A Quick Q&A From Yesterday’s Premiere of “The Grid”

A big thanks to everybody who tuned in yesterday. It was our biggest debut for any show we’ve ever done, and we’ve gotten loads of positive feedback from viewers, which really made our day!

We also had lots of questions, so I thought I’d addresses a few of them here today in a quick Q&A. Here goes:

Q. I thought you were going to rebroadcast the show?
A. We are.

Q. So where is it?
A. It should appear in iTunes later today, and we hope to have our archived version posted any time now at KelbyTV.com/thegrid. (UPDATE: The premiere episode is now up!)

Q. What’s taking so long?
A. I asked my video crew the same question, and they told me they had to compress over 20GB of data down to something reasonable for the Web and that takes time. They were kind of snippy about it, too.

Q. Why does everything that has to do with video take so darn long?
A. I wish I knew. It drives me nuts, but this probably explains why I shoot stills.

Q. You know, I can’t watch the Grid on my iPad?
A. Actually, you can—you just can’t watch it live as it happens (although we’re working on that). Once it gets posted to iTunes, you can watch the rebroadcast right on your iPad.

Q. Hey, speaking of iPad—how’s that Kelby Training App coming?
A. Hey, look over there—-what’s that shiny object? (Misdirection in progress, because I don’t have a solid answer. It’s a moving target. Anytime I ask someone on my staff about it, they quickly move in a different direction).

Q. Did I hear you mention you’re going to have some drop-in guests via Facetime?
A. Absolutely, and we expect to uncork that genie on next week’s show.

Q. It looked like you guys were inundated with comments from viewers?
A. It was insane, which is great, but bad at the same time, because it was impossible to keep up with the flow of comments, and there were a LOT of great comments. We have a better in-studio plan for managing them next week, so hopefully we’ll get to more comments on the air on next week’s show.

Q. Will the show air at the same time each week?
A. Yup—12:30 PM EST. At least, that’s the plan anyway. And like always, we plan to air a 13-week season.

Q. So Matt won’t be on next week?
A. Yeah, he’s heading to Houston for his Lightroom 3 tour on Wednesday (link), and then he’s off to Amsterdam to do the keynote for Adobe at Professional Imaging 2011, so I invited RC Concepcion to co-host with me, and he graciously accepted, rather than file for unemployment. (Kidding. Just a joke).

Q. How come you don’t get to do cool stuff like that?
A. Because currently my job is chase employees throughout the building until I find the one who will tell me when I’m going to have a Kelby Training iPad App. This is a 10-hour per day job, and so far it has yielded no results. But tomorrow’s always another day.

Q. I kept asking questions about lenses, but you guys never took my question. How come?
A. The show is actually a talk show, about industry topics, the business of Photoshop and photography, gear insights, and stuff like that. For questions like that, post a comment for Larry and RC over at D-Town TV, which is a show about lenses, and cameras, and stuff like that.

Q. Where can I read the comments from the first episode of “The Grid”?
A. On Twitter search for our Twitter hashtag #thegridlive

Q. Do you have the results from the DSLR Video poll yet?
A.
Just got ’em. They are:

Weddings – 4%
Photojournalism – 4%
Self Promotion – 6%
Family/personal – 19%
Other – 11%
Don’t use it – 58%

Q. Scott, what do you see as your main role in this new show?
A. I don’t have any false notions about why I’m there. I’m there because they need some eye candy. Something pretty to look at. I knew that going in, but I’m actually cool with it.

Q. Were you nervous doing a live show like this?
A.
Not at all. Broadcasting live, where every little screw-up has the potential to snowball into a full blown disaster, has a real calming effect. It’s relaxing. Kind of like diffusing a bomb while juggling chainsaws.

Q. I notice you didn’t mention HDR. How come?
A. Anytime you mention HDR, you can almost count the seconds until somebody pulls a knife. There’s always next week’s show though, and with RC co-hosting I think there’s a fair chance somebody’s going to get shanked.

Q. Hey, who designed your set? I really like it.
A. It was designed by our own in-house set designer, video art director, and just amazing all-around designer Nicole Procunier.

Q. It looked like you were in that movie Tron.
A. We were. Well, Matt was. I was at Chili’s having a salad.

Q. I liked that Jeremy Cowart guy. How can I stalk him?
A. F
ollow Jeremy on Twitter (I do) by going to @jeremycowart. He’s totally into Twitter and if you follow him, you’ll never be alone.

Q. Scott, are you on Twitter?
A. Absolutely. You can follow me by going to @scottkelby. Matt is @mattkloskowski.

Q. I tried to follow you on Facebook, but it says you have too many friends
A. What it really means is; I have too many pending friend requests, but since I never post there, I never check my pending friend requests either (My regular Facebook page is just for personal friends (people who have my cell number, with the possible exception of Vanelli). However, I have a public Facebook page where I post and comment regularly at facebook.com/skelby and I hope you’ll stop by, hit the Like button, and then we’re connected like Legos.

Q. Thanks Scott. You will let us know when that Kelby Training App comes out, right?
A. Sorry, I can’t hear you. I’m going through a tunnel.

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      1. So did I! Scott sent me an advance copy before he posted. You didn’t get yours? :)

        –John

  1. Off Topic: We have an extra ticket to Photoshop World that we won and are not going to be able to use. Anyone want to buy it? (ben@bnwilson.com)
    Great job on the show.Anew Monday lunch date.

  2. Hi Scott,

    I did not enjoy the show. Perhaps it’s not for me. I love your instructional stuff. A talk show about the industry seems to be too narrow a focus and not your strongest suit.

    Time will tell if my observation is accurate or not.

    I wish you all the best in this new venture. Perhaps I’m just not the audience for it.

    All the best,
    John

  3. Thanks for a great show yesterday … It was great and I was one of the few ones who was commented by you. I said that I use Twitter to follow photographers to become a better photographer myself. That was pretty cool to be commented ;-) … Am looking forward to next show which I unfortunately probably will miss :-(

  4. Hey Scott,

    Today is my birthday. Thank you for posting yet another hilarious Q&A. It got my day off on the right foot!

    PS – I’ll be checking out THE GRID when available in iTunes. I can’t watch it live because of that job thing I have.

  5. While I enjoy the training content from Kelby Training, I’m frustrated at the long wait for iPad compatibility. My Kelby Training subscription comes due for renewal soon, and I’m not sure I’ll renew if we’re still waiting for the iPad ap. It seems that most everyone else has figured it out, and all of Lynda.com training is iPad compatible without a special ap.

    I’d also like to know if the iPad ap is intended to be a free service for all subcribers, or if there will be an additional charge.

    My view from the outside is that it’s just not a priority for the Kelby Media Group. I see lots of new programs, new sets, new photo shoots a couple times a week, but no progress on iPad compatibility. Your real priorities are what you’re actually working on.

    1. Hi Craig, I don’t want to put words in Scott’s mouth — but here is where the app stands from my point of view (as the app developer)

      To answer your questions — yes there are other apps with video in the app store (Lynda) however because of the quality, quantity, length, demand, and scope of Kelby Training videos, our app falls in a special category for apps in the App store that requires video be delivered via HTTP Live Streaming, which means setting up HTTP Live Streaming servers (kelbytraining.com currently is Flash streaming). We could do what Lynda did and put out an app that is just an HTML website in an app wrapper — but as you can see from the highly negative reviews on Lynda’s app, user experience dramatically falls off a cliff when you do this and user experience is our number one goal. Honestly, Apple has categorized this app more along the lines of Netflix, ABC, and Hulu Plus when it comes to video, vs Lynda or Youtube’s progressive download players.

      The app wil be free and require your Kelbytraining.com login to access content. If you have a subscription to Kelby Training, you will be able to use the app free of charge.

      I understand that from the outside it looks like we are not working on anything but I can guarantee you that is not the case! The people who design sets, photo shoots, even new course material in Kelby Training are not the same people that have to re-encode thousands of TB of video and set up HTTP Live Streaming Servers capable of handling world wide distribution of content. We have all hands on deck working on this problem and I assure you we are going as fast as we can meeting Apple’s standards for delivering video.

      You’ll notice we recently released a Kelby Training standalone course to the app store. While this is not the Kelbytraining.com app, know that it represents a large part of the same code base. Basically, we took the kelby training app and made the video reference locally in the app (500MB download from app store) so we didn’t have to worry about servers.

      So we are making progress, and trust me, this is not only our number 1 priority but might even be priority 0….at least on my list it is

      -Shawn
      (iOS designer/developer of Photoshop World, Kelby Training for iPad, and Kelby Training stand alone courses)

      1. Hi Shawn.

        I understand that developing a iOS ap is a complicated process, and the magnitude of the task is compounded by the volume of data. It’s certainly not anything simple. But, it’s now a full year after the iPad was launched and we’re still waiting.

        I’m not questioning your skill or devotion to the project. I’m challenging Kelby Training’s commitment. I hear Scott say over and over that it’s a top priority, but is it really? Is the team working on the ap and the data really focused full-time on the project? I suspect you’re all working on lots of other jobs at the same time, and this is just one task.

        I’m not proposing that everyone should drop eveything else and only work on the iPad ap. I’m sure Kelby Training is a complicated business with lots of things to do. I’m just saying that Scott shouldn’t present it as a top priority when it’s not.

      2. I’m with Shawn on this, having spoken to Scott about it you can count on one thing – when NAPP/Kelby training do something they do it properly and with 100% commitment to its members – when this App is ready it will be head and shoulders above anything else out there and worth the wait.
        Even if you didn’t renew now there will be more content if/when you do when its APP friendly.
        Shawn is working and developing a great product and I for one will buy an iPad when it is ready to roll out.

      3. Again, I’m not complaining about the developers or the quality of NAPP’s services. My gripe is with Scott. He’s the one who runs the company. He’s the one who’s been promoting the iPad app on his blog for the last 6 months, and he’s the one joking that no one can tell him why it’s taking so long, or when it will be done.

        The iOS operating system has been around for years. The iPad has been out for a year. Scott’s been promising an app for 6 months. It’s time to make clear statements and deliver on the promise.

        Thanks for providing a forum for loyal but frustrated NAPP and Kelby Training members.

      4. Hi Craig
        Whilst I am not an iPad owner (yet) it would seem that you took your Kelby Training subscription 5 months before Scott “promised” the iPad App version (assuming it was a year and not a monthly?). Therefore you’ve always been aware that viewing the classes would be on a computer. As I see it Kelby Training want to make the whole back catalogue available and thats a lot of video to reprocess. And it’s free for Kelby Training subscribers. Another feature they provide as well as all the free podcasts, webinars etc.
        As frustrating as some people would be getting waiting for the App you have to understand that its Scott’s way to discuss this with ‘humour’, its how he writes. I’m sure he is as frustrated as you, even more so because its a service his company wants to provide but with 100% dedication and service – the usual guarantee with NAPP/Kelby.
        I for one would love to see it ready, and when it is I want to get the iPad 2 to add the feature to my already existing subscription.
        It will come and when it does you’ll love Scott again I’m sure ;)

      5. I love Scott but have to second Craig’s frustration. I read Scott’s post about his iPad app being “around the corner” last July and just assumed that it would released by the time that the new iPad2 was released. I bought the iPad 2 today, searched the store and was sadder than a fat kid in a footrace. Seriously, I’ve been bragging about this app to people for the past 2 months in anticipation. From a marketing perspective, it is important not to make empty promises even if well intentioned.

    2. Now that Apple has shown their full hand and will be requiring a 30% cut of the money from apps like Kelby Training I would not be surprized to see the folks over in accounting pull the plug on the app entirely. Paying Apple $4 to $5 per month for every subscription that renews via the app is a mighty high price to pay and if Kelby Training can absorb these costs then that means that all the non Ipad subscribers are paying too much.

      I was going to purchase an Ipad2 but after seeing that the Kindle app and the Netflix app might end up being pulled due to the 30% cut that Apple was going to take I backed off. My advise is to start looking into going with the Android devices because they are Flash friendly and don’t require a 30% cut off the top.

  6. Catching the posted video … was on a shoot during the live broadcast … it looks great full-screen on the iPad … much as I imagine the Kelby Training app will look … once it is ready … ;-)

  7. Help!

    Not sure why, but the video is not loading for the premiere Grid episode. And I see nothing in iTunes for the podcast either. Sad day, sad day.

    Could it be because I am from outside the U.S.?

  8. Thoroughly enjoyed the show! The idea of a talk show on general topics is a good one. You hit many of the issues that go through my mind…like video…OK, now what???

    Potential topic: While you jested/jousted with Jeremy on his successful career, might want to talk about the differences in his career path (Commercial = PAID) and “Hey, look at this shot…wanna buy it?

    It is a BIG choice with gnarly ramifications…

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