Latest Posts

Using the Wacom Mobile Studio Pro in the Field

Recently, I was lucky enough to borrow a new Wacom Mobile Studio Pro for a few weeks, as I was keen to try this as a tethering solution in the field.

This product basically combines all the elements of a Wacom Graphics Tablet, 4k Display and a pretty powerful tablet computer to boot. As a self confessed Mac fan and Windows-phobe it was also going to be a good test if I could cope with Windows 10 as an OS as well.

The model I had on loan was the larger of the two, at 16 inches with an i7 processor. More info on the Wacom Mobile Studio Pro here

I was keen to try this in conjunction with my 2016 MacBook Pro as the Mobile Studio Pro can also act as a secondary display to this, with just a simple USB-C to USB-C connection. No adapters required!

Therefore, I thought I could a) capture in the field with the Wacom and b) transfer the data to my MacBook Pro back at home and use the Wacom’s graphics tablet abilities there.

This eventually worked out really well, when I discovered a pretty useful additional feature. More on that later!

Working in the Field

I was lucky enough to be invited on a recent workshop run by one of our American partners, Capture Integration. This workshop was based in Bluff, Utah, which is an ideal base for exploring such sites as Monument Valley and the Valley of the Gods. So I decided this would be a good excuse to test the Wacom, as I figured there would be lots of standing around waiting for the sun to come up… or go down.

As you can see in this image, I have my Sony A7 connected directly to the Mobile Studio Pro, running (at this time) a beta release Capture One 10.1.

By the way, the hat is optional, but its the full desert look.

The Wacom only has USB-C connections, so to tether a camera, you simply need a USB-C to USB cable or a simple adapter. I already have an adapter I use for my MacBook Pro and that worked just fine on the Wacom too.

I used a Tether Tools cable as you can see as well, in their distinctive orange!

Capturing tethered was simple and fast. No break downs in connection and its nice to be able to connect quickly with the universal USB-C connection.

The Mobile Studio Pro really showed its power and did not struggle with tethered capture, or working with images in Capture One (more on that later).

We also connected a Phase One XF100MP camera to really push it, and it didn’t complain at that either.

For longer periods of use, it would make sense to have some kind of mount so you could attach it to your tripod. Again Tether Tools (for example) have solutions for this. I had a rather skinny tripod with me, so didn’t trust the weight of the Wacom (it is well built and solid) on one of the spindly legs.

When I was waiting for sun-up, I simply sat on my camping chair, or a nearby rock and waited! The nice thing about having a tablet on your lap, is that you can shoot regularly as the light changes, and have a very high quality instant preview of the scene in front of you.

I also have full remote camera control, so I don’t have to move off my perch.

If you don’t want to carry a Wacom pen with you in the field (I didn’t as was pretty sure it was an easy thing to lose for me) then the screen can simply be enabled as a touch interface. Capture One worked well with this for all the basic operations. If you intended to do a lot of editing whilst out in the field, then having the pen would make sense for certain adjustments, like Local Adjustments.

Here’s one of the images I shot tethered.

Optimising the Workspace

One very small change I made to the workspace can really help working with the Wacom, both out in the field and back at base. This does depend if you are right or left handed though, so this comes from a right hander.

Traditionally Capture One tools are placed on the left, like this…

But this presents a problem if you are using a pen as a right-hander, as your arm will be covering up the image as you try and adjust it!

So a simple solution is to simply go to View>Place Tools Right, and then your image will be unobstructed as you adjust. Furthermore, you can use your left hand to scroll up and down the thumbnails and select too. Yes, touch input and pen input can be combined.

I showed this to a workshop participant who was using Capture One on a Dell computer / tablet. “ohhhhhhh – well that helps”. Often is the simple things that have the most gains.

Back at Base

So the real test, was to see if I could get the Windows 10 and OSX chatting happily to each other to get the images I shot from the Wacom over to the Mac. Of course, I could simply have left the Mac at home and used nothing but the Wacom for the workshop duration, but knowing that this was a loaner, I didn’t want to get too deep into customising it.

I thought of the following options for file transfer…

  1. Network them together
  2. Use a cloud storage service like dropbox
  3. Format a hard drive that can be read by the MacBook Pro and the Wacom

I figured as the internet service was next to nothing at our location, and I didn’t feel like researching the intricacies of networking Windows 10 and OSX together, the simplest solution was option 3, which is what I did.

But…. I did discover a really neat feature for the Mac User once I had connected to my MacBook Pro to use as a secondary display and tablet….

Graphics Tablet / Display Use

Fortunately, to use the Mobile Studio Pro as a graphics tablet on a 2016 MacBook Pro, you just need a USB-C to USB-C cable. For non, USB-C enabled hosts, then Wacom sell a converter that splits the signal from USB-C to a standard USB port and an HDMI port.

There is a couple of things to bare in mind :

  1. You must use the middle port on the Mobile Studio Pro
  2. The USB-C cable must be capable of supporting video. For example, your white Mac charger cable will not work! I know a few people who have been tripped up by this.
  3. To trigger the connection, flick the On/Off switch on the left hand side of the Mobile Studio Pro.

After a couple of seconds, the mode changes, and it is now acting as a secondary display, and tablet! Great!

All the usual rules apply then for working with any Wacom tablet, except (if you wish) you can be working directly on the image. This can be great for intense Photoshop work or Local Adjustments in Capture One.

Personally, I am so used to working with a ‘normal’ Wacom that I am mostly happy to just see the Image on my MacBook Pro and not take advantage of the display properties of the Wacom. But for reasons mentioned above, it can be nice to use this mode from time to time.

If you don’t want to use the display on the Mobile Studio Pro, then its important to set in the Wacom preferences to just ‘map’ the tablet to the one display, not divide it between both.

So what’s the neat feature I found that I mentioned above? Well, the Mobile Studio Pro has a built in SD card reader, which also makes it handy for use in the field. But, when connected in the manner described above, as well as acting as a secondary display, additionally you have the worlds largest SD reader attached to your Mac! Now, I use a blank SD card to act as the go-between for file transfer.

Even a windows-phobe can cope with that.

Conclusion

I very much enjoyed my short time with the Mobile Studio Pro. I didn’t have a stand for it, which I think would be essential for stand alone desk work, otherwise you will end up simply hunching over it. Also I would add a small bluetooth keyboard.

Learn more about the workflows used in this blog post by visiting our User Guide:

Tethered Capture
Customized Workspaces

Sign up for the webinar

Cityscape and architecture with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

The IQ3 100MP Achromatic

The new IQ3 100MP Achromatic Digital Back is built upon the IQ3 platform and is a project I had looked forward to for quite some time. Built with a newly designed, dedicated sensor that removes the Bayer Color Filter, while retaining all the versatility and functionality of the IQ3 100MP, its promise had me anxiously awaiting the day when I could put the detail and quality to the test.

That day finally came in mid-April and I’m happy to be able to share the results with you now.

The IQ3 100MP Achromatic in use

Designing a back that focuses only on Black and White photography can be challenging and to say I was impressed with the final results is an understatement.

Black and white photography is something unique. With all the work and testing I do with our color systems, the specialized applications and benefits of an Achromatic back were a welcome challenge. By focusing on the detail render and functionality features, we are able to produce images that speak to what is at the heart of photography; composition and creative expression, while expanding on the digital properties we always deliver; image quality and detail.

Given my long career focusing on photography, I enjoyed putting this system through the paces while applying my in-depth knowledge and approach to the technical side of photography. This gave me the best of both worlds, I could challenge myself with the creative element of Black and White photography while exploring the technical flexibility of an Achromatic back… all while having the same tools available to me that I have in the IQ3 100MP Color CMOS system.

Seeing the detail

The first and most obvious benefit of this system is the detail that’s possible. Though it is still a 101-megapixel system, it’s built without a Bayer Color Filter. This means that there is no interpolation in the digital capture process. Each and every pixel is therefore much more genuine in what it generates.

Knowing that we work so hard to do the most with the color sensors and the Bayer interpolation, I knew before we even had the new system that we would see detail beyond imagination with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic.

Soendermarken with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

Soendermarken 100 zoom with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

The detail that you can see with the Achromatic sensor is truly exceptional. The IQ3 100MP color back is certainly impressive, and knowing all the hard work that goes into making the color sensor shine says a lot about what we can do with the new Achromatic!

What you can’t see is what you get!

Understanding the detail that’s possible with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic, it’s important to have the tools to ensure you’re getting the most out of the system. As the new sensor is a CMOS design, Live View is an excellent tool to ensure everything is captured exactly as expected.

Not only does Live View serve as a way to check focus and framing, but it also sheds light on what your eyes can’t see!

Capturing the full spectrum of light (infrared) with the IQ3 100MP AchromaticCapturing the full spectrum of light with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

Capturing the full spectrum of light with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic – with the visible spectrum to the right and infrared capture to the left

The IQ3 100MP Achromatic, in addition to having no Bayer Color Filter, is also designed to capture the full spectrum of light. The design is such that if removing IR light is needed, a filter can be placed in front of the lens to only capture light in the visible spectrum. But by not using this filter, you’re able to see infrared light in Live View which opens a whole new world of light displayed. Having this preview in Live View makes for less guesswork and ensures that what you see is what you get. With infrared photography, Live View focus is an absolute must due to the shift of the light and the filtering effects.

The versatility of artistic expression

In testing this back I primarily used the XF Camera System, but as the IQ3 100MP Achromatic has the same features as the IQ3 100MP color sensor, I was eager to test the back on technical cameras and use the Electronic Shutter.

This, along with the option of Infrared capture, makes this back incredibly diverse in in its applications. A precision system like the ALPA TC with the 35mm offers seamless integration with Electronic Shutter and has less need for control with an LCC calibration. This is of course fantastic,  but I couldn’t resist the temptation of using the new Achromatic sensor on something a bit less precise.

Soendermarken 2 with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

Here is just one example of the IQ3 100MP Achromatic on a simple pinhole camera of my own design. The results, though certainly less controlled and quantitative, are still eloquently artistic. Something simply not practical without the Electronic Shutter and Live View tools at my disposal. (Perhaps next time I’ll remember to clean the sensor!)

Using the IQ3 100MP Achromatic with a pinhole camera

ISO performance and flexibility

One of the side benefits of removing the Bayer Color Filter is the advantage of light sensitivity. As the Bayer Color Filter is actually a microscopic filter, it ends up blocking wavelengths of light from the pixel well. Without this filter, however, the pixel performance goes above its native sensitivity. As the Achromatic sensor doesn’t read color, it can use the additional light that a Bayer Color Filter would typically remove, to its advantage.

This benefits greatly as it means the base ISO 200 quality is equivalent to a low base ISO of 50 on a color sensor. If you need longer exposures, you can use an ND and not worry about introducing a loss of quality typically associated with such dense filtering. With a gain in sensitivity but a preservation of quality, the back becomes much more versatile.

And, of course, because of the higher base ISO, you can shoot faster shutter speeds while retaining seamless quality. This means the practical opportunities of a 101-megapixel camera becomes much more common. For example, here’s an image of the night sky at 1/4th of a second at ISO 6,400.

The Night Sky with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

Although the image isn’t groundbreaking, I was happy to have it illustrate versatility. A quick exposure was more than enough to capture the stars in brilliantly sharp detail and nearly noiseless at such a high ISO!

What the eye can’t see

As mentioned previously, the IQ3 100MP Achromatic is designed without the Infrared Cutoff filter. Instead, the back is designed to have this filter in front of the lens. This adds the option to easily capture infrared images without having to recalibrate the system.

The IQ3 100MP Achromatic Spectral Response Curve

Infrared exists outside the visible spectrum. That’s what makes the Live View feature of the IQ3 100MP Achromatic so essential. The ability to see light and specifically infrared light in real time makes it easy to compose and create.

These are some of the first Infrared images I captured. Organic material like the bushes and plants by the water reflect a high degree of infrared light. This is why they are rendered in brilliant whites rather than the green and yellow that they would be in color, or the deep blacks and mid-tones they would be in a non-IR black and white conversion.

Soendermarken 3 with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic

Below 1:1 crops, with and without Infrared filter

IQ3 100MP Achromatic - 1:1 Crop No Infra RedIQ3 100MP Achromatic - 1:1 Crop with Infra Red

Exploring the black & white heritage

The new era of digital black and white photography reflects the traditional methods, before color photography was possible. There is a wealth of practices, methods and options that exist in black and white photography thanks to the nearly 100 years of practice before color photography (and methods that yielded color photographs) became commonplace.

The IQ3 100MP Achromatic is no exception in revisiting and implementing these methods. While digital photography makes it possible to “fake” these methods with post editing; with the Achromatic you’re able to apply the same techniques as you can with black and white film, and get better, truer results than when recreating them in post.

B+W has an extensive range of filters designed for black and white photography, which we used when designing this back. Below is just one example of light filtering that can alter your results with a simple bit of filtering.

Portraits with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic, Infrared onlyPortraits with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic, Infrared and Red Filter

You can see in the left image above that the detail in the subjects face is much more prominent when using only the IR Filter. This is because all the visible spectrum is captured in tremendous detail. By comparison, the image on the right is shot with the addition of a Red Filter. This has the desirable effect of smoothing the skin and hiding freckles by way of reflecting all the red of the subject. When you combine these traditional methods and practices with the tremendous detail that’s possible with the IQ3 100MP Achromatic, the results are unparalleled.

The beauty of black & white

Working with a black and white camera is very different from working with a color camera. With black and white, most of the creative work is done once you take the photo. With external filters and Live View, you can create, compose and alter the image right there with the camera and not later in, for instance, Capture One Pro.  It just makes the process of creating images a more creative and enjoyable process.

When you look at a color image processed to black and white in Capture One, you can get good results. And if you zoom into details you believe everything is perfect… and it is impressive. But once you see a true black and white capture, you realize that there is an extra level of fidelity to what defines “perfect” details.  Not a single pixel appears out of place.  Everywhere you look the image has this extreme fidelity down to every detail.

Personally, the availability of such a precision, high-quality digital back, dedicated to black and white photography, is a milestone of endless possibilities. As my profession is fully engrossed in the technical applications and advantages of photography, it was a joy to be able to use and experiment with this digital back.

In conclusion…

I think black and white photography has a unique ability to actually accentuate the elements of an image rather than the lack of color detracting from the capture. That coupled with the technical abilities, IR Images, Black and White filtering, higher ISO’s with cleaner capture, and the tools that make it possible, Live View, Electronic Shutter; all this opens a whole new door to artistic expression and photographic possibilities.

Phase One has always been a company that focuses on the technology and pushing what is possible in image quality further. Our close relationship with Sony enables us to think ahead and imagine the possibilities well before a product is produced.

Although our focus has been, and always will be on technology and image quality, it’s a pleasure to see the excitement and enthusiasm in the office when we produce a product with such traditional photographic foundations.

See more about the IQ3 100MP Achromatic and request your demo.

Sign up for the webinar

capture one raw image editor capture one blog blogpost capture one psd file support

PSD files in Capture One – now what?

From version 10.1, Capture One supports reading of PSD files. You have always had the option to export to this widely popular file format, but if you wanted to see your work file inside of Capture One after some external editing, you were required to save your layered file as a TIFF. Those days are gone.

Whatever layers you might add on top of your images, Capture One will now recognize and show PSD files as any other supported file type. It is important to mention that processing layered files from Capture One always flattens the image, and the layers in your PSD or TIFF files are not individually visible or editable in Capture One. The files are always treated as non-layered files within Capture One.

Now, what does this mean for your workflow? Depending on how you edit your images, this provides two overall game changing additions if you are a regular user of Capture One and Photoshop (or a similar editing software): asset management and full round-trip workflows.

1. Asset Management

If you are one of the many photographers who finalize their work in Photoshop after having processed the images in Capture One, you might have been missing the ability to see your final work within Capture One, next to your RAW files. Upgrading to Capture One 10.1 now makes this possible.

One way is to use the round-trip functionality within Capture One when sending processed images to their final steps in Photoshop (or other external editors). This ensures that the PSD-file is instantly placed next to the RAW file and will show in whatever Album or Folder you are working from – both in a Catalog and a Session. This is achieved by right clicking the thumbnail of the image and selecting Edit With…, which will open a dialog with processing options for format, ICC profile, size etc. You will notice that PSD is now included in the Format list as well as JPG and TIFF. Open With should be set to your preferred external editor for example Photoshop. This effectively processes your RAW file with the adjustments made to it, and opens it in your selected external editor.

N.B.: Open With, which is placed next to Edit With…in the right click menu, might be slightly confusing without an explanation. The direct Open With option will effectively open your RAW file in an external editor without processing it through Capture One. To summarize:

  •  Edit With… -> processes file with adjustments -> opens in external editor
  • Open With -> RAW file opens directly in external editor

It is recommended to process to 16 bit to maintain as much information in the file as possible. Any changes to this newly added PSD file, from any external editor, will instantly show in Capture One once it is saved, making it possible to use Capture One as your preferred asset management software for all your work. N.B.: Saving with Maximum Compatibility in Photoshop is required for Capture One to support the PSD file.

You can of course also import PSD files as any other supported file types into your Catalog or Session.

2. Full round-trip workflows

The second addition to a PSD workflow is the full round-trip functionality: You have finalized your external work to your PSD file and might need a final touch of color grading, Film Grain, or other Capture One specific tools to take your image to the highest level.

With the Edit With-procedure described in the previous section, it’s easy to send a processed PSD file directly to Photoshop for further retouching. A good tip is to keep the processed image relatively neutral before retouching, and processed to 16 bit. This will give you the option to make different variants of color grading to the retouched image once it is back in Capture One. A huge benefit of this is, that if you need to do additional external retouching to the image, all variants within Capture One will automatically be updated with the changes. It is also possible to ignore the crop you have applied in Capture One from within Edit With… > Adjustments, which gives you the option to crop differently at a later point.

Imagine the following scenario:

  • You have shot an image for a client, and want to show them a couple of different versions to choose from. The image needs external retouching and is processed as a PSD file using the Edit With procedure.
  • External retouching is done and the PSD file is saved with layers.
  • Back within Capture One, the PSD file now shows the retouching. You create two new variants of the PSD file, effectively having three variants of the image ready.
  • Using Color Balance, Film Grain, Curves and other tools in Capture One, you finalize three versions of the image to prepare for your client.
  • With a process recipe, a small JPG of each version is processed and sent to your client.
  • They notice a flaw in the retouching that needs to be taken care of. You therefore open the PSD using your external editor and fix the flaw.
  • Back in Capture One, all three versions are now updated and can be processed again with a single click.
  • The client now receives and chooses one of the versions as their final pick.

All in all, support for PSD files provides full control to your workflow when using Capture One with external editors.

What impact will PSD support have on your workflow? Download a 30-day trial of Capture One and see for yourself.

Read more about using an external editor in our User Guide.

Sign up for the webinar

Tethered Capture with Capture Pilot for iOS and Capture One Pro 10

One of the biggest annoyances with tethered capture is having to constantly move back to the computer to trip the camera. I often work independently, so anytime an adjustment needs to be made with a soft box, moving a bounce card, moving the subject or styling the scene, I have to move from behind the computer and into the frame. That gets old quickly and chews up a lot of time that could be spent more productively. Of course, an assistant or digital tech would be helpful, but that isn’t always an option. Capture Pilot is an awesome mobile solution to many of these
challenges. The app integrates seamlessly with Capture One Pro 10 to review capture right on the iOS device with the option to control many tethered camera settings, including shutter release.

Independent Workflow Benefits

Capture Pilot reliably allows me to step away from the tethered camera to style a scene, reposition lights, hold bounce cards, while still adjusting camera settings and taking the shot without having to move. When tethering a camera to Capture One Pro 10 on my Mac, I position the display to face back towards the scene. I can stand just out of frame and see exactly what is happening on a larger monitor with precision. For added refinement at a glance, viewing the Focus Mask displays a green overlay to show image areas in focus. Previews will quickly load on my smart device in Capture Pilot and a simple pinch to zoom helps to evaluate fine detail. Working independently on projects is vastly more feasible using Capture Pilot with Capture One Pro 10.

Focus Mask displaying a green overlay

Focus Mask displaying a green overlay

Collaborative Workflow Benefits

On set, time is money, and it’s not simply your time that goes into consideration. If you have a creative team with a producer, creative director, stylists, assistants, chefs, clients, etc., there can often be a number of staff on hand. Any amount of time you can save is multiplied across every person on set and that can be considerable. For food or beverage photography, the level of efficiency that Capture Pilot helps establish can make all the difference with brief windows of opportunity after styling, saving additional takes.

Having the best creative tools will you help maintain a less chaotic, more productive atmosphere on set, further increasing the value you offer. Capture Pilot is one more resource to have on hand to speed up and simplify the process, especially if you are working shorthanded. It can also be implemented to easily include a key player in the creative process, giving them their own personal review station on a phone or tablet.

Setup and Tethered Camera Controls

To begin, make sure your computer and smart device are both connected to the same Wi-Fi network. After installing Capture One Pro 10 and Capture Pilot iOS app, open Capture One Pro 10 on your computer and navigate to Capture Pilot within the Capture Tool Tab. Under the Publish Tool, select either Mobile or Mobile and Web. Launch the app on your smart device and select the local server you just created in Capture One Pro 10. By default, it will share the same name as the Capture One library that is open. Once connected, it will launch camera controls with previews behind it. You can disable the controls and change the size of previews, as well as intuitively navigate within the frame by pinching to zoom. You can choose your priority/drive mode, and within the applicable mode, adjust Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO, and Exposure Value.

Adjust Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO, and Exposure Value

Adjust Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO, and Exposure Value

RAW or JPEG file types can be selected, as well as preset while balance options. The ability to set a white point for color balance is built in. What’s really slick is that you can rate photographs as you are working.

Rating photographs

Rating photographs

Coupled with Smart Albums in Capture One Pro 10, that’s a powerful feature and enables more freedom from being stuck behind the computer.

Pro tip: keep a charging cable on hand to charge your smart device. I have a case with a built in battery for additional redundancy and only kick it on if charging between shoots can’t keep up with demand. Enabling Do Not Disturb on an iPhone can help keep you from getting interrupted by notifications while working.

What I Love About Capture Pilot

Freedom to work more independently on studio or location projects. Time saved being able to interact with a scene while still controlling the tethered camera. The seamless implementation with Capture One Pro 10, quickly adjusting camera settings, and tripping the shutter with ease. The pinch to zoom previews show all the detail I could ever hope for. The app itself is free, with camera control being an optional (massively beneficial!) in-app purchase. Basically everything about it. It considerably upgrades my workflow and Capture One Pro 10.

Pinch to zoom preview

Pinch to zoom preview

Improvements I’d Like to See

Focus control, which was just added to Capture One Pro 10, would be an amazing feature. The histogram doesn’t load for me on mobile, though perhaps it is my camera. Ability to check camera battery status when the camera is powered by a battery and not with a power adapter. The camera could be a Phase One XF 100MP. A better photographer.

Closing Thoughts

In the past, I’ve used third party remote apps, paid more for them, and they were not this easy to use and never this integrated. At $15 for an in-app purchase (the app itself is free), it’s on the steeper side of what one might consider paying for a phone apps. That said, when you consider the amount of time savings, creative control, and mobility it provides, it upgrades the value of Capture One Pro 10 and your overall production workflow. If you tether even occasionally, using Capture Pilot with Capture One Pro 10 really is a must.

Capture Pilot is available as a free iOS App from Apple’s App Store

Download Capture Pilot here. You will need Capture One as well, download a 30-day trial to make everything work!

Read more in-depth details about Capture Pilot in our User Guide.

Sign up for the webinar