Motion Computing J3500 Tablet - Digital sketchbook

And now for something completely different.


My photoblog has been a little dry lately, for that I apologize. My photographic inspiration ebbs and flows and lately it's more ebb than flow. :)  For those faithful few who visit my website, I thank you for checking in regularly. This latest post may not be all glitz and glamor, but it should offer some helpful insight for people looking to invest in a Motion Computing J3500 Tablet PC.

When I was shopping for a digital sketchbook a little over a year ago, the Motion Computing J3500 was just coming onto the market. Reviews were sparse and typically from the perspective of a medical care worker or oil rig technician, and with good reason. The J3500 was designed primarily for mobile operations, military and industrial professions. It is ruggedized to military specification, features capacative multi-touch and desktop-grade CPUs. Now if you've found this post it's because you're looking for a product review. I'm not going to fill my blog with photos of the unit and all the associated accessories, you've probably drooled over them enough already. :)


My review will not question the durability of this product, whether I can pour my beer out on top of it or if it can withstand a class-4 tornado, naturally it can do all these things. This review will focus on the J3500 as a digital sketchbook, how well it performs in apps like Photoshop, ArtRage, Sketchbook Pro and the like. I'll discuss how it feels as a drawing platform and how comfortable it is to use.


Let's get started.

BC Hydro VCCT Project

BC Hydro is building the Vancouver City Central Transmission Project which includes work in my neighbourhood. Naturally, this was a perfect opportunity to get out there and shoot big elaborate machines doing big elaborate things! When I actually do bring my tripod, the results are always so pleasing. Enjoy!

A few lapse with the Canon ts-e 90mm

I recently had another opportunity to shoot with this razor sharp tilt-shift lens. This time around I set up for sequences about 1-4 mins long, shooting at 1 second intervals. The shutter was tweaked to provide various amounts of motion blur depending on the effect I intended to create. The images were then post-processed in LightRoom and finally rendered to video using Sony Vegas.  This is the same lens used in my Shifted Weekend post, so if you want to see some stills check them out here.

This video was built with HD in mind, so enjoy the full resolution version.

Italy - Rome

At long last, the final entry in my 2010 Italy tour, Rome. Here are a couple of my favorites, follow the link below to see the complete set! Some of my italy photos among others, are for sale on the Fine Art America website. Or click here to see only the photos I have for sale.

Italy - Tuscany

Ahhhhh Tuscany! A beautiful land of a rolling patchwork terrain, dappled with trees and twisting roads. The most memorable aspect of this region is not even pictured within this album. The food in Tuscany is incredible! Basic pastas with locally grown ingredients and hand-made dough delight the taste buds and fill us with a deep sense of comfort. After coffee, a stroll through villages and landscapes like these provide a feast for the eyes and a workout for my camera.

Italy - Florence

Florence was one of my favorite Italian destinations! The city is abuzz with activity and has great markets for shooting and shopping. I'm keen on this first photo simply because of the mood involved. This shot is actually a flash mis-fire, but in the end I liked it better than the artificially illuminated shot. The low-key lighting is quite different than my usual works and looks a lot like the environment concept-paintings I deal with in my video-game day job.