Oly Master 2 - problems

[rigel]

I've been using Olympus Master 2 to import my photos and do a little editing since I got my E-510 in June.

I just recently came back from a trip to the beach, and started experiencing problems with the software. It started when I tried opening an imported jpg (from the camera) using the "folder" option in the file browser, instead of the default "albums." Whenever I clicked on that particular folder (labeled by date; Oct. 16th), the program would just exit. I tried this several times, trying to open other folders (e.g. the 15th and the 17th) and didn't experience the same thing.

Trying to resize and crop some photos (the same set from the same trip) also resulted in the program just exiting without warning :mad2:

Fortunately, I can still transfer my photos from the E-510 to the laptop, but it's frustrating that I can't do much else. Since I can't afford to pay for editing software as of now, I've resorted to using freeware for the time being (irfanview, Gimp - w/c I'm finding difficult to use -- etc), but am finding they aren't as easy to use as Oly Master 2 (or even MS Office Pic Mgr on my other laptop).

What's up with Oly Master 2??? Does anyone have the same problem as me? Is there a fix for this?

I've attached one of my photos from that trip (pardon the blown out sand; newbie here :blush2: . Or is it just the E-510's poor dynamic range? I wish! )

[Greg McCary]

Did you shot this in RAW? That will help you pull the sand back down. Shooting with that much contrast is going to be hard to get right out of camera without and ND grad filter.
Be I agree Olympus Master 2 could be much faster. I had my share of issues with it. One thing that helped me when using Olympus Master was not to have to many other programs, like PhotoShop, running at the same time.

[T-M]

Create a new folder to download to. Also, you may have a scanned image in that folder that is too large for Master to handle.

[Photo-John]

I agree with T-M's advice. Make a new folder and move the photo or photos to that folder. Then see if you can open the image. The problem more likely lies with the folder than the software - or at least, with the way the software interfaces with that folder.

I am not a fan of Olympus Master. I've used it and it gets the job done. But I was really happy when Adobe released Lightroom 2.0 with E-520 support. The image quality between conversions is the same in both programs. But Lightroom is so much nicer to use and offers a lot more control.

The sand in your beach photo would be a problem with any camera. The way to handle that is shoot dark to hold detail in the sand, and then selectively lighten the rest of the image in Photoshop or some other software that offers that kind of control.

[rigel]

Did you shot this in RAW? That will help you pull the sand back down. Shooting with that much contrast is going to be hard to get right out of camera without and ND grad filter.

Unfortunately, no. I haven't got to the habit of shooting in RAW just yet. ND grad filter...hmmm. I should look into that. Thanks (FYI I had CP on).

Be I agree Olympus Master 2 could be much faster. I had my share of issues with it. One thing that helped me when using Olympus Master was not to have to many other programs, like PhotoShop, running at the same time.

I can't recall if I had other programs running when I had Master 2 on. I'll check.
Again, thanks.

[rigel]

I agree with T-M's advice. Make a new folder and move the photo or photos to that folder. Then see if you can open the image. The problem more likely lies with the folder than the software - or at least, with the way the software interfaces with that folder.

Thanks T-M & P-J. I don't have any scanned images in that folder; just photos imported straight from my E-510. I do have a few RAW files in there, but it would be strange if the size of those would affect the software's performance. I'll try that new folder strategy.

The sand in your beach photo would be a problem with any camera. The way to handle that is shoot dark to hold detail in the sand, and then selectively lighten the rest of the image in Photoshop or some other software that offers that kind of control.

Thanks P-J. That's reassuring
I actually prefer getting the shot the first time, and not have to spend time doing PP. But I guess for some light conditions this just isn't possible. We were on a boat tour and hopped on to this small island, and it was almost high noon. Thus, the intense sunlight

[Jaedon]

I carry a polarizing filter in my pocket for just such an occasion. I usually attach it after 10:30 AM and remove it around 3:30 pm..... or there abouts... depending on the light available.