March 8, 2005 – Scott Kelby, president of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP) announced the establishment of the Dean Collins Photoshop World Educational Scholarship at the opening keynote before more than 3,000 Photoshop World Conference attendees in Las Vegas . Opening ceremony images at Photoshop World available at www.photoshopworld.com.

“Through this scholarship, Dean’s legacy of Photoshop education will live on as his influence, gift for teaching, and passion for quality are passed on each year to our nation's most dedicated educators in his name,” said Scott Kelby, president of NAPP and the world’s top-selling computer book author for 2004.

This scholarship will be awarded annually to a high school or college educator (nominated by his or her own students). The scholarship provides the recipient an opportunity to attend NAPP’s annual convention, including round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations, and a full conference pass. This scholarship program was developed to honor Dean Collins’ memory, and his lifetime of contributions to the worldwide Photoshop community.

PHOTO: Dean Collins speaking at the PEI Digital Conference in 2002. Photo courtesy Kevin Ames.

For decades, artists have used photographs as reference sources for their paintings. Some artists attach a photo to their easel as they paint. Others have gone so far as to project a photo against a wall and to draw on paper or canvas, following the projection as a template.

So it isn't that surprising that one of the most popular uses of Corel Painter today is using photos as the basis of paintings. This includes everything from adding painterly touches to a photo to completely transforming the photo into a painting in Painter.

The practice spans many creative fields, too, from traditional artists who use the photo as a springboard for their art to professional photographers who sell painted portraits of their photographs to their clients. And today, with the popularity of digital cameras and archival inkjet prints, more people than ever are getting into turning photographs into paintings.

It's in this atmosphere of excitement that Karen Sperling is happy to announce that she has completed updating her Artistry Painting for Photographers tutorials for Painter IX.

"I've been getting emails begging me for the update," says Karen. "I'd like to think it's because I'm so much in demand, but the truth is, it's the subject that gets people excited. After all, there are lots of Painter tutorials and books out there nowadays, in addition to Painter classes. But there's that much interest in the subject that people can't get enough information about it."

The Artistry Painting for Photographers tutorials are available in Acrobat format, downloadable from the Artistry web site at http://www.artistrymag.com and also on CD. Discounts are being offered for ordering the CD along with the other Artistry tutorials that are available for Painter IX, including a CD with the first six months of the Artistry Tips and Tricks newsletter and an Artistry Beginners CD.

Professional Photographers of America (PPA) introduces www.OurPPA.com as a place where photographers can chat, ask questions, share ideas and post image galleries in a robust community that serves PPA members, as well as the photography community at large.

"We're very proud of this exciting new resource," comments PPA President Ann Monteith. "OurPPA.com was created in specific response to members' requests for an online community where they could interact and build a sense of oneness with other photographers. In the process of building the site, we recognized the greater benefit of making the online community available to everyone in the industry, not just PPA members. This means photographers will have instant access to more information, more creative ideas and more photographer friends than any other place online."

Karen Sperling is pleased to present a one-day workshop with pioneer digital artist Laurence Gartel as part of her November 2005 Artistry Corel Painter Retreat.

Laurence Gartel has been creating art with digital tools since before there was a Painter and a Photoshop. And he has had successes internationally with his art, as reflected by his list of accomplishments: http://gartelmuseum.com/resume.html/.

Laurence Gartel's 'Mozaic Lady Land' (right)

In a four-day series of lectures and workshops, Evidence Photographers International Council will hold its 2005 School of Evidence Photography and Imaging in Atlanta, Georgia, November 3-6.

This year’s curriculum offers the opportunity for participants to learn a new technology that captures 360-degree panoramic images of crime scenes, study the intricacies of lighting and photographing ballistic wounds, and go away with a complementary kit to build a portal axial apparatus for shooting in low-contrast lighting.

Why one photographer loves the sun

By Steve Bedell, M.Photog.Cr.

For years, photographers have extolled the virtues of taking portraits on overcast days or during the magic time that occurs near the beginning and end of every day. On cloudy days, the contrast range is reduced, allowing you to capture detail throughout the image, from the brightest area to the deepest shadow. Near sunset, you also get a reduced contrast range, with the added benefit of directional lighting, a wonderful bonus. And while I won't argue that the first and last light of the day offers perhaps the best lighting conditions, I can tell you that I actually prefer sunny days to cloudy ones when shooting. Let me 'splain.

Caption (above right): Sun bouncing off a yellow building across the street created my main light for this image, with trees also blocking overhead light. Open sky behind her also creates a little kicker light on her hair.  This is one of my favorite shooting situations. Model: Alyson Perreault

Karen Sperling is pleased to present a Collaging Workshop taught by digital media artist Laurence Gartel, April 24-26. Laurence will cover both the art concepts and Photoshop/Painter tools he uses in his collages as a renowned commissioned illustrator of annual reports, consumer ads and movie posters. These concepts and tools are easily translated into creating unique collaged portraits. Photographers will learn how to think outside the box and to create truly one-of-a-kind masterpiece collaged portraits with images representing a subject's personal hobbies, interests, loved ones, friends, pets, etc.

The Artistry Corel Painter Retreat gives attendees the opportunity to learn to turn photos into paintings and to add painterly details to photos in Corel Painter. Instructor Karen Sperling wrote the original Painter manuals, in addition to several Painter books, and has taught and demostrated Painter since the program's debut 15 years ago. Karen teaches not only the Painter steps, but also the art concepts that photographers and hobbyists need to know to create paintings in Corel Painter.

Fire up Adobe Photoshop This Summer and Get Cooking

All-Star Judges Includes Katrin Eismann, Deke McClelland, Bert Monroy, Eddie Tapp, Vincent Versace, and more

O'Reilly Media today announced The 2006 O’Reilly Photoshop Cook-Off, a contest featuring eighteen top Photoshop experts as judges, including Mikkel Aaland, Katrin Eismann, Harris Fogel, Tim Grey, Deke McClelland, Bert Monroy, Eddie Tapp, Vincent Versace, and John Beardsworth, among others. O'Reilly is aiming to inspire creativity and discover new and promising talent from the ranks of the 4,000,000 plus Photoshop users. The winners will be recognized with awards and fabulous prizes which will be presented at an event at PhotoPlus Expo in New York on November 2, 2006.

June 24-25, 2006 in New York City
The Lifecycle of a Digital Photograph, with Katrin Eismann and Jack Reznicki

Katrin Eismann (Photoshopdiva and bestselling author) and Jack Reznicki (award-winning photographer and popular instructor) are pleased to announce a new workshop — Photons to Ink an information-packed and fun-filled weekend workshop that addresses:

• Capturing, processing and refining digital files.
• Using Photoshop to make your images look their very best
• Making inkjet prints that are truly WYSIWYG - What You See Is What You Get!

EPIC training to feature documentation of terrorist activities and underwater crime

Announcing its 2006 School of Evidence Photography and Imaging, to be held in Long Beach, Calif., Nov. 16-19, Evidence Photographers International Council (EPIC) reveals the addition of new timely  and relevant classes, such as how to photograph terrorist activities for evidence. 

The seminar, “Preparation for and Documentation of Terrorist Activities and the Aftermath of Disasters and/or Weapons of Mass Destruction,” will be taught by Leonard Reed, who is qualified as a general instructor in Weapons of Mass Destruction by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and certified in Weapons of Mass Destruction Law Enforcement Protective Measures.  He also holds certification as an instructor on environmental crimes from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and is a certified law enforcement photographer.

Registration opens with $100 advance sign-up discount

Press Release—Photoshop World Conference & Expo, the largest Photoshop educational event in the world, held Sept. 7-9 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, is offering an advance registration discount of $100 now through Friday, Aug. 4th. Registration is open at http://www.photoshopworld.com or by calling 800-738-8513, Monday-Friday, 8:30 AM – 7:00 PM EST.

Fire up Adobe Photoshop This Summer and Get Cooking

The 2006 O’Reilly Photoshop Cook-Off is underway. Just take up to three of your own photos and manipulate them with Adobe Photoshop, using recipes from any of the five O'Reilly Photoshop Cookbooks (no purchase necessary). Adapt the recipe as necessary for your creative vision. Then use the online entry form to reveal which recipe(s) you used, and submit both your original, unmanipulated digital image and the "cooked" image you've created. Submission deadline: August 15.

Grand Prize

• Adobe Web Bundle (Creative Suite 2 & Macromedia Studio 8)
• Epson Stylus Photo R2400 printer
• Pentax K100D Digital SLR and DA 18 - 55mm Lens Kit
• Pantone Reference Library
• GretagMacbeth Eye-One Display 2 Pro monitor calibrator
• Nik Software Nik Sharpener Pro
• Premium Subscription to Lynda.com online
• iView Multimedia iView Media Pro3
• JupiterImages 1-year subscription to Photos.com
• Shutterstock.com 3-month subscription
• Lensbabies Lensbaby 2.0
• Software Cinema DVDs:
  - Working with Adjustment Layers
  - Photoshop Fundamentals and Advanced Techniques
  - Advanced Masking Techniques;
  - Image Restoration, Repair & Enhancement;
  - Pro Techniques I & II Plus Color Management;
  - Best of Photoshop CS2
• Total Training DVD: Advanced Photoshop CS2
• O'Reilly Media Gift Certificate
• iStockPhoto Gear & Free Credits
• Lowepro Rolling CompuTrekker Plus AW Bag
• Wetzel & Co. Backgrounds/Textures 6 CD Bundle
• Pexagon Technology 1.8" 20 GB Store-It Portable Hard Drive

By Karen Sperling

Corel Painter IX.5, the latest version of Painter, has new tools that speed up the process of turning photos into paintings, making them ideal for the professional photographer who wants to offer his or her clients painted portraits. These tools let you automate the blending and painting process so that you can produce unique portraits without having to close your photo studio for three months while you paint them.

This tutorial shows you how I turned this photo by Mary Wynn Ball into a painted portrait.

Photo © 2006 Mary Wynn Ball; Painting © 2006 Karen Sperling

PhotoPlus Expo 2006 Photography & Design Conference, a comprehensive photography expo and eduational conference, is set to open at the Jacob Javits Center in New York on Nov. 2. This is one of the biggest photo industry shows of the year, with a trade show featuring more than 200 manufacturers, speakers and an exhibition of winning entries in an ultimate travel photography contest. 

As a special bonus for Professional Photographer readers, lynda.com has granted free access to the first six sections of Scott Bourne's Secrets to Selling and Publishing Photography training series.

Scott Bourne, a professional photographer with over 30 years' experience, identifies his tried and true methods for starting and maintaining a successful career as a photographer. In Secrets to Selling and Publishing Photography, Scott explains how to make a profitable living in this demanding field by developing a professional identity, setting realistic goals, getting publicity, finding customers, getting published, and working with agents.

Go to Scott Bourne's Secrets to Selling and Publishing Photography

Press Release—The School of Visual Arts (SVA) has been authorized by the New York State Education Department to offer a Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Digital Photography beginning in the fall of 2007. The new one-year degree program addresses the technical needs of experienced photographers who are looking to advance their skills in digital image capture, management and high-quality output, or make a career change into the field of digital photography. The program will be chaired by Katrin Eismann, who is currently on the faculty of the BFA Computer Art Department and the MFA Photography, Video and Related Media Department at SVA. Eismann is a computer artist, author and educator specializing in digital photography.

In this and future months, Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

Project Runway is one of the hottest shows on television and New York Fashion Week begins Sept. 8. What better time to brush up on the haute couture of photographic technique by exploring the use of delicate, soft, flattering light?

This month's lesson covers the advantages of using stylists, setting up a white background sweep, setting up and positioning lighting elements, and using lighting ratios to knock out the background naturally.

Go to Finessing Soft Light for Fashion at Web Photo School.

O'Reilly author Eddie Tapp takes his digital photography know-how on the road, stopping at 18 cities across the county starting early next month. Well-known portrait and wedding photographer Monte Zucker joins him on this educational journey. The seminars give serious students, enthusiasts, and professionals an opportunity to learn from the experts who have influenced successful photographers for over five decades.

School will travel to five more cities offering updated tracks for both professionals and advanced amateurs featuring the Epson Stylus Pro 3800

Press Release—Based on the ongoing success of the award-winning Epson Print Academy traveling school, Epson added new dates and cities to the schedule. Additionally, the program’s content will be updated to reflect Epson’s newest breakthrough in printing technology with information about how to get the best results from the Epson Stylus Pro 3800, announced worldwide at Photokina.

The new expanded schedule includes:

• Phoenix: Oct. 28, 2006
• Salt Lake City: Nov. 11, 2006
• Atlanta: Dec. 2, 2006
• Los Angeles: Jan. 20, 2007
• New York: Jan 28. 2007

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

Fall is here, bringing a riot of rich, natural color. Do you want to push your color palette beyond khaki, denim and black? In this lesson, learn how to determine what color to use, how colors interact with other colors, and how to control saturation.

Topics Covered:

• Working with a stylist to create a specific look
• Setting up a high color-contrast set
• Using props to bind the look of a shot
• Shooting and reviewing images digitally
• Using Louvers to control soft light
• Creating a colored background spotlight with a Dedolight
• Tips on capturing natural-looking poses

Go to Contrasting Colors for Vivid Results at Web Photo School.

Press Release—Power Marketing 101 is proud to announce the dates for the 2007 Power Marketing Super Conference at The Resort at The Mountain in Mount Hood, Oregon. The dates for the four-day event are June 10-13 and will feature over 30 hours of programming, three days of trade show, a marketing exchange, early bird sessions, evening bonus programs plus many other activities. The all-star line-up includes Bruce Hudson, Tim & Bev Walden, Michael Redford, Calvin Hayes, Jeff & Kathleen Hawkins, Louis Tonsmeire, Kent Englebert, Luci Dumas and Mitche Graf.

The PMSC was created to provide professional photographers of all concentrations the opportunity to come together once a year and immerse themselves in quality sales and marketing education.   

The $449 registration includes all programming, all meals, social activities, bonus programs, and $25 of "Trade Show Bucks." For more information or to register log onto www.powermarketing101.com or call Power Marketing 101 at 888.544.4149 extension 2.

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

Using a softbox gives your subject the soft treatment, but sometimes you want more contrast. Because the umbrella is a bounced light the results have more punch. This lesson uses two Photoflex 45-inch umbrellas (the white ADW and silver ADH) and demonstrates the versatile look they can add to your photo shoot.

Topics Covered:

• Advantages to the umbrella
• Contrast comparison
• Umbrella as a key light
• LitePanel for fill
• Lighting a background with an umbrella
• Using an umbrella as a "split light"

Go to Using Umbrellas in High-Contrast Fashion Shoots at Web Photo School.

Press Release—Kingston Technology's ‘Icons of Photography’ Web site this month features award-winning documentary photographer Colin  Finlay, offering tips on making the most of existing lighting. “As a photojournalist I’ve learned to use whatever is available to me to capture my images—this includes lighting. I rarely have the luxury of bringing portable strobes on assignments, even my commercial advertising jobs,” Finlay notes. “Keeping the lighting simple is something I always tell students, whether in the studio or on location. Doing this minimizes complications and forces you to look at your subjects from varying angles and perspectives. Many of my best shots were produced because I was forced to move around a subject and change my perspective; the light was stationary and I was the one that needed to move. It is a great exercise and one I am constantly sharing with students.”

Press Release—Macworld Conference & Expo 2007, taking place at the Moscone Center in San Francisco January 8-12, brings together creative professionals from a wide array of disciplines to see and experience the latest in Mac technologies. The 2007 show offers attendees an unprecedented number of world-class interactive exhibits, educational/training sessions and speakers.

For photographers, Macworld presents the Digital Photography Experience where novices and professionals alike can experience the latest tools, hands-on demonstrations, training, tips and techniques and learn from others who use Mac technology for business and for pleasure.

4-Minute videos debut the December 1 in the Tamron Pro Learning Center

Press Release—If a picture is worth 1,000 words, a how-to video must be as good as a book, especially if it compresses the knowledge contained in a 45-minute lecture into a concise, well-focused, viewer friendly 4-minute format you can download to your iPod or computer. That’s the exciting concept behind the incisive, entertaining, and informative new podcasts posted in the Tamron Pro Learning Center at www.tamron.com.

Hosted by leading photographers, each one gives clear step-by-step pointers on shooting everything from surfing to portraits to macro in Central Park. The information is presented in simple, direct language with verbal hints and tips immediately illustrated by concrete visual examples. Watching one of these podcasts on the screen feels more like being at a hands-on photo workshop in the field than sitting in the classroom. And by mixing video footage with outstanding still photographs, each technique becomes crystal clear. It’s easy to hook up with this incredible learning experience—just make sure you’ve got QuickTime on your 'pod or PC, click on podcasts at the Pro Learning Center and take a few minutes to download the videos.

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

Achieving a pure white background may seem simple, but it's not so hard to foul it up. A new photographer usually goes too far in one direction or another when attempting to create a perfect white background.

A) An insufficient amount of light on the background creates a shade of gray.

B) Too much light on the background turns the subject matter 'milky' and saturation is lost.

This lesson shows you the techniques necessary to control your white backgrounds.

Topics Covered:

• How to prepare for an indoor sports portrait
• Setting up proper lighting ratios
• Techniques on using a light meter
• Special effects using Plexiglas

Go to Achieving a Pure White Background at Web Photo School.

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

Modifying the standard approach to portraits can add more life and interest to your shot if you know what you're doing. When it comes to shooting glamour, rules should be considered guidelines.

The most interesting glamour shots out there are taken by photographers who have veered from the rules to come up with their own bag of tricks for shooting.

This lesson will show you a couple of simple modifications you can make to a standard portrait lighting setup to enhance the appeal of your images.

Topics Covered:

• Setting Up the Background
• Setting Up the Quantum Q Flash
• Installing the Radio Slaves
• Setting Up the Main Flash
• Programming the E-300 Camera Settings
• Setting Up the Fill Light
• Setting Up the Separation Light

Go to Shooting Glamour in the Studio at Web Photo School.

Reviewed by Ron Eggers

Infrared photography has a sense of mystery about it. Producing ethereal images and false colors, pictures captured in the infrared wavelength evoke fantasy. It's almost like magic, and something that's magical certainly must be difficult. Working with infrared film is challenging. It's difficult to shoot with and even more difficult to process. Fortunately, like with so many things in photography, digital technology has had a significant impact on infrared photography. It is making it simpler than it's ever been.

With his new book "The Complete Guide to Digital Infrared Photography," Joe Farace explains those changes, and in the process, he takes much of the mystery out of infrared photography without dispelling the magic that makes it so fascinating. Published by Lark Books (a division of Sterling Publishing), this book is a detailed and well-written step-by-step guide to infrared photography. It's obvious that the author has a thorough understanding of the subject matter and the processes involved in coming up with striking infrared images.

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

There are many things to consider when you leave the studio to shoot portraits outside: weather, time of day, and the background to name but a few. With its LitePanel system, Photoflex offers a way to take the control you have in the studio with you on location.

Topics Covered:

• Assembling an Outdoor Shooting Tent
• Adjusting the Tripod for Low Angle Shots
• Programming the Camera Settings
• Using LitePanels for Fill
• Balancing Light Outdoors

Go to the Shooting on the Beach with litePanels lesson at Web Photo School.

Registration is first come, first serve; attendees get a free Aperture Tutorial DVD

Apple has announced workshop dates in nine cities, with more to come, to introduce wedding and event photographers to Aperture software. Go to Apple's website for more information or to register online.

Cities and dates:
Feb. 20: Las Vegas (Henderson), Nev.
Feb. 22: Boston (Newton), Mass.
Feb. 26: Kahului Maui, Hawaii
March 1: Miami, Fla.
March 1: Honolulu Oahu, Hawaii
March 5: Long Island (Uniondale), N.Y.
March 13: Los Angeles, Calif.
March 13: Dallas, Texas
March 15: Atlanta, Ga.

By Theano Nikitas

At first glance, you might think that this is a book about retouching images and, in a sense it is. But then you’d be underestimating not only the contents but the author’s intent to school his readers in the art of digital restoration. With the inclusion of restoration techniques for prints, slides, negatives, newspaper clippings and even black-and-white glass plate negatives, "Digital Restoration From Start to Finish: How to Repair Old and Damaged Photographs" (Focal Press, www.focalpress.com, $39.95) could just as easily be found on the bookshelf of a photo restoration expert in the Library of Congress as on the desk of a digital photographer.

In his newest book, "Professional Filter Techniques for Digital Photographers" (Amherst Media; $34.95) pro photographer Stan Sholik covers the gamut of possibilities and applications now available to the digital photographer through traditional (hardware) filters and filter software.

He advises on how to select your best filter options for your photographic style and how implementing the device will impact your photos. Covering filters used for color correction, contrast enhancement, soft focus, and a full spectrum of interesting, artistic effects, this book will satisfy your quest for technical precision and your yearning for greater creative expression.

Features:

• Comparisons of effects achieved using traditional vs. digital filters
• Charts that allow readers to predict effects of a variety of filter types
• Page after page of analyses of top filters

In this excerpt, Sholik examines color converting, light balancing and compensation filters.

Professional Photographer magazine offers our readers free lighting tutorials from Web Photo School.

The basics of portrait photography could fill many large books. Many pro photographers who typically shoot using only available light want to advance their studio lighting skills. In such cases, it's always good to start with the basics. This Web Photo School lesson concentrates on one application with a few variations on the theme for this lesson.

Topics Covered:

• Using portable flash units
• Creating drama with one light
• Using reflective fill
• Background lighting effects

Go to the Basic Strobe Portrait in Studio lesson at Web Photo School.

Photograph the sights using invisible light

By Joe Farace

Travel photography is an ever-expanding genre. Once it was enough to just be there and take a photograph. Then you were expected to delive