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Peter K. Burian  |  Jun 21, 2005  | 

In
certain lighting conditions, images can exhibit a strong
overall "color cast" or tint, as in this
image, made near sunset on a hazy day with a high air
pollution level. (Auto white balance.)

Photos © 2003, Peter K. Burian, All Rights Reserved

...

George Schaub  |  Jul 26, 2005  | 

If you have Photoshop Elements or the full version of Photoshop
you can also use a tool called "Save for Web" to resize your images.
(Note that other programs might also have this feature under a different name.)
This is an automated way to get your images the right size for sharing. To get
to this toolbox just go to File>Save for Web, with the image already open
on your desktop.

...

Howard Millard  |  Jul 26, 2005  | 

1.

It was the swinging `60s,
I was in college, and many wore a rainbow of tie-dyed colors. What had
been "normal" was being challenged on every front, and that
included photography. The bulging, startling perspective of the fisheye
lens added an otherworldly look to album covers for rock musicians like
Jimi Hendrix and Cream. Now, decades later, just as bell bottom pants
recently returned for yet another cycle, fisheye images have again reared
their heads in both print and television ads. A fisheye lens, of course,
is one that takes in an extremely wide angle of view, often 180º,
and appears as a circle within the black image frame. Yes, there are rectilinear
full frame fisheyes (which give a rectangular, not round image), but to
my mind, they're merely ultra-wide angle lenses. A true fisheye,
on the other hand, is a unique special effects tool which renders a unique
circular perspective of the world.



When I was a student, fisheye lenses cost a small fortune (some still
do). What to do? I drilled a hole in the center of a lens cap and glued
a brass door peephole from a hardware store to it. Snapping the lens cap/fisheye
lens over a 50mm or wider angle standard lens, I got a small 180º
circular fisheye image in the center of the black frame. Quality was not
great, but the effect was spectacular.

...

Howard Millard  |  Jul 26, 2005  | 


The
original photo, shot in the studio with Paul C. Buff electronic
flash on Fujichrome Sensia slide film, is sharp throughout.
Model: Heidi McAllister.

Photos 2002, Howard Millard, All Rights Reserved

In ads, book covers and magazines,
you've seen pictures where part of the subject jumps out at you
because it's sharp, but most of the image is way out of focus. The
technique really directs your attention to the part of the subject that's
sharp, and it adds a contemporary flair and sense of style. Traditionally,
this effect was achieved by using extremely shallow depth of field with
a medium format or large view camera. Today, however, you can create it
digitally in a few minutes and apply it to any existing photo made with
any camera, or to any print that you can scan into your computer.



I
selected the area I want to keep sharp with the Elliptical
Marquee selection tool.

Remember, once you've drawn the selection, you can
reposition it by dragging inside the selected area. Next,
feather the selection.

...

Shutterbug Staff  |  Jul 26, 2005  | 

Corel Corporation has kicked off the "Summer of Painter" with two announcements
regarding Corel Painter IX. The Corel Painter IX 9.1 update is now available as
a free download for all Painter IX customers. The update provides customers with
new features and enhancements including:



Dual Monitor Support for Windows Customers running Windows 2000 and Windows XP
can now also experience the same level of dual monitor support enjoyed by Mac
OS X customers. Palettes, toolbars, and the toolbox can now be moved outside the
application window and dialog boxes appear on the same monitor as the active canvas.




New Art Pen Brushes Following the introduction of the Corel Painter IX Art Pen
Brush Pack this spring, Corel has introduced five additional brushes to take advantage
of the powerful realism and control of the Wacom 6D Art Pen. Customers who download
the 9.1 update will receive 10 brushes in total, which include the five brushes
previously introduced in the Art Pen Brush Pack.



Enhanced Dab Type Support for 'Rotation' Expression In addition to adding new
brushes to take advantage of the Wacom 6D Art Pen, Corel Painter IX 9.1 offers
rotation expression with the following Dab types: Circular, Captured Dab, Artists'
Oils, Camel Hair, Flat, Liquid Ink Camel Hair, Liquid Ink Flat, Watercolor Camel
Hair, Watercolor Flat, Palette Knife, Liquid Ink Palette Knife, and Watercolor
Palette Knife.



Enhanced Support for Mac OS X Tiger Corel Painter IX 9.1 now provides even better
overall performance when running on Tiger. This enhancement complements the Corel
Painter IX Spotlight plugin introduced earlier this spring that enables customers
to take full advantage of Tiger's advanced searching capabilities with their Painter
files.



To download the Corel Painter IX 9.1 update and to access a full list of included
enhancements, please visit www.corel.com/painterix/91update.



Corel has also introduced the Corel Painter Open Upgrade Program for customers
in North America and the United Kingdom. Until August 31, 2005, the Corel Painter
IX upgrade policy has been broadened to include any graphics or imaging software
package from the following companies: Adobe, Macromedia, ACD Systems, Corel (including
Corel Painter Classic, Painter Essentials, and any previous version of Painter),
Microsoft, and Apple. For a limited time, Corel Painter IX is available through
Corel and participating resellers at the upgrade suggested retail price of $229
a savings of $200 off the full suggested retail price of $429. Resellers may sell
for less. For more details, please visit www.corel.com/painter/openupgrade.
...

Jon Canfield  |  Aug 30, 2005  | 

All Photos © 2004, Jon Canfield, All Rights Reserved

...

Jon Canfield  |  Aug 30, 2005  | 

As the price of wide format photo printers like the ones offered by Epson,
Canon, and HP continues to come down, more and more digital photo enthusiasts
are adding them to their digital darkrooms. For less than $400, you can now
print photo quality 11x14" images (actually, up to 13x19), saving money
and time without sending these prints out to a photo lab.

...

George Schaub  |  Aug 30, 2005  | 

The promise of digital imaging is that you can get one-touch corrections on
your photographs, making it easy to create the best images you can from every
picture you take. The phrase: "I won't worry about white balance,
exposure or contrast, etc....I'll fix it in Photoshop" is commonly
heard, but it isn't always the best course. If you shoot in Raw mode you
can fix anything, even exposure compensation, later, but not everyone wants
to go through the steps of working with Raw converters and all those sliders
and options. That's where the supposed magic of "auto" fixes
come into play, and yes, there are times when it can do wonders. Today, cameras
even have auto red-eye fix and amazing adjustments for backlighting problems.

...

George Schaub  |  Sep 27, 2005  | 

The
Sprint PCS Samsung Multimedia Phone MM-A800



Much ado has been made of late of how camera phones will gut the lower-end digicam
market and how everyone will dump their 1-3MP digicams for these amazing multimedia
products. Having shot with a sub 1-megapixel phone a year back I shrugged and
moved on, deciding it was a fun toy that some might find useful but that image
quality was poor, even when compared with the lowliest of blister-pack dedicated
cameras. Word has gotten around that new, higher-megapixel phonecams are coming,
with 7 MP being the figure touted on one model available now overseas. In addition,
we just got word that Kodak is finally going to release their EasyShare One,
subject of a press conference last January, which is said to be a camera first
and then a web or phone connecting pictuire sender second. With all that in
mind I was intrigued by the new Samsung 2MP camphone sent to us by the folks
at Sprint, one that links up with Sprint's PCS Picture mail service.

...

Howard Millard  |  Sep 27, 2005  | 


1

Photos © 2003, Howard Millard, All Rights Reserved

Adding a reflection of your
subject can double the impact of your digital photo, transforming an
ordinary shot into something memorable and striking. Using tools in
Adobe Photoshop, Elements, and other image-editing programs, it's
not too difficult to double your pixel power. Just follow these nine
steps. I used Photoshop, and the procedure is similar in Elements or
other programs.



2

...

Howard Millard  |  Sep 27, 2005  | 


To
achieve the eerie, glowing effect of infrared black and
white film, I applied several techniques in Adobe Photoshop.

Photos © 2001, Howard Millard, All Rights Reserved

Are you attracted to the
mysterious, otherworldly glow of black and white infrared film? But
you've heard that it's a bit of a hassle to shoot and print.
Well, here's how to emulate that exotic infrared (IR) look digitally
starting with any color original.



Why not shoot IR film to begin with? Kodak High Speed Infrared film
is a challenge. First, to avoid fogging, it should be stored in the
refrigerator and must be loaded and unloaded in the darkroom or a changing
bag. Then, for the best effect, you must shoot with a deep red or opaque
filter over your lens. Once you've focused, you must re-focus
the lens manually to the infrared focus point. Since your camera meter
doesn't measure IR light, it's advisable to bracket exposures
widely. In the field, you must load and reload your camera in a light-tight
changing bag. After the film has been processed, the negatives are extremely
contrasty and often require extensive dodging and burning to get a good
print.



I
started with this original color 35mm slide shot on Fuji Sensia
II and scanned it on a Polaroid Sprintscan 35 Plus scanner
at 2700dpi for a 26MB file.

...

George Schaub  |  Oct 25, 2005  | 

It's 10PM: Do You Know Where Your Pixels Are?

...

Howard Millard  |  Oct 25, 2005  | 

Could your portraits be enhanced
by the mysterious, otherworldly glow of a black and white infrared (IR) effect?
In the past, pre-digital darkroom, the only way you could get the IR look was
shooting special IR film, quite a challenge to expose, process, and print correctly.
Working digitally you can avoid many of the pitfalls and gain much more control
in the bargain. Here's how to emulate that exotic infrared look digitally:




You can start with a scan of any color slide, print, or negative you've
shot with your film camera or, even easier, with a color file from your digital
camera. If you're starting with a print, negative, or slide, scan it in
RGB color mode. Once you've got the digital file, open it in Adobe Photoshop
CS (or some earlier versions) to follow the steps outlined here. You can also
achieve the effect with Adobe Elements 2 or other advanced image-editing programs,
but the names of some tools or dialog boxes may be slightly different. Always
work on a copy to preserve your original scan. In fact, with this technique,
it is a good idea to make two or three copies in order to try different settings
in search of the effect you like best. Just follow these steps and you'll
be on your way to easy IR.

1.
I began with this original color file shot in Raw mode with a
Canon Digital Rebel 6-megapixel digital SLR with a Canon 18-55mm
lens at 55mm (equivalent to a 90mm lens in 35mm format). File
size: 18MB. (Model: Riley Messina.)

...

George Schaub  |  Dec 27, 2005  | 

Commentary

A Look Back: Big Changes, but Some Things Have Remained the Same

by George Schaub

Thinking about the past is natural at this time of year, when part of what
we do is recognize change as being part of the natural cycle of life. In photography,
massive changes have taken place that affectedus...

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