Our son, the baseball pitcher. This is my favorite image for June 25.
Favorite Photo, June 25
Category Archives: Photoshop
Sarah’s Baby Bump
From my point of view a woman looking forward to the birth of her child is one of the most beautiful things on the planet.
We created this image in my studio. The only light source is the diffused light coming through the translucent blind covering the window directly behind Sarah. It gives me a wrap around light that I love to work with.
A Post is a Post is a Post. Or is It?
It all started with a humorous post on Facebook that I liked and shared. Then it led to all kinds of Photoshop variations on Fark with some interesting detours along the way.
Better Images: Adobe’s Improved “Process Version” for Adobe Camera Raw
Vermilion Lakes Sunset, new and old ACR “process versions”. Click on the photo to see a larger image.
Adobe has a new “process version” for Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). This means better image processing for your RAW camera files.
The Best of the Best: Recommendations For The Best Photography Equipment, Software, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Online Photo Labs and More
The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.
It’s the time of year that the number of photo questions I receive increases dramatically. Many of them have to do with “What is the best . . . .” They usually come from someone shopping for a photographer, or photographers shopping for themselves.
So once again here is my list of “best of the best” of articles recommending the best photo gear, software, books, DVDs, calendars, online photo labs, and a whole lot more. I will revise some of these articles in November and December, but most of the advice is good as it stands. The best books on photographic composition or the best photo labs haven’t changed in the last 12 months. As I rewrite articles I will update the links below. You can check the date at the top of each article.
Originally posted Nov. 21, 2015. Updated December 11, 2015.
The Best Image Editing Software
Adobe Photoshop Elements 13, Adobe Photoshop CC, and Lightroom 5
Your photos will look their very best if you optimize them with high quality image editing software. Short list:
Adobe Photoshop Elements 13, 12, or 11*
Adobe Photoshop CC or CS6*
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC, 6, 5 or 4*
*The software versions listed above include all the versions that use Adobe’s newest “process version”. See the section below on Adobe’s new process version for more information.
Better Images: Adobe’s Improved “Process Version” for Adobe Camera Raw
Vermilion Lakes Sunset, new (top) and old (bottom) ACR “process versions”. Click on the photo to see a larger image.
Adobe has a new “process version” for Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). This means better image processing for your RAW camera files.
Mastering Photoshop: Retouching, Part Two
Two essential and challenging Photoshop skills are Masking and Compositing. Fortunately for all of us out in Photoshop land, Katrin Eismann has written a masterful book on developing these skills, Photoshop Masking & Compositing.
Mastering Photoshop: Advanced Color Correction, Part Two
Everything you need to know about Dan Margulis is in Advanced Color Correction, Part One. After you have devoured the book I recommend in that article, you will know why you need to get Photoshop LAB Color: The Canyon Conundrum and Other Adventures in the Most Powerful Colorspace.
Mastering Photoshop: Advanced Color Correction, Part One
If you want to master color in Photoshop, Dan Margulis is the best of the best. He is one of the first three persons to be named as a member of the Photoshop Hall of Fame. And the book to get is Professional Photoshop: The Classic Guide to Color Correction (5th Edition). It is well worth finding on the used market (which you can do via my photography store). What Margulis teaches you to do with color is amazing. The before and after images will make your jaw drop.
Mastering Photoshop & Lightroom: Adobe Camera Raw (ACR)
Jeff Schewe and Bruce Fraser on RAW Camera Files
A lot of the quality of your final image will be determined by what you do with your RAW files when you open them in Adobe Camera RAW (ACR) which comes with Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Photoshop Elements, and Adobe Lightroom.
The Best Books: Mastering Photoshop Series
If you want to master Photoshop, a complete course can be found in the books recommended below. If you are new to Photoshop it wold be best if you started with one of the books in The Best Digital Photography Books or Lightroom & Photoshop: The Essential Books before you tackle the books below.
The Best Image Editing Software
Your photos will look their best if you optimize them with some good image editing software.
Short list:
Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 or 11
Adobe Photoshop CC or CS6
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 or 4
Portrait Retouch in 6 Minutes
My first YouTube video. I did a video screen capture of a 90 minute retouching job and sped up the video 16x to a little over 6 minutes (not counting opening and closing titles). Watch it here or see a larger version at YouTube.
Adobe’s Improved “Process Version” for Adobe Camera Raw
Vermilion Lakes Sunset, new and old ACR “process versions”. Click on the photo to see a larger image.
Adobe has a new “process version” for Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). This means better image processing for your RAW camera files.
The Best Image Editing Software
Adobe Elements 11, Lightroom 4, and Photoshop CS6
Your photos will look their best if you optimize them with some good image editing software.
Short list:
Adobe Photoshop Elements 11 or 10
Adobe Photoshop CS6 or CS5
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 or 3
Bobcat: Fast and Simple Tonality Adjustments with Adobe Camera Raw
Bobcat, Before and After a Tonality Adjustment
With the right software, you can do amazing things. There are some lighting situations where it is almost impossible, and certainly not practical, to get the correct white balance setting in the camera. This bobcat photo is an example. The best, fastest, and simplest solution is to get the right while balance setting after the fact using software like Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). A few minutes work with ACR can make a huge difference in the look of your photo.
Q & A: Great Gray Owls and Birding at Whitefish Point
Great Gray Owl, Whitefish Point, Michigan’s U.P.
My photo of a Great Gray Owl and the story behind the photo inspired the e-mail question below. My answer follows, along with some additional information, visuals, and links.
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP SERIES
If you want to master Photoshop, a complete course can be found in the books in the posts below.
FOUNDATIONS
Begin with one or two of the basic to intermediate books in the next post. After that, jump into the list of advanced books in the posts below.
ADVANCED SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES
Your image processing begins with how you process your RAW files with Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). One of your best guides is Bruce Fraser and co-author Jeff Schewe. What you do with your RAW files determines how much or how little you can do with the file later on in Photoshop. You maximize your possibilities later on by making the right choices in ACR. Make the wrong choices, and you have limited what you can do later on.
BASIC AND INTERMEDIATE BOOKS ON PHOTOSHOP AND DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
What do you do if you aren’t ready for the advanced books I recommend in the MASTERING PHOTOSHOP series? Look at the books below. Why did I lump Photoshop together with digital photography? Because many of the basic to intermediate books cover both.
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP: RETOUCHING, PART TWO
Two essential and challenging Photoshop skills are Masking and Compositing. Fortunately for all of us out in Photoshop land, Katrin Eismann has written a masterful book on developing these skills, Photoshop Masking & Compositing
You will learn about selection tools and techniques, how to use masks and layers, advanced selection techniques for difficult subjects like human hair, and how to do flawless composites.
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP: RETOUCHING, PART ONE
Katrin Eismann is a world class expert on photo retouching. She is one of the best of the best. In 2005 she was inducted into the Photoshop Hall of Fame. Anything she writes should be high on your reading list if you are serious about making the most of your Photoshop skills.
Adobe Photoshop Restoration & Retouching (3rd Edition)
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP: ADVANCED COLOR CORRECTION, PART TWO
Everything you need to know about Dan Margulis is in Advanced Color Correction, Part One.
After you have devoured the book I recommend in that article, you will know why you need to get Photoshop LAB Color: The Canyon Conundrum and Other Adventures in the Most Powerful Colorspace
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP: ADVANCED COLOR CORRECTION, PART ONE
If you want to master color in Photoshop, Dan Margulis is the best of the best. He is one of the first three persons to be named as a member of the Photoshop Hall of Fame. And the book to get is Professional Photoshop: The Classic Guide to Color Correction (5th Edition)
MASTERING PHOTOSHOP: ADOBE CAMERA RAW
If you aren’t shooting RAW files with your digital camera (as opposed to jpeg files), you should think about the advantages of shooting in RAW. Read the article RAW vs JPEG Camera Files at my photography web site.
A lot of the quality of your final image will be determined by what you do with your RAW files when you open them in Adobe Camera RAW (ACR).
RESIZING PHOTOS FOR THE WEB WITH PHOTOSHOP
Bay Area Bridge. Photo © Jim Doty Jr.
I was asked recently how to re-size images for the web using Photoshop. The person asking the question was not only having problems resizing images, but the photos looked desaturated with muted colors. My instructions (below) are for using Photoshop CS3 for Windows, so some menu items may be a little different in other versions of Photoshop or with Photoshop Elements, but the basic principles and steps are the same.
My reply follows.
CONTENT AWARE SCALING WITH PHOTOSHOP CS4
Every new version of Photoshop has one or more new goodies to make it tempting enough to upgrade. With Photoshop CS4, one of those new goodies is “Content Aware Scaling”. It is much easier to look at than try to describe. You can see it in action here.
WHAT TO DO WHEN PHOTOSHOP QUITS WORKING DUE TO LICENSING FAILURE
You bought Adobe Photoshop CS3 or CS4 and it worked fine for a year or two. Then you get this message:
“Licensing for this product has stopped working. You cannot use this product at this time. You must repair the problem by uninstalling and then reinstalling this product or contacting your IT administrator or Adobe customer support for help.”
You uninstall and reinstall Photoshop and it still doesn’t work. Now you are really frustrated, but you try uninstalling and reinstalling again. No luck. Now what?
FIXING A COLOR CAST IN PHOTOSHOP
There is a quick and easy way to use Photoshop to correct for a color cast in a photo. It is described in today’s email issue of Digital Darkroom Questions (DDQ) and is reproduced (with permission) below.