July 19, 2008

Welcome To Oz. A Cinematic Approach to Digital Still Photography

Welcome To OzMost of us have at least heard of Vincent Versace. He’s revered as a master of light by most, and his book is about giving your images that Hollywood fantasy quality using PS.

This thing is loaded with beautiful pictures, and for me that’s a big deal because I get a lot of ideas by seeing what others are doing and adding my own ideas to it. It’s not just images though. It’s chock full of technique and how to, and even includes a DVD that has high res images from the book so you can try them yourself.

As with most of the products I feature in CPOTW, the Amazon reviews speak for it. Check it out here.

Gavin Seim

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July 19, 2008

I’m super excited to announce the release on Creative Essentials. This is an action set you’ll use all the time. I’m using them like crazy on Seim Studios shoots and loving them. Even if you have no other actions, this set will keep you more creative, and more efficient.

C.E does not replace the popular Hollywood Effects Action set. It’s more like the missing link between my Lightroom presets and Hollywood Actions. It’s a set of workflow enhancing effects and tools that include sharpening. There’s a Video on the page that will show you all the power of Creative Essentials.

Check Em Out

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July 13, 2008

<<Click To Listen – Photography Roundtable #8 PPS#48

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Todays Panel…
Gavin Seim ~ Seim PhotographyEffects & Presets
Kerry Garrison ~ Camera DojoL7 Studios
Dennis Zerwas ~ DZ Photography

Show notes
Episode Forum Discussion

Nikon launches the D700, the Sb900 flash, and two new lenses.

A cool article about sharpening in Photoshop

What brides and clients think of photo websites.

Is NILMDTS (Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep) doing things right? (@27:10)

The Hassleblad H3d has 50mp. A nice camera.

Boda Bag. Looks interesting, but is it all that great?

Tamrac Modular Accessory Belt is what Gavin uses to carry gear during shoots. He just attaches MAS pouches to it.

Dynamic Photo HDR. A PC only HDR program that looks pretty cool.

Kerry has been reviewing out the Photo Basics Strobe Lights. from photobasics.net

Ken Rockwell has articles on setting up your camera.

Rocket Air for cleaning sensors.

Visable Dust is a popular cleaner for heavy duty cleaning.

Picks of the week.
Kerry Likes the Black Rapid R Strap.

Dennis says Phanfare is now his anti-pick because they have taken away features.
Smugmug is his new most favored one.

Gavin is excited about his MP3 Tape

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July 8, 2008

Drobo

For all of you photographers out there who got all excited about the Drobo when they first heard about it only to find out it was USB 2.0, it looks like you can quit your whining…for now. Data Robotics, Inc announced the second generation of the Drobo today. The new Drobo now includes Firewire 800 and a “vastly improved” USB 2.0. Their tech specs claim up to 52MB/s reads & 34MB/s writes and 30MB/s reads & 24MB/s writes respectively. Some other new features are a faster processor along with a quieter and cooler operation.

Drobostore.com is selling the new FW800/USB 2.0 for $499 as well as the original USB 2.0 Drobo for $349. I’ve been using my Drobo since the start of this year and couldn’t be happier with it. I truly believe this is a must have piece of technology for photographers, especially those who can’t afford to lose client’s images!

Dennis

DZ Photography

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July 5, 2008

lens-pen.jpgThe Lens Pen is a pretty amazing gadget for under 10 bucks. No batteries, no hassle. Every photographer should have this gem in their kit.

There’s a multitude of lens cleaning products out there, but the Lens Pen allows you to easily clean or brush off a lens. really fast, really portable, and really reusable.

To the point! On one end it’s a cleaning pad that really works, and without any solution (takes off fingerprints too). The other end is a retractable brush for getting off excess dust. It’s all about the size of a large pen.

This one is Nikon branded, but it’s cheaper and works great. I have two of them. You can’t go wrong with theese… Gavin Seim

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