Tag Archives: adobe

Photo of the Day- “The Unknown” and a Photoshop Tutorial on Creating a Vector Frame

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"The Unknown" - Tracey Capone Photography

Let me kick this post off by telling you that, thanks to this beautiful treasury which includes my photo, “Sea Jewels No. 3,”  I currently have the song, “Set Adrift on Memory Bliss” by PM Dawn stuck in my head. Now, that’s not  bad thing, it’s actually one of my all time favorite 90s songs but, I tell  you this because it is quite difficult to write a blog post while simultaneously  attempting to 1. sing lyrics that you can’t completely remember but feel you can “fill in” by humming melodically and 2. dancing while sitting.  I just had to put that out there… now that you have that visual, on to the post.

Today’s Photo of the Day is, “The Unknown” named such because, unlike my other photographs of  Parisian doors, which were named after their street number, this door had absolutely no markings: no street number, no sign saying it was a business, nothing. It loomed over the street in all it’s grandeur which it’s beautiful wrought iron scroll work and carvings but there was no telling if it was someone’s home or what went on on the other side. (and I think we’ve established that, when it comes to these doors, I’m extremely nosy and want to know)

For the room photo, I opted to frame it up in a simple black frame with a textured linen matting. Want to know how? Check out the tutorial on using vector masks to create a frame and mat after the jump…

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The Duck Ate My Homework… A Photoshop Tutorial

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Ever since I posted this picture on my site, I’ve had people asking me how I got the duck to hold the photograph in his mouth. My answer? Magic. OK well only if you consider Photoshop magic… which I do. Using a good mix of some PS hocus pocus and some imagination I got the dog, I mean duck to “eat my homework.”

This tutorial will provide you with the step by step details as to how you too can get a farm animal to “eat” something it shouldn’t. (a note, no animals were harmed in the making of this tutorial)

While you may not have a need for a duck to eat a Polaroid, the basic principles of the tutorial will teach you how to use simple masking to create something similar.  (Please note, this tutorial is assuming a basic understanding of Photoshop) There may be many other ways to get this duck to hold the Polaroid in his mouth but, for me, this was the best and easiest way for me to approach it. This fun and easy tutorial starts after the jump…

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Photo of the Day- “From the Loop” (a sorta, kinda, well maybe, homage to tilt-shift photography)

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"From the Loop" Tracey Capone Photography 2010

 

So, technically, tilt-shift photography is usually from the vantage point above the subject so, hence the “sorta kinda, well maybe” part of the title but I just had to try this  and see what happened.

A few weekends back, on a whim, I decided to take the full Chicago architectural tour… yet again… because I love boating along the Chicago River, seeing all the amazing buildings that make up this wonderful city. The history behind Chicago’s architecture is fascinating and some of the stories you’ll hear on the tour are sure to make you chuckle.

One of the things I missed in my three years away, believe it or not, was the CTA. Yes, it smells funny and some of the people are weird but the El (elevated track line) is one of the best ways to see the city. Jump from the Red Line to the Brown and the Brown to the Orange and just keep riding around the loop taking in the mix of modern and retro buildings that Chicago has to offer.

But I digress… “From the Loop” is my “take” on tilt-shift photography. By using selective focus (hey remember that from yesterday?) and blurring out the buildings in the immediate background, the train and that beautiful red, brick building are pulled out of what was once a pretty dull picture that was basically overpowered by the Sears Tower (yes, yes, it’s the “Willis Tower” fine… it’s the big, black building in the back)

I still plan on doing some true tilt-shift photography and will definitely post it here. In the mean time, here’s a great tutorial on how you can fake tilt-shift using Photoshop.

Enjoy!

*tracey*

Tutorials- Adobe Illustrator- Cartoon Yourself!

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OK so, lately, I am addicted to all things Adobe… specifically Photoshop and Illustrator, and there is no shortage of awesome tutorials out there for people looking to learn what both have to offer. Today, I’m going to spotllight a tutorial by a fellow blogger, Jennifer Borton.

Jennifer is all about vectors as her blog will detail. It provides a host of excellent tutorials, and all are marked very clearly with their difficulty level. You’ll find everything from creating basic vector illustrations to preparing them for sale to iStock.

The tutorial I chose to do today was one of her beginner tutorials, “Drawing a Face Using Simple Shapes.” It took me a little while to get the hang of it and, admittedly, I had trouble with the hair, but, after several deletions and recreations, I got it to where I like it. I even pulled mine in to Photoshop to try adding a few brushes. Why not right?

If you’re just starting out using Illustrator, this is a fantastic tutorial to test your skills while learning some of the basics of Illustrator. Don’t be afraid to experiment! What do you have to lose? Jennifer’s excellent tutorial can be found here. Check it, and others, out on her wonderful blog and definitely check out her fun portfolio!

Enjoy!!
*tracey*

Photoshop Tutorial- And on the 14th day…um of March, I created an Earth…

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Happy Almost Spring! Well, today is the first full day of Daylight Savings Time here in most parts of the United States so I thought I would create a little reminder for those who, 1. forget to change their clocks every year and 2. forget which way to turn the clock. For those of you who don’t recognize Daylight Savings Time, this will be a pretty basic tutorial on how to create planets from scratch.

Today’s post is actually going to be a multi-step tutorial where, with the end product, you’ll have created an Earth, a moon (well a, “moon like thingy”),  a point of light and wrapped text all in Photoshop.

A note- this is a pretty basic tutorial but it does require a working knowledge of Photoshop. I’ll try to be as detailed as possible but it definitely helps to understand where everything is and have a basic understanding of layering and what functions each of the tools perform.

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Pixel Bender and the Droste Effect

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Droste Clock

Well, I apologize, it’s been a few weeks since I posted. I appreciate everyone’s patience while I attended to some family matters (and of course surviving the biggest snowfall in Philadelphia’s history…brrr). All is well and I’m excited to get back to the blogging!

For those who have been following along, you know of my recent obsession with all things Photoshop. I have even gone so far as to go through a very extensive training program (three phases, about 20 hours each) to get certified and I can honestly say, it was well worth it! I learned so much that I can’t wait to share with all of you!

Today’s post is going to be spotlighting a wonderful tutorial on The Droste Effect, along with one of the filters which can be used in Pixel Bender plug-in within Photoshop (as well as other products in the CS suite).

There are a number of examples out on Flickr of the Droste effect, some a little creepy but cool all the same,  found here.  First though, a few definitions…

What is the Droste Effect?

The term refers to a specific type of recursive picture…well, wait, recursive? What’s that? There’s an a long and completely confusing definition, used in both computer science and mathematics, regarding functions and components. Long story short, it’s a broad term used to describe objects self-duplicating themselves repeatedly, seemingly infinitum.

Example please!!  Ever been to a Hall of Mirrors? I don’t know about you but, as a kid,  I had fun making the Millions of Tracey’s dance and jump and, well act silly all in unison. Because the mirrors were set at particular angles to one another, the image would repeat over and over, and the reflection got smaller and smaller for what seemed like forever.

The Droste Effect is the same concept, meaning a picture depicting a smaller version of its self and, within that a smaller version, and so on and so on. While, to the eye, this duplication appears to continue on forever, it will only truly continue until the resolution of the picture will no longer allow it.

What is Pixel Bender?

I won’t even begin to boggle everyone’s minds with the exact definition of what Pixel Bender does, especially as I’m only on my first cup of coffee. I have, however, attached a link to Adobe Labs definition of how it works. In laments terms though, it’s a pretty cool plug in for several Adobe products, including Photoshop, which very quickly processes a bunch of complex algorithms to apply filters or effects to your photo or illustration, in this case, the Droste Effect.

First things first, in order to use Pixel Bender, you have to download the actual Pixel Bender plug in- found here. (check the very bottom) Now, once that’s downloaded, if you have a mind to, you can code your own image processing algos (the filters and effects) or, you can take advantage of the wealth of shared knowledge on the dedicated Pixel Bender Exchange site within Adobe. (Yes, it’s just that amazing that it has its own site.)

Now, as I don’t claim to be a computer genius, to achieve the Droste Effect, I am using the best (at least in my opinion) filter out there, created by a developer by the name of Tom Beddard. Tom, also known as “subblue,” has created a number of amazing Pixel Bender downloads that he offers up for free (oh did I mention the actual Pixel Bender plug in is free as well?? Thank you Adobe!) His graphic design work, blog and downloads  can be found here on his site.

Tom also provides a wonderful tutorial on how to use his Droste Effect filter, along with the filter  download, here. I’ve attached a couple of my own initial attempts and plan on providing many more down the road. I won’t dare to repeat everything Tom provided in his tutorial but I’ll offer up one suggestion… don’t be afraid to play around with the tool on a copy of your photo. (I’ve said it before and will say it again, if you’re going to play, especially when messing with pixels, save an original copy somewhere else as you never know what can happen.) The more you tweak the settings, using Tom’s basic tutorial as a guide, the more interesting the results and guaranteed you’ll end up with something different each time.

If you decide to play around with the Droste Effect, I would love to see what you’ve done with it. Please feel free to comment and post!

Enjoy!

*tracey*

"Droste Lotus"

New Project- Starbursts

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It’s Martin Luther King Day here in the States which, for me, as well as many others, means a day off. (That is, of course, in addition to the historical importance of the man we’re remembering…)

As I’m in a bit of a lazy mood today, and it’s too cold to break out the bike, I’ve decided to play around in Photoshop a little and share some of my creations, along with a little tutorial I happened upon. The other day I created planets, today we’re creating what I’m going to call starbursts.

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