Photoshop Express

Adobe is testing a new version of Photoshop that is available completely online, Photoshop Express.

No need to purchase or download software, Express is used on the Web. You can upload images, edit them, and store up to 2 GB of images, compliments of Adobe.

Typical editing tools like crop and rotate, correct exposure, remove red eye, touch up, and fix saturation are all there. Tweak as much as you want, and then email the photo or download it to your computer. You can also add the image to your Facebook, Picasa, Flickr or Photobucket account (if you have one).

This product is still in the testing (beta) stage, so if you have a suggestion for improvement, send it along to Adobe and maybe they'll implement your idea.

Photoshop Express is similar to another popular online editor, Picnik. Both tools are easy to use for simple tasks, and if you are an image editing beginner, you'll get a great start on becoming an image editing pro.

For more info about Express: www.adobe.com/products/photoshopexpress/

Are computers and art your thing?

For many artists, the last thing they wish to do is fiddle with a computer. They much prefer to paint or sculpt or create jewelry, or carry on with another artistic venture.

Learning to use a computer and complex software is a difficult left-brained pursuit. But in today's world, we need to use computers for basic things like email, banking, shopping and more. If you are an artist, there is a long list of the benefits to be gained by using a computer: creation of images for submission to a gallery; digital artwork, flyers for publicity; mailing lists for promoting your shows, websites for selling your work, and on and on.

So are computers and art your thing? Do you have a mild interest or a consuming passion?

I ran across a wonderful essay about computers and artwork by Laurie McCanna. She begins with a short test to find out if you are a Computer Person. She then talks about equipment, software, and lists some of the groups of people talking about art at Google Groups.

Read Laurie's essay titled Getting Started in Computer Graphics. It appears the article is about a year old, but the concepts are still right on.

And if you find out that computers and art are your thing, and you want to learn how to use Photoshop, check out The Painter's Guide to Photoshop. Click here to read more about it and to purchase your own copy.

Color and Curves

It's the time of year when many artists are applying for summer art fairs and submitting digital images of their artwork.

Photographing your artwork is quite a challenge. Unlike ordinary family snapshots, it is absolutely crucial that the digital images represent the correct colors. Whether you shoot outside with soft, bright morning light, or inside with quartz worklights, you may have color variations.

With a black/white calibration card and Photoshop, you can assure correct color. Photo supply stores (like PhotoVision) sell cards containing black, white, and 18% gray.

When shooting your art, shoot a photo of the card first and then shoot your artwork images under the same lighting conditions.

Then open the card image in Photoshop and open the Curves box. (See chapter 4 in The Painter's Guide to Photoshop to learn more about Curves.) Use the Curves eyedroppers in the bottom right of the box to identify true black, white and gray. Click on each color in the card image with one of the eyedroppers - left is black, middle is gray, right is white. Then Save the result as a custom curve.

Now open one of your artwork images and open the Curves box. Load your custom curve. It will automatically correct the color in your artwork image.

If you have any questions, post a comment here, or send email to sherry@matanzamedia.com.