Sports Illustrated's digital workflow

[beej]

Stumbled on this in-depth article on Sports Illustrated's digital workflow. The amount of digital images processed is quite staggering.

http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=7-6453-6821

"In 2003, Sports Illustrated's photo department processed 1,028,000 digital photographs shot by staffers or freelancers under assignment. "

This is the gear setup of ONE of the staff photographers for one basketball game"



Enjoy
- beej

[Glen]

Beej, very interesting. See the photo above, that is about half of what Birddog keeps at home ready for any shoot

[rokkstar]

Really interesting article.
Incredible the amount of work that goes into getting a shot from camera to cover.

Matt

[robw25]

Thanks for posting ! was interesting

cheers rob

[Thommo]

thats a really interesting read...

[petal666]

Mmmmm, lots of Canon gear......

[Onyx]

Amazing huh? They employ full time runners to fetch CF cards on location.

What a tremendous impact it would be for their next generation to incorporate wireless data transfer, as the high end Canons have caught on this generation.

"Eleven guys. Eleven versions out of focus." Still, inspite of all the technology, the person behind the viewfinder counts more than ever.

[birddog114]

Amazing huh? They employ full time runners to fetch CF cards on location.

What a tremendous impact it would be for their next generation to incorporate wireless data transfer, as the high end Canons have caught on this generation.

"Eleven guys. Eleven versions out of focus." Still, inspite of all the technology, the person behind the viewfinder counts more than ever.

Actually in many events which I participated in the past, the photogs are just doing the major jobs on the scene, and even they did not know what they have (good or bad) in the CF cards, they have two cards next to them for swapping and one in the camera, once the card in the camera is fulled, he just replaced the blank one and keep shooting, download, checking or playing with the photos are the parts of a group of people behind the scene, like the grunt in the front line shooting enemy and they have some other guys (assistance) to ferry the ammo back and forth.
Lot of fun, once you're in the field with those guys and they never talk or challenging what brand the others have.

[MHD]

Yes... once the wireless kicks in the guys out in the van can just be sitting there reviewing as they come in...

You would want it to be secure though! Lots of fun could be had with pirates out there grabbing pre-press photos!!

[sirhc55]

Yes... once the wireless kicks in the guys out in the van can just be sitting there reviewing as they come in...

You would want it to be secure though! Lots of fun could be had with pirates out there grabbing pre-press photos!!

Congrats on passing 1500 MHD - and it was a very interesting article

[ajo43]

Fantastic read.

Really interesting workflow. They shoot NEF + JPEG, browse the JPEG but edit the NEF. I wonder if when ACDsee allows NEF browsing if they will just dump the JPEG part all together.

Nice juicy computers they have to edit those NEF files as well.

Thanks for the post

[pippin88]

Fantastic read.

Really interesting workflow. They shoot NEF + JPEG, browse the JPEG but edit the NEF. I wonder if when ACDsee allows NEF browsing if they will just dump the JPEG part all together.

Nice juicy computers they have to edit those NEF files as well.

Thanks for the post

I'd think NEF is still too slow to browse really?

Interesting article.

[MHD]

Yes... once the wireless kicks in the guys out in the van can just be sitting there reviewing as they come in...

You would want it to be secure though! Lots of fun could be had with pirates out there grabbing pre-press photos!!

Congrats on passing 1500 MHD - and it was a very interesting article

Oh Bugger.... I wasnt watching... perhaps I should get a life... or a wireless enabled D2X

(wakes up)

[birddog114]

Yes... once the wireless kicks in the guys out in the van can just be sitting there reviewing as they come in...

You would want it to be secure though! Lots of fun could be had with pirates out there grabbing pre-press photos!!

I'm waiting the arrival of D2x and will try the wifi back to base, say at the meet in Bondi, shooting the D2x with WiFi armed, transfer to the notebook in the car in distance and PP then upload to Pixspot via Unwired or 3G connection to the net.

I've tried on the D2h with b version, it wasn't fast enought and drama with setting up.

[MHD]

How does it work?
Do you run a client application on a PC (Damn you Bill)

Or can you have the camera FTP images to a FTP server in the wireless network (much cooler and useable)

Whats the eta on the D2X Birddog? Cant wait to see your evaluation of this, Nikon's new flagship.

[birddog114]

How does it work?
Do you run a client application on a PC (Damn you Bill)

Or can you have the camera FTP images to a FTP server in the wireless network (much cooler and useable)

Whats the eta on the D2X Birddog? Cant wait to see your evaluation of this, Nikon's new flagship.

MHD,
With D2h
Try the first one with fully successful but slow.
The second ones in my choice.
On the D2x will try all once again, ETA is end of Feb or 1st day of March.

[gstark]

How does it work?
Do you run a client application on a PC (Damn you Bill)

Or can you have the camera FTP images to a FTP server in the wireless network (much cooler and useable)

Whats the eta on the D2X Birddog? Cant wait to see your evaluation of this, Nikon's new flagship.

On the D2H the camera runs an FTP app that uploads the images to a "server". That server may simply be an FTP server app sitting on your laptop.

It would be a no brainer to have the car parked somewhere with a wireless link to the internet, connected to, say, an upstream host, and another application running on the lappie acting as a bridge between the camera and the upstream host.

Or else, for, say, the Bondi scenario, a colleague sitting in a coffee shop by the beach, sipping gracefully on a cap (or a marguerita, depending upon the time of day) looking after the backend processing.

[gstark]

On the D2x will try all once again, ETA is end of Feb or 1st day of March.

Just in time for me to come and borrow the D2X and 200-400 for the F1GP.

[birddog114]

On the D2x will try all once again, ETA is end of Feb or 1st day of March.

Just in time for me to come and borrow the D2X and 200-400 for the F1GP.

Why not?

[MHD]

+ laptop with wireless broadband= Good coverage of the race for the rest of us

what an amazing time we live in!

[gstark]

On the D2x will try all once again, ETA is end of Feb or 1st day of March.

Just in time for me to come and borrow the D2X and 200-400 for the F1GP.

Why not?

I'm actually tempted, but I don't know that I want the responsibility in case something goes wrong.

[gstark]

+ laptop with wireless broadband= Good coverage of the race for the rest of us

what an amazing time we live in!

Indeed.

For the wireless in Melbourne I'd need iBurst, but they're hideously expensive for a so-so service. I'm not sure that Unwired is any better, but they at least have reasonable rates, but they're not yet (to my knowledge) operational in MEL.

I wonder how you'd go through security on raceday, bringing in a laptop, D2x, 2 D70s, a couple of monopods, and 1 x each of , 80-400, 24-120, 70-300 and a kit lens?

Oh yes, and the team of porters to carry it all in for you.

[Nnnnsic]

I don't think I want to be given the responsibility of either carrying both of those two beasts for Dad.

[Nnnnsic]

I wonder how you'd go through security on raceday, bringing in a laptop, D2x, 2 D70s, a couple of monopods, and 1 x each of , 80-400, 24-120, 70-300 and a kit lens?

We should ask Maxwell for some press passes.

[gstark]

I don't think I want to be given the responsibility of either carrying both of those two beasts for Dad.

You can get to carry me.

[gstark]

I wonder how you'd go through security on raceday, bringing in a laptop, D2x, 2 D70s, a couple of monopods, and 1 x each of , 80-400, 24-120, 70-300 and a kit lens?

We should ask Maxwell for some press passes.

I should ask Pap for some press passes. Unfortunately, he has nothing to do with that side of things.

[Nnnnsic]

I don't think I want to be given the responsibility of either carrying both of those two beasts for Dad.

You can get to carry me.

I was going to write before that that I didn't want the responsibility or reviving you from the weight of it all, but carrying is far worse.

[MHD]

Hmmm... I wonder if some one will make a wireless bridge or router to go from ethernet G/B -> wireless broadband then all you need to do is run an ftp server at home and shoot away with your d2x and all those little jpegs and nefs just float home

mmm satelite broadband...

(wakes up again)

[Link]

Thanks for the posting, it was a very interesting article.

This superbowl is almost history now and I believe the next big step was to go completely wireless during the Athens Olympics. That probably means no more guys rushing back and forth with the memory cards. It's a pity I didn't archive the article because it also mentionned problems to overcome in term of 'frequency use' because of too many photogs filing at the same time!

I'm very glad the D70 allows to shoot RAW & JPEG at the same time; I have an old (2001) notebook and I don't want to waste time opening every single NEF files in PP to find out if they're grossly out of focus, under/overexposed, etc. Browsing through the JPEGs is super fast and allows to quickly edit out the bad shots.

Link.

[Onyx]

I'm very glad the D70 allows to shoot RAW & JPEG at the same time; I have an old (2001) notebook and I don't want to waste time opening every single NEF files in PP to find out if they're grossly out of focus, under/overexposed, etc. Browsing through the JPEGs is super fast and allows to quickly edit out the bad shots.

Link.

Link, Nikon View is probably the fastest NEF browser available - give it a try if you haven't already.

[Miliux]

Very interesting read. Edit like robots!