Photography Quote of the Day – June 17, 2011

We take language into our minds; we read words in the same internal voice with which we think, remember, pray. But when we look at paintings or photographs, the reverse is true. If the image corresponds to our most intensely personal, yet archetypal, yearnings and memories, we don’t take the

© David Saffir

image in, we move out of ourselves into the image, as though it were another world, a hologram whose forms of light are ghostly angels, or a dream whose physical reality is suggested by what we see on the surface of a canvas or a page. We connect with the image as though we had lost it within our own memories and are now surprised to find it represented outside ourselves, vital and luminous, charged with energy.

Jayne Anne Phillips

Use this link to see details about my upcoming workshop “Photoshop Selections and Compositing Made Easy”

Photography Quote of the Day – January 1, 2011

Reflection - © David Saffir

“I dislike landscapes. I only like people, and plastic flowers.” – Elliott Erwitt
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“Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts.” – Albert Einstein
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New Workshop Jan 2011 – Black & White Imaging and Nik Silver Efex Pro ……

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Photography Quote of the Day – April 15

Still Waters

A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed.” – Ansel Adams

Manage and Archive Photos using Lightroom On-Disk Organization – Part Three

by guest author Robert Ash

Introduction

Our first installment discussed an on-disk organization method that allows you to organize your photos in a way you can use any program you choose to find and view them easily. Our second installment discussed importing your photos into Adobe ® Lightroom®.

In this article we will discuss using Lightroom to manage your on-disk organization, plus show you a folder naming practice that makes it possible to use in a clever way a powerful Lightroom 2 feature – Smart Collections.

Overview

Key principles for organizing photos in Lightroom are:

• First organize on-disk (Installment 1). Again, this will make your file organization largely if not completely independent of what file browsing or organization software you use – Lightroom, Bridge, your camera manufacturer’s or another program like Aperture or CaptureOne. It will also drastically reduce the number of keywords you need, and may even eliminate your need for keywords.
• Import into Lightroom (Installment 2). Use Lightroom to transfer your photos from card to temporary folders on disk, where they’re faster to work with. Import those temporary folders into Lightroom (Installment 2).
• Organize your folders in Lightroom (this Installment). Use Lightroom to move photos from your temporary folders to their final destinations.
• Then create Collections. Lightroom Collections enable you to store a single photo or group of photos in multiple classification categories simultaneously, using on-disk organization alone cannot do this efficiently.
• Finally, do keywording if needed.

Summary

To organize your folders and imported photos using Lightroom:

Go into Lightroom’s Folders Panel

Import photos from memory card into temporary folder 0-ImportThesePhotos

If all your imported photos in folder 0-ImportThesePhotos will go in the same destination folder, select them all. If not, then select one subset of them at a time and repeat the following steps until finished:

• Select a subset of photos
• Move your selected photos to a folder
• Go to Folders panel
• If the folder you want exists, right-click on it and choose Move Selected Photos to this Folder
• If the folder you want does not exist, create it then move the select photos to it
• Optional: Create a Collection or Smart Collection with the same name as the folder (see clever shortcut in Details section below)

Details

Import photos to a temporary folder 0-ImportThesePhotos per Installment 2 of this series. Next, use the Folders panel (left side of Lightroom’s Library module) to manage your on-disk folders. This is more efficient than using a folder browser (e.g. Windows Explorer or Mac’s file browser) to organize your folders.

Selecting a Subset of your imported Photos

In the folders panel click on your temporary folder, e.g. 0-ImportThesePhotos. You’ll see all the photos you just imported. Select some photos to put into a folder (or select them all if they’re all going into the same folder). To select all the photos from a first photo (e.g., photo_01) to a final photo (e.g., photo_50) and all the photos in between:

• Click on the first photo (photo_01)
• Scroll to the last photo (photo_50)
• Shift-Click on the last photo. All photos from 01-50 will be selected
• To skip over photos or choose photos here and there, or to un-select one, use Ctrl-click (Cmd-click on Mac) on each photo
• Your Lightroom panel should like similar to this. All the highlighted photos will be moved into the same long-term destination folder (the gray one was un-selected with Ctrl-click (Cmd-click on Mac) as described:

Moving your selected Photos to a Folder

My selected photos are from the Columbia River Highway in Oregon. I don’t yet have an Oregon folder on disk. As I shared in Part 1 On-Disk Organization, my top-level folders are Locations, Nature, People, Events, Other Subjects, Personal Projects, 0-Personal&Family. So to organize my Columbia River, Oregon photos I do the following:

• Click on Folders to reveal the Folders panel
• Click on Locations to show the Locations sub-folders
• Right-click on Locations > America-USA
• Choose Create Folder Inside ”America-USA”
• Name the folder Oregon
• Right-click on Locations > America-USA > Oregon
• Choose Create Folder Inside “Oregon”
• Name the folder ColumbiaRiverHighway

Note that we do not include spaces in the file name. That is because of a Lightroom limitation in Smart Collections (more details in next installment). I could stop here but because this is a location I’ll almost certainly visit again I’ll go down another level:

• Right-click on the folder ColumbiaRiverHighway and choose Create Folder Inside ‘ColumbiaRiverHighway’
• Name the folder 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway
• Check the box Include Selected Photos to move the selected photos to this folder
• Click on the Create button and watch it go!
• Creating a Smart Collection with the Same Name as your new Folder
• Optional but recommended. Here’s a trick to make doing that easier:
• Copy the folder name:
• Right-click on the folder 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway and choose Rename
• Right-click on the highlighted folder name 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway then choose Copy,
• Now hit Esc to cancel – the folder name 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway is now stored in memory

Here is what your dialogue box should look like when creating a Smart Collection that will automatically pull into itself all the photos in the folder you will name the Smart Collection after:

Create a Smart Collection (you can click on the ‘+’ sign by the Collections panel name and choose Create Smart Collection)

Name the Smart Collection with the folder name 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway by doing Paste into the Smart Collection dialogue box’s Name field.

• In the Set droplist, choose a Collection Set where the Smart Collection will reside or just leave it at the default value – None.
• Leave the Match droplist at its default – All. In the box below the Match droplist you’ll see a droplist that says Rating:
• Change that first droplist value from Rating to Filename
• Select Starts With in the 2nd droplist then you’ll see a 3rd droplist
• Paste the folder name 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway into the 3rd droplist and click the Create button.

Your photos from 2009ColumbiaRiverHighway should all show up automatically in your Smart Collection. If they don’t, then change the 2nd droplist to read Ends With (Smart Collections can be temperamental). Make sure you have no leading or trailing or embedded spaces or other characters in the Smart Collection name.

Moving the next set of your imported Photos – and the next….

The next subset of photos in my temporary folder 0-ImportThesePhotos is still in Oregon, but consists of photos captured while travelling south along the coast on Highway 101. To move these to the correct folder I did the following:

• Return to the Folders panel
• Right-click on the folder Locations > America-USA > Oregon
• Choose Create Folder Inside “Oregon”
• Name it Highway101Oregon (I specify Oregon because Highway 101 also goes through California and Washington – I take pictures on that highway in all these states)
• Right-click on Highway101Oregon and choose Create Folder Inside “Highway101Oregon”
• Name the new folder 2009Highway101Oregon
• Optional but recommended: Create a corresponding Smart Collection as described above. Again, more details about Collections in the next installment.

Robert Ash heads a global team at a leading technology company. He has 15 years of experience with large-scale data environments and has worked with some of the largest data warehouses in the world. All statements and opinions are the author’s own, not those of any company or other party. This approach is the author’s personal approach to photo organization. The material in his articles is not guaranteed or warranted to work for any purpose or in any environment besides the author’s. The author is not an Adobe employee.

New Workshops – Turbo Portrait Retouch, Landscapes / Scenics, Book Publishing

Updated: Photoshop, Adobe Camera RAW, Bridge, Lightroom.  
Image Editing, Printing, and Publishing for Photographers

This is a multi-session series that enables photographers and other artists to use Adobe image editing products effectively and efficiently. I use a goal-oriented, hands-on approach. Sessions are divided into segments which focus on important issues. You’ll go home and get results! 

Course materials include a CD with example lessons, and image files. 

CLASS SIZE LIMITED TO 20. EARLY SIGNUP IS ENCOURAGED.

•Session One, Photoshop – Turbo Portrait Retouching, July 19 COMPLETED

•Session Two,  Landscape and Scenic Imagery, July 26

•Session Three, Design and Create A Photo Book, August 16

Event Location: SCV Center for Photography

28368 Constellation Road, Suite 340, Santa Clarita 91355

 

WORKSHOP TWO: EDITING LANDSCAPE AND SCENIC IMAGERY IN PHOTOSHOP

July 26, ‘09, 9 am-5 pm. Session fee $79 before applicable discount. Location: SCV Center for Photography, Santa Clarita, Calif.

Laptops encouraged. Students are also encouraged to bring their own images to work on.

Topics Include:

-Tips and Tricks in Camera RAW – get that image ready for prime time!

-Matching color in multiple images

-Full- Frame Color – fast track to whole-image color control

-Selective Color – adjusting selected colors to make an image “pop”

-Lighting – adjusting luminance of the entire image, orselected areas

-Creating that cool 3D look- dimensionality and depth with two key Photoshop tools

-Recovering highlight detail, restoring shadow detail – two techniques for success

-Poor man’s HDR – combining exposures for extra bounce

-Create front to back depth of field and sharpness – landscapes and close-up shots

-Intelligent Sharpening – crisp details, no halos!

-Converting to Black and White – using color adjustments and filters

-Choosing print media for appearance, longevity, marketability

-Providing a Professional Certificate of Authenticity with each print sold

 

 PRICING AND REGISTRATION INFO HERE

 ——————————————

WORKSHOP THREE: DESIGN AND CREATE A PHOTO BOOK

Aug 16, ‘09, 9 am-5 pm. Session fee $79 before applicable discount.

Location SCV Center for Photography, Santa Clarita, Calif.

Laptops encouraged. Students are also encouraged to bring their own images to work on.

 

Topics include:

-Matching your work to a book design – large or small? wide or tall? and more!

-Creating a theme – subject, color palette, storytelling

-Choosing images

-Matching images that share a page or spread

-Creating the cover, and each page, including layout options

-Imag editing for your book – step by step

-Preparing your book for printing

-Managing costs through good design

-Selecting a book printing service

-Distributing your book – as a product, and as your portfolio

 

 PRICING AND REGISTRATION INFO HERE

 

 

All content © David Saffir, Santa Clarita, CA all rights reserved.

New Workshops For Photographers by David Saffir

Track One: Photoshop, Adobe Camera RAW, Bridge, Lightroom. Image editing, printing, and publishing

Join us in a practical, real world learning environment!

This is a multi-part series that enables photographers and other artists to use Adobe image editing productseffectively and efficiently. I use a goal-oriented, hands-on approach. Sessions are divided into segmentswhich deal with specific issues. You’ll go home and get results!

 

• Session One, Photoshop – Turbo Portrait Retouching, July 19
• Session Two, Landscape and Scenic Imagery, July 26
• Session Three, Using Adobe Products to Design and Create A Photo Book, August 16

 

Session cost is $89 per person. Register before June 19 and pay only $79.

 

Workshop Session One, Track One: Photoshop – Turbo Portrait Retouching™

July 19, 2009, 9 am to 5 pm. Location: Santa Clarita, California (address TBA) Laptops encouraged. Students are also encouraged to bring theirown images to work on.

 

Topics include:

 

• Skin – women, men, children
• Eyes – sparkle makes the image
• Hair – dealing with flyaways, trailers, and more
• Lips – developing contours, dimensionality, color
• Contours – the 3-D face, the “gentle nose job”, and more
• Glasses – reflections, dust, eye magnification
• Blemishes – wipe em out in minutes
• Teeth – “you’ll wonder where the yellow went….”
• Clothing – rumples, wrinkles, and colors that go bump in the night
• Coping with group portraits – goofy faces, out of places, blinkies, and missing persons
• Production – preparing the image for the lab or your printer

 

Register for this workshop link here.

 

Workshop Session Two, Track One:Landscape and Scenic Imagery

 

July 26, 2009 9 am to 5 pm. Location: Santa Clarita, California (address TBA) Laptops encouraged. Students are also encouraged to bring theirown images to work on.

 

Topics include:

 

• Tips and Tricks in Camera RAW – get that image ready for prime time!
• Matching color in multiple images
• Full- Frame Color – fast track to whole-image color control
• Selective Color – adjusting selected colors to make an image “pop”
• Lighting – adjusting luminance of the entire image, or selected areas
• Creating that cool 3D look- dimensionality and depth with two key Photoshop tools
• Recovering highlight detail, restoring shadow detail – two techniques for success
• Poor man’s HDR – combining exposures for extra bounce
• Create front to back depth of field and sharpness – landscapes and closeup shots
• Intelligent Sharpening – crisp details, no halos!
• Converting to Black and White – using color adjustments to enhance a black and white image, the Black and White Filter, toning, and more.
• Choosing print media for appearance, longevity, marketability
• Providing a Certificate of Authenticity with each print sold

 

Register for this workshop link here.

 

Workshop Session Three, Track One: Design and Create A Photo Book

 

August 16, 2009, 9 am to 5 pm, Location Santa Clarita, California (address TBA) Laptops encouraged. Students are also encouraged to bring theirown images to work on.

 

Topics include:

 

• Matching your work to a book design – large or small? wide or tall? and more!
• Creating a theme – subject, color palette, storytelling
• Choosing images
• Matching images that share a page or spread
• Creating the cover, and each page, including layout options
• Image editing for your book – step by step
• Preparing your book for printing
• Managing costs through good design
• Selecting a book printing service
• Distributing your book – as a product, and as your portfolio

 

Pricing and Registration Information:

 

• Each session is $89. Pre-registration is required.
• If you register for the first class by June 19, session cost is reduced to $79.
• Register for two or more sessions, register before June 19, cost is $138.
• Use Paypal or Google Checkout.

 

www.davidsaffir.com

 

All content © David Saffir, Santa Clarita, CA all rights reserved.

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