Kernel P@nic

Ever since this particular item was announced at the last big photo expo I had been very curious about just how well this thing worked. I mean there is a dearth of competing products out there that addresses solid color balance and proper exposure. From 18% gray cards to “Expo Discs”, they all aim to satiate the needs of the RAW photographer’s workflow. Me being a humble student of the art, I found myself wondering if I really needed some of these doodads that tell me I’ll get a perfect picture if I buy their solution. Now I had read the product announcement with a critical eye, then read the few reviews out there and started to warm up to this thing. I said, “Looks interesting, yeah maybe I’ll pick one up one of these days; after I buy the rest of the gear I WANT.” Then I read Scott Bourne’s blog post on this and was sold! I went and bought it the next day! What intrigued me about the Spyder Cube is that unlike the other solutions out there that I’ve seen, this product didn’t just give a white balance solution, or just give a correct exposure solution, it gave both and then some in one easy tool in the most accurate way. With tools to measure specular highlights and a black trap to measure the blackest blacks, this baby not only does it all, but it does it in a very small, compact package that can easily be stowed in the small pockets of your photo bag, or in one of your pant/jacket pockets. Now all this was what already had me interested in the first place, but not what ultimately sold me on it. It was Scott’s post and how he not only quickly and concisely reviewed it, but also showed how to PROPERLY use it! Something that normally most reviewers don’t do. And many of these manufacturers neglect to easily explain in layman’s terms. (Remember, I’m still frackin’ learning myself what specular highlights mean to the quality of my photos)

So far, I’ve had the opportunity to try this out in a couple of shots around my place that I had trouble getting a good WB read and one place that had a mixed contrast scene with extreme exposure differences from one side of the scene to the other and this puppy works great! I am so glad I broke down and bought this tool. In a time when the economy dictates much of my spending habits more than ever before, as I’m sure is the case with most photographers especially hobbyists like me, I have to be more careful on what I spend my hard earned money on. This definitely falls under the category of a quality investment. What good is a RAW workflow if you can’t get a good read or measurement of a given photo set to correct for good white balance and spot on exposure settings? Not much in my opinion.

As for a review of this awesome tool, I would just as soon point you to Scott’s review rather than butcher one myself. He’s a photog I highly admire and respect and he has the knowledge to explain it better than me.

Bottom line, if you shoot RAW, forget the other solutions you’ve seen out there online and in photo mags. This is it. This is the one you’ll need. While the others are fairly good solutions in their own rite, the Spyder Cube, IMHO, is the all in one tool that is worth toting around in any photog’s kit.