March 20, 2011

You users been asking about these for a long time. The truth is I’ve avoided it because I really like teaching photography workshops in person, and for some, like my  Lights & Shadows workshop, it’s the only way to fly.

But reality says I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve that I can teach online. With that in mind I’ve decided to stop resisting it. Coming soon is an all new series of digital learning workshops. Separated into bite sized chunks, inexpensive, live and online.

It’s going to start with a Lightroom Power learning series. Workshops that start at basics and work into very advanced editing skills. You can pick the sessions you want based on your current skillset. Cool part is these will be about 90 minutes each and will only cost about twenty dollars. Spend an evening at the live online workshop, then take time to let is soak in before the next one.

After Lightroom I plan to take it further. I may even do a seasonal series. Focused workshops on things that seem simple, but can go so deep. Burning and dodging, cloning, prepping files for print. I’m getting excited because with this online format I can host a workshop on nearly anything, no matter how focused, because there’s no travel and no venue overheads to take into account.

Stay tuned for more details. Registration for The first webinars will be opening soon… Gav

You can follow the Facebook Page. All workshops will be announced there. You can also join the newsletter over in the sidebar >>

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March 16, 2011

Setting up strobes outside, especially with an with an umbrella or softbox can quickly turn into a fiasco of tipping. Not ideal when your trying to get a job done before the light changes or subjects start calling you names. I put this together last summer while planning a family session with over forty people. One common method is to use sandbags, but I wanted something small, light and adaptable. Behold, my DIY quick release light stand cords.

I left these up all afternoon without reservation. They make even portable stands VERY stable and should handle heavy winds. Do some tests of your own and if in doubt just add a few extra cords to make it as strong as you need. I found three per stand was adequate. Obviously these are not the best choice for paved surfaces, but in most situations they’re fast and effective.

Cost in only $5-10 to make a set of three and they can also be used to tether other things as well. Here’s is a good video on how to tie the Tautline Hitch. Also here’s the tent spikes I like, here’s nylon cord and here are some S hooks (you can also get them at your local hardware store). Enjoy… Gav

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March 3, 2011

Lightflow for Aperture is an ultra refined presets toolkit for photographers that’s based on many years of digital editing experience. I like to give away freebies and samples from every full collection I release and LightFlow this is no exception. Below you can download the sampler pack that includes 6 great effects from LightFlow, including one of the new Super Series auto correction presets.

I’ve put loads of refinement into LightFlow and I think you’ll love them. I hope you’ll also check out the full version because with over 55 presets, it takes Aperture workflow and creativity to new levels. And like other Seim Effects tools, LightFlow is guaranteed to please.

The freebie pack includes the following presets. You can find a full description of each in the presets list on the main product page.

  • Super Hero.
  • Super Simple.
  • Color Dance.
  • Faded Glory.
  • Simply Silver.
  • Dusted Warm, Tone.

Download via the link below. No strings. Also if you’d like to keep up with my future releases and freebies, you can sign up for my newsletter right over there >> in the sidebar. Enjoy… Gav

– Download LightFlow Aperture Presets Sampler ZIP –

Check out the complete collection and see more samples

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February 6, 2011

Creative Essentials is my general use editing pack for Photoshop, but there’s some pretty advanced stuff inside it. Well I just did a major update and I mean more than just the snappy new header image. V1.6 includes three brand new actions including a new B&W called Silver Shimmers and two new color effects, Dynamic Snap and Shadow Twist. There also been updates, including a revamp of the Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate effects. They’re much more refined and versatile now, giving you a toned black and white that is powerful and more advances than what can be done in software like Lightroom.

There’s also a bunch of fresh before/after samples on the product page along with a brand new drop down list that gives details on every included effect, plus a link to the updated sampler pack.

This is a free update for existing users, so Check you inbox as you should have a fresh download email. If you’ve purchased CE, but don’t get your update feel free to give me a shout (effects@seimstudios.com) and I’ll get you taken care of. If you don’t yet have CE head over and check it out. Enjoy… Gav

NOTE: I also want to mention that some users have been getting marketing emails from a company that’s made another action pack and called it Creative Essentials. Watch out for it. I don’t know if it’s good or not, but just a heads up. Unless it’s from Gavin Seim, it’s not my Creative Essentials. I tried to talk to them about the fact that they copied the product name and they were uncooperative.

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January 27, 2011

Color Fantasies 1.5 Lightroom Presets

Color Fantasies came out nearly a year ago and color has not been the same since. The things we can do to subtly manipulate color in LR are amazing. CF has been one of my top selling collections. There’s been a few updates in along the way as I’ve used these effects in my own photography but during that time I’ve been tweaking, analyzing processes and working on new ideas. Today I wrapped up a bunch of loose ends and came to realize this update is loaded with freshness.

There’s six brand new presets in this set, but more than that there’s a large list of tweaks and refinements on existing effects, that make them look better and become more versatile. So on that note, v1.5 is now officially available.

If you already have CF, check your inbox for the free update email. If you don’t see it, shoot me an email, effects@seimstudios.com and I’ll hook you up. If you don’t have them what are you waiting for. Color Fantasies will change the way you look at color manipulation. Check them out here. There’s over 60 presets in this set, but here’s a quick look at a few of the new effects v1.5.

See the original here.

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