Continuing our series on travel photography, this time we set out fo find the ultimate photo personal item. We’ve already found the best photo carry-on, the Pelican Air 1525, which can hold mucho camera equipment and even tripods in a lightweight yet hard case. The companion piece to the carry-on is the smaller personal item. Long story short, the Thinktank Airport Ultralight version 2.5 fits the bill (and underseat).
Photography
Optimizing a Gitzo GT3542LS Tripod – fit carry on hard case
In our continuing series on travel photography, this time we tackle a lightweight travel tripod. In this article we optimize a Gitzo GT3542LS “eye-level” systematic tripod to fit within hard-sided carry-on luggage (see Figure 1).
The Best Photo Carry-On: Pelican Air 1525 Hard Case – Review
As photographers, we’re always looking for the best way to carry our gear when traveling. Airplanes, especially smaller ones, are the most challenging for transporting photo equipment. Checking your cameras and lenses, even in a hard case, increases the risk of damage or theft. Most photographers prefer packing their delicate optics into carry-on bags, and leaving tripods, lighting equipment, and other more robust equipment in checked baggage. This article shows what the author considers to be the best photo carry-on currently available.
The Best Travel Tripod: Optimizing a Gitzo GT4552TS – review carry-on tripod
For avid photographers a tripod is essential equipment. Even with today’s modern stabilization systems, longer exposures for water flow, cloud blur, or extreme depth of field still demand a sturdy tripod. The challenge is when you need to travel by air, especially in smaller airplanes. This article shows the results of optimizing the size and weight of a sturdy Gitzo GT4552TS travel tripod.
JPEGmini: More Efficient Image Compression – jpeg reoptimization software review and interview – Speed Tweak
JPEGmini is image optimization technology that reduces the size of JPEGs by up to 5 or 6 times their original size, while maintaining resolution and perceived quality. Developed by ICTV, an Israeli startup company, JPEGmini works within the existing JPEG standard to optimize the size of JPEGs for faster downloads and lower storage costs. The patented algorithm developed by ICVT allows JPEGmini to compress images just below the level where perceived artifacts appear. The results, as you will see below, are smaller files that look visually identical to the original images. In this article we test the new service, and interview the CTO.
PNG24 and PNG Optimization – learn how to optimize PNG files for smooth alpha transparency and small file size
Over 60% of the file size of the average web page is taken up by graphics and multimedia. So graphics optimization is an important step in optimizing web page speed. At an alarming frequency, we have seen large PNG24 and unoptimized JPEGs used on the Web. Large PNG24s should be optimized for file size or converted to PNG8s. This article shows how to optimize PNG files effectively by minimizing their color palettes, and using alpha transparency intelligently.
Minimize Noise to Maximize Graphic and Video Compression – tips to optimize web videos and images
Multimedia compression can be thought of as a war against unnecessary noise. Noise is the unwanted random dot pattern overlaid on videos and graphics when electronic noise is present, due in part to the random motion of electrons. Noise creeps into images, both still and motion, with the more lossy steps you take when manipulating images. These random dot patterns, or “snow,” prevent compression algorithms from working optimally, increasing file sizes. By minimizing the noise in your original images and videos, you can gain the maximum amount of compression when optimizing images and videos destined for the Web.
Update: Pro Ball Head Review – compares ball heads to give sharper photos & solid video support
Ball heads provide stability and mobility for photographers on the go. Combined with a stable tripod a solid ball head can help dampen out vibration for sharper photographs, especially for larger enlargements. Sharper photographs and videos make for smaller, higher quality multimedia for the Web. This article reviews some professional ball head options and looks at vibration testing with a laser vibrometer.
Automated Color Harmony Tools – color harmonization using automatic color theory tools to optimize color palettes
Harmonic colors are color combinations that have special internal relationships that are aesthetically pleasing to the human eye. Professional web designers experienced in color theory can create color palettes that evoke different moods, appropriate to the product or service being sold.
Crop Images Contextually – image cropping techniques optimized jpeg gif & png graphics
Cropping and resizing your images for the Web is a common technique for creating smaller thumbnail images that download quickly. However, we’ve seen many sites that either use HTML’s width and height attributes to resize larger images, or minimally crop and resize their images to lose vital information (see Figure 1). A better way to create images optimized for the Web is to crop them contextually.