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Tobias Lewsadder

i-toby

fanboy of love, life, and technology


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Do I Still Need A DSLR?

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I have been eagerly awaiting the announcement of the Canon 5D Mark III. The rumor mills have painted such a great picture that I can't settle for the Mark II. The consideration of picking up a Canon 7D in the meantime has come up but I really am leaning toward a full frame camera. 

On the flip side I take hundreds of pictures/videos a month on my iPhone 4S and am pretty happy with them. The ability to edit and share them on the fly adds hugely to its' appeal. A few weeks ago I was brave enough to strap my iPhone to the rack on my 4runner using a small tripod, a glif, and some zip ties. It wasn't ideal but the video came out well and was usable for what I was trying to do. I could always invest a few hundred dollars and get a high definition GoPro and some accessories and not have to worry about my iPhone flying off my SUV. 

So does the $3,000-$6,000 investment (lenses, batteries, flash…) still makes sense. Obviously the quality of both the equipment and final product will be far superior with the DSLR but unless I need it for professional use or for documenting something significant, is it worth it? For the average person I would say no, spend some money and hire a photographer for those special moments and save the rest of the money. As for me, I am a geek and a huge fan of photography and therefore will be one of the first on the waiting list. 


The New Location Opens

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One of our favorite local eateries in our small town moved a couple of blocks to a much larger location with far more parking. :) (in the photo above close to a hundred people wait outside for their chance to see the new restaurant)

When we arrived to help celebrate the opening I heard the owner speaking with someone in the local press about how me managed to get so many people there for the grand opening. His answer, facebook. That's an easy way to do it but it wouldn't have been a year back as this business had no social presence at all. In my first consultation for this business I was made aware of the owners ambitious goals. He wanted 1.000 fans within a week. That may sound easy enough however the restaurant is located in a small town with a total population of 20,000 people and is most frequently attended by the locals. That basically works out to 1 out of every 20 people in the town had to like the page. Not so easy when you factor in kids and the elderly which both seem to be in abundance in this area. 

To make a long story short, we got it done. So yesterday after hearing the owner mention his facebook following and seeing the turn out, it was a rather rewarding experience. 




Why I share more photos than video

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Lately I have been struggling with the idea of why I instinctively choose to share images rather than video in my everyday escapades. Video is so much more rich and can tell a much more complete story however I tend to favor images. Why? If I am being completely honest it has a lot to do just how simple it has become to capture, edit, and share an image. The image above was captured on an afternoon hike yesterday, was edited while still on that hike and posted to facebook, twitter, instagram, flick'r, my blog, foursquare, and path all within 3 minutes of taking it. 

Video couldn't replace this particular image but video could have captured the beautiful background and setting which would have allowed me to share such a beautiful moment with my digital world. Why didn't I shoot video? It is more time consuming to shoot, it takes a steady hand, it needs to be edited, titles added, a soundtrack, and then saved to an ideal size to share on the go. Saving it in such a small format isn't my only preference. I also want the highest possible quality as well so I can upload it to vimeo or youtube. Uploading the video to multiple platforms on the go can be tedious as well. As data speeds increase I assume this will become less of an issue but on the other hand if the carriers start to really enforce data caps and throttle excessive data users, that might be another obstacle. 

Video does have its place in my digital life. At the time shooting a video is a commitment and definitely has to be worthy of the time dedicated. Fortunately, there are plenty of video worthy occasions in my little world. 

My next video project will be a video that shows off my hometown, its' great assets, and the piece of property I am going to be selling. I will be attempting to experiment with video and real estate from a local perspective. Agents have used video to shows homes but has anyone ever taken the time to show the perspective buyer a glimpse of the community they are moving into? 





Is the Internet Changing, Or Am I?

I love being social, yup, I start conversations with almost everyone I run into. Even if it is just to genuinely ask them about their day, I truly am interested. Virtually I can't say the same thing. I am on all the social networks and use them daily however I don't interact as much as I do in person. I never really understood that until I started using Path. On Path I share everything and with frequency. Why? Because I know the people that I am sharing with and I know them well. Also I know who is seeing what I am sharing and don't have to worry about friends of friends seeing my posts or whatever Mark Zuckerberg  decides my sharing preferences should be. The simplicity in what Path has built has allowed me to become closer with family/friends and to do so in an elegant fashion. 

I still am a huge believer in social and I will always appreciate what facebook and twitter offer. An aggregated feed of data my friends suggest and an opportunity to catch glimpses of their lives is super valuable. Having to analyze everything I am going to share to evaluate whom it will hurt or offend or who I wouldn't want to see it has become such a fatigue. So yes, it is me who has changed… Sharing my life online will continue however much more of it will be in a very controlled environment.   


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