Ralph,
I think the general consensus around here is to import your images to your cataloging program (iPhoto) and then open them up with Elements. Elements doesn’t actually store/organize photo’s so you’ll need to import somewhere else anyway. That’s what I do and then I have iPhoto set to open any images I double click in Elements where I can then do my editing.
I think (correct me if I’m wrong on this) that your camera’s manufacturer has to write a TWAIN driver for your camera to show up in the Import list. I can’t be sure, but from checking out Kodak’s DC4800 downloads <
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/service/downloads/dln_ekn.jht ml?ekn=EKN006609> page I don’t think they make a TWAIN driver for that camera. Perhaps the "Kodak Connections Software" (or one of the other packages) download contains a TWAIN driver, but even if it did, it’s written for OS 8-9.
Is there particular reason you want to import directly to PSE?
Joe
As the regulars on the forum know, this question comes up frequently on this forum. I do not understand why Adobe put ‘connect to camera’ in the welcome menu. It just causes confusion as newbies think it has some useful function. We could put this into faq but who really checks that out?
Pardon my little rant. I just needed to get that off my chest.
Joe,
I was just used to being able to do it OS 9. Unfortunately even with Classic running you can’t "see" the camera on the desk top like before.
I have visted the Kodak website to check for a Twain driver. It implies that it is part of the Driver (but like you suggest I think this is an OS 9 thing or windows).
The OS X obviously comes with a driver as iPhoto and Image Capture can see the camera. I was just looking for the same integration for Elements.
Mark,
Yes I might be a Newbie to the site but I have had the Camera for 4 years. As I have written to Joe I was wondering if someone knew of a way to get better intergration.
Thanks for your anwsers. I look forward to hearing any other suggestions.
Ralph
Hmmm. Ralph, do you by any chance work for a fire department?
As far as your question goes – unless there’s something about your camera I’m not familiar with, I’d strongly recommend you switch to using a card reader. Almost all of the regulars here on the forum have switched to using them for reasons of safety, and they definitely eliminate the problem of integration between various devices/software. Yes, it is a workaround instead of a solution, but in this case we’ve found readers much preferable anyway.
Hi Beth,
No Psych nurse actually.
I have not had any problems with a USB connection to my camera. The handiest point is the left hand port on the Keyboard.
Not quite sure why you think this is a fire risk ?
Why buy more hardware when what I’ve (you’ve) got works ? (Like it says on the tin).
Ralph
No, not a fire risk!!! The question about the fire department and the comment about the card reader were unrelated! 🙂 I just know a guy by the same name who’d been an arson investigator.
A lot of us have gone to using card readers because there have been some instances of damage to cameras and loss of images when the camera is hooked directed to the computer. This sure isn’t anything that happens on a regular basis, but it only takes once to cause a person to switch to a different method. The reader would connect to the keyboard port, just like the camera cable does now. The difference is you could leave the camera somewhere else and work only with the card, which would mount on the desktop like an external hard drive, zip drive, etc. It also eliminates all issues with compatibility.
HI Beth,
I have a Epson CX6400 ansd it has a card read function. I’ve tried it and it does allow me to browse from the mounted disk image.
Thanks for your help.
I would still like to be able to do it from the camera as I can imagine myself leaving the card in the printer.
Ralph
Ralph, the inescapable fact is that camera recognition is dicey on any platform with any camera. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.
I don’t know where you are located, but in the US you can find a card reader for as little as free after rebate from most office supply stores if you watch their ad supplements. To me, it’s a really cheap camera insurance policy at that price.
If you are determined to take the risk and do it directly from the camera, try not using a keyboard usb port. They are usually underpowered. See what happens when you plug directly into the body of the computer.
If you search this forum you will find lots and lots and lots of threads from people using all different cameras and operating systems who have discovered the hard way that while it’s a cool concept to watch the computer slurp out your photos, unfortunatelyit just doesn’t work that well in reality.
Hi Barabara,
No, I’m in England (Great Britain)
With Mac OS 9 the camera was recognised once I had installed the sofware. This caused it to load as a drive to desktop every time I turned it on.
In OS X the thing has always been plug ‘n’ play certainly as far as iPhoto goes.
It would be nice if the camera would mount the same way the printer card reader does (And OS 9 did), on the desktop.
I notice that the DC4800 ids now dicontinued by Kodak so I should think that a new driver that would allow it to be mounted in this way is unlike;y to be written.
My father-in-law has a Canon G5 I have the Kodak DC4800 and my son has amother Kodak which he had for a replacement to another who’s make I forget. All of them have just been plug ‘n’ play with OS X and have always been stable.
As the drivers are there and will load or can load to Image Capture and iPhoto, I was wondering if anyone knew how to access these drivers with either a plug-in or pointing an application to the right place.
Ralph
Hi Ralph,
With Mac OS 9 the camera was recognised once I had installed the sofware. This caused it to load as a drive to desktop every time I turned it on.
Ok, this is different then wanting PhotoShop Elements to see you’re camera as a TWAIN device, correct? I was under the impression that you wanted to use File>Import (or "Connect to Scanner or Camera" from the Welcome screen).
As far as I know Kodak cameras won’t show up as a drive on the desktop in OS X. I’ve had two and neither will do that. If, however, you go with a card reader as others have suggested, you’re compact flash card should show up as a drive (mine does). I’m not sure any camera shows up as a drive under OS X, but I’ve only owned Kodaks so what the heck do I know. 😉
iPhoto and Image capture are built specifically to connect with cameras and scanners (Image Capture). PhotoShop Elements is not. That’s why you need a device specific TWAIN driver which if it were available for your camera would allow you to access your camera directly from PhotoShop Element. Does this make sense?
You can always have PSE’s Browser set to one folder (your Pictures folder for instance) so if you downloaded to that folder you’d have direct access from there.
Is this what you’re after?
Ok everyone, now I got to get off the whole Card Reader bandwagon and play devils advocate for a few minutes. Please be kind. I’ve never had, nor have I personally heard of, anyone having problems with connecting their camera directly to a USB port for downloading purposes. I’m certainly not saying it doesn’t happen, just that I’ve never personally heard any horror stories (BTW if you have one please share). A while back, after a similar conversation on this board, I emailed a few "experts" and heard the same. Of the responses I got back I can remember that one of these experts was Christopher Breen and the other a major camera chain in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area.
With my Kodak, I use the dock for about half my downloading. Is this considered a direct connection? When I bought this new camera I did buy an additional SD card which came with a free card reader. I have found myself using it the other half of the time because it is very convenient at times (like when I take 125 pictures of a bowl of chocolate chips for the Photo Challenge and they all suck, so I have to take 125 more 😉 ).
Ok done with this excessively long post. Sorry.
Joe
Hi Joe,
Yes it was different in OS 9. But that meant you could browse like you can now do for a Card reader, which I found I could do with the one in my new printer. This does go a long way to solving a search for "the least amount of clicks to accomplish a task" aspect of my question. Hence the link between what used to be and my oringinal question.
If no-one knows then I will use this method as it seems slightly easier than truning the camera on, automatically starting up iPhoto, importing the pics, then launching Elements and browsing for the pics…. Although if I take account of taking the card out of the camera….
Maybe I’m just too fussy or lazy or something. Maybe I’m just to Mac orientated to see that other ways of working are just as valid.
It just seems daft that the drivers are there (somewhere) and the non apple apps can’t/ don’t make use of them the way I would expect.
Ralph
P.s. Yes I would consider a dock a direct connection.
I think the difference with using a dock is that (if I remember correctly – my kodak can use one but never came with it) the dock doubles as a charging device. As I understand it the time people get into problems is plugging a camera into the USB port just under camera battery power, and the camera runs out of juice mid download. While I do usually use a card reader, I do plug my Canon G3 into the USB (very) occasionally as it has a nifty little feature which allows you to preview the scene on the computer screen and control the camera via the computer. But I make sure that the camera is also plugged into the power at the same time (as the manufacturer advises).
You people here introduced me to the card reader vs. the camera software(Nikon, which worked OK, just have to plug in the camera power supply).
The card reader is so much easier, no matter which OS you are using, just download your camera to your desktop. I found that the card reader for the specific card would not work with other brands sometimes, so be sure to get the generic card reader! from any photo store for 16 bucks or so.
Then your pictures are there on the computer no matter what camera or OS you have, they are sitting in your folder on your desktop.
Then you can go ahead and name, date, sort, import into iPhoto, or whatever or wherever you want. Make it easy,
Jane
Hi,
We seem to be drifting away from the point.
In OS X there are drivers for cameras; how does anyone get non Apple software to use them.
(The work arounds that are suggested are very helpful and have introduced me to another way of doing things. Thanks)
Maybe the way printers keep adding features I’ll find one that not only scans, prints, copies, fqaxes and reads Cards but it will take pictures as well and be fully mains powered.
Maybe that’s were docked cameras are going; all they need to do is to house the dock inside the printer housing.
Ralph
Hi Everyone,
This is what I have found out by looking at various bits of the standard software.
Setup
Open Image Capture.
Select Prefences from the App name menu.
In the Camera tab select Image Capture to Open when camera is connected. You should now close this window.
Underneath you will find the normal Image Capture dialogue window. Select a download folder in the first drop down box (Can make new folder on the way) Select Graphics application (Elements) in Automatic Task drop down. Now quit Image Capture.
Operation.
With camera connected to computer, turn the camera on.
Image Capture will launch, give you the option of changing the setting s above and display (in small text) how many pictures are ready to be downloaded.
You have two options of download "some" or "all". Press one. The pics are downloaded into the folder and then all are launched in the Graphics application (multiple windows).
At present this seems to be the closest I have got to directly accessing the camera or at least getting Elements to launch when I plug the camera in.
Ralph
Hi Ralph,
I’m glad you found something that’ll work for you. Can I ask one question though? Why do you want all those images to open at once in PSE? Why did you want to access the camera directly in the first place? I’m just curious as I’ve never felt (it actually has never occurred to me) the need to do so myself.
Like I said I’m just curious.
In OS X there are drivers for cameras; how does anyone get non Apple software to use them.
The non-Apple software has to be specifically written to access the drivers (as is Image Capture and iPhoto) or the hardware vendor, in the case Kodak, has to write an OS X TWAIN driver. Like you said, though, with the age of your camera this is unlikely.
Joe
Hi Joe,
Why ? Because it was the way I was used to. The camera used to load onto the Desktop like people report their card readers do.
In OS 9 I used PhotoDelux 2 and I le to think I am progressing beyond that. The best way for me to do that is to use Elements. As I could "browse" the camera in OS 9 I was hoping for something similar in OS X. Therefore Iwas looking for a way to stop me going back to old ways/habits as it were. Does that make sense ?? Not to mention that downloading then opening in a graphics app is two moves of data rather than one.
The card reader approach seemed part of the way there… maybe someone with a bit Unix knowledge could link the drivers to the bit that mounts the drives and servers.. Um, I wonder, Airport Extreme and the USB print bridge ???
Just a few ideas.
Thanks everyone for their replies. They have been helpful in pointing out new ways of doing things and reminding me of how I set up the camera opening iPhoto.
Ralph
