From right now through November 26th, all Topaz plugins are 50% off!!! Kind of insane actually seeing that so many of them are already so realistically priced.
Click HERE to see the Plugins that Topaz offers (listed at full price) and enter the code “CyberSavings” at checkout to cut the price in half!
I was asked to review FotoMagico4 recently. Knowing nothing about the software, I found it an interesting task when I read up on what FotoMagico was. Being a parent to two young kids, I’m always looking for fun ways to document our events or outings for family and the sake of familial posterity. Being a photographer, I’m always on the lookout for ways to present a streamlined visual product. Coming at it from either of my personal directions, FotoMagico seems to tick all the boxes. Learning a software program from the ground up can be daunting, so I put my head down and got to work learning this new version from Boinx Software. Luckily, it proved to be pretty intuitive once I got going. Read on for my experiences and opinions…
The dream of many hard working creative professionals is one born of independence, creative control, self direction, recognition and collaboration with artistic minds enabling a motivating force to push you forward in your craft. There is something to be said about being your own boss, setting your own hours and managing your own business, but this requires you to be a tireless jack of all trades. You must master the business side and all that goes along with it all while maintaining a creative drive, not to mention drumming up business. It is easy to burn out, or fall into a rut, ultimately sacrificing something along the way. What if you could gather great friends, all working in various creative fields with complimentary skill sets to collaborate on projects which benefit greatly from each individual part, making a much stronger whole? I would like to introduce you to the ELK Collective… C’mon in.
A couple years back, Mrs Squeeze had asked me if we could produce a silhouette of our new little guy (Little Baby What’s His Face, or LBWHF for short). I hadn’t done it before, but figured it would be pretty simple and we’ve enjoyed it so much, we just did one for our new little guy (The Amazing Pantso, or just Pansto for short). We shot each of their silhouettes at almost the exact same age (just about 5 months) and it is really cool to see just how different they are, well, how different their physical profiles are anyway. Read on for a step by step on how to accomplish this…
Just a quick comparison pre and post firmware v1.5 update showing the difference that the IBIS (In Body Image Stabilization) makes when using adapted, third party lenses in video mode on the Olympus OM-D E-M5.
The above video was shot using a Canon FD 55mm f/1.2 SSC lens adapted to the OM-D E-M5 with segments using firmware v1.2 to show the lack of IBIS support compared to the same setup after the firmware update to v1.5. I was walking with the camera held out in front of me to further amplify the differences that the IBIS can make for video. I would certainly suggest standing still, IBIS or not when shooting video because nobody wants to watch this type of vomit inducing drivel, with the distinct exception of gear nerds like myself, in small, short doses of course.
To properly engage the IBIS when using adapted lenses for video, you’ll need to manually enter the focal length (just as we have to for still shooting) in the Image Stabilization sub menu.
Along with the added IBIS support in video capture for third party lenses, the update included a muting (or more accurately a disengagement) of the IBIS humming when the camera was inactive prior to entering sleep mode. Unfortunately, we didn’t see some of the other issues we’d raised last week addressed (like focus peaking, high ISO banding, etc) but these are two good changes and hopefully are merely the beginning of the firmware update chain for this camera.
Smooth, yet refined with an impeccable attention to detail.
Noise has become less and less an issue for digital photographers over the last few years as sensor technology gets better, in camera processing is capable of shouldering more of that load than ever before and digital asset management software/RAW converters are up to the task for much of the noise reduction needs. Still, with analog to digital information translation, there is an inherent signal:noise issue that can always be further helped by a good noise reduction software. Add to that, pro-sumer 35mm format models breaching the Medium Format pixel counts, or compact sensors pushing the pixel pitch to near immeasurable dimensions, there is, and will be a need for a manual noise reduction control through post processing. While Lightroom and Aperture have good noise reduction algorithms, they are the swiss army knife of image processing, giving you many handy tools, but what happens when you need a power tool? That little Swiss army knife’s mini-saw ain’t gonna cut through that noise riddled log for you, you’ll need a chainsaw. Enter, Topaz DeNoise5, your powerful, noise reducing chainsaw. You can download a free trial, or purchase DeNoise. If interestedclick HERE to go to Topazlabs.com. I’ve used Noise Ninja and Nik Define in the past, and I think both of those have just been pushed out of my workflow. Read on for examples and my take…
It’s a hard thing to admit to myself really. Being that I’ve been in love with the Lumix 20mm f/1.7 pancake lens for so long, I never really thought about acquiring a lens for the Micro 4/3 format that provided such a similar angle of view. Now that I have, I must make a decision, which do I keep…
If you’ve been on the fence about any of the Alien Skin plugins, now might be a great time to pull the trigger. Of course, they offer all of their plugins as full featured, free trials to try before you buy. You have about a week, get at it!
I’m a big fan, if you’d like to read my reviews on some of their plugins that I use and suggest, hit the links below:
You can purchase any of the plugins, or bundles directly from Alienskin.com
I know this seems a bit like a sale’s pitch, and something I try not to do with the blog, but I love these plugins, the company they come from and both Jeff and Jimmy are really cool guys, so support ’em if you can.
As much as I do love this camera, I find myself absolutely frustrated with it in certain situations. While the squeaky wheel is normally the most annoying, it is also the one that gets the grease. Let us become a loud enough wheel so that Olympus may take notice and deliver some updates to make this camera all it can be.
It’s been a while dear blog reader, and life has certainly been busy. The addition of a new miniature human to our familial brood has helped evaporate most every spare moment of late, but that hasn’t stopped me from taking pictures, merely from writing about them.
Tyson Robichaud Photo-blography 