Digital Photography & Imaging Show 2008

The DPI show is a new event dedicated to digital photography and imaging. It is being held on June 26th & 27th at the Business Design Centre in Islington in North London. The DPI show is designed to attract thousands of pro-photographers and agencies active in photojournalism, sports/action photography, portraiture, wedding and lifestyle photography, and those working in fashion and advertising, still life and macro. Industry leaders will come together to create a ‘Live Studio’, building a full-feature facility at the show with ‘celebrity’ photographers illustrating the facilities and capabilities of the studio. A busy seminar programme will present 40-minute sessions on latest products and solutions so you can receive first-hand expert advice and tips from specialists in the technologies and processes, hear of case studies and then visit the exhibition area for hands-on experience. Our conference programme will gather groups of speakers to look at improving workflow, at manipulating and storing images and at managing the demands of a modern photographic studio. The show will feature stands from Industry leaders such as Adobe, Apple Solution Experts, Epson, HP, Hasselblad, Color Confidence, Extensis, A J Purdy, The SWPP, onOne and a whole lot more ... Many publications will also be represented, including Digital Photographer, Digital Arts, The BJP, Digital Camera and Macworld. You can register for free at http://www.dpishow.com/

onOne Software Announces Plug-in Suite 4

onOne Software, Inc., announced the May release of their Plug-in Suite 4 software for Adobe Photoshop. Plug-In Suite 4 comprises of full versions of six essential software tools – Genuine Fractals 5 Print Pro, PhotoTools 1.0 Professional Edition, PhotoFrame 3.1 Professional Edition, Mask Pro 4.1, PhotoTune 2.2 and FocalPoint 1.0. The package should be available in early May to new users for $499.95, whereas existing users of Plug-in Suite versions 1, 2 or 3 can upgrade to Plug-In Suite 4 for only $199.95. For more information on Plug-In Suite 4, please visit onOne Software.

Focus On Digital Art Masters: Volume 2

Digital Art Masters: Volume 2 3D Total and Focal Press US $39.95 UK £22.99 This is a title which takes a case study based look at the world of Digital Graphics and Art. I was pleasantly surprised to get this book as just the week before I had place it on my to-buy list. Digital Art Masters 2 is without a doubt an example of the kind of showcase based publication that both pros and enthusiasts will enjoy. Page after page focuses on showcasing some prime examples of work from some of the best artists in the industry. The 3D renderings showcased here were mind blowing, there were examples which looked like paintings produced by some of the old masters, and others which look like the real thing. The 2D based illustrations don't dissappoint with examples from Benita Winckler, Hoang Nguyen and Mikko Kikkunen leading the pack. What I really appreciated was the work showing how 3D and 2D skills can be combined to create some incredible imagery. Page after page of this book made me as an artist feel inspired and challenged by the work of my fellow imageers. If for no other reason than to add this book to your library of Artbooks you won't go wrong ... Highly Recommended. Buy it, it's well worth the price.

ImageTrends Announce Sensor Kleen

Image Trends, Inc.™ which was formed from the core of the former Applied Science Fiction group, is pleased to announce the SensorKleen Pro™ a stand alone Windows application that allows the user to automatically erase sensor based dust and debris in DSLR camera images. When they announced SensorKleen SmartBrush™ back in March ’07 at PMA Image Trends indicated that the Pro version would be available later in the year. True to their word they are making it available and are crediting the original purchase price of the SensorKleen SmartBrush towards the purchase of SensorKleen Pro. They are actually giving the user a free upgrade to SensorKleen Pro, saving them the $50 difference in price as a customer loyalty benefit. In June of this year they also announced the PearlyWhites™ and ShineOff™ Plug-Ins. At the time they stated that the Mac versions would be available soon. Based on market reaction to these products the Mac OSX delivery was pushed up. With the products being made available with immediate effect. For more info visit Image Trends...

Focus on Filter Forge

Review by Mario Georgiou Filter Forge - http://www.filterforge.com/ Stand Alone and Photoshop Plug-in Windows XP, Windows 2003, Windows 2000, Windows Vista Basic $99, Standard $199, Pro $299 I am a big fan of the work being done by third party Photoshop Plug-in creators and have a sizeable collection of plug-ins. When Filter Forge came to my attention a few weeks back, I dropped a line to the creators of this interesting and powerful tool to request a copy for review. What I experienced with this really cool tool brought a smile to my face. Filter Forge is exactly what it sounds like, a tool for producing and applying filters and procedural textures, and a whole lot more besides. Filter Forge comes in 3 versions, a $99 Basic edition provides unlimited access to the Filter Library but cannot create filters. The $199 Standard edition allows photographers and graphic artists create their own filters, including effects, textures, distortions, patterns, backgrounds, and frames. The $299 Professional edition was designed with the needs of 3D-content and game creators in mind. Providing support and features useful in architectural visualization, 3D Rendering and Design and includes support for bitmaps as large as 65000x65000 pixels, 16- and 32-bit images, and floating point based file formats such as OpenEXR and PFM. I was fortunate to be able to review the Pro edition and was extremely impressed by the performance and the range of filters available via the online filter library. Once accessed and downloaded you can transport your filters with relative ease however you do need an Internet connection which will give you access to well over 2000 filters and textures. The creation of filters is facilitated via a visual node-based editor which is both extremely powerful and quite easy to use once you can get your head around the concept. Filters are created visually by connecting components in a flow diagram to combine effects and functions. Available components include Brightness / Contrast, Channels, Gradients, Noise, Colour Adjustments, Distortions, Patterns, Curves, Curve Operations, Image Processing Controls and much more. For Pro-Level users this is a very powerful and welcome tool. The editor allows the user to create some very useful tools and effects, and one of the best features of this tool is the ability for users to be able to share their created filters online via the free filter library. The only omission in this powerful is support for user definable formulae - something for the future I guess... For the Animator, designer and texture creator, the ability to create seamless and resolution independent textures and patterns. Add the capability for creating bump and normal maps and you have a really useful production tool. The filters are also resolution independent and capable of some many effects that you'll find yourself suffering from option paralysis. There is even a Randomizer which shakes things up a bit by allowing you to generate filters on the fly. Core features and technology include support for Dual-core CPU's, HDRI Images, 8, 16 and 32 Bit image modes, Floating point file formats and a really useful smart anti aliasing feature which uses antialiasing only where, and when it is needed. The only drawback for many users will be the cost, but this is somewhat silly when you bear in mind that the Pro filter is aimed at pro level users and that the average imageer doesn't really have a need for the advanced capabilities the editor and pro feature will afford. Support is excellent with an extensive online help system and very active online user forums. The overall tone on the forums is one of cooperation and reveals a real sense of community, with contributors even offering to share credits with other users... Cons. Price. Learning curve for the Filter Editor. Pros - Easy to use. Powerful, Scalable. Excellent Support, Large number of filters. As a tool Filter Forge really has no equal, it is more than just a single effect tool, it is a library of effects and treatments that work as both a Photoshop Plug-in and also as a stand alone application. I found it both powerful and easy to use. This is one tool any imageer, artist and photographer should have in their toolbox. Highly recommended.

Digital Restoration From Start to Finish - Review

Review by Mario Georgiou Digital Restoration From Start to Finish - Photo-Repair.com Author: Ctein - Ctein.com Publisher: Focal Press - Butterworth-Heinemann/Elsevier 480 pages ISBN: 0-240-80814-2 US $39.95 UK £24.99 Having recovered and restored many photos over the years, it was with great interest that I requested "Digital Restoration From Start to Finish" for review. It like several other titles I have recently reviewed from Focal Press are hefty and well presented reference books. Ctein is a photographer and imageer who has served the online imaging and photo community for many years, offering both his valuable expertise and keen insights. His work in photography and computers has established him as an expert in photographic arts and technologies. He is recognised by Kodak as one of the foremost colour print makers in the world. The book itself is an insightful and well presented work which reflects both the skill and passion Ctein has placed into his field of expertise. It begins by covering many of the tools, technologies and issues which have to be considered before beginning to repair and restore any photos. The software covered is largely cross-platform in nature; however several of the tools featured are only available for Windows. Ctein has arranged the book to work in a kind of project centric structure so that readers can pick and chose the information they want to use. The book covers how to prepare and clean images for scanning and also provides some excellent tips on how to scan different materials for the best results. The book continues with coverage on how to restore colour, improve skin tones, repair scratches, tears, stains and other issues. The information available is quite in depth and to be honest it might lose the less proficient imageer. As Photoshop is used throughout the book I recommend that you at least develop a decent level of familiarity with this tool. The last sections of the book are devoted to how to profile your printer, black and white toning, display and storage of prints for longevity and digital archiving. Although pretty good these sections are a little thin on the ground and could have done with some expansion, especially in light of how detailed the rest of the reference is. Overall I enjoyed this excellent book as I work with a lot of analogue media. However I would like to see this book rewritten in part to include media which has digital origination. That would in my mind complete this otherwise excellent volume. Cons - Little Coverage of the process of recovering badly degraded Digital Images. No CD with images and materials for the tutorials. Pros - Professional and extensive coverage of the issues surrounding handling old and damages materials and photos. Comprehensive. Highly Technical. Ctein has produced an excellent reference which will teach even the most experienced of us a trick or two. It is a highly technical and comprehensive look at the issues which will affect the restoration of old and damaged images and also one which offers much in the way of effective solutions for the imageer to use in solving these problems. Highly recommended.

Uwe Steinmueller Video on Digital Imaging Tech

Google invited Uwe Steinmueller to present a talk on non-destructive and selective editng of photos. The video is and excellent source of information and well worth watching or downloading. The video is about 60 minutes long and Google.

Lightzone 2.4

Lightzone 2.4 has been released with another great feature, which has been further enhanced for photographers, called tonemapper. The detail enhancement in Tonemapper is excellent and does an excellent job of converting Raw files which are a little soft. The new version 2.4 has also been improved with new RAW and New B&W tools. Lightzone 2.4's RAW tool now implements an exposure slider where can sometimes recapture about +1EV for some cameras by using negative exposure. It also features color noise removal and better white balance. For more info on how tonemapper works, visit DOP, where there is a feature article on this excellent tool...

OnOne Software Announce Photoframe 3.1 Update

OnOne Software have announced that the PhotoFrame Pro 3.1 update is available as a free download for all registered users of PhotoFrame Pro 3. The Photoshop plug-in provides photographers with thousands of frame and matte selections that add that extra bit of final detail to any digital image. PhotoFrame Pro 3 allows imageers to apply a wide variety of edge effects to any picture. The choices for customisation with PhotoFrame Pro 3 are extensive and varied. The available selection of border and edge effects such as drop shadows, bevel, glow, border and texture are also impressive. For more info please visit http://www.ononesoftware.com/

Around The Web - March 2007

It has been another quiet day in digital imaging land, However instead of trying to find news I figured I'd share some more of my favourite photo amd imaging based websites. The Online Photographer - An excellent, well written and informative blog on the art, craft and science of photography. One of the best in the world. Night Photography Blog - From Andy Frazer, it is one of the best sites specialising in nocturnal and low light photography. Some interesting and informative articles. Lightroom Killer Tips - a Blog from the NAPP and Adobe promoting education and information on the excellent RAW Image and Photography Workflow application from Adobe.

OS X 10.4.9 Update Adds New RAW Support To Aperture.

Apple have included a slew of improvements and additions to OS-X which adds the following support to Aperture: Adds support for the RAW image formats of these third-party cameras: Leaf Aptus 17, Leaf Aptus 22, Leaf Aptus 65, Leaf Aptus 75, Leaf Valeo 11, Leaf Valeo 17, Leaf Valeo 22, Leica Digilux 3, Nikon D40, Pentax K10D, Pentax K110D, Pentax K100D, Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1, Samsung GX-1L. Improved Spot & Patch results: The update contains changes to Core Image that improve the visual correctness of images using Spot & Patch adjustment. Reduces issues of temporary "black" Viewer: Mac OS X 10.4.9 addresses several issues that could cause the Viewer to temporarily turn black when displaying adjusted images. GPS metadata is preserved when image versions are exported. Incorporates all RAW file format compatibility and other imaging issues originally addressed in Digital Camera RAW Support Update 1.0.1. This update improved RAW file format compatibility for the Canon Digital Rebel XTi / 400D / Kiss X Digital, Nikon D80, and Pentax *ist DS. It also addressed the following issues: Handling of large Canon RAW files (.CRW); DNG compatibility on Intel-based Macs; Lines sometimes appearing in images exported from Aperture. Visit Apple for more information, the Mac OS X 10.4.9 update is available via the operating system's Software Update mechanism, or as standalone updaters for Intel and PowerPC computers.

PMA 2007 Show Picks

The PMA 2007 show has proved to be an interesting event in that it really didn't seem to break many major milestones. However there were a few gems on show. On the Hardware front, we saw a New D-SLR from Canon - the 1D MKIII, which features exceptionally fast shooting speeds, an immense image buffer, a Live View LCD, the EOS Integrated Cleaning System, a lens magnification factor of 1.3x and other features a photojournalist would kill for. Pentax Showed a 645 based D-SLR which would make most studio photographers salivate, but provided no firm date on delivery. Sigma showed their new Foveon chip based SD14 DSLR, another technology worth further investigation, equally interesting was the DP1 point and shoot they showed, which features the same sensor as the SD14. Canon also introduced the 9500, and A3 printer with 10 pigmented inks and another 24" printer with 12 pigmented inks. On the Software front, Adobe showed the release version of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, which is winning fans all over the place with its designed for photographers workflow capabilities. Adobe also announced that there will be two versions of Photoshop CS3, one for existing users and an enhanced version for scientific and advanced imaging applications. All told, it appears that there were some new products that were well worth the trip to Vegas ... maybe next year, I'll actually attend.

The 123 of Digital Imaging 4.0

Vincent Bockaert announced a new version of the excellent 'The 123 of digital imaging Interactive Learning Suite'. This e-reference is a must have for all digital photographers. goes This new version features a new UI and also covers Adobe Photoshop Album 2, Photoshop Elements 2, 3, 4 & 5, Photoshop 7, CS, CS2 as well as Nikon Capture 4.4 & NX 1.1. With the download version available for US$44.87 and a CD-Rom version for US$49.99 it's well worth addding to your library. Visit 123di.com for more information.

Digital Domain Release Qimage v2007.160

Digital Domain Inc. have announced the release of Qimage v2007.160. The full featured printing software for professional photographers is available for Windows in three editions: the Lite Edition at $34.95, Professional Edition at $49.95, and Studio Edition at $89.95. There is also a free 30 day trial available for download. For more information visit Digital Domain Inc.

Focus On Imaging 2007 Show Info

Earlier this month I mentioned the Focus on Imaging 2007 show. Focus is Europe’s biggest annual imaging event and begins this Sunday at the NEC in Birmingham, UK. The show is open on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday from 10am to 6pm and on Wednesday, February 28th at 10am to 5pm. For the professional imageer, buyers, manufacturers, distributors or even the hobbyist, FOCUS ON IMAGING is the one event you must attend this year. There are over 200 exhibitors and plenty of product launches. Click here to see the exhibitor and latest floorplan for the show. For more information on the show visit Focus On Imaging.

RealGrain 1.0.1

Reviewed by: Mario Georgiou Published by: Imagenomic Requires: Photoshop CS/CS2/CS3 or Elements 3/4 or a recent edition of a plug-in compliant program; Windows 2000, XP or Vista; Mac OS X 10.3.x/10.4.x; 256MB RAM, 10MB available hard disk space MSRP: US$99.95 Of all the tools Imagenomic makes, RealGrain is my favorite. The main reason for this is its versatility and the accuracy with which it emulates a wide variety of film types and film development processes. With this useful plug-in you can emulate black & white or color films from Agfa, Fuji, Ilford and Kodak. You can even emulate effects such as cross processing, split toning, black & white or color infrared, sepia toning and a whole lot more. The range of film stocks which are emulated is awesome. RealGrain is available separately or as part of the Imagenomic Professional Plug-in Suite along with Portraiture and Noiseware Professional. Like all other Imagenomic offerings RealGrain really needs no manual. The user interface in the filter speaks for itself. I got to grips with it quickly with no need to refer to the manual and had hours of fun trying things out. The ability to automatically adjust grain size so that it is based on an images physical dimensions and resolution is another feature which puts this plug-in ahead of its competitors. The ability to control how grain is generated is one of the best implementations I've seen yet with only one competitor producing better results. Even though the addition or manipulation of digital grain isn't quite perfect, in RealGrain it is still by far the most versatile with control over the tonal range, balance and intensity as well as grain size. The only way to improve upon this would be to develop a method of modeling the shape of chemical film grain so that you could more accurately represent the real world equivalents. With the range of film stocks and looks being emulated it is hard to see what could be added to improve this easy to use tool. Nonetheless, I have some suggestions for Imagenomic for emulations I'd like to see: selenium toning, sistan toning, cyanotypes and lithprinting among others. Cons: Would like to see some more control over the look of the grain. I think there's still some work to be done by Imagenomic to create more realistic looking grain. It would be nice to be able to access all the presets in one place. Pros: RealGrain is fast and easy to use. Highly configurable. Excellent selection of film types. Great value for the money. This is without a doubt one of the best tools of its kind. With a few small improvements in how film grain is handled and the addition of a few more film type effects it will be hard act to beat. Highly Recommended.

Portraiture 1.0.1

Reviewed by: Mario Georgiou Published by: Imagenomic Requires: Photoshop CS/CS2/CS3 or Elements 3/4/5 or a recent edition of a plug-in compliant program; Windows 2000, XP or Vista; Mac OS X 10.3.x/10.4.x; 256MB RAM, 10MB available hard disk spaceMSRP: US$169.95 The Portraiture plug-in is designed is to simplify the process and shorten the time it takes to carry out digital photo portrait retouching. With features like intelligent smoothing and blemish removal, an auto-mask feature that recognizes optimal skin tones and controls for fine-tuning the effect, you really can't go too far wrong. Portraiture is available separately or as part of the Imagenomic Professional Plug-in Suite which also includes Noiseware Professional and RealGrain. The presets that come with this powerful plug-in, are more than enough to retouch most digital images. However for the user who requires finer control over the look and feel of retouched images there are a wide array of fine control sliders which will allow exacting Retouchers to adjust things to their hearts content. The plug-in is really easy to use. In fact, I very quickly began asking myself if that was all there was to it. Obviously, there has been a lot of effort put into this tool and it's pretty evident when you see just how simple it is. My only complaint is that although I can see the benefit in time saving alone, I can't understand why Portraiture v1.0.1 is a full $100 more than the Noiseware Plug-in which is also part of the Imagenomic Professional Plug-in Suite along with Portraiture. Version 1.0.1 is the latest release of Portraiture and fully supports native Intel Mac systems, as well as Microsoft's Vista operating system. Portraiture v1.0.1 is also optimized to support Photoshop CS3 in both its release and public beta versions. Although there is no built in spot removal or blemish removal tool, the absence is forgivable mainly because those sorts of photo repair tools are almost invariably already part of most photo editors. I did find the Skin Tones Mask capability very impressive. By using a selection tool I was able to restrict the application of the filter to a narrower range of tones making the effect all that more effective. Cons: The absence of an integrated blemish and spot repair tool is a minor gripe, but the high price is a bit of a concern. Pros: Fast and easy to use. Highly configurable. Skin Tones Mask feature is very well implemented. The Portraiture v1.0.1 plug-in is the ideal tool for photo studios that deal with portraiture, glamour and fashion imagery. Portraiture is available by itself or as part of the Imagenomic Professional Plug-in Suite. Highly Recommended.

Noiseware Professional 4.1.1

Reviewed by: Mario Georgiou Published by: Imagenomic Requires: Photoshop CS/CS2/CS3 or Elements 3/4 or a recent edition of a plug-in compliant program; Windows 2000, XP or Vista; Mac OS X 10.3.x/10.4.x; 256MB RAM, 10MB available hard disk space MSRP: US$69.95 Imagenomic creates tools and Photoshop plug-ins for imageers, designers and photographers. The Noiseware Professional plug-in consists of a standalone program and a couple of plug-ins which are designed to remove noise and grain, while also preserving most fine details. Noiseware Professional is available separately or as part of the Imagenomic Professional Plug-in Suite along with Real Grain and Portraiture. Noiseware Professional supports 16-bit images, a necessity for any professional photographer who is shooting RAW images. Users can apply a number of presets — up to 14 in all — which cover pretty much any situation. You can create and save your own presets and recall them at any time for use on specific projects. Noiseware Professional is extremely useful for the photo editor, production artist or photographer who is shooting high ISO images or who has very little time to adjust scanned images which contain excessive noise. The effects of this filter can be quite subtle in some situations, but the beneficial effects are useful and noticeable nonetheless. Noiseware Professional is also designed to deal with some of the problems caused by JPEG compression artifacts, a real bonus in my mind. The feature is well conceived and I think Imagenomic should definitely put some additional development effort into the next version. Noiseware does a lot of the work up front by calculating the noise levels in your chosen image. The presets will usually allow you deal with most issues immediately. If you are not happy with a preset, you can then make use of the control slider arrays. Even the most tweak-happy editors will be pleased with the controls too. With four tabs for Detail, Frequency, Tonal Range and Color Range, and over 35 control sliders, you can play for hours. One of Noiseware Professional's more thoughtful functions allows you to apply different processing levels by auto bracketing the setting to same image. You can view the effects in a tabbed view from which you can then select the desired result. This would work better without the tabs and in the form of a display matrix. Like the JPEG compression artifact component, auto bracketing is clearly area that Imagenomic can expand in future plug-in releases. Cons: The tabbed interface for the auto bracketing feature would be better served by a matrix type preview. My only real concern is that some detail can be lost, but well exposed and well focused images aren't really affected. Pros: Intuitive and fast. Highly configurable. The auto bracketing feature is really nice. Great value for the money. Noiseware is aimed at all users who need a tool for controlling noise in their images. Working with Noiseware you can appreciate the work that's been put into this excellent and easy to use plug-in. If you don't have the luxury of time then you owe it to yourself to try Noiseware Professional. You won't regret it. This release is also optimized to support Photoshop CS3 in both the release and public beta versions. Highly Recommended.

The Essential Color Manual for Photographers

Reviewed by: Mario Georgiou, February 2007 Author: Chris Rutter ISBN: 2-940378-11-8 Published by: RotoVision Requires: N/A MSRP: US$29.95, UK£25.00 Author Chris Rutter has been involved in photography for over 20 years. He has a degree in Photographic Science from the University of Westminster, and his work has appeared in a number of leading magazines, including Digital Photo. Rutter is also the Technical Editor for Practical Photography magazine, the UK's top-selling photography title. He describes himself as a "quiet, unassuming insomniac with a steely determination to spend as much time as possible away from the office," and that he has a "healthy appetite for the great outdoors and a genuine fear of having his own photo taken." The Essential Color Manual for Photographers is another excellent book in the Essential series from Rotovision. The book has been created to provide photographers with an understanding of color as it relates to the digital and photographic worlds. The book features 10 chapters, dealing with key color concepts. In the first chapter issues like color theory, color spaces and systems are explained simply and effectively. Concepts like color blindness and other limitations in visual acuity are also covered, all of which I found particularly useful as inclusions. The second chapter deals with image capture technologies and how they handle and affect color. The chapter also discusses ISO equivalency, image compression artifacts and very briefly deals with film based image capture. This chapter although brief, does provide an overview of the current state of the art. However, the coverage of film capture, while useful, lacks depth. The third chapter deals with the quality of light and covers concepts such as color temperature systems and white balance, along with coverage of optical color filters. The information here, although brief, does a very good job of explaining why scenes look so different at varying times of the day and also provides a good jumping off point to explore this further in other reference books. Chapters 4 and 5 deal with Digital Considerations and Workflow — issues such as color management and calibration. These chapters do a very good job of explaining color spaces, gamut and bit depth. They also cover device constraints and the importance of device calibration and profiling. I found that the visual examples for bit depth failed to adequately convey the subtleties of this issue, although the histogram accompanying the images helped somewhat. The sixth chapter looks at what basic tools and controls can be used to tune your images colors. Here the reader is introduced to and attention is paid to tools like the Hue/Saturation dialog, Levels, Curves and Color channels. Chapter 7 is the first one delves more deeply into the subject of color and covers theories like complementary and harmonious colors. It also details situational and thematic color handling such as dealing with skin tones, mixed lighting situations, limited color palettes, using color to evoke a mood, and the issues surrounding the capture of seasonal color. All through this section (which runs about 38 pages), the subjects being discussed are supported by some very well chosen photographs which richly illustrate and help reinforce the reader's grasp of the theories being explained. The next two chapters deal with specific techniques. The subject matter is handled well and provides you with some excellent and useful ways to enhance a broad range of images. Techniques like color balancing, saturation, film type emulation, black & white conversion, and duo and tritones are clearly explained, providing valuable information and well organized explanations. Other techniques such as color popping, solarization, cross processing (where you process print film using slide processing or vice versa), and the digital emulation of infrared are given detailed coverage as well. Most importantly here, the issues are well discussed and again provide the reader with plenty of fuel for their creative work. The final chapter introduces us to the works of four distinctly different photographers and provides web links so that readers can further explore the work of these well chosen talents. I enjoyed following up the book with and exploration of their online portfolios. Cons: I would have liked to see more in-depth coverage of digital technology and workflow. A couple of the examples could have benefited from better source images. Pros: Clean design, layout and writing. Excellent coverage of the subject of color. Superb selection and use of examples. This is another excellent book from Rotovision and one which will help to clarify the issue of color for budding digital imageers and photographers. Like the previous Essentials book it uses language and examples which make it approachable for readers of all skill levels. Highly recommended for all photographers who work with digital technologies.

DxO Optics Pro & Genuine Fractals Bundle

onOne Software and DxO Labs have created a bundle of two of their excellent solutions for imageers and photographers. DxO Optics Pro is a solution for automatic digital image enhancement, and onOne Software’s Genuine Fractals, is a Photoshop® plug-in that produces high-quality enlargements from digital image files. These bundles are available for a limited time from the online stores of onOne Software and DxO Labs.

Kodak Enhancement Plug-ins

Kodak have announced a set of professional and standard Image Enhancement plug-ins for Photoshop and plug-in compliant applications. These plug-ins are from ASF (Applied Science fiction), and are now part of Kodaks new digital product line and are very useful for pro and amateur alike. Included in the set are: Digital GEM - which automatically reduces noise/grain. Digital GEM Airbrush - an airbrush effect for smoothing skin and other details. Digital ROC - that corrects, balances and restores color Digital SHO - which optimizes contrast and exposure. Free trial versions of the plug-ins are available for download at the Kodak.ASF site.

Corel Introduces Corel® Painter™ X

Corel today announced Corel® Painter™ X, the latest incarnation of one of the best natural media centric software tools for digital artists. Painter™ X can now be preordered at Corel and Corel UK . New tools include performance improvements, new composition tools in the form of Divine Proportion and their powerful and innovative RealBristle™ Painting System that provides bristle level control over their organic painting and illustration tools. They've also made substantial improvements to the way Painter allows you to turn photos into works of art. New Features in Corel Painter X Creativity • New! RealBristle Painting System – The RealBristle Painting System heightens the responsiveness of the brush for the artist and represents a major milestone in digital painting. RealBristle brushes faithfully replicate traditional art media with individual bristles that blend and splay, as in the traditional world. Artists can experience the sensation of the interaction between the paint, canvas and brush like never before. • New! Composition Tools – Corel Painter X adds new Composition Tools to the tool box, enabling artists, designers and photographers to quickly an d easily compose their images. The new Divine Proportion composition tool provides guidelines that follow the Divine Proportion (also known as the Golden Ratio) to enable artists to compose their images like the Masters. The new Layout Grid composition tool provides guidelines that follow photography’s Rule of Thirds, but can be customized to other desired grid patterns. • Enhanced! Photo-Painting System – It’s now easier than ever for photographers to create beautiful paintings from photos! Building on the strength of the Photo-Painting Palettes in Corel Painter IX.5, significant new enhancements provide users with more control and intelligence throughout the photopainting process. Additions to the Underpainting Palette include color schemes based on various media styles, such as Impressionist, Classical, Modern, Watercolor, Sketchbook and Chalk Drawing. Users can now also choose a color scheme that matches the colors of any open image. The Auto-Painting palette has been significantly updated with the introduction of the new Smart Stroke Painting option which applies brush strokes that follow the forms of the original photo. Smart Stroke Painting changes brush size, stroke length and pressure based on the detail and focal areas of the original image. • New! Match Palette effect – Artists can now easily match the color and intensity between two images. Open an image that features a desired color scheme and use the Match Palette effect to apply it to another image. The Match Palette effect includes controls for color, color variation, brightness, brightness variation and intensity. This effect can be accessed on its own or found as part of the enhanced Photo- Painting Palettes. • New! Universal Mixer palette – Artists now have greater control over color selection when using any bristle brush. For multicolor selection, the new Universal Mixer palette gives artists better control over color blending between the Mixer palette and the canvas. Performance and Productivity • Enhanced! Speed – Corel Painter X delivers speed improvements in areas including brush performance, opening and saving RIFF files, and rendering effects. The most dramatic speed improvements will be experienced by customers running Intel®-based Macintosh® computers, although all customers will experience speed enhancements in various aspects of the application. • New! Universal binary for Macintosh – With support for Universal binary specifications, Corel Painter X is optimized for Intel-based Macintosh computers. • New! Workspace Manager – Now it’s easy to backup, share or switch between customized workspaces. For example, artists can create easily accessible, customized environments for activities like sketching, photography and painting. The Workspace Manager is also useful for educators who want to streamline Corel Painter X to suit curriculum and quickly add a customized workspace on every student’s computer. In addition, custom brushes can now be quickly exported and shared with others in the community. • New! Dodge and Burn tools – Dodge and burn capabilities have been improved with the addition of two new image enhancement tools to the toolbox. The Dodge tool enables artists to lighten specific areas of an image, while the Burn tool can be used to darken specific areas of an image. Dodging and burning are often used to prepare a photograph for painting. • Enhanced! Color Management – The enhanced Color Management System ensures accurate color reproduction between devices and print jobs. Now, users only have to set up their Color Management options once and Corel Painter X retains those settings until further adjustments are made. With support for industry standard ICC4.0 color profiles, Corel Painter X enables artists to focus specifically on their work. Compatibility • New! Windows Vista™ support – Corel Painter X is designed to run on Windows Vista. • Enhanced! Mac OS® X support – Corel Painter X supports the latest operating system from Apple. • Enhanced! Adobe® Photoshop® support – Layer behavior is very similar to Adobe Photoshop, making it simple to move files between the applications. Files saved to the Photoshop (PSD) file format open in Corel Painter, with layer masks, alpha channels and layer sets (groups) maintained. Enhancements include easier layer grouping and combining, and improved support for layer merge modes. Corel Painter X also supports many Photoshop plug-ins for Mac OS X. • Enhanced! Wacom support – With Corel Painter X, artists can use the entire Wacom product line – including the Cintiq® 21 UX interactive pen display and the Intuos®3 pen tablet. In addition, the new RealBristle Painting System and the Wacom 6D Art Pen work together to take digital painting to an unprecedented level of realism. Learning • New! Printed User Guide – Including a Corel Painter artists’ gallery, the Corel Painter X User Guide is a beautiful, color-printed manual that provides helpful information and fast solutions for new and long-time users. • New! Jeremy Sutton training videos – For guidance and inspiration, customers can access a new collection of downloadable step-by-step training videos created by well-known Corel Painter Master Jeremy Sutton. Additional training videos by Jeremy Sutton are available for purchase. • New! “Painter on the ‘Net” tab in the Welcome book – New “Painter on the ‘Net” tab provides links to Painter community resources online and monthly Tips & Tricks. In addition, the Welcome book provides quick access to recently used files, brush tracking and color management settings, while showcasing artwork from renowned Corel Painter artists. The Historic Painter Can Returns in a Special Limited Edition! In addition to offering full, upgrade and education versions of Corel Painter X, Corel is honoring the Painter tradition with the release of the Corel Painter X Limited Edition Can. This Limited Edition release includes the full Corel Painter X software and User Guide, plus the complete “Learning Corel Painter X with Jeremy Sutton” DVD-ROM, the Corel Painter X collectors’ poster and the Corel Painter X Composition tool. I've been a long time fan of Painter and looking forward to trying it out. For more information visit Corel. Corel® Painter™ X is available for $419.00 USD or UK£492.33 for the full version and as an upgrade from $219.00 USD or UK£257.33. I think the only complaint here is the relatively high price in UK £ when compared to the US Price and conversion rate.