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June 18, 2010
Friday Photo Lesson: ACTION
Welcome to Ella's four week Photography Series. Thanks to the expertise of Noel and Moon we have been instructed over the last three weeks on light, focus, perspective, and this week it is all about action!
From Noel:
Action is sometimes a tricky thing to catch when you are looking at it one frame at a time. Try these tricks to catch some action in your daily life.
Panning is a really effective way of showing motion. You focus on your subject and follow their action with your camera. This keeps your subject in focus, but blurs the background. Think looking out of the passenger window of a moving car. Things are whizzing by while the car window remains in focus. It takes a little practice, but be patient and shoot LOTS of pictures. Then thank your lucky stars that you have a digital camera!
Find a subject that is moving in a consistent motion. They don't have to be going a million miles an hour, just moving in a predictable way. Set your camera to Shutter Priority (usually the "S" on your camera's dial).You'll want your shutter speed to be on the slower side around 1/20 to 1/25. (the bike picture was a 1/25 of a sec at f9, and the scooter image was at 1/20 of a sec at f25.) I was holding my camera, but you may have better luck with a monopod. But since I am monopod-less, I'll tell you how I did it. Focus on your subject, then follow them with your camera, keeping them in the frame as they move. Click your shutter at some point while you're following them in camera, making sure to continue to follow them after you press the shutter. It'll take some practice, but the end result is something like these. I'm sure there are zillions of applications for panning, but I've only tried it with my girls riding bikes and scooters. It's a good place to start since it's a generally consistent motion to follow. Panning also works wonders with track runners, moving cars and trains, etc.
Taking a shot while someone is in motion can take a fast trigger finger. Catching your subject just at the precise moment their action is taking place can take some practice. In the beginning, if your camera has a burst mode, this is a great time to use it. The burst mode will often take several pictures in a row. This is especially handy with point and shoot cameras as they are known for their delayed shutters. With the picture of my daughter jump roping, I took a number of pictures to get her as she was in the air and the jump rope hit the puddle. It worked to both show her movement, and her goal of splashing as much water as possible.
The movement of fabric, clothing and hair can all show motion as well. In this picture my daughters dress was fluttering as she jumped from square to square.
Mid-air is almost always shows off action in a fun way. Since gravity keeps us grounded, catching those brief moments of flight adds superhero type action to our pictures. Try snapping pictures of a child in mid-air while jumping or running. This picture is of my daughter's thrill of beating her sister to home plate in a game of backyard baseball. You can almost feel her thrill of victory.
From Moon:
As Noel discussed how to take action shots, I'm going to talk a little about action, as in Photoshop actions. You can use actions in most versions of Photoshop, and there are even some for PS Elements. With actions, you can create certain moods or looks to your photographs from one touch of a button. My favorite free actions are created by The Pioneer Woman and you can find her actions here. She does a wonderful job of showing you each of her actions at work.
Another great resource is this website. Pifphoto.com is a great resource for photographers where readers share actions and templates and anything photo related with each other.
Thanks for spending the last four weeks with Noel and me. We thoroughly enjoyed it!
Did you know you can save 20% when you purchase BOTH of Ella's top-selling photography eBooks? Use the coupon code SUMMERPICS before July 5, 2010.
Also, be sure and check out the other three posts in our Friday photo lesson series.
Light
Focus
Perspective
From Noel:
Action is sometimes a tricky thing to catch when you are looking at it one frame at a time. Try these tricks to catch some action in your daily life.
Panning is a really effective way of showing motion. You focus on your subject and follow their action with your camera. This keeps your subject in focus, but blurs the background. Think looking out of the passenger window of a moving car. Things are whizzing by while the car window remains in focus. It takes a little practice, but be patient and shoot LOTS of pictures. Then thank your lucky stars that you have a digital camera!
Find a subject that is moving in a consistent motion. They don't have to be going a million miles an hour, just moving in a predictable way. Set your camera to Shutter Priority (usually the "S" on your camera's dial).You'll want your shutter speed to be on the slower side around 1/20 to 1/25. (the bike picture was a 1/25 of a sec at f9, and the scooter image was at 1/20 of a sec at f25.) I was holding my camera, but you may have better luck with a monopod. But since I am monopod-less, I'll tell you how I did it. Focus on your subject, then follow them with your camera, keeping them in the frame as they move. Click your shutter at some point while you're following them in camera, making sure to continue to follow them after you press the shutter. It'll take some practice, but the end result is something like these. I'm sure there are zillions of applications for panning, but I've only tried it with my girls riding bikes and scooters. It's a good place to start since it's a generally consistent motion to follow. Panning also works wonders with track runners, moving cars and trains, etc.
Taking a shot while someone is in motion can take a fast trigger finger. Catching your subject just at the precise moment their action is taking place can take some practice. In the beginning, if your camera has a burst mode, this is a great time to use it. The burst mode will often take several pictures in a row. This is especially handy with point and shoot cameras as they are known for their delayed shutters. With the picture of my daughter jump roping, I took a number of pictures to get her as she was in the air and the jump rope hit the puddle. It worked to both show her movement, and her goal of splashing as much water as possible.
The movement of fabric, clothing and hair can all show motion as well. In this picture my daughters dress was fluttering as she jumped from square to square.
Mid-air is almost always shows off action in a fun way. Since gravity keeps us grounded, catching those brief moments of flight adds superhero type action to our pictures. Try snapping pictures of a child in mid-air while jumping or running. This picture is of my daughter's thrill of beating her sister to home plate in a game of backyard baseball. You can almost feel her thrill of victory.
From Moon:
As Noel discussed how to take action shots, I'm going to talk a little about action, as in Photoshop actions. You can use actions in most versions of Photoshop, and there are even some for PS Elements. With actions, you can create certain moods or looks to your photographs from one touch of a button. My favorite free actions are created by The Pioneer Woman and you can find her actions here. She does a wonderful job of showing you each of her actions at work.
Another great resource is this website. Pifphoto.com is a great resource for photographers where readers share actions and templates and anything photo related with each other.
Thanks for spending the last four weeks with Noel and me. We thoroughly enjoyed it!
Did you know you can save 20% when you purchase BOTH of Ella's top-selling photography eBooks? Use the coupon code SUMMERPICS before July 5, 2010.
Picture Perfect
40 Top Tips for Better Photographs
Also, be sure and check out the other three posts in our Friday photo lesson series.
Light
Focus
Perspective
Posted at 08:00 AM
June 11, 2010
Friday Photo Lesson: PERSPECTIVE
Welcome to a start of a four week Ella Photography Series. For the last few Fridays (and one more to go!), Noel and Moon have been sharing their photography tips, tricks and challenges to help you take better photographs. Each week they will be focusing on a different topic. This week's topic is Perspective.
Noel shares...
Changing perspective is one of the easiest ways to add interest to a photo. I read once that if you take a photo from the same spot everyone else does, you'll get a photo that looks like every other photo you've seen. For instance, flowers are often low to the ground. if you hold your camera, look down and shoot... you'll end up with an average looking shot. However, if you get on the ground and shoot up toward the flower, you'll get a very different shot with lots of added interest.
After losing this shoe's pair in an unfortunate snow spin out in the Rockey Mountains, I wanted to document the one that didn't get away. I place the shoe on a stool and shot it on an angle. One tip for shooting on an angle, keep an eye on how that leaves your subject. You want the angle to feel purposeful, but not so angled that your subject looks like it is falling out of the frame.
Get low. Just like shooting a flower from a different angle, you can shoot people from a different angle. This is especially true of children. Being adults, we're often taller than children, so we naturally see them from above. Getting low, and looking at them, or in this case at her legs, gives a perspective you couldn't catch from simply standing and taking a picture.
Zoom in. Get pictures of just a piece of the puzzle, as well as the big picture. Zooming in to get a detail shot is a great way of adding a new perspective. I took several pictures of my daughter with her new missing tooth, but really loved this zoomed in shot of my little toothless wonder.
Beside the different angles you can shoot to get perspective... there is also the mental perspective. Taking pictures as a way to convey someone's life perspective. A few weeks ago I asked my daughter to put away the vacuum cleaner. When I came upstairs, this was what I saw. The vacuum, still plugged into the outlet in the living room, but put away in the closet down the hall. From a kid's perspective, she put away the vacuum, just like I said. From a mom's perspective... well, we can all guess. It was a funny way of remembering the big difference in perspective that 30 years and a couple of kids can make.
Moon shares...
I think Noel has pretty much covered the topic of perspective beautifully. Just wanted to add that you can also use perspective to focus on what you want to focus on. For example, in this photo, I wanted to capture the smallness of my nephew's head in relation to my brother's big hands:
The same goes for his tiny feet:
And speaking of feet, that's what I wanted to capture in the next photo-well, feet and legs of my kids. In keeping the focus on just their legs, it makes a greater impact than if I had their whole bodies in the shot:
I hope Noel and my examples get your creative juices flowing to try out different perspectives.
Ella loves photography. Our two photography eBooks have been super popular. They retail for $5.99 each but if you buy both you can save 20% using this coupon code, SUMMERPICS. So do it!
Noel shares...
Changing perspective is one of the easiest ways to add interest to a photo. I read once that if you take a photo from the same spot everyone else does, you'll get a photo that looks like every other photo you've seen. For instance, flowers are often low to the ground. if you hold your camera, look down and shoot... you'll end up with an average looking shot. However, if you get on the ground and shoot up toward the flower, you'll get a very different shot with lots of added interest.
After losing this shoe's pair in an unfortunate snow spin out in the Rockey Mountains, I wanted to document the one that didn't get away. I place the shoe on a stool and shot it on an angle. One tip for shooting on an angle, keep an eye on how that leaves your subject. You want the angle to feel purposeful, but not so angled that your subject looks like it is falling out of the frame.
Get low. Just like shooting a flower from a different angle, you can shoot people from a different angle. This is especially true of children. Being adults, we're often taller than children, so we naturally see them from above. Getting low, and looking at them, or in this case at her legs, gives a perspective you couldn't catch from simply standing and taking a picture.
Zoom in. Get pictures of just a piece of the puzzle, as well as the big picture. Zooming in to get a detail shot is a great way of adding a new perspective. I took several pictures of my daughter with her new missing tooth, but really loved this zoomed in shot of my little toothless wonder.
Beside the different angles you can shoot to get perspective... there is also the mental perspective. Taking pictures as a way to convey someone's life perspective. A few weeks ago I asked my daughter to put away the vacuum cleaner. When I came upstairs, this was what I saw. The vacuum, still plugged into the outlet in the living room, but put away in the closet down the hall. From a kid's perspective, she put away the vacuum, just like I said. From a mom's perspective... well, we can all guess. It was a funny way of remembering the big difference in perspective that 30 years and a couple of kids can make.
Moon shares...
I think Noel has pretty much covered the topic of perspective beautifully. Just wanted to add that you can also use perspective to focus on what you want to focus on. For example, in this photo, I wanted to capture the smallness of my nephew's head in relation to my brother's big hands:
The same goes for his tiny feet:
And speaking of feet, that's what I wanted to capture in the next photo-well, feet and legs of my kids. In keeping the focus on just their legs, it makes a greater impact than if I had their whole bodies in the shot:
I hope Noel and my examples get your creative juices flowing to try out different perspectives.
Ella loves photography. Our two photography eBooks have been super popular. They retail for $5.99 each but if you buy both you can save 20% using this coupon code, SUMMERPICS. So do it!
Picture Perfect
40 Top Tips for Better Photographs
Posted at 07:55 AM
June 4, 2010
Friday Photo Lesson: FOCUS
Welcome to week two of a four week Ella Photography Series. For the next four Fridays, Noel and Moon will be sharing their photography tips, tricks and challenges to help you take better photographs. Each week they will be focusing on a different topic. This week's topic is FOCUS.
Noel shares her secrets for getting focused:
Focus is one of those fabulous photography tools that takes your pictures to a new level. Much like zooming in or cropping out, focus can draw the eye in. If you have an DSLR camera, one of the easiest settings to work with focus is the Aperture Priority setting. (This is the little "A" on a Nikon or Av on a Canon.) Set the aperture to the widest setting (lowest number) your lens will allow, your camera will automatically set the shutter speed for your picture. The aperture for this picture was set to f 2.8. This kept the flowers in focus, but my daughter's hands blurred.
Focus can also be used to tell a story. In this picture my older daughter is in focus, while my younger daughter across from her is out of focus. I had been thinking about how much my younger daughter sometimes feels like she lives in the shadow of her older sister. With using focus selectively, I tried to put this story in photo form.
Change the focal point to change the mood of a picture. These pictures were taken at the same time. The first picture has a very different feeling than the second picture, although the pose is the same. The second is simply focused on her feet in daddy's shoes while holding a flag. Try focusing on one aspect of a subject to bring tell a different story.
Now it's Moon's turn to share:
It seems like cameras now a days are really smart. They can automatically set your exposure. They can automatically pop your flash when there isn't enough light. They can seek out faces in a frame. And they can auto focus. All great and wonderful things except when the camera thinks that it's smarter than you...
No no no! I don't WANT you to focus on his face. I want the ball. THE BALL, you dumb camera.
Ah, that's better...
Focus is just one of those things you never think about except when it doesn't work properly. Hopefully, these tips will allow you to find your focus and outsmart your camera.
:)
If your photos are blurry, these may be the reasons behind the blur:
You're too close to your subject. Back up. If you want close up shots, you can always crop it in closer in your photo editing software. If that isn't an option, you may want to look into getting a macro lens or one that allows you to get closer shots.
Aperture is too wide. Two weeks ago, I touched briefly on aperture and DOF (depth of field). But you might be saying Moon, I need my aperture set to the widest setting because I don't have enough light. And I will say, increase your ISO. And you might say, my ISO is at its highest setting too. And I'll say, sorry dude, you're going to have to use a flash.
Shutter speed is too low. Make sure this doesn't get below 1/100 of a second. Ever.
Your camera isn't focusing on the right thing. If you are shooting in full auto mode, you do not have control of your focal points. In auto mode, your camera is going to find the area(s) of highest contrast and focus there. In the program modes, you have complete control of where you want your focus to be. When shooting children, I put my focal point right over the child's eye, between the whites and the iris or between the pupil and iris if they have light colored eyes. Here's an example:
Unsharp Mask: this is a filter in PS that is used to enhance your photos. It's easy to get a little carried away with this tool but a rule of thumb for me is, if you run this filter once and the image is still fuzzy then there's really no way you're going to get a sharp image out of it.
Well, we hope these tips help in getting good focus in the future.
~Noel and Moon
Ella loves photography. Our two photography eBooks have been super popular. They retail for $5.99 each but if you buy both you can save 20 percent using this coupon code, SUMMERPICS. So do it!
Noel shares her secrets for getting focused:
Focus is one of those fabulous photography tools that takes your pictures to a new level. Much like zooming in or cropping out, focus can draw the eye in. If you have an DSLR camera, one of the easiest settings to work with focus is the Aperture Priority setting. (This is the little "A" on a Nikon or Av on a Canon.) Set the aperture to the widest setting (lowest number) your lens will allow, your camera will automatically set the shutter speed for your picture. The aperture for this picture was set to f 2.8. This kept the flowers in focus, but my daughter's hands blurred.
Focus can also be used to tell a story. In this picture my older daughter is in focus, while my younger daughter across from her is out of focus. I had been thinking about how much my younger daughter sometimes feels like she lives in the shadow of her older sister. With using focus selectively, I tried to put this story in photo form.
Change the focal point to change the mood of a picture. These pictures were taken at the same time. The first picture has a very different feeling than the second picture, although the pose is the same. The second is simply focused on her feet in daddy's shoes while holding a flag. Try focusing on one aspect of a subject to bring tell a different story.
Now it's Moon's turn to share:
It seems like cameras now a days are really smart. They can automatically set your exposure. They can automatically pop your flash when there isn't enough light. They can seek out faces in a frame. And they can auto focus. All great and wonderful things except when the camera thinks that it's smarter than you...
No no no! I don't WANT you to focus on his face. I want the ball. THE BALL, you dumb camera.
Ah, that's better...
Focus is just one of those things you never think about except when it doesn't work properly. Hopefully, these tips will allow you to find your focus and outsmart your camera.
:)
If your photos are blurry, these may be the reasons behind the blur:
Unsharp Mask: this is a filter in PS that is used to enhance your photos. It's easy to get a little carried away with this tool but a rule of thumb for me is, if you run this filter once and the image is still fuzzy then there's really no way you're going to get a sharp image out of it.
Well, we hope these tips help in getting good focus in the future.
~Noel and Moon
Picture Perfect
40 Top Tips for Better Photographs
Ella loves photography. Our two photography eBooks have been super popular. They retail for $5.99 each but if you buy both you can save 20 percent using this coupon code, SUMMERPICS. So do it!
Posted at 08:51 AM
May 28, 2010
Friday Photo Lesson: Light
Welcome to a start of a four week Ella Photography Series. For the next four Fridays, Noel and Moon will be sharing their photography tips, tricks and challenges to help you take better photographs. Each week they will be focusing on a different topic. This week's topic is light.
Hi Noel here, I'm a natural light sort of girl. I love its smoothing effect on skin tones. I love how it plays off a portraits with its lights and shadows. I love, love, love that it's free and readily available. You can get some fabulous natural light right in your own home.
Usually a large window or sliding glass door will give you great filtered light. If you've got a north-facing window, that's even better. You can use the window for excellent portrait light anytime of day except the times when it is receiving direct light. During those times you'll tend to get a lot of harsh lines and shadows in your pictures. Great for some things, but not generally great for portraits. The other added benefit to north-facing window light, are the catch-lights it provides. Catch-lights are those little shining spots of white in the eyes on a portrait. They give the eyes an added sparkle and pop.
To get great window-lit shots I do the following
As Noel has shared ways to capture wonderful photos inside, Moon is sharing some tips on taking photographs outside.
I, like Noel, am a fan of natural light but it can get a little tricky when you're shooting outdoors. No matter what the weather is like outside, here are a few tips to try the next time you head outdoors.
Low sun: Try taking your photos when the sun is low, either early morning or late afternoon/early evening.
This photo was taken in the summer around 8:00 pm. I had my daughter face away from the light and set exposure for her face and not the light that is behind her.
Find shade: If you are taking pictures on a bright or sunny day, find a nice shady spot.
One of my favorite places to shoot is in an alley. If you can get over the spooky factor of alleys, that is. It's always shady between two tall buildings.
Aim high: Get lower than your subjects and aim your camera up.
Of course the beautiful fall foliage doesn't hurt either. I had my models get under this huge tree but the shade was spotty and their faces would have had some funky shadows if I had taken them at eye level. So I sat on the ground and shot up at them.
Work with what you have: Sometimes it rains. And there's no way to reschedule the shoot...
There are some really cool things you can do to your digital photographs now a days and we will be talking more about Photoshop and actions in the weeks to come so stay tuned!
Hi Noel here, I'm a natural light sort of girl. I love its smoothing effect on skin tones. I love how it plays off a portraits with its lights and shadows. I love, love, love that it's free and readily available. You can get some fabulous natural light right in your own home.
Usually a large window or sliding glass door will give you great filtered light. If you've got a north-facing window, that's even better. You can use the window for excellent portrait light anytime of day except the times when it is receiving direct light. During those times you'll tend to get a lot of harsh lines and shadows in your pictures. Great for some things, but not generally great for portraits. The other added benefit to north-facing window light, are the catch-lights it provides. Catch-lights are those little shining spots of white in the eyes on a portrait. They give the eyes an added sparkle and pop.
To get great window-lit shots I do the following
- Place your subject facing the window, I usually have my subjects 3 to 5 feet from the window depending on the amount and quality of light.
- Turn off your flash
- Stand facing your subject and shoot away
As Noel has shared ways to capture wonderful photos inside, Moon is sharing some tips on taking photographs outside.
I, like Noel, am a fan of natural light but it can get a little tricky when you're shooting outdoors. No matter what the weather is like outside, here are a few tips to try the next time you head outdoors.
Low sun: Try taking your photos when the sun is low, either early morning or late afternoon/early evening.
This photo was taken in the summer around 8:00 pm. I had my daughter face away from the light and set exposure for her face and not the light that is behind her.
Find shade: If you are taking pictures on a bright or sunny day, find a nice shady spot.
One of my favorite places to shoot is in an alley. If you can get over the spooky factor of alleys, that is. It's always shady between two tall buildings.
Aim high: Get lower than your subjects and aim your camera up.
Of course the beautiful fall foliage doesn't hurt either. I had my models get under this huge tree but the shade was spotty and their faces would have had some funky shadows if I had taken them at eye level. So I sat on the ground and shot up at them.
Work with what you have: Sometimes it rains. And there's no way to reschedule the shoot...
There are some really cool things you can do to your digital photographs now a days and we will be talking more about Photoshop and actions in the weeks to come so stay tuned!
Posted at 07:21 AM
April 6, 2010
Take Better Everyday Photos!
My eBook, 40 Top Tips for Better Photos, is all about the fact that you don't have to have perfect conditions to take important, meaningful photos. It's packed with helpful ideas for improving your everyday photography. Here are a few more illustrations of that!
In the hospital, no one can expect great light or scenery. But when your reason for visiting the hospital is as precious as this one, then you absolutely have to take pictures anyway. I simply used what I had on hand (a white blanket) to snap this picture of my sleepy new baby, Alivia. Even in low-light conditions, I got a keeper of a shot. (Image specs: Canon 5D Mk II, 50 mm 1/4 lens, f2.2, 640 ISO, 1/100 shutter speed)
I converted the picture to black-and-white, and used it on this layout, featuring her birth stats.
Here's a shot I took on just a regular day. Because of how I placed my subject (away from the the bookshelf background) and my camera settings, the bookshelf is blurred enough that little Alivia still stands out. This photo was also taken in Winter in low light conditions, which called for a high ISO. (Image specs: Canon 5D Mk II, 50 mm 1/4 lens, f3.2, 640 ISO, 1/100 shutter speed)
I'm here to tell you that you really can improve your photography little by little. Just practice a lot, and take baby steps toward mastering one new trick at a time. And my eBook can help you on your journey to better everyday photos and more confidence in your camera!
Thanks Rebecca! For more of her fabulous photography and crafty sensibilities, visit her blog. And leave a comment here on this post for your chance to win a free copy of this amazing eBook!
In the hospital, no one can expect great light or scenery. But when your reason for visiting the hospital is as precious as this one, then you absolutely have to take pictures anyway. I simply used what I had on hand (a white blanket) to snap this picture of my sleepy new baby, Alivia. Even in low-light conditions, I got a keeper of a shot. (Image specs: Canon 5D Mk II, 50 mm 1/4 lens, f2.2, 640 ISO, 1/100 shutter speed)
I converted the picture to black-and-white, and used it on this layout, featuring her birth stats.
Here's a shot I took on just a regular day. Because of how I placed my subject (away from the the bookshelf background) and my camera settings, the bookshelf is blurred enough that little Alivia still stands out. This photo was also taken in Winter in low light conditions, which called for a high ISO. (Image specs: Canon 5D Mk II, 50 mm 1/4 lens, f3.2, 640 ISO, 1/100 shutter speed)
I'm here to tell you that you really can improve your photography little by little. Just practice a lot, and take baby steps toward mastering one new trick at a time. And my eBook can help you on your journey to better everyday photos and more confidence in your camera!
Thanks Rebecca! For more of her fabulous photography and crafty sensibilities, visit her blog. And leave a comment here on this post for your chance to win a free copy of this amazing eBook!
Posted at 08:07 AM
March 3, 2010
Photo displays for your home
Hi everyone! I am here today to share with you one of my favorite products – Photo Canvases. Like most scrapbookers I have a sincere love for my family photos and enjoy displaying them in my home to remind me of favorite family memories and the love that we share. I am also always on the lookout for a unique and attractive way to display those photos, and when I first saw this photo canvas idea I knew I had found one!
As President of our family-owned company, Adornit – Carolee’s Creations, I knew I wanted to share this with our customers. We have been offering this service for about a year now, and it has been very popular. These photo canvases are a very stylish, affordable way to display your photos. Alone, or in a grouping, the unique texture and dimension make your room come alive. Here’s a peek at the grouping I have in my home:
We offer two different options for printing your photos. The first is Canvas Wrapped, where the canvas wraps around and creates a box effect with a two-inch depth. These do not require framing and are what you see in the picture above. The second is Canvas Flat, where the canvas is mounted flat onto 1/8” wood and then you frame it.
We offer standard framing sizes, 8x10, 11x14, etc., and also a very popular square 8x8 size, perfect for groupings. We can also do customized templates, which makes it easy for your display to be super-unique.
For Valentine's Day I created this custom 12x12 canvas template. I enjoyed it so much that after Valentine's Day I decided to move it to a shelf in my room.
So how does this work? It’s very simple! I’ll walk you step-by-step through the process:
1. Choose a place in your home where you’d like your canvas photos.
2. Measure the space you have chosen and determine what sizes would work best.
3. Choose the photos you plan to use.
4. Go online to adornit.com.
5. Using our online order form, choose Canvas Wrapped, Canvas Flat, or go here for the templates
6. Also choose your size and a custom filter, if desired, then complete your order.
7. Email your high resolution photo to info@adornit.com.
8. Wait with anticipation while we process your order at Adornit. The happiness will arrive on your doorstep within 2 weeks!
Now for the fun part- who wants to win their very own
16 x 20 Gallery wrap canvas?
Leave a comment on my blog and tell us what what picture you would print and where in your home you want to hang it.
Thanks for reading about my favorite product
Posted at 03:23 PM
March 1, 2010
Pictures that Pop
How do they do it? I know I’ve thought it at least a million times, and that was just this week! How do these wonderful mama-razzis, with the snap of a camera and a zip up in photoshop, achieve amazing results time after time. I’ve trolled through galleries full of amazing pictures, and imitated literally hundreds of poses and angles. But there is definitely something striking about pictures that have spent a little time in post-processing. Post-processing is anything you do to enhance a picture after it’s been taken. (Note: If you feel intimidated by the instructions that follow, just KEEP READING, because there's a FREE action at the end of this post that will allow you do get the very same effect with just one or two clicks of your mouse!)
Without getting into anything that’s too crazy stylized, there are several little touch-ups you can do to make your photos really pop. I know I’m a bit of a photo program junkie, so for this I narrowed my program usage down to just Photoshop Elements. When I say just Photoshop Elements (PSE), it is absolutely a program that gives you all of the tools to post-process to your heart’s content. And just a word of warning, adding that extra pop to your pictures is highly addictive! My dad often said, “Here’s Noel to make a long story longer.” So in keeping with tradition I’m going to walk through the process, and give an easy shortcut.
Every digital photo comes out of the camera in a sort of fog. (Think: Claratin commercials when the fog is lifted off the picture.) We’re going to bring our pictures out of that fog and into the clear in just a few easy steps.
The first step will be to brighten up the picture a bit. Open your photo in PSE, and click Layer > Duplicate Layer to copy your background layer. With your new layer selected, change the blending mode to Screen. (The blending mode menu is located in that little drop down menu just above the layers pallet toward the bottom right corner of your screen.) This will brighten your photo up... way up! It just might have brightened it up WAY too much. Luckily PSE lets you lower the transparency of each layer! So taking the opacity slider, on the top right side of the layers pallet, and slide it to the left until the brightness level looks appropriate.
Next we’re going to add a little color pop to the picture. Click on your Background Layer again, and click Layer > Duplicate Layer. With your new layer selected, change the blending mode to Soft Light. Now it is very likely that this layer will also need an opacity adjustment. Moving the opacity slider to about 35% is a good starting point, but you can adjust it to suit your picture and taste.
Now to really blow that fog out of the air, we’re going to sharpen the picture. Before we do that, we’re going to need to merge all of the layers together. Click Layer > Merge Visible to condense all of the layers into one. Now click Layer > Duplicate Layer to make a copy of your background layer. To sharpen the new layer click Enhance > Unsharp Mask, and type in 100 for the amount, 1.0 for the radius and 3 for the threshold . Your image should be noticeably sharper. If the sharpening is a bit too much, you can lower the opacity down to a level that suits your photo. Again, we’ll want to merge the layers by clicking Layer > Merge Visible.
Finally, a little trick I picked up from my friend Janet Phillips to add that one last subtle touch of greatness, a vignette. For most of my pictures I add a darker vignette (an area that’s shaded off gradually) to bring the eye in toward my subject. To make a darker vignette, select the oval Marquee tool by right clicking on the dotted square on the tool bar, and selecting the dotted oval from the fly-out menu (or by pressing “M” twice). Draw a large oval by clicking and dragging your mouse. Now right click inside your oval and select Feather from the fly-out menu. I usually type in 250 pixels in the feather window, if your pictures are lower resolution, adjust the feathering to something like 150 pixels. Next we’re going to select the inverse of our oval by clicking Select > Inverse. This will select everything but the oval. Now click Edit > Copy, then Edit > Paste. You will now have just the selected area on a new layer. Change the blending mode of the new layer to Multiply. Lower the opacity to your liking, and you’re finished!
With that all said and done you may be saying to yourself, “This is a lot of work to put into every photo,” and you are right! That’s why I, with the help of a little Google research, developed a PSE action to condense all of these steps into a single step! If you’re not familiar with PSE actions, it is a series of Photoshop commands that are done for you, and they are fabulous. With the click of a button, all of the previous photo-popping steps will automatically be applied to your picture. How sweet is that! You can download the action here, and watch a video tutorial here.
After downloading the action, unzip the file and install it in PSE.
(If you need help installing the action, this site will walk you through that process)
After installing the action, open a picture in PSE, double click on the action in the Effects pallet and watch the magic!
You will still be able to adjust the opacity on each layer to suit your picture but all of the work will be done for you!
Once all of your edits are in finished, click Layer > Flatten Image to condense your image down to one layer, and save masterpiece.
Let me know what you think of this action, leave a comment on my blog.
Without getting into anything that’s too crazy stylized, there are several little touch-ups you can do to make your photos really pop. I know I’m a bit of a photo program junkie, so for this I narrowed my program usage down to just Photoshop Elements. When I say just Photoshop Elements (PSE), it is absolutely a program that gives you all of the tools to post-process to your heart’s content. And just a word of warning, adding that extra pop to your pictures is highly addictive! My dad often said, “Here’s Noel to make a long story longer.” So in keeping with tradition I’m going to walk through the process, and give an easy shortcut.
Every digital photo comes out of the camera in a sort of fog. (Think: Claratin commercials when the fog is lifted off the picture.) We’re going to bring our pictures out of that fog and into the clear in just a few easy steps.
The first step will be to brighten up the picture a bit. Open your photo in PSE, and click Layer > Duplicate Layer to copy your background layer. With your new layer selected, change the blending mode to Screen. (The blending mode menu is located in that little drop down menu just above the layers pallet toward the bottom right corner of your screen.) This will brighten your photo up... way up! It just might have brightened it up WAY too much. Luckily PSE lets you lower the transparency of each layer! So taking the opacity slider, on the top right side of the layers pallet, and slide it to the left until the brightness level looks appropriate.
Next we’re going to add a little color pop to the picture. Click on your Background Layer again, and click Layer > Duplicate Layer. With your new layer selected, change the blending mode to Soft Light. Now it is very likely that this layer will also need an opacity adjustment. Moving the opacity slider to about 35% is a good starting point, but you can adjust it to suit your picture and taste.
Now to really blow that fog out of the air, we’re going to sharpen the picture. Before we do that, we’re going to need to merge all of the layers together. Click Layer > Merge Visible to condense all of the layers into one. Now click Layer > Duplicate Layer to make a copy of your background layer. To sharpen the new layer click Enhance > Unsharp Mask, and type in 100 for the amount, 1.0 for the radius and 3 for the threshold . Your image should be noticeably sharper. If the sharpening is a bit too much, you can lower the opacity down to a level that suits your photo. Again, we’ll want to merge the layers by clicking Layer > Merge Visible.
Finally, a little trick I picked up from my friend Janet Phillips to add that one last subtle touch of greatness, a vignette. For most of my pictures I add a darker vignette (an area that’s shaded off gradually) to bring the eye in toward my subject. To make a darker vignette, select the oval Marquee tool by right clicking on the dotted square on the tool bar, and selecting the dotted oval from the fly-out menu (or by pressing “M” twice). Draw a large oval by clicking and dragging your mouse. Now right click inside your oval and select Feather from the fly-out menu. I usually type in 250 pixels in the feather window, if your pictures are lower resolution, adjust the feathering to something like 150 pixels. Next we’re going to select the inverse of our oval by clicking Select > Inverse. This will select everything but the oval. Now click Edit > Copy, then Edit > Paste. You will now have just the selected area on a new layer. Change the blending mode of the new layer to Multiply. Lower the opacity to your liking, and you’re finished!
With that all said and done you may be saying to yourself, “This is a lot of work to put into every photo,” and you are right! That’s why I, with the help of a little Google research, developed a PSE action to condense all of these steps into a single step! If you’re not familiar with PSE actions, it is a series of Photoshop commands that are done for you, and they are fabulous. With the click of a button, all of the previous photo-popping steps will automatically be applied to your picture. How sweet is that! You can download the action here, and watch a video tutorial here.
After downloading the action, unzip the file and install it in PSE.
(If you need help installing the action, this site will walk you through that process)
After installing the action, open a picture in PSE, double click on the action in the Effects pallet and watch the magic!
You will still be able to adjust the opacity on each layer to suit your picture but all of the work will be done for you!
Once all of your edits are in finished, click Layer > Flatten Image to condense your image down to one layer, and save masterpiece.
Let me know what you think of this action, leave a comment on my blog.
Posted at 09:02 AM
September 23, 2009
Introducing... Renee Pearson!
Be still, my heart! Ella had a chance to sit down for a little tusk-a-tusk with the Digital Diva, Renee Pearson! Renee wrote the book (literally!) on digital scrapbooking, and she's recently launched the fabulous digital education site, reneepearson.com. She's also the author of our latest eBook, Special Effects for Digital Photos: 10 easy tutorials using Photoshop Elements 7.
Here's what Renee had to say:
Ella: What's your favorite late-night snack?
Renee: Popcorn...morning..noon...or late night!
Ella: I am with you! I LOVE popcorn. Sometimes I even have it for dinner. Lots of fiber, ya know! So, how did you become "the Digital Diva?"
Renee: It was so many years ago it feels like another life. I was actually working in marketing communications and graphic design. When I developed an interest in scrapbooking, it seemed natural to apply my digital design skills to my new hobby.
Ella: Because of all the time you're on your computer, you must do some serious online shopping. What's the last thing you bought?
Renee: Software...something I needed for the website.
Ella: What, no shoes? Alright, I guess business comes first.
Renee: Ha-ha! I’m really not a shoe person...but I adore handbags! I’ve had my eye on a Marc Jacobs beauty for quite some time. When I earn my first million I’m heading for the Marc Jacobs store!
Ella: And I'm not much of a purse girl, what with this TRUNK and all! ;) Tell us, what reading material is on your nightstand right now?
Renee: Oooh! I just finished “The Magician’s Assistant” by Ann Patchett. Loved it. Next up is the new Dan Brown book, “The Lost Symbol.” I’ve been waiting a long time for this sequel to “The DaVinci Code.”
Ella: Good stuff. Speaking of good stuff, you are quite the musical maven. What's your latest musical discovery?
Renee: Salem al Fakir...a Swedish pop/soul sensation.
Ella: I've seen you mention him on your blog before. Thanks for the recommendation! Hey, with everything you have going on, how do you keep track of it all? Do you make a daily to-do list? How many items are typically on it? Is it digital or paper?
Renee: I sure do. It’s actually a rolling list from day to day. It typically has 20 or more items on it. I keep a paper notebook that I work from. There’s just something satisfying about drawing a line through a completed item that can’t be duplicated digitally. My favorite notebooks are the Mnemosyne by Maruman. The paper is a joy to write on.
Ella: I am going to get one IMMEDIATELY. You always have the coolest stuff! And speaking of cool stuff, what one thing do you want people to know about your book?
Renee: That they’re my favorite quick-and-easy tips for giving your photos that extra punch. And they really ARE quick and easy.
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...AND A CONTEST (OF COURSE)!
Renee's book is perfect for Photoshop Beginners (like most of the staff here at Ella!). If you're a little more advanced, we've got a great offer for you -- a seat in Renee's Collage 101 class at reneepearson.com, starting in October! Note: This class is rated Intermediate and is best for people with Photoshop experience. Interested? Leave us a comment telling us what digital topics you'd like to see covered in future eBooks! Hurry -- we're drawing a name tomorrow, Sept. 24!
Oh, and by the way... the winner of the Jodie McNally word art is...
Mary F:
<<They were all good tips but I like the first one the best-I've been wanting to do a page like that for awhile and just haven't found the right subjects for it yet!>>
Mary, you have won a $25 gift certificate to Jodie's online store! Email us at comments@ellapublishing.com to claim your prize!
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One more thing... We've got a last-minute call for pages for our October Scrapbook Ellaments. We're looking for two pages. Submit your best for either (or both!) of the following:
1. A paper-based page using a premade quote
2. A paper-based page using a premade title
Follow our usual submissions guidelines here. Deadline is Sunday, Sept. 27. at midnight-ish. Winning layouts will receive copies of Jodie McNally's exclusive Ella digital scrapbooking kit, on sale next month!
Digi folks, don't despair -- next week we are focusing on digital all week long, just for you! We've got some cool stuff in store. This is the place to stay up on what's happening, so come back often. We're here daily (except when we're not).
Posted at 11:39 AM
