BIG SUR

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

Just wondered if anyone with an iMac has upgraded to Big Sur ?- I hate doing updates😵

 

Thank you

 

Carol

[wiskerke]

6 minutes ago, MizBrown said:

 

That is more likely to be available in Nicaragua than the Eizos (sigh) or the very high end Dell.   And if the iMac screen becomes too flaky to edit photos on, but still otherwise useful, I can set up to have two monitors.

 

Some of the higher end Dells used to have the same LG panels as the Apple displays, just with a matte screen in stead of those mirrors. (If I want to see my face I'll go to the bathroom.)

 

wim

[MizBrown]

47 minutes ago, wiskerke said:

 

Some of the higher end Dells used to have the same LG panels as the Apple displays, just with a matte screen in stead of those mirrors. (If I want to see my face I'll go to the bathroom.)

 

wim

 

I've got iMac set up to where it gets no direct light and its display seems to not have a reflective surface.   My Dell laptop has a display that's a couple years old than everything else in the machine.  I suspect the Dell laptop will talk Dell just fine to a Dell monitor.  Not sure precisely how to connect a monitor to the iMac, but I think there's a way to do it through a Thunderbolt 2 port, though not to drive a 4 k display.    My other devices are a Huawei Y7 2019 phone and an iPad 7th generation, very handy for finding information on line when I have to see what to do next on the iMac.

Edited December 18, 2020 by MizBrown

[Nigel Kirby]

Yes Photoshop crashed every time I opened a photo with the latest update of Photoshop 2021 (Version 22.1.0.) Looking on the forums it seems to have a bug with this latest update. I re installed the old version 22.0.1 and this solved the problem -

To re install old version go to

Cloud > Apps click three dots(...) next to photoshop

Click other versions and install 22.0.1 or previous.

 

 

Nigel

[Colin Woods]

12 hours ago, MizBrown said:

I can set up to have two monitors.

Once you have done this you will never look back. I have three in fact and its fantastic. My other two are a 24 inch and a 27 inch that I found on Kijiji for low prices.

[MizBrown]

4 hours ago, Nigel Kirby said:

Yes Photoshop crashed every time I opened a photo with the latest update of Photoshop 2021 (Version 22.1.0.)

 

No trouble with Photoshop here.   I've been running a scan a photofinisher gave me to and fro with Photoshop to get something I could submit to Alamy of a historical house in one of northern Virginia's quaint 18th and early 19th century villages.  (I can hear the Europeans and Asians snickering about 18th Century and early 19th Century being old from here).  

 

I suspect the problem with LR Classic was a combination of Late 2015 iMac with 2 GB graphics card memory and some bug in the first iteration of Big Sur.  I also somewhat suspect that the current CC cloud apps may be the last ones that a Late 2015 iMac will be able to run.

 

 

[MDM]

13 hours ago, MizBrown said:

 

I've got iMac set up to where it gets no direct light and its display seems to not have a reflective surface.   My Dell laptop has a display that's a couple years old than everything else in the machine.  I suspect the Dell laptop will talk Dell just fine to a Dell monitor.  Not sure precisely how to connect a monitor to the iMac, but I think there's a way to do it through a Thunderbolt 2 port, though not to drive a 4 k display.    My other devices are a Huawei Y7 2019 phone and an iPad 7th generation, very handy for finding information on line when I have to see what to do next on the iMac.

 

You can use a mini display port adapter on the Thunderbolt 1 or 2 port on the Mac with whatever cable comes with the monitor or it may even come with a mini display port cable if it is a good quality monitor. On the monitor end it could be display port, hdmi or an older connection like DVI or VGA. 
 

I have no problem with the latest Photoshop either. I think it is a simple fact of life that to keep running Photoshop, Lightroom and other graphics software comfortably it is necessary to upgrade computers every 5-7 years max. They use the GPU a lot more now than in the past as well as RAM. Apparently the new M1 Macs do some magic with the graphics in the processor itself. 

[MDM]

2 hours ago, Colin Woods said:

Once you have done this you will never look back. I have three in fact and its fantastic. My other two are a 24 inch and a 27 inch that I found on Kijiji for low prices.

Definitely agree. 👍

[MizBrown]

7 minutes ago, MDM said:

Definitely agree. 👍

 

Itsy bitsy teeny weenie study and cats. Also, limited number of electrical outlets.  I like keeping things out of the street-facing room because thieves, though nobody stole my Mac Mini and gear, so that may be less of a problem than I fear.

 

I have used dual monitors in the past on an tech editing job.   I can run my ten inch iPad under the iMac and use Sidecar, but the best use for the iPad and cameras seems to be as a remote monitor and trigger. 

[MMiller]

After looking through this thread and others, just wanted to say it's amazing how we photographers have evolved into computer gurus over the years. All great stuff, and amazing what we can now do, but it never ends! Wrt to Macs vs Windows, like the 'masked' MDM (like that!) above alludes, Mac at least for me is the dream ticket. Life before with Windows was an incessant string of new problems and 'issues' (and unclear pop up boxes that essentially said there's a problem but no solution) that absorbed so much of my time, it was easy to forget the main function of being a photographer! 

 

 It's similar to the difference between US domestic cars (at least the products we had a couple of decades ago) vs the Japanese models. With my American made cars, I spent a heck of a lot of time under the hood on a photo trip than I did with photography. I recall once stuck in Thompson Falls, Montana after a piston rod broke on my Chevy van. Gracious people there btw, and I noticed some of the locals with their Japanese imports. Just zipped around everywhere, never a problem. 

 

I got that Chevy motor fixed, and then after a year or so, it blew up on me again. I fixed that one, and sold it. A friend had an old Nissan Sentra he pawned off me for a grand total of $26. I put a timing belt in it myself and got close to seventy five thousand more miles on it, issue free, before I sold it. Been with those Japanese imports ever since,

 

The moral of the story is don't waste years of your life on junk, of what's 'supposed' to be good for you (and country), just stick with what works if you want to be a photographer.

[MMiller]

Speaking of the large Retina Mac screens, I bought one as I jumped into Mac from Windows about four years ago. Never looked back. All fantastic. One great advantage of having a large screen like this is that you can see the clarity that major editors use in evaluating your photos. Before I was using a smaller screen with Windows, and basically could not judge the degree of quality that is expected. Just a shot in the dark.

 

About ten years ago I did have a request from National Geographic for some images before I switched over from Windows to Mac. I thought I had the right imagery, but none were chosen for the publication. In retrospect, as I look at those images on the Mac Retina screen today, I can now see the imperfections and lack of technical quality. On the smaller screen before, I simply could not effectively evaluate things like excellent sharpness (vs marginal), so I sent the selects that probably got rejected because they lacked the  required technical perfection. 

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

9 minutes ago, MMiller said:

Speaking of the large Retina Mac screens, I bought one as I jumped into Mac from Windows about four years ago. Never looked back. All fantastic. One great advantage of having a large screen like this is that you can see the clarity that major editors use in evaluating your photos. Before I was using a smaller screen with Windows, and basically could not judge the degree of quality that is expected. Just a shot in the dark.

 

About ten years ago I did have a request from National Geographic for some images before I switched over from Windows to Mac. I thought I had the right imagery, but none were chosen for the publication. In retrospect, as I look at those images on the Mac Retina screen today, I can now see the imperfections and lack of technical quality. On the smaller screen before, I simply could not effectively evaluate things like excellent sharpness (vs marginal), so I sent the selects that probably got rejected because they lacked the  required technical perfection. 

Agree, get a Mac and never look back😁 So the million dollar question.........did you upgrade to Big Sur yet ?😄

 

Agree on cars also I have two Toyotas, one has 205,000 miles on it and still going strong😁

 

Carol

[MDM]

4 hours ago, CAROL SAUNDERS said:

.did you upgrade to Big Sur yet ?😄

 

 

I have it on two computers and have no problems at all with Photoshop, Lightroom, Final Cut Pro, various other apps, Epson printers and so on. I read there was a problem with iProfiler software from XRite but that may be fixed now. The only problem I had was when I downloaded it, it said that it did not comply or words to that effect with the Mac Gatekeeper policy which is weird but I just re-downloaded and it worked. I did make a bootable backup on an external drive before I did it just in case.Having said all that I am not sure there is any advantage on Intel Macs running Catalina. The big deal is on the new M1 Macs. 

 

[MDM]

5 hours ago, MMiller said:

After looking through this thread and others, just wanted to say it's amazing how we photographers have evolved into computer gurus over the years. All great stuff, and amazing what we can now do, but it never ends! Wrt to Macs vs Windows, like the 'masked' MDM (like that!) above alludes, Mac at least for me is the dream ticket. Life before with Windows was an incessant string of new problems and 'issues' (and unclear pop up boxes that essentially said there's a problem but no solution) that absorbed so much of my time, it was easy to forget the main function of being a photographer! 

 

 It's similar to the difference between US domestic cars (at least the products we had a couple of decades ago) vs the Japanese models. With my American made cars, I spent a heck of a lot of time under the hood on a photo trip than I did with photography. I recall once stuck in Thompson Falls, Montana after a piston rod broke on my Chevy van. Gracious people there btw, and I noticed some of the locals with their Japanese imports. Just zipped around everywhere, never a problem. 

 

I got that Chevy motor fixed, and then after a year or so, it blew up on me again. I fixed that one, and sold it. A friend had an old Nissan Sentra he pawned off me for a grand total of $26. I put a timing belt in it myself and got close to seventy five thousand more miles on it, issue free, before I sold it. Been with those Japanese imports ever since,

 

The moral of the story is don't waste years of your life on junk, of what's 'supposed' to be good for you (and country), just stick with what works if you want to be a photographer.

 

I think photography (the technical side at least) and computers go together in many ways. I have always loved computers and cameras (before computers). I could have had a career as a programmer if I had gone that way when I first went to university as I always found it fascinating but I studied geology instead which I don't regret except occasionally when I think of how much money I could have made from programming.  When I retired from my geology job some years ago, I decided to focus on photography and forget about programming as it is incredibly time-consuming. I also got rid of my Windows computer and went back to the Mac from which I don't ever envisage changing again. Life is definitely too short.

 

Cars are a different thing for me. I never liked mechanical things nor had any talent or interest that way. I think it goes back to my father who was originally a mechanic and he could fix anything. If ever I had a problem he would fix it. Fix a timing belt - you gotta be joking - I would probably destroy the car 😆. 

Edited December 23, 2020 by MDM

[spacecadet]

16 hours ago, MDM said:

Fix a timing belt - you gotta be joking - I would probably destroy the car 😆. 

Only if you don't do it right. I've done two, one out of necessity and one to make myself useful and save 3 or £400. But I wouldn't recommend it😮

I fix most other things around the place though. And since March I've used a surprising amount of the old timber that's been lying around for years to make useful stuff. OH's favourite is the boot jack, very simple but quite essential if you want to keep your socks dry.

Edited December 24, 2020 by spacecadet

[MDM]

What is a boot jack? My socks are generally pretty dry and I don't believe I have a boot jack? 😀

[Betty LaRue]

7 hours ago, MDM said:

What is a boot jack? My socks are generally pretty dry and I don't believe I have a boot jack? 😀

A boot Jack is something that rests on the floor. My husband’s was made of wood, but had leather or rubber pieces so as to not scar the boot. There was also some ribbed rubber Shaped like a V, you slid the heel of your boot into the V, stood on the back of it with your other foot, and slid your foot up and out of the boot. Very easy to use rather than having to sit down and wrestle your foot out of a tight fitting boot.

Cowboys/ranchers in the U.S. wouldn’t be caught without one. We had horses, and wore western boots when we rode, of course. I loved the boot jack.

see image #CCC465

Edited December 25, 2020 by Betty LaRue

[MDM]

16 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

A boot Jack is something that rests on the floor. My husband’s was made of wood, but had leather or rubber pieces so as to not scar the boot. There was also some ribbed rubber Shaped like a V, you slid the heel of your boot into the V, stood on the back of it with your other foot, and slid your foot up and out of the boot. Very easy to use rather than having to sit down and wrestle your foot out of a tight fitting boot.

Cowboys/ranchers in the U.S. wouldn’t be caught without one. We had horses, and wore western boots when we rode, of course. I loved the boot jack.

see image #CCC465

 

OK well I learn something new every day including Christmas. 😀

Edited December 25, 2020 by MDM

[spacecadet]

On 24/12/2020 at 18:09, MDM said:

What is a boot jack? My socks are generally pretty dry and I don't believe I have a boot jack? 😀

To keep your muddy boots out of the house you tend to use it outside where wetsock is a definite hazard! Not a problem in Betty's part of the world so much. It has a little block part way along to keep the "V" off the floor. I must add the strip of rubber. No more dancing around on one foot.

At least ours is in the porch. Need to paint the one at the back door- I made 2 in a fit of joinery one day.

Edited December 27, 2020 by spacecadet

[Allan Bell]

Query!  I upgraded my laptop yesterday to Big Sur. Fine.

 

Then upgraded my desktop iMac yesterday. It was upgraded to "CATALINA".  I have then looked for upgrade to Big Sur but cannot find any link to the upgrade?

 

Help.

 

Allan

 

[MDM]

15 minutes ago, Allan Bell said:

Query!  I upgraded my laptop yesterday to Big Sur. Fine.

 

Then upgraded my desktop iMac yesterday. It was upgraded to "CATALINA".  I have then looked for upgrade to Big Sur but cannot find any link to the upgrade?

 

Help.

 

Allan

 

 

It may not be compatible (too old). Check this

[sb photos]

When Big Sur was released I clean installed on an older MBA 13" early 2015 i7 8GB 256GB simply to familiarise myself with it. Big Sur has been kept up to date, and have had no issues. I deactivated one of my Adobe PS and LRC installs on another Mac to install on the MBA. No issues other than LRC required permissions resetting on the user folders via the Adobe script. Have been editing on the MBA rather than the MBP, no problems yet, although have been mainly using PS. I hate the startup sound and immediately changed the default desktop image.

[MDM]

32 minutes ago, sb photos said:

When Big Sur was released I clean installed on an older MBA 13" early 2015 i7 8GB 256GB simply to familiarise myself with it. Big Sur has been kept up to date, and have had no issues. I deactivated one of my Adobe PS and LRC installs on another Mac to install on the MBA. No issues other than LRC required permissions resetting on the user folders via the Adobe script. Have been editing on the MBA rather than the MBP, no problems yet, although have been mainly using PS. I hate the startup sound and immediately changed the default desktop image.

 

I do think Big Sur is just a slightly modified Catalina for Intel Macs. The return of the start sound made me jump out out of my skin and may have woken the neighbours as I did the install late at night and was not expecting the sound. 

[Allan Bell]

7 hours ago, MDM said:

 

It may not be compatible (too old). Check this

 

Thanks Mick. Yes my machine is too old for Big Sur update. It is late 2013 and I see the information for compatible machines starts at "Mid 2014".

 

All I can say is my machine is perfectly good so I am not getting a new or SH later model. Not worth it.

 

Allan

 

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

23 hours ago, Allan Bell said:

Query!  I upgraded my laptop yesterday to Big Sur. Fine.

 

Then upgraded my desktop iMac yesterday. It was upgraded to "CATALINA".  I have then looked for upgrade to Big Sur but cannot find any link to the upgrade?

 

Help.

 

Allan

 

Did the Big Sur update on your laptop take long Allan ? just wondering as I've not taken the plunge as yet.....😄

 

Thanks

 

Carol

[Iain Masterton]

On 17/12/2020 at 20:16, MDM said:

The real importance of this update is for the new M1 Macs. For Intel Macs it does appear to be a pretty cosmetic update from Catalina but word has it that for the M1 Macs it is going to be a game changer for the world of graphics. At the moment I think there are very few programs apart from Apple's own video apps (Final Cut Pro, Motion) that can take really advantage of it but, if the reviews are to be believed, even the new and relatively low spec laptops can do amazing things with Final Cut Pro. Video is far more demanding of computers than stills of course. Adobe will have to do their video apps if they want to keep up with Apple. It will be interesting to see native Photoshop and Lightroom for these M1 Macs.  

I'm using a new Macbook Air M1 with Lightroom 10.1. 

I read that it had been tweaked for Apple silicon...but apparently not.

 

Anyhow it is running pretty slow and laggy (on Big Sur) and I'm a bit disappointed to say the least.

 

Hopefully things will improve when a native version appears.