Route 66, Rob Knight and Rick Gerrity - Guest post by Rob Knight

Intro by Skip Cohen

Over a year ago I started working with Panasonic's LUMIX Luminaries. Just to say they're a talented group would be a huge understatement. In fact, you can check them all out for yourself just by wandering through Luminary Corner. Well, thirty weeks ago we started doing a guest post or profile of a different Luminary every Monday morning. Each post has shared content to help you raise the bar on your skill set, marketing or creativity.

This post today is definitely destined to be one of my favorites, because it's not just a good read, but announces the collaboration for a workshop between two talented artists, Rob Knight and Rick Gerrity. They're doing a workshop together in October, "Route 66 Photo Adventure". If you've got an interest, instinct tells me this is going to be one of those programs people will talk about for years to come. 

As Rob wrote on his workshop page:

"This photo workshop has been a dream of mine for several years. Join me and my fellow LUMIX Luminary Rick Gerrity for three days along Historic Route 66 in northern Arizona. We'll visit some of the most iconic locations along the Mother Road and photograph the signs, landscapes, people and more that make Historic Route 66 such an import ant part of America's history."

The link to more information is at the end of Rob's guest post and I'll be sharing more about both of them in future posts.

Meanwhile, grab a cup of coffee, kick back and just enjoy this new post from Rob Knight!

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By Rob Knight

It's easy to dismiss some of the features inside today's digital cameras as novel tricks or just tools for tech geeks. I'll admit that when I first heard about cameras with built in WiFi I didn't see what the big deal was. I'm usually not in a huge hurry to get images onto my phone and it's a lot faster to transfer photos to a computer with a card reader.

Since I've been using LUMIX cameras, my opinion about cameras with built in WiFi has drastically changed. The LUMIX Image App allows you to control your camera remotely, complete with live view, with most of the functionality of something like the Cam Ranger. As cool as that is, it's still not a function I use in my everyday workflow.

I was recently scouting for an upcoming photo workshop with my friend and fellow LUMIX Luminary Rick Gerrity. We used the WiFi in our LUMIX GH4 cameras extensively during the trip. Here are a couple of specific examples that may give you some ideas for using the WiFi function in your camera.

 1. Social media: Probably the most obvious thing to do with built in WiFi is share your photos from the camera to your social media channels. While we were still on location we would transfer a couple of shots to our phones and post them to Instagram, Twitter, FB, etc. One cool thing about posting photos from the area you're shooting is that you can add the geotagging data from your smart phone. Before we were on the road again Rick and I were sharing images with our followers.
 

2. Instant sharing. This is probably my favorite use for in-camera WiFi. We stopped on Route 66 near Seligman, Arizona so I could make a photo of one of the iconic Route 66 badges painted on the road. Just as we stopped, a guy on a motorcycle pulled in beside us and asked if we would take a photo of him (with his iPad). Rick said "sure" and we decided the coolest shot would be with his bike parked over the "Route66" on the road.

Rick made a few shots with the fellow's iPad, and I grabbed some frames with my GH4. While we were chatting I transferred the photos to my phone and emailed them to him. Turns out he is from Australia and he was riding from Dallas to LA on holiday! I'm sure he had an amazing trip, and I was able to make a great photo for him (much better than the iPad shot!) and send it to him on the spot. That's technology put to good use if you ask me!
 

You never know when instantly sharing photos this way can lead to a new client. Sending someone a snapshot might get you a call to shoot their next event. It at least lets your subject know who you are and gets your email address in their inbox.

Rick and I are leading a three-day photo workshop along Historic Route 66 in Arizona this October. We have some amazing locations to share with you, along with lots of tips for shooting travel, landscapes, portraits, video and more. We'll also have loaner gear from our friends at LUMIX USA. 

Route 66 Photo adventure