Author Archives: tyson robichaud photography

*Everything you need to know about digital photography (well, almost). Two years of tips, tricks and various freebies, revisited.

by in General ramblings, HDR 101, Lighting tutorials, Photographic Study Masters Series, Photography gear, Photography tutorials, Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

With my blog’s second anniversary coming up, I wanted to thank everyone that has stopped by, commented and added to the content.  It’s been a fun couple of years and has been far more educational for me than I’d ever thought it would have been.  I wanted to make a list of my more popular posts as well as some that can help some of us who may be just stumbling into the fold.  Any of us who have recently acquired a new camera and may be wanting to learn how to use it to its potential, or are looking to build up a few post processing techniques, I’ve compiled some of the more useful and popular posts below…

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*Mirrorless mania, or just another brick in the wall?

by in General ramblings, Photography gear and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

I had a read through mirrorless rumors today as I do most everyday and saw that there was an article posted regarding Canon’s recent ideas on a mirrorless system.  Having been a fan and user of the micro 4/3 system as my mirrorless system to date, it had me questioning what I’d like to see in a Canon system.  My thoughts may be off base, but c’mon in if you’re interested…

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*Amsterdam’n it.

by in General ramblings, Travel and tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

It’s funny.  When I mention to folks that I go to Amsterdam on an annual basis, many of them get a glazed look in their eye, the corners of their mouths curl skyward which is inevitably met by a slow motion head bobbing.  I’ve gotten so used to this response that I have a pre-baked answer regarding the trade show I attend, the beauty, history and culture engrained in a city that has lived many lifetimes, survived many events, and how even though I’ve been fortunate to visit this amazing city 10 times now, I have still only been into one solitary coffee shop and I’m taking a Slick Willy on that one.  Of course Amsterdam will always spur a distinct visual to a specific demographic, which makes me realize I might be hanging out with too many mental teenagers… 😉

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*Hill Head, England

by in General ramblings, Travel | 5 Comments

Hill Head, Fareham, England.  A town that resides between the south coast cities of Portsmouth and Southampton, just across the water from the Isle of Wight.  Being that my day job consists of manufacturing components that end up in sails for water faring vehicles, it only makes sense that I’d have a distributor on one of the larger island nations in the world.  Lots of water = lots of boats.

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*Tiffen Dfx 3, one plugin to rule them all?

by in Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

There are no shortages of plugins to help photographers and digital artists streamline their workflow and help fine tune their look. Tiffen Dfx-3 offers an amazing amount of digital filters and user manipulatable options in one plugin. Is it useful to have this many options in one plugin, or is it too much? Well, depending on your needs and budget, this may be the only photoshop plugin you’d ever require. Read on for examples and my tip of the iceberg review on this amazingly filter packed plugin…

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*Share the bokeh, share the love.

by in General ramblings and tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

While at times my blog has dropped a few pegs in the daily pecking order of demands on my attention and immediacy of my prioritization, it has continued to be a vehicle for networking and international friend making.   The connections and conversations have proven to exceed my expectations and I wanted to take a moment to thank the folks who have helped not only promote my ramblings, but help me grow as a photographer and fledgling digital artist…

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*Fractalius for Mac!?

by in Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

 

Topaz Glow

Using Topaz Glow in place of Topaz Clean gives me much better results.

 

No, the developers of Fractalius haven’t quite broken down and offered those of us using macs the plugin we’ve been pining for, but I have found a way to get similar results.  You may have seen a very cool effect in the threads or photo pools in your favorite photography forum.  I, like many, found myself attracted to the effect produced and became discouraged when I found out that the software that enabled the digital artists I’d been admiring, was a Windows only program.  I’m no fanboy, nor do I get paid to push one brand over another so I in no way mean to stoke any ‘which is better’ type conversation, but merely pass along a work around that I’ve found to create a similar effect for very, very little money…

The program is called Topaz Glow, and it’s awesome (see it via Topaz Labs HERE).

You can see my new, user review on Topaz Glow HERE.

 

 

Enjoy and we’d love to see any examples in our flickr group HERE!
Thanks for reading and happy shooting,
Tyson

*Eat, Taste, Love. Like Summer camp for grownups.

by in General ramblings, Travel and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The excitement of leaving home behind, getting to meet new and interesting people all while getting to participate in exciting activities, Summer camp was always a memorable experience.  Flash forward a couple decades and I found myself a married, slower and more experienced version of my childhood self with a much better music collection.  I’d like to think I’ve held onto my sense of wonder and desire for understanding things which I’ve yet to experience, but honestly I think I’ve just become more accustomed to following a certain routine which I’ve garnered a comfortable relationship with.  I’ve learned all that I need to survive, why branch out right?  Well, as I often find when forcing myself out of my self constructed framework, I still enjoy experiencing new things.  Mrs Squeeze and I were fortunate enough to be invited to help document an event that combined all those things I’d enjoyed in years past, but this time it included wine.  Lots of wine.

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*Happy Birthday Alien Skin! 30% OFF EVERYTHING

by in General ramblings | 3 Comments

Alien Skin is turning 18!  To celebrate, they’re offering 30% off of any of their plugins until next Tuesday, September 20th.  I’m partial to Exposure 3, Bokeh 2 and Snap Art 3 myself.  I use those three regularly and have written reviews on them.  Hit the links below if you’re interested in seeing any of these in action.  Otherwise, visit Alienskin.com to download free trials, or purchase their plugins.  Happy birthday to the Alien Skin team, thanks for the great software and here’s to many more years to come!

Read my take on a few of the Alien Skin software plugins:

Exposure 3

Bokeh 2

Snap Art 3

Happy shooting!

Tyson

*Brand new, Topaz B&W Effects

by in Postprocessing techniques, Software tutorials / reviews and tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Just released, B&W Effects is a new black and white conversion plugin from Topaz.   One thing I have to say about the Topaz products are that they’re really a great value.  While so many plugins available can run as much or more than the software programs running them, Topaz has created a variety of affordable plugins with compelling skill sets.

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