How to get the most out of your computer by tweaking it for better Photoshop performance
written by: CteinUndeniably, Photoshop is the 800-pound gorilla of image-processing programs. And like any large beast, Photoshop can move ponderously slow. Fortunately, the right hardware and software decisions on your part can perk it up considerably. Unlike real-world performance enhancement, this won’t involve the use of steroids or risk congressional investigation. It’s not even very expensive.To speed up the beast, it helps to understand why Photoshop seems to plod when you need it to sprint. Photoshop uses RAM for storing the image you’re working on, for intermediate results, undo and history states, and as a workspace for plug-ins and filters to do Read more »
Comparing Three Noise-Reduction Programs– Which is Right for You?
written by: CteinI regularly use several general purpose noise-reduction programs to reduce the noise in my digital camera photographs, my film scans, and in the print scans I do as part of my restoration business. Noise reduction in all its varied forms is a staple of my work. I ’ve tested many and settled on three: Neat Image Pro+, Noise Ninja Pro, and NoiseWare Professional. (I did not test or investigate noise-reduction programs that use camera- specific profiles, of which there are many.) All are available as Photoshop plug-ins and stand-alone apps. I use all three often enough to say they all have their Read more »
Discover What Helps and What Doesn't
written by: CteinScanning is serious business. Think of your scanner as a combination enlarger and enlarging lens, the intermediary between your original film (or photographic print) and your finished photographs. For many photographers, a good enlarger and lens were the single most expensive and important purchases they made in their career, and they would pore over the details and published tests to determine which ones would really serve their needs. Learning how to make high-quality enlargements was not an overnight task. Cleanliness, sharpness, freedom from stray light and contrast-robbing flare, all were concerns of the darkroom printer. Just as with darkroom work, making Read more »
written by: CteinThe four Photoshop plug-ins I’m reviewing here don’t perform cursory image rubdowns, for the most part; they’re more like full body massages with a sauna afterward. Yet despite their sophisticated algorithms, they need human guidance. They don’t block human creativity and judgment; instead, they let you execute that judgment faster and better. All four of these plug-ins are compatible with Photoshop CS4 and the latest versions of Photoshop Elements and are available for both Mac and PC. I tested them in CS4 running under Mac OSX 10.4.11. Most will run on Photoshop CS2, Elements 4, and other programs that are Photoshop plug-in Read more »
These Advanced Photoshop Techniques Can Fix Poor Exposures
written by: CteinAll experienced printers know the First Rule of Good Tonality: a good print, whether black-and-white or color, almost always has a range of tones that run from near-to- white to near-to-black. This is true even of high-key and low-key photographs. This dictum holds so often that the exceptions to the rule are, well, exceptional. By itself, though, this isn’t enough to ensure great-looking prints. Most fine prints require some degree of local control of tones. This article talks about making such improvements in the context of fixing old photographs, but the methods apply just as well to new ones. Many photographs Read more »
PHOTO Techniques, Sept/Oct 2007
written by: CteinGetting people to look good in a photograph takes care. You can take a lot of artistic liberties with a tree; a face is another matter. Human eyes and brains are very sensitive to the appearance of skin tones, colors, and textures. In my work, I use a number of techniques and tricks that produce realistic-looking flesh tones.These methods don’t entirely replace the need for pixel-by-pixel hand-retouching, but they drastically minimize it. The masked layer approach I just finished a book on photo restoration, so I’ve used photos in need of restoration as examples here. However, I use the same Read more »
written by: CteinI originally planned to give this article the admittedly glib title, “Color Correction Made Easy.” Upon modest reflection, I realized that title would be extremely misleading. Color correction isn’t easy. It’s never going to be easy. Let’s face it, if good color correction (and, correspondingly, good tone correction) were easy, everyone would be a great photographic printer. There would be no need for custom labs, professional printers, and the myriad craftspeople out there whose business is converting decent photographs into more-than-decent prints. What I’m trying to say is that if you find color correction an occasionally frustrating business, that does Read more »
