Hello All,
Here are my notes from the SLO Bytes Photo Group Meeting held on 07/12/2020
TOPIC: Artistic Growth; Learn a new skill for use inside or outside the camera and present it to the group.
The meeting took place via Zoom
Ralph Sutter Showed the Links Page at https://slobytes.org/digital/links.html
He called attention to
   Reading Histograms and
   Shooting in Full Manual Exposure

Anticipating possible Zoom problems, Ralph mentioned that he had previously uploaded his slide shows to YouTube at
   Created with DaVinci Resolve; https://youtu.be/GUWVx14bDXk and
   Created with Irfanview; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2idXKYwrR10

Kaye Raul showed how she used Photoshop to transform still images into simulated oil paintings. She also spoke about in-camera adjustments such as focus peaking and focus assist. She then shared stunning close-up images achieved with these tools.

Alan Raul explained how he went about cleaning the sensor on his camera, urging other members of the group to learn more by following the link, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-7ciRxh6s8

John Waller explored time-lapse photography and astro photography, experimenting with different iso, aperture and speed settings to achieve optimum results.

Linda Styerwalt alerted everyone that there is currently a comet passing overhead near the Big Dipper. Learn more at https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-to-watch-comet-neowise-before-it-disappears-thousands-of-years/

NEXT MEETING: Sunday, August 9th, 2020@ 2:00 pm
The topic is Artistic Growth-Phase Two; Held over by popular demand
Learn a new skill for use inside or outside the camera and present it to the group. The meeting will take place via Zoom

A Zoom invitation will be e-mailed to Photo Group members shortly before the meeting.
The meeting schedule for the remainder of 2020 is as follows

   September 13th
   October 11th
   November 8th
   December 13th

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
I just uploaded the Second Quarter 2020 APCUG PUSH articles to the SLO Bytes web site.
You will find them at www.slobytes.org/push/0720
Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
Windows Sandbox is a feature available in Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise but not Windows 10 Home.
It allows the user to run untested programs in a secure environment before installing them on the main system.

Once enabled, launch Windows Sandbox by typing Windows Sandbox in the Search Box (the one just to the right of the Start Menu)
This boots the user into a sandbox (virtual machine).  The new desktop consists of  an icon to launch the Microsoft Edge browser and access to File Explorer but empty of any programs installed outside Sandbox.
The user can now install untested software, try it and decide whether or not to install it permanently on the main system.

Shutting down Windows Sandbox, resets Sandbox to its prior state, undoing whatever changes the user made
A message will appear on the screen stating
The connection to the sandbox was lost  Would you like to submit feedback about this issue?
Presumably, the user will not submit feedback since he or she initiated the loss of connection.

After shutting down Windows Sandbox, the computer will boot into the normal environment, not Sandbox.
If the tested software performed as desired, the user can now confidently install it in the normal environment.

To enable Windows Sandbox on a computer running version 1903 or later of Windows 10 Pro or Windows 10 Enterprise
   Open Start.
   Search for Turn Windows features on or off, and click the top result to open the Windows Features experience.
   Check the Windows Sandbox option.

Learn more at
https://www.windowscentral.com/how-use-windows-sandbox-windows-10-may-2019-update#enable_windows_sandbox_windows10_1903

Ralph Sutter

Hello All
Here are my Notes for the Photo Group Session of 06/14/2020

TOPIC: Animals; please share images of fauna that walk the earth, fly the skies or swim the seas
The meeting took place via Zoom

Ralph Sutter began the meeting by reviewing the links posted on the web site at https://slobytes.org/digital/links.html
Ralph then shared photos of animals seen around his house and at Santa Margarita Lake.  Sutter used two programs to display his images; Photodex Proshow Producer and DaVinci Resolve.  Photodex ceased to exist on 01/31/2020 but their software still works with the exception of their on-line resources.  Ralph found the freeware program, DaVinci Resolve to be a very sophisticated video editor whose features equal or surpass those of Adobe Premiere.

Doug DePue showed the elephant seals of Piedras Blancas.  They were photographed long before that stretch of Highway 101 offered dedicated viewing areas and vehicle parking lots.

Alan Raul used Adobe Spark and other Adobe products to create photo collages of some of his four-legged friends.

Bob Styerwalt documented Bath Day for his puppy, adding images of backyard birds and bees.

Kaye Raul showed painted cow statues, livestock and wildlife found near the Madonna Inn and the Avila Barn as well as photos of her dog shedding snow drifts of hair.

Stanford Brown captured still images of bison, elephant seals, domesticated fishing cormorants, bears, deer and sundry other wild animals photographed around the world.

Connie Sutter pressed into service stuffed animals and hand puppets from her days as a classroom teacher, finishing off with a shot of her new and very lively puppy.

John Waller shared images of seals in Morro Bay, deer in Yosemite, many animals of the Santa Barbara Zoo and others roaming Hearst Ranch.

NEXT MEETING: Sunday, July 12th, 2020@ 2:00 pm
The topic is Artistic Growth; Learn a new skill for use inside or outside the camera and present it to the group.
The meeting will take place via Zoom

A Zoom invitation will be e-mailed to Photo Group members shortly before the meeting.
The meeting schedule for the remainder of 2020 is as follows
   August 9th
   September 13th
   October 11th
   November 8th
   December 13th

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
I purchased a Raspberry Pi computer recently.
Here are the specs
•   Raspberry Pi 4 Model B with 1.5GHz 64-bit quad-core ARMv8 CPU
GB RAM
•   CanaKit 3.5A USB-C Power Supply
•   Premium White Case Set of 3 Aluminum Heat Sinks
•   CanaKit Fan
•   Official Raspberry Pi Keyboard and Mouse
•   Micro HDMI to HDMI Cable (6-foot cable)
•   SanDisk 32GB Class 10 MicroSD Card, USB Card Reader Dongle
•   CanaKit Quick-Start Guide
And
64 GB Capacity
•   High-Speed Class 10
•   Pre-loaded with NOOBS -- Just plug and play!
•   Includes MicroSD to SD Card Converter

More at https://www.canakit.com/raspberry-pi-4-complete-starter-kit.html

I also bought a monitor that I mounted to a VESA articulating arm.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NNXH2SS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I’m not sure what I’ll do with my third Raspberry Pi but I’m curious to see the vast improvements in the 4th generation. 
Supposedly, there is a 64 bit version in the works too.  See https://techxplore.com/news/2020-06-raspberry-unveils-8gb-pi-bit.html

Additional Links
Set up raspberry pi  - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpJCAafw2qE&feature=emb_rel_end
Set up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzojwG7OB7c -Setup for server


Amazon links (affiliate): CanaKit Raspberry Pi Starter Kit: https://geni.us/jrNeh

FreeNove Ultimate Starter Kit: https://geni.us/KuCDQqK

MagPi (PDF download is free - otherwise you have to subscribe): https://magpi.raspberrypi.org/

Getting Started Guide FULL INSTRUCTIONS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpJCAafw2qE

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
I recently downloaded the non-linear video editor, DaVinci Resolve.
I wanted to explore the capabilities of the free version versus Adobe Premiere Elements ( $69.99)
The interface, while different than Premiere Elements, is straightforward though very detailed.
DaVinci Resolve is a far more capable than Microsoft Movie Maker (no longer available), a worthy replacement for Adobe Premiere Elements (as well as Adobe Premiere)

Navigate to the links below for more information.

Download Link - DaVinci Resolve (free) and DaVinci Resolve Studio (One time payment of $299.00)
https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve/

DaVinci Resolve vs DaVinci Resolve Studio
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNiNvMFgCyE

DaVinci Resolve vs Adobe Premiere Pro
https://motionarray.com/learn/premiere-pro/davinci-resolve-vs-premiere-pro/

Another take; DaVinci Resolve Studio vs Adobe Premiere Pro
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5nJ4RMy8mU
                                                                                                         
DaVinci Resolve 16: Crash Course for Beginners | Basics Tutorial
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-GzbvmTMn8

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
I recently used two programs for file management.
I used Duplicate Cleaner Pro to remove duplicate files from my Photo and Video libraries.  When I attempted to copy images from my iPhone X to my Windows 10 desktop, the process failed repeatedly.  When I retried copying files, I ended up with numerous duplicates and nowhere near a complete set of images.
I was only able to copy the 30GB of images by connecting the USB cable from my iPhone to my MacBook Pro laptop.
I searched for a way to find and eliminate duplicate images on my Windows 10 desktop, trying both free and trial software before settling on Duplicate Cleaner Pro.  The trial version limited the number of duplicates that I could identify so I purchased the $29.95 program (discount coupon available).  Learn more at https://www.digitalvolcano.co.uk/dcpro.html
While there are many programs available, both free and paid, to find duplicate files, I found Duplicate Cleaner Pro to be the most comprehensive with the best designed interface.

The second program that I used is Syncback Free.  As the name indicates, this software is free for personal use.  I maintain the SLO Bytes Repository, an archive of information relating to the SLO Bytes PC Users Group, a computer club.  The archives include the SLO Bytes web site for which I am the web master.  Since I create and upload content from multiple computers, I wanted to make sure that my local backup of the web site was complete, regardless of where the content was created.
To synchronize the data between sources, I used the freeware program, Syncback Free.  Learn more at https://www.2brightsparks.com/welcome/backup/freeware.html

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
Here is the link to Bill James' presentation, Getting to Know Windows 10 from an Insiders' Point of View.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-p-uju19Sw
It was delivered via Zoom on 05/12/2020.
Ralph Sutter