Articles written by Adam Ottke

Preempting CES 2015's official start date as so many electronics manufacturers often do to beat the media buzz, Seagate announced the world's thinnest 500GB hard drive — and who knew it could be so beautiful? While many might inquire as to the actual excitement a relatively low-capacity hard drive should bring, the reality is that the Seagate Seven — a truly 7mm-thick USB 3.0 external hard drive — could drastically change our mobile workstations in ways that make our lives much easier. Along with the Seven, Seagate announced the LaCie Rugged RAID, featuring up to 240MB/s-access to 4TB of storage in a USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt enclosure.

For an app that brings the hipster out in everyone, Instagram showed it can really grow up today. Five new filter updates almost wouldn't matter. So what? We have a million other apps and editing tools and already sometimes too many Instagram filters. But today's update brings something that Instagram has lacked from Day One: subtlety.

Through Premiumbeat.com's Vimeo channel and blog, motion graphic designer Kevin Gater did the world a huge favor by recently providing a tutorial on creating realistic, falling snow with RED Giant's After Effects plug-in. There are a ton of settings in After Effects, let alone in the RED Giant Trapcode Particular plug-in, that would take forever to navigate; but Gater does a great job going through which settings to ignore and which ones to pay attention to so you'll know exactly what to tweak for your needs. Thankfully, in 15 minutes, you can be ready to add great snow effects for the holiday season or that high-mountain horror short with just a few careful clicks.

Smooth video is critical for a professional touch on any video shoot. Currently, there are a number of stabilization options from traditional and expensive Steadicam systems to simple weight-balanced gimbal-based rigs like the Steadicam Merlin. Arguably, none do the job more intuitively, however, than the BeeWorks 5 Camera Stabilization and BeeWorks' special sauce, the Kinetic Remote.

There's no doubt that assisting is, hands down, the best way to really learn how to shoot professionally. Set etiquette is one thing that will come with time, but equally important are the little things that all add up and that will make you the best second pair of hands to have on set, second to none -- if you pay attention to these things. While everyone has their preferences, it's always a good idea to research different ways to do the same thing, and to then intelligently choose the best way you can find. DSLRVideoShooter's Caleb Pike took the time to share a few more general tips that are not just good suggestions, but that are absolutely essential to being a good assistant if you want to keep coming back.

Adobe has released a plugin it promised a while ago to migrate photo libraries from Apple's soon-to-be-forgotten Aperture and iPhoto apps into its own Lightroom. If you're worried about Apple's switch to its own all-in-one photo app, "Photos," or simply want to ensure similar functionality to that found in Aperture, Lightroom has long been an industry-standard alternative. There are, however, a few notes to keep in mind with regard to migrating from these apps to Lightroom.

Fstoppers editor and writer Zach Sutton took the time to open up to TogTools owners Jess and Stephen, covering everything from how he got started to in-depth tips on how to begin teaching photography through workshops and diversifying your photography business. While he also contributes to Photofocus and Retouching Academy, Sutton has a strong foundation in his own well-known photography business that has taken him from travel assignments to the most intimate weddings and even well-established workshop tours. Take a hint from those with experience, as this is a rare opportunity for some great, free advice from a seasoned pro.

The FAA announced yesterday that it is giving certain exemptions and special status to six video production companies that would use these exemptions specifically for the purpose of aerial filmmaking with drones. While information about the process of earning an exemption is scarce, these production companies were approved after consideration of a special request that they sent to the FAA -- 40 more of which have been sent in by numerous additional production companies and are supposedly still up for consideration.

We've featured ESPN photographer Brett Wilhelm's work before as he's taken us through numerous one-man setups for his events. This time, Wilhelm gives us a great video covering everything you need to know about wirelessly transmitting your images in the field with the Nikon system. From connecting to FTP servers through your iPhone or local wireless network to explaining the advantages and disadvantages between the WT-5 and WT-4, Wilhelm makes sure you'll be ready to shoot anything in the field for instant transmission back to your editing team.