Technology has Caught Up With the Polaroid

By Kim Appis As an Art Director who has been in the field for over 20 years, I have evolved with the constantly changing technology.  Like many Creatives, I have a love/hate relationship with technology.  I love the speed and ease that computers and software provide, but hate being tied to a monitor and keyboard for what was once a hands on creation process. One of the joys that still exist from the old days is being on the set of a photo shoot and the creative collaboration process with photographers.  In recent  years, digital photography has become the standard and the days of polaroid proofs have disappeared.  This made me crazy! Proofing with Polaroid’s allowed me to work in partnership with the photographer and discuss the lighting, composition and details of the shot.  Trying to view the subtleties of an image on the back of a digital camera’s small LED was impossible – it was like working blind. The good news is technology has finally caught up with the Polaroid.  Hmm, that sounds a little weird but it is true. Thank the Art Director Angel for tethered photography!  Tethered photography is the process of transferring images, as they are taken, directly to a computer to be viewed on a large screen.  The first time I worked with a photographer who tethered, I realized this was the solution to my current photo shoot frustrations.  I could see every detail, zoom in, crop, etc. right on the display. Technology finally caught up with the Polaroid and surpassed it by miles. (There is that love/hate thing again.) A unique example of the importance of tethered photography was a photo shoot from a couple of weeks ago which required the photographer to be elevated on the top a car.  His ability to tether the images down to the computer enabled me to see every shot and collaborate from the ground.  His laptop was situated on a tripod and placed inside a black computer sunshade so I could see the computer screen in perfect detail even though the sun was shining bright. Tethered photography is so critical for me to accomplish my goals, I now work exclusively with photographers who tether.  It is an absolute must to get the best results possible for my clients. Kim Appis is Principal Creative for Brand Box Inc. Brand Box Inc. is a unique group of talented professionals with decades of combined design, advertising, marketing and web development experience. Working together virtually and conventionally we efficiently fulfill the design, marketing and advertising requirements of our clients without all the moving parts of a traditional advertising agency.