Brian

As camera sensors get more Megapixels, the Raw file sizes increase. So it's good you got a 12TB drive. That's the reason I'm getting one. I just got a new camera and the sensor is larger. 8/16GB cards just don't cut it anymore. I'm at 32GB at a minimum now, instead of 8GB. Maybe when it's time for me to click "Buy," there might be a 16TB option. Either way, it's 12TB at a minimum for me.

BackBlaze has been around forever and is a good alternative to Crash Plan, which has gone the way of commercial usage. I would also look at Amazon S3, but they do have a consumer side which looks affordable. Amazon Drive has 1TB of storage for $60 per year. Dropbox and OneDrive are also decent. So is "Sync." Remember, the "Cloud" is just someone else's computer. The thing to watch out for is whether or not files that are in the Cloud get deleted if you delete said file off your computer. I've heard of some Cloud Storage Hosts delete files after a period of 7 days or so if those files are removed from the local "Sync" folder on your computer. Not fun if you are just trying to clear out space on your PC and want to keep those files in the Cloud. The next thing is to see if a place takes an external HD of your files. This way you can dump to say a 4TB drive (after you cull-cull-cull and delete those 75 photos of your lunch from 5 years ago at a Diner you stopped at while on vacation...LOL!!) This way it saves you HUGE amounts of upload time. Then all you do is after they mail you your drive back is to set to backup your current files. This is especially handy if you don't have high-speed in your area and are limited to basic DSL.

The G-Drives come with cables. Use the Thunderbolt Port for the best performance and get that drive I recommended. I’m thinking on getting the 12TB model, though 8TB would also work.

I’m in the market to replace my 2009 iMac in Jan 2019. I’m more than likely going to get this drive: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1360172-REG

I like G-Drives when it comes to Macs. They are more expensive than a typical EHD, but they typically use better components. Plus, they come Mac Formatted. What Mac do you have model/year? Does it have a Thunderbolt?

Looks fine. Just be sure to use the HDMI port instead of the blue 15-pin VGA port (D-Sub) for the best results. Hopefully your computer either has a HDMI port or DisplayPort. There are adapters/cables from DisplayPort to HDMI. They are usually less than $15 on monoprice.com.

Geek Squad can do it for you...for a overpriced up-sell. They will also try to sell you a bunch of services that you do not need. Geek Squad is almost pure profit for Best Buy. It’s your money to waste. Now if you really have to rip apart the Laptop, then it makes sense to have them do it. But for a simple access cover on the bottom and a couple of clicks with new memory sticks? I’d pass and do it yourself.

Today’s laptops seem to have a 128GB SSD Drive, which is microscopic by today’s standards...plus a larger D drive. After all, the only way you are going to get 15 second boot times is via SSD. Or manufactures have a glut of 128GB drives and are looking to get rid of them; which then results in putting them in all sorts of things. So yes, regardless of manufacture / model, if it has a 128GB / 1TB combo, you will need to be cognizant of WHAT gets installed on the C (Main) HD. You will not be able to go “next-next-next-OK-next-next-OK-finish...” blindly anymore when installing stuff. You will have to do a custom install and tell the software where to go; it’s not THAT hard, you just have to pay more attention. As far as getting a MacBook, and this is coming from a Mac user, is that Apple is expensive when it comes to that sort of thing. I would tell you to get a 27” iMac before telling you to get a MacBook. Why? For a MacBook Pro configured to edit photos, is about $3600 plus tax / shipping / AppleCare. A regular MacBook? About $2000. If you plan on doing lots of moving around and taking your laptop from place to place, on a consistent basis, plan on only having the thing last 3-4 years, or less. That includes Mac Laptops. There is no way that I would have a person blow $3600+ on a friggin’ laptop that you will get 3-4 years out of. Now, I’d you were a full time professional photographer in say, New York and you were meeting with Marketing Dept. Heads and Art Directors on a daily basis, you’d better have a Mac Laptop under your arm or in your bag. I have friends in the industry, one of which used to work for Nickelodeon Studios, and they have a Mac-Only policy; which means that NO file is to touch a Windows Computer. At least for the dept that she worked in. Yes, I know...it’s dumb but that’s the reality of things in certain industries. Especially the Art / Music World in Corp Environments. As for your group, there is a reason that I left all Photography Groups, both online and Facebook. LOL!! You know your finances, you know what you are comfortable spending, you have a routine, so who cares what they say? Sure it’s easy to tell you to spend $3600 on a MBP, but are those folks on-the-books and paying taxes? Do they have real overhead? Or is it “Lemonade Stand” kind-of money? Personally, if you ask me, buy what gets the freaking job done. If you are a Mac Person and only buys Macs and wants to stay in their eco-system? Then buy a Mac. Remember, when it comes to computers these days, Macs are not better, they are just different. Why do I have a Mac? Because I fix Windows Computers and Windows Server’s all day. I don’t want to screw around with my computer when I get home. LMAO. That’s why I have a Mac. So again, purchase what you are comfortable with. As far as 32GB, you should be able to upgrade it yourself, provided that there is a access panel that can be removed. I would start with 16GB and see how that works for you. Then head to Crucial.com and run their scanning tool. We need to get the correct memory type for your laptop.

This Asus ROG looks decent and it has 16GB: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/questions/asus-rog-strix-scar-edition-17-3-laptop-intel-core-i7-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1050-ti-1tb-sshd-128gb-ssd-black/6233136 At $1249, that’s what you would pay if you purchased that Asus from B&H and upgraded the RAM.

Here is an Asus: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1398212-REG Here is a Dell Laptop: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1367633-REG Both models are $999 as I type this. Both models also have 128GB SSD drives for the C Drive. That’s really just meant for the Operating System, meaning your programs and files go on the D: Drive. So when you install things, you will need to do a custom install and have those programs go to the D: Drive. Otherwise, you’ll fill up that 128GB drive real quick and you will post here asking why your brand new laptop is “too slow” or is crashing a lot. A full HD is an unhappy HD. Edit: I just noticed that the Asus Laptop only has 8GB of RAM. Fortunately, you can upgrade this to 32GB of RAM. These days, you will want 16GB at a minimum for photo editing. More if you edit video.

The two things that the ROG have is 1. Horsepower 2. An IPS-based Display Well, at least the ones I recommend. It’s tough to find a laptop that has a IPS screen, most of the time, they have TN screens, which are not ideal for photo editing. Also, laptops usually only last about 3 months or so before they are replaced with a newer model. It doesn’t surprise me that my links go to discontinued models. Long gone are the days where you have a Spring / Fall line of laptops, well at least when it comes to Windows Laptops. Apple still sorta/kinda still does this. Let me poke around.

It's because iCloud is getting involved. The latest Mac OS doesn't want you to use your desktop; trying to copy stuff to it will result in failure until you disable iCloud or tweak things.

Yeah, it still works out to be around $3600-ish for a Mac Book Pro Laptop configured to edit photos. That's way too much money to spend on a laptop, in my honest opinion. $3600 on something that you will only get around 4-5 years out of. I'm also heavily AGAINST using a laptop for photo-editing; I just got tired of arguing. Plus, you'll need to budget for a new calibration tool, you'd be surprised on just how different a MBP screen is compared to a iMac. It's not an apples-to-apples comparison, more like apples-to-oranges; two different worlds when it comes to screens. That said, your experience could be different. I'm just basing my opinion on what I've seen with my own eyes. My friend's MBP has A LOT more Reddish tones than her 2013 27" iMac. It could be the new Retina Screen, but since you have an older iMac, I have a feeling that you will have similar results; meaning re-editing photos all of the photos when you get home for the color accuracy, so what's the point? If you can wait a little bit, rumors are spreading for an update to a newer Mac Book Air or you could get a more affordable Mac Book. Either way, I'm not going to suggest editing on a laptop. You are asking the wrong person. That said, I think this is your best option at the moment. Hmm. I have no experience in this dept, since I do not currently have an iPad. I did play with a 12" iPad Pro just the other day and it's no heavier than an older 10" iPad, though the screen wasn't "Hashtag Amazing" in my humble opinion. It did look "Nice" though. I really want to see what Apple does with the update to the Mac Air though getting a Mac Book and boosting the options is your best-bang-for-the buck, in my humble opinion: Start with the $1599 Mac Book and choose the 1.4Ghz CPU and 16GB RAM...that will raise the price to $1949.00, plus tax, shipping and AppleCare. At this point, if it were my money...that's what I would do if I were in your shoes. That said, I still wouldn't edit photos on a laptop.

Alright. You beat me to it. Everything about this photo is fine, composition-wise, the focus is just on the wrong eye. It happens.

Not all focus points are created equal. What camera body are you shooting with?

I don't think this is a DoF Issue. The camera seems to be focused on the wrong eye. By all accounts, this photo is backwards as far as the focusing-dept. is concerned. Two things come to mind: The wrong AF point was used, or the camera over-ruled your selection. Sometimes things get bumped and DSLR cameras typically have a setting that allows you to select an AF point, but if it finds something easier to lock-on to, it will use that area. So check your settings. Focus and recompose can bite you in this way. I know lots of Canon owners, especially 5D Mark II owners that focus and recompose a lot. If you move an inch or two more than you are supposed to, unpredictable things can happen. I feel that this is the case with this photo. It looks like you are using f/3.5 and are standing fairly close shooting at 85mm. Yes, the DoF is normal in this case; one eye will be in focus, the other won't be in focus. To get both, you'll need to stop down to at least f/5.6...maybe even use f/8 on where you are standing.

Because you are still thinking along the lines of shooting natural light. Aperture Controls what POWER SETTING you use. There is less light coming out of your Einstein 640 so you open up your Aperture to let more light in. If you increase your power in the E640, you would go to f/5.6 to compensate. Also, do not be fooled by the modeling light. I will say it again, you can not use your camera’s built in meter to figure out what power setting to be at. For that, you need a HAND HELD METER, like a Sekonic L-358 or something newer. Of course with practice and experience, you can get away without using a hand-held meter. Once you figure out moving the power setting to ____ and use this thingy with this other doohickey and put that whatchamacallit over there and have your subject do/turn ______. LMAO!! I know some photographers that do this on a regular basis. They have been doing it this way for years; it’s very much like a Musician playing by ear. They can play something, but couldn’t tell you what key they are in or what chord progression that they used. Same thing with photography and light setups, thise can’t tell you WHAT they did to produce that photo My way of doing things is very methodical and theory based. Once you get “Natual Light Methods” out of your heads will you start to understand. It’s really not that hard, it’s just a new skill set. The main reason is your light source is usually 6-8 feet away vs 93 million miles away. One quick way is to look at your eyes in the mirror with a bright light nearby. What happens to your pupil? They get smaller, just like the aperture blades in your lens. (F/11, f/16, etc.)

I also mentioned distance in my original answer. That statement was based on something called the Inverse Square Law. The inverse Square Law dictates that you lose 75% of the intensity of the light as you double the distance between your subject and flash. So if you have your flash two feet away from your subject, and move it four feet away, you have about 75% less “umph” to work with than before. Same thing goes for when you go 4 feet away to 8 feet. But there lies a clue 4 to 8 feet, is pretty good wiggle room. So if your light stays within that 4-8 feet range, you shouldn’t have to mess with your power setting or aperture. Think of placing your light on a big dartboard. In the center is your subject and the “rings” are where you put your light. If you obtain proper exposure AND keep the distance the same from your light to your subject, your aperture and power setting stay the same. Here is an example. You have a favorite PLM and your photos look awesome when the light is 6 feet away and you shoot at f/4. If you put your light on the opposite side of your subject, AND KEEP THE SAME DISTANCE, the only thing that will change is the placement of the shadows and overall look. Your aperture& flash power stay the same, since the distance is the same. That’s the Inverse Square Law in action. That’s also the reason that flash photos look so “icky” when you use a stupid pop-up flash standing 8 feet away from your group photo. i realize this is a lot of info. If you care to discuss this further, hit me up in the DSLR Bistro.

So to answer your question, no you don’t have two aperture settings. I know it appears like you take two photos, one at f/11 and one at f/8, but that’s not the case. When assigning aperture values to lights, it’s a way to get around different manufacturer’s power output for various flashes / strobe. I could tell you to set your Nikon/Canon whatever to 1/4 power. I could also tell you the same on say a Alien Bee or Profoto Flash. Since the light bulb from the Bee or Profoto is physically larger, it’s throwing out a firehose worth of light compared to a garden hose from your Canon / Nikon Flash. Understand? It’s a way to keep things simple and consistent. Since a Profoto Light is way more powerful than a pop-up Flash, telling you to set a Profoto light to 5.0 will produce different results than your pop-up flash at 1/2 power. It’s easier to use an aperture Number than a power setting number. Of course if it’s just you and your private studio and it’s your lights, you can fiddle and figure out your recipes on what looks good. If you want to try and explain your lighting setup and power settings to someone else, use the universal light ratio numbers, written with Aperture Settings. Clear as mud?

Here is the video. Watch it multiple times until it sticks.

There are TWO Exposure Triangles. One for natural light and one for flash / strobe photography. When it comes to flash photography, not only does aperture relate to depth of field, it also controls your flash power. A two light setup, say f/11 and f/8 is a very typical one. That means that the main (key) light’s power is one stop greater than the second light. That’s a 2:1 Lighting Ratio The Golden Rule of Flash Photography: Aperture controls flash power- Shutter Speed (and ISO) controls Ambient Light. If you are setting OCF’s manually, your camera’s built in meter is COMPLETELY WORTHLESS when it comes to manual flash photography. That’s because the camera’s meter is basing its recommendation on existing (ambient) light. Your flash hasn’t fired yet, so there aren’t any readings. The only exception to this rule is if you are using TTL (Automatic) flash that uses algorithms to set flash power based on the manufacturer’s way of thinking. So say you have one light at 1/2 power and another at 1/4 power. That is a one stop difference which means the “umph” of the key light (or intensity of the light) is one stop brighter than the second (fill) light. Why f/11? Because the optimum exposure from the light of that key light hitting your subject requires you to be at f/11. If you had a hand held meter and put it to your subject’s chin and pointed it towards your flash, and took a reading, “proper exposure” would be f/11. If you set the main light to 1/8 power instead of 1/2, that’s a two stop change, in which case you would be at f/5.6. (Less umph from the flash means you need more light hitting your sensor to obtain proper exposure, thereby opening up your aperture. That’s why if you want to be at f/2.8 for shallow DoF for those fuzzy-wuzzy sleeping baby photos that you are at 1/32 power or even 1/64th. Zack Arias has an excellent Creative LIVE video that explains it better than I ever could. Let me find it.

From the thread: As far as viruses, they are sooo 1990's. People don't get viruses anymore, the term "Virus" is like saying, "...I got stung by a Bee." Hmm...did the person get truly stung by a Bee or was it a Wasp? Nowadays, people get Malware, Trojans, Keyloggers, Ransomeware and other nasty things, not true Viruses. To get the best protection, you need the paid versions of software. I like the paid version of Malwarebytes that does real-time monitoring. I also like the paid version of AVG. I've also heard of good things about Kaspersky and it really plays well with Windows 10. If a person is determined to not pay for this type of software, believe it or not, when it comes to Windows 10, Windows Defender from Microsoft is actually very good for what it is. Go figure. Keep in mind, this software is just a layer of protection, and NO software is fool-proof...but it's better than having nothing. My company uses a program called Webroot for our customers who have remote monitoring support. The biggest downside to Webroot is that it tends to be really hyper, as it deems EVERYTHING to be a virus, LOL!! This means that it really gets in the way when installing software, so you will need to turn it off when installing things. I have clicked on install program in the past and Webroot doesn't let the files expand on the hard drive. It's like someone shooting clay-targets, "PULL!!!....Bang!!!" LMAO! OK, now for the downside. If you get Malware, the very first thing I would do, is to backup all your data files, actions, plug-ins, e-mails, login information, etc. Anything important. Why? Because the Malware and Ransomeware these days can get pretty nasty. I have personally gone round after round of scanning and removing for days, only to have the stupid stuff come back and re-infect the machine. How to I get rid of it? I usually end up Nuking the machine (formatting / restoring the hard drive) and starting all over. Believe it or not, doing it this way is A LOT faster than trying to get rid of it manually. The real trick is to have the paid Malware Software installed BEFORE you are infected. Otherwise, it's like locking your doors after the burglar is in your house; which means all bets-are-off. Hopefully your machine doesn't have anything nasty. I would try Webroot or the paid version of Malwarebytes and give your machine a FULL scan. You might get lucky. Good Luck!!

Right. One of the "fixes" that people have done, is to unplug the power cord from the computer for a period of time or flip a switch that turns off the power at the power outlet. Some choose 15-30 seconds, others choose an hour or so. This usually sets the PRAM on the motherboard, and will seem to "fix" the problem in the short term, however the problem will come back eventually. How about this idea...replace the power supply AND video card at the same time. While you might pay a little more in parts, you will save in terms of labor since it's already open. I still say it's the power supply.

A local tech? Is this an Authorized Apple Repair Center and a Authorized Tech? The reason that I’m asking this is that Apple does not sell parts to 3rd (unauthorized) parties and that the newer iMacs are sealed with a special glue which you can’t buy locally. If your iMac does not have a DVD Drive in it, it’s one of these newer iMacs with the special glue. As far as replacing the GPU, I do not agree with that. My first guess is a bad capacitor on the power supply board is the culprit. I suspect that when doing things like editing video or even editing large photos, that the motherboard is requesting more power and the P/S can't handle that load. So it shuts down. I would replace the power supply first. Yes, it’s true that Apple had a semi-recall on the 2011 & 2012 27” iMacs that suffered from distorted video and other weird flickering problems that were the result of a bad GPU, (aka video board,) but that problem never shutdown the computer. This shutdown problem is a common one and it's not just you. So my two cents worth: Get the Power Supply replaced at an Authorized Apple Repair Center. It’s a “normal” problem and is way cheaper to fix rather than spending $2000 or more for a new iMac. EDIT: It seems that ifixit now supplies the glue strips that secure the display panel to the unit and also has a 3rd party replacement power supply. It's a PITA type of repair, as is most All-in-One computers, and there are special tools to help you during the repair process. If you were to do it yourself, or someone was going to do it for you, make sure you have those extra tools, they make things a lot easier, especially when you put things back together. Here is a video demonstrating the special tools and the disassemble procedure for a 2012 iMac. Even though they cover the removal of the main fan, the power supply is pretty simple to remove. The tough part is getting the friggin' display panel off. It's both heavy, fragile AND expensive.

Rule of thumb when shooting digital that I try to use, is that shutter speed should be twice of the focal length. Back in the film days, your focal length and shutter speed where closer together 50mm was 1/60th, etc. So at 70mm, you want 1/160th or better. 200mm, 1/400th or 1/500th of a second, etc. For those reading this and have high resolution cameras, like a Nikon D850, you almost want 4 times the focal length. The more MP you have, the worse camera shake will bite you. But I’m digressing here. I have found that laying on the shutter and taking three shots consecutively...the second shot will be the one that has the sharpest focus. Especially when you are at 1/60th in low-light conditions, hand-held, such as this photo.