"But there are thousands of TIFFs on that server!" - (Deleted)

Did you feel that? I just deleted 119,570 TIFF files off of one of our archive servers.

5.1 TB just vanished.



(Don't worry -they have been moved offline onto tape)

Free NYBG Wallpaper/iPhone - Miconia robustissima

Today's free wallpaper from the New York Botanical Garden's Virtual Herbarium is Miconia robustissima from Brazil.

1280x1024

1600x1200

iPhone

Widescreen

MK Direct Photo e-Box 1419 v. Copystand Photography

I am setting up the MK Direct Photo e-Box 1419 in the Herbarium today.

So far in testing, we have been shooting at the same rate (about 60-80 images an hour) using the Photo e-Box as we have with our more conventional copystand.

Copystand

Photo e-Box

Both images were shot with the Canon Eos 1ds Mark III with a 50mm Macro lens. The copystand image was shot at 1/80 of a second at f20, the e-Box image was taken at 1/50 at f11.

The difference is staggering. The e-Box shows much more detail. While some of that may be attributed to shooting with a wider aperture, the real difference is the quality of the light. The soft, surrounding light from the e-Box reveals much more detail, shape and texture - all of which are important to the scientists who use these images.

Boehmeria ramiflora as shot using the e-Box

New York City Bike Lanes

I have joined the ranks of bicycle commuters. As a former bicycle messenger and pizza delivery guy, you may wonder why it took me so long to become a bicycle commuter. I didn't have a bike. Now I have one.



I have to say, biking in New York is a LOT better than it used to be. As much heat as she takes, Janette Sadik-Khan, New York City's Transportation Commissioner and Mayor Bloomberg have taken a bold step in creating as many bike lanes as they have. I can ride all the way from the upper east side in Manhattan all the way to the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx in a protected bike lane.

Check out all the bike lanes in New York City here.

Free New York Botanical Garden Desktop Art - Wallpaper - iPhone Screen

It's that time again. More free wallpaper from the collection of the New York Botanical Garden's Virtual Herbarium. I think it's time for something green.

Today's wallpaper is Bursera linanoe.

1280x1024

1600x1200

iPhone

Widescreen

Photography by... me.

MK Direct Photo e-Box 1419 - NYBG Mod - Preview

I just received a new MK Direct Photo e-Box 1419 with a modified opening on top.

Jaime, Felix and Ruben at MK Direct have been exceptionally helpful with this project. I thought I was going to have to make modifications to the box myself, but when I explained what I needed, they generously offered to do it for me.

The results are fantastic. This is the first shot I took with the new box using the Canon Eos 1ds Mark III with a 50mm Macro lens:

Eysenhardtia officinalis

DNG Archive

Today I am taking the first step towards tidying up the New York Botanical Garden Herbarium image archive.

I have made the leap. I will no longer be producing TIFF Production Master files. I will only be archiving DNG Archive Master files.

Now the real work begins, sorting through all the TIFF files and moving them offline.

F-Stop - Sharpness

While it is common to shoot copy work using a small aperture in order to achieve maximum depth of field, I recently ran some tests shooting at f20 and and f8 and here is what I found.

f 20 on the left, f 8 on the right

These images have not been sharpened in Photoshop. They were both shot with the Canon Eos 1ds Mark III using the EF50mm/f2.5Macro lens. It is clear that the f8 image is significantly more clear than the f20. Not surprising news, I know, but it's fun to shoot tests to confirm.

Here are larger images for your enjoyment.

f8

f20