Adobe Creative Cloud

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Jeff

We have heard a lot of concern about Adobe’s move to the Creative Cloud (CC). Here is what you need to know about it in relation to our products.

What is the Adobe Creative Cloud?

You can find long explanations of Adobe CC on the web, but here is my simple version. Adobe is switching the payment model. For Photoshop CS6 and earlier, you buy it and then you own it forever. In Adobe CC, you will rent it by paying a monthly fee. If you stop paying then Adobe CC products will stop working.

This is more a pricing change than a technological change. The “cloud” part means that you get some file storage on Adobe servers and there are some collaboration features. Applications like Photoshop will run on your local computer, just like they do today. Photoshop CC will not be running on an Adobe server or in a web browser. You will be able to run Photoshop CC without an internet connection for periods of time, but occasionally you have to let it contact Adobe to confirm that your subscription is paid up.

Will Alien Skin products work with Adobe CC products?

Photoshop CC is not out yet, but we have been testing our current products with a pre-release version. We will release free updates for the current version of all our products to fix a minor installation issue. You will hear about the updates here, in e-mail, social media, and the “new message” newspaper icon in our products.

We have also been testing with the pre-release version of Lightroom 5 and everything is working great. By the way, Adobe plans to keep Lightroom as a non-subscription product.

Exposure 5 (out in June) will be our first product that can run as a stand-alone application. You will be able to use it by itself or within Photoshop, Lightroom, or Aperture. Over time we will move in that direction with all our products.

Will Alien Skin move to the subscription model?

We plan to stick with the traditional software model. For example, that means that you buy Snap Art 3 and you own it forever. If you lose your installer then you can download it again for free at any time. If you lose your license code then you can look it up or contact tech support so we can find it for you. You can activate your software on two computers at once and you can move those activations to new computers, including switching between Mac and Windows. While Snap Art 3 is the latest version, we will make free updates to keep it working with the latest host programs.

I’m not going to promise it will be this way for eternity, but this system feels like a good fit for our customers and us for the foreseeable future.

Posted in Alien Skin Software, Announcements, Business, Philosophy | Tagged | Leave a comment

Flickr Thursday

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Jimmy

Here are our selections from the Alien Skin Flickr pool for the week. Thanks everyone who shared!

Posted in Fun, Photography | Tagged | Leave a comment

Exposure 5 Texture Overlays

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Jeff

The release of Exposure 5 is just around the corner in June. Last month I wrote about the big redesign of the user interface. Now I’ll focus on the the texture overlay system.

Texture Overlays in Exposure 4

In Exposure 4, on the Age Tab there is a group of controls labeled Texture. This system overlays analog features on your photo. Early versions of Exposure simulated scratches mathematically, but we found that it looked too artificial. Now these features come from scans of real photos.

What’s New in Exposure 5

In early versions of Exposure, we provided dust, scratches, and rough borders, so “texture” seemed like a good name. In Exposure 4 we included light leaks. Exposure 5 provides more versions of those effects, and expands into old print borders and sun flares. I usually refer to this wide range of features as “overlays” since texture is just part of it.

You’ll find the overlay effects in the new Borders & Textures area on the right side of the Exposure 5 user interface, as seen below. Click for a larger version.

Exposure 5 texture user interface Photoshop plug-in

In Exposure 5, you can now separately control overlays from the Border, Light Effects, and Dust & Scratches categories. For more variety and control, they can be randomized, flipped, zoomed, and inverted.

One of my photos is shown below after two treatments with overlay effects. I used a distressed old border, a paper print border, subtle scratches, and one of the new light effects from the Sun Flares category for morning sunlight in fog. I used the improved Protect feature to keep the bird clear. In Exposure 5 you can move the center of the protected region and control its strength. For a scene with a person, I would use it to keep scratches off their face.

bird on thorn bush - texture treatment with Exposure 5 Photoshop plug-in

bird on thorn bush - black and white treatment with Exposure 5 Photoshop plug-in

When can I get it?

Exposure 5 will be out in June. When it is ready we will announce it here, in social media, and e-mail. You can get on our e-mail list by scrolling to the bottom of any page on our web site. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. If you don’t own Exposure yet then you don’t need to wait for Exposure 5 to come out. If you purchase Exposure 4 in March, 2013 or later then we will e-mail you Exposure 5 for free as soon as it is ready.

Posted in Alien Skin Software, Announcements, Exposure, Photography | Tagged | Leave a comment

Flickr Thursday

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Jimmy

Here are our selections from the Alien Skin Flickr pool for the week. Thanks everyone who shared!

 

Posted in Fun, Photography | Tagged | Leave a comment

Flickr Thursday

Posted on May 9, 2013 by Jimmy

Here are our selections from the Alien Skin Flickr pool for the week. Thanks everyone who shared!

Posted in Fun, Photography | Tagged | 1 Comment

Building a bird paradise with Marc Apfelstadt

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Jimmy

Here are a few tips from Marc Apfelstadt to help increase the amount and variety of birds in your yard. He’s a certified volunteer for the National Wildlife Federation, so you can consider him a “Yard Habitat Specialist.” The remainder of this article is from him.

—

Set specific goals before you begin creating your wildlife haven. Make the transition easier to manage by starting small. Even minor changes will increase the diversity of birds you attract.

Wildlife has four essential needs: cover, food, water, and places to raise young. For a bird, a typical manicured lawn is too barren. The worms found there probably taste like chemicals anyway!

Cover

Birds need a place to hide from predators. This will make them feel safe and comfortable. The best kind of cover is a combination of trees and shrubs at varying heights that mimic the natural landscape. Before heading off to your nearest nursery, investigate native plant species for your area.

I suggest that you arrange the plantings in a tapered angle. Fill the perimeter with tall trees, and then plant shorter trees that can take shade. Add shrubs next, then add ground cover in the center. This provides safety for the majority of bird species. Consider coniferous trees for plantings on the north & west sides of your home to block winter winds, deciduous trees work best on the south and east to provide shade in the summer.

Water

A bath need be no more than 2 or 3 inches in depth. If you already have a bath with deeper dimensions, put a layer of rocks inside to raise the floor level. Try to keep it clean and full at all times. Provide roughly 10 feet of clear space from the nearest cover; close enough for birds to escape a predator and far enough that they can see one approaching. Running water is best, the sound alone will bring birds.

Places to raise young

The right combination of trees and shrubs will provide plenty of nesting places.

If you want bird houses, learn about the kind of bird species you want to attract first. House size, placement, and hole size need to match the species you target. A good place to start learning is a nearby store that specializes in bird equipment and native plants. So is your local Audubon chapter.

Food

To draw in a variety of birds, provide a variety of food. Naturally occurring food is your best bet. Feeders will bring birds out where you can see them, but they’re not a complete food source. If you want the birds to move in permanently, give them a combination of varied height native fruit, seed, and, nut bearing plants.

 

It may take a couple of years to incorporate all of the ideas I’ve shared, but just a few minor changes can help improve the bird variety you see.

—

Here are a couple of shots that Marc shared with us. Thanks Marc!

Posted in Fun | Tagged | 1 Comment

Flickr Thursday

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Jimmy

Here are our selections from the Alien Skin Flickr pool for the week. Thanks everyone who shared!

Kenny Driscollcatlucia

Posted in Fun, Photography | Tagged | 2 Comments

B&W with Tony Sweet

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Jimmy

Tony Sweet produces great photography work. In the article below, he illustrates how he makes Exposure’s black and white controls work to his advantage. The remainder of this article is from him.

—

Exposure is the best film emulation software out there. Trust me, I’ve used them all. The B&W capabilities in Exposure are on par with more dedicated B&W programs, and it has additional properties unique to itself.

#1: Silk Loom

Let’s start with an image from one of my favorite indoor “grunge” locales, the Lonaconing Silk Mill. It’s in the mountains of western Maryland. Color can work well for this shot, but black and white replicates the feeling of the old working mill more accurately.

The finished color image is pictured above. It’s best to convert to B&W after the color version is finalized. The order of operation is important to get the richest tones.

In Exposure, there are a bunch of film options in the presets panel on the left. I scrolled through the list to see what was available. I settled on Kodak TRI-X 400 with Dust & Scratches. I made one small adjustment to the preset–I added a touch of sharpness on the focus tab with one of the group presets. Below is the final.

Click on the image above to view a larger version of the final.

 #2: National Building Museum

The National Building Museum in Washington, DC is an extremely cool place to photograph. It’s huge. No one bothers you, and you are allowed to use a tripod. The shadows and moody light can be pretty spectacular; those were the conditions we had during this shoot.

I suggest that you find out what time it will be the least crowded during your visit. Then you’re good to go.

I’m going to build a custom look for this image. Here are the steps:

  • Leave the preset set to Neutral (B&W).
  • On the Tone tab, boost the contrast to taste.
  • In the Split Toning section, I chose one of my favorite presets, Platinum (warm).
  • On the Focus tab, apply the Sharpen – Low Radius – 25 group preset.

The sharpening presets are unique to Exposure. The results depend on the image, but, in my experience, they are almost always effective.

Click on the image above to view a larger version of the final.

 

One of the great features in Exposure is on the Age tab. I particularly like the lumping and distortion controls for the Vignette. These features are unique. In Exposure, the various levels of “Lump” create uneven vignettes. I feel that this uneven-ness enhances the mood, feeling, and asymmetry of this image.

#3: Tremont, Great Smoky Mountains, TN

Springtime in the Smokies is always inspiring. The mountains are full of flowing water and lime green moss; both attributes make for beautiful B&W shots.

I’m going to build another custom preset for this image. Here are the steps:

  • Leave the preset set to Neutral (B&W).
  • On the color tab, apply the Green Color Filter group preset.
  • Color Sensitivity, choose the Only Red group preset.
  • On the Tone tab, choose the Harsh Landscape Tone group preset.
  • On the Focus tab, apply the Sharpen – Low Radius – 25 group preset.

I made some tweaks with the sliders on the Tone tab in order to brighten the water. I increased the contrast, opened up the shadows, darkened mid-tones and brightened the highlights. It was just a few tweaks to pull out the detail I wanted.

 Click on the image above to view a larger version of the final.

 

My advice, mix it up with Exposure. This will teach you how the very cool and unique black and white effects can add another layer of creativity to your work!

—

Tony Sweet is a workshop instructor, lecturer, author, occasional columnist, online instructor for Betterphoto.com, and is a Nikon Legend Behind the Lens.

Visit http://tonysweet.com

 

Posted in Photography, Tutorials | Tagged | 2 Comments

Chat with us!

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Robert

If you have visited our website recently, you may have noticed the tab in the bottom right corner of the page. This is our new online chat tool.website-chat

You can click this button to request a chat anytime we are available. We’re happy to give support, help out with a purchase, or answer questions about how to use our products.

Chat service will be available during our regular business hours 9-4 EST. There will be times where we will be offline during the day. If we are, it will give you the option to submit a support ticket. We do our best to respond to everyone in a timely manner.

We hope you will find this to be another handy way to stay in touch with us!

Posted in Alien Skin Software, Announcements | 2 Comments

Exposure 5 Preview

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Jeff

I’m excited that Exposure 5 is close enough that we can start showing you parts of it. We’ve been improving the user interface to create a more pleasant experience and help you be more productive.

Modern Interface

We remade the Exposure interface to be more familiar to users of recent versions of Lightroom and Photoshop. The color scheme is dark gray to reduce distraction from your photo. Effect controls are in collapsible groups in a scrolling panel on the right, just like Lightroom. Most of our shortcut keys have the same behavior as Lightroom or Photoshop.

We purposely chose slightly larger fonts than the ones in Lightroom and Photoshop. Tiny text is stressful, especially for old eyes like mine.

Texture-Controls

The left and right panels can be collapsed to reduce distraction and make more room for the preview.  In the screenshot above, the preset panel on the left is collapsed. On the right are new flexible controls for texture overlay effects. We will get into those in another article.

Visual Browsing of Presets

Preset-BrowserOne of Exposure’s strengths has always been the hundreds of well-researched presets, but exploring them was hard. As you can see in the screenshot above, presets are now explored visually. You can resize the preset browser pane and set it to show two or three columns.

The buttons at the top of the panel let you quickly focus on just a subset of the presets. You  can filter on Color, Black & White, Favorites, User, and Recent. Click a star in the corner of a preset to mark it as a favorite. “User” is for presets you created. “Recent” is of course the last presets you applied to photos.

As with Exposure 4, there is a text search bar that is a very fast way to narrow your search. By the time you type “kodach”, you are seeing only the Kodachrome presets.

When can I get it?

Exposure 5 will be out in June. When it is ready we will announce it here, in social media, and e-mail. You can get on our e-mail list by scrolling to the bottom of any page on our web site. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

If you don’t own Exposure yet then you don’t need to wait for Exposure 5 to come out. If you purchase Exposure 4 in March, 2013 or later then we will e-mail you Exposure 5 for free as soon as it is ready.

We will write at least one more blog article about Exposure 5 texture overlay controls before June.

Posted in Alien Skin Software, Announcements, Exposure, Photography | Tagged | 82 Comments