Since buying my new Digital Camera I’m quite keen to arrange my photos in some kind of order so that they are easier to locate. When I attach my camera to the iMac it brings up the FujiFilm software which will then import my photos to a folder in Documents. It names the folder something like 2008_0330, based on the dates so it doesn’t exactly make finding the photos very easy.

Last week I downloaded the Aperture 2 trial version. I was pleased with the way I could import my photos directly from the camera and sort them into Events. Within there I could also touch up photos and make them look their best before exporting them to Flickr. The price tag for Aperture 2 is £129 and I was seriously considering purchasing. However, I decided to wait until the trial was over before making my mind up. I then fired up iPhoto 08 a few days back which is something I hadn’t bothered with since getting my iMac last October. Before iPhoto 08 I had very briefly used iPhoto 05 on my Mac Mini. Briefly was enough as I found it very limited, but since I had Photoshop I wasn’t too bothered about using another program for editing photos.

iPhoto 08 is a world apart from 05. Like Aperture I can sort my photos into Events and it has a number of touch-up tools, again very similar to Aperture. For my needs iPhoto 08 is absolutely perfect and best part is it’s all free with the Mac. I purchased FlickrExport for iPhoto (£12) a couple of days ago which means I can upload directly to Flickr from iPhoto. I am in the process of sorting my photos into Events, although I will only be adding ones taken with my new Fuji S5700 as they are the nicest ones

So, the iLife package has come in very useful, once again…even if it has taken me 5 months to discover it(!)

For some weeks I’ve heard rumbles in the Twittersphere about Socialthing! Anything that is private beta always gets my curiosity. Thanks to Jon I got an invite to try it out. Here’s an explanation of what it’s all about, from the Socialthing! website…

See everything that’s going on with your friends in all the sites you use, easily figure out where you’re missing connections with your friends, interact with multiple sites at once, and more!

Socialthing! makes it easy to see all the things your friends are doing. It’s a news feed for every site that you use in one place.

It’s a place to see “what’s up” in your digital life, and figure out where to go to from there…

The services you can currently add to your Lifestream in Socialthing! are Facebook, Flickr, Pownce, Twitter, Vimeo and Livejournal. I’m sure more services will be added in time. I had initially set my Socialthing! Lifestream page as my homepage in Camino so I could quickly catch up with all the services I use in one fell swoop at the start of my day. However, it seems that after a while it forgets that I have logged in and requested to be kept signed in, so it’s a little annoying to have to log-in each time. Hopefully that’s something that can be ironed out, even if it is indeed a bug.

I have got 2 invites 1 invites 0 invites left for Socialthing! if you’d like one. The first two people to comment on this entry will get an invite.

As I mentioned in my entry yesterday, I have been uploading some High Definition video to Vimeo because unlike YouTube it supports HD 720p format. I followed the encoding settings guide on the HD FAQ page and was quite satisfied with the way it turned out, although clearly it’s not going to be as good as what I see straight off the camcorder and in iMovie 08. I did some looking around the Vimeo forums and a member there had made some suggestions on getting the most out of your HD video when uploading.

So, I decided to make a quick screencast showing the settings I used in the hope that it helps others get better results, when using iMovie 08. I uploaded an HD video of my dog this afternoon and the quality was quite satisfactory. However, after following the new settings I think it has improved upon that further so I replaced the original video with the improved one. You can see my screencast here. Finally putting to good use my Snapz Pro X which is rather fab!

Just incase you were unable to see clearly the number I typed into Key Frames it was 30, and the Data Rate set to Restrict to 5000 kbits/sec.

Last week I ordered a High Definition Digital Camcorder. It’s the Aiptek AHD200 720p and it cost £109 from QVC UK. They also threw in a 2GB SD Card, but apart from that extra which was exclusive to the QVC deal it also comes with remote control and a case.

It arrived today so I’ve only had a brief time to play around with it but the thing I love about it is the simplicity - it’s very straightforward to use. I don’t need anything expensive or fancy with a ton of features, so this is perfect for my needs.

I’m ill with Tonsillitis and a horrible influenza type virus at the moment, so the chances of me getting out with the intention of shooting any decent footage over the coming days is slim, but hopefully I’ll be able to get something before the Easter Weekend is over and then I’ll give more of my review.

I did take a 10 second test video and uploaded it to YouTube before I realised how that site completely strips any quality. I was pointed in the direction of blip.tv by Graham so I opened an account there and will post any decent stuff there in future. Then I remembered I had an account at Vimeo and was very pleased to see that they now present HD Videos without ripping apart the quality. So, I uploaded my very quick test clip here. I think you can really see how vibrant the colours are on my screen.

So, initial thoughts on the Aiptek AHD 200 from a very quick play while being slightly unwell is very positive indeed. The RRP on this model is around £150 - I’m just glad I was watching QVC at the right moment to bag their special offer. I’ll write more about it when I’ve had a good opportunity to get out and about with it.

EDIT - Wednesday 19th March 2008

Some video shot today of the dog, by my other half. Feel free to add me as a contact on Vimeo

One of my most favourite things to do on Flickr is to be nosey and look around some of the great home offices and set-ups that people post in JustSetups. I just love the whole uniqueness of people’s workspace - their wall colour, desk position and of course all the things they surround themselves with. I like to see the really minimal set-ups aswell as the ones which draw your eyes to lots of interesting things. Every time I take a photo of my home office, which my followers will probably say is very often, I make sure I add it to JustSetups aswell as a few other ones out there.

For me my home office surroundings is very important - it needs to be as this is where I earn my living. One of the main reasons I bought an iMac rather than a portable Apple notebook as my main machine was the fact that I wouldn’t be straying very far from my office when being my most creative. I have tried working and concentrating in other rooms in the house, but getting comfortable and avoiding distractions has been difficult. The home office is my little cocoon where I can shut myself away, be noisy with music and get on with work. And it’s always nice to be able to close the door on the room when I’ve had enough. I have a PowerBook now and it’s always quite tempting to drag that off to bed with me for a final late-night web lurk, but I try not to do that too often.

I came across a site a few weeks ago that posts photos of famous company offices. I was particularly impressed with the Twitter HQ. And here’s an updated shot. Look at all those sexy Macs under one roof I always thought they’d have a pretty cool set-up as they’re a pretty cool company, but I found it really inspirational. As soon as I saw that it made me want to overhaul my workspace. We have a spare room slash guest room which is much larger than the room I use as my office. It’s about double the size, perhaps even larger. I was really in the mood to swap rooms as long as the double bed in there could fit in this room. I did some measuring up and it would *just* fit. I was working out some plans and decor such as painting the walls ‘milky coffee’, thinking about a really cool circular desk in the middle of the floor with my two iMac’s and PowerBook on. Then have some nice IKEA shelving around the place and there’d still be ample room for a little bright pink or green sofa for people to chill on.

My interior design brain was in full force until I spent a little time wandering into the guest room to do some measuring up. It just didn’t feel right. It’s located on the same side of the house as my home office, but the sun doesn’t seem to shine so bright in there (oddly, I know) meaning it’s pretty damn cold…and I would miss being closer to this view. The Japanese Cherry Blossom tree always blooms in mid-April for a few weeks and it’s lovely to see from the office window. I tried to imagine what the room would be like when it’s all decorated but I just couldn’t…which is quite unusual for me. So, I’ve decided to stay put for now. It’s nice and cosy in here - plenty of room for me to do what I want. I’m creative in here and apart from the bedroom this is probably the only other room in the house that I spend more time in, so it must be doing something right.

Are you particular about where you do your work, if working from home? Does your surroundings play a part in your productiveness?