February 21, 2010

2

Aperture, Gavin Seim, Workflow

Free Aperture Presets. The Ultimate List.

Dynamics. One of Gavin’s free Aperture presets from the Light Study1 pack (linked below). Mouse over for before/after.

Free Aperture Presets Directory by Gavin Seim (Updated 03/17/2013)

So with the release of Aperture 3, Apple finally added support for presets similar to what us Lightroom users have been enjoying. Now that they’re here we decided to start a list of FREE aperture presets similar to the free Lightroom presets list I maintain here on PPS. I’ll be continuously updating this one in the same manner.

If you’re an Aperture user jump right in, because presets are king when it comes to fast effective workflow. You can get a more creative toolkit easier than saying burn and dodge. Post your own favorite presets in the comments. But remember, only comments pointing to free presets are accepted.

Aperture Preset Favorites…

  • Seim Effects LightFlow Freebie Presets Pack.
    I spent nearly a year planning a complete set of preset for Aperture called LightFlow. This is a sampler of that collection that includes six fresh effects.
  • ColorFlow Sampler Pack.
    This is a selection of effects from ColorFlow, a presets collection also from Seim Effects dedicated to the nuances of color.
  • OnOne’s Perfect Presets for Aperture.
    A set of over 20 Aperture presets that look really good.
  • The Light Study Pack:
    I’ve been making LR presets for years and wanted to test the waters with Aperture so I jumped in and made a pack of six presets. Their are pretty universal, with some color tones, POP and other creative effects.
  • Preset Pond Aperture Presets.
    PP has a growing list of user submitted Aperture presets. Worth a peek.
  • Aperture Assistant’s Preset Gallery:
    The Aperture assistant site has started a good list of Aperture presets and allows people to submit effects. Looks to be a growing list with lots of choices.
    This archive has a bunch of preset that Simon has posted. Some good looking stuff here.
  • Nathan Smith’s Presets:
    Nathans blog has an assortment of FREE presets. Most look to be color twists and tones.
  • Aperture-Presets blog:
    There various effects here to download. Many of them are not my personal favorites, but we all have out own tastes. Browse thru and see what works looks good.
  • Terry Chay’s Presets:
    Terry has a presets category on The Woodwork blog with a few downloads. Some color enhancements as well as B&W effects.

More Aperture Presets…

 

Sponsor: Gavin’s Seim’s Lightflow presets for Aperture.

 Read More

November 5, 2008

16

Gavin Seim, PPS Photography Tips, ProPhotoShow

How To Backup Photoshop Settings Like A Pro:

by Gavin Seim: I had a call recently from a photographer who lost all her preferences, settings and actions because of a crash. For some reason Photoshop lost all it’s preferences and went back to default. The thing is, PS is not meant to hold all our settings permanently. You need to have them backed up. The key is being prepared so when something’s lost, you can take it in stride. Today I’m going to tell you how to do it. Remember that once you’ve stored these settings, re-loading them is as simple as double clicking the file. Click the images to get larger illustrated views as we go along.

1: Give Them A Home:
 First, decide where you’ll be backing up your settings. Be it a folder on your hard drive, a CD/DVD or an offsite storage service. Wherever it is find a consistent place that will be separate up from your main computer should you have a total crash.

2: Archive your actions:
Photoshop is not a place to store actions. When you download a new action don’t just load it in the actions palette and expect it to stay there. PS will retain the actions so long as the preference to keep it loaded remains. Also deleting an action in PS does not actually delete the file, it just removes it from the action palette. As long as you have your action files safely stored you’re good. But, if you load an action, and then delete the file expecting PS to retain it forever, your doom is sealed.

I like to make a “favorite actions” set that I store with my other actions. This way all my commonly used actions are in one set that I can load fast. I keep it in PS all the time, but it’s backed up should I have a crash. My other actions are nearby as well, but I load them only occasionally since all my favorites are in one set. You can do this by making a new action set (folder) within PS, then drag your favorite actions into it from other sets, then save your favorites set in a safe place.

 Read More