News from Earthlightbound

[RoboNews]

Ahead of our in-depth Nikon D700 review, we thought you might enjoy seeing our High ISO results for the camera directly compared against the Nikon D300 and Canon EOS 5D. This page of results, taken with final production cameras, illustrates the advantages of full-frame DSLR sensors, but just how much better is the D700 than the cropped-frame D300, and is Canon's EOS 5D still a contender? Find out in our Nikon D700 High ISO results page, and remember to check back soon for our full review and video tour.

More... (http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Nikon_D700/noise.shtml)

[RoboNews]

I wrote recently that Nikon exposure meters generally read right to left while Canon meters read left to right. True enough. But if you have one of the newer Nikon bodies such as the D3 or D300 you can change reverse the orientation if you want....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-right-left-clockwise-counterclockwise.html)

[RoboNews]

So how do you know if you are looking at a gray object in average light, or a white one in dim light, or even a black one in very bright light? Generally this dilemma isn't a very challenging one since we can see that object in context and our brains automatically help us figure such things out. But what about your camera?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/black-and-white-are-gray.html)

[RoboNews]

Point your camera at a subject, check the meter, and press the shutter release button. The camera clicks. Later, you review your shots on the camera's LCD display and take a look at the histogram. Both the meter and histogram show you versions of how your images are exposed and both are quite useful. But while they do have a lot in common, they work quite differently. This week we'll take a look at how they compare....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-meter-versus-histogram.html)

[RoboNews]

Digital imaging can sometimes get more than a bit complicated, especially for the inexperienced. A problem I get asked about from time to time is the understandable frustration of having all your images cursed with a strong color cast. While there may be any number of possibilities, a clue to the most frequent cause can be found in what color the cast itself is....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/causes-of-color-casts.html)

[RoboNews]

Well, the rumors about a new full-frame camera from Nikon were true: Nikon made things official with the announcement of the D700 this past week. But that's not the only recent good news for Nikon shooters....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-d700-and-d3-d300-firmware-update.html)

[RoboNews]

Dust spots are a problem inherent in digital photography with cameras that use interchangeable lenses. If the dust can get in there, sooner or later some of it will end up on your sensor, and when it does, it will end up on your images. Thankfully, Photoshop provides some useful tools to get rid of spots on your images....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/getting-rid-of-dust-spots.html)

[RoboNews]

Modern digital cameras are complicated pieces of equipment. New users in particular can have a hard time making sense out the various messages their camera's LCD panels and viewfinder convey. If you're a Nikon shooter, you've probably noticed the mysterious "r00" other "r" numbers when you press down on the shutter release. Here's the scoop on what they mean....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-r00-numbers.html)

[RoboNews]

As mentioned last week, in much of the world, photographs are copyrighted the moment you take them. You do not give away any of your rights by not plastering a copyright symbol all over them. It can be a good idea to include a copyright notice when publishing them though, even if only on your own website so that others will know that you are aware of your rights. Registering with the Copyright Office can also be a good idea ** a better one than most photographers realize in fact. While your photographs are copyrighted even without registering them, doing so affords you a much greater degree of protection should you end up needing it....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/copyright-registration.html)

[RoboNews]

One of the more frequent questions that comes up among photographers getting used to the world of digital isn't really a photography question at all. Rather, it deals with how to create that darned circle-with-a-C-in-it symbol used to designate copyright....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/copyright-symbol.html)

[RoboNews]

So now that we've covered how to adjust color balance in Photoshop both with the appropriately named Color Balance tool and with Levels, it's time to spend one final week on the subject. In case you hadn't already guessed, you can also correct for color casts with Curves, and it is this that is the subject of this article....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/color-balance-curves.html)

[RoboNews]

If you think that USB 2.0 is fast compared to earlier USB 1.1 standards, you're right. At 480 megabits per second, the current 2.0 version of USB operates at speeds up to 14 times faster than the older version. But by next year that will be, well... last year's news. Or something like that. This week Intel released the controller specifications for "SuperSpeed" USB 3.0 that will run up to 10 times faster still ** up to 4.8 gigabits per second. And for fans of FireWire, last month the IEEE approved specs for the upcoming IEEE 1394-2008 that will run at up to 3.2 gigabits per second....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/superspeed-usb-3-firewire-ieee-1394-2008.html)

[RoboNews]

Do you calibrate your monitor, or do you profile it? In discussions on color management, the terms "calibrating" and "profiling" are often used somewhat interchangeably. In point of fact though, they refer to quite distinct processes....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/calibrating-versus-profiling.html)

[RoboNews]

Image files are getting bigger and bigger with the release of every new generation of digital cameras. Thankfully, the capacity of available compact flash cards and hard drives also continues to rise as does the processing speed of new computers. It can be challenging though to have a sense of perspective when zoomed in on a large image in Photoshop. Thankfully, Adobe provided the answer in the form of the Navigator....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-navigator.html)

[RoboNews]

Professional photographers often spend a premium to get lenses free of distortion in order to get the best images possible. The unique curved perspective created by fisheye lenses is a notable exception. That curved perspective can also be a lot of fun to play with and is the subject of this week's PhotoTip....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/using-a-fish-eye-lens.html)

[RoboNews]

I mentioned last week that I wasn't a fan of software that claims to correct the distortions caused by shooting with a fisheye lens. It just seems that it defeats the entire point. But sometimes even a well composed "pure" fisheye shot can benefit from a judicious tweak via software. Not to remove any evidence of what kind of lens was used or anything, but just to transform it slightly to stop some trees from falling over perhaps. Or, as Adobe Photoshop calls it, "warp" it a tad....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/edit-transform-warp-fisheye.html)

[RoboNews]

In the world of color management, not all profiles are created equal. Simply put, some of them are smarter than others. When it comes to understanding rendering intent, not all of them know what you mean if you select Perceptual intent....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/matrix-profiles-perceptual.html)

[RoboNews]

Back in the age of film photography, 35mm slides were everywhere. Whether they were in stacked in yellow Kodak boxes or something else, most photographers had lots of slides. Slides are a lot scarcer now that digital has taken over though. But if you have an old slide mount lying around still, go dig it out. You can use it to help you improve your photographic vision....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/slide-mount-composition-aid.html)

[RoboNews]

The Internet is all the rage these days. Everything is online it seems. Heck, you're reading this online, now aren't you? So if you're in the market for buying a new camera, lens or something else, the question is: is it safe to buy it online?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-shopping-online.html)

[RoboNews]

Not all internet retailers who offer low prices are on the up and up. Some are, but some resort to a variety of tricks you probably should be aware of. Paying attention to site such as Reseller Ratings will generally alert you if a deal offered by a retailer really is too good to be true. But a little advance knowledge of some of the common gambits never hurts....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-shopping-online2.html)

[RoboNews]

Sometimes you just want to get away for a quick weekend trip to take some photos but can't decide where to go. If you live in the northwest and are looking for some ideas, this week's PhotoTip is definitely for you. If you live elsewhere, you may just some ideas too....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nature-weekends-ideas.html)

[RoboNews]

You want to take some pictures so you take off the lens cap. What do you do with it? This may seem like a simple question, but can you find the cap when you're done shooting? Ah ... not so simple after all now is it?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/where-to-put-lens-caps.html)

[RoboNews]

Unfortunately, Adobe hasn't seen fit to let us use it on an adjustment layer, but the aptly named Shadow/Highlight adjustment in Photoshop is definitely the easiest way to bring out shadow detail, tone down reflective highlight glare and make other common tonal adjustments. Here's how it works....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/shadow-highlight.html)

[RoboNews]

If you've been reading my website for any time at all, you probably know that I shoot as many shots as I can using a cable release with the camera firmly atop a tripod. Wide angle and fisheye lenses though can make getting out of the way difficult when I'm tethered to the end of my remote control cable so I've always considered getting a wireless remote. I think I've finally found one I like....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/phottix-cleon.html)

[RoboNews]

The use of adjustment layers helps to maintain image quality by avoiding the buildup of artifacts that can result from a series of successive individual edits. But if you're editing in 16-bit mode, you've got a heck of a lot more data to work with. Each pixel value is so much more precise than it would be in 8-bit, do you in fact now have data to spare? That is, do you really still need to worry about using adjustment layers at all?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adjustment-layers-still-needed-with-16-bit.html)

[RoboNews]

In a default installation of Photoshop, you'll be confronted with an ominous warning about maximizing compatibility when you save a new image as a PSD file. The dialog warns you that failure to do what it suggests may interfere with the use of your file in other applications or with other versions of Photoshop. Scary stuff. The question is though, should you heed its advice? Is safe better than potentially being sorry later?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/maximize-compatibility.html)

[RoboNews]

Objective image quality data isn't easy to come by. Most of us have had to rely on our own limited experience coupled with a wide array of anecdotal evidence scoured from friends, acquaintances and various websites to make buying decisions on new cameras. DxOMark.com changes all that. The new website created by the people behind the excellent DxO raw converter provides a wealth of information comparing and rating the camera sensors that at the heart of how digital photography works....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/dxomark-com-digital-camera-sensor-ratings.html)

[RoboNews]

It's that time of year again. If you're feeling stumped as to what to get a certain special photographer in your life, or maybe you just want to treat yourself to a cool gift, I have a few suggestions to consider....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/cool-gifts-for-photographers-and-other-cool-people.html)

[RoboNews]

If adjusting an image by playing with sliders has never felt very natural to you, you will likely appreciate the new Targeted Adjustment Tool (TAT) in Adobe Camera Raw 5.2....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/targeted-adjustment-tool-tat.html)

[RoboNews]

With the growth of digital photography, cameras have been turning into computers. For nature photographers that introduces a dilemma. Unlike the controlled office environment where computers have traditionally been used, it's anything but controlled in the great outdoors. Protecting the monitor screen on your camera is no easy thing....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/zagg-invisible-sheild-vs-nikon-bm-monitor-cover.html)

[RoboNews]

Every time Adobe upgrades Photoshop, they change things. That is the whole point now isn't it, but if you've gotten used to the way things used to be, change doesn't always come easy. One of the most obvious interface changes Photoshop CS4 brings is the way it arranges open documents. Yes, Photoshop now opens documents in tabs and not everyone seems to be happy about that....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-tabs.html)

[RoboNews]

The improvements in Photoshop CS4 come in all shapes and sizes ** some big and obvious, and others are important yet easy to miss. The improvements in the Dodge, Burn and Sponge tools fall into this latter group....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-dodge-burn-sponge.html)

[RoboNews]

It used to be, in the film era, you couldn't see the pictures you had taken until you got your slides developed. Whether you took your film to a one-hour photo place or mailed it in to Kodak or another mail-order processor, you didn't get to see your pictures while you were still on location where you took them. Thankfully, digital has changed all that. And since you can now see your photos as soon as you take them, you can learn from your mistakes in time to try again. This lets you not only adjust your exposure as needed, it lets you fine tune your composition using a technique I like to call "iterative composition."....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/iterative-composition.html)

[RoboNews]

As with all the other components of Adobe's Creative Suite of programs, the CS4 version of Bridge features a host of refinements. One of my favorites is the Review mode that provides an exciting new way to view your images and pick out the very best from a selection of similar shots....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/bridge-cs4-review-mode.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe has made enhancements both big and small throughout Photoshop with the release of the new CS4 version. The changes in the area of color management aren't earth shattering, but they will make your life easier if you know about them....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-color-management-changes.html)

[RoboNews]

It's hard to capture the range of brightness and the diversity of color found in the natural world. That's why masks are such a useful tool for optimizing images in Photoshop. And now Photoshop CS4 makes working with masks easier than ever with the introduction of the new Masks Panel....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-masks-panel.html)

[RoboNews]

I'm sometimes asked what the best aperture is for a given lens. The problem is though that lenses tend to have adjustable apertures for a reason. Not every situation calls for the same settings. The lens itself is but one factor....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/best-aperture.html)

[RoboNews]

In the beginning, Photoshop was just Photoshop ** there were no "editions" and there were no "suites." The introduction of Photoshop CS gave us a handful of "Creative Suite" options a few years back now and as of CS3 Adobe split Photoshop itself into the Standard and Extended editions. CS4 continues that pattern making the upgrade options less than simple for many of us....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-standard-extended-creative-suites.html)

[RoboNews]

Upgrading versions of Photoshop isn't cheap and some people may be wondering whether skipping a release might be a good way to save money. If you've been trying to decide whether to spring for the CS4 upgrade I'd advise you to carefully review the new features on Adobe's website. But one new feature that is hard to fully appreciate without seeing it in action is the use GPU and OpenGL acceleration to speed up screen redraws....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/cs4-gpu-acceleration.html)

[RoboNews]

Way back when, Photoshop came with printed manuals. Once we got to the Creative Suite days, the standalone version of Photoshop still included one, but the suite versions dispensed with printed manuals and included only a PDF file of the relevant documentation. If you've upgraded to one of the CS4 suites, you've no doubt noticed even that is gone, replaced only with links to Adobe's website. If you long to have a real manual again, there is an answer....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-manuals.html)

[RoboNews]

Some topics in digital imaging seem to create more confusion than others. The use of in camera sharpening is definitely one such topic. In the end, it comes down to what you shoot and how experienced you are, and the best choice for one person may not be the best for someone else....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/in-camera-sharpening-pros-and-cons.html)

[RoboNews]

No, the FBI isn't coming to make sure you activated your copy of Photoshop. At least that's not what this article is about if they are. Instead, "RAID" stands for "Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks". And it's something you should know about if you want to make sure your image files are safe and your system performs at its peak....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/raid-for-photoshop.html)

[RoboNews]

By cutting haze and cutting down on reflections, a polarizer is one of the most useful filters for outdoor photography. But not all polarizers are created equal. Most modern cameras require what is known as a "circular polarizer." And I can hear at least some of you saying to yourself "aren't all polarizers round?" Ah, but in the world of polarizers "circular" doesn't mean "round."....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/circular-polarizer-linear-quarter-wave-retarder.html)

[RoboNews]

This Wednesday, Nikon will be officially announcing the introduction of the amazing new Nikon D4.1 digital SLR, the successor to the award winning D3 and D3x. In a departure from previous digital camera design though, the D4.1 will use a milestone imaging system with just a single bit sensor to produce vividly stunning images with greater resolution than any previous system....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/new-nikon-one-pixel-d41.html)

[RoboNews]

Yes, last week's post was an April Fools' joke. I admit it. But the internet is always swirling with new camera rumors and I thought it was about time I took advantage of that fact to make a point: you can't always believe what you read....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/cant-always-believe-what-you-read.html)

[RoboNews]

There are lots of keyboard shortcuts built into Adobe Photoshop and there's no way I could list them all here, even if I wanted to. I don't even use most of them, but there are some I couldn't live without. Here's a brief rundown of some of my favorites....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-keyboard-shortcuts.html)

[RoboNews]

Not everything plays nice with Microsoft Vista, especially the 64-bit version. That much is a given. But sometimes clever people come up with ways to get things to work anyway. That's what this week's PhotoTips article is about. Specifically, I'd like to pass on how some Google searching helped me get my Nikon Super CoolScan LS-4000 ED scanner to work on 64-bit Vista....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/coolscan-vista-64.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Windows comes as both a traditional 32-bit application and a 64-bit version for systems with the processor and operating system to run 64-bits. I recently upgraded to a Quad core 3.0 GHz Q9650 system with 8 GB RAM running 64-bit Windows Vista. If you're curious what I think of 64-bit Photoshop, read on....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs4-64bit-32bit.html)

[RoboNews]

If you had dust spots, one of the first things you used to have to do is use the Spot Healing brush to get rid of them. But if you haven't tried it yet, getting rid of dust spots on an image has gotten a bit easier as of the release of Adobe Camera Raw 5.2. You can now clean things up as part of the raw conversion process....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-raw-dust-spot-removal.html)

[RoboNews]

Wacom recently released their new line of Intuos4 graphics tablets. After getting one to try out, I must say, I like it. A lot....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/wacom-intuos-4.html)

[RoboNews]

These days, almost all applications include some form of support for basic Undo and Redo operations. Some provide more than others, but it's almost expected to have at least something. With its History Panel, Adobe Photoshop excels at Undo / Redo but very few of us take full advantage of its capabilities....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-history-panel.html)

[RoboNews]

There once was a time that, if a camera or flash used batteries at all, it was powered by one or more trusty 1.5 volt AA (LR6 in some parts of the world) cells. More and more though, equipment manufacturers seem to be converting to either proprietary, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries or else the new fangled CR123A cell. But while AA batteries were cheap and readily available, it's a bit harder to find good deals on quality CR123A batteries....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/surefire-cr123a.html)

[RoboNews]

Owning a good quality tripod doesn't come cheap. But if you want to get the best images you can, it's pretty much a given that you need one. So the question I want to explore today is, what about protecting that investment?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/tripod-carrying-bags.html)

[RoboNews]

Last week I wrote about tripod bags and have since been asked about camera bags. This is a subject I haven't written much about before, but let's take it head on this week....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-bags.html)

[RoboNews]

Somewhere between the grand vista and panorama on the one hand, and the realm of macro and close-up imagery on the other, lies the intimate landscape....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/intimate-landscapes.html)

[RoboNews]

Superman is famous for the giant "S" emblazoned on the chest of his signature outfit. I doubt it has anything to do with the ability of an S-curve in Photoshop to make images look better, but both are legendary for the way they help out those in need. OK, so Photoshop may not be faster than a speeding bullet or more powerful than a locomotive, but the S-curve is a remarkable tool that you really should be familiar with....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/superman-photoshop-s-curve.html)

[RoboNews]

Even though I don't use any products actually made by Arca-Swiss, I'm a dedicated user of products compatible with the Arca-Swiss dovetail system. I'm guessing many of you are too. Adding a mounting plate is a proven way to solidly couple just about anything atop your tripod head. But if what you want to mount is a lens with a removable tripod foot, your best bet isn't to add a mounting plate to the bottom of that foot; it's to replace the foot itself....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lens-feet.html)

[RoboNews]

This isn't a photography tip per se, but I'm a photographer and was quite pleased to learn about this myself recently and thought I'd share it. Finally, a way to deal with mosquitoes and bugs when car camping....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/skreenz-car-door-window-screens.html)

[RoboNews]

In the modern world of photography, there are two kinds of filters. One kind goes in front of a camera lens and is designed to improve the appearance of the images you shoot with it. There are also software filters used as Photoshop plug-ins that are also meant to make your images look better. Both types of filters can be helpful when used in moderation, but both can easily be overused too....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/filter-trap.html)

[RoboNews]

When saving an image as a TIFF file in Photoshop, you have to pick whether you want to use IBM PC or Macintosh byte order. While you might think your choice would depend on which platform you use, such is not really the case....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/tiff-byte-order.html)

[RoboNews]

From time to time the question comes up of whether or not the use of Photoshop and similar image editing programs means that digital photography isn't "real" photography anymore. While Photoshop is a great tool to help overcome the limitations of the photographic process, it can also be used to change just about anything if you want to. So in order to answer the question, I guess it all depends on where you draw the line....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/digital-editing-ethics.html)

[RoboNews]

Photoshop CS4 introduced a number of changes to the user interface, some of which can take a bit of getting used to. As an advocate of adjustment layers, one of the changes I get asked about most often is the new adjustment panel. Why on earth did Adobe make it so small?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/cs4-adjustment-panel-expanded-view.html)

[RoboNews]

People trying to make sense of the color management settings in Photoshop often puzzle over the choice of RGB Working Space. When they change it from one flavor of RGB to a different one, images don't seem to look any different, which merely serves to reinforce the idea that color management is a waste of time. But while they're right that images look the same, there's more to color management than meets the eye....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-working-space.html)

[RoboNews]

There once was a time, all monitors were CRT displays. But be they big or small, CRTs all had the same shape. Now that many of us are moving to LCD displays for photo editing, we have choices. And choices can lead to confusion....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/monitor-aspect-ratio.html)

[RoboNews]

I got asked an interesting question recently. It's a general rule of thumb that most landscape shots are made with the lens stopped way down to maximize depth of field. Given this, why would you need a lens with an f/2.8 aperture?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/why-f-28-lenses.html)

[RoboNews]

The standard rule of thumb has long been that web browsers don't support color management. With the notable exception of Apple's Safari browser and the ill fated Mac version of Internet Explorer, this has largely held true. But Mozilla Firefox has quietly been changing all that, and this is good news for photographers who care what their images look like online....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/firefox-color-management.html)

[RoboNews]

Some photographers have adopted the position that they don't really need to worry about camera settings when shooting raw format. The argument goes that they can always fix it later in Photoshop. While it is true that many camera settings become at most defaults for later raw conversion, the fundaments still count as much as always....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/shooting-raw-not-lazy.html)

[RoboNews]

Cameras these days generally do a good job of automatically determining exposure, but that doesn't mean you have to accept what yours comes up with. By understanding the photographic triangle, you can take control of exposure....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/using-photographic-triangle.html)

[RoboNews]

If you're new to the Nikon system, or perhaps even if you're not, the endless strings of seemingly random letters that Nikon tacks onto the end of their lens names can seem confusing. Beyond the basic focal length and aperture designations, there's a lot you can learn from what I lovingly call the "Nikon lens alphabet soup."....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-lens-letter-codes.html)

[RoboNews]

It seems like everybody is on Facebook, doesn't it? Well, now Earthbound Light is too. I thought I'd take a few minutes to let you know and also give you some details on recent site upgrades here at Earthbound Light....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/facebook-and-site-updates.html)

[RoboNews]

No doubt most of you have heard of Ken Burns' new documentary "The National Parks: America's Best Idea." Hopefully many of you have watched at least part of it on public television. I highly recommend it. Not only is it an excellent history or the national park system, for a nature photographer, it's also a great source of inspiration....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/ken-burns-national-parks.html)

[RoboNews]

Color Management can be an endless source of frustration for some. The temptation to give up on the whole thing can be a strong one, but for those willing to persevere, most will eventually have their "aha!" moment when it finally makes sense and everything actually works. In the mean time, if your colors are coming out more "mangled" than "managed," here are some pointers to help get beyond the frustration....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/avoiding-color-manglement.html)

[RoboNews]

I'm betting that no one uses every feature built into Photoshop, except perhaps a few of the folks who work at Adobe developing or testing it. One of the features I only recently got turned onto is the Notes tool. If you've been wishing for a way to keep track of what you did or perhaps what you need to do to an image, Notes may be just what you're looking for....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-notes-tool.html)

[RoboNews]

Sometimes when you go out to shoot a sunset, the sunset doesn't cooperate. I'm sure it's happened to you. It certainly has to me. Common advice for how to make the best of a bad situation is to place a "sunset filter" in front of your lens to simulate the colors you had hoped to see. But images created with such filters almost always have a certain telltale flaw that lets viewers know they aren't real....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/sunset-filters.html)

[RoboNews]

Towards the end of October, Adobe made available a public beta of the forthcoming Lightroom 3 application. So far, it looks great. Read on for my initial thoughts....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-3-beta.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe makes both Camera Raw and Lightroom so it's natural to compare the two. While they do have a lot in common there are differences, and those differences mean that Camera Raw and Lightroom don't always play well together....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-raw-versus-lightroom.html)

[RoboNews]

Photoshop is a complex program that lets users configure numerous options to meet their needs and preferences. Unfortunately, every now and then this can lead to frustration if you settings get messed up somehow. One of the most visible such frustrations stems from messed up cursors. But before you literally start cursing at Photoshop, there are ways to solve Photoshop cursor problems....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cursor-problems.html)

[RoboNews]

Current versions of Photoshop feature an improvement over the traditional Unsharp Mask known as Smart Sharpening. Adobe also now lets you turn regular image layers into Smart Objects. If you put Smart Objects together with Smart Sharpening and throw in some simple edge masking magic using the Masks Panel, you can get really smart indeed....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-really-smart-sharpening.html)

[RoboNews]

Most camera owners will at some point take pictures of flowers. After all, they make a very photogenic subject. Pictures of red flowers though sometimes don't come out very well, looking somewhat oversaturated with little detail in some areas. Understanding why can help you make better photos in the future. It's all about how a digital camera works....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/red-flowers-red-blobs.html)

[RoboNews]

While it is possible to take a picture of something by pointing your camera in the right general direction and pressing the shutter release, you will likely get a much better image if you pay some attention on focus. And "focus" has more than one meaning....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/focus.html)

[RoboNews]

Profiling your monitor is basically the minimum you should be doing if you care about working with accurate colors. But if you want to take even greater control of your color management world, you might to try creating your own printer profiles. Or perhaps you have digital projector that you wish did a better job with color. The X-Rite ColorMunki Photo does it all....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/xrite-color-munki-photo.html)

[RoboNews]

The Patch tool in Photoshop is extremely useful for cleaning up dust spots and other minor distractions. It can do an amazing job of blending in your edits with the surrounding image area. Things don't go so well though when the area needing to be patched is near the edge and there is no surrounding image on one side....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/patch-near-the-edges.html)

[RoboNews]

As the number of shots remaining on the compact flash card that is 2009 counts down and the aperture scale of 2009 approaches f/32 (OK, enough with the photographic analogies), I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what I've published over the past year and how it has been received. Presented herewith is the top ten list of PhotoTip articles for the past year. When you add things up, the Earthbound Light web server logs tallied up how many times each article got read, so thanks to all of you who indirectly voted with your browsing habits. It's been a great year....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/2009-top-ten-list.html)

[RoboNews]

If you've owned an inkjet printer any length of time, no doubt you've experienced a clogged print head at least once. Some people seem to have more problems than others, but no one seems to be immune. Sooner or later, it's going to happen....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/clogged-print-head.html)

[RoboNews]

A friend once told me that one of the best things about digital photography is being able to make your own prints at home, and that one of the worst things about digital photography is trying to get those homemade prints to look the way they're supposed to. You print, you fiddle with the image, and you print again over and over. There is a way out though, and it's called soft proofing....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/soft-proofing.html)

[RoboNews]

There are a number of hardware/software monitor profiling packages on the market from vendors such as X-Rite and DataColor. Most users are amazed at the improvement the first time they use one. But occasionally I hear from someone for whom things didn't go so well. If you've had problems profiling your monitor, here are some possible fixes....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/monitor-profile-problems.html)

[RoboNews]

From the moment it was first released as an add-on to Photoshop 7 back in 2003, Adobe Camera Raw has been a popular choice for converting raw images. With each new version since, Adobe has expanded the list of supported cameras added new features. Lately, I've noticed that all these features mean that some get missed. As such, here is a selection of tips and tricks for ACR. Hopefully you'll be able to pick up something new to you....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-camera-raw-acr-tips-tricks.html)

[RoboNews]

A friend once told me that one of the best things about digital photography is being able to make your own prints at home, and that one of the worst things about digital photography is trying to get those homemade prints to look the way they're supposed to. You print, you fiddle with the image, and you print again - over and over. There is a way out though, and it's called soft proofing....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/soft-proofing.html)

[RoboNews]

There once was a time when all adjustments made during raw image conversion were global, affecting the entire image equally. Nikon's Capture NX was one of the first raw converters to introduce localized adjustments back in 2006. Since then, Adobe Lightroom and Camera Raw (ACR), DxO Optic Pro and others have followed suit in varying degrees. But if Photoshop can do all this too, why should you care?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/thoughts-on-localized-raw-adjustments.html)

[RoboNews]

If you're anything like me, you're probably accumulating more and more image files. Thankfully, Adobe keeps adding features to their software to make our lives easier. One such feature that both Bridge and Lightroom share is the ability to collect similar images into stacks based on when they were taken, what camera settings were in effect, and even how similar their content is....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/bridge-cs4-lightroom-stacking.html)

[RoboNews]

As we move from winter towards spring, the weather can change rapidly. Interesting weather can make for interesting photos, but in order to be prepared for what might be coming, it helps to be armed with as much data as you can. Kestrel handheld weather meters make this a breeze, if you'll pardon the pun....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/kestrel-weather-meters.html)

[RoboNews]

This past Friday the 19th, Adobe Photoshop turned twenty years old. In the world of computer software, that's a long time, but Photoshop is still going strong, with the release of the upcoming Photoshop CS5 due out in the second quarter this year....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-20th-anniversary-photoshop-cs5.html)

[RoboNews]

I wrote an article some while back on some of my favorite keyboard shortcuts in Adobe Photoshop. Ever since, I've gotten requests to do a similar article on keyboard shortcuts in Lightroom....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-keyboard-shortcuts.html)

[RoboNews]

I often see people taking pictures at sunset. After all, I'm often right there with them, doing the same thing. As the evening progresses though, most everyone else leaves by the time the sun goes down. But with plenty of great images to be made as the light continues to fade, they're missing out on perhaps the best part. Welcome to the "twilight zone."....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/twilight-zone-shooting-after-sunset.html)

[RoboNews]

One of the key benefits of using a program like Adobe Lightroom as part of your workflow is that it is built around a true database for cataloging your images. While most users are content to use that database solely through Lightroom itself, some of us are more curious about what's actually inside and what they can do with it. You can get in pretty deep writing your own queries, or if you skip to the end of this article, I'll point you to a free program that will do a lot of the work for you....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/querying-sqlite-lightroom-database.html)

[RoboNews]

Not that many years ago, compact digital cameras were good for quick snapshots at best. But current models are more than capable of producing excellent results for many needs. If you're in the market, which kind to get depends on your needs of course. But there are plenty of good reasons to favor DSLR cameras over compact point-n-shoot cameras as well as the other way around....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/DSLR-versus-compact-camera.html)

[RoboNews]

If you're thinking of getting an iPad but wish it came with a camera, you're not alone. But before you preorder one anyway, you might want to wait until the beginning of the month. It seems that Apple is just about to surprise everyone by announcing the iPad Camera Edition....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/apple-ipad-camera-edition.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe added Smart Objects to Photoshop back in CS2 but many photographers didn't initially find much use for them. They were a huge help for graphic artists, but unless you often composited multiple images into a single document, they didn't provide much value over a more traditional workflow. All that changed with Photoshop CS3 and then changed even more with Photoshop CS4 and Camera Raw 5....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-smart-and-raw.html)

[RoboNews]

Not that many years ago, compact digital cameras were good for quick snapshots at best. But current models are more than capable of producing excellent results for many needs. If you're in the market, which kind to get depends on your needs of course. But there are plenty of good reasons to favor DSLR cameras over compact point-n-shoot cameras as well as the other way around....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/dslr-versus-compact-camera.html)

[RoboNews]

A couple weeks ago, Adobe Labs released the second public beta of Lightroom 3. Being rather fond of the first public beta, I downloaded it. Here are some thoughts on the new features....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-3-beta-2.html)

[RoboNews]

Whether it be brightening shadows, removing color casts or something else entirely, in order to overcome the limitations of photographic capture, it is often necessary to apply adjustments to just a portion of an image in Photoshop. There's no way I can cover everything about selecting in Photoshop, nor is there probably a need for me to try. The basics are simple. For many users though, going beyond the basics can be a source of frustration. Here are a few tricks that may help....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-selection-tips.html)

[RoboNews]

Here are some more random thoughts and tips on the art of selection in Photoshop that I didn't really have space for last week....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/more-photoshop-selection-tips.html)

[RoboNews]

Well, it's officially out now. The final build of Adobe Photoshop CS5 is now available for purchase or download as a trial. I've been using the beta of CS5 for some while now and wanted to offer some thoughts on what all this means for photographers....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs5-for-photographers.html)

[RoboNews]

One of the great things about Adobe Lightroom is that it stores all your metadata in an actual database, making searches much more efficient than without. But if you don't take care of your catalog, it's possible that sooner or later it could break. Computers do that sometimes. But with a little bit of planning you can make sure you're covered in case that day ever comes....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/backing-up-adobe-lightroom-catalog.html)

[RoboNews]

Photoshop is a great tool, but it can often take a fair amount of steps to do the really cool stuff. Thankfully, Adobe makes it possible to automate things in Photoshop, and you can often make your life a lot easier by creating a simple Action....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-actions-intro.html)

[RoboNews]

We looked at the basics of Photoshop actions last week. This week we'll go over the more advanced features of actions....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/more-on-photoshop-actions.html)

[RoboNews]

Most photographers tend to be creative people, but sometimes even creative people have to invest a lot of repetitive effort in Photoshop to get the results they are after. After spending the last two weeks discussing actions, it's time to tackle the other principle way to automate Photoshop. It may not be for the faint of heart, but Photoshop scripting can work some powerful magic....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-scripting-intro.html)

[RoboNews]

You may have noticed that there isn't a "New" option of any kind on the Scripts menu in Photoshop. You can infer from this that creating a script isn't quite the same as creating an action. Although a script is just a simple file as mentioned last week, what goes in that text file isn't all that simple. But there is a method to the madness....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/your-first-photoshop-script.html)

[RoboNews]

Recently, we've been looking at the scripting feature in Adobe Photoshop. While you can write your scripts with pretty much any program that can read and write text files, this isn't necessarily the best way to do so. It's time to introduce two tools that come with Adobe Creative Suite that can make scripting much easier....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/extend-script-toolkit.html)

[RoboNews]

At some point while learning the art of scripting in Photoshop you are bound to run up against something that seems to have no way to be done based on Adobe's documentation. Even at hundreds of pages, there are things you can do in Photoshop that don't seem doable in script if you limit yourself to what Adobe tells everyone about. Thankfully, there's the ScriptListener....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-script-listener.html)

[RoboNews]

With every new release of Photoshop, Adobe rewards those who upgrade with a bunch of new features both big and small. So it is with Photoshop CS5, the latest version. Unfortunately, each new release also brings with it new bugs and complications that can frustrate those attempting to upgrade. Again, so it is with CS5. Here are a few pointers and suggestions if you're stuck in upgrade hell....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/fixing-adobe-cs5-upgrade-problems.html)

[RoboNews]

The file management capabilities of Windows or Mac OS are fine for most tasks, but both pale in comparison to what you can do with your images while browsing them in Adobe Bridge. But if switching away from Photoshop to a separate application strikes you as overkill, Adobe has an answer for you. Introducing Adobe CS5 Mini Bridge....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/mini-bridge-cs5.html)

[RoboNews]

Because digital camera resolution continues to increase over time, the image files most of us work with get bigger too. Thankfully, computer processing power and memory also keep going up so we can work on those bigger images. To better manage all the memory needed to push around huge numbers of pixels, Adobe has added new tuning options to Photoshop CS5 that may need a bit of explaining....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-cs5-tall-and-thin-big-and-flat-cache-tile.html)

[RoboNews]

If you've ever watched a magician performing a trick, you know it's not really magic, but it sure can look that way. The same is true of the new Content-Aware Fill feature in Photoshop CS5. I mentioned this feature back in May when did my first hands on write-up on the new features of Adobe's latest creation but I've gotten several questions about it since then and wanted to take this opportunity to cover it more fully....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/content-aware-fill-photoshop-cs5.html)

[RoboNews]

The easiest photographs to make are those taken at the photographer's eye level. In my experience though, the best shots are to be had by those willing to get down low and explore their subjects more intimately....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/getting-down-with-it.html)

[RoboNews]

Last week, I wrote that some of the best shots are only possible to those willing to get down low and really explore their subject and its surroundings. Several readers already guessed that the next topic I planned to cover would be knee pads. The point I want to make this week is that not all knee pads are created equal....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/knee-pads-for-photography.html)

[RoboNews]

We've been talking recently about getting down low for a new look at what might otherwise be familiar subjects. Sometimes though, your subject is a majestic mountain peak at dawn or simply the vibrant colors of a gorgeous sunrise itself filling the eastern sky. A wide angle lens allows you to take in more of a huge subject, but risks leaving you with little of interest in the foreground. Shooting from down low and placing something of interest in the foreground can give the viewer an anchor point on which to rest, creating a stronger composition....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/desperately-seeking-foreground.html)

[RoboNews]

So you've been working on an image in the Develop module of Adobe Lightroom and you you're ready to save your changes. The problem is, there's no "Save" or "Save As..." option on the File menu. How can that be?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-file-save-history-snapshots.html)

[RoboNews]

Comparatively speaking, Photoshop has been around for a long time. Few can say they've mastered it, but even beginning users quickly get used to saving JPEG's via "Save for Web." Even when Adobe renamed the option to "Save for Web and Devices," this didn't confuse many for very long. But if you've started using Adobe Lightroom, you've probably noticed that neither of these commands exists on the menus in this program. But Lightroom is actually more than capable with regard to saving JPEG images for web or email. You just have to know where they hid this feature....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-export.html)

[RoboNews]

As an application geared toward photographers, it's no wonder that Adobe Lightroom supports color management. Most of how Lightroom handles this is automatic without you needing to do anything. But that's not true for everything....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-color-management.html)

[RoboNews]

When I work on an image, I generally end up in Photoshop so that's where I do most of my printing from. But when Lightroom does everything you need to optimize a given image, why go to Photoshop just to print? For many printing tasks, Lightroom does an excellent job. And there cool printing tricks Lightroom is capable of that Photoshop users can only dream of....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-printing-tips.html)

[RoboNews]

A good SLR lens is not cheap, and a cheap SLR lens is rarely good. If you've been shopping around for a new lens, you may have come across the term "gray market" and wondered what that meant. This can be a marginally controversial subject, but for my opinion on gray market lenses, read on....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/what-is-gray-market-lens.html)

[RoboNews]

Digital cameras are everywhere these days. Get out your cell phone to take a call and chances are you could take a picture as well. Point and shoot digital cameras that do everything for you but press the button are so common that the very idea of controlling exposure yourself seems foreign to many. While this sort of photography can be fun and is certainly convenient, your odds of getting the best results go up dramatically if you can take control of the exposure. But the while the rules of the game for exposure in this modern era of digital photography haven't actually changed, they have been amended to a degree....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/digital-exposure-thoughts.html)

[RoboNews]

There are generally several different ways to do common function in Photoshop. And just because you learn one way to do something doesn't necessarily mean it's the best way in every situation either. With this in mind, I'd like to take some time to discuss the pros and cons of the main ways to make and feather selections in Photoshop....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-selecting-and-feathering-options.html)

[RoboNews]

It's getting to be that time of year again when the days grow shorter and the weather becomes more unpredictable. Sometimes, the temptation may be to pack up your camera until the wildflowers start blooming again next spring. But don't let a little thing like inclement weather or an even smaller thing like early darkness get in your way....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/neither-snow-nor-rain-nor-gloom-of-night.html)

[RoboNews]

The leaves are changing once again. It can be hard to capture the experience of being there, but if you want to get shots of them, they are unlikely to wait for you. Now is the time. Here are some tricks to help you get the best images you can....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/capturing-fall-colors.html)

[RoboNews]

Digital cameras make it easy to take lots of pictures quickly. But should you?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/how-you-approach-photography.html)

[RoboNews]

After determining the best time to be somewhere to get images of what you are after, you set out on your journey. You're on a quest. Maybe you will find what you are after, and maybe you won't. Nature sometimes has other plans. But if presented with an equally compelling but different opportunity, will you take advantage of it? Will you even notice it? This may sound at first like a odd question to contemplate, but bear with me while I explain....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/seeing-whats-in-front-of-you.html)

[RoboNews]

Dust is less of a problem with current digital cameras than it used to be, but I was working on some older images that were not so blessed and had been inflicted with more than a few spots. After dealing with this mess, it seemed an opportune time to discuss dust spot removal in Adobe Lightroom....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-dust-spots.html)

[RoboNews]

If you judge by what's sprouting in my front yard, mushroom photography season is upon us in the Northwest. Depending on the weather, they usually pop up right around Daylight Saving "fall back" time which happened last night. If you're looking to go crawling around on the ground for mushroom photos, here are a few tips to help you get good results....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photographing-mushrooms.html)

[RoboNews]

When my old watch started needing a new battery every few months, it became clear it was time to replace it. After researching things I settled on one that not only tells time, it calculates sunrise and sunset time, has a built-in compass, barometer, thermometer and altimeter, and sets itself via signals from the atomic clock. Oh, and it never needs batteries since the face is also a solar panel....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/sunrise-sunset-wrist-watch.html)

[RoboNews]

Sometimes the question comes up as to why Adobe makes so many products that overlap each other in function. But sometimes the question gets asked a different way. With all these seemingly similar programs, which should you use? Here's my take on sorting out what to make of Lightroom versus Photoshop versus Adobe Camera Raw versus Bridge....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-photoshop-camera-raw-bridge.html)

[RoboNews]

Here are some great gift ideas for the photographer in your life or for yourself. Some of these will make your photography better and some will simply put a smile on your face. And that ain't bad either....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/more-cool-photography-gifts.html)

[RoboNews]

One of the strengths of Adobe Lightroom is that it keeps track of everything in a database. But this strength can also end up being a weakness if you don't understand the implications. If you shoot enough images, at some point you will run out of room to keep them and need to move all or some to a new drive. But if you're not careful, this can confuse Lightroom no end. You can easily avoid this problem if you move them the right way. Or, if you forget, or if you prefer, you can also easily fix it afterwards....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/moving-images-in-lightroom.html)

[RoboNews]

It is apparent that when Adobe designed Lightroom they tried to lay things out with workflow in mind. Right across the top in order are the five modules of Library, Develop, Slideshow, Print and Web. But if there's an entire Develop module, why is there also a "Quick Develop" panel in the Library module? And how does it differ from the full thing?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-quick-develop-vs-develop-module.html)

[RoboNews]

Last week, we looked at using Quick Develop in Adobe Lightroom to adjust multiple images at the same time. It's time to go over a feature known as "Sync Settings" that is may seem similar, but is in fact quite different....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-sync-settings-and-auto-sync.html)

[RoboNews]

In this final week of 2010, it's time to reflect on the past year here at Earthbound Light. Our elves have spent the entire holiday weekend reviewing the web server logs to come up with your favorite PhotoTip articles. It's a great list. My thanks to all of you whose web browser clicking helped determine the winners....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/2010-top-ten-list.html)

[RoboNews]

New Years is a time to celebrate with friends, to make plans for the coming year, and a time to reminisce on what happened over the last. But it can also be a great time to take a second look at the images you've shot in the past. Software keeps getting better as hopefully do your skills with using that software. You may just find some great images you missed the first time around....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/new-years-revisiting-old-images.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Lightroom simplifies many aspects of managing large numbers of images. One thing it won't do though is help you add longitude and latitude metadata. There are other programs that will do this of course, but if you can do directly in Lightroom, so much the better. With the growing popularity of geotagging, I wanted to let you know about a great Lightroom plug-in you can download to do this....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-geotagging.html)

[RoboNews]

Users of Adobe Photoshop Elements have long envied some of the cool features only available in the full version of Photoshop. Chief among these is true layer masks. There are workarounds to add layer masks to Elements, but Adobe has finally given in and added the real thing to the new Elements 9....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-elements-9-real-layer-mask.html)

[RoboNews]

My new Epson Stylus Pro 4900 printer arrived at the end of last week and I spent yesterday getting to know it. I'm impressed and very pleased. Here are some first impressions....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/epson-4900-hands-on-review.html)

[RoboNews]

One complaint I often hear from people trying to learn about color management is that it is hard tell what a profile actually does. Use the right one and things come out looking great. Use the wrong one and things look awful. If you've ever wanted to see inside what color profiles are all about, one of the best tools I know of is CHROMIX ColorThink. And they've just released a long awaited new version that improves stability on Windows 7 and Vista....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/chromix-colorthink.html)

[RoboNews]

I like Adobe Lightroom. As a photographer, I can do a great deal of what I generally needed to when optimizing an image directly in Lightroom without the need of an external editor. When I do need to go beyond what it can do, I use Adobe Photoshop which automatically integrates quite well with Lightroom. But Photoshop isn't cheap, and many photographers find Photoshop Elements perfectly capable and much less expensive. If only there was a good way to integrate Elements with Lightroom. Well, now there is....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-elemental.html)

[RoboNews]

A few months back, Nik Software released their long awaited high dynamic range application called HDR Efex Pro. You owe it to yourself to try it if you haven't yet and are interested in HDR. Particularly if you are interested in realistic looking HDR. Here are some thoughts on my experiences with it, both good and not so good....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nik-hdr-efex-pro.html)

[RoboNews]

Digital is all about off and on, zero and one. In order to represent anything more complex such as a photograph, you need multiple bits. Digital imaging is therefore a numbers game so I figured it would be worth taking a look at what all those bits get used for, and what all this has to do with HDR imaging....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/road-to-hdr-8-bit-16-bit-32-bit.html)

[RoboNews]

High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography is all the rage these days. It can produce stunning yet realistic photos with dynamic ranges that defy the recording ability of cameras as well as stylized renditions with exaggerated detail and tonal relationships that have spawned an entirely new art form. While seeming to be diametrically opposed, these differ mainly in the degree to which the same basic techniques are applied. Known collectively as "tone mapping," such techniques are at their heart optical illusions....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/hdr-tone-mapping-explained.html)

[RoboNews]

High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography is all the rage these days. It can produce stunning yet realistic photos with dynamic ranges that defy the recording ability of cameras as well as stylized renditions with exaggerated detail and tonal relationships that have spawned an entirely new art form. While seeming to be diametrically opposed, these differ mainly in the degree to which the same basic techniques are applied. Known collectively as "tone mapping," such techniques are at their heart optical illusions....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/hdr-tone-mapping-explained.html)

[RoboNews]

I've written a lot about HDR lately. So have a lot of other people, mainly because it's an exciting time in the world of High Dynamic Range imaging with the release or pending release of several new programs and versions. This week I'll take a look at the tone mapping capabilities of three top contenders....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photomatix-vs-nik-hdr-pro-vs-oloneo-photoengine-beta.html)

[RoboNews]

An entry in my dictionary defines "clarity" as "clearness or lucidity of understanding." In spite of this, it's not at all clear what the slider labeled "Clarity" in Adobe Lightroom and Camera Raw actually does. Let's see if we can clarify things a bit....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/clarity-explained-lightroom-camera-raw.html)

[RoboNews]

As I've written in another recent article, there are a lot of new applications for High Dynamic Range imaging available these days. If you're interested in natural looking HDR, you owe it to yourself to check out yet one more....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/sns-hdr-easy-natural-hdr-images.html)

[RoboNews]

It seems this time of year always brings big news. We're starting to hear rumors of Adobe's plans for the next release of Photoshop and Lightroom. In addition to the usual crop of new features, Adobe plans to rename both products to better target digital photographers....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-cs6-photoshop-and-lightroom.html)

[RoboNews]

I want to take a look this week at creativity, or rather what blocks creativity. Sometimes it's easy to blame things on your gear or the weather, or just bad luck. But it can be worth considering what role you play in your photography. The one constant element in every image you shoot is you....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/wherever-you-go-there-you-are.html)

[RoboNews]

For many people, remote controls are for TV sets so they can change channels without getting up from the couch. For photographers though, remotes allow them to fire the shutter without risking bumping the camera. But just as TV remotes have gotten fancier over the years, so to have camera remotes. If you haven't looked into what's available now to remotely control your camera, you should....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-remote-control-options.html)

[RoboNews]

You see photos everywhere with trees or buildings leaning over. It's a common problem. There are a number of ways to prevent this or fix it of course but still you see pictures with crooked horizons. I'm betting some of you have shot some yourself. In the interest of helping to straighten things out, here are some thoughts on the matter....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/making-peace-with-crooked-horizons.html)

[RoboNews]

For many people, remote controls are for TV sets so they can change channels without getting up from the couch. For photographers though, remotes allow them to fire the shutter without risking bumping the camera. But just as TV remotes have gotten fancier over the years, so too have camera remotes. If you haven't looked into what's available now to remotely control your camera, you should....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/camera-remote-control-options.html)

[RoboNews]

One of the technical challenges to overcome when shooting both macro and some landscape images is limited depth of field. As with many things though, the digital darkroom is rewriting the rules. Welcome to "focus stacking."....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/focus-stacking-intro.html)

[RoboNews]

Last week I discussed merging multiple shots of the same subject taken at different focus distances to create images with extended depth of field using a technique known as focus stacking. This week I'll look at several software programs to help you do it....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/focus-stacking-software-photoshop-helicon-combinezp-zerene.html)

[RoboNews]

Shooting for focus stacking can range from easy to maddeningly frustrating depending on how many shots you need to take. The higher the magnification, the shallower the depth of field and the more shots you need to get the results you really hope for. Here are two good solutions to make your shooting easier....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/focus-stacking-helicon-remote-and-stackshot.html)

[RoboNews]

Cameras are tools. They can do a great job of recording what the world around us looks like, but they are far from perfect. There exist techniques for combining more than one press of the shutter to help overcome some of the limitations that exist in traditional single-shot photography. Some of these I've talked about at length already, and some of them I haven't. Here's an overview....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/stacking-and-stitching-multi-shot-overview.html)

[RoboNews]

Back when everyone shot film, nobody questioned whether a photograph was real or not. Indeed, a photograph was generally held to be the definitive proof of reality. But with digital photography, the situation isn't so clear cut in the minds of many people. I've been writing the past few weeks about techniques for combining multiple images to create photographs that would be difficult if not impossible to capture any other way. So once again the question has come up as to whether these sorts of images are truly photographs or works of art. It doesn't have to be an either/or of course, but let's consider things....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/stacking-and-stitching-is-it-real.html)

[RoboNews]

I'm a big advocate of non-destructive editing in Photoshop. But there are things that don't lend themselves to such techniques, and even when you can use do so, you might not always avail yourself. Some edits seems so simple and only too late do you realize you should have paid more attention. But once you've messed your image up, what do you do? The History Brush may just be able to save things....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-history-brush-back-to-the-future.html)

[RoboNews]

If you get in your car and go for a drive, you'd better be well familiar with how to work all the controls. Turn the steering wheel the wrong way or step on the gas when you want to brake and you're liable to have an accident. The same is true (but hopefully not in the same life threatening way) with your camera. Which direction does that control dial turn? Do you really now?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/learning-to-drive-your-camera.html)

[RoboNews]

I've written a number of articles on how best to sharpen images in Adobe Photoshop but Lightroom can do an outstanding job of sharpening as well. If you're used to sharpening in Photoshop, the technique is similar in Lightroom, but much better. Here's the basic rundown....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-sharpening.html)

[RoboNews]

In the theory of sharpening, the process can be broken down into three phases: capture sharpening, creative sharpening, and output sharpening. Last week I covered sharpening in the Develop module which is the primary tool for sharpening and can handle all three phases, but Lightroom also has dedicated tools for sharpening in the Import dialog of the Library module for capture sharpening, as well as in the Print and Web modules for output sharpening....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/more-lightroom-sharpening.html)

[RoboNews]

Even though everything in Lightroom is nondestructive, you aren't limited to just basic tonal corrections and contrast. While there are limits to what you can do, they lie far beyond just this. I've written already about sharpening in Lightroom, but you can also do such tasks as cropping an image or straightening a horizon. There are some great choices in how Adobe implemented this, but there are also some awkward ones....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/cropping-and-rotating-in-lightroom.html)

[RoboNews]

The user interface in Adobe Lightroom is made up of panels that are highly configurable for various needs. Sometimes they seem to configure themselves accidentally too. Here are some tips and tricks to help you understand how they work....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-lightroom-panel-tips-and-tricks.html)

[RoboNews]

The panels of Adobe Lightroom can be customized and configured in quite a few ways, some obvious and some less so, some useful some just simply for fun. I covered the basics last week, now it's time for some of the more "interesting" panel tips and tricks....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/more-adobe-lightroom-panel-tips-and-tricks.html)

[RoboNews]

Modern digital cameras have much less of a problem with noise than models sold even a few years ago. But with a long enough exposure or high enough ISO all cameras will eventually succumb. Here's how to deal with digital noise in Adobe Lightroom....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-3-noise-reduction.html)

[RoboNews]

If you're a Photoshop user just starting to use Lightroom, one of the first differences you'll run into is the fact that Lightroom is built around a database while Photoshop is not. In order to do anything with a photo in Lightroom, you first have to import it into a Lightroom catalog. It's here that your Lightroom workflow has to start....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-3-importing-photos.html)

[RoboNews]

The concept of workspaces has been around in Photoshop for a number of releases now but has evolved from being a seeming afterthought to become a central point of aiding productive and managing clutter. It's about time I wrote some thoughts on the subject....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-workspaces.html)

[RoboNews]

Many photography books for beginners say you should shoot with the sun over your shoulder. Don't believe them. Shooting into the sun can be tricky business but can yield dramatic results. Here are some tricks and tips....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/shooting-into-the-sun.html)

[RoboNews]

Pacific Northwest weather is always somewhat unpredictable. Many of you could probably say the same thing about the weather where you live. Sometimes everything just works to get the shot you are after. Sometimes there's just no way to get the shot unless you are willing to wait for it....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/waiting-for-the-shot.html)

[RoboNews]

I wrote recently that shooting into the sun can be tricky business. But if you use your hand to block out the sun itself it gets a lot easier. Of course you have to get rid of your hand later somehow to make a useable image. This is where Photoshop comes in....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/masking-the-sun-with-your-hand.html)

[RoboNews]

I love wide angle lenses. I'll admit it. There's nothing like getting right up close and personal with a mountain wildflower. But there's a lot more to getting a good wide angle shot than just that....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/shooting-with-ultra-wide-angle-lenses.html)

[RoboNews]

Sometimes it's not so important what something actually is, or even what it appears to be when you first look at it. Sometimes you have to get beyond all that and simply look at something without filters and labels. The abstract patterns and flow of nature can be fascinating just as they are. There's more than one way to approach photography....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/seeing-beyond-the-apparent.html)

[RoboNews]

The usual way to create a layer mask in Photoshop is to paint with black on a white background, or to paint with white on black, following the contours of the image and the objects being masked. Since this is the case, why not create the mask directly from the image itself and avoid having to repaint what you already have?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/image-masking-with-itself.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Bridge is an excellent file browser for use with Photoshop. But it can do so much more. This week I want to address how to use it for manipulating the keywords, copyright and other metadata embedded in your images....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/adobe-bridge-metadata-templates.html)

[RoboNews]

There are plenty of programs that will help you download and manage your digital camera images. The feature is built into countless programs. But Downloader Pro from Breeze Systems stands head and shoulders above the rest. Here's why....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/breeze-downloader-pro.html)

[RoboNews]

I sometimes get asked for tips on how to efficiently shoot on location in nature. For those new to all this, it can seem quite overwhelming. Here are some pointers....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/on-location.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Bridge is an excellent photo and media browser application. But it can be even better if you customize it to fit your needs....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/customizing-adobe-bridge.html)

[RoboNews]

Ten years ago this week I published my first PhotoTips article here at Earthbound Light. A lot has changed in the world of photography since then, but the key basics will always remain the same. It's time to look back and reminisce at the greatest hits of what I've covered here....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/happy-nniversary-ten-years-of-phototips.html)

[RoboNews]

To say the least, when Silicon Valley startup Lytro announced their new light field camera this past June that allows you to refocus images after the fact, I was intrigued. Now that they are available for preorder, I'm even more so. But just how does the darned thing actually work?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lytro-first-thoughts.html)

[RoboNews]

If you've gotten serious about printing your images, especially with pigment based inks, you've probably come across the term "metamerism." You probably also know that ink manufacturers do their best to minimize the problem, yet everyone still talks about it. But do you really understand what the term even means?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/metamerism.html)

[RoboNews]

Sometimes you work on an image in Photoshop and the results are like magic. The results truly reflect the way you saw the scene in your mind's eye. The problem is, you don't always remember just how you did it so you can try the same thing later on another shot. Here are a couple tips for remembering how you did things in Photoshop....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-notes-history-log.html)

[RoboNews]

Printers can only display a limited range of colors, known as their gamut. Photoshop can provide warnings for image colors that lie outside your printer's gamut via soft proofing. But the real question is, what do you do about them once you identify them?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/taking-control-gamut-warnings.html)

[RoboNews]

Once you understand how a magic trick works, the technique behind it becomes a tool you can use yourself. The same could be said for the magic of blending modes in Photoshop. Most users learn a few recipes for optimizing images that include specific uses but never really how to use blending modes in general. Let's see if we can change that....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/blending-modes-for-photographers.html)

[RoboNews]

The paintbrush tool in Photoshop is one of the most commonly used tools for retouching photographs. But most users have only a basic understanding of its features. There's more to it than first meets the eye. Or the hand. You have two hands, after all....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/photoshop-paintbrush-for-photographers.html)

[RoboNews]

It's easy to think that Lightroom can only do global changes to an image and that for targeted adjustments you need Photoshop, but this isn't true. You can do quite a bit with Lightroom's adjustment brush....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-adjustment-brush.html)

[RoboNews]

It's easy to think that Lightroom can only do global changes to an image and that for targeted adjustments you need Photoshop, but this isn't true. You can do quite a bit with Lightroom's adjustment brush....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-adjustment-brush.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Lightroom provides a great deal of flexibility for maintaining more than one version of the same image. Indeed, so much flexibility that it can be confusing which method to use in a given situation. Here's a quick rundown of Virtual Copies versus Snapshots....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-virtual-copies-snapshots.html)

[RoboNews]

It's holiday gift giving time again. If you're still looking for that special something for a photographer on your list (or perhaps for yourself), I have some suggestions that may just fit the bill....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/2011-holiday-gifts-for-photographers.html)

[RoboNews]

Perhaps it's an oversimplification, but the left brain is generally characterized as being where logical, analytical thinking occurs while the right brain handles emotional, creative thought. So which is the most important in creating good photography?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/left-brained-right-brained-photography.html)

[RoboNews]

As we begin 2012 I'd like to take the opportunity to look back on the year that just ended. I've been publishing weekly articles here at Earthbound Light for more than a decade and I'm truly thankful for your continued support. After reviewing my web server logs for 2011 I herewith present the top ten Phototips articles for the year as determined by your browsing habits....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/2011-top-ten-list.html)

[RoboNews]

In case you somehow avoided the onslaught of blog postings and emails the last couple of days covering Nikon's announcement of the new D4 SLR, Nikon announced the new D4 DSLR. Ta-da. It's an amazing camera, but what does it mean for those of us who primarily shoot nature?....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/nikon-d4-announcement-for-nature-photographers.html)

[RoboNews]

Adobe Labs posted a public beta of the forthcoming Lightroom 4 on their website a few days ago. Among the many new features is one I have been asking for since Lightroom was first released back in 2007. I know the title of this article has already given it away, but yes, Adobe has finally added soft proofing to Lightroom. Here's how it works....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/lightroom-4-soft-proofing.html)

[RoboNews]

Camera meters assume you want whatever you point them at to come out medium tone. That can be a problem this time of year since snow's not at all supposed to look medium tone. Thankfully, digital cameras make this easier than ever to prevent....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/no-more-gray-snow-digital-photography.html)

[RoboNews]

I've written about DxO Optics Pro before. It's a great raw converter. I've been using version 7 since it was released late last year and it's the best version yet. I'm truly impressed....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/dxo-optics-pro-7-faster-and-better.html)

[RoboNews]

When you move the Exposure slider to the right in Photoshop, the image you are editing gets brighter. That makes sense. When you do the same with the Brightness slider it also gets brighter, but not in the same way. And they aren't interchangeable. If you've ever puzzled over this, here's the full story....

More... (http://www.earthboundlight.com/phototips/exposure-vs-brightness-photoshop.html)