Wendy Mayo Photographer » Photoshop

MCP Actions Does It Again!

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:15:57 +0000

Announcing the latest set of fabulous actions from MCP Actions — the Finish It Actions! Create a wide variety of borders, resize, sharpen, and brand; all in just a few clicks. Here are just a few of things you can do with this set:

Check out the goods at MCP Actions!

Silhouette Photos at the Beach

admin — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 02:22:22 +0000

We had some fun a couple of weeks ago on a family camping trip to the Oregon coast. We stayed at Harris Beach State Park – a lovely place on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The weather was fabulous and cool; a real treat compared to the 100 plus weather we left behind in Northern California.

One evening, we took a walk to a lookout and watched the sun go down.

To pass the time, we made some silhouette photos. Here are my brother and his wife and the “Flaming Kiss”!

Here are some of my nephews. We didin’t have any girls in the bunch!

Caleb is the smallest. I had to sit on the ground for this one!

Oh my! This must be some kind of sea monster!

My sister.

This looks like Indiana Jones with an alien coming out of his chest. It’s really my husband and Frank, the weiner dog!

Are you interested in making your own silhouette photos? It’s pretty easy. Just meter your camera for the sun or another light source, then put your subject between you and the light source. My friend, Jodi, over at MCP Actions does a much better job, and she has a great tutorial. Check it out!

Tuesday Tips – Creative Cropping

admin — Tue, 05 May 2009 22:48:31 +0000

What can you do with a picture that you love, but is just so-so? You do some creative cropping!

Here’s the picture:

I really liked the expressions on their faces. He is so intense and she is absolutely glowing. But that bulletin board thing in the background – yuck!

I could have used the stamp tool in Photoshop and completely covered it over, but then I’m left with a blank (dirty) wall. So, I tried a straight crop and this is what I got:

I like it, but something is missing. Maybe it’s too centered or something. That’s when I decided to rotate the crop and see what I could get.

Now that’s more like it! A bit off center (rule of thirds), and it appears that she is really leaning into him. I like it.

So, the next time you have a shot that needs a little extra something, try some creative cropping. It just might do the trick!