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Mixing monochrome with color is a fun technique, and one of my personal guidelines about any software use is to have fun with your photography. In all of the manipulations and screen shots in this article I used Adobe Photoshop (www.adobe.com), but you can use any image-editing program that lets you apply Layers. There are a number these days, including the less-expensive Adobe Photoshop Elements and even plug-in programs like onOne Software’s Perfect Layers 2 (www.ononesoftware.com) that allow you to work in Layers from programs like Lightroom and Aperture, and Nik Software (www.niksoftware.com) products that make any adjustment you make a Layer within the file itself.

Many of us continue to look for a Raw converter or image-editor that is easy to work with right out of the box. ACDSee Pro version 5 for Windows (www.acdsee.com) may offer the solution you seek. It’s a no-nonsense Raw converter that also offers image-editing under one roof—if in a semi-detached house.

The latest iteration of ACDSee Pro for Windows presents a slightly revamped interface, with 5 key modules, each with its own set of Menu commands. You enter the program in Manage mode where you can import images from any media or device onto your working drive and catalog them at that time or catalog and work with existing files in place, without importing them. All popular formats, including 16-bit Raw from numerous cameras, are supported for import and export, but not DNG export. If you move image files after cataloging or working on them, do so from within ACDSee to ensure that all linked files, notably XMP metadata, are moved together.

On The Cover
In this month’s issue we are featuring an insider’s look at the portrait photography business from a number of pros who have made their mark in the field. We’re adding in a number of lighting tests on strobes and monoblocs, as well as light modifiers, plus we’ve got lab tests on a Sony SLT and two compact cameras. Plus our photokina reports continue with a look at some really fascinating cameras.

You can create remarkable multicolored and monochromatic abstracts by dropping individual drops of food coloring in to water. The way the color mixes with the water is endlessly fascinating, constantly changing, and it produces images that are worthy of being framed.

We spent a full week in Las Vegas earlier this month exploring the crowded halls of the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show, but it only took about an hour to confirm that the long-discussed convergence of mobile phones, tablets and camera technology is no longer a theoretical topic for discussion; it is a full-fledged reality. As you might expect, iPhone/iPad accessories targeted at the general consumer abounded, but there was also a wide array of innovative technology for the advanced photographer as well.

One of the more interesting projects I’ve explored in photography is shooting birefringent crystals. Birefringence is the splitting of a light ray by a crystal into two components that are at different velocities and are polarized at right angles to each other. What this means in terms of photography is that when light passes through the crystals, you can see rainbow colors in the unique and beautiful forms that make up the crystal.

It is disappointing when you travel somewhere hoping for beautiful weather, and instead of sunrise and sunset lighting, beautiful cloud formations, and comfortable temperatures, you face a rainstorm, a dull sky, or even a blizzard. While the pictures that you had in mind may not be possible, there are always great photographs that can be taken. It’s just a matter of expanding your thinking.