2008.01.13: Bridal Fantasy Calgary 2008

Capture One 4 is the latest version of Phase One's Capture One LE software. It's a scale-down of Phase One's premier RAW workflow solution, Capture One Pro. Development has stopped for Capture One Pro 3.7.x, the software that has been at the core of my photographic business for the past three years. That also means that newly released cameras will not be supported by this software. Users of Capture One Pro are to wait for Capture One 5 which is the next generation of Capture One Pro. Unfortunately, as C1 4 isn't an upgrade to Capture One Pro, you can't upgrade Capture One Pro as an interim solution while waiting for the release of Capture One 5. That means no Nikon D300, D3, Canon 40D, 1D and 1Ds MKIII support for the version of the software with Color Editor and the ability to generate multiple versions of the same RAW in a single processing pass. I'm using the trial and hoping that C1 5 will be out before it expires. I still have three weeks left on the trial. Dong is nearly out of his trial.

Looking past the temporary workflow drawback, the Nikon D300 has been a joy to use. Snappy and accurate autofocus, excellent battery life even from the standard battery thus making it much lighter to work with in hand (if you can live without a vertical grip), usable ISO 3200, and, in the case of more staged shooting, Live View and contrast-based autofocus off of the sensor have not only impressed clients but have improved my photography. At around $1850 plus GST at Vistek, short of a built in vertical grip, there's nothing about this camera that doesn't ooze "pro".