The title just about says it all. There are a multitude of free and cheap apps for smart phones nowadays and they can be more useful than just uploading dozens of pictures of your late night goings on directly to facebook. Read on for downloadable freebies, suggested apps and a little instruction on how to best utilize these tools to come up with fun final images in photoshop…
Officially announced and available immediately for $95usd (still image plugin) or $195usd (video plugin) this new offering from Digital Film Tools gives you the same amazing layer based control as Tiffen Dfx v.3, for 288 different film stock replications. Read on for examples and more info…
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…
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…
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.
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.
At first glance, Topaz Clean 3 seems like a simple, straightforward plugin. A few presets give you distinct looks which blur detail anywhere from slight to cartoony. If utilized properly, it can provide a great skin softening plugin, or an abstract, artistic pixel obliterator. Coming in at under thirty bucks, it might just be the plugin you didn’t know you were looking for.
This is a quick and easy action which I use often. While so many photographers (myself included) spend time and money in software to correct for light falloff, I like to go the other direction and introduce it sometimes. Of course, there are times and places where a darkened vignette doesn’t make sense, and that time, and cost spent to correct it come into play, but for the times you’d like to delicately direct attention to a specified area, this action can help that happen. Also, you can completely determine the “shape” of the vignette to suit the frame. C’mon in and see the difference a vignette can make.
Anyone familiar with my blog knows I’m a fan of artistic, digital image file manipulation. Be that through actions, plugins or standalone software, I like to use my pictures in a variety of different ways. One thing I’ve always wanted to be better at, but was never able to hone my skill, is painting. So, into my life fell digital photography, but there was that tactile, artistic void left behind. I have tried Corel’s Painter, which is an amazing program, but one that requires just short of a masters degree to fully understand, and is in my opinion much better utilized by those who are already decent actual painters. Well, I’ve always wanted to be able to finely tune, and offer digital painting as a conversion for a digital picture file both personally and professionally, and until I tried my hand at Alien Skin’s Snap Art 3, I had resigned myself to putting it on the bucket list. A plugin for either Photoshop or Lightroom, the seamless and intuitive interface can help you produce digital paintings and drawings with a variety of media in a matter of seconds. Read on for initial feelings and examples…
My final result
We’ve been out capturing dynamically diverse scenes in Part 1 of the HDR 101 series, now we get them onto the computer and realize that there are a variety of ways to achieve our vision. From free-ware to thousands of dollars worth of software, there are options. Some are better than others, and some offer a better bang for the buck (in my opinion). Regardless, most all HDR software out there will offer you a free trial, so you can decide which works better for your vision. That said, here are a couple techniques using Photoshop, Everimaging HDR, and a very popular HDR software, Photomatix, along with discount codes if you choose to purchase 🙂 Read on for more…
Tyson Robichaud Photo-blography 