When you want to keep an eye on a big job is processing in Aperture, the Activity Monitor window is very helpful. I've been using it lately during an ambitious archiving project where I'm cleaning up old libraries and posting the content to my Everpix account.

To view the Activity Monitor, go to Window > Show Activity. Since Aperture can run tasks in the background, you could have more than one process to view. If you decide that you want to terminate an activity, highlight it, then click on the Cancel Task button.

Currently I have an old MacBook connected to a Drobo and churning away on exporting libraries and generating full size previews for my online archiving project. That white MacBook isn't very fast, but it is steady, and I can leave it running over the weekend. When I want to know the status of a job, I check the Activity Monitor to see how long before I can set up the next task. It helps me manage my work without babysitting the computer. You might find it helpful for your big jobs too.

Aperture Tips and Techniques

To learn more about Aperture, check out my Aperture 3.3 Essential Training (2012) on lynda.com. Also, take a look at our Aperture 3 Learning Center. Tons of free content about how to get the most out of Aperture.

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When I saw Venus setting in the west on Fourth of July evening, I knew I wanted to create a different kind of shot for the holiday. The hardest part was finding a good location. After that, I had to set up quickly before the light left the sky.

"Venus Setting in the West at Twilight with Fireworks" by Derrick Story

I mounted the Olympus OM-D E-M5 with the Panasonic VARIO 12-35mm/F2.8 zoom on a Joby GorillaPod Focus with Ballhead X and controlled the camera with a Triggertrap mobile connected to my iPhone.

With the ISO set to 200, I exposed the scene for 2 seconds at f/8. The zoom was set to 15mm. Fortunately, the fireworks show in the distance began at 9:35 pm, while there was still color in the sky. I captured about 6 frames, this one being my favorite, before I switched lenses and focused on the fireworks themselves.

I like the grand finale fireworks shots captured about 20 minutes later. But this shot for me, is something a little different than I normally photograph on Independence Day.

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Apart from the cameras that are near and dear to our hearts, gear that isn't used regularly can be sold to generate revenue for purchasing new items. My goal is to create a win/win scenario where both seller and purchaser feel good about the transaction.

A successful sale begins when you first purchase the item. By following these easy steps, you'll protect your investment and create a positive selling experience up the road.

Save Original Packing

Save the box, owners manual, cables, software CD, and anything else that's part of the kit. Prospective buyers love original packing. It helps maintain the value of their investment. And it doesn't cost you anything other than setting aside a little storage space.

Hang on to Brochures and Books

Another value-added item is collateral material related to the camera. Printed brochures, books on how to use, and other promotional items enhance the buying experience. Not only will these items help the buyer get more out of their purchase, they add emotional appeal.

Protect the LCD and Lens

The LCD screen and front objective glass of the lens are the most delicate surfaces on the camera. By putting a screen protector on the LCD and a high quality, multi-coated filter over the lens, you'll help protect your investment. When it's time to sell the item, I remove all protection, revealing mint condition surfaces. Believe me, nobody wants to buy a scratched LCD.

Sell the Camera While It Still Has Value

Finding a buyer for a 3-year-old camera is much easier than one that's been around for 5 years. Most buyers plan on using the purchase for their hobby, and they want to feel they have something that's current and desirable. If you know you're going to eventually sell an item, sell it now. Everyone will be happier.

Take a Good Picture, Write a Good Ad

I prefer to sell on Craigslist, at local camera stores, and via local newspapers. I write a descriptive ad without effusive adjectives, and take a good picture of the item I'm selling. I then meet the prospective buyer at a local coffee shop where they can test the gear and ask me questions. This provides a satisfying experience and eliminates buyer's remorse.

Charged and Ready to Roll

When it's time to meet the buyer, charge the battery, put a memory card in the camera, and make sure all systems are go. Show the buyer how to operate the camera, adjust the diopter to their eyesight, and let them take pictures. I like to have a good cup of coffee during this process.

Be Fair, Honest, and Sincere

I think it's really exciting to pair one of my cameras with a new photographer who has the opportunity to flourish with it. When I go to sleep that night, I want to be thinking about how happy they are with their purchase, and how I've taken a positive step toward my new gear goal.

Never, under any circumstance, take advantage of a prospective buyer just to get a few more dollars. Not only is it wrong, but it undermines the entire marketplace for used gear. As I said in the beginning, win/win scenarios are just good business.

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I have lenses that I describe as sharp, dependable, or versatile. But the term I use for the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 75mm f/1.8 lens is amazing. Why? Because in many ways, it defies logic.

When mounted on the OM-D E-M5, the 75mm is both sharp and dreamlike at the same time. When locked down to f/1.8, which is the only aperture I've used regularly with this prime, it lets me create images that have a quality unlike any other lens.

It goes beyond merely throwing the background out of focus (which is no small feat with a micro four thirds camera). It's the unique way that it creates a creamy, almost dreamlike texture, even in mundane settings. I've said before that lenses are to a photographer as brushes are to a painter. Never has that been more true than with this combination.

In the past, for portraits like these, I would have to use my Canon 5D Mark II and the 70-200mm f/2.8 zoom. It's a great rig for sure, but it is over twice the size and weight of the OM-D with the 75mm prime. So for shoots where I need to travel light, but still have the control I want, the micro four thirds tandem is a more nimble option.

When I need the lens to be sharp, all I have to do is focus accurately on what's important, and the 75mm provides excellent detail, contrast, and color. BTW: the manual focus ring is quite nice on the 75mm. I've programmed my f2 button on the OM-D to toggle between manual and autofocus. I've found this particularly handy for sports where I can lock in on a subject faster than the autofocus.

The product highlights are what you'd expect for premium priced glass ($899).

• Three ED Elements to Correct Aberrations
• Advanced Lens Coating Reduces Reflections
• 150mm Equivalent in 35mm Format
• Micro Four Thirds Mount
• Aperture Range: f/1.8-22
• Compact (2.7 x 2.5"), Balanced Weight (10.7oz) All Metal Construction
• Fast, Quiet Autofocusing Ideal for Video (MSC) and Action Photography

The 75mm doesn't have close-focusing ability, and doesn't include optical image stabilization (the OM-D has stabilization built in to the body). But for portraits and action photography, this prime lens is simply, well, amazing.

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This week on The Digital Story: Winners and Workshops, Flickr Update, and a behind the scenes interview with the Everpix co-founders - All of this and more in today's photography podcast.

Everpix updating in the background while being used on an iPad mini.

Story #1 - Recent SizzlPix Winners as part of the Monthly Photo Assignment.

Dec. 2012 - Long Exposure
http://www.thedigitalstory.com/galleries/dec12_assign/index.html
Mark Steven Houser

Jan. 2013 - Self Timer
http://www.thedigitalstory.com/galleries/jan13_assign/index.html
Kevin Ned Miller

Feb. 2013 - Furry Friends
http://www.thedigitalstory.com/galleries/feb13_assign/index.html
Phil Fisher

March - B&W
/2013/05/black-white---result-1.html
Oliver Rutherford

April - Architecture
http://www.thedigitalstory.com/galleries/ap13_assign/index.html
Jack Mueller

A Fun SizzlPix Story

PHOTOJOURNALISM AS ART
http://www.sizzlpix.com/main/2013/06/19/photo-journalism-as-art/

David Thurston, acclaimed British photographer has lived in Hong Kong and travelled extensively in China. His provocative candid "Boy Smoker" is one of just a few photographic images selected from thousands for display in London's prestigious Royal Academy Of Arts Summer Exhibition 2013, which continues through August 18 in Burlington House, Piccadilly.

The unfortunate child captured so magically in David's "Boy Smoker" may not last as long as his picture, which is displayed as a SizzlPix!, a proprietary state-of-the-art process for High-Definition photography display, among whose unique characteristics is a rated fade-resistance of 100 years.

Story #2 - Opening for Fall Color/Safari West Workshop on Oct. 20-22. Registration fee is $595 that includes the exclusive photo excursion in Safari West, a model shoot, landscape field trip, lunches, swag, and more. Go to the TDS Workshops page and use the "Send Me Info" form.

Story #3 - Have your joined the The Digital Story Flickr Public Group? That's where we draw from for the TDS Member Photo of the Day featured on the TDS Facebook page.

Story #4 - Interview with Pierre and Wayne, co-founders of Everpix. Here's your chance to get a behind the scenes look as this amazing online photo platform.

Reminder! - If you're going to purchase gear through Amazon or B&H Photo, please stop by the TDS home page first. Look for the "Products" box about half way down the page in the second column. There you will see display tiles for Amazon, lynda.com, and B&H Photo, in that order. By entering those sites through those display tiles, you help support The Digital Story.

Listen to the Podcast

In addition to subscribing in iTunes, you can also download the podcast here (31 minutes). You can support this podcast by purchasing the TDS iPhone App for only $2.99 from the Apple App Store.

Monthly Photo Assignment

The July 2013 photo assignment is Duality.

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

iPad for Digital Photographers

If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks versions.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper -- Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

Make Your Photos Sizzle with Color! -- SizzlPix is like High Definition TV for your photography.Special Offer! Anyone buying Derrick's new book, iPad for Digital Photographers, even at Amazon's or Barnes And Noble's discount, and putting the password for the Book Owners lounge in the comments space of their SizzlPix! order, will get 10 percent off their entire order -- the equivalent of more than a full refund for the book!

Need a New Photo Bag? Check out the Lowepro Specialty Store on The Digital Story and use discount code LP20 to save 20% at check out.

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For the May 2013 Photo Assignment, TDS shooters fixed their lenses on the delicious world of food photography. See for yourself in our gallery, Food. And which one will be the SizzlPix Photo Assignment Pick of the Month?

"I was born and raised in Italy and of course love Italian food," writes Sergio Burani. "This image was made on the stove of my kitchen. My objective was to highlight the fresh ingredients: cherry tomatoes, basil, olive oil, "penne" - cooked "al dente" of course!"

For the recipe, go to EatGoodCarbs.com. See all of the great images from this month's assignment by visiting the Food gallery page.

Participate in This Month's Assignment

The July 2013 assignment is "Duality." Details can be found on the Member Participation page. Deadline is July 31, 2013. No limit on image size submitted.

Please follow the instructions carefully for labeling the subject line of the email for your submission. It's easy to lose these in the pile of mail if not labeled correctly. For example, the subject line for this month's assignment should be: "Photo Assignment: July 2013." Also, if you can, please don't strip out the metadata. And feel free to add any IPTC data you wish (These fields in particular: Caption, Credit, Copyright, Byline), I use that for the caption info.

Gallery posting is one month behind the deadline. So I'm posting May 2013 at the end of June, the June gallery will be posted at the end of July, and on and on.

Good luck with your July assignment, and congratulations to all of the fine contributors for May.

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iPad for Digital Photographers

If you love mobile photography like I do, then you'll enjoy iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks versions.

Many things are better in pairs.

Captured with Olympus OM-D E-M5 with an Olympus 75mm f/1.8 prime, ISO 800, F/1.8 at 1/50th of a second. Processed in Aperture 3.4 and Nik Sliver Efex Pro.

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Join me on my Instagram site as I explore the world of mobile photography. And now Instagram features 15-second movies too.

Many mobile workflows focus on compact or mirrorless cameras. But you can use your beloved DSLR too. One of the challenges for DSLR shooters is how to handle the RAW files. In my latest article for Techhive, Share photos from your DSLR, no computer required, I discuss some sample workflows that might be a good starting point for you.

The essence of the article is this: shoot RAW + JPEG, find a way to separate the JPEGs from the RAWs in the field, only work with JPEGs on your mobile device, upload the RAWs to your computer when you get home. And yes, it can work quite nicely.

Another option, not mentioned in the article, is to shoot RAW only, then make JPEG copies in-camera of the shots you want to use. Transfer those JPEGs to your mobile device, and deal with the RAWs later.

There are plenty of variations on all these themes. My guess is, that in there somewhere, a workflow is just right for you. Hopefully, my TechHive article will help you find it.

iPad for Digital Photographers

This is the kind of stuff I write about in iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks format.

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Bryan Davis produced this movie in Final Cut Pro X as his project for the TDS Movie Making for Photographers Workshop where we covered the Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic. Bryan's production is quite good, and I like how he incorporated a time-lapse clip at the end captured with a GoPro.

2013 Sonoma Hot Air Balloon Classic from Bryan Davis on Vimeo.

I'll share more movies from the event in upcoming posts.

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Join me on my Instagram site as I explore the world of mobile photography. And now Instagram features 15-second movies too.

Do you have images on Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, or Instagram... or all of them? Have you cataloged pictures in iPhoto, Aperture, or Lightroom? Do you have these photos available to you anywhere, at anytime, using practically any device? I do. I'm using Everpix 2.0

Everpix 2 running on an iPad mini

Everpix is a cloud-based photo platform that provides storage, sharing, and enjoyment. It can aggregate the best versions of your images from practically any source and make them available to you on a computer or mobile device. It applies sophisticated under-the-hood science to understand your photos beyond EXIF data and presents them to you in an attractive, easy to digest user interface.

The essence of Everpix is this:

• Solves the "photo mess" - images scattered everywhere instead of aggregated in once central location. Yet, you still can continue to take shots with multiple devices and organize them in your photo management applications, just as you've always done. Just point Everpix to your various sources, and it will copy the images and eliminate the duplicates.
• Taps content from various devices including mobile phones, tablets, image libraries, and social networking sites. Everpix lets you bring this content together into one place. You can continue to capture and edit content anyway you want.
• Lets you view your Everpix library from just about any computer or mobile device. Want to see your Aperture, iPhoto, Lightroom, and Flickr images in one place? Everpix can do that.

You can learn more and set up a free account today at Everpix.com. Also, tune in to next week's TDS podcast on July 2, 2013, where I interview co-founders Pierre-Olivier Latour and Wayne Fan. They really get into the details of this impressive cloud-based service for photographers.

iPad for Digital Photographers

This is the kind of stuff I write about in iPad for Digital Photographers-- now available in print, Kindle, and iBooks format.

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