Q&A with Mr J. QUESTION: can photoshop help improve my pictures?

I got the following PM from one of my fellow members over in the WatchGeeks.net forum and I decided to post the answer here so that anyone who has the same general question, can hopefully glean some useful information.

"hey how you Beau i have a canon xsi i would like to get better at my picture taking can photoshop help improve my pictures can you point me in the right direction please thank you."

- Photoshopless in the WG Land

Well, let me start off with an anecdote that might help.

A writer and a photographer were both at a signing in a local mall; sitting next to each other.

The writer leans over to the photg and says

"Your images are truly outstanding and beautiful. You must have an awesome camera."

The photographer smiles and says

"Thank you very much. By the way, I read your book. It was very well written and hard to put down. You must have a fantastic pen."

With that said, you have to look at your tools for what they are. Tools. Your camera is a tool just as photoshop is a tool - neither of which will produce great images on their own. What makes great photography is the artist behind the tools - or in this case, the lens.

TOOL 1

Your Canon XSi is a 12.2mp camera which is PLENTY large for great pics - so you have that covered. What is important, when it comes to the world of DSLRs, is that you have good GLASS.

You can throw a $100 lens on a $7,000 dollar 1DS Mk III and your pics will suck. In contrast, you can put a >$450 dollar lens on a $475 XSi and take FANTASTIC images.

In general you can not equate the cost of the camera body with the quality of the images. The bodies cost is attributed to it's feature set. More better features = more $$. In reality, the body is just a box to hold the sensor ... all the 'magic' happens through the lens.

A $2 hammer will pond nails just like a $20 one.

TOOL 2

Photoshop is a fantastic tool, in the right hands. Just like a knife is to a surgeon, photoshop is to a good editor. A scalpel in the hands of a meat packer makes him a butcher - and trust me - photoshop used the wrong way will, indeed, butcher your images.

What photoshop has the power to do is: take a good image and make it outstanding. The catch is knowing how to make that happen. What steps are needed to polish the pixels till they gleam.

I can say this about my images: if they look good to anyone, it is partially due to the fact that I have spent 1000's, if not 10's of 1000's of hours in that photoshop. The other 90% is because they were not bad to start with.

This is the focus of this post.

You asked of photoshop can 'help improve my pictures' and the answer to that question is Yes ... if you have something to improve upon. Let's think woodworking and making a desk, for a moment.

You have to start with a good piece of wood, plans/blueprints, have the proper tools to cut and assemble the wood into the a fore mentioned desk and the ability/talent to do so. Once you have the desk ready, it needs to be 'finished'. Sanded, stained, re-sanded, wiped free of dust and coated in resin, varnish, lacquer, oil or whatever strikes your fancy. Polish to a shine and you now have complete desk. Done

Photoshop is what lets you finish your works of art. The thing to know is that it needs to be ready for finishing for the process for it to do any good. There is no point in polishing a log.

So, with all the analogies out of the way, here is the direction I can point you in. Actually, it's a few directions but you can get to them all from where you are.

1. Know your subject
   • Be aware of the properties, habitat or habits of your photographic focus.
   
   
2. Use the right tool for the job
   • You usually don't want to shoot elephants with a macro lens.
   
   
3. Have a plan before you start firing away
   • Think about the end result you want after all the shooting and editing is done and what you need to get there.
   
   
4. Think about your environment in relation to your subject
   • If you shoot people outside, at noon, in the summer, on a cloudless day, they will squint. How do you avoid that?
   • If the subject is shiny, you may need to remove sources of reflection, change the light source and position or a combination of everything.
   • If the subject is heavily back-lit, you may need some fill flash to keep from having silhouettes - unless that is what you planned in step 2.
   
   
5. Remember the 'Rule of Thirds'
   • You have to see it to know what it is. Check out what Wiki , Digital Photography School and BetterPhoto have to say.
   • Know that there are exceptions to the rule - like shooting a full watch face, front on or most product photography.
   
   
6. Be aware of the background
   • Remember, anything in the image that doesn't not directly add to the composition or the story, is a distraction. I do mean anything. Lights, shadows, reflections, dust (when shooting macro), hair, etc.
   
   
7. Diffuse your light source whenever possible
   • It is a RARE occasion when you want harsh shadows and blaring light. Soften it up.
   
   
8. Have a good sturdy tripod
   • Here is a blog post I did about this very subject: The Tripod: A Force for Good or Tool of the Devil
   
   
9. Take your flash off of the camera
   • If you have an external flash, get it up, left, right, anywhere but attached to the hot shoe. I made this for mine: Creating your own HOT shoe 2 extension cable.
   

Those are some of the basic things you need to be aware of to take better images. Another thing you can do was suggested by a very well known and well paid friend of mine, Mr Scott Bourne. He says that ... and I will paraphrase:

If you want to take better pictures, go look at 10,000 images. Examine them. Determine what makes them good, or bad. Look at the lighting, composition, color, contrast and subject. The use of positive and negative space. By this sheer exposure and observation you will improve your photography 100% and proper composition will start to come second nature ... all without ever snapping a shot.

In addition to that. You are shooting digital, free of the cost equated with learning like I did with film.

Shoot till your cards melt, then buy new cards and melt them. Keep the good and delete the rest. Practice, practice, practice.

I hope that this helps and in some way, will facilitate in nudging you in the proper direction towards better photography.

36 Twitter Hash Tags That Never Were

For those of you who do not know or who have never used Twitter (shame on you), a hash tag is the '#' symbol followed by a word or two, all mashed together. It is used in a post in order for other twitter users to track a particular trending topic. Some of the current topics as of today are: #itsnotcheating, #fact, #musicmonday, #shoutout and the ever popular #ff and #followfriday.

Here is the definition given by the folks at Hash Tags dot Org.

"Hashtags are a community-driven convention for adding additional context and metadata to your tweets. They're like tags on Flickr, only added inline to your post. You create a hashtag simply by prefixing a word with a hash symbol: #hashtag."

Now, for these to work effectively and to track the actual use of a tag, one must register that tag over at someplace like the a fore mentioned, http://hashtags.org . Once done, when you look up that tag on their site, you can see how often it is used and to what extent. Got it? Good. If not, catch up, will ya?

So, an knee hoo ... after a fun evening exchanging tweets with a few of my followers, I noticed two in particular that use any hash tag that happens to pop in to their head. Both in complete disregard to their intended purpose because they will never use it again. Ever.

To these two, and others like them, the tags seem to be a sub-micro blog in a micro blog.

Now, twitter gives you 140 characters to post your ... whatever ... but for the hash tag assassins, that is entirely way to much room. The ones they create are usually 2-8 words long and are a short statement or question, done in a 'after the fact' or 'on a side note' style.

Now, after attempting to enlighten one of these fellow tweeters @Tejas74 (yes it's a lame moniker but it is better than twits) on the proper etiquette of hash tag inclusion in their posts, I decided to see just how serious of a hash tag infraction had been committed by this and one other nameless individual ... who shall remain nameless and with out name. @CrixLee

After only 10 minutes, I was able to pull from the bowels of the twitter vault the following 36 never to be used again by man hash tags. They are as follows:

1. #whythefuckisithotagain
2. #fuckmerunning
3. #hashfuckingtag
4. #fuckthat
5. #dinnerinaboxcausewifedoesntcook
6. #poopvaccum
7. #areyoufuckingkiddingme
8. #whoareyouhowdidigetheregetoffmylawn
9. #redneckjackpot
10. #mymomisepicwin
11. #ballbuster
12. #imacheapwhore
13. #uselesstweetsarehilarious
14. #igotyounowbitch
15. #tweetdeckbitch
16. #rrraaaiiiidddd
17. #drgreenegsandalham
18. #beerandmovieftw
19. #imdeslexic
20. #snuggiefail
21. #comeheremousebitch
22. #huffin
23. #frozenwaltonastick
24. #imabadasslikewhiskeywhiskey
25. #okyoucaughtme
26. #mamasaidshewouldntbefamousuhhh
27. #mamasgotthemagicofclorox2
28. #marthacomehome
29. #waitforitwaitforit
30. #undieshereicome
31. #tveducationftw
32. #fayetweetsjustfine
33. #divorcephotographerfo
34. #damnyourainyousob
35. #igrewupinatrailer
36. #idontknowshitaboutcomputers

Now remember, this was a 10 minute search on two tweeple (twitterisims FTW! Sorry, #FTW) and all the above were brought to the surface. Aye yaye yaye. Now I don't know about you but ... that is some funny crap right there. I don't care who you are.

With that said, I guess that I will let these two slide and not report them to the Misuse of Hash Tag Early Response Squad, MOTHERS for short, for their tweet crimes.

If you want to do your part and stop the hash tag assassins before they can commit another heinous, how be it funny, butchering of a defenseless hash tag, then become a Deputy in Reforming Twitter Yokels.

As a DIRTY agent, it will be your responsibility to help bring these criminals to justice, thus propelling you on your way to becoming a full-fledged DIRTY MOTHER in no time at all. Sign up. Do your part. Stop the insanity before another guffaw is produced by the death of an innocent hash tag.

Thank you and God bless.

A Little Something to Think About

Here is a little something that came to me via email. Now, normally I do not put much effort beyond RIGHT CLICK > JUNK E-MAIL > ADD TO BLOCK SENDERS LIST when I get these, but this time I read it over and decided to place the contents here. It's on a subject that we all love and cherrish: taxes (and by 'love and cherish' I mean despise and utterly loath).

Here we go ...

---

545 PEOPLE - By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank (a PRIVATE COMPANY) does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.
What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million can not replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it's because they want them in IRAQ.

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

What you do with this article now that you have read it.......... Is up to you.

This might be funny if it weren't so darned true.

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his work,
Tax his pay,
He works for peanuts
Anyway!

Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.

Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries
Tax his tears.

Tax his car,
Tax his gas,
Find other ways
To tax his ass.

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers;
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.
Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.

Put these words
Upon his tomb,
Taxes drove me
to my doom...'

When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.

Here are a few others that we must pay ...

1. Accounts Receivable Tax
2. Building Permit Tax
3. CDL license Tax
4. Cigarette Tax
5. Corporate Income Tax
6. Dog License Tax
7. Excise Taxes
8. Federal Income Tax
9. Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
10. Fishing License Tax
11. Food License Tax
12. Fuel Permit Tax
13. Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
14. Gross Receipts Tax
15. Hunting License Tax
16. Inheritance Tax
17. Inventory Tax
18. IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
19. Liquor Tax
20. Luxury Taxes
21. Marriage License Tax
22. Medicare Tax
23. Personal Property Tax
24. Property Tax
25. Real Estate Tax
26. Service Charge T ax
27. Social Security Tax
28. Road Usage Tax
29. Sales Tax
30. Recreational Vehicle Tax
31. School Tax
32. State Income Tax
33. State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
34. Telephone Federal Excise Tax
35. Telephone Federal Universal Ser vice FeeTax
36. Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
37. Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge=2 0Tax
38. Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
39. Telephone State and Local Tax
40. Telephone Usage Charge Tax
41. Utility Taxes
42. Vehicle License Registration Tax
43. Vehicle Sales Tax
44. Watercraft Registration Tax
45. Well Permit Tax
46. Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY? Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What in the hell happened? Can you spell 'politicians?' And I still have to 'press 1' for English!?

---

As I have said in the past: any government that relies solely on the taxation of its citizens for income, is destined for failure. There will come a time when the government becomes so immense that the populace can no longer support it and it will collapse.

Why doesn't our government run and operate it's OWN companies to generate income? Make cars. Make computers. Hell, make cheese ... just make it and sell it and give us a break.

Currently in the US, you can insure against almost anything. Car wrecks, floods, earthquakes, fire, theft, hurricanes, health and the list goes on. I wonder if my agent can write me up a policy for 'Governmental Collapse' and add it to my bill?

I better check on that ASAP ...