Welcome to the October 2005 Newsletter. In this edition we have some great video tutorials, a CS2 tutorial from Jennifer Apple with tips for working with type, news about a new version of Photoshop Elements for Windows, some amazing Photoshop retouching work from Glenn Honiball, a remarkable photo montage piece from James Porto, a special exclusive discount from Fluid Mask, and some great tips and tricks. Enjoy!
• Photoshop Blog - Featuring Free Tips
Make sure to read through our Photoshop Blog, where you can find a collection of the latest Photoshop news and free Photoshop tips. The Blog also features an RSS feed.
Visit the Photoshop Blog
• Photoshop - Top Support Issues, Updates & Free Trial Versions
Camera Raw 3.2 And DNG Converter 3.2 Released
Camera Raw 3.2 and DNG Converter 3.2 are available for download from Adobe's Camera Raw Product Page.
Adobe Photoshop Support Knowledgebase - Latest Updates
- Applications do not display properly on OEM computers (Creative Suite 2 on Windows)
- Transfer Photoshop CS actions to Photoshop CS2
- Perform a silent installation of Photoshop (CS2 on Windows XP)
- Can't start Help Center from within an Adobe Creative Suite 2.0 application (Mac OS X)
- Image is repositioned after you edit it in Photoshop CS2 (Acrobat 6.0 and later)
- Error "...topic...applies to a CS2 product you have not installed" or missing content (Help Center)
Visit the Photoshop Support Knowledgebase for more information. You can also receive automatic updates by registering for support announcements at the Adobe site.
Photoshop CS2 Free Trial Versions For MAC & For Windows
Both the Photoshop CS2 free trial for MAC and the Photoshop CS2 free trial for Windows are available for download from the Adobe website.
Get the Photoshop CS2 free trial for Windows at Adobe.com.
Get the Photoshop CS2 free trial for MAC at Adobe.com.
Welcome To The Wide World Of Photoshop Podcasts!
With the ever-growing number of programs that are becoming available for download, we've been inspired to provide a small Podcast Guide. Inside you'll find a brief history of the medium, some instructions about how to access the shows, and a changing menu of reviews of some of the latest in the Photoshop podcasting world. There's also a link to a sample chapter from "Secrets Of Podcasting," which is a just released podcasting book, and there will be more links added soon. So visit regularly! Visit the Photoshop Podcast Guide.
New Photoshop Brushes From Kirsty - The Vintage Radio Brush Set
Kirsty sends this in: "There's a new brushset: Radio sets (vintage). Don't forget to also check out the Stock photography gallery once in a while, a textures album has been added which might be of some interest to some of you :) - just go to the usual address: http://brushes.500ml.org. I hope you enjoy the new content!" The Radio Set contains 7 brushes of vintage radios, some are from Kirsty's own stock and others are from Stock.XCHNG. The set also includes detail brushes.
Working With Type In Photoshop CS2
So is there really anything new to learn for when you work with type in Photoshop CS2? Actually there's quite a lot, and so I've put together a quick and easy tutorial that shows some of the new stuff you'll encounter.
You'll learn now to change the size of font previews, work with the bounding box, use Smart Guides to align type layers, how to change Type Orientation from the palette, rasterize from the palette menu, and also how to use the fast Warp Text options. So have a look!
Read Working With Type In Photoshop CS2
New High Definition Photoshop Video Tutorial
If you want to be able to edit an image in gif or jpeg format after you've inserted it into your Dreamweaver pages and have Dreamweaver launch Photoshop instead of the default Fireworks, this tutorial will show you how to change the settings to make Photoshop the primary default image editor. The tutorial also shows you how to set Photoshop as the primary editor of other file formats as well, including SWF Flash files and MOV Quicktime files.
The clip is taken from Total Training for Macromedia Dreamweaver 8 — a ten-hour video series that showcases how to design, develop, and maintain standards-based websites using Dreamweaver. The presenter, Janine Warner, is the author of Dreamweaver For Dummies, which has sold more than 200,000 copies.
This is our very first clip in High Definition (HD). Benefits of this format include a 165% larger screen size for viewing on a computer monitor, crystal-clear image capture to easily read text and fine details, and higher frame rate support for smoother playback.
View the Photoshop Macromedia Dreamweaver Settings HD video tutorial.
The Amazing James Porto
James Porto creates the most detailed and realistic photo collage and montage pieces for many of the world's biggest publications, including Wired, Business Week, and New York magazine. American Photo magazine says, "James Porto is an artist of immeasurable talent; his unique vision and immense technical skills have placed him in the vanguard of contemporary photography." So it's no wonder that we've invited him back for a second entry in our Inspiration Section.
While getting the files in order for his
new page, we took the opportunity to ask James if he had any advice to give to those learning Photoshop. "As far as advice on Photoshop, my basic credo is, there are no easy ways to make a great image — you need a great idea, great original photography, and a lot of patience to attend to all the details that make these assemblies look natural and striking. Perspective, light quality, light direction, shadows, and edge quality all need to be attended to with great care to make a convincing illusion."
Visit his new page, which shows the final image he produced for a New York Magazine cover assignment, and you'll see exactly what he means by paying attention to detail. This is another amazing piece of work from a true Photoshop artist.
go to James Porto "New York Magazine Cover"
Free Photoshop Video Tutorial From Franklin McMahon
The ever-prolific Franklin McMahon has posted 3 more video tutorials to his site. Here are the links:
Free Adobe Photoshop Video Tutorial - Layer Styles
"In this video I go over gradient and color overlay styles, and how to use them to make very dramatic photos."
Free Adobe Photoshop Video Tutorial - Fonts
"Here is a tutorial on Photoshop CS2 on how to make your text look great with kerning, double bold, faux and styles."
Free Adobe Photoshop Video Tutorial - Layout
"In this tutorial video I go over Photoshop layout design techniques such as color schemes, fonts and alignment. This is Part 3 of the 3 part Design Secrets series."
In case you missed it, you can also read an interview that Jennifer Apple conducted with Franklin.
New Wacom Graphire4 Pen Tablet Is Released
Wacom's new Graphire4 pen tablets include a cordless, battery-free pen and mouse, a tablet and five software applications. Using the natural control of the pen and the included software, you can enhance photos and create artwork for scrapbooks, craft projects and slide shows. It's also easy to use these pen tablets to digitally jot notes, annotate documents and sketch quick diagrams.
Read the full Wacom Graphire4 Pen Tablet Press Release (and see a much larger photo). For the inside story on what it's like working with a Wacom tablet, read Jennifer Borton's "How I Learned To Love The Tablet."
3 New Tutorials From Lunacore
The Lunacore site offers a small treasure trove of tutorials for professionals and aficionados alike, and is one of the best tutorial sites you will find. You actually are able to reproduce the same effects that are shown in the previews. The tutorials helpfully include sample images to work with, making it easier to follow along. Snapshots of the necessary adjustments in the Photoshop menu are also provided, and the instructions are amply detailed and a breeze to follow. Here are three in-depth tutorials which were recently posted:
Smooth Skin
This tutorial shows you how to make skin look smooth. The technique itself is not complicated, but does require you to be patient and work slowly and accurately to achieve the best results.
Beautify A Face
A very in-depth tutorial (7 pages) that shows you how to remove wrinkles and blemishes, how to fix hair, eyes, eyebrows and teeth, and how to color clothes, as well as crop and sharpen with natural looking results.
General Navigation
Learn how to quickly zoom in and out, move the canvas, and compare the retouched part of an image with the original. All the techniques and the tools are explained in great detail.
New Book Focuses On Photoshop LAB Color
There's a new book by Dan Margulis that I'm been hearing and reading a lot of good things about called Photoshop LAB Color: The Canyon Conundrum and Other Adventures in the Most Powerful Colorspace. From the press release:
With a mantra like "There are no bad originals, only bad Photoshop operators," you know best-selling author Dan Margulis is serious about exposing people to the magic of Photoshop. Nowhere is that magic more apparent than in its LAB color processing capabilities, which can make even the subtle canyon colors of rock, sand, and dirt come to vivid life. However, you may be wary of taming the complex beast. Here's your guide!
In these pages, Dan shows that you can derive enormous benefits from just a few simple tools and techniques. He also demonstrates that you can take these techniques as far as you wish, employing the power-user features he describes in later chapters.
Starting with canyons and progressing to faces, you will see just how quickly you can begin improving your images by following the"recipe" included here. Each chapter includes a sidebar with review questions and exercises as well as a "Closer Look" section that examines some of the principles behind the techniques. A CD includes exercise files.
Available at Amazon.com (37% off).
Exclusive Discount Price For Fluid Mask - $239
Vertus Software is offering Fluid Mask at a special discounted rate of just $239. This is an exclusive offer to visitors of PhotoshopSupport.com and also includes 12 months of free upgrades. Sweet. To qualify all you have to do is visit the Fluid Mask Discount Price page.
For those who don't know, Vertus' Fluid Mask is a tool that allows a user to accurately cut out objects from images in a matter of seconds. It's based on breakthrough technology which is similar to the way the eye, optic nerve and brain perform visual processing.
When an image is loaded, Fluid Mask's engine analyses the distribution of colors, finding the natural groups according to the content of the image. Together with information calculated about edges, gradients and texture a model is constructed which divides the images into regions.
The software has been getting a lot of good buzz, and you can read more about it in this Software Overview, the Official Press Release (featuring jumbo versions of the frogs), or this Interview with co-creator James Carr-Jones. Also note that by joining our newsletter you become eligible to win one of two free copies of Fluid Mask.
Digital Photography How-To: The Pros and Cons of Lens Flare
(From creativepro.com) Lens flare - whether it's in the form of bright streaks, random polygons, or an overall washed-out look - is a hazard when you're shooting photos near a bright light source. Learn how to avoid it, and even how to exploit it to make stunning imagery, in this article by Sean T. McHugh of Cambridge in Colour.
From the intro: "Lens flare is created when non-image-forming light enters the lens and subsequently hits the camera's film or digital sensor. This often appears as a characteristic polygonal shape, with sides that depend on the shape of the lens diaphragm. Lens flare can lower the overall contrast of a photograph significantly and is often an undesired artifact; however, some types of flare may actually enhance the artistic meaning of a photo. Understanding lens flare can help you use it - or avoid it - in a way that best suits how you wish to portray the final image."
Read "The Pros and Cons of Lens Flare" by Sean T. McHugh of Cambridge in Colour.
Retouching Pro Glenn Honiball Interview
Glenn Honiball is considered one of the top photo retouching experts in the world. He recently released a book - Commercial Photoshop Retouching: In the Studio - and it's getting rave reviews. I conducted a short interview with him the other day and asked him about working with LCD screens and which kind of display he used for his work, about color management issues, and about the success of his retouching book. Read the interview for all the answers! Here's a snip - of Glenn talking about his book:
- "This book was written because every other Photoshop book I have seen was basically a writer reading off a string of commands and hot keys to create various effects which really didn't have much to do with the reality of the job of retouching.
"I have never come across a book that tells one how to do day-to-day retouching that a typical professional retoucher is asked to do in a typical day at work by ad agencies and art directors. Deadlines are short, there is no time for playing around and trying different techniques, clients expect the job to be done right in the shortest amount of time. The techniques I outline in the book reflect this.
"I've trimmed all the fat off trial and error and get right to the point. I have tried to explain the techniques as if I am sitting behind a retoucher walking them through the techniques. People have commented that it is an easy read."
We've also added him to our Inspiration Section. He sent us large versions of his red car extraction and retouching work. When you look at the end result it's pretty mind-blowing, but what's even more amazing is that he says it doesn't take him all that long - that he works very very fast, completing things in just a few hours. Make sure to see Glenn's Photoshop Inspiration page for a fascinating look at his retouching work.
To recap, read an interview with Glenn Honiball, read more about his new book Commercial Photoshop Retouching: In the Studio (includes a link to a free sample chapter), and have a look at his remarkable retouching work on the Glenn Honiball Photoshop Inspiration page.
Adobe Photoshop Elements 4 Released
Adobe has released version 4.0 of Photoshop Elements. So what's new? The improved Red Eye Removal now eliminates red eye automatically as photos are downloaded from the camera. The new Magic Selection Brush quickly selects specific parts of a photo for easy color, lighting, and contrast adjustments. The new Skin Tone Adjustment allows more realistic skin colors in just moments. The new Magic Extractor easily removes subjects from photos, with advanced edge de-fringing.
Simple search and tagging options make it easier to find and view photos. Date View automatically arranges photos by date. The enhanced Folder View lets you move, create, or delete files and folders. The new Face Tagging helps to find faces in photos automatically so that they can easily be tagged.
New sharing options include multimedia slide shows, which can be created in seconds, complete with multiple pans and zooms, soundtracks with narration, and over 80 transition options. New one-click printing makes it simple to order professional-quality prints and hardbound photo books through integrated online services.
Read the full press release.
Buy Adobe Photoshop Elements 4.0 at amazon.com - best price available.
• Top Selling Book - Photoshop CS2 For Digital Photographers
The Photoshop CS2 Book For Digital Photographers
Scott Kelby takes The Photoshop CS2 Book For Digital Photographers to a whole new level as he uncovers the latest and most exciting new Adobe Photoshop CS2 techniques for digital photographers.
His new CS2 version is even bigger, even better, and exposes even more of the pros most closely guarded secrets, including a special chapter which shows, for the first time ever, step-by-step how to how to set-up Photoshop's color management.
Available at Amazon.com (34% off).
• Special Andromeda Software Deal At Photoshop Roadmap
The Photoshop Roadmap has an exclusive special where you can receive an extra 10% discount on purchases of Andromeda's three plugins bundles - the Photographic Tools & Lens Effects Collection, the Artistic Screening Tools Collection, and the Graphic Design Resources Collection. This is on top of the 20% discount from Andromeda, which gives you a total of 30% off the suggested retail price. The three bundles combine the full collection of Andromeda's plugins for digital photography, web design, graphic design, and artistic work.
Get more info at the Photoshop Roadmap Andromeda Specials page.
• Tip Of The Month: Tile Vertically And Horizontally
Back in Photoshop CS, if you had two photos open, they overlapped each other on screen. If you choose Tile (from the Window menu), it stacked them above the other (which was better, because you could see at least part of each photo), but it wasn't the side-by-side review that we always wanted. Well, now you can get side-by-side reviews (perfect for vertical shots) by going to Window> Arrange> Tile Vertically. Note: there is also a Tile Horizontally option as well.
• A Thank You To Our Friends, Partners & Sponsors
We'd like to thank our friends, partners and sponsors: Google, Hostway, Apple, Total Training, Peachpit Press, O'Reilly Media, Creativepro.com, The PhotoshopHelp Blog, CreativeBits, Heathrowe, CreativeGuy, The Photoshop Roadmap, Power Retouche Plugins, Vertus Fluid Mask, AbsolutVision Stock Photos, Template Monster, AV Bros. Plugins, AutoFX, and The National Association of Photoshop Professionals.
• November 2005 Newsletter Preview
That's all for this month's newsletter. Next month we'll cover all the latest updates with links to each entry in the November newsletter. Also in November we'll have some exclusive discounts and specials for Newsletter members.
Until then, Happy Photoshopping and may all your digital wishes come true!
