Archive

EasyDSLR Voices from the Inside: Part 1

Bobby Oates from Kansas tells his story about why he likes to take really good photos and all the good photography techniques he has learned from EasyDSLR Digital Photography Course.

This is from a video series highlighting the comments and photos made by current members of EasyDSLR Course. Interviews conducted by Dr Sharon Livingston.

It’s good to hear that everyday people from around the globe have the opportunity to learn how to take better photos.

Click here for more Testimonials about the EasyDSLR Course.

Archive

Florabella Photoshop Actions

I have looked at a lot of Photoshop Actions – you can get thousands of them. A lot of collections have a few gems but it’s a case of wading through hundreds to find them. I was happy to come across Florabella Collection Actions sets – finally a a bunch of useful actions with a focus on quality not quantity.

The Florabella Collection has some of the most amazing sets of Actions for Photoshop (CS2 – CS6) or Photoshop Elements (6-10) that I have come across. You could spend hours of fun trying out the different presets. That’s before going onto the powerful ‘tweaking’ options.

I recommend:

  1. Classic Workflow + Hazy Skies
  2. LUXE

The Classic Workflow has Classic Film which will be one of your most used action (I find I start with that one first to see if it’s a good starting point then add tones and other effects on top). You may prefer LUXE II, but I found I liked the LUXE original collection better.

Click here to visit Florabella Collection

If you don’t have Photoshop (Mac version or PC version) you can get Photoshop Elements for a really reasonable price right now – click here.

Archive

Cokin Z-Pro Graduated Neutral Density Kit

This Cokin Z-Pro Filter kit is finally available at B&H Photo Video.

I’ve been waiting for ages – Cokin had a worldwide shortage for a while.

These filters are great for Sunsets and other Landscape Photography where the sky is much brighter that the foreground or land.

I usually recommend a Schneider Grad Neutral Density(502) Filter as I like the quality and the compactness of a round filter.

But the Cokin system is great for 3 reasons:

  1. If you have a bunch of lenses with different Filter Diameters (you can just get inexpensive holders or adapters for each lens)
  2. You can move the Graduation line up and down a bit (shift the Filter in the holder) to line it up with your scene better.
  3. You can stack combinations of Filters in the holder (there is a good chance of Vignetting if you screw on more than a couple of Circular Filters)

I’m glad they finally have more stock. An excellent addition to your Landscape kit.