iSee You And iHear You

iHave recently purchased an iPad for use in travelling and am undergoing instructions from my daughter in its operation. iAm not quite the dinosaur she thinks me, and have been able to switch it on and off quite unaided. You just whack it on the edge of the table and it goes off.

For those of you who are also on the road and are using the iPhone we have a number of Røde accessories that might assist you.

1. iGrip - this is a metal bracket that grips the iPhone securely and lets you hand hold it or attach it to a standard tripod. This means you can record sound without picking up shuffling fingers.

2. iGrip and lenses  - here is the iGrip with additional supplementary lenses to fit the iPhone. more options for camera reportage.

3. SC2 patch cable to let your iPhone take the audio from your DSLR camera.

None of these will help me attach my new iPad to my Linhof Kardan E monorail camera but I am going to ask Ernest to make a special fitting. He's good with engineering solutions.

iCan look forward to his response.

Gapping The Generations - Or Not Poking The Bear

I was scrapping for a topic this morning until I talked to Ernest, our chief technician. He mentioned that he had read a request from me for information - I had put it out on the internet. When I expanded on what I wanted to know and why, he had a word of caution for me.

I tend to take Ernest's words of caution seriously. I remember he once advised me NOT to stick my fingers into a live light socket and this proved to be quite correct. I wish I had listened then - at least I can listen now.

The question I posed was what the new operating system for my Macintosh computers was like - I was looking at the advertisement for the OSX Maverick. It seems to be three steps on from the one that is in the computers now. The underlying reason for this is the advent of some new cameras that attract me - if I am to use RAW files from them I need to upgrade the ACR rating...and in turn this means a later operating system.

At this point the image of a beagle chasing its tail in a circle comes to mind, but read on...

Ernest mentioned that the newer operating systems are now involving themselves with information storage elsewhere in the electronic universe - the "cloud" system. Call me paranoid, but by accepting the benefits of the new software I think I might  be sending my images who knows where and in turn they might not come back to me. They might come back to other people. Hmmmm.

Personal data? I don't mind mine going everywhere, except I don't want people to know exactly what I think in case I don't agree with me. I had a garlic curry that didn't agree with me and that was unpleasant enough...I think I have come to terms with the thought that whatever I write or look at is noted down in Langley, Virginia or somewhere in Russia. I can only hope that when I become feeble-minded with age they can send some of it back to me.

Ernest said it best - if what I have now does what I need now, I would be a fool to chase the electronic rainbow on the basis of a colourful advert from Apple or the pressure of the next camera. If I change my computer to a new one, I can go in clean with a new system and all the current ACR keys will be good - and a considerable number of ones for the future. But if what I got ain't broke...don't fix it.

Shades Of Grey - A Modest Proposal

Life is very strange these days. I was discussing shades of grey with a chap who makes model battleships and we were able to classify them into various navies, time periods, and such and it was an interesting historical discussion - we got to 50 of them. Perfectly amicable conversation.

Yet when I asked a lady whether she knew all 50 shades of grey she coloured up, started sweating, and slapped me. I have no idea why  model battleships should provoke such an unusual response.

I am now hesitant to raise the subject here in the shop, yet I can anticipate the customer who tries to get a swingeing low price for a camera or lens by quoting the internet price from an eastern states dealer. In some cases it will be cheaper than we can buy from the Australian importer - so much cheaper that it immediately alerts us to the colour of the deal.

I've already mentioned in previous posts the business of the warranty - or not, as the case may very well be with the super-low pricers. As far as warning against disaster, I could just as well stand outside the casino with a sign board and a calculator and shout the odds. No-one would turn away. Neither will they from their computer screens - but the first time they buy a dud the story will change.

Please do not think that I am accusing the Greyhounds of being deliberately dishonest. They don't go down the warehouse shelves with a hammer and smash the lens boxes. They don't pour glue in the bodies. Any dents or glue you find has most likely come direct from the factory, or the cousins, uncles, and other relatives who have transported the items over the various borders. Some items are pristine. Some items work fine. You could be lucky.

And after all, even if you are not, remember if you save enough on repeated grey market purchases of a lens, you can accumulate the price of a real one from a real dealer. And you'll always have the dead ones to make a nice border in the garden...

Wham Bam, No Thank You, M'am...

So I arrive at work and put my satchel onto a wheelie bin, preparatory to taking in all the emptied bins from the curb-side. As I work there is this almighty crash, and when I look around, the satchel has fallen onto the concrete driveway.

Anglo Saxon, Anglo Saxon, Yiddish, Anglo Saxon, Western Canada....

Having relieved my soul for a few minutes I hauled it up here to the editorial desk and opened the thing. It has some internal padding and the editorial camera and computer seem to have survived the impact fine. The editorial Nokia phone is dead. The editorial apple was not squashed, so all in all it seems to have been a light blow.

My complements to the makers of Macbook Pro, Fuji X-10 and apples. Also my admiration for the Crumpler people for a fine satchel - it is the Boston Heist, if you want to go buy one.

What if it had been an expensive professional camera that hit the deck?
They do, you know - we can introduce you to a man who dropped on off Bluff Knoll, and another man who dropped one in a volcano. You might meet the chap who crossed a river and opened his backpack in the middle and....

Disasters happen. If they happen to your old camera we can fix it - that's what we have a repair department for. If it cannot be repaired we have a sales department and sympathetic faces.

What if it is a new camera...the manufacturers honour warranties that cover internal failures and material flaws for one to two years - and as we source our cameras from the proper Australian distributors, there are no problems getting the warranty repairs. But they aren't liable for you dropping it off Bluff Knoll or a council rubbish bin....

Here is where the Mack Warranty system comes in shining. When you buy new cameras and lenses from us you can buy extended warranty coverage from us with Mack. They have pure extension policies and also what they call " Diamond" policies.

Essentially, the " Diamond" covers repair or replacement for whatever specified period that includes ALL forms of disaster. Drop, boil, bake, douse, ignite....The only thing they will not reimburse you for is theft - you have to keep your cameras and lenses safe from other humans.

I wonder if there is a warranty for computers? Or mobile phones? Or apples?