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Shooting fashion photos with an iPhone
So you're looking for a new career as a fashion photographer. To kickstart your job, look no further than today's iMore post by Rene Ritchie where he asked Mobile Nations' David Lundblad to take high-fashion photos of model Amanda Del Duca in Manhattan's Bryant Park with an iPhone. Videographer Martin Reisch captured video of the modeling session, and the result is a one-of-a-kind blog post that provides some tips on how to use an iPhone to take amazing fashion images. As Ritchie notes, "nothing beats a DSLR for final photos, but increasingly the iPhone is the new Polaroid for everything else on set." Lundblad uses Camera+ (currently on sale for US$0.99) instead of the standard Camera app to take advantage of the extra control over exposure and focus that it provides. Ritchie is inviting aspiring fashion photographers to share their work in a forum thread he's started. In the meantime, check out the post for the tips from Ritchie and photographer Lundblad, then start getting your models lined up. We've embedded the iMore video of the shoot below.
Using your iPad mini as a phone
iMore's Rene Ritchie has written an interesting post about a trend I've heard mentioned a few times before: using your iPad mini as an actual phone. During his trip to Macworld/iWorld 2013, Ritchie wanted to save battery charge on his iPhone, so when he needed to check his itinerary or make a quick phone call, he pulled out the iPad mini and used Skype or browsed around the internet. And at the end of what Ritchie says was a 19-hour trip, his iPad mini was still chugging right along, with more than 30 percent battery left. As I said, I've heard a few people talk about doing this before. The iPad mini is a powerful device, and while it is larger than a standard iPhone, the size allows you to carry it around in just one hand and use it like its smaller iOS predecessor. The larger screen provides a nice wide-open feel, however, which can be very nice for games, and can make even productivity apps feel cleaner. As Ritchie says, combine the iPad mini with a headset and make a call on Skype, and you've just got a larger-than-usual iPhone. So far, we've seen plenty of rumors about a bigger iPhone model, but no actual news from Apple just yet. Still, experiences like this, along with the fact that other smartphone companies have seen success with larger phone models, point to the possibility that there's a sizable demand for a larger iPhone out there.
The case for ditching the Dock connector
Apple's 30-pin Dock connector has spawned generations of cables, docks, and accessories that all use the wide dongle we've all become familiar with. But is it something that has outlived its usefulness and is ready for replacement? That's the question iMore's Rene Ritchie discussed in a post yesterday, and his opinion is that Apple may move to an updated "micro dock" this year. Why? Ritchie notes that design changes like this are not unprecedented in the world of Apple, citing the move from mini SIM cards to micro SIM for the original iPad and removing the antenna from the inside of the iPhone for the iPhone 4 and 4S. The changes provided the extra space under the hood required for a larger battery, a power-hungry Retina display and backlight, 802.11n Wi-Fi and more. Ritchie points out that the current dock connector takes up a relatively large amount of space that could be better used for a 4G LTE radio. While the change might not occur in the next generation of iPad expected to be announced in the next few weeks, it could be a requirement for the iPhone 5. Ritchie doesn't think Apple would go to Thunderbolt, since iOS doesn't use the PCI Express architecture, nor does a micro-USB connector make much sense as it doesn't add a lot of speed to the connection. There's less of a need now for a connector that does more than just charge the device. With Wi-Fi sync and installation of apps and AirPlay connections to speakers and TVs, the need for a wired connection has waned. Last year's move to iOS 5 brought about the "PC-free" era, no longer requiring a PC or Mac to complete the initial setup of an iOS device. Apple would, Ritchie comments, upset a lot of customers and accessory manufacturers with a change to a new connector. But the company has always been willing to take a chance, pulling floppy disk drives, optical drives, and FireWire ports from new Macs as the need for those components disappeared. What will take the place of the 30-pin Dock connector? Your guess is as good as mine (or Rene's). This year seems like a likely time for the change to come, and we'll all get a chance to embrace change for better or worse.
TUAW TV Live: The TUAW / TiPB Joint International Commission on Apple Matters
I was trying to figure out a clever way to describe today's TUAW TV Live episode with TiPB managing editor Rene Ritchie. I failed miserably... Well, it is a joint effort of TUAW and TiPB, Rene's in Canada and I'm in the U.S., and we'll be talking about Apple, so I guess the long title to this post could make a little sense. All that silliness aside, today's show should be a lot of fun. Rene's the voice behind the TiPB iPad Live and iPhone Live podcasts and a fellow Apple blogger, which gives us a bunch to talk about. Below, you'll find a Ustream livestream viewer and a chat tool. The chat tool allows you to participate by asking questions or making comments. If you're driving somewhere and would like to watch TUAW TV Live while you're stuck in traffic, please don't -- keep your eyes on the road! However, if someone else is doing the driving, you can watch the show on your iPhone and join the chat by downloading the free Ustream App. It's a universal app and is useful on an iPad, both for viewing and participating in the chat. We'll start at about 5 PM ET, so if you're seeing a prerecorded show, be sure to refresh your browser until you see the live stream. For those of you who are not able to join us for the live edition, you'll be able to view it later this evening on our TUAW Video YouTube channel and as part of the TUAW TV Live podcast viewable in iTunes or on any of your Apple devices.
TUAW TV Live at 5 PM EDT: Special guest Rene Ritchie of TiPB
One of the nicest guys you'll ever meet in the Apple blogosphere is Rene Ritchie, managing editor of The iPhone Blog (AKA TiPB.com). As you'll recall, during last week's show TUAW TV Live chat room regular Uri Kelman suggested having Rene on the show. After one quick email, Rene accepted the invitation and today we'll be talking about everything under the Apple sun on TUAW TV Live. As usual, I'll be starting the show at 5 PM EDT (2 PM PDT / 10 PM BST) sharp, and we'll take a few minutes to chat before the demos start. To join in on the chat and watch the live streaming video, drop by TUAW about five minutes before the start time to get your instructions on how to participate. If you're unable to join us for the show, remember that you can always subscribe to the video podcast and watch the show at your leisure in iTunes or any other favorite podcatching app. The past shows are also available on the TUAW YouTube channel.
