Filed under: Software, Features, Productivity, Podcasts
TUAW Podcast #25: Aperture
Now that I'm on the home stretch of my undergrad (just a thesis project left to finish), I'm finally able to stretch my legs into some hobbies I've been meaning to pick up. One such hobby is photography, and since I've been flexing my digital tools, I've quickly become enamored with Aperture, Apple's professional alternative to iPhoto. Even though I am by no means a professional photographer (no laughing at my pictures!), there are a ton of features in Aperture that drew me away from iPhoto, and I thought highlighting some of these tempting tools would be ripe for a TUAW podcast. Aperture, in my opinion, isn't just for the photographers whose lens bags weigh more than most typical household dogs; it offers a wealth of general features for power users, photography enthusiasts and those who need something that lands right at the intersection of iPhoto and Photoshop in terms of both functionality and price.
Hence, TUAW Podcast #25 was born. For just over twenty minutes I explore some of Aperture's features that I think appeal to a wide audience. Pick up a copy from our iTunes Store Podcast directory, this direct link or our own podcast rss feed.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim said 6:04PM on 5-30-2007
Have you considered an AppleTV version in higher quality of these screencasts? They're too low-res currently for that use.
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Tony said 6:34PM on 5-30-2007
I'm using Aperture, and I love it. I tried the Adobe Lightroom beta, but like Aperture better. I agree this is good for non-professionals, too. It has excellent photo/album management features, excellent design tools for things like photo albums, web pages, etc.
I recommend picking up a good book, though, as the non-modal workflow will throw some people for a loop.
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Joe said 6:50PM on 5-30-2007
Fantastic screen cast. I have the apple book for aperture but have yet to pick it up and read it. Thanks for making me give it a second look over Adobe Bridge.
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Dave Chartier said 7:01PM on 5-30-2007
Yea, we've been having a few discussions about that. For now, our decision to keep screencasts at 640 instead of ramping up to 720p largely hinges on the fact that the vast majority of our viewers are watching these on an iPod, not an Apple TV - at least not yet.
If enough support rallies for Apple TV dimensions, we might be able to provide, say, an iPod version in the feed, and maybe an Apple TV version for download. If even *more* support rallies, we might even be able to convince the conding ninja powers that be to set us up with a second feed, but that's gonna be a long ways off.
Either way, thanks a bunch for watching! I really enjoy making these and I have a lot planned for them.
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Tony said 7:28PM on 5-30-2007
Also...if you have a dual monitor setup, you can configure what you want displayed on the 2nd monitor. I have a full-screen closeup of the selected image(s) on the 2nd screen. This is such a great feature when editing!
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Redzuan said 9:17PM on 5-30-2007
Great podcast! I have a question but it's not about Aperture though. What software did u use to make this type of presentation (screen capture, record voice, highlight the cursor's movement etc)? Thanks a bunch!
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(01) said 9:54PM on 5-30-2007
I don't use Apeture, but congrats on you're upcoming graduation. Good luck on anything you have going on post-partying/hangover :-)
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Dave Chartier said 10:52PM on 5-30-2007
#7: I'm starting to think this warrants a post, cuz I'm getting asked often enough. :)
I'm using iShowU to do the recording, and a Blue Snowball microphone. They aren't cheap, but sounds *worlds* better than the built-in mics on MacBook Pros.
For the effects like spotlighting, I'm using Mouseposé from Boinx. It also has a neat feature that allows you to display whatever keyboard shortcuts you're using to do something, but it has the unfortunate side effect of *also* displaying the shortcut you use to display the spotlight effect. Not a very smart move in my opinion, and I can't figure a way around it.
FWIW, I just got a license for Snapz Pro, but it turns all my audio to staticy blown-out crap. I've been futzing with the settings but can't fix the problem. iShowU wins hands-down for now in this category.
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Linh said 12:31PM on 5-31-2007
My only gripe is the the resources you need for Aperture. I wanted to get a macbook (non-pro) and use an external monitor. But it would have been too slow w/ the onboard video. Even w/ my iMac and 2GB of ram, I find it a little laggy.
I prefer Lightroom for editing, but the management ability of Aperture just... wins it for me. Although, it is now the only thing keeping me from switching back to a wintel box (mac pro is just too much money).
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Daniel Lee said 12:34PM on 5-31-2007
aperture looks really great, loved the podcast coverage. one question i have is does it do the slideshows like iphoto. because leaving the pretty slideshows with kenburns fx and synchronized music is a dealbreaker :-(
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travis terwilligar said 2:18PM on 5-31-2007
Daniel,
Iphoto's slideshows are still better. The slideshows from Aperture don't yet do the ken Burns effect. This isn't such a deal breaker for me because I can open my aperture library from within iphoto when I want to create one.
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Pete said 12:03PM on 6-01-2007
great podcast. nice production and very informative. in fact, it's gotten me to switch over from iphoto. as u said in the podcast, aperture manages ur photos much better and there are more ways to tweak the image
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Lainey said 2:37PM on 6-06-2007
I am debating to get Aperture or Lightroom. I am hearing that Aperture is slow on even the fastest MacBook Pros. I am hoping that Apple addresses that problem, so it can run as fast as Lightroom. If Lightroom would have the same features as Aperture, I wouldn't even consider Aperture anymore due to how slow it runs. What do you think?
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Dave Chartier said 10:35AM on 6-14-2007
#3: Honestly, I never noticed any difference between Aperture and Lightroom when testing on my Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro with 2 GB RAM. Both feel fairly snappy when browsing the library and making edits.
That said, I've certainly heard that isn't the case on older machines that get closer to the line of minimum requirements; I hear Lightroom performs better on that older hardware, but I have no personal experience either way.
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