Saturday, 31 December 2011

Photo of the Day #2662 - The Red Barn in Winter by Doug Newman

#2662

December, 31, 2011 
PHOTO OF THE DAY



Jim Miotke
President, BetterPhoto.com, Inc. ®
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Friday, 30 December 2011

Photo of the Day #2661 - Watching the setting sun by Dore Vorum

#2661

December, 30, 2011 
PHOTO OF THE DAY



Jim Miotke
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Thursday, 29 December 2011

Photo of the Day #2660 - Fall Auroras by ronald lafleur

#2660

December, 29, 2011 
PHOTO OF THE DAY
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Jim Miotke
President, BetterPhoto.com, Inc. ®
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Imagine taking your vacation photography from just OK to truly outstanding! Check out Denise Miotke's awesome new 4-week online course: Travel and Landscape Photography: Better Photos of Places. And read her fascinating thoughts on traveling and teaching.


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Digital Darkroom #103 - Learn Photoshop! Learn Lightroom! How to Replace a Sky; Creative Photo Projects; Discussions

The Digital Darkroom - Free Monthly Newsletter for Digital Photographers

Welcome to the 103rd issue of the Digital Darkroom

Hi

A happy holiday season to all, and best wishes for an outstanding 2012!

In this issue of Digital Darkroom, check out Jim Zuckerman's excellent Featured Article ("Photoshop Tip: How to Replace a Sky") and Deb Sandidge's Featured Blog ("Travel Photography and Creative Photo Projects").

Kicking off the new year will be our January online session of 4-week courses and 8-week classes. School begins on January 4th, but if you enroll now, you can get started with an early lesson.

In an online BetterPhoto class, you'll have fun and learn a lot - without the expense of an on-location workshop. Our photography and Photoshop courses are affordable and fit right into your busy schedule. In addition, we are very proud of our virtual classroom, which is very interactive and very convenient. Take a quick tour...

That's it for now. Have fun with your photography, and Happy New Year!

Kerry Drager
Newsletter Editor

To read the online version of the Digital Darkroom at our Web site, visit http://www.betterphoto.com/digitalpics/

In This Issue: Thursday, December 29, 2011


 

Featured Photo: The Two of Us

The Two of Us
The Two of Us
I was thrilled to photograph these two Monarch Butterflies, together. But, the b/g behind the upper butterfly was less than desirable. I applied three textures to disguise the problem. Each texture with different blending modes, fills and opacities. Textures from ShadowHouse

© Carla Capra

carlacapra.com
Nikon D70S Digital...

 

Featured Article: Photoshop Tip: How to Replace a Sky
BetterPhoto instructor Jim Zuckerman tells - and shows - how he turned a ho-hum image into an eye-grabbing one by replacing a boring sky.
 

Digital Before and After

SS
SS
Spent a good hour with the flamingos and did some fun in the darkroom later. Adjustments in PS CS2 and special effects in NIK Color EFX.
THREE Amigos
THREE Amigos
(original - without effects)
The leg belongs to the third one who is sleeping at the back!


© Usman Bajwa

Read the photo discussion here...

 
Each month, the best Before and After will be featured in the Digital Darkroom.

To participate, upload a Before (original) picture then start a discussion on it (using the Discuss This Photo link under the picture). After telling us how you did created the effect, select "1" or "2" from the Upload Image pull-down menu, and submit an optional intermediate image and a final (After) photo. Aim to educate and inspire by sharing a concise, detailed explanation of your technique. Enjoy!


 

Featured Blog: Travel Photography and Creative Photo Projects

 
In her excellent new BetterPhoto Instructor Insights blog, Deborah Sandidge talks about close-up photography, photo projects, and an awesome Photoshop plug-in...  

 

These Photoshop and Lightroom Courses Offer Video Lessons!

 
In the following online classes, videos reveal the techniques! Best yet, these courses are fully interactive.   See BetterPhoto's listing of all digital darkroom courses...

 

New Book Focuses on Giving Your Creativity a Big Boost!

 
The latest title in the BetterPhoto Guide series - The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography - has just been published. Co-authored by Jim Miotke and Kerry Drager, this how-to book covers a variety of topics: getting started (creative visualization), lens perspective (wide vs. telephoto), point of view, natural light and exploring the times of day, the elements of design, composition (following and breaking the rules, plus advanced concepts), depth and balance, photographing motion (from freezing action to in-camera painterly effects), personal projects, etc.

Need more? See excerpts from the book...

  Learn more about Creative Digital Photography...


 

New Photo Discussions

New Photo Discussion 1: On Mormon Row

On Mormon Row
On Mormon Row
Canon EF24-105mmL, F22, ISO800, 1/80
Effects in PS, Topaz, Redfield


© Terry Cervi

terrycerviphotography.com
Canon EOS 5D Mark ...
Just like a beautiful painting, my friend. That is absolutely stunning, looks like an old barn you would find along our White River!!!!
- Bobby Ray Goodman

See Bobby's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 1:The colors, tones, lighting, perspective, treatment & mood make for an exceptional work of art, Terry! Hope to see this again, my friend! I would frame & hang that!
- Patrick Rouzes

See Patrick's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 2:Beautiful painterly effects with your marvelous DD work, Terry! You've turned this classic scene into a masterpiece - terrific color, light and textures. Sorry I haven't been by in a while...
- Rona L. Schwarz

See Rona's Basic BetterPholio™

Visit photosbyrona.com - Rona's Deluxe BetterPholio™

Read this discussion online
Respond to this discussion
 
New Photo Discussion 2: Heracles & Appolon

Heracles & Appolon
Heracles & Appolon
Mount Nemrut, Turkey.

© alexander decoster

Canon EOS 5D Mark ...
Great work! Fantastic sky for the background.
- Jack Gaskin

See Jack's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 1:Thank you Jack.
This technique I learned from Jim Zuckerman (BetterPhoto instructor & pro photographer). He taught me to have a collection of sky and cloud pictures and use them to replace dull skies whenever needed. This was the case when we went together to Turkey last month, to photograph the statues on Mount Nemrut.
Alex
- alexander decoster

See alexander's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 2:You learned the sky lesson well, Alex! It looks great behind the stone heads, which look terrific, with excellent DOF and details. This looks like an interesting place.
- Lindley Ranke

See Lindley's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 3:Hello Lindley,
Thanks for your comments. Indeed, this place is more than magic. We woke up at 2 o'clock in the morning to drive about 2 hours, start walking the mountain and just wait for the early morning light. The light was beautiful (on the stone heads) but the sky...
alex
- alexander decoster

See alexander's Basic BetterPholio™

Read this discussion online
Respond to this discussion
 
New Photo Discussion 3: Eiffel tower. France.

Eiffel tower. France.
Eiffel tower. France.
Used Florabella texture Moulin Rouge.

© Lyn Darlington

sabvaningphotography.com
Canon EOS 5D Mark ...
Hello Lyn
Happy to see you are back again. Missed you. I love this technique.
Alex
- alexander decoster

See alexander's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 1:Fantastic POV and tone. Awesome capture and presentation, Lyn!
- Dave Montero

See Dave's Basic BetterPholio™

Response 2:I love this Lyn. The sepia and texture gives a real old world feel :)
- Jana Foster

See Jana's Basic BetterPholio™

Read this discussion online
Respond to this discussion
 

 

The Next Step: Where to Go From Here

Until next time, thanks for reading and keep having fun with photography!
Jim Miotke
BetterPhoto.com, Inc.

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Copyright 2011 BetterPhoto.com - All Rights Reserved. No part of this newsletter may be copied or published without prior permission. BetterPhoto is a trademark of BetterPhoto.com, Inc.

Wednesday, 28 December 2011

Photo of the Day #2659 - Happy Moment by Sherman Vincent R. Gomez

#2659

December, 28, 2011 
PHOTO OF THE DAY



Jim Miotke
President, BetterPhoto.com, Inc. ®
BetterphotoJim.com   Twitter   Blog

BetterPhoto.com
HAVE A PRO AT YOUR SIDE - ONLINE, ANYTIME!
BetterPhoto's online photography courses start up again o n January 4th!


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No part of this newsletter may be copied or published without prior permission. BetterPhoto is a trademark of BetterPhoto.com, Inc. If you use a Challenge-Response system for email, please make certain that you can receive our email by adding www.betterphoto.com to your Allow List.
The sender of this email is the BetterPhoto.com®, Inc., 16544 NE 79th St., Redmond, WA 98052