Posts Tagged ‘Technology’

Owning and managing a website is a lot of work and more often than not, its gruelling and thankless. But sometimes you get help along the way and the end product is better than what you imagined. After a week’s work, I am happy to share the new design on www.sidpicky.com which is based on responsive design. This means that the website will orient itself according to the device you are using it on and that is a really big deal considering the high amount of mobile traffic that the website receives.

There are a few other prominent changes on the website:

1) Improved ‘Home’ tab : You can click through for a slideshow or click for more information by using ‘i’ .

2) Improved Portfolio page: The portfolio tab now has a slideshow option with full screen display with a one click option to Purchase prints.

3) Media page: The ‘Media’ page lists all the places this website has been featured in.

4) Bio page:  As the name states, a page where I can introduce myself.

5) Optimized Blog : All of the optimizations are now available for the blog page as well.

Big Thumbs up to the team at Fastline Media  for their support in this re-design. Keep up the great work guys!

What do you think about the new design? Please share this post on your Facebook walls to friends you think may be interested in independent travel photography. Thanks for reading!

Each year, there is a flagship ‘Nexus’ device released, which is officially endorsed by Google. This year in addition to the LG Nexus phone comes the Nexus 7 tablet from Asus. Check out these Nexus 7 images and read more about what Engadget calls the best budget tablet yet. After a week of using it, I definitely think its going to be a great travel accessory and is a worthy rival to the omni-present iPad, at almost half the cost.

Portability : The build of the Nexus 7 is great, considering its price. It does not feel like a budget tablet at all. The best thing about the size is that it fits comfortably in one hand, making it very pocketable and as a result more mobile. You can fit this into a gents coat pocket or a ladies handbag very easily.

Purchase a limited edition of this photo

Comparison to the iPad: I guess every tablet worth its salt is going to be compared to the iPad at some point. The images above are just a few examples of the physical comparison with the Apple behemoth. While it is noticeably smaller, its not a whole lot thinner than the iPad. But the heft makes the tablet quite balanced. At no point did I struggle with any aspect of the physical appearance of the tablet.

Great device for Reading: One of the aspects I was really curious to find out very early was to see how comfortable the Nexus7 is going to be for extended periods of reading and I am happy to report that the device is really good for online reading. Right from Magazines, eBooks and News apps, the screen is very comfortable and the speedy processor always keeps the show on the road.

Play Store is great: Google’s Play Store is no longer the poor cousin to the Apple app store. I found all the apps that I use on my iPhone and iPad and while there are some minor cosmetic differences in the apps, the overall experience of using Google’s play store was excellent.

Photographer’s view: I reviewed this tablet to see if it meets my needs as a travel photographer. While it doesn’t have Apple’s Camera Connection Kit, it is a great tool to display a portfolio or a photographer’s website. The screen clarity is good and if you load up a few movies and books, it doubles up as an amazing travel companion. Since you can fit it inside your jacket pocket, it tends to be more safe as well. For any travel photographers looking for a budget tablet, I would say, Look no further!

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think about this post.  If you have any specific comments or questions about the device, leave a comment and I can find that out  and get back to you.

As some of you would know, your’s truly turned a year older a couple of days ago. Sensing the age and the deteriorating eye sight, my lovely wife D decided that an iPad with a better display may come in handy and BOY was she right! The new iPad with its retina display works really, really well as a photographer’s primary work tool during travel. I tested that theory on my recent trip to USA and there was hardly any photographical duties that the iPad could not manage. I will be putting up a detailed post on the workflow and the apps I use. Until then, take a look at some shots of this visual delight.