paint with light in lightroom 2.0

A few weeks ago I posted an article entitled "wait for it...". I took a look at an image I had initially dismissed while doing a photo walk that ended up being a pretty cool image after I got over my initial reactions and frustrations with the day. Today we take a look at how I shaped the light in this image and how to ad drama, depth and dimension to any image using a few simple tools in Lightroom.

CORRECTION 3/15/09: Holding the "o" key not the zero key but the letter "o" while in the brush or gradient tool brings up the red mask. Thanks so much to reader s_erez for sharing that tip.

Fast Banners in Photoshop

Today we take a look at how to quickly design banners within photoshop. Working with files that measure in feet rather than inches are often so large (assuming you are working in 300dpi) that simple adjustments take minutes to complete. Thanks to smart objects the process can move much smoother and can be completed much faster - check out the video.

Studio Actions - Overview

Today we take a quick look at how our studio uses Actions in our daily workflow. If you don't have a lot of experience with actions this is a great tutorial for you. In weeks to come we will cover beginning to end creation of actions so stay tuned for more info.

Local Correction - Part 2

This weekend we will take a look at some of the localized correction capabilities within Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.x. Today's tutorial focuses on gradient filters that go beyond light to dark and give us the ability to apply a gradient to contrast, saturation, clarity, etc. This also allows us to shape the way a standard vignette is shaped. The greatest part is that we no longer have to move over to Photoshop to attain great image polishing for most images - this is an amazing time saver. Sit back and enjoy part two of this weekends series on Local Correction in Lightroom 2.x

Local Correction - Part 1

This weekend we will take a look at some of the localized correction capabilities within Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.x. Today's tutorial focuses on adjusting and manipulating eye brightness within Lightroom with the brush tool. This tool woks similar in some ways - but drastically different that photoshop's brush tool -- especially if you use a Wacom tablet. I have spent a few months with the software and can honestly say I LOVE the efficiency gained by this tool - so lets take a look in part one of a two part weekend tutorial.

transforming scanned text

Today we take a quick look at converting scanned documents so that the white background is gone leaving the text or logo on it's own layer. It is a pretty basic process but not a lot of people use it. Check it out - it will save you some time and make you layouts look GREAT!

VMWare Fusion + FotoFusion

Today we take a second look at Lumapix FotoFusion. This time it is through the magic of VMWare Fusion. This application allows a user to run Windows (or any operating system for that matter) as a virtual machine on your sustem. If you are a Boot Camp person - VMWare will work for you aswell; allowing you to access the BootCamp partition and run it within the virtual enviroment. I walk through an album I just completed and show how to use some of the BEST features in the program - I will be doing more in the future. ENJOY!

Highlight & Shadow Recovery in RAW

Today we take a quick look at how to recover detail from areas in a photo that have blown out highlights or dark shadows that need to be normalized. Enjoy!

quick look - google chrome

Today we take a look at Google Chrome. Lots of great features that blow away the competition. As we move into a web 2.0 world this is the next evolution in browser technology. Let the browser wars begin!

Photoshop Essentials

Today we take a look at Photoshop Express. Having my system crash last week has been a perspective changer. What happens if you are on a system without Photoshop? What if your computer is issued to you by your company and they will not allow you to install applications? What if your on the road and don't have your copy of Photoshop with you? There are so many situations where a web 2.0 application like Photoshop Express can be a life saver.

image continuity

Today we take a quick look at the importance of preserving image continuity. Any time we modify an image it is super important to retain the context of the image. This is especially true when we remove objects from the image - check it out and enjoy!

Lightroom HELP!!!

Every now and then I need a little help - this would be one of those times. I am having some trouble with Lightroom 2.0 and Photoshop and I need your help! Check out the video - it explains better than typing it out.

wacom 101

Today we take a closer look at the Wacom tablet. A few weeks ago a reader emailed me asking for some introductory information on the Wacom to help spring-load his inertia on the Wacom learning curve. I can't promise anything; however, this tutorial outlines some of the common pitfalls when beginning to use a tablet and goes over proper setup and use for beginners. I hope this helps - enjoy!

wacom 101 material

The end of the video did not encode properly which is why you can hear me talking but can not see the screen. Below are screen shots that illustrate what I am covering.

After selecting Wacom Properties from your control panel or System Preferences on the Mac click on the mapping tab as circled above.

To toggel between pen and mouse mode click the buttons circled above. I recommend staying in Pen mode; however, to each his own.

reset

We tweak and tweak and tweak settings and preferences in Photoshop - here is a quick watch on how to selectively restore some of Photoshop's default settings.

remove technoloy

Today we take a look at removing those pesky distractions. I'm talking about technology in Church sanctuary's. Lets face it - screens, mic jacks, projectors, sound booths, etc don't exactly say elegant and glamorous wedding. Removing distracting technology can be quite a task for any photographer within post production. One thing that we should all take away from this is that a few moments of re composition can mean the difference between hours of retouching and a few minutes of retouching. Enjoy!

Hands On LumaPix FotoFusion

Took a few minutes to walk through some of the cool stuff I have been discovering within LumaPix FotoFusion. I go over some cool features that have totally blown me away. Enjoy

no more shadow

Today we take a look at how to remove that annoying under the eye shadow that shows up in so many photos. It is SOOOO easy and takes very little time - you just have to whip the clone stamp tool into a blending mode that works for you rather than against you. Take a look and enjoy!

bright eyes

When retouching images it is easy to get lost in the details.  We focus on large problems - working from the greater issues down to the smaller ones.  Today we look at how impactfull eyes can be.  In today's video tutorial I brighten the eyes and the entire photo transforms.  We also look at what can happen when you over do an effect ... I do believe Michael Jackson is casting for a remake of Thriller.  Anyways - enjoy the video and as always post any questions / comments in the comments section and feel free to shoot me an email.

spot color 101

Today we take a quick look at spot color.  The technique is everywhere from Hallmark greeting cards, to just about every bridal magazine on the face of the planet.  Being able to choose what part of your photo has color and what part does not is HUGE.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of ways to do spot color that take FOREVER!!!  You know me, I am all about speed and efficiency around edits.  I use Lightroom and Layer masking to achieve my end result - enjoy!