Rough Cuts Ltd Blog

I'm currently chatting with a good friend about their (new) phone options. They have an iPhone 7, but aren't happy with the picture quality of it. This means, there is something wrong. The first time photographers started taking smartphones seriously was around the time of the iPhone 4. Since then, cameras have only gotten better. So if your images aren't coming out the way you want, then perhaps the technique is wrong. So here are my top tips for getting much better images with your current handset. CLEAN YOUR CAMERA LENS. The first thing, with ANY smartphone, before you take a shot is to clean the lens. While the delicate optics will be behind a hardened glass cover, the glass will likely need a clean. This simple action in itself will produce sharper results, will cut down on glare or haze and allow the camera processor space to calculate the best exposure for the image. If you use a DSLR, then you will always want to ensure that the lens is immaculate, and your...

In the not too distant future, most households should have the ability to generate and store their own power supply. Solar Panels installed on rooftops, which drip feed energy into a wall-mounted battery will supply power to the home. This is a principle recently brought into alternative-reality in the gaming world courtesy of No Mans Sky. (If you find this stuff entertaining, you can play it on the Playstation on a planet of your choice!) When our energy-ownership world happens, people will inevitably become much more switched on to the power they're using and how efficient their homes are. For now, we're all pretty much at the learning stage. To be honest, it's only in the past few years that I've become interested enough in our Gas and Electric supply to get the calculator out. But in a nutshell, it's pretty simple maths. Every device in your home draws power, measured (by in-home displays) in watts. If you're using 200 watts, then every 5 hours, you...

If, like me, in the past, you've dabbled with Google Classroom, it's perhaps time to have another look. Although you may feel like the amateur or the pupil again, the payoff is well worth going through the learning curve pain, and as I've learnt today, the kids will really help you through it. Lessons are grouped together on the welcome screen. In addition if you're struggling, (like with so many things on Google;) , you can collaborate, meaning a willing teaching assistant, or another Teacher can share the workload and you can do everything together. While the layout of Classroom hasn't changed, some of the functionality has made it a powerful tool for any Teacher with additional benefits for the school. If you're unfamiliar with Clasroom, it's a portal that allows you to collate all of your school lesson plans, activities and resources, and now it indexes childrens work, provides detailed (albeit simple) reports showing who has 'Turned in...