Im photographing in Portugal at the moment, and have been having an interesting time using an iPhone as one of my primary tools. I havent seen much here in the forums on the topic, so I thought Id summarize my workflow in case it helped anyone else.
Im shooting primarily Neopan 400 (in 6x7 format) on an RB67 with three lenses (65/90/180mm). Im metering using my trusty Sekonic L-358. Im using a tripod for everything, so theres plenty of time for composition and exposure calculation.
Although Im quite familiar with shooting with only a camera & meter, Ive found the iPhone is quite handy for the following (all apps are either standard Apple apps or downloadable from the App Store using iTunes):
* Leveling
As Im composing on the tripod, Im using the iPhone as a spirit-level, using the Clinometer app ($0.99). I launch Clinometer, then set the iPhone on top of the open RB67 waist-level viewfinder. I usually adjust for level only in the left-right axis, as the front-back adjustment is part of the composition and doesnt need to be correct.
* DOF calculation
Id like to say I use one of the many available DOF applications, but actually Ive found that none of them are very intuitive or useful. I have downloaded PhotoBuddy, PhotoCalc, and Visual Dof Calculator. These apps might be helpful for someone with less shooting experience, but mostly what the apps do I can either calculate on the lens itself (using distance scales), or I know intuitively.
* Reciprocity calculation
So far Ive just used the regular Calculator app (in scientific mode), with the formula found somewhere online of Tc=Ti+(0.3*Ti^1.62), where Ti is the indicated speed and Tc is the corrected speed.
* Field notebook
I use the standard Notes application to keep track of information about each roll and shots on that roll. I simply start a new note for each roll, using a sort of shorthand like this:
The first line is the roll ID (I use year/month/day, plus a, b, c, etc. for additional rolls on a given day), camera name, and film type.
The rest of the lines contain:
Ill also note location, date (if different than the roll ID), and other information I want to remember.
Once Ive finished a roll, I simply email the note to myself. If Im out of range of a wireless or cellular network, the iPhone will queue the note to be emailed later.
* Reference shots
I use the standard Camera app to take two digital photos of each shot: one is taken normally from roughly the same point of view, and one is taken of the viewfinder itself (with the magnifying glass up, which seems to give the best focus). This latter shot is often quite rough, but serves as a decent reference image until I develop the film.
Just like with any photo on the iPhone, I transfer images back to the computer using iPhone.
* Post-shooting organization
Back on my Mac, I collect the roll notes and the reference images into a new folder. I rename the reference images to relate to the shots (eg, 081211.01.vf.jpg is the viewfinder reference image for the shot #1 on the roll 081211). I run a script I wrote to process my shorthand notes into EXIF tags; these tags are then written into the pair of reference images. (The tags mimic all the shot information, including exposure, camera type, etc.). I can then drag the set of reference images into Adobe Lightroom and, voila, all the metadata is accurate.
Once I develop & scan the negatives, I copy the EXIF information from the reference shots into the new scan files. I can then delete the reference shots if I want to.
* Whats missing?
While all this works reasonably well, there are definitely some things Id like to change.
Using the Camera, Clinometer, and Notes app (not to mention the DOF apps) requires a lot of switching applications. This is tiresome on the iPhone, since I have to press the Home button and mentally readjust to the new app.
It would be nice to making the process involve fewer button presses and be more transparent. Im considering writing an iPhone app that would let you create a new roll, then add new shots to that roll. For each shot, it would let you take a variety of reference images. It would remember the information from shot to shot, and show a simple level control on the same screen. All the information would then be more tightly related to each other.
Since my Sekonic meter can calculate exposure in EV units, it would be nice to simply input that number into an iPhone app which then helps me calculate aperture and shutter values based on a given ISO rating. This could also take into account filter & bellows factors, as well as reciprocity failure.
A more intuitive and useful DOF calculation would be great. What I want is to be able to input the points I want in focus (eg, main focus on 2 meters, with 1 meter in front and 2 meters in rear to be in focus), and have the iPhone calculate the appropriate aperture, given CoC tolerance, film format, etc.
Anyway, I hope this is useful, or at least interesting to those of you who have an iPhone, or are considering getting one.
Is anyone else using an iPhone in the field?
Im shooting primarily Neopan 400 (in 6x7 format) on an RB67 with three lenses (65/90/180mm). Im metering using my trusty Sekonic L-358. Im using a tripod for everything, so theres plenty of time for composition and exposure calculation.
Although Im quite familiar with shooting with only a camera & meter, Ive found the iPhone is quite handy for the following (all apps are either standard Apple apps or downloadable from the App Store using iTunes):
* Leveling
As Im composing on the tripod, Im using the iPhone as a spirit-level, using the Clinometer app ($0.99). I launch Clinometer, then set the iPhone on top of the open RB67 waist-level viewfinder. I usually adjust for level only in the left-right axis, as the front-back adjustment is part of the composition and doesnt need to be correct.
* DOF calculation
Id like to say I use one of the many available DOF applications, but actually Ive found that none of them are very intuitive or useful. I have downloaded PhotoBuddy, PhotoCalc, and Visual Dof Calculator. These apps might be helpful for someone with less shooting experience, but mostly what the apps do I can either calculate on the lens itself (using distance scales), or I know intuitively.
* Reciprocity calculation
So far Ive just used the regular Calculator app (in scientific mode), with the formula found somewhere online of Tc=Ti+(0.3*Ti^1.62), where Ti is the indicated speed and Tc is the corrected speed.
* Field notebook
I use the standard Notes application to keep track of information about each roll and shots on that roll. I simply start a new note for each roll, using a sort of shorthand like this:
081210. Rb67. Neopan
1. Path. 8@125. 90mm
2. Olive tree. 5.6@250
3. Blue bird bench. 8@250
4. ". 16@60. 65mm
5. Steps w/ Goldfinger. 11@60
6. Path with gutter around tree. 5.6@30. 90mm
7. Wall with plants. 11@400
8. Trellis. 8@400. 180mm-pol
9. ". 8@60
10. Stones. 16@250. 180mm-pol
I use periods instead of other punctuation because its easy to type on the iPhone, if you press the space button twice, you get a period followed by a space.1. Path. 8@125. 90mm
2. Olive tree. 5.6@250
3. Blue bird bench. 8@250
4. ". 16@60. 65mm
5. Steps w/ Goldfinger. 11@60
6. Path with gutter around tree. 5.6@30. 90mm
7. Wall with plants. 11@400
8. Trellis. 8@400. 180mm-pol
9. ". 8@60
10. Stones. 16@250. 180mm-pol
The first line is the roll ID (I use year/month/day, plus a, b, c, etc. for additional rolls on a given day), camera name, and film type.
The rest of the lines contain:
- Frame number
- Description
- Aperture/shutter set
- Lens, with any filters (pol = polarizer)
Ill also note location, date (if different than the roll ID), and other information I want to remember.
Once Ive finished a roll, I simply email the note to myself. If Im out of range of a wireless or cellular network, the iPhone will queue the note to be emailed later.
* Reference shots
I use the standard Camera app to take two digital photos of each shot: one is taken normally from roughly the same point of view, and one is taken of the viewfinder itself (with the magnifying glass up, which seems to give the best focus). This latter shot is often quite rough, but serves as a decent reference image until I develop the film.
Just like with any photo on the iPhone, I transfer images back to the computer using iPhone.
* Post-shooting organization
Back on my Mac, I collect the roll notes and the reference images into a new folder. I rename the reference images to relate to the shots (eg, 081211.01.vf.jpg is the viewfinder reference image for the shot #1 on the roll 081211). I run a script I wrote to process my shorthand notes into EXIF tags; these tags are then written into the pair of reference images. (The tags mimic all the shot information, including exposure, camera type, etc.). I can then drag the set of reference images into Adobe Lightroom and, voila, all the metadata is accurate.
Once I develop & scan the negatives, I copy the EXIF information from the reference shots into the new scan files. I can then delete the reference shots if I want to.
* Whats missing?
While all this works reasonably well, there are definitely some things Id like to change.
Using the Camera, Clinometer, and Notes app (not to mention the DOF apps) requires a lot of switching applications. This is tiresome on the iPhone, since I have to press the Home button and mentally readjust to the new app.
It would be nice to making the process involve fewer button presses and be more transparent. Im considering writing an iPhone app that would let you create a new roll, then add new shots to that roll. For each shot, it would let you take a variety of reference images. It would remember the information from shot to shot, and show a simple level control on the same screen. All the information would then be more tightly related to each other.
Since my Sekonic meter can calculate exposure in EV units, it would be nice to simply input that number into an iPhone app which then helps me calculate aperture and shutter values based on a given ISO rating. This could also take into account filter & bellows factors, as well as reciprocity failure.
A more intuitive and useful DOF calculation would be great. What I want is to be able to input the points I want in focus (eg, main focus on 2 meters, with 1 meter in front and 2 meters in rear to be in focus), and have the iPhone calculate the appropriate aperture, given CoC tolerance, film format, etc.
Anyway, I hope this is useful, or at least interesting to those of you who have an iPhone, or are considering getting one.
Is anyone else using an iPhone in the field?
