PhotoTools 2 Professional Edition by OnOneSoftware
I don’t like tshirts as I have so many of them, but when I was handed a free OnOneSoftware black tshirt at the NAPP conference last year, it become one of my favorites. Who cared that I didn’t use their tools! After all, I already had Nik Software’s Color Efex Aperture plugin and Alien Skin’s SnapArt plugin.
Well, I finally broke down and decided to take some of OnOneSoftware tools out for a test drive. My first review is on PhotoTools 2 Professional Edition. It can be purchased alone or as part of OnOneSoftware’s Plug-in Suite. In short, it’s a FANTASTIC tool that allows you to apply one or more effects to your image. So, what type of effects are there? Literally hundreds! Photo tinting, toning, black and white, sepia, focus, portrait retouch, artistic, vintage, HDR, and glowing, are just some of the basic types of effects. Read the rest of this entry »
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Snap Art by Alien Skin Software
Snap Art introduced me to the world of Photoshop plug-ins. Since then, life with Photoshop hasn’t been the same! If you’re yearning for more artistic image creations, take a look at this plug-in by Alien Skin Software. Compatible with Photoshop CS2/CS3, Elements, Fireworks, and Corel Paint Shop (see details on Alien Skin’s website), this plug-in can bring out the artist in anyone. Snap Art lives in the Photoshop Filter Menu, and gives you 10 fantastic art styles to choose from.
Software Review – Bokeh by Alien Skin Software
I recently had an opportunity to take Bokeh, Alien Skin Software’s latest product, out for a spin. Most photographers are quite familiar with the term “bokeh”. But, those who are not, here’s a quick definition. Per Wikipedia, the term “bokeh” is derived from a Japanese word for blurring, and it means is a photographic term referring to the appearance of out-of-focus areas in an image produced by a camera lens using a shallow depth of field.
Alien Skin’s Bokeh plug-in simulates a bokeh effect to make the subject of your photo really pop. Instead of using your camera lens to create the effect, you can simply dial in the effect using Bokeh and Photoshop CS3/CS4 (or other compatible software). Take a look at these examples on the Alien Skin website, and you will get excited as to the possibilities with this software, as I did!
Firefox PDF Plugin for Max OS X
I’m a Mac OS X user, and the predominate browser that I use is Firefox. But, there is one feature that I really wish Firefox had, which Safari offers. It’s the ability to open PDFs inside the browser. But, instead of doing something about it (like search the Internet for a solution), I just lived without this capability and just grumbled every time I had to download a PDF to view it. But, no more. Yesterday, I was reading the Mac|Life magazine December 2008 issue, and in the back of this magazine was a small article that solves my problem!
Book Review – Apple Aperture 2
If you are looking for a solid reference book for the Apple Aperture 2 product, look no further. The Apple Aperture 2 book by Ken McMahon and Nik Rawlinson, published by Focal Press, is an excellent choice. This is the second book on Aperture 2 that I’ve seen hit the shelves so far, and this one is a keeper. The book’s writing style is straightforward, well organized, and it offers comprehensive coverage of Aperture and related areas.
Free Long Distance c/o Google
If you still have a landline phone like me, you probably signed up for long distance via your local phone carrier. For me, that’s AT&T. In the past, I really limited my long distance usage, and have even gone as far as purchasing long distance cards to get cheaper rates. I also used my minutes on my prepaid mobile phone, but the mobile reception inside my house was not reliable.
I thought about going to VOIP (Voice Over IP) many times, but I couldn’t justify the monthly rate since my long distance usage has been sporadic, at best. So, does this mean I was stuck with AT&T long distance to make reliable long distance calls? I searched and searched across the Internet for a cheaper solution. I finally realized that I already had the tools available to me to make free phone calls.
HDR Illustrative effects for the Intel Mac Masses
I was really interested in obtaining the surreal, almost illustrative look in my images that I had seen people obtain with various HDR (high dynamic range) software. I’ve heard many people in the photography circles talk about LucisArt, by Image Content Technology LLC. LucisArt is a creative image enhancement software that can really make your photos “pop” with HDR effects as well as enhancement of image detail. But, then I looked at the price tag and my jaw dropped. At almost $600 for the LucisPro version, it’s an expensive investment to make (there will also be some lower priced Lucis options called Lucis Art ED and Lucis Art ED/SE offered in early October 2008 at about $300).
So, I went in search of software that could offer me photo surrealism at an affordable price for “the Mac Intel masses”.
Finally D700 Support in Aperture 2.0
My husband just purchased his D700 Nikon beauty of a camera in late August 2008. We’re both new Aperture 2.0 users, but earlier this week, we were not happy campers. Having recently come back from the Photoshop World conference, we were well aware that Lightroom 2.0 supported the new D700 Nikon camera RAW format, and Aperture had still yet to make the update. Last time, it took Apple several months to get the D3/D300 camera support needed in Aperture. So, the big question was…how long would I need to wait?
Book Review – The Digital Photographer’s Notebook
The Digital Photographer’s Notebook, a Pro’s Guide to Adobe Photoshop CS3, Lightroom and Bridge by Kevin Ames published by Peachpit Press is another book I have in my arsenal to support my photography and Photoshop interests.
The book is not meant to be a comprehensive reference of each tools’ functionality, so don’t expect this. There are already a large number of other books that cover these topics. Rather if you need suggestions on digital workflow and a more indepth understanding of underlying concepts, you’ll find this book very useful, and more so, if you are using all three tools (Photoshop, Lightroom, and Bridge) that the author employs.
Photoshop World – Las Vegas 9/2008
Never having been to a Photoshop World conference, I was very excited about the opportunity to attend the 2008 Las Vegas Photoshop World Semi Annual Conference held 9/3/2008 – 9/6/2008. I ended up making the trip to Las Vegas a family vacation also. So, why would I set up a vacation around Photoshop World?