Exposure Photographic Art Studio » Featured

Scott Kelby’s 3rd annual Photo Walk

Robert Louis Vanelli — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 16:34:15 +0000

Last year, over 32,000 people in over 900 locations around the globe participated. We were absolutely blown away at how many people joined together on the same day in the name of fun and photography. This year, we want each of you to invite your friends, family, and even strangers to take part and help us make it the biggest and best one yet!

Our Photo Walk will be held in the Historic Cocoa Village‎ near the marina starting at 07:00am and ending 09:00am. We traditionally meet up after the walk at a local restaurant. If you have any suggestions for a place please let us know.

For those that want to shoot a sunrise, we are meeting at 6am. The 2nd half of the Photo Walk begins at 7am. We realize this maybe early for a few people, but we do live on a beautiful East Coast! The Historic Downtown Cocoa Village has colorful shops and winding walk ways. Plus, the time of day we are shooting lends itself to golden colors.

Sailboats anchored on the river, along with the Causeway as a backdrop, produces beautiful photographs. If you plan on coming early for the sunrise shoot, bring a tripod. A cable release would also be a good idea if you have one.

Our walk is limited to 50 participants. The best part, it’s FREE. To register for he walk at Scott Kelby’s Photo Walk -Melbourne

Formating for custom size prints

Robert Louis Vanelli — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 21:08:14 +0000

It’s always cheaper to print standard sizes; 8×10, 11×14 and 16×20, 24×36. When an image doesn’t fit one of these dimensions, the trade off is cropping or paying extra for a custom print and frame. Proper planing can fix this dilemma.

Cropping

It’s always best to fill your camera frame with as much of the image as possible. Most digital SLRs have an aspect ratio of 3:2. Without cropping, your images can be printed 6×4, 12×8, 24×16. This aspect ratio doesn’t fit our standard sizes.If you want an 8×10 print, shoot a little wider and your crop will not delete any key elements in your photograph.

Matting and Framing

If cropping your image isn’t an option, have a custom matte made. This will make it easier to select a cheaper standard size frame. Select the size of your frame, then have the matte cut to the opening of your image.

Custom print size

Wouldn’t it be better if you could concentrate on creating your work of art and not have to worry about the output? This is where we benefit from custom printing. To keep the print affordable, develop a relationship with your printing company. Know their standard sizes and keep that in mind when you shoot. Some companies have a complete solution, meaning the mounting of the image is part of the art work. You see this in gallery canvas wraps by Artistic Photo Canvas and metal products from Metal Mural.It takes practice to format your images for these companies.Once you get the hang of it, you will be as creative in your output as you are with your photography!

Specialty Printing Companies

Metal Mural, Artistic Photo Canvas

Printing Labs Standard and Custom print sizes

Bay Photo, Mpix, EZ-Photo

Create a custom print for Metal Murals

Metal Mural reproduces high quality images on metal in a modular design, perfect for reproducing art, portraits, wedding photos and more on a durable, scratch resistant metal.The standard size panel is 12×12.

This tutorial will teach you how to create a custom size panel to reproduce artwork at any size. You will also learn how to increase the size of your image without losing image quality. The prefer software of choice for image enlargement is onOne’s Genuine Fractals. As an added bonus, we will learn about actions.

Click here to view the video.

Downloads

Grid Action for Photoshop.

Installation: Download the action file. Launch Photoshop. Make sure your action panel is active: Windows->action. From the drop down menu inside the action palette select Load Action. Select grid.atn

Collaborative Black Belt Shoot

Robert Louis Vanelli — Sun, 30 May 2010 15:45:12 +0000

The shoot was years in the making, we just didn’t know it.

A few friends; Michelle Tricca and Renae Bruce, came to town for a collaborative lighting class. I called in a few of my students to pose as models. We spent the day tweaking the lights for a dramatic effect. I’ll post the full results and what we worked on next week.

Several years ago I met Renae in Las Vegas at a Photoshop World convention. She was lost getting to class. In the mist of the crowd, I saw her frustrated, whispering a potty mouth word. I called her on it. We laugh and I helped her get to class. She joined our group and for the rest of Photoshop World she had a blast. When I got back to Melbourne, she wanted me to call a good friend of hers that just moved to Naples Florida from Hawaii. That call introduced me to an incredible photog, Michelle

Tricca. Michelle just switched from film to digital. She was getting frustrated with the new work flow. The following Photoshop World I took her with me. Michelle and I have been friends for years now and she continues to amaze me with her photography.

A couple of years ago Renae and her family moved to sunny Orlando Florida. We realized we haven’t done a shoot together since Vegas. We called Michelle and we set up a collaborative shoot. We drew on each others strengths and had a blast. We shared each o

thers favorite photographers, Photoshop tips and what’s new in the industry.

The shoot was years in the making, we just didn’t know it. It all started with a funny meeting at Photoshop World that now produced two good friends!

Learning from others

Robert Louis Vanelli — Mon, 10 May 2010 17:34:35 +0000

I’m a big fan of Larry Becker’s blog. I love his ability to observe a simple situation and then, with his unique writing style, make a lesson out of it. Recently, he wrote a post called “Dissecting the Work of Others“. In his article, he suggests three reasons to try recreating someone’s style. It reminded me how we analyzed other competitors when we competed on the National Karate Circuit. So, for a week, I had my karate students “dissect” each other’s performance. Their goal, copy something they liked from another performer.

Using this same advice, I started to review a few of my favorite photographers. I wanted to see how they blended their photography talents with their editing skills. Notice I said editing skills? It doesn’t matter if they used Photoshop, Lightroom or another image editing software. I was looking for artist to emulate and then one found me!

I received a compliment from Trey Ratcliff on my post, “Adding Texture to an Image“. I was feeling pretty good. He mention he did a video series on textures and offered me to check it out. Being a HUGE fan of his work, of course I had to. Applying Larry’s advice, I dissect Trey’s technique. To say I’m excited is an understatement!

Trey blends several simple Photoshop tricks together to create a unique piece of art. He walks you through his entire work flow from choosing the textures to applying them in Photoshop. Some textures and techniques worked, some didn’t. He didn’t edit anything out of the video. You see exactly what he was thinking while creating his image. As an added bonus, he supplies all the textures for you!

My quick notes:

look for textures with colors that will enhance your image.
apply as many textures to an image as you want without over doing it.
major use of layer mask, look for elements in the photo you want to keep and edit out the rest.
merge the final layers, keeping the original as the top layer and use opacity to dial in the effect.
Review Trey’s Video

Click here to view the video.

Adding texture to an image

Robert Louis Vanelli — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:29:24 +0000

Objective: Create a painting effect using textures.

Skills taught: Layer mask, Layer blend mode

Video Level : Beginner to Intermediate

For more tips on textures, Click here to visit Stuck In Customs.

Click here to view the video.

SmugMug Spotlight: Niceville High School

Robert Louis Vanelli — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 04:42:30 +0000

This “East Coast” 2010 Photoshop World was held in Orlando Florida this year. I had the great pleasure of running into Shane and Christina Sauer again; along with their group of 26 9-12th grade kids. Yes, you read that right, 26 high school kids at Photoshop World! I met Shane and Christina Sauer at one of the Photoshop Worlds in Boston a few years back. Their dedication and love for kids made an impression on me. As most know, kids always have a strong place in my heart along with people that unselfishly help them. It gives me great please to present to Niceville High School a year of SmugMug!

About their Program

The Choice program at Niceville High School gives young students the chance to get their feet wet in IT with a graphic design and digital cinema like no other k-12 program. The thing that separates the NHS Choice program is the experienced faculty and the rigorous curriculums. It’s more like a college environment and strives to find instructors from the industry rather than from the education field. Its that real world knowledge that keeps the students on the cutting edge. In addition the ultimate goal is for students to learn a lifelong skill while earning industry-standard certifications such as Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Motion, CEO, Cisco, CIW, and many more.

Shane and Christina Sauer

Shane and Christina Sauer head up the Digital Media & Cinema program. They are a husband and wife team who honed their skills in New York City and decided to settle down in the Emerald Coast. The Sauer’s teach 9-12 grade students, and strive to expose them to things that most kids would never experience. This is the second year the Sauer’s brought students to Photoshop World. Last year, they took 9 students to PSW in Boston and it was such a motivating and enriching experience, they took 26 kids this year to the Orlando 3-day conference. Not only do students get exposed to the best in the industry, taking classes such as Photography, Lighting, Photoshop, and Motion Graphics, they walk away from PSW refreshed and inspired to make a career out of what they love.

Rather than bring the standard parents as chaperons, the Sauer’s decided to bring former students from last years trip. The PSW alumni have the knowledge of how the conference is organized as well as get a chance to take classes and continue learning themselves. They get much more out of the conference than a parent would. Last year one of the many things that learned at PSW was to create amazing panoramas. The 180 degree shot shows the NHS Digital Media Mac lab, and the 360 degree shot shows the adjoining studio where they film, shoot photography, and have equipment checkout. This year they also built a website where students could send live photos from their mobile devices, and friends and family could watch as NHS CHOICE rocked their way through PSW 2010. Niceville thanks the NAPP & ADOBE for making PSW so much fun and can’t wait for next year!

How they are going to use SmugMug Pro

They are planning on using Smug Mug as an online portfolio for students and as a fundraiser. Students could upload their work and share it with one another, friends and family, other teachers, etc….In addition, they could use this as a fundraiser. Parents and family members would be able to purchase the students artwork. They also think this would be useful for students to share work with one another, it would help with brainstorming, feedback, and improve the overall quality of work that’s produced.

Lightroom Work-flow Removing blemishes

Robert Louis Vanelli — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:08:33 +0000

Part 1 of 4 Lightroom Work-flow, how to remove blemishes. Part 2 will cover enhancing the eyes, Part 3 will soften the skin and the final segment will teach face sculpturing.

Model Acknowledgment
Dina Pezzimenti
Melbourne, Florida

Model Mayhem # 1040336

Click here to view the video.

What’s the difference between Lightroom & Photoshop?

Robert Louis Vanelli — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 04:13:06 +0000

Short answer: Lightroom is for photo editing and organizing your photographs. Photoshop is for image manipulation and a whole lot more!

Adobe Photoshop is a graphics editing program developed and published by Adobe Systems. It is the current market leader for commercial bitmap and image manipulation software, and is the flagship product of Adobe Systems. It has been described as “an industry standard for graphics professionals“. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom is a digital darkroom for photographers. It is a simpler program that enables photographers to enhance and organize their photographs. The learning curve isn’t as steep as learning Photoshop. So why did Abode create Adobe Photoshop Lightroom? Simply put, Adobe created this for photographers!

Lightroom makes it easy to organize and edit your photographs. If you purchased Lightroom just for this feature alone, you got your money’s worth. Gone are the shoe box days of storing your precious memories.What’s even better, you are able to store your photographs into collections. With a few clicks of the mouse, you are able to show your best photographs without having to sift through all of them. Most of the powerful “photo editing” features of Photoshop are included in Lightroom. You are able to make changes to an entire image (global change) or by using adjustment brushes you can narrow it down to a select change (local change). You can even create slide shows, web galleries and print from within Lightroom!

Photoshop is the industry standard for graphics professionals. It has even more powerful tools for “image manipulation” than Lightroom. But it does come at a cost. It’s a very complicated program to learn on your own. Mastering the program takes years and even then you will barely scratch the surface. Professional graphic artist have no choice but to learn Photoshop. Professional photographer should invest in classes and training.

One Key Difference (described by Alan Hess)

One key difference between Photoshop and Lightroom is that photoshop edits the image on the pixel level and Lightroom doesn’t. You don’t actually change the image in Lightroom, you just add a instructions on how the image should be adjusted when it is either opened in Photoshop or exported from lightroom. The changes don’t actually happen until the image is exported out of Lightroom. This makes all the changes editable and non destructive, where as in Photoshop, if you tweak a pixel, then save the file and come back to it later it can;t be undone in a non destructive way.

Here is a sample using Lightroom with Photoshop. The only difference, Photoshop enabled me to remove two people from the image! Can you find them?

My suggestion

If you make your living as a professional graphic artist, you need the complete Adobe Creative Suite Design Premium edition. The Design Premium package comes with Adobe InDesign, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Flash Professional, Dreamweaver, Fireworks and Acrobat Pro with additional tools and services. Most, if not all companies, already have a site licenses for these products. If you are starting out on your own, the initial investment has a retail price of about $1799.00. It may seem like a lot, but starting your own business is never cheap.

If you make your living as a professional photographer, start out with Lightroom and grow into Photoshop. You’ll know when you are ready to incorporate Photoshop into your work flow. Lightroom retails for about $299.00 US and$99.00 US upgrade.

Amateur Photographers should start out with Lightroom. If you are not doing any image manipulation (example: look at a Harry Potter movie poster) then you will probably never need Photoshop.

Student Edition products are available for purchase by higher education students only. A higher education student is defined as a full- or part-time student enrolled at an accredited public or private university or college (including community, junior, or vocational college) that grants degrees requiring not less than the equivalent of two years of full-time study. Student Edition retail price is about $399.00 for the Adobe Creative Suite Design Premium edition.

If you are a kid or you don’t make money from your photography, check out Photoshop.com. Photoshop.com is a complete solution for managing, editing, storing, and sharing your photos online, with tutorials, inspiration, and more.

Classes and Training

Photoshop has grown so much over the years and has developed into an overwhelming program for beginners. I remember working with version 2.0. I must have called Adobe Tech Support three times a day. Finally one patient technician told me that their support system is for when the program didn’t work and not for learning how to do something. I asked how I was supposed to learn this stuff. He turned me on to KW Media. KW stood for… Kelby and Workman. I wish I knew the name of that technician. I’d bring flowers to the insane asylum I probably sent him to. The moral of this story is save an Adobe technician and seek training!

The best online resource for learning Abode products is Kelby Training. Scott Kelby is a best selling author and his team has an amazing way to disseminate information. If you prefer a live seminar, they offer one day classes too. These seminars are lecture based. An instructor takes you through lessons as a group and you follow along with the class book that is yours to keep.

There are also many private and semi private classes available all over. Exposure Photographic Art Studio; that’s us, teaches hands on classes for Photography, Photoshop, Lightroom and WordPress. Our main target audience is beginners, novice and intermediate level students. If you want to take your photography or Photoshop / Lightroom skills to a new level, attend a Photoshop World Conference!

If you have time and money, train with some of the best photographers and photo editors of our era. Never in the history of photography has so many Masters of Photography taught to the general public. Take advantage of their knowledge, skills and willingness to share. Most of these classes are nestled in majestic environments. Attending some of these week long classes will have you walking away with beautiful photographs and a major understanding of photography!

My Wish List of 12 Photography Classes and Workshops

Scott Kelby

Editor, Photoshop User magazine

Conference Technical Chair
Scott is editor and publisher of Photoshop User magazine and Layers magazine (the how-to magazine for everything Adobe). … read more »

Scott is a photographer, designer, and an award-winning author of more than 40 books, including Photoshop Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers, The Photoshop CS3 Book for Digital Photographers, The 7-Point System, The Photoshop Channels Book, Photoshop Classic Effects, and The Digital Photography Book.

Since 2004, Scott has been awarded the distinction of being the world’s #1 best-selling author of all computer and technology books, across all categories. His books have been translated into dozens of different languages, including Chinese, Russian, Spanish, Korean, Polish, Taiwanese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Dutch, Swedish, Turkish, and Portuguese, among others, and he is a recipient of the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Award.

In addition, Scott is training director for Kelby Training and technical chair for the Photoshop World Conference & Expo. He’s featured in a series of Adobe Photoshop training DVDs and has been training Adobe Photoshop users since 1993. For more information on Scott, visit scottkelby.com.

Kevin Ames

Photographer, educator, and author

Kevin Ames is a well-known commercial digital photographer who has written several Photoshop and photography books, including The Digital Photographers Notebook, Photoshop CS2: The Art of Photographing Women, and Digital SLR Photography with Photoshop CS2 for Dummies. … read more » His company, Ames Photographic Illustration, has done work for Honda, AT&T, and Westin Hotels. He also writes the “Digital Photographer’s Notebook” column for Photoshop User magazine, and is a Photoshop World Dream Team instructor.

Scott Diussa

Photographer, teacher, writer

Scott Diussa is a photographer, teacher, musician, traveler and part-time writer. Scott is a graduate of the Southeast Center for Photographic Studies at Daytona Beach College in Florida. … read more »

Scott has taught thousands of eager photographers throughout the United States on how to get the most of their Nikon equipment. His personal favorite areas of photography today are concert, aviation and travel photography. To see Scott’s images and read about where his travels take him visit his Blog at www.scottdiussa.com. For more information about Nikon Professional Services go to www.nikonpro.com.

Corey Barker

Education and Curriculum Developer for NAPP

Corey is the newest education and curriculum developer for the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. He is a graduate of the Ringling School of Art & Design … read more »

Russell Brown

Sr. Creative Director at Adobe Systems Incorporated

Russell Brown is an Emmy Award-winning instructor, and senior creative director at Adobe Systems Incorporated. He facilitates the exchange between digital designers and software developers that is … read more »

He is also the creator of “The Russell Brown Show” at www.tv.adobe.com. Always delighting in testing the creative limits of his tools, Russell is the prolific creator of an entertaining collection of Photoshop tips and tricks. His double treat of great information presented in a bold, zany style has won him a regular following among beginning, intermediate, and advanced users alike.

John Paul Caponigro

Author, Fine Artist and Contributing Columnist

John Paul Caponigro, author of Adobe Photoshop Master Class, is an internationally renowned fine artist. He is a contributing editor for Camera Arts and View Camera, and … read more »

Rafael Concepcion

Education and Curriculum Developer for NAPP

Rafael Concepcion (RC) is an education and curriculum developer for the National Association of Photoshop Professionals, and the co-host of Layers TV – The How To Podcast For … read more »

Dave Cross

Author and Trainer

Dave Cross is Senior Developer, Education and Curriculum for the National Association of Photoshop Professionals and is involved in all aspects of the training that is provided to NAPP members, … read more »

Prior to joining NAPP, Dave lived in Canada and trained thousands of users across North America. Dave co-authored Illustrator CS2 Killer Tips and is the author of the Photoshop CS2 Help Desk Book and Photoshop Finishing Touches. Dave writes for Photoshop User magazine, teaches at the Photoshop World Conference & Expo and is the Lead Instructor for the Photoshop Seminar Tour. He is also featured on a series of DVDs and is one of the “Photoshop Guys” on Adobe Photoshop TV.

Jack Davis

Author, Photoshop WOW! Book and Designer/Illustrator/Photographer

A Photoshop Hall of Famer, Jack is co-author of the award-winning Photoshop Wow! Books and How to Wow: Photoshop for Photography books, … read more »

Jim DiVitale

Digital Photographer and Instructor

Jim DiVitale has been an Atlanta commercial advertising photographer and instructor for over 28 years, specializing in digital photography and computer photo illustration. … read more »

Going completely digital capture in 1992, his award winning digital photography has been featured in Graphis Photo, Print, Archive Magazine, Create Magazine, Creativity, Rangefinder, Professional Photographer, Photo Electronic Imaging, Digital Output Magazine, Digital Imaging, Photo District News, and After Capture Magazine. His clients include Mizuno USA, William Carter Co, Toshiba, TEC America, Kenneth Cole, Bellsouth, BP Amoco, COX Media, Genuine Parts Company, Solvay Advanced Polymers, Witness Systems, JP Morgan Financial, Coca-Cola USA, and Scientific Atlanta. View Jim’s portfolio and blog at: www.DiVitalePhotography.com.

Katrin Eismann

Artist, author, educator

Katrin Eismann is 1/3 artist, 1/3 author, and 1/3 educator. She received her BFA degree in Photographic Illustration from the Rochester Institute of Technology and her MFA degree in Design from the School of Visual Arts … read more »

Laurie Excell

Photographer and NAPP Photo Gear Desk

Laurie spent the first 25 years of her career in photographic sales helping pros and hobbyists alike decide which photographic equipment best suited their needs. … read more »

As if that’s not enough, Laurie also leads wildlife photography safaris in North America and is an instructor with the Digital Landscape Workshop Series, Photoshop World, and Cruising Through Life training extravaganzas. She also runs a business called Equipment Lady, where she sells photographic equipment on consignment for other photographers when they upgrade their equipment. Oh, and in all of her spare time, she’s the Photo Equipment Advice Desk Guru for our very own National Association of Photoshop Professionals.

Helene Glassman

Photographer

Helene Glassman is an award-winning photographer/businesswoman in Santa Barbara, California. She has been awarded the Master of Photography and Photographic Craftsman degrees … read more »

Joe Glyda

Digital Imaging and Technology Manager

Joe Glyda was a Digital Imaging Advisor for Kraft Foods in Glenview, Illinois for over 25 years. He initiated their digital capabilities back in 1993, and now the Creative Services Photography Studio completes … read more »

Rod Harlan

Director of the Digital Video Professionals Association

Rod Harlan is the president of DriveDV, Inc., a full service multimedia firm, live event producer, and episodic web television development studio. He is the founder and director of education for the … read more »

Richard Harrington

Editor and Motion Graphic Artist

Richard Harrington is a certified Project Management Professional, Adobe Certified Expert in Photoshop and After Effects, and Apple Certified Trainer in Final Cut Pro. Additionally, he has completed … read more »

Lesa Snider

Trainer, Writer & Chief Evangelist for iStockphoto.com

As the founder of the free creative tutorial web site, GraphicReporter.com, and chief evangelist for iStockphoto.com, Lesa is on a mission to teach the world to create better graphics … read more »

Matt Kloskowski

Author and Educator

Matt Kloskowski is the Education and Curriculum Developer for the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. He has authored and co-authored five books on Photoshop and Illustrator … read more »

Julieanne Kost

Graphics Evangelist, Adobe Systems

Joining Adobe in 1992, Julieanne has learned her craft through hands-on experience and now serves as the Senior Digital Imaging Evangelist. Spanning digital imaging and illustration, her role includes customer education, product development, and market research. … read more »

Julieanne is also the author behind Window Seat – The Art of Digital Photography and Creative Thinking, the founder of jkost.com and the creator of the Adobe Photoshop CS training DVDs published by Software Cinema.

Jay Maisel

Photographer

Photographer Jay Maisel’s career spans 40 years. His name has become synonymous with vibrant color photography that uses light and gesture to create countless unforgettable images for advertising, editorial, and corporate communications … read more »

Dan Margulis

Author, Prepress Manager, and Color Authority

Dan Margulis is internationally regarded as the leading authority on color correction. He is the author of Professional Photoshop, which, since its first edition in 1994, has become the unofficial bible of the prepress and printing industries … read more »

Deke McClelland

Author and Trainer

Formerly an art director at one of the first service bureaus in the U.S., Deke McClelland is a best-selling author on the subjects of computer graphics, digital imaging, and electronic design. Since the publication of his first book in 1987 … read more »

Joe McNally

Photographer

Joe McNally is an internationally cclaimed American photographer and long-time photojournalist. From 1994 until 1998, he was LIFE magazine’s staff photographer, the first one in 23 years. His most well known series is the “Faces of Ground Zero — Portraits of the Heroes of September 11th,” … read more »

Some of McNally’s other renowned photographic series include, “The Future of Flying,” a cover and 32-page story, commemorating the centennial observance of the Wright Brothers’ flight and the future of aviation, which appeared in National Geographic magazine, December 2003. Joe is a 25-year contributor to National Geographic, and this story was the first all-digital shoot for the magazine. This issue was a National Magazine Award Finalist, and the magazine’s best-selling issue ever.

In 2005, Joe shot a photo diary of the New York City Opera’s historic first tour to Japan as part of the World Expo 2005. Joe’s work has won numerous awards, and appeared in a variety of publications including New York Times magazine, National Geographic, Newsweek, ESPN Magazine, Men’s Journal, LIFE, and Fast Company.

McNally’s advertising, marketing and promotional work includes Nikon, Sony, Land’s End, MetLife, Bogen, Haggin Marketing, Lifetime, AGA Marketing, Kelby Media Group, Wildlife Conservation Society, American Ballet Theatre, Coleman, and FedEx, to name a few.

Bert Monroy

Author and Contributing Columnist

Bert Monroy is considered one of the pioneers of digital art. His work has been seen in many magazines and scores of books. … read more »

He co-authored The Official Adobe Photoshop Handbook, the first book on Photoshop plus many other books since. His latest books, Photoshop Studio with Bert Monroy: Digital Painting has gotten critical acclaim around the world. Bert writes a column for Photoshop User and Layers magazines.

Bert serves a client list that includes Apple Computer, Adobe Systems, AT&T, American Express, Pixar Animation, Disney Animation and Lockheed/Martin. Bert has also worked in the motion picture industry for Industrial Light and Magic, Pacific Data Images, and R/Greenberg.

In 2004, Bert was inducted into the Photoshop Hall of Fame.

Chris Orwig

Pro photographer, Interactive Designer, Author

Chris Orwig is a pro photographer, interactive designer, author and on the faculty of the renowned Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, CA. Moreover, he brings unique perspective, creativity, authenticity and passion to all that he does … read more »

Chris traces his creative roots to growing up in Northern California where his backyard opened up to rolling hills, oak trees and creeks. Chris grew up in a home that was designed/built by his father and filled with art created by his mother. From the get go this environment nurtured in him an insatiable desire for discovery, a knack for creativity and a desire to live a full and meaningful life!

Chris’ work is widely sought after and can be seen in various national publications. He enjoys a diverse and varied client base having worked with companies like Disney, Adobe, Nissan and others. Chris is extremely proud to partner with Adobe, Epson, Wacom, Nik Multimedia, onOne Software and Really Right Stuff. More importantly, Chris approaches design and photography as a way to get more out of life. As he explains, “I subscribe to Marc Riboud’s perspective that ‘Photography is savoring life at one hundredth of a second.’ When I create a photograph or a design piece I strive to create visual poetry. Poets are able to say in 10 words what novelists say in 10,000. Ultimately, after reading a poem, we simply do not have more information we have more experience. In the same way, I aim to distill idea, concept, vision, experience and emotion into poetic, provoking, intriguing and beautiful imagery.”

For more information visit chrisorwig.com

Moose Peterson

Wildlife Photographer, Author, and Educator

A Nikon Legend Behind the Lens, Lexar Elite Photographer, recipient of the John Muir Conservation Award, Research Associate with the Endangered Species Recovery Program, published in over 130 magazines worldwide, author of 23 books, and … read more »

Jack Reznicki

Commercial Photographer and Author

Jack Reznicki is a commercial photographer specializing in people and children based in New York City. His creative problem solving has helped promote products and services for many companies such as Tylenol, The Wall Street Journal, Hyatt, … read more »

Jack is the author of several books on commercial photography including “Studio and Commercial Photography- A Kodak Pro Workshop” book.

For over 4 years, Jack’s insights to professional photography could be found in Petersen’s Photographic magazine with his popular “Pro Vision” column. His writings have also appeared in other photography magazines.

Believing that photographers should be pro-active in the photo community, Jack is currently the Chairman of the Board and former President of Professional Photographers of America (PPA). Previously, Jack has served as President of the New York Chapter of Advertising Photographers of America (APA), sat on the Joint Ethics Committee in New York, and served as Board Member of ASMP/NY.

Along with many other awards, Jack was very proud to receive the IPC (International Photographic Council) Leadership medal for “Excellence in Studio Photography” at the United Nations. Jack was appointed a guest professor at Shandong University of Art and Design in Jinan. Jack is also a Mo-Tse Grand Master Photographer in China and proud to be named a Honorary Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography.

He is one of the original “Canon Explorers of Light” an “Epson Stylus Pros” and host of the Epson Print Academy’s Track One, and a Sandisk “Photo Master”. Jack has also does Beta testing and consulting with Canon, Epson, Mamiya, Microsoft, X-Rite, Leaf digital backs, and Adobe.

Andrew Rodney

Author and Trainer

Andrew is owner of The Digital Dog, a digital imaging training and consulting business located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Andrew Rodney, aka the Digital Dog, has successfully provided services and training … read more »

Andrew has been a Beta for Adobe Photoshop since version 2.5 and is currently an Alpha tester for Adobe Systems. Andrew is one of the principle partners of Pixel Genius LLC, a company that has created such products as PhotoKit and PhotoKit-Sharpener. Andrew was named a “Top 40 Photoshop Expert” by Wacom Technologies. In 2007, Andrew was inducted into the NAPP Photoshop Hall of Fame. Andrew’s web site can be found at www.digitaldog.net.

Jeff Schewe

Advertising Photographer and Consultant

Jeff Schewe is the co-author of Real World Camera Raw with Adobe Photoshop CS3 published by Adobe Press/Peachpit and a member of the NAPP Photoshop Hall of Fame. … read more »

Fay Sirkis

Portrait Artist, Photographer, and Instructor

Fay Sirkis is an internationally recognized portrait artist, photographer, and instructor. She speaks at training conferences and events throughout the US and Europe. … read more »

Fay’s studio is in New York and she is a contemporary digital artist with a background in traditional fine art. Fay attended the Pratt School of Professional Studies in New York City where she became certified in Graphic and Web Design. Fay also attended Rockhurst College CE in New York City where she earned her certification in printing and pre-press.

Fay has been honored by Canon as a “Canon Print Master” and her paintings are featured in numerous Canon marketing campaigns. Fay currently trains for Canon at conferences and trade-shows throughout the US.

Fay is a Painter Master, Beta tester, and on the Advisory Committee for Corel Painter. She was instrumental in the launching of Painter IX and X. Her work is featured in Corel’s Painter Masters Art Gallery, as well as their numerous ad campaigns.

Fay is a member of the Photoshop World Conference & Expo “Dream Team” of instructors, produced by the National Association of Photoshop Professional’s. Her tutorial on “Photo Painting” with Photoshop and Corel Painter was the featured article at Photoshop World Boston in 2007, and in Photoshop User Magazine. She is best known for her simplistic way of teaching, making the learning curve in the digital world easy to master.

Her commissioned portraits and paintings are held in private collections internationally, and also exhibited in museums and art galleries. Fay is the founder of “Fays Art Studio,” a high-end commission portrait painting studio, as well as a digital art training and consulting firm based in New York.

An accomplished Portrait Artist, Photographer, and Instructor, Fay Sirkis provides her students with simple recipe’s to transform photos into beautiful paintings! Learn how to paint like a Master with Fay Sirkis as she shares the secrets and techniques behind her signature style of “Photo Painting”.

To see more of Fay’s work, please visit www.faysartstudio.com.

Alan Hess

Concert photographer, writer, instructor

Alan Hess is a San Diego-based commercial photographer specializing in concert and live-event photography. … read more »

He has photographed hundreds of concerts three songs at a time. From small club shows to big arenas, Alan enjoys the fast pace of shooting on the fly, the rush of the house lights going down, and the drive to capture the “show” in the images of first three songs.

Some of the Bands/Musicians that Alan has photographed include: Billy Idol, Bob Weir and RatDog, Bruce Hornsby, Citizen Cope, The Dead, Death Cab for Cutie, Derek Trucks Band, The Grateful Dead, Jackie Greene, John Legend, Mickey Hart Band, Robin Williams, Shepard Fairey, The Smashing Pumpkins, Steel Pulse, Widespread Panic, and Willie Nelson.

Alan’s work has been published online and in print in the following outlets: Associatedcontent.com, Bruuce.com, Dead.net, Glidemagazine.com, Jambands.com, Jambase.com, MarkKaran.com, MiaBrazilia.com, Poughkeepsie Journal, Mill Valley Herald, Otherones.net, Pauserecord.com, Philzone.com, Ranch & Coast Magazine, Rat-dog.com, Ratdog.org, Relix Magazine and Vintage Guitar Magazine. His images have been used for various CDs and other promotional work.

Alan is currently the house photographer for a large concert venue in southern California and when he isn’t out shooting concerts, he is writing photography books.

He has written two books on Sony DSLR cameras, the “Sony Alpha A700 Digital Field Guide,” and the “Sony Alpha A200 Digital Field Guide,” and is currently working on the “Exposure Digital Field Guide,” all for Wiley Publishing. Alan has contributed to Photoshop User magazine and is a key contributor to the Lexar.com website.

Alan teaches Lightroom and Bridge workflow at Essy’s Studio in San Diego, and writes a regular blog at www.alanhessphotography.com.

Eddie Tapp

Photographer, Lecturer, Consultant, and Author

Eddie Tapp is an award-winning photographer, lecturer, consultant, and author on digital imaging issues. With over 25 years of experience in computer technology, Eddie has been actively involved in educating and consulting corporations, studios and agencies … read more »

Eddie is Director of the Institute of Visual Arts in Maui, Hawaii, an Explorer of Light and Print Master with Canon USA, and is on the Photoshop “Dream Team” with National Association of Photoshop Professional where he was recently inducted into the “Photoshop Hall of Fame”. He served 6 years as the Chairman of the Committee on Digital and Advanced Imaging for the Professional Photographers of America, where he holds the Master of Photography, Master of Electronic Imaging, and Photographic Craftsman degrees, Approved Photographic Instructor and is a Certified Professional Photographer. He also served as Commercial Council representative to PPA for the Georgia PPA. His articles have appeared in the Professional Photographer, Rangefinder, Shutterbug, Photo Electronic Imaging, and Southern Exposure & Digital Capture. He also has served on the Adobe Photoshop beta team.

Corporate clients include Epson, Eastman Kodak, Foveon, Polaroid, and Apple Computer, as well as many other international corporations and government agencies. He has also served as print judge at many professional photographic competitions and is a Nationally Qualified Juror for the Professional Photographers of America association in Electronic Imaging.

Eddie hails from Atlanta, Georgia and has been accused of using his southern charm to put his students at ease. His teaching philosophy is simple: solve people’s problems by giving them straightforward answers in clear language. Visit www.eddietapp.com

Vincent Versace

Photographer, Trainer, and Contributing Columnist

Vincent Versace is a recipient of the Computerworld Smithsonian Award in Media Arts & Entertainment and the Shellenberg fine art award, a six-time nominee to the Photoshop Hall of Fame … read more »

Terry White

Technical Resources Manager, Adobe Systems, Inc.

Terry White- Director, North America Creative Pro Technical Sales for Adobe Systems, Inc. Terry has been with Adobe for over a decade and has extensive knowledge of Adobe’s Creative Professional product line. … read more »

In his current position, he leads a team of Solution Engineers and Product Specialists that focus on Professional Publishing, Web Authoring and Digital Video/Audio. Terry is an Adobe Certified Expert and Creative Suite Master. He has been active in the industry for over 20 years and is the founder and president of MacGroup-Detroit - Michigan’s largest Macintosh users group and is a columnist for Layers magazine and X-Ology Magazine. Terry is the host of the top ranked Adobe Creative Suite Video Podcast. He is also the author of Secrets of the Adobe Bridge and co-author of The iPhone Book and InDesign CS/CS2 Killer Tips. Terry is a key presenter at major industry shows around the world.

Ben Willmore

Author, and Instructor

Ben Willmore is author of the award-winning, best-selling book, Adobe Photoshop Studio Techniques and co-author of another bestseller, How to Wow: Photoshop for Photography … read more »

David Ziser

Photographer, Lecturer, and Trainer

David Ziser, an internationally-renowned wedding photographer, has shared his knowledge with tens of thousand’s of photographers in five languages and in 14 countries worldwide. Studio Photography acclaimed … read more »

Fate & Destiny

Robert Louis Vanelli — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:54:01 +0000

I wonder what the angels think as they gaze from heaven above, their hard work known as Destiny brought us together and filled our lives with love. It wasn’t an easy task for them to accomplish what they have done, miles apart we had lived before our paths would cross and become one. When we finally met my heart told my soul you were my perfect mate, others just called it luck, but we knew Destiny had a little help from a friend named Fate!

Through My Lens

Robert Louis Vanelli — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 09:32:10 +0000

Through my lens I strive to see
a perfect world the way I want it to be

I share this gift for others to find
treasured moments captured eternally in time

Time moves fast but my shutter makes it slow
I seized the miracle of birth And watched it grow

As age sets in life begins to fade
memories developed from a click will forever joyfully be replayed.