A fun layers exercise/tutorial...

I came across a Photoshop "cracked and peeling" tutorial and thought I would give it a whirl.

Now I realize that very few (okay more like none) of our clients would ask for this but it's a good way to try (and learn) new things and expand your Photoshop skills.

Here is the finished image (click on it to view larger):


I took the original image -


and using layer masks overlaid it with a dried mud texture -


then took a small piece from a rust texture -

You can get these textures (and many more) for free over at CGTextures and you can walk through the step by step tutorial here.

Giving your client a tattoo...

While doing a maternity shoot the "expecting" grandmother said, "wouldn't that look cool if he had a tribal tattoo" and while editing I looked at the shot and thought she was right.

So I applied the tattoo and emailed it to her, she was thrilled.

(click on either image to view larger & in a new window)

Below is a video tutorial on how it is done in just a few minutes, you can find another tutorial here, here, and here as well.

You can also find video tutorials on how to remove tattoos here and here.

And the winner is...

The winner of "The Evolution Collection with FLO" from Jed and Vicki Taufer is...



(subscribers - make sure you come back to the blog to view the video or watch it on YouTube because videos still are not pushed through with your subscription, sorry)

Happy Valentines Day...

In the spirit of the day, I hope you love and are loved... today and everyday.

Contest reminder, drawing on Monday!...

We just wanted to remind everyone that you still have time to enter our contest and win the 2009 product of the year.

Nothing for you to do but send us an email with your name so we can drop it into the bowl.

The winner will receive a package that will be transformative.

If you are thinking about becoming a professional photographer, or want to take your current studio to the next level "The Evolution Collection with FLO" will help get you there.

The random drawing will be held at 5pm eastern time on February 15th (this coming Monday) and the video of the winning name being drawn will be posted that night.

You can read all of the contest details here.

Good luck!

Ladies and gentlemen, Doug Chinnery...

I "met" Doug through this blog and was completely blown away with his landscape images and wanted to share him (and his images) with you.

So, without further delay, Doug Chinnery:

"I live on the edge of Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, England – home of Robin Hood! In fact many of my images of trees are taken in the forest.

I have always taken photographs but got serious with the advent of digital photography, starting out with Canons 350D. I soon upgraded to the Canon 5d and then on to the 1ds mk2. I work with full frame cameras as my first love is landscapes.

I now am now more or less a professional photographer, selling prints of my images and shoot stock for Alamy and Getty. I shoot portraits, weddings (the most stressful thing I do!), commercial customers and now conduct my own workshops. I am also working on my first photography book.

I enjoy shooting landscapes but hold back from describing myself as a ‘Landscape photographer’, I prefer to think of myself as just a ‘photographer’.

Why photography? I just love being out and being creative. I enjoy very early mornings and being in the landscape alone or with good friends. I enjoy the experiences only early risers get of seeing our world at its very best. I also enjoy teaching and sharing knowledge, hence my workshops and my blog. I believe in freely spreading knowledge of locations and techniques. I find it hard to understand photographers who jealously protect their knowledge and seem to see other photographers as a threat.

The photographers I admire are David Noton, Joe Cornish and Charlie Waite. The standards they set give me something to work towards and aspire to."

His equipment:

"Canon 1ds mk2br>Canon L lenses - 16-35, 24-70, 70-200.
Plus the 100mm L Macro, f1.4 50mm and the 1.4x extender (I also use a Lensbaby Composer)
Lee ND Grad Filter system
Giottos Carbon Fibre Tripod with Manfrotto 405 Geared Head
I always use mirror lock, a hot-shoe level and a remote release.

I always shoot in RAW and process the images in Lightroom followed by dust spotting, levels and curves adjustments in Photoshop. I try to get the images right in camera so I have to do as little as possible on the computer. The exception to this is where I create artistic images using textures. For my black and white images I use Silver Efex Pro. The tip that has made the biggest improvement to my images has been to spend some time understanding the Histogram and ‘shooting to the right’. Most of the information in a RAW file is in the highlights end of the histogram – underexposing certainly makes the image more colorful and contrasty on the camera and computer screen, but you're missing so much data. Overcome being put off by seeing washed out flat images on the camera and trust the histogram. When you get back to the computer you can bring all that richness back with levels and curves and will end up with a much better image than if you had underexposed."

His images:

"Walking in Golden Dreams"

I was in a bit of a dream when I shot this image. It was taken in Clumber Park, part of Sherwood Forest, and I visited the location probably 20 or 30 times before I got these conditions. It was a February dawn, a slight mist floated between the trees and as the low rising sun hit the mist it burst into liquid gold. I had just a couple of minutes of feverish activity to capture the scene. That year, the images I took became my best sellers by far. Settings – ISO 50, 280mm, f22, 0.8 seconds.

"Eilean Donan Castle"

This is probably the most photographed castle in Scotland, it is on a loch as you approach the bridge over to the Isle of Skye. My wife and I were on our return journey home after a weeks holiday on Skye. As we rounded the loch I could see the light was amazing. I was new to digital photography then but had the foresight to shoot seven images with my Canon 350D which I later stitched into this panorama. The light lasted five minutes before a storm hit and dissolved into rain. Settings - ISO100, 46mm, f10, 1/160.

"When the way seems difficult"

This is a lane in Northern Ireland near the village of Armoy. It is called locally, ‘the dark hedges’. I used a 70-200mm IS L zoom lens with the 1.4x extender for this image to compress the perspective and enhance the nature of the trees. Settings - ISO 50 at f16 for 61 seconds as the light was fading. I converted the image to B&W to focus the eye on the shapes and contrasts rather than being distracted by the colors. The square crop was used to enhance the symmetry of the image.

"Runswick Bay"

This image was shot in the North Yorkshire coast this winter, before sunrise. I used the jetty as a lead in and centralized it to give a symmetrical image with a strong feel. I put on 5 stops of Lee ND filter and a 3 stop soft ND grad to balance the exposure. Settings - ISO 50, f18, 16mm for 83 seconds. This flattened the sea to a translucent sheet and captured the movement in the clouds. In this type of situation I often look for symmetry as this seems to work well with fine art images.

"Bluebell Wood"

This image took a lot of energy and willpower to get. It meant a 1am rise to drive for four hours to be in place for dawn. On the drive it poured with rain and I feared the drive was wasted. However just before dawn the rain stopped and mist started to rise. The bluebells were soaked in rain water – I got drenched to the waist moving through the wood. I used a long lens to compress the effect of the bluebells and a ND filter to hold back the dawn light pouring through the mist as it evaporated. After an hours shooting I was shattered, wet, cold and still had a long drive home, but the images were well worth it. In fact this image became my best sellers last year. Settings – ISO 50, 98mm, f11, 1/6 second.

"St. Mary's Lighthouse"

This was such a beautiful dawn, soft, gentle warm light bathed the lighthouse, again I used the causeway, which is covered at high tide, to create a symmetrical composition. Settings – ISO 50, 16mm, f16, 0.8 second – Lee ND grad filter.

(click on any of these stunning images to view larger, in a new window)

California Sunbounce Micro-Mini review...

Last August I reviewed the California Sunbounce Pro and loved it for a few reasons, how well it performed, the quality workmanship, and the superior materials that are used in its construction.

Along comes the California Sunbounce Micro-Mini and it's the same great product and performance, just in a much smaller package.

For the last three weeks I have been shooting artifacts for a museum that will be used for both archival purposes as well as publication and almost every shot consists of three things, 2 lights and a Sunbounce Micro-Mini. It's small enough to get into tight spots and it does a big job.

Because of the design I have two reflective surfaces to choose from (soft or strong) and it's light weight and rigid frame allow me to easily hold it with one hand while shooting.

And it takes up very little (and precious) travel space, when broken down and in it's handy dandy travel pouch it takes up about as much space as a 30" shoot through umbrella.

Today not only do you get a review of a great product, but you also have the chance to win some cool (and useful) gear.

Bron Imaging Group, the American distributor for the California Sunbounce line of products, is currently holding their photography contest. The theme is an intimate portrait of the girl or boy next door.

The contest started February 1st and the winner will be announced July 1st.

1st place - broncolor Mobil A2R travel kit

2nd place - broncolor Minicom RFS Travel kit

3rd place will get you this very California Sunbounce Micro-Mini with the flash bracket

Back to the review, watch the video below and you'll see why I am so fond of the California Sunbounce Micro-Mini and why you should seriously consider adding it to your arsenal of light modifiers and shapers.

(subscribers - make sure you come back to the blog to view the video or watch it on YouTube because videos still are not pushed through with your subscription, sorry)