Tool or Toy? The Apple iPad 2 for Photographers

[PASM]

March 2011 | Barnaby Britton, with additional content by Simon Joinson

Note: this article is not intended to be a review of the Apple iPad 2but instead to establish whether or not the iPad, and devices like it, have the potential to become serious tools for working and enthusiast photographers. Obviously there are other tablet computers available, but we chose to focus on the iPad 2 for two main reasons. Firstly, the iPad is by far the most popular device of its type and therefore has the most relevance. Secondly, Apple's App Store is currently the largest available for any platform, containing almost 4,000 photography-related applications.

Read it here..
Apple iPad2 Review: 1. Introduction: Digital Photography Review

 

[usayit]

Personally, I'd rather put the money into a MacBook Air 13 inch.

* More drive space (64GB by today's standards is not much for a photographer on extended travels)
* Compatible with USB devices and storage. (MOUSE!!! )
* Easy to pack... the 11 incher is not much heaver/bigger.
* Display is better
* Hook up a monitor
* 13 inch air has built in SD card reader.
* Run full versions of Lightroom or Aperture. Its a full blown laptop even though spec'd a little smaller.
* Better performance than the iPad2. More Memory
* Maybe they have added software to do this now BUT last time I checked their claim of "RAW" support is an utter lie for Leica M8 and M9 users. They simply view the tiny embedded thumbnail within the DNG ~not~ the DNG itself. The result is viewing badly pixelated DNG files that have been uploaded to my iPAD. The workaround is to shoot DNG+JPG but that wastes camera write cycles and storage on the iPAD on something I will eventually trash.

I could probably think of more but they would be more along the lines of comparing a macbook to ipad (which are apples to oranges comparisons)

What gets me is that many scoff at the idea of using a netbook as a photographer's device BUT somehow the Ipad is considered feasible?


On the run, I use a netbook + image tank combination. The image tank is great because all I have to do is insert the card and press copy. Netbook is good enough to view the files maybe perform some minor adjustments. It too has a built in SDcard reader which is one less thing.


Btw... I have the original 32GB ipad. I like it for what it is intended... mobile web and music consumption.

 

[DennyCrane]

No SD card slots, difficult connectivity to external monitors, limited full-on editing applications, NO Flash (needed for some sites that use Flash and do not have dedicated apps to work around)... so, in the context of the question, this is a toy. It's a wonderful device and can replace a notebook for a plethora of areas... just not for photography. It's suitable for emergency photo editing use with a pile of adapters.

 

[SpeedTrap]

this is a toy. It's a wonderful device and can replace a notebook for a plethora of areas... just not for photography. It's suitable for emergency photo editing use with a pile of adapters.

I guess it really depends how you use it. I use it in a studio setting in combination with Capture One. By adding capture pilot on the iPad my client can view what I am shooting in real time and even mark favorites. Of course you cannot edit on it, it was never meant to do that, but I can also transfer photos to it in the field with little problem, I need only one adapter to do it, you would need at least the same for a notebook (I shoot CF cards).

 

[usayit]

One could argue that the way you are using the ipad is more along the lines of Point of Sale not as a pure photographic tool. Functionality that other devices have brought to us previously.

 

[SpeedTrap]

Sorry, I should clarify something, I use the above setup in studio for fashion shoots, it is typically the creative director that has my iPad and can view all the work we have shot that day and zoom in to check details, I still have the usual computer set up with monitors for the members of the team to see the output, but by using the iPad the creative director can sit back and view on their own without crowding around one of the monitors. They can go back, make notes and rate photos.

Now all this can be done on a laptop, but the iPad is more convenient and has a much better battery life than any laptop I have ever owned.

Let me say I am also not an apple fan boy, the only apple product I own is the iPad, and it is for the specific reason mentioned above. I will say that for contract management and model releases it works wonderful and allows me to track who I have current signed releases for and I can review the contracts very quickly.

 

[Offhand]

The Asus Eee Slate might be a better choice. It's a full on computer in a tablet form factor so can run full Photoshop and Lightroom pretty speedily. It's also got a really good display that can be color calibrated and it has a Wacom digitizer with a pen so can be used as a drawing, painting tool and for fine detail work. Only downside is the battery life, which is about the same as a laptop.

 

[Garbz]

it is typically the creative director that has my iPad and can view all the work we have shot that day and zoom in to check details,

Now for a basic viewing application the iPad is not bad. But it's not really a "tool for photographers" actually even when I simply think about the 16GB capacity of the iPad, the size of RAW files and how painfully slow they are to view over a wireless network, unless you're willing to hand over cards it has problems even in this area.

The iPad and other tablet devices are great flashy tools to show a customer that you're a hip and trendy artist, but have very limited use in actual photography.

Note I said iPad. There is nothing new on the iPad 2 that makes it any more useful than any other device out there. Despite people creaming themselves on the thought that it's a few mm thinner in my view it was the most overrated thing to hit the market.

 

[JClishe]

The Asus Eee Slate might be a better choice. It's a full on computer in a tablet form factor so can run full Photoshop and Lightroom pretty speedily. It's also got a really good display that can be color calibrated and it has a Wacom digitizer with a pen so can be used as a drawing, painting tool and for fine detail work. Only downside is the battery life, which is about the same as a laptop.

I own the Asus slate and its a terrific machine. It's extremely powerful and has no problem using the Canon tools to convert Raw's to JPG. The screen is better than other laptops that I've owned. It's definitely a workhorse and not a toy. Only problem is battery life, 4 hours limits it's usefulness in the field.

 

[Forkie]

I've allowed the whole iPad phenomenon pass over my head. I can't work out what the thing is actually for, it's not a laptop because you can't run your own software on it, it has no slots for memory cards or other peripherals and yet it's too big to put in your pocket. I think the iPhone is a much more important step in the world of personal media than the iPad. And as other's have said, until Apple and Adobe sort out their differences and give us Flash, it's online uses are somewhat limited.

 

[SpeedTrap]

A lot of people keep saying, a laptop is better, or the iPad it can’t do this, it can’t do that.

You need to look outside the creation of an image to see this as a useful tool.

I can take the iPad to a client meeting, we can discuss the details of a shoot and I can add the details to the contract, the client can then sign the contract on the iPad and a copy is stored on the iPad and copies are emailed to the studio and to the client, as well as anyone else we specify.

On the day of the shoot, I can meet with the models and have each of them sign the model release right on the iPad and it sends a copy to the client and one to the studio, as well it keeps a copy on the iPad.

As mentioned above the creative director used the iPad to see the shots, it does not transfer them to the iPad, but Capture Pilot uses the iPad as a viewer to the files on the laptop.

I believe the original question was, it is a tool or is it a toy, and it is a tool, I have many tools that do not take pictures, this is just one of them..

 

[Nubbs]

I am by no means a professional photographer that has the need to edit contracts and get releases signed. I have however found the Ipad to be a great tool and a great toy. I have my portfolio on the Ipad and can show it to anybody at a moments notice. I find that showing it to them and being able to talk about the photos has been much better than sending them to a link when they get home. I also use the Ipad as a toy while traveling. I watch movies and play games and it is easy to pack for short trips. If i am going to be doing a lot of shooting I take my MacBook pro instead.

 

[usayit]

Speedtrap, glad you find it useful but you said it... Its usefulness is outside the creation of an image. That in my mind places it outside the usefullness as a photographers tool. It still remains to be a good presentation and point of sale device. On the other hand, I my experience is that anything beyond what has been said is best done on a laptop. Its too anemic in features, storage, and computing resources to completely meet the needs of the typical photographer.

Price wise its about half the price of a lower end macbook and twice the price of my netbook (1.6ghz, 2gb, 80 solid state disk) brand new.

 

[SpeedTrap]

I guess I should say it is a useful professional tool for us, not specific to image creation, but it is also still a toy at times.
I still stand by it for the reasons above, but i will say, it can be a great distraction during down times. I would bet the ipad is still alive and playing music or video long after the net-books battery is dead.
My example is for the type of photography I do, is it a useful tool for all, of course not. Is it the best choice in all situations, nope. But for what I do, it works well.

 

[Village Idiot]

Speedtrap, glad you find it useful but you said it... Its usefulness is outside the creation of an image. That in my mind places it outside the usefullness as a photographers tool. It still remains to be a good presentation and point of sale device. On the other hand, I my experience is that anything beyond what has been said is best done on a laptop. Its too anemic in features, storage, and computing resources to completely meet the needs of the typical photographer.

Price wise its about half the price of a lower end macbook and twice the price of my netbook (1.6ghz, 2gb, 80 solid state disk) brand new.

And by "photographers tool", are you meaning something that is used strictly for capturing and editing an image? I use mine to sketch out ideas and lighting diagrams. There are also a plethora of photography related apps. As stated it can be used as a portfolio, one which I would be happy to show in any random encounter, but not one that I would take to a pre-arragned meeting with a client. I also use the model release app as it's easy that carrying around paper forms and having to worry about digitizing them later on. Of course I also use it to contact clients and update my photo blogs. I also can use it to remote desktop into my home PC and server so that I can pull up specific images that relate to a client's questions that isn't in my standard portfolio. There are other things, that as a photographer, I use the iPad as a tool for. So by that definition, is it not a photographer's tool?