We all know Lightroom is powerful. Most of my editing is done and post processing these days, and no longer in Photoshop. In fact, I would say with the advent of Lightroom 2 and local adjustments (see my video HERE) 95% or more of my work is done in Lightroom now. But there are fun little secrets that make this application even more powerful useful for more than photo processing. How many of you use Flickr, Photoshelter, SmugMug? Did you know that Lightroom, with the added help of a few free (yes, free) plug-ins can make your life soooo much easier?

Here is how it works. I am going to show you with the Photoshelter plug-in, but it works the same with all the above and more. There are two ways to start. The easiest is to follow this link to Adobe’s Lightroom Exchange HERE. This is a warehouse of Lightroom plug-ins. Here you will find plug-ins for exporting to the sites I listed above. But, you will also find all kinds of cool plug-ins for web templates, develop presets and more. Most are free! So poke around and enjoy. I said there was two ways to start. The other way is to open Lightroom and go under the new to Lightroom 2 “Plug-in Manager.” This is a handy dialog box that will take you to the Adobe Exchange site by clicking the button on the bottom left of the window. But it is more useful than that, because it now is the simplest way to import your plug-ins. Once you download the plug-in you want to use, in this case the Photoshelter plug-in, then just hit the ad button and ad it to your list of plug-ins. Simple, no more searching for the folder where the plug-ins reside, it does it for you.

The new to lightroom 2 “Plug-in Manager.”

So now you have the Photoshelter plugin loaded or the Flickr plug-in or whatever one you want. Now, you need to select the images you want to load. I chose the Arches of Delhi gallery I made last week. Make sure you have captions and key words already embedded in the image. This is the beauty of this method. Now export like you would do normally export a photo and bring up the export dialog box. Here you will see at the top of dialog box a small pane, click on it and choose which plug-in you want to use.

You must choose which plug-in to use.

You will see the list appear. Once you choose the plug-in you will need to log in to your account. Don’t forget, you have to have an account with any of these services to use them. That may seem like a no-brainer, but… Anyway, then just work your way down the dialog box panes. Name the file, make your setting choice, your size choice, sharpening, etc… Finally choose an existing gallery or make a new one.

Just work your way down the dialog box panes.

Then upload.

Once uploaded, Lightroom will tale you to the site and you can make any changes to the photos in Photoshelter or whatever site you uploaded to.

Your captions and other IPTC data that was embedded from Lightroom 2 follows your image to Photoshelter.

These plug-ins will save you a ton of time and make uploading to your favorite site a breeze. I hope this helped. You can view this gallery in Photoshelter HERE.

The maker of the plugin wrote me and I realised I did not give a link to his site only to Exchange. Sorry about that oversite. The company is called pact software and you can find this plugin HERE.

Gavin beat me to the punch. I had this ready to use but wanted to get my Ladakh gallery up first. None of us know what this is about. Other than it is images from one of the worlds finest Photojournalist and it is suppose to be BIG! I first ran across it on TED. If you are not a avid TED reader, shame on you. This is an amazing blog with some of the worlds most amazing minds. Don’t think for a moment I agreee with every view expressed on the TED blog, I don’t. But it is a great peek into what is on the heart and minds of the world’s most talented.

Not sure what Mr. Nachtwey’s story is going to be about, but you can bet the images will be stunning. Stay tuned, only one more day till it breaks.

(Click to make larger)
The Think Tank Steroid Belt and Skins

I learned a lot this trip. I have been mulling it all over in my head. I learned some mundane things like; I really like my Think Tank Steroid Belt, but next time I will shoot with the “Belly Dancer”. The Steroid Belt keeps the gear all around your sides and your back. I keep having to ask people to get into the module that was in the small of my back. Next time I will use the Belly Dancer, this belt keeps the gear in the front of you and puts the clip in the small of your back. An easier way to reach all your needed gear.

(Click to make larger)
The Zink Pogo printer in action.

I learned that I loved the idea of the Pogo Polaroid printers for passing out instant pictures to villagers and monks. But I also learned that the printer needs much better batteries. After just a few uses, the batteries would go dead. One time I had even charged them all night and when it came time to use it the battery was dead. Great idea, just needs better batteries.

Photo by, David DuChemin
(Click to make larger)
My Keens Newport H2.

I learned that there is not a better sandal to wear around India and Ladakh than my Keens. Man, I love these shoes! Comfortable, warm in the cool weather and breathable in the hot weather. And the best part, easy on and easy off for all those trips into Gompas and homes.

(Click to make larger)
David DuChemin and I on top of the world.

In a more humbling point, I learned it is still very difficult to shoot and room with a talented photographer like David DuChemin. If you don’t have a real handle on your talent, you can crash and burn around a guy like him. What do I mean? David is just about the best “World Photographer” I know. He is good, we all know this. I am also good. But, David is good and consistent, and folks, that is so much better. Everyday he comes back with not just “nice” images, but “WOW!” images. Now, please do not misunderstand me, he is not egotistical, nor is he not encouraging. But, sometimes, you just want him (in a carnal sort of way) to strike out and let the rest of us feel good about our photographs. So I learned it is hard to shoot with a talented photographer, who is also a really nice guy. You can’t hate him and you can’t laugh at his work. Gosh, there is just nothing to do but fold up your computer and look at his images from the day and sigh.

Went out with Grungmann again yesterday and shot the photowalk route. I think there will be plenty of fun stuff to shoot if people keep their eye peeled as my daddy used to say. Click on one of the images to go to a small gallery of the images above.

I sent out an email to all the registered participants yesterday, but I know many of you plan to come and walk with us as unregistered participants and that is great! So here is the same letter for you, just so you don’t feel left out.

Greetings Fearless Walkers!

It’s shaping up to be quite a weekend. We will be having many more than the scheduled 50 walkers, (but only your 50 are getting the chance to win the city prize and the grand prize) but as they say, the more the merrier!

During the Walk…

Safety First! – Please be aware of your surroundings! Remember that there is real traffic on the other side of that lens and that you mustn’t get too distracted by what you are shooting and forget that. I don’t want someone ending the day at the hospital!

Be Mindful of Your Gear – A large group of photographers can attract a lot of attention – some of it, not the good kind. Please be be mindful of your gear at all times. Again, just be aware of your surroundings!

Be Prepared for Walk-ups – As I said, the enthusiasm for this event has been very high so do not be surprised if unregistered walkers arrive to join our group. We want to share this experience with everyone so please, allow unregistered walkers to join in on the fun! Just be sure they understand that, as last-minute participants, they are not eligible to submit their photos for the prize. Only walkers that pre-registered for your walk will have that access to upload photos.

Play nice – Remember folks, this is a social event – A time to meet with fellow photographers and maybe gain some new perspectives. Take the time to share your knowledge with others. If someone shows up with a disposable camera, don’t laugh. Instead, why not take them under your wing? And if police or security guards stop you from photographing a building or something (hey, it happens) just nod politely and move on. The name of this game is, “Keeping it Social.”

Remember, It’s a Photo Walk, Not a Photo Parade – A photo walk is supposed to be a social event. Participants are encouraged to move and mingle at their own pace. You do not have to stay together and move as a group! The only thing that should be done as a group is the very beginning and the very end. As long as everyone reconvenes at the final meeting place (Kasim Mustafa) at the end, our walk will be a complete success!

What if it Rains? – Since this Penang, it could be raining during all or part of the walk. So, what if it is raining? We walk on – no rain day. We will just get very cool shots of Penang in the rain. If it looks like it might rain, bring an umbrella, a raincoat/jacket and of course, something to cover your camera and lens in case it rains. Sometimes, an extra shirt to cover the camera or lens doesn’t hurt. I’ve seen people use plastic too to cover their cameras.

After the Walk…

Remember to Upload – All walkers must upload their photos to our group’s Flickr Page by Midnight on Tuesday, August 26 if you want to be considered for both the city and grand prizes. Please Note: They’ve placed a Flickr link on our City page to better help you with this.

… and lastly, BE SAFE! – I really cannot stress to you how important it is to impart a message of safety to all you walkers. Photo walks are meant to celebrate the spirit of photography in a fun and social setting. Nothing would dampen this notion faster than the knowledge that a fellow Photographer got more than he/she bargained for in the process. Let’s keep it fun and safe folks so we can do this again sometime.

Here is an excellent post by Jeff Revell on just about everything you need to know when it comes to photo-walking HERE.

WHAT TO BRING:
Your camera. That’s the most important thing. Don’t forget it. Don’t have an SLR? That’s okay! Just bring whatever camera you have. Make sure your batteries are charged and you have enough memory.
Lenses – Bring 1 or 2 lenses… generally a wide and a zoom lens would be good so that you can cover a lot of things. It really depends on how you usually shoot, but as much as possible, I’d advise you to travel light.
Tripod – I leave this up to you. There might be some nice scenes around sunset so it’s good to have this. Don’t forget to bring your cable release if you will bring your tripod. Just make sure your tripod is light enough so you won’t be carrying something heavy.
Water – While I would recommend to bring a bottle of water during the walk, Georgetown has a lot of food stalls and restaurants, so you can easily buy a bottle of water there.

Ok, that should just about cover everything. Please email us if you have any questions.

But remember: Above all, HAVE FUN!

See you Saturday at 5pm in front of the Kapitian Keling Mosque!

By the way, if anyone knows how to embed a slimbox gallery like the one I used here, into a blog please email me and let me know how to do it. But until then, if you want to view the photos from yesterday click the image above and travel to the gallery.

Here are four images from the Lonely Planet photo gallery of Penang. When I see images like these I get excite about the move and the photo ops. Check them out HERE.

My daughter did her tap dance recital last week. One of the dances was “Singing In The Rain”. You gotta love the colors.