We’ve known about the new integration of Adobe’s Frame.IO into Fujifilm cameras since October of last year. To recap, it will let photographers shoot and share photographs straight to the cloud and let them collaborate with editors and others in real-time. Ratings can be given, feedback, editing via Adobe’s software, etc. It’s nice because this means that there’s another way to ensure that a client isn’t over your shoulder all the time.
All of these features are coming to the Fujifilm XH2 and Fujifilm XH2s. Here’s an excerpt from our report on the demo we saw back in October:
The Fujifilm XH2s will work with Frame.IO to send files seamlessly to the web. This will come via a firmware update to the XH2s, where a new menu will be unlocked. Youâll be able to send RAWs, TIFFs, JPEGs, and HEIC files. Plus, if you want, you can also send video files. When theyâre sent to Frame.IO, the files will render in real-time. I saw a RAW file come in within 20 seconds in a demo we got. Frame.IO is then accessed via your phone, tablet, or computer. From what weâre told, it will come with further integration into Lightroom and Photoshop. So basically, you can wirelessly tether to Lightroom from anywhere in the world.
We think that this is awesome because it will let photographers get their images to clients faster. However, on the other side of things, I wonder how many photographers will truly use this. I’m very sure that newsrooms and some ad agencies will need it. But lots of photographers, in an effort to combat AI’s infection of the arts, are slowing down a bit more to be more creative. Of course, they don’t need to use this type of stuff. It’s wonderful how photographers will be able to work with their newsrooms to get photos to the press outlets faster. And I imagine that it’s going to change newsrooms across the world.
Specifically, Frame.IO is built into the cameras with a firmware update. That’s to come soon.
Of course, for this to be really used to the fullest, it means that the photographers need to be present, and so too do the editors and marketers. They can’t be doing a million other things at the same time. So combining this with something like a Facetime call, Google Meet, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams might really make the integration even faster unless the markets and editors are really tied into their devices.
At the moment, the potential client base will be extremely slim. That’s because:
- You have to use Fujifilm Cameras to realize the fullest benefits unless you tether your camera directly to a computer.
- If you use Fujifilm cameras, you need to have the XH2 and the XH2s.
- Lots of newsrooms work with Canon, Sony, or Nikon specifically. Some let their photographers use whatever they want. But Fujifilm has never announced that they’ve become the exclusive partner for a newsroom. Sony, on the other hand, has. And we’ve heard in casual conversations that other brands, like Canon, are in works with Frame.IO right now.
We’re very curious to see how this unfolds in the future for photographers. Frame.IO is a very B2B centered product. And we don’t see the wide majority of photographers using it. But we think that there are situations where it will make a whole lot of sense for photographers to use it with their clients. Of course, everyone has to be relatively well trained on how to use Frame.IO. And luckily, it’s not that difficult to do.
With so much extra collaboration on images like this, I think that there will be a lot more questions put forward about copyrights on the images. Work-for-hire contracts are typically ones where the client owns the copyright unless the contract states otherwise. I can totally see a situation where a photographer more or less becomes robotic to the client. Hopefully, that doesn’t happen. Instead, they’ll need to be focused and present — which is such a challenge in today’s world.
