It’s that time again! The PDN PhotoPlus International Conference + Expo is returning to New York City. The conference runs from Wed.-Sat. 10/19-22 and the Expo runs from Thurs.-Sat. 10/20-22, 2016. If you love photography or video, this is a truly outstanding event and I highly recommend attending.
There is a huge amount of free education on the show floor, as well as in the seminar rooms, and you will find many opportunities to take pictures of still life sets, models, action, etc).
There are also many great fee-based seminars happening, which you can find listed here.
And don’t miss the many, many opportunities to see stunning prints on all types of media. Here is a photo from Epson’s booth, which is always fantastic:
TIPS FOR THE SHOW
Last year, I wrote some Tips For Getting The Most From PhotoPlus Expo. You can find the article here. The tip about downloading the PhotoPlus Expo App is, in my opinion, a biggie. It really helps save time when navigating through the aisles, and in case you don’t read the other article, here is the link to download it for iOS or Android.
FREE PASSES
If you are looking for a promo code for a free pass for the exhibit hall, here’s one option that should work (code is SMILE): https://twitter.com/PhotoPlusExpo/status/785543858935435266
If that doesn’t work, just search the PhotoPlus Expo Twitter feed for more.
TEST DRIVE EVENT
There’s also a free Test Drive event happening on Wed. 10/19 from 4-7pm, which is a great way to see the latest and greatest gear (below is a post about it from the PhotoPlusExpo Facebook page):
LIVE TALKS ON THE SHOW FLOOR
One of my favorite parts of the show is listening to photographers from many different areas of expertise talk about their work. For example, here is a link to a PDF of the show schedule for Nikon’s booth this year.
Adobe will have 30 minute presentations all three days of the show at the Adobe Show Floor Theater. I’m sure these will be fantastic.
The folks at Photofocus.com will have a booth with Perfectly Clear, Platypod Pro, and Plotagraph. I’m particularly excited to be able to learn more about how to make Plotagraphs, which are “moving pictures” that can be made from single exposures.
And here is an announcement from Unique Photo’s Twitter feed. They always have great speakers at their booth:
Visit us at booth 337 at @PhotoPlusExpo October 20-22, check out the latest gear & attend free photography lectures! https://t.co/dlnY843DVG pic.twitter.com/AGVlKRLvAl
— Unique Photo (@UniquePhoto) October 6, 2016
PHOTO WALKS
A few years ago, PhotoPlus started doing photo walks. Here is another Facebook post with info about them:
MORE EVENTS
There is much more happening, and this page has a long list of events. One of them is the Power of Print Pavilion, sponsored by Canon. The company will be making free prints for attendees, and that page has all of the details. Prints will be output on Moab by Legion Paper or Innova Art paper.
And don’t miss the keynotes, which are free with your exhibit hall ticket. On Thursday from 12:30-1:30 PM, Graham Nash and Mark Seliger will share the stage. Graham Nash, along with R. Mac Holbert, helped pioneer the field of fine-art inkjet printing. I had the honor of visiting Nash Editions in California some time ago. Their original IRIS printer is currently housed in the Smithsonian Institution. Here is an article about it.
And if you can’t get to the show this year, you’ll find a lot of info about new products (plus many special offers) on hardware and software from companies who are exhibiting at the event. The official PhotoPlus Expo Twitter feed is @PhotoPlusExpo (find it here), and their Facebook page can be found here.
If you see me there, please say hi. I look something like this! (this was from last year’s show).
And in case you don’t receive my free newsletters, you can start getting news, photo and printing tips and three one-hour Lightroom videos delivered to your in-box by signing up below (you can unsubscribe at any time and we respect your privacy):
Hello! It’s been a while since my last post here on ImagingBuffet.com. In addition to spending time with family, over the last few months, I’ve been experimenting with YouTube video as well as Facebook Live, and I’m learning a lot along the way. Our son Tyler is 12 now and he’s keeping us busy as school begins here in suburban New Jersey. Here’s a photo of our little man all dressed up with his Grandma Tessie at his Grandpa Bert and Grandma Tessie’s 50th Wedding Anniversary a few months back (this is a good example of using TTL metering with an external flash unit attached to the hot shoe on top of a camera):
I hope that the video below from a recent one hour Facebook Live event is useful as you navigate through Lightroom. After that, I have links to more information about two upcoming workshops in case you missed the announcements on my Facebook Photo Tips page.
In the video above (I recommend pressing the full screen arrow buttons for a better view), I cover these tips and more:
1. A few Lightroom Preferences that can make importing and navigating easier.
2. Some quick tips for viewing your images more effectively in the Library module.
3. How to avoid constantly switching from the Develop Module to the Library Module.
4. How to “paint” on keywords to make keywording “almost” fun!
5. How to edit multiple photos in the Develop module without pressing the Sync button.
Portrait Lighting & Lightroom Workshop in Berkeley Heights, NJ
Date & Time: Sunday, September 25, 2016, 10:30AM-5:00PM
Tuition: $169
I’m very happy to be returning to the NJ Media Center and having an opportunity to teach a new class that covers portrait photography and Lightroom workflow. Nancy Ori, an award-winning photographer and educator who many of you probably know, will be working with me to help you improve your portrait lighting and posing techniques. In the afternoon, we will gather in front of a large screen as I walk you through the steps I use in the Library and Develop modules inside of Lightroom to help you get the most from your portraits in a fast and efficient way. FOR A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE WORKSHOP, VISIT THIS PAGE ON OUR MEETUP GROUP
Lightroom Print Workflow: How to Easily Match Your Screen to Your Prints in Princeton, NJ
Date & Time: Wednesday, September 28, 2016 7:30PM-9:30PM
Tuition: $25 plus $5 Materials Fee
I’m also very happy to be returning to the Princeton Photography Club to teach one of my favorite subjects: Fine-art inkjet printing. If you have a printer at your home and studio and would like to learn how to get better prints in a straightforward, repeatable way, and learn how to automate your workflow, this is the workshop for you. FOR A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE WORKSHOP, VISIT THIS PAGE ON OUR MEETUP GROUP
If you are not able to attend either of these workshops, but would like to get notified immediately when new events are posted, you are invited to join our Meetup group here (there’s no fee to join).
NEW ONLINE VIDEO SHOW COVERING LIGHTROOM TIPS
Just one more thing. I recently launched a new online video show on YouTube called: Ask AndrewD About Lightroom for Mac Users. Each episode, I cover tips and techniques related to Lightroom. I tailor it to Mac users, but the vast majority of the information is cross-platform, so Windows users can also benefit from the information. If you’d like to take a look, here’s a link to the show’s website.
A few days ago, I posted this pre-show article about the 2015 PhotoPlus Expo, in New York City. I spent the whole day at the expo on Friday, 10/23, and even though I am very tired as I write this, I feel that it would be a shame not to recommend some booths to visit and specific things to see before the show ends on Saturday, 10/24.
There are some things that you can’t easily experience on a website or even in a camera store, so I’ve put together a list of companies in booth order in case you’d like to treat this like a scavenger hunt. I list odd number aisles from low to high numbers, and even number aisles from high to low since that’s how you would normally walk up and down the aisles. If you attend, please consider commenting below about what you found interesting and/or inspiring.
There are many more booths I could mention, but I need to go to sleep sometime! Booth numbers follow each company listed below, and I Highly Recommend Checking Out…
1. Canon (#121) for their compact and impressive PowerShot G3 X digital camera with a 24-600mm effective focal length (35mm equivalent), and the G5 X (24-100 mm), which has a super-sharp EVF (Electronic Viewfinder). I was also impressed by the capabilities of Canon’s new 430EX III-RT Speedlite. The prints in the Canon gallery are also stunning. Thank you to Syl Arena of Pixsylated, and this episode of the TWiP podcast for the tip (I probably would not have known about the new flash had I not listened). On the page I linked to, you can also find a link to Syl Arena’s presentations at the Canon booth, and more information about the new flash.
2. G-Technology (#149) for their many well-made storage options. I learned that all of the enclosures they ship contain HGST hard drives, which have an excellent reputation in the industry.
3. Museo (#169) to see some incredible prints by Les Picker on matte and fiber-gloss papers. Picker’s work has appeared in hundreds of magazine and newspaper articles, including National Geographic Society publications.
4. OWC Digital (#170) for their many storage options, and a dock called the Thunderbolt 2 Dock that can turn one Thunderbolt port into a wide array of inputs, including Ethernet, FireWire 800 and three USB fully-powered 3 ports (no external power needed).
5. Digital Silver Imaging (#173) for their true black and white digital silver prints and a new, easy print ordering system via their soon-to-be released iOS app. They are a pro imaging lab based in Massachusetts.
6. Peleman Industries/Unibind (#258) for their instant book binding and print mounting options. If you want to make a book quickly, they have some excellent options.
7. Sigma (#337) to see their many lenses and the impressive exhibition of backlit prints of various “critters” by David FitzSimmons.
8. Moab Paper (#354) for their “wall” featuring the same print made on different papers, as well as a beautiful presentation of face mounted prints on acrylic using their very unique paper, Moab Slickrock Metallic Silver.
9. Polar Pro (#361) for their new product, PowerGrip H20, a innovative tripod/extension arm, as well as a huge collection of GoPro and Drone accessories (GoPro users should definitely see their case with a built-in battery charger for two different GoPro battery types).
10. LensBaby (#372) for their many impressive lens offerings, including the new Composer Pro II with Edge 50 Optic. Definitely bring your camera to get the most from your visit there.
11. MagMod (#562) for some truly innovative magnetic shoe-mount flash accessories.
12. WD (Western Digital) (#573) for their many storage products, including the bus-powered WD My Passport Pro 4TB portable RAID storage with integrated Thunderbolt cable.
13. Peak Design (#669) for a look at their Everyday Messenger bag. The bag, which comes in two styles, was recently launched via a Kickstarter campaign that raised nearly five million dollars. The company has quite a few other new products worth a look as well, including The Field Pouch, three new waterproof camera covers called Shell, new and improved Peak Design anchors (if you know their products, they look like thumbnail-sized round disks with a cord attached), and a new system for changing lenses called CaptureLENS.
14. Hahnemühle (#655) for a look at all of their papers, including their newest Baryta paper called FineArt Baryta Satin. They also have artist signings each day.
15. Miller’s Professional Imaging (#701) for their many offerings, including small wood photo boxes that holds 4×4 inch mounted prints and matching stands. Very simple, yet elegant.
16. Epson (#707) for their amazing print gallery, and for a look at their newest line of fine art papers, called “Epson Legacy Papers.”
17. Blazing Editions (#859) for their truly jaw-dropping print samples. The company is a professional imaging lab based in Rhode Island.
18. Professional Graphics Systems (#933) to take a look at their impressive printed samples on different media and to see a sample of a removable, repositionable fabric material I had never seen before called Photo Tex. This material seems ideal for when you don’t want to use adhesives on walls when hanging prints.
19. LumeCube (#959) for their incredible new super-compact, powerful and waterproof LED external flash and video light (and companion iOS app).
20. WANDRD (#1227) to see their very innovative backpack, the PRVKE Pack. You can check out the company’s Kickstarter campaign here (ends 11/5).
I hope that you enjoy the show if you plan to visit. You can always check the companies’ websites for more info and updates (they are all linked above).