January of 2011), was the company behind LicenseStream, and billed the site as "the market-leading licensing and royalty payment automation platform for all media types and businesses." Yet, we have never really seen a functioning business model that we thought would work.

More than one LicenseStream employee was on-site at PhotoPlus Expo back in October in New York City looking for a new place of employment, stating that the company only had enough money to last through the end of December, as they spoke to prospective employers. Oddly, as Digital Railroad ( the formal online portal for image archiving, marketing, and sales, as well as a client delivery platform) went down in flames several years ago, they shopped their company around and then, with no buyers, shuttered operations with little warning to clients. LicenseStream has, according to sources, not been doing so - at least not amongst prospective buyers that would make sense to take over operations that we checked with. Whispers of friendly staff telling image owners they had relationships with to backup their images & data have not been substantiated, however, with enough chatter on the subject, and the risks if the data isnt redundant, we strongly encourage you to have all your LicenseStream content archived, either way.

LicenseStream secured Series A funding back in February 2007 (here) and another $11,000,000 in June of 2008 as a part of a second round of funding (here). In April of 2010, a new CEO was brought in, and another round of financing, billed as "growth financing", with an unreported amount of additional funds (here).

In preparing for this posting, we checked one last time and found that the website, at least as of this publishing, was back up. Perhaps it was just a multi-day site crash over the holidays, or perhaps it was a harbinger of things to come.

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Workflow Hardware Upgrade: Wiebetech Solution

As technology changes, so do our needs as a photographer. This December, weve upgraded our boxes we use to store our images.

Heres our system:


When considering other solutions, we particularly do not like the Drobo boxes for several reasons, and want to caution you strongly before considering them. Problems abound, as reported all over the internet, however, I am sure that some people will sing their praises. Below are several problems - each in-and-of themselves would be a reason not to use the boxes. Together, they make a compelling argument to avoid Drobo. If youre not going to choose the system were reviewing and reporting on today, then consider other solutions.

Here are some of the Drobo issues:

1. Proprietary file format. Thus, if you need to pull a drive from their box, you cannot plug it into a Mac or PC and browse/access the files. Further, unless you re-insert the drives with the exact same configuration as when the files were written, you have no access to the files.
2. The drives/boxes tend to be far too slow for drive-access intensive needs like opening, saving, and other file-releated needs.
3. A mirrored drive array is not a backup, just reliability protection. Youd need to run two Drobos to do have two backups, as whatever you do (or is erroneously affected on one drive) is immediately replicated on the second. So, youre protected from "drive failure", but not an accidental deletion, or file corruption which then corrupts the file on the mirrored drive. A backup would not only protect you from drive failure, but also those accidental deletions, accidental "save" when you meant "save as" file changes, and other unwanted file changes. Further, the Drobo isnt a true "mirror", its an odd-flavor RAID 5.
4. An electrical fault that fries one drive likely will fry the other. You do truly need a dual drive system, with redundancy offline (and preferably off-site) in order to be properly protected. When we have both drives mounted (as explained in the video) it is for manual mirroring, then the backup copy of the primary drive goes offline (and, in a perfect world, off-site.) We try very hard to keep drives seperate to protect them, and thus, our images.
5. The Drobo does not check the integrity of the data. This is a problem from a data-integrity standpoint.

Upgrading and evolving your workflow - and the hardware solutions that you use to care for your images - is a critical component of your business.

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Colberts MeReporters Underscores Absurdity of Working for Free

Steven Colbert brings his satirical comedy to bear on the notion of "free reporters" who get paid nothing, like CNNs iReport, in the wake of the layoffs of 50 CNN photojournalists and other staff.

Colbert notes CNN also launched an "Assignment Desk" where you an actually go out and report on things that CNN wants, and then goes further, saying "iReporters do not get paid, they get something even better, badges, which, I assume, are redeemable for food and rent."

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Groom Sues Photographer, Demands Re-Shoot

It should be pretty clear by now that you can be sued for anything. Enter grudge-holding groom Todd Remis, who has decided to sue his wedding photographer 8 years after the wedding, and 3 years after the couple divorced, her whereabouts unknown. The New York Times reports on the whole fiasco here, where the ex-groom wants over $50k, which includes his money back plus the cost to fly his 40 or so guests back to recreate the wedding.

This would be where, if you were a wedding photographer, you should be calling your insurance company, and telling them "deal with this distraction, I have a business to run", and thaIt should be pretty clear by now that you can be sued for anything. Enter grudge-holding groom Todd Remis, who has decided to sue his wedding photographer 8 years after the wedding, and 3 years after the couple divorced, her whereabouts unknown. The New York Times reports on the whole fiasco here, where the ex-groom wants over $50k, which includes his money back plus the cost to fly his 40 or so guests back to recreate the wedding.

This would be where, if you were a wedding photographer, you should be calling your insurance company, and telling them "deal with this distraction, I have a business to run", and thats what they would do. What policy type would cover this? According to Renee Green (email), of the Hays Group, who handles insurance for many NPPA members, this would likely have been covered by either a general liability clause, or an errors & ommissions clause, depending upon the exact nature of the claim, and, of course, provided that the claim was made while the insurance was in effect. If, however, you had a claim made against you for work done years ago, and only got insurance this year, you wouldnt be covered. All the more reason to have insurance always, and ongoing.

Further, the Professional Photographers of America has sample wedding contracts (login required, here) that include a limitation of liability clause:

If the Studio/Photographer cannot perform this Contract due to fire or other casualty, strike, act of God, or other cause beyond the control of the parties, or due to Photographer’s illness or emergency, then the Photographer shall return the deposit to the Client but shall have no further liability with respect to the Contract. This limitation on liability shall also apply in the event that photographic materials are damaged in processing, lost through camera or other media malfunction, lost in the mail, or otherwise lost or damaged without fault on the part of the Photographer. In the event the Studio/Photographer fails to perform for any other reason, the Studio/Photographer shall not be liable for any amount in excess of all monies paid.

Im sure that some variation of that clause existed in the defendants contract.

Its business people, and when the paperwork gets in the way of the creative stuff, youd better make sure your paperwork is in order, and youre protected. Otherwise, youll spend all sorts of time dealing with the unpleasantries, and it could even cost your your house.

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Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If youve got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.ats what they would do. Further, the Professional Photographers of America has sample wedding contracts (login required, here) that include a limitation of liability clause:

If the Studio/Photographer cannot perform this Contract due to fire or other casualty, strike, act of God, or other cause beyond the control of the parties, or due to Photographer’s illness or emergency, then the Photographer shall return the deposit to the Client but shall have no further liability with respect to the Contract. This limitation on liability shall also apply in the event that photographic materials are damaged in processing, lost through camera or other media malfunction, lost in the mail, or otherwise lost or damaged without fault on the part of the Photographer. In the event the Studio/Photographer fails to perform for any other reason, the Studio/Photographer shall not be liable for any amount in excess of all monies paid.

Im sure that some variation of that clause existed in the defendants contract.

Its business people, and when the paperwork gets in the way of the creative stuff, youd better make sure your paperwork is in order, and youre protected. Otherwise, youll spend all sorts of time dealing with the unpleasantries, and it could even cost your your house.

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Please post your comments by clicking the link below. If youve got questions, please pose them in our Photo Business Forum Flickr Group Discussion Threads.