DigitalRoom Postcard Giveaway

I'd like to thank DigitalRoom.com for allowing me to host this contest, and for allowing my loyal readers to participate and win something cool.  The winner was choosen via a random generator and are listed below.  You will receive an e-mail soon containing information on how to redeem your prize!

Thanks everyone for your participation and stay tuned for other giveaways in the future.

Winner

daniellestrohmeyer

About DigitalRoom

For over 25 years, we've catered to small and medium sized businesses nationwide. Powered by brand new fully automated in-house Komori presses and CREO direct-to-plate, we offer faster turnaround with minimal human error and lower overhead cost. This allows us to provide customers with consistently high-quality printing at the lowest possible prices.

Prizes

100 4x6 Postcards
- 14pt Cardstock Gloss
- 4 Color Both Sides Printing

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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DigitalRoom and I have teamed up to offer a great opportunity for one reader to win 100 FREE postcard prints!  Check out the details below on how to get a chance to win this cool prize, and check the postcard printing regulations form DigitalRoom.

About DigitalRoom

For over 25 years, we've catered to small and medium sized businesses nationwide. Powered by brand new fully automated in-house Komori presses and CREO direct-to-plate, we offer faster turnaround with minimal human error and lower overhead cost. This allows us to provide customers with consistently high-quality printing at the lowest possible prices.

Prizes

100 4x6 Postcards
- 14pt Cardstock Gloss
- 4 Color Both Sides Printing

How to Enter

1. Leave a comment below describing how you could use these postcards.
2. *(optional) ReTweet this post on your twitter account with the following text ...

RT @rohixx: Enter to win 100 FREE postcards from DigitalRoom - http://bit.ly/c1V0lC

Rules

1. Specifications: One entry per person.
2. Eligibility: You must be 18 years of age or older to be eligible for this giveaway, and a resident of the U.S.  No purchase necessary
3. Entrants must specify a valid/working e-mail address in order to be contacted for their prize.
4. This contest ends on August 19th, 2010. Only entries up to this date will be accepted for the giveaway.
5. The winner will be notified on August 20th, 2010.

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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After posting some of Emily's photos, I was getting a lot of people asking me how I processed the photos.  Although, not every one of her photos was processed like this exact tutorial. I will help explain how I did two of my favorite images from her session.  I like to process a lot of my photos with a vintage/retro/old poloraid feel to them.  I enjoy that style, and I feel it helps convey certain moods in photographs.  Without this type of processing there would of been nothing exciting about the image.  The original image is fine SOOC (straight out of camera), but the mood is created by the tones and final post-processing I did to it.  Not every photo will come out like the end result in this tutorial.  A lot of factors depend on how the end result will look.  For example how well the original image was strobed, your scene, and original tones in the image.

You need a well lit image to begin with.  It doesn't matter how good your post-processing skills are, you will need a good SOOC shot to begin this process.  A lot of people don't understand the importance of lighting in your image (this is whole other topic).  If your image isn't well lit, your image is broken.  Always think ahead when you are on a shoot for how you think you will be processing the photo.  This will help with model placement, poses, lighting, and other things to make your post-process (PP) easier and quicker.  My workflow is always Camera>Lightroom>Photoshop.  I split my editing almost equally between lightroom and photoshop now, but that also depends on the type of photo concept I am working on.

Here is my original image.  It is a good exposure and I'm happy with it, but the mood just isn't complete.

Step 1

After you get it on your computer from your camera, import it into lightroom because we need to apply a preset to the image for the base effect.
Download Gavin's Old Poloraid LR Preset and apply it to the image.  Below is what the image now looks like with the preset applied.  Export the image from lightroom and open it up in photoshop.  The majority of the work is done, and depending on your tastes you might just want to keep the image like that.

Step 2

Begin cleaning your model's skin up. Get rid of blemishes or other problems on your model if she has any.  I am not going to walk you through how to fix or soften her skin.  Use the healing or clone tool to help do the majority of your work.  I also fixed Emily's boobs, because the dress or her bra was making an odd indentation in the upper part of her right boob creating a distraction (you can see this fix in the final edit as it takes a while to walk through it).  I used the liquify filter combined with the new puppet tool in CS5 to help fix that area. Make sure you flatten your image after you are done with any fixes.  Layer > Flatten Image

Now we are going to sharpen the photo a little.  I sharpen all of my photos even if it's already tack sharp SOOC.  Rule of thumb for sharpening is to not over do it, and to do it after you have re-sized your image to its final dimensions.  Most people will sharpen last in their PP because that is usually when they will have their final crop dimensions worked out for print or web submission.  It is up to you to make that judgment.

Duplicate your background layer, and set that layer blending mode to overlay.  Go to Filter > Other > High Pass.  You want to apply just enough high pass where the image looks a tad bit over-sharpened.  For me I use a radius of 1.5 pixels. Hit ok to apply the effect, and then flatten your image again.  Layer > Flatten Image

Step 3

We are almost there, but we need to make a few adjustment layers to complete the effect.  Make a new group by clicking on the little folder icon in the bottom of the layers palette and rename as adjustments.  That way we can keep our layers organized if you happen to have other layers in there, adjust the opacities of all the adjustments at once, and if you want to re-edit this down the road everything is where it should be.  Make sure the blending mode is set as pass through, and you can go ahead and adjust the opacity of the folder to 50%.  You may need to change this later on to better fit your desired effect.

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and set the saturation to +20.

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer and set the Contrast to +20.

Now go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Gradient.
Name the layer Fill - Blending mode overlay - 30% Opacity
Press ok.

Set your gradient to white/transparent.  Radial - 90 degree angle - 110% scale
Press ok.

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Curves adjustment layer and set the following settings.

Now set your curve points to these settings.
Red Channel:
Output: 0  Input: 0
Output: 46  Input: 84
Output: 187  Input: 176
Output: 255  Input: 211

Blue Channel:
Output: 28  Input:
Output: 223  Input: 255

Green Channel:
Output: 60  Input: 64
Output: 207  Input: 183
Output: 255  Input: 255

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and set the following settings and change the opacity of this layer to 50%.

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Solid Color adjustment layer and set the following settings.

Step 4

You are finally done!  Now you can adjust the opacities of the layers or adjustments folder depending on how strong you want the effect to be on your image.  Fallout, on flickr, has made this into an action so you can just run his action instead of having to go through all of the steps.  You can download the action.  However, I have tweaked his action set a little to my liking so it produces a nicer effect in my opinion.  Which is why I walked you through the steps.

PART 2

Now for Emily's Next image this will require a bit more work.  I am not going to show you how to add in the birds as I did in this image, but I will walk you through how to achieve the color tones I applied to the image.  I will provide the bird images at the end if for some reason you need them.

This is the orignal image SOOC.

Step 1

As I said in step 4 of the small tutorial up top about downloading fallout's action you will need it specially for this image.  You can download the action.  We will tweak the action a little, and add a few more things to complete this image to our liking.

Step 2

Now open your image in photoshop.  Sharpen it as we did in step 2 above in the other image of Emily.
Duplicate your background layer, and set that layer blending mode to overlay.  Go to Filter > Other > High Pass.  You want to apply just enough high pass where the image looks a tad bit over-sharpened.  For me I use a radius of 1.5 pixels. Hit ok to apply the effect, and then flatten your image again.  Layer > Flatten Image

You can also start cleaning up your image and your model's skin if needed.

Step 3

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Curves adjustment layer and set the following settings.
Set your curve points to these settings.

Red Channel:
Output: 0  Input: 0
Output: 28  Input: 55
Output: 176  Input: 167
Output: 255  Input: 250

Green Channel:
Output: 0  Input: 0
Output: 170  Input: 135
Output: 255  Input: 255

Blue Channel:
Output: 38  Input: 0
Output: 106  Input: 74
Output: 156  Input: 190
Output: 217  Input: 255

Now outline your subject and add a mask to that curves layer and fill the selection of your subject with black.  Change the layer to 80% opacity.

Step 4

Now add a new layer and fill it with a solid magenta color - #ff00e4.  Set the opacity to 18% and blending mode to soft light.

Step 5

Click on your background layer and now run fallout's vintage action preset, but you will need to change some opacities after it is done.  Once you have ran it on the image move the group folder on top of everything in the layers palette.  Open the group contents and you will need to delete the magenta cast layer, contrast, and saturation layer.  Now change the sepia layer to 10% opacity, the cross process layer to 10% opacity, the vignette layer to 5%, and the center fill light to 10%.  Make sure the whole group folder is set to 100% and pass through.

Step 6

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and set the saturation to -18.
Duplicate that hue/saturation layer we just made, and click on the mask next to the hue image to activate the mask.  Load the selection of your subject from the other mask we created in the first cross process layer by command+clicking the mask layer (ctrl+click for windows).  Invert your selection by going to Select > Inverse. Now fill your mask with black so your subject is white.  Change the layer opacity to 60%.  Check the image below if you get confused.

Step 7

In the bottom of the layers palette add a Levels adjustment layer.  This will be what pulls our dead gamma out of the image to make it pop.  Adjust the sliders so the far right slider (the highlights) are touching the first highlights in your image.  The way you can tell where your highlights start is to look at the histogram and follow the black curve.  Slide the far right sider to where that black curve comes to end.  Do the same for the far left slider (the shadows).  This pulls all of the dead gamma out of your image and brings it back to life.  Your histogram will vary.  If your image has extremes highlights and shadows or mid-tones adjust accordingly.

There ya go!  That should be it.  Adjust all your opacities on each layer to get your desired affect.  Like I said above your image will vary depending on your original tones and other factors.  If anyone follows this tutorial, I would love to see your final results.  Just post a comment with the link to your image and I will take a look at it!

If for some reason you want to add in the birds here is the image I got the birds from.  Just use the pen tool to outline them.  Right click and make a selection, featherd with .1 pixels, and then extract the birds out with the selection.

Download Birds Image (right click, save as)

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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Online Poster Printing Giveaway Winners!

I'd like to thank PrintRunner.com for allowing me to host this contest, and for allowing my loyal readers to participate and win something cool.  The winners were choosen via a random generator and are listed below.  You will receive an e-mail soon containing information on how to redeem your prize!

Thanks everyone for your participation and stay tuned for other giveaways in the future.

Business Card Winners

ronaldo.s
ZSuttonPhoto
jhorine

About PrintRunner.com

PrintRunner.com is one of the top printing companies on the web. PrintRunner.com specializes in affordable high quality printing and offer a wide range of products including brochure printing, catalog printing, flyer printing, postcard printing, sticker printing, and more.

Prize

Set of 250 Business Cards.  3 individual winners win 250 FREE business card prints each.
- 14pt. card stock with water resistant UV coating
- Glossy or Matte Coating
- Full Color or Black and White
- One-Sided or Two-Sided Printing
- Free templates to choose from if you do not want to design the cards yourself

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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PrintRunner.com and I have teamed up to offer a great opportunity to 3 readers a set of 250 FREE business card prints!  Check out the details below on how to get a chance to win this cool prize!

About PrintRunner.com

PrintRunner.com is one of the top printing companies on the web. PrintRunner.com specializes in affordable high quality printing and offer a wide range of products including brochure printing, catalog printing, flyer printing, postcard printing, sticker printing, and more.

Prizes

3 Sets of 250 Business Cards.  3 individual winners will win 250 FREE business card prints.
- 14pt. card stock with water resistant UV coating
- Glossy or Matte Coating
- Full Color or Black and White
- One-Sided or Two-Sided Printing
- Free templates to choose from if you do not want to design the cards yourself

How to Enter

1. Leave a comment below describing how you bad you need these free business cards.  (the more descriptive the better )
2. *(optional) ReTweet this post on your twitter account with the following text ...

RT @rohixx: Enter to win 250 Free business cards from PrintRunner -http://bit.ly/dzkD49

Rules

1. Specifications: One entry per person.
2. Eligibility: Open to residents of the U.S. and Canada online. You must be 18 years of age or older to be eligible for this giveaway, and not an employee or relative of an employee of PrintRunner LLC.  No purchase necessary
3. Entrants must specify a valid/working e-mail address in order to be contacted for their prize.
4. This contest ends on June 1st, 2010. Only entries up to this date will be accepted for the giveaway.
5. The winner will be notified on June 2nd, 2010.

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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Brian was kind enough to sit down and answer a few questions for us to enjoy.  Please feel free to check out some of his work below in the gallery and visit his links under the interview.

How did you get started with photography?  Was it something you always wanted to do?

I've always been interested in photography as a whole. Around 12 I got my first point and shoot and took it upon my self to take a whole lot of pictures of tree branches and rusty nails really close up... After I had that nailed down pat by 15 I decided I sorta liked it but wanted more options so I could controll how my close up of a rusty nail, rock, or leaf would come out so I got a Canon Rebel XT 8MP DSLR with a awesome 18-55 kit lens!!! From there I sort of just kep running around taking pictures of or with friends while we were out.

If you had to pick a specific style for your photography what would category would you fall into?

I would call my style very “run and gun” like the great Bill O'Reilly said "Fuck it, we'll do it live!" I come to each situation and try to take a new approach.

What is the most difficult part when working with a client, whether it is someone you are familiar with or have not yet worked with?  (ie. The business side, actually taking the photos, lighting setup?)

I have found the most difficult part would be getting your subjects to show up on time. People seem to be horrible at setting dates and keeping them. After that I would say the runner up for most troubling would be getting the person to come to terms with the fact they will feel rediculous but LOVE the results.

Where do you get your inspiration?  Do ideas just pop into your head, or do you have other artists you look to for that magical spark?   What sites do you frequent for inspiration?

My inspiration comes from my flickr contacts, magazines, and daily interations I have with friends. There is a photographer named Henrik Adamsen that constantly makes me feel worthless.

What is the one thing you most enjoy about photography?

I absolutly love being around people. Photography gives me an easy excuse to be out every night shaking hands and experiencing all sorts of fantastic events. I also like the feeling watching someone go through my camera after a shoot and seeing them excited and surprised at how well they performed. People just don't know how beautiful they are and I like being the one to prove it.

What type of hardware and software setup do you use for your work?  What kind of photography equipment do you shoot with?

I do my editing on a home made AMD based system running Windows 7. I do my photo management with Adobe Lightroom 3 beta 2 and all my editing with Photoshop CS5. I am currently shooting on a Canon T1i 15.1 MP DSLR and do my lighting with Alien Bees.

Share with us one of your favorite shots and give us a little background behind it.  Describe your lighting setup if you used any, and the technical aspects of creating the image.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thestorey/3235419445/

I would have to say that one linked above. It was pretty much my first night with a studio light and maybe the third exposure in. When I snapped it I just loved the way the light fell and her expression. Melissa became a great friend of mine always lending her likeness to be my obliging muse. I love the girl to death for all the invaulable practice time she has given me. Not only did I take away an understanding on how to light a subject but I learned how to interact with a subject and that I feel is priceless.

Is there another other side to you that not a lot of people know about?  Do you have any hidden talents that are not showcased?

I am a very open person. I don't really have a problem with discussing or doing pretty much anything. People don't really think Im as accessable as I am. My “hidden talents” sort of shine through in my locations, I like exploring and often find my self on google maps looking for ruins in the woods or out driving around sketchy places lurking the scenery.

What advice or insight can you give other individuals wanting to achieve your level of work and status as a photographer?

Keep practicing. Find a muse and just fire away. Don't be afraid to use tinfoil and bed sheets in the beginning!! it's not what you use to obtain a shot it's the final image and that's that. If you come away from a session with dismall pictures don't get discurraged GET PHOTOSHOPPPING

What is your middle name?

Matthew, my fathers name.

You can find Brian’s flickr stream at the following link.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thestorey/

Brian’s Portfolio.
http://www.bspixels.com

Brian’s Blog.
http://brianstorey.tumblr.com/

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©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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Online Poster Printing Giveaway Winner!

I'd like to thank Online Poster Printing for allowing me to host this contest, and for allowing my loyal readers to participate and win something cool.  The winner was choosen via a random generator and listed below is the winner.  You will receive an e-mail soon containing information on how to redeem your prize!

Thanks everyone for your participation and stay tuned for other giveaways in the future.

Poster Print Winner

s.reel

About OnlinePosterPrinting.com

Online Poster Printing is all about combining great quality prints with outstanding service!  Powered by a brand new fleet of HP 9000 digital printers and a well trained team of printing experts, they are equipped to offer their customers the best in large format printing. They strive to keep our company on the cutting edge of printing technology. Who else can offer you a 1-Day Turnaround on rolled prints, competitive low prices and an astounding Money Back Guarantee to ensure your satisfaction?

Their goal is to provide outstanding customer service and amazing prints at an affordable price! They believe in professional quality printing that shouldn’t cost a fortune.

Prize

18" x 24" Rolled Poster
- High Gloss
- 18" x 24"

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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Online Poster Printing and I have teamed up to offer you a great opportunity to win a poster print for FREE!
Online Poster Printing is offering this prize up to one lucky winner. Check out the details below on how to get a chance to win this cool prize!

About OnlinePosterPrinting.com

Online Poster Printing is all about combining great quality prints with outstanding service!  Powered by a brand new fleet of HP 9000 digital printers and a well trained team of printing experts, they are equipped to offer their customers the best in large format printing. They strive to keep our company on the cutting edge of printing technology. Who else can offer you a 1-Day Turnaround on rolled prints, competitive low prices and an astounding Money Back Guarantee to ensure your satisfaction?

Their goal is to provide outstanding customer service and amazing prints at an affordable price! They believe in professional quality printing that shouldn’t cost a fortune.

Prize

18" x 24" Rolled Poster
- High Gloss
- 18" x 24"

How to Enter

1. Leave a comment below describing how you would use this free poster print.
   
2. *(optional) ReTweet this post on your twitter account with the following text ...

RT @rohixx: Enter to win a Free 18x24 Poster Print - http://bit.ly/bpFoHz

Rules

1. Specifications: 1 Business Day Turnaround
2. Shipping: FREE UPS Ground Shipping
3. Eligibility: Limited to US Residents only. You must be 18 years of age or older to be eligible for this giveaway.
4. Entrants must specify a valid/working e-mail address in order to be contacted for their prize.
5. This contest ends on May 11th, 2010. Only entries up to this date will be accepted for the giveaway.
6. The winner will be notified on May 14th, 2010.

*Contest is now closed.* - 5/11/10

©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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This session wasn't something I scheduled, nor was it really something specific I wanted.  We were just hanging out, and there was some stellar natural light coming in from my window.  She had my awesome shades on and decided to bounce around like a lunatic on my bed.  I saw the fun in this, and immediately knew this would be a great photographic opportunity to show her personality.

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©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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Jason was kind enough to sit down and answer a few questions for us to enjoy.

Jason Morrison (dubtastic)

How did you get started with the type of career you are in now?  Was it something you always wanted to do?

Photography was not necessarily something that I had always wanted to do.  Something artistic was.  I have always been involved with art, as far back as I can remember.  I pursued it heavily in high school and even further in college.  The progression into photography for me has been gradual and began more so with graphic design, which I would say was the gateway to what I do now.

Describe for us what a usual workday would be like.

Right now, photography is a part-time venture.  During the day, I impersonate a graphic & web designer.  My daily routine, after coffee, consists of a variety of design and web maintenance. Since maintain a rather large site, the frequency of requests to the webmaster can be many throughout the day.  I also design printed collateral and logos for various initiatives. One great aspect to my job is that every day is different.  I can walk in the door expecting to work strictly on the web and end up working on a large printed piece.  So that part I enjoy.

What is the toughest project you have taken on?  What was your favorite one?  Any others that stick out in your mind that you liked more than others?

The toughest project was one recently where a client called and wanted a shoot in a studio.  It was a birthday party for her daughter and she was bringing several of her friends along for some studio fun.  I believe we had about ten 13 year old girls in the studio getting their pictures taken.  It was really tough for me and my business partner to keep the creative juices flowing but the challenge was actually a good one and kept us on our toes.

Where do you get your inspiration?  Do ideas just pop into your head, or do you have other artists you look to for that magical spark?   What sites do you frequent?

It really varies.  Some music does the trick.  There are times when ideas pop into my head and other times it takes combing the web looking at the work of others.  I have found it quite helpful to not look strictly at other photographers work, but all artists.  You never know where that spark might come from. I have learned to keep a small journal with me just in case something pops into my head that I want to keep for later.

As for websites, there are a ton: www.angryblue.com, www.damnengine.net, www.zarias.com, www.hydro74.com, www.fatoe.com, www.eyesuckink.com, www.scrapbookmanifesto.com, www.artcoup.com, www.deanzulich.com, www.digitalapocalypse.com, www.thefivemilegrace.com, and a slew of photographers on Flickr.  I am sure I am forgetting some.

What type of hardware and software setup do you use for work and home?  What kind of photography equipment do you shoot with?

I have a PC and a Mac setup in the mancave upstairs at the house.  Most of my graphic design work is done on the PC and all of the photography processing is done on the Mac.  The more I use the Mac the less I want to use the PC.  I use a combination of Lightroom and Photoshop for processing and organizing photos.

I shoot with a Nikon D700 and a variety of lenses. I have a Nikon D80 for a backup but it rarely comes out of the bag.  My business partner shoots with a Nikon D3 and similar lenses.  It is great for us on a shoot because we have a great collection of glass to select from.  When he is using one lens I dont have to worry about that shot, because he is getting it.  It frees me to think differently and work with another lens.

You seem to have a number of published works, articles, or photoshop resources in magazines.  Is there a secret to getting your name out to these magazines and getting one’s work published?

I think the two things that have helped me the most have been longevity and also putting free resources out there.  For my blog, dubtastic.com, I have had that site around for quite a while now.  I have always tried to put free Photoshop resources up there which helps drive traffic to the site.

What is the one thing you most enjoy about your career?

Photography for me is freeing.  I dictate whether I succeed or fail and make the decisions about the work.  I like talking with people during a shoot and knowing that my work is helping them pursue goals of their own as well.

Is there another side to you that not a lot of people know about?  Do you have any hidden talents that are not showcased?

I make the best breakfast.  Seriously.  Nobody even wants to test me on that for they will perish.  Aside from that, I actually enjoy writing but sadly I have done little to pursue that.  One of my goals before I die is to author my own book.

What advice and insight can you give other individuals wanting to achieve your level of work and status in the design community?

Be a nurse or doctor instead.

What is your middle name?

Frederick.  It was my grandfather’s name on mother’s side.  For the longest time I used to be embarrassed by it for some reason.  I guess it was not really common.  But I am proud of it.  My grandfather was a very kind and intelligent man.

What is the best way to survive a zombie attack?

Don’t get bit!  There is no one fool proof plan.  The best way to survive the coming tides of darkness is to continually run through scenarios.  If you are out to eat with your spouse or friends, think about what you would do if the zombies attacked.  How would you survive at work, at home, etc.?  Keep thinking through, stay armed, and stay alive.

If there is any more interesting details bout yourself you would like to share, please do.

For those looking to pursue this as a career, develop your own style.  Get comfortable in your own shoes.  Draw from inspirations that keep you going and keep you creative.  Do not be afraid of putting your work out there or getting negative feedback.  In the end, it is about what makes you happy and what makes your client happy.

You can find Jason’s flickr stream at the following link.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/soufwes/

Jason’s Blog.
http://blog.dubtastic.com/

JayMar Photography.
http://www.jaymarphotography.com

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©2010 Ryan O. Hicks. All Rights Reserved.

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