In late 1994 I shot three photos with a Kodak DCS460 camera in the professional lighting department of a large professional camera store. This was my first exposure (pun intended) to digital photography. The following day I looked at the images on my monitor and was blown away by the quality of what I saw. Contrary to what was being written and said about the state of digital photography at the time, the quality appeared to be quite superior to film. In the month that followed, Eastman Kodak gave me the opportunity to further test the camera’s capabilities. These tests confirmed my first impression and gave me the confidence to nag one of my favorite clients into letting me shoot his next BTNA (Big Time National Ad) digitally. The ad consisted of ten portraits of various people who were photographed in a makeshift studio, set up in a Washington D.C. hotel room. This shoot went so well that I was compelled to convince all my ad agency clients to let me shoot digitally. Please understand, to the best of my knowledge I was the only Chicago-based agency photographer in 1994, and a people photographer at that, to shoot digitally.

At the time, digital photography was new and it took a while to learn how to deal with digital idiosyncrasies. However, the 460′s single capture, 35mm format made the transition fairly simple. It is after all, a camera format I’ve relied on for decades. Additionally, it didn’t hurt that I had been working in Photoshop for several years. I love everything about the image manipulation, retouching and imaging Photoshop allows me to do.

While I still own my 460′s and I continue to be amazed at the quality of their images, I currently shoot with Nikon’s D3S and D3 because they offer amazing high speed capture at ISOs that were previously impossible. This allows me to shoot with little or no supplementary lighting for the most natural look possible. These beauties have helped revolutionize digital workflow for photographers. The files are ultra-sharp and the 16 bit capture now yields as large as a 144-megabyte file. Yikes! One of the great things about these camera is the dual file capability. It will make a simultaneous jpeg (I can specify the size) and raw format hi res files so clients can have instant proofs. I haven’t made hard-copy proofs for many years since most art directors and designers would rather get lo res jpegs. Since almost everyone is now on the World Wide Web, it’s amazingly fast and easy to share images.

I utilize five workstations for dedicated tasks in the studio and shoot about 50% of my projects on location using state of the art Nikon digital slrs and Apple laptops. The cost of hardware has plummeted in recent years and I find myself buying the latest digital slr cameras, lenses, computers, CD/DVD burners, hard drives, and printers almost as soon as they’re announced. Since computers come with CD/DVD burners on board it’s easy to retouch, do imaging, burn a CD or DVD or make a print while at an exotic location (which I have been doing for more than ten years.)

The most dramatic improvement in the past ten years has been digital workflow. Most camera manufacturers utilize proprietary software for acquiring basic photo files from their cameras in various formats. With the dramatic increases in computer power and the acceptance of digital photography as a superior method of image capture, attention has finally been paid to increasing camera file sizes, color management, speed of capture, and alternative ways to acquire images and make quick proofs. There is a wonderful image browser in Photoshop that allows for amazing control of most camera raw formats and it allows photographers to automate making jpegs, proof sheets, high resolution tiffs and more. While there are other image editing programs available, and I use a few others, in my  opinion Photoshop is still the most powerful with the most control. In addition, I now upload files via the Internet within seconds of shooting using several delivery methods. Normally we have the client’s digital layout on the monitor as we view the images we’re shooting. I’ll often place new files in the layout as we shoot and this not only allows everyone to see how the final product will look, it helps tremendously for the people I photograph to better understand what we are trying to achieve. I have been shooting this way since 1994 but the speed and ease with which I can now work is astonishing.

The profitability my studio has achieved by transitioning to pure digital photography years ago was apparent from the start, and in these competitive times it has allowed me to remain flexible from a client’s budgetary standpoint. My images are enhanced with several proprietary Photoshop plug-ins. I am constantly on the lookout for new, useful tricks to enhance my images and my years as a beta tester and lecturer for hardware and software manufacturers as well as retail camera stores, schools and clubs continue to pay huge dividends. Networking to gain knowledge has been a wonderful by-product of my speaking and tutoring endeavors.

I have been shooting for large image use for years, including billboards and large in-store banners and posters. The files are more than impressive. I did quite a bit of lecturing during the first few years of the digital revolution and modestly feel that I have helped move photography in this direction. I cut back a bit on the lecturing when I realized I was giving away the unique edge my insights gave me, however, I missed the speaking enjoyment I receive from my speaking engagements and have recently begun to lecture again. I cut back a bit on the lecturing when I realized I was giving away the unique edge my insights gave me, however, I missed the interaction and enjoyment I received from the speaking engagements and have once again begun to lecture. The thrill I get from seeing images as I shoot has not diminished since the first time I used a Polaroid in the late 50′s. I have not used film since late 1994 and have shot exclusively with digital cameras since that time. My first commissioned photo assignment came in the same year the Corvette received its first fuel injection system. I still get the same rush of excitement from photography today as I did then… the rush that comes from seeing my images as I shoot. Today’s technology has truly allowed photographers to reach unique artistic heights I would never have believed possible, and all in less than two decades of development.