I just spent the better part of the past week bouncing back and forth between post production and producing a richly diverse amount of new imagery. Multiple subjects, 7 days, in both motion picture and stills. I truly redlined my Canon 5D Mark 2, and utilized every facet of the camera learned from the last six months usage.

Throttling back, yesterday I pondered my Google alerts. I set alerts on Google for new technology. So I get e mails which carry the keywords that I am concerned with.  Here is the deal. For the first time ever, tech is working, and doing it pretty much seamlessly. That being said, we are on the brink of even newer tech. So part of my job responsibility is researching what is up and coming, and sorting out a path that will keep me from over investing or actually even send me down a road where potential new tech failure can cause loss of time and waste of effort.

I am cautious in a way that I have never been before. Why? Because things are working at long last. My product output in motion and stills offers the maximum amount of creative freedom, and minimal amount of office time while rendering THE MOST economical and highest quality work I have ever produced. That means great benefit can be imparted with a maximum of return and the highest quality of work  ever.  I could actually OWE the IRS something some day soon. The last 10 years have seen a  perpetual investment in new tech and equipment, just so that creative quality could stay ahead of the global curve.

The other day my Google alert showed two interesting items. One a new tech Mac (right as I was about to push the “buy now” button on a Nehalem Processor machine) and the new Canon 1DS Mark 4. I am now waiting on the new 6 core Mac which should arrive around the first of the 2010 year. I will never own the 1DS Mark 4. It sends me in the wrong direction for the type of work I do. Thankfully I know enough to NOT jump on new and bigger (read that: more expensive) as being better. Though for some, the streamlined work flow the 1DS Mark 4 offers and high FPS firing and unlimited ISO settings will be a boon, those things will not be for me.

The market in editorial, commercial and art is in exactly the same quandry, as they look at the work produced. Inevitably some new person comes along and for awhile cruises to the relative top of the heap. But in short order the market levels that climb and the new guy is often sent off the back of the competitive global imaging pack. The thing is, that my colleagues are remarkably bright, talented and driven. We all moderate each other. It is part of the reason for me doing this blog. We sharpen each other. So that being said, here is a small selection of imagery from this past week. I stored over 1200 finals in edit.  I left out the Architectural, American Lifestyle, and Fashion work shot the past seven days, out of concern for theme and not wanting to dumb down the over all beauty that I saw on my local coastline this week. I really want to share THAT,

Right now it is all sort of New. Thanks to the Canon 5DMark 2 it is Bigger. Thanks to Apple and Adobe it is definitely Better.

Seth Godin writes on a related topic here.

Improvements keep coming down the pipe. I appreciated this blog here.

An excellent leading edge computer hardware company, Other World Computing, is right here. Read their blog. Go ahead. As we all seem to say these days: “Embrace your inner nerd.” You really have no choice. Then go create something new!