The Open Camera Controller (OCC) is a project that aims to build a platform for controlling your digital camera via a Nintendo DS. Getting the system working requires a good deal of technical expertise in things like electronics and software, but once you have a working system running the open source platform, you can install all sorts of homebrew apps onto the OCC. Available apps include an intervalometer, bracketing controls, sound triggers, and more.

The OCC project arose from our need to shoot HDR images for film production using Canon cameras. Canon has stubbornly chosen to stick to its standard 3-shot method for bracketing shots – one metered shot and two additional shots one or two stops above and below the metered shot. For texture shooting, it is sometimes necessary to shoot 5,7,9 or even 11 or more stops of bracketing around the metered exposure.

We asked a couple months ago whether you think cameras should go the way of cell phones by offering a user programmable operating system (and therefore apps), and 63% of you said no.

A system like OCC would be the best of both worlds, since the open platform would allow all sorts of specialized apps to build built, while keeping the complexity separate from the camera itself.

There’s already quite a few specialized camera control apps available (on the iPhone, for example), but we hope to see more efforts like the OCC, where there’s an open environment for development that everyday photographers can make use of.

Easy Release is a new iPhone app designed to make it easy for you to secure model and property releases.

It was designed by Robert Giroux, a photographer of over 24 years who spent eight years on the staff of Getty Images, and uses the same format and legal language as the release forms used by major photo agencies.

The application replaces traditional paper based releases you would otherwise have to carry around with you by packing all of the forms and required fields inside an iPhone application. All the necessary fields are presented in a step-by-step wizard-style interface, and the signatures are entered directly into the application via the touch screen.

Once the release forms are completed, you can email a PDF or JPEG version of the form to yourself.

The app is available from the iTunes Store for $9.99.

(via PhotographyBLOG)

We’re not sure whether it’s worth it in terms of cost, but here’s a way to print your own gigantic photograph posters using your ordinary photo printer. Easy Poster Printer is a free program by GD Software that automatically prints out a poster of any size (maximum is 20×20 meters) in individual pieces using your photo printer.

Obviously you could do the same thing using an ordinary program like Photoshop, but this program takes all the work out of the process, doing all the slicing and printing for you. The 6MB program is for Windows only (sorry Mac people!) and can be downloaded by clicking here.

This morning Apple introduced the latest version of their photo editing software: Aperture 3. The $199 program ($99 for existing users) adds over 200 new features to the previous version, including the Faces and Places features that were popular in the latest release of iPhoto. In addition, there is now a Brushes feature that allows you to “paint” adjustments onto photographs, much like the feature that was added to Adobe Photoshop CS4. The new version will also run in 64-bit mode, which Apple claims will allow it to run an “order of magnitude” faster.

The journalism industry is going through particularly tough times, with revenue from ads and subscriptions declining considerably.

However, during the harshest economic climates, innovative ideas flourish more than ever, and news outlets are tapping into the power of convergence: mixing forms of communication to create multimedia packages that deliver stories that are accessible by the “Web 2.0″ generation.

Fortunately for photographers, visuals are an integral part of the multimedia wave.

Hopefully, you’ve had a chance to check out our August post on some of the best newspaper photo blogs out there, as well as some of the multimedia features on most newspaper sites, like the New York Times, SF Gate, the San Jose Mercury News, and some college newspapers, including my alma mater, the Daily Bruin.

Many sites feature audio slideshows, which are one of the simplest and easiest forms of multimedia storytelling–if you’ve got the right tools and elements:

1. Photos that tell a story.

Whether you’re photographing a family holiday, sporting event, or documentary news, try to shoot a variety of images from different angles of different moments. Take close-up and wide photographs.

After the shoot, pick photos that have a narrative or chronological order of events and happenings.

2. A recorder and quality audio that matches the story.

Use a digital recorder that can transfer sound files onto your computer. I usually use a MicroMemo attached to my iPod video (ancient, I know). I’ve also had some hands-on time with the Olympus DS series, which capture very crisp audio. The higher end model, the DS-61 has different modes to capture directional sound, which is very useful when recording specific types of sounds such as ambient noise versus a single person speaking.

When recording audio, find a quiet place to capture interviews and voices, to reduce distracting background noise.

3. Audio editing software.

Audacity is a free audio editing program that can be used to cut, edit, splice, and record audio–all very straightforward.

You can also use programs like Adobe Audition for more in-depth editing.

4. Slideshow software.

Several publications use Final Cut Pro to put together an audio slideshow. iMovie also can do the job.

For fast production and ready web publishing, try Soundslides. A free demo is available on the site.

Soundslides is a very intuitive program for uploading photos and audio, and adjusting timing points and transitions. It also has a feature for exporting to web if you have an FTP set up.

5. Share.

Share your project on your website. If you don’t have one, check out Weebly.com to make a free customizable site.

6. Be inspired.

Check out some of the links above and explore a bit for ideas.

One of my favorite examples of the simple, yet powerful integration of photography with another medium is the package by New York Times, One in 8 Million.

The project tells one story each week, focusing on one central character, someone you might brush shoulders with on the subway of New York. The subject describes, in his or her own words, anything from their own personal struggles, triumphs, daily life or something that defines them. The images work to visually capture the story with a timeless quality, in black and white.

Together, the two mediums form a very intimate local human-interest story that fosters a sense of community–which is quite an impressive undertaking considering the expansiveness of New York City.

If you’ve got a favorite multimedia site or an audio slideshow to show off, share a link!

Image Credits: Shure SM58 by laffy4k, Shot Glass by S. Su, rage by murplejane, IMG_0864 by emkladil

Here are the results of last week’s poll regarding how often you photograph:

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Here’s this week’s poll: Are you using pirated software for your photography? Whether it’s Photoshop, Lightroom, Aperture, or whatever other programs you use, did you purchase it or pirate it?

This poll is purely out of curiosity. The results might be interesting.

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For myself, I only use legitimately purchased software. It’s a little easier for me since I get student discounts here at Cal, but I’m having quite a hard time getting my Windows version of CS3 transferred to a Mac after my PC died last week. Thus, I’ve been Photoshop deprived for quite a few days now.

Anyhow, please answer honestly. No need to comment, unless for some reason you really want to…

The web is abuzz over a project over at Stanford that aims to revolutionize how we think about photography by building an open source camera (dubbed Frankencamera).

That’s right…

Open. Source. Camera.

While you try to wrap your mind around this new paradigm, I’ll point out of a few of the important aspects of the project and throw in some of my thoughts on it.

Linux, Firefox, and now Frankencamera

The established order of things up to this point has been for behemoth camera corporations (i.e. Canon, Nikon, etc…) to sell consumers (i.e. you and me) hardware and software that they spend years and billions of dollars developing and tweaking. The same was true of operating systems and browsers before open source projects like Linux and Firefox crashed the party.

If this research group at Stanford successfully releases an open source platform for imaging, a whole new world of opportunity opens up for photographers and developers alike. Instead of attempting to have features added to future cameras by making noise and requesting them, we would be able to take matters into our own hands, building hardware or developing software to suit our needs.

Advanced In-Camera “Post”-Processing

Imagine if you could program your DSLR with some common Photoshop actions that you always run when post-processing your images, so the photos come out the camera with your edits already applied.

Even more advanced post-processing techniques could be moved into the camera, providing photographers with features that the large camera makers would never add to their DSLRs, since they prefer sticking to the fundamentals and leaving post-processing up to the photographer. For example, a photographer could choose to have his camera automatically bracket, merge, and tone map, allowing him to download HDR photographs directly from his camera.

Camera Apps

The team behind the Frankencamera also envisions a future where photographers can download applications onto their cameras, just like apps can be downloaded to the iPhone from the App Store. Wifi on your camera? Directly uploading photographs to Flickr? Different photo styles and camera effects? The possibilities are endless, and it would definitely be interesting to see what applications developers would come up with.

As Apple’s App Store has shown, it definitely pays to put application development in the hands of individuals rather than keep it behind closed doors with your relatively small group of developers and engineers.

Hardware

How would an open source software platform change the game in terms of hardware? The Frankencamera is currently being developed with a hodgepodge of parts — everything from Nokia cameraphone sensors to Canon lenses. If an open source camera gained any significant piece of the camera market pie, then third party lens manufacturers such as Tamron and Sigma would no doubt join in on the fun.

I’ve read elsewhere that third-party lens makers are forced to reverse engineer the mounting and focusing systems of camera makers such as Canon and Nikon. This would be completely unnecessary for an open source camera, and the third-party companies would even be able to contribute towards the software side to improve the functionality of their lenses.

A critical piece of the puzzle, however, is the issue of sensors. I’m sure the bulk of the billions spent on R&D has to do with sensor technology, and pretty much no one can compete with the larger companies on this front. No matter how popular an open source camera might be, adopters will likely have to take a hit on sensor quality unless one of the big players decides to contribute their sensors.

Final Thoughts

Personally, I think this is a great idea and really hope the research group succeeds in getting something off the ground and into our hands. I only wish it were a project being done over here at UC Berkeley, though I do know there’s some pretty interesting work being done related to camera sensors and bokeh rendering.

To learn more about the project, you can read the Stanford news article, or watch this YouTube video put out by Stanford.