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Does anyone know a cheap studio space in Sydney (no need for equipment) for hire (or borrow for free ) via any of their contacts?

We are planning a studio workshop prior to the 2nd of Feb during a weekend.

Thanks!

does this involve me if so

i mentioned ill be overseas the start of feb got to shoot before that

like january 28th 29th etc

Thanks Wendell. Yes, you are involved... Thanks!

Lets make this Jan 30th.

surenj wrote:Lets make this Jan 30th.

done. Can someone calendar-ize it

You could also do halfway studio
And halfway location there's quite a lot to learn regarding outdoor balanced flash technique

Or if everyone put some money in you can rent a studio in the city for $250 bucks

For $400 you can get the full studio experience at sun studios
Where they let you borrow lights from broncolor to profoto

I think it's really good value every other phot out there charges forntheir time and efforts
I'm doing it for free jand my knowledge is cumulated from the best in the industry

That's a bargain

I would suggest that somewhere like Sun, where they have some good quality setups at hand, would be better value than a two-bob space elsewhere... a little more money yes, but split by a few attendees it becomes reasonable.
Keep in mind some of the other costs... models... model food (mostly junk) and an MUA... oh and some props come in very useful to add some interest to the shots and keep the models entertained

I have another idea that I need to check out, but not likely to be available in January.
I have access to a large hall space that might work well but I need to negotiate a (near) zero fee so I could use it more regularly.

MIchael.

I love the idea of the Sun Studio shoot!
If it's at Sun Studios I do think that for the best result we (sadly) need to limit numbers of attendees to this (I don't mean to be a stick in the mud but...).

I will watch this thread with interest.

Totally Jealous of anyone who gets to attend! Wish I were able to make it, I've got a wedding on the 29th and then off on family holz the next day. Would love to learn from Wendelt, I think I too might watch this thread!

I am in favour of the sunstudio thang. How about restricting to 9 attendees? [it will be 10 including Wendell] Would that be too much?

Wendell, what is the total cost that you would anticipate? [Including models, food and any extra expenses]

Should we hold this in the morning? Say for 4 hours or so?

surenj wrote:I am in favour of the sunstudio thang. How about restricting to 9 attendees? [it will be 10 including Wendell] Would that be too much?

I am keen on sun studios also, especially since its just down the road

In terms of numbers - having done this once before, I reckon you really want no more than 3-4 people per model, otherwise its overwhelming and each member does not get the full benfit of the experience. Workign on a rotation may also work

Mj wrote:I have access to a large hall space that might work well but I need to negotiate a (near) zero fee so I could use it more regularly.

Interesting - why can we not just hire a council community hall, these are not that expensive and are often very spacious.

biggerry wrote:Interesting - why can we not just hire a council community hall, these are not that expensive and are often very spacious.

Good point and worth checking around... the hall I have in mind is very local to me, and already (in theory) funded by me. But... at this stage there is a trend toward a stupidly expensive hire cost on top, which is a point of current contention.

Mj wrote:

biggerry wrote:Interesting - why can we not just hire a council community hall, these are not that expensive and are often very spacious.

Good point and worth checking around... the hall I have in mind is very local to me, and already (in theory) funded by me. But... at this stage there is a trend toward a stupidly expensive hire cost on top, which is a point of current contention.

What I've also found is that they also want to have security personnel present. At your cost.

And they want to let the space go to a local organisation. DSLRUsers is not an organisation.

gstark wrote:What I've also found is that they also want to have security personnel present. At your cost.

And they want to let the space go to a local organisation. DSLRUsers is not an organisation.

The issue I see with halls is insurance, I don't think security personnel is a requirement at all halls....

http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/Community/CommunityVenues/Default.asp

Hi guys

What I was actually thinking was a workshop moreso than a group shoot
As with working with people and new studio setups is counter productive for a group

As everyone would like to do what they want to do and everyone is at different levels

My original proposal was I was going to make up a demonstration on studio setups and then use my model to show application of technique

This wil take half day depending on how much people want to know or want to know

Most studio setups are expensive process. So sun studios offers the only feasible option as they have everything there
There is also a limit on how much gear we can borrow within the 400 dollar studio rental which is a test rate non commercial purpose rate only available on the weekends sat and Sunday. The studio rate during weekdays is around $1000 just for the space.

This is what we can get for the price
1x profoto battery pack I'll be teaching the d4
Or people can choose between broncolor scorpia
But I think profoto is the easiest system and if you understand the basics you can be comfortable with virtually any system
2 x lights, snoot, grid, barn door
Gels
Octobox soft box
Sometimes I can get more but it depends on how busy it. Is at sun if there's no one there which is likely during the holiday season they are pretty cool to lend more gear out

There is also the option if people wanted to hire extra stuff during the day they can just cover their own costs
For example using a 5 foot reflector or a zoom spot strobe

To make this easier for me it would be good to know what people want to learn
I can only assume people want to know how to handle the model and communicate a concept to her for her to translate for the camera, the rep our between subject and photographer. In addition some basic lighting setups.
I'll be relying on your thoughts on what you want to learn in order for me to formulate a class.

From that I can see what is feasible

The 2nd part of the day is to apply your knowledge with the chance to shoot my model

If it's 9 people we can split 4 to 5 hours per person
The rest of you can help with setup for each persons turn but each person would get a chance to shoot
Or you can shot in pairs but usually only one person should direct
The d4 battery pack has 2 flash sync ports and or pocket wizard receiver so two can shoot at the same time
But this is sort of counter productive because if one person wants a posed shot the other may shoot a frame a sec before and ruin the flash burst for the posed shot so I think its best to do 1 on 1 and take turns

Of course this changes depending if I'm able to get more gear like and extra battery pack and model

As it stands

We have 1 great

We have 2 independent setups
The sun studios gear
And my gear
I have 2 battery packs
1supports full studiomsetup with 2 strip boxes and beauty dish
The 2nd is attached to a profoto ring flash

If we have 3 girls there could be 3 separate shoots going on that's 3 people at any one time

The studio is big enough to have 3 setups going on

We have from 8:30am to 5:30pm for the rental
But we need to pack up and clean up in half an hour after the shoot

I wouldn't recommend a hall because we don't have acces to more equipment than what I have
Also the sun studios test ratebis highly discounted so if we do rent our gear from sun and bring it to the hall it will morenthan the studio and gear deal at sun

The breakdown for9 people is $66 each
That's $600, 200 for model and other collateral stuff

I can prob get another 2 girls for free but model talent is important so at the moment I just recommend using my girl
It will be more productive

Your thoughts



If we had 3 models

Wendell

I would like to participate if that is OK with you
It seems that Jan 30, Sunday looks like the suggestion at the moment.

Philip

wendellt wrote:he 400 dollar studio rental which is a test rate non commercial purpose rate only available on the weekends sat and Sunday.

Given various options, this could well be the best, unless someone has access to a free or cheaper option speak now - this non commercial option is perfect since we are anything but commercial

wendellt wrote:To make this easier for me it would be good to know what people want to learn
I can only assume people want to know how to handle the model and communicate a concept to her for her to translate for the camera, the rep our between subject and photographer. In addition some basic lighting setups.
I'll be relying on your thoughts on what you want to learn in order for me to formulate a class.

Having a few key outcomes from the day would be important, concentrating on a few aspects rather than trying to cover all aspects would be smart.

For me, key areas are, no particular order;

- Lighting, basic setup stuff, just enough to get by in the studio enviroment, most people will probably have some expereience with off camera flash (thats where my knowledge ends with flash) so a short crash course on how to use the light would be good.
- Model interaction, now this one is tricky, this is somethign that cannot be learnt within a day but is something that comes down to experience, so looking at things like pose techniques and how to achieve them would be good use of time. Facial expression and face position and how to direct someone, this leads to the next point;
- model composition, various techniques to achieve different looks from tight face crops to full body shots.

In terms of the model (s) I would like to see a male model included, there is so much emphasis on glamour girls it would be great to work with a guy - this I reckon would also encourage more female members along.

I also reckon having pre-conceived ideas before the day and trying to exceute on the day would be good exercise.

Anyway, I am interested to hear others thoughts on various aspects that need to be cover.

Maybe starting a new thread dedicated to this event might be worthwhile since it is starting to gather some momentum and interest.

just to make this even simpler ill list what i think people can have a look at
my aim isnt to make everyone proper studio photographers
it's to show people some of my process with working with a model, i feel even if you don't take in everything it's a vital experience to see how the process works and from there you have a reference point to start your own development

added benifits is that ive innovated a few processes over the years to make the studio experience even simnpler and elegant

people can get hindered by just concentrating on generic processes in books and other workshops but in the real world the studio process is always amalmagated and refined every time you shoot. So i'm offering some wisdom here.

outline as follows:
Basic Studio setup with 1 key light for portrait and full length
Light Modifiers
- Softbox
- Beauty Dish
- Scrim softbox
- Light constraining with light modifiers: snoot, Grid, Barndoors
- Light Distance to subject angles and light falloff
- Position and angle of lights to create certain flattering shadows on the face
- Controlling the light for certain effects using high flash burst opposed to low powered burst

2 Light setup
- Use of a 2nd light
- Using modifiers to create hair light, rim lighting, backlight flare
- Using 2nd key light to create chisel effect
- Background effect
- Balanced lighting
- Using lighting ratios to create uneven light for mood)
- Using the scrim for subtle fill flash

Constraining Light
- Stripbox softbox
- Light modifiers and techniques

Using the ringflash which is pretty basic
this section also simplifies the whole studio process, there are some complex studio setups to re-create omnidirectional light wrap but the ring flash simplifies this

Getting the best out of your model
This section will be in 2 parts 1st part is working with everyday people and the 2nd is with talent
- Initial interaction with subject
- Getting to know the subject talking to them
- Making the connection
- communicating your ideas to the model
- Direction
- Rollplaying
- Understanding when direction is needed
- Empowering your subject to get the best out of them
- Finding the quintessential aspect of their personality and using it
- Balance between direction from the photographer and models own ability to freestyle
- The incidental moment
- Development during the shoot, photographer and model feedback
and how to use this to make the a good picture better
- How to pick talent things to look for.

ok... my further 2c worth...

In essence what Wendell is suggesting sounds about right... the last productive thing is turning something like this into a shooting gallery... no one learns nuffin.

Having at least one (preferably all) models who actually know what they are doing is important as having L-plates on both sides of the lens is pretty much a train wreck. In fact I think it would be a good idea if one or two themes were decided and both photographer and model can then strive to deliver on a tangible result both knowing what the target is. That also saves time stuffing around trying to decide what to do and agreeing this with the model/s.

At $66 it's really a good deal if it's kept simple and controlled.

Even if another venue can be found for future events, I think the Sun Studio proposition should still go ahead, as it gives people a good idea of what a proper studio situation is like.

As for gear... I could certainly provide some lighting, beauty dishes, softboxes, reflectors and the like if needed (and I'm there of course).

Oh... one final thing is to sort out how the lighting is going to be triggered... I've done groups sessions before and had simple issues like this. With my own setup I use radio triggers but that's not an option in a shared setup... I've found optical triggering to be unreliable but had good outcomes with IR triggers... of course there's also the cable option.

Michael.

Wendell,

I'm not sure if this is feasible or not - but is it possible to also cover aspects which might translate to using techniques outside the studio and/or without studio equipment (e.g. off camera flash with modifiers - e.g. umbrella, soft box, scrims, reflectors, etc).

I'd be interested in how we might be able to apply the things we learn with equipment we might already have or be able to obtain within a reasonably limited budget

wendellt wrote:just to make this even simpler ill list what i think people can have a look at
my aim isnt to make everyone proper studio photographers

Wendell, I reckon that list you got there is pretty neat and covers alot, if we got thru all that I would be stoked

wendellt wrote:added benifits is that ive innovated a few processes over the years to make the studio experience even simnpler and elegant

nice, tweaky tricks are always good.

Mj wrote:At $66 it's really a good deal if it's kept simple and controlled.

Mj wrote:Oh... one final thing is to sort out how the lighting is going to be triggered

yep, it may even be worthwhile to hookup before hand and make sure all the shit works before turning up and wasting the studio time/model time

Thanks Wendell for your extensive input! I would be pretty happy with the two segment type of approach and the proposed cost.

My understanding is that the profoto equipment is pocket wizard compatible. You only need one PW transiever? The pack will do the syncing with the other light(s). So I thought.
I assume the PW transiever connects to the hotshoe of the camera?

Will we shoot tethered?

We also need to decide on how to pay etc. I vote for a pay beforehand type of scenario as if there are non-attendees, the others will have to foot the bill.

I would also like to participate. It would be great to watch and learn from what Wendell has to offer.
I also agree that a venue that is already basicly set up for this sort of thing with all the gear there is a much more effective choice. It is generally also more cost effective.
The format Wendell has suggested sounds good to me as well. We should see and learn quite a bit.

Could I confim the attendees?

1. Wendell
2. Gerry
3. Michael (Mj)
4. Geoff
5. Rodneym (Remoraz)
6. Suren
7. Colin
8. Philip (Sevencolors)

2 more seats left. Anyone want to confirm?

I would love to be in on this, please add me to the list.

Steve.

surenj wrote:Could I confim the attendees?

Consider me confirmed Suren.

Just a quick further note... we should organise some of us to be there before the shoot as per Gerry's note to ensure all the gear is good to go and particularly sort out lighting activation.

I have some reservation on the numbers here but it does make the cost attractive. Last time I did something like this we had 6 photags, 4 models (2 experienced and 2 newbies) and one mau in two studios and it was difficult to coordinate. I stress that if we have some specific target themes we can focus on, I think it will help everyone involved.

cheers,

Michael.

sun studios opens at 8:30am on the weekend the model and makeup artist can get started during that time
we can have 1 hour to test equipment but usually all this pro stuff works as it should

and i think its instrumental for people to see the actual settign up of equipment not just arriving there with a full setup

so for testign we only need 10 mins

and we start with setup with the whole group

we have till 5:30pm so someone work out the times

as for strobist concerns what im teaching is concepts and ideas and some implimentation
even through some strobist techniques are different the overall concept of lighting will be covered and you can apply it to your strobist setups

only thing i can see that is marginally different between strobist and studio preoceddures is setting the light output
and getting exposure

the difference between the size of light modifiers is not an issue what is learned in the studio can be easily applied to smaller setups if you know the theory

and remember people this is a class, i will allow people to shoot after the class but its not a group shoot

i will be using the pocket wizard we will have at least 3 pro foto battery packs so at most we need 3 pocket wizards for all to share at any one time

also re people i think its fair to prioritise long standing members before new ones simply because i owe more to those who have been here during my development to someone who has just joined, i think this is more than fair for my efforts and time.

can I please attend? I'll fly up from Melbourne to learn from the amazing wendell!!

wendellt wrote:also re people i think its fair to prioritise long standing members before new ones simply because i owe more to those who have been here during my development to someone who has just joined, i think this is more than fair for my efforts and time.

Although I had made a preliminary list (as the OP) I think it is fair that the list is repopulated. Do any members have any ideas of the criteria that should be used to choose the attendees?

Perhaps we should make a new thread as this thread was primarily for choosing the location (Which is done) rather than the details and the attendees themselves.

I am confirming my attendance, looking forward to it. I'm needing to swap a shift but I should be able to manage it.

surenj wrote:Could I confim the attendees?

Suren/Wendell,

I'm still keen to attend but totally understand if other more longstanding members take precedence

wendellt wrote:also re people i think its fair to prioritise long standing members before new ones simply because i owe more to those who have been here during my development to someone who has just joined, i think this is more than fair for my efforts and time.

Wendell, I respect your thoughts in that you believe that you owe more to those who have been here during your development, isn't that line of thought just a little counter productive here?

My thought processes here are more along the lines of ... yes, you've been helped by many here, but as an individual photographer you possess the ability to see things differently than others, and that is where, I think, your greatest skill lies.

But let's leave your talent aside for a moment, and get back the consideration that others here have helped you .... when you were learning.

A couple of questions come to my mind here, within this context: of those who have helped you, how many of them are actually on the list to attend? Again, leaving your talent and vision aside, what will those individuals (and let's call them the first group of members) gain from this?

Let's now look at this from the other side: there is clearly a large number of members here who look up to and respect your skills and talent as a photographer. By way of contrast with the first group of members that I've just referred to, many of these may not have as much experience as those in the first group, and many of those probably haven't been around as long as others.

Again, I fully respect your point of view, but it seems to me that, rather than wanting to teach those in the first group, there's perhaps a responsibility (and I think you understand and respect this) to pass on the techniques that you've learned to the newer members, rather than the older ones.

I'm not entirely sure that I'm being clear here, but to put it another way, I think that you see that you have a responsibility to give back to this community because of what you have learned from it, and I applaud and support your view.

But where I think I differ is in how that "giving back" is to be applied; you perhaps seem to believe that you should give back to those who gave to you.

I think that I would rather see you "passing on a mantle", so to speak, and helping those who may have currently less skills.

And that is then repeating the process just as you were helped by others over the last few years.

Just my PP0.02.

Oh, one more thought ... I am totally against discriminating against any members in any way.

Looking at the list that Suren has prepared, we have a foundation member wishing to attend, and we have some very new members also wishing to attend.

And everything in between. That is precisely the sort of mix that I believe to be strongest, as it will generate a great deal of discussion and learning well beyond the obvious.

I see too that we have requests from people interstate; as long as the numbers attending are within a manageable realm, then I think that's how this should proceed.

hi gary i understand passing on the mantle is fine for me
the forum has changed

i also proposed to gerry over pm that there could be more attendees if they just wanted to watch

you can either split the costs more or do a deal like the 10 already in pay they get to shoot and the rest just come in to watch

wendellt wrote:the forum has changed

Actually, in terms of the passing on of skills, no, I'm not sure that it has, except perhaps in frequency. That has always been one of our primary goals, and strengths.

Can I be put on the waiting list, please? So much to learn, so little chance...

Cheers
Steffen.

wendellt wrote: and the rest just come in to watch

I'm not sure that that's a good idea. This could create issues relating to space as well as to control of those present.

KISS.

I'd have to agree with Gary on the numbers issue... the fewer attentees the better as it is easier to control and much more likely that Wendell can communicate affectively... not to mention for the ease and comfort of the model/s.
I'd suggest that a list of seriously interested attendees be drawn up (Suren seems to have this in play) then what usually happens is that some drop out due to other commitments. If there are too many interested in attending, and culling is required, then I'm sure we can deal with that on some logical basis (as long as it is not based on headhair count!) Having a mix of skills and knowledge can be both good and bad depending on the format, but given that Wendell is planning to largely drive and direct proceedings, the problems that this can cause should not be an issue.

Michael.

if accepted, im happy to take a passive role, just stand, pay, watch, listen, absorb. Or, put me to work as a cheap reflector / gobo holder

I look forward to your confirmation so I may book flights and accomodation, cheers, Bruce.

hi

at the moment i only have 1 model
and im comfortable with her

if anyone else wants to donate a model then im all for it

by the way space is not an issue sun studios is huge

usually on a shoot theres about 7 people about and its not a crowd

wendellt wrote:by the way space is not an issue sun studios is huge

It is. You are trying to communicate with maybe ten people. They want to hear what you're saying, and you don't want to be shouting.

The greater the number of people, the worse it will get, and the greater the potential for side-discussions and distractions.

What's your goal here? To manage the side discussions, to compete with them, or to convey your concepts and ideas?

usually on a shoot theres about 7 people about and its not a crowd

This is not your usual shoot.

Current list of attendees

1. Wendell
2. Gerry
3. Michael (Mj)
4. Geoff
5. Rodney (Remoraz)
6. Suren
7. Colin
8. Philip (Sevencolors)
9. Gadgit (Steve)
10. Ozbeachside


We will need to book the studio, collect money, confirm the attendees, get technical details (ie shooting tethered) sorted in the next week or so.
It would be a good idea to start a new thread (with pertinent info copied from this thread) so that it is easier to follow.

Great to see the forum rolling along like this. These workshops are invaluable and even though I'm not attending I know that it will be a great day for all concerned.

surenj wrote:It would be a good idea to start a new thread (with pertinent info copied from this thread) so that it is easier to follow.

Agreed, this thread has been good for rough sawing out the ideas but I think we need to start and lock down what this event is going to be, who is gonna do what and when... this imo should start in a fresh thread to make it easier to follow.

There are few key points to this excerise that need to be clarified since this is not the typical run of the mill group meet/shoot.

wendellt wrote:What I was actually thinking was a workshop moreso than a group shoot

The way that I see things moving is that this is more of a chance to get a tutorial session from Wendell using his model rather than a group shoot - this is not an opportunity to gain images for a portfolio but rather an opportunity to learn and absorb the skills and techniques then utilise this knowledge/experience to mature your own development in later sessions.

Oz_Beachside wrote: im happy to take a passive role, just stand, pay, watch, listen, absorb

agreed, that attitude sums it up for me.

Mj wrote:the last productive thing is turning something like this into a shooting gallery... no one learns nuffin.

I agree. This is not going to be like some of the glamour group shoots that you see around on other forums etc.

gstark wrote:I'm not entirely sure that I'm being clear here, but to put it another way, I think that you see that you have a responsibility to give back to this community because of what you have learned from it, and I applaud and support your view.

Pretty clear from my end - I also think you should be applauded in making the effort to contribute your knowledge back to teh community and moreso to contribute here at DSLRusers - there is alot of competitionout there to get experience from decent photographers and I for one am glad you have chosen to come back here!

I am pretty sure i do not have to re-iterate that this is a great opportunity to learn from someone who knows a shitload and works as a professional photographer, people would pay alot of money for a workshop from a lesser photographer, just have a browse thru current workshops in Aus to see what I mean. To get any kind of mentoring or tutorial where the photographer is keen to share their knowledge and skills rather than make a buck and share the cost of models/studio is rare. Additionally, many in the photography world are very protective and secretive of their skills and techniques so making the most of this is important

So onto the details I say.

Wendell is happy to book the studio for the 30th of Jan and organise the lighting and guarantee the one model - the least we can do is organise the rest for him, ie confirm numbers, get payment (I reckon at least 10 days before) etc. One aspect that needs to be considered is everyone will have to help cleanup up the end of the day, the studio can charge a cleaning fee.

One aspect that would be great would be to have a realtime display of the images as Wendell works - this may well not be possible, but it might worthwhile investigating, I do not have any real substantial knowledge on this so input from people who have shot with a tethered system (d3 nikon) is welcome. Wendell has already indicated that this might not be possible.

In terms of the day I reckon a ratio of 75% wendell teaching and if time and logistics permit 15% for some people to take photos. The content of the 75% has been pretty well covered by Wendells previous posts.

thoughts and comments before this gets knocked into another thread?

biggerry wrote:One aspect that would be great would be to have a realtime display of the images as Wendell works - this may well not be possible, but it might worthwhile investigating, I do not have any real substantial knowledge on this so input from people who have shot with a tethered system (d3 nikon) is welcome. Wendell has already indicated that this might not be possible.

I've shot tethered a couple of times with Lightroom (it's built in) and with my D90 - I'm assuming it will thus support a Nikon D3 (Lightroom appears to support Nikon and Canon DSLR's). I'm happy to bring my 17" MacBook Pro with Lightroom along with a long USB cable I use for tethered shooting. If theres a larger monitor available we could also plug into that - I have DVI and VGA output cables for my laptop?

NB: The USB cable plus the little extension thing at the end for plugging into the camera puts it at about 6M long and I think thats about the limit of what unpowered USB can do reliably - would that be long enough for you Wendell to move about with if you need to?

thanks jerry and suren for organising this and making further clarifications

essentially for shooting tethered i use capture one with the sun studios digital setup which costs extra to rent
as i don't own this stuff

Im not familiar with lightroom and the tethered feature
so someone will have to set that up for me

if someone has a large lcd we can hook that up to the macbook

the length of the cable is fine as i can shoot closer to the computer

just a reminder the 30th is a sunday
we need to shoot on a weekend to get the special rate

It would be better for us to acquire a projector to connect the laptop as it would be better to see it rather large if possible.

If no-one has access to a projector, we could hire one for the day? I assume we will project on to one of the walls of the studio.

I chose the 30th to specifically accomodate Cameron. We could move it to the 29th if the majority wish to do so.

Also I would suggest that no one make DEFINITE concrete plans etc until we lock down the exact timing of the event.

projector wont work suren
because we would have to dim the lights and i cant focus with dimmed lights even if you section the studio space its annoying working in the dark

wendellt wrote:essentially for shooting tethered i use capture one with the sun studios digital setup which costs extra to rent as i don't own this stuff

Im not familiar with lightroom and the tethered feature so someone will have to set that up for me

I'm sure it's probably very similar - with Lightroom it's super simple - you put Lightroom into Tether mode and then you just plug the USB cable into the camera and you're good to go - every time you click the shutter on the Camera the images don't get saved to card they go into Lightroom instead and come up on the screen (usually within a second or two).

I also checked Adobe's site and the D3 is supported http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/842/cpsid_84221.html

NB: You can trigger the shutter from the computer (e.g. if you have the camera on a tripod) but you can't adjust the camera settings (aperture/shutter/etc) from the computer.

Does anyone have one of those Eye-Fi cards?
That might make things a little easier.