Photoshop Day 3

Well, I think I've messed myself up.  After spending way too much time downloading Actions (and wasting away half of Saturday on the computer and making myself late for church Sunday morning), I can't figure out how to use the regular tools myself.  This is why I don't like technology and am afraid of it taking over the world.  There's always a new way to make things easier (or flat out do something for you) that you can't remember how to do them yourself.  Not that I ever really knew what I was doing with the Photoshop tools, but now I really don't. Take this picture of sweet Alice, for example.

After opening it in photoshop, I ran all kinds of Actions on it.  I tinted the colors, I softened her skin, I made her eyes twinkle.  I even whitened those two little teeth a smidge.  But you know what I couldn't figure out how to do?  I couldn't for the life of me find the tool/filter/layer I needed to correct the red-eye in her right eye.

Um, shouldn't that be Photoshop 101?

Here's the picture after all my edits.  It's far from anything that could be called perfect.  In fact, I got so frustrated with this one that I just ended up quitting.  Her eye doesn't look that red anymore, but that's completely luck.  This picture is so bright to me.

So I'm thinking maybe I should take a step back and try to edit a photo without using any Actions.  I'll admit, I'm nervous about it.  But that's why I'm practicing, right?  So that hopefully I can figure all this stuff out.

Just so you can see how overboard I've gone with some of the Actions, here are some more pics I played around with over the weekend.  Go ahead, critique away.

Parker, before.

Parker, after.  (His head isn't cut off in the real pictures.  Don't know why that's happening now.)

Swimmers, before.

Swimmers, after.  (Is it just me, or does Doc look like he could've borrowed some of Adam Lambert's eye makeup?  And is Anna wearing lipstick?  In the pool?)

Wesley, before.

Wesley, after.  Take one.

Wesley, after.  Take two.

To all you photoshop users out there:  if you could give me one little nugget of advice to help me along, what would it be?  What's something you do on every photo?  What tool should I really focus on getting comfortable with?  Or maybe you have a fancy trick you could show me?  Thanks in advance; I appreciate any help I can get.

Photoshop Day 2

For today's post, I played with this picture of Wyatt and Anna.

When I took this picture last spring, I was actually pretty pleased with the way it looked SOOC (straight out of camera).

Of course, now I've tinkered with it so much I've probably gotten it overly photoshopped, but it's crazy how much different it can look!

Which do you like better - the before or the after?

Photoshop

A few months ago, Amazon.com had Photoshop Elements as their deal of the day.  I'd been talking about purchasing some kind of photo-editing software, so when my sister in law alerted me to the deal, I ordered it up without thinking twice.  It arrived on my doorstep a couple days later. Naturally, Doc was traveling for work the week it arrived so it was perfect - I could spend an evening or two learning how to use this new software without feeling bad for being on the computer all night long.  Only problem?  I couldn't get the darn program loaded onto my computer.  Now, I readily admit that I am not very tech-savvy at all, but even I can usually install something from a cd.  Especially when all you have to do is click Next, Next, Next, Finish!

After trying to install several times and even emailing print screens of every step to my own personal tech support, Mr. Washburn, I gave up and claimed defeat for the night.  And then my deal-of-the-day purchase sat in its box for over a month without me attempting to install again.  Fast forward to early July and there came a night when Mr. Washburn himself was going to be spending the evening at our house with Doc while I was partying with the girls.  Before leaving home, I strategically placed my laptop and the Photoshop Elements package on the dining room table.  You know, just in case.

After a long evening of trying to install unsuccessfully (phew! It's not just me!), Mr. Washburn took my laptop home with me so that he could further research and try to diagnose the problem.  24 hours later and the results were in, and they weren't good.  Turns out there's a glitch with my computer (since it runs Window Vista) that won't let the program install.  Drats.  But Mr. Washburn, never one to claim defeat like I do, decided to go one step further and installed his Adobe Photoshop CS2 on my computer.  Hot dog! An upgrade!

That was early July.  Fast forward again to early August and I finally opened up the program to give it a go.  (I know, I know, I waited a whole month.  July was really busy.)  With my snuggie on, phone, drink, snack, and tv remote all within reach, I was ready to spend an evening turning my ho-hum photos into images that popped!  In CS2, I opened a picture that was in dyer need of some touch-ups and then....nothing.  So many buttons!  So many tools!  So many words that I didn't know!

So, I found the little X in the top right corner and got out of there as fast as I could.  Phew!  So scary!

Maybe I thought as long as you had the software, you could use it to open a picture, click a button called Make The Magic Happen and then voila!  Pretty pictures!  Here's a little secret for those of you who don't have this program and maybe live under the same rock that I do:  it doesn't really work that way.

I drummed my fingers and stared at my computer screen for a while trying to figure out what to do.  I knew I needed help and there's only one person who could help me: Mr. Washburn.

In gmail, I fired off an email asking if I could register for a Mr. Washburn-led Adobe Photoshop CS2 tutorial.  I hit send and crossed my fingers.  Please say yes, please say yes.

He said yes!!  And invited us over for dinner, too!  I'm not sure how my request for help scored me a home-cooked meal too, but I wasn't about to turn it down.  So this past Thursday evening, Doc and I joined Mr. Washburn, his lovely wife,  and precious daughter (who seems to be smitten with my husband) for dinner.  Mary Elizabeth made breakfast for dinner - even tried out a new recipe from Pinterest - and it was delicious!

After stuffing our bellies, it was time to get down to business.  Doc joined Mary Elizabeth and Wesley in the living room for a special showing of Cinderella (where I think her really won Wesley over by knowing the words to Bippity Boppity Boo) so that  Mr. Washburn and I could set up at the dining room table and class could begin.  We started with all the tools in CS2 and made our way around the screen, learning every menu and box and what to find where.  We practiced on pictures to see what each tool/action/layer could do and by the time we were through, the photos we started with were smeared, blurred, oversaturated, smudged, burned, and contrasted beyond recognition.  Just a sign of a well-led, very informative class.  Of course, everything made sense to me while sitting at that table.  The real test would be if I could remember how to do anything back at home on the couch.

And that brings us to today.  I've been parked on the couch all morning playing with photos.  I've downloaded the Pioneer Woman's actions and I've read step-by-step edits from blogs that sounded like a foreign language before my class.  Now, I'm ready to show you my first photoshopped picture.  Feel free to critique, but be gentle.  I'm still learning.

First, the before:

And now, after multiple hours of photoshopping and lots of undoing and starting over, the after:

What do you think?  Too much?

To make myself keep practicing while the things I learned are still fresh, I'm giving myself a challenge: I will post one photoshopped picture every day this week.  Let's just hope I start to get a little bit faster at this, otherwise it's going to be a long week of staring at the computer screen.

Weekend in Review

This past weekend, we had the kids at our house for the first time in what felt like months.  They have been so busy this summer that we haven't seen them much.  Between camps and beach trips and a week at their grandparents', their travel schedule has rivaled that of a business man who travels for work every week.  Oh wait, that would be my husband.  Basically, what I'm saying is that everyone keeps leaving except me. With the new school year just around the corner (just a week and a half of summer left for them!), the kids have been gathering new school supplies and getting back in routine of a regular schedule.  They are attending a new school this year so new uniforms have been ordered.  Wyatt will wear khakis and a golf shirt during warm weather and a white shirt with a tie in the winter.  Anna has a new pair of saddle shoes that she'll wear with her jumpers and skirts.  They'll both be so snazzy!

Besides new backpacks and a stack full of books, the kids also got laptops that they'll use in school everyday.  !!  They'll be in 5th and 6th grade and they'll be using a laptop everyday!  I just can't believe it.  I mean, I know this is the direction the world is going, but I don't like it.  What's wrong with pencil and paper?

They will both continue with their music lessons at the new school - piano for him, guitar for her.  And this year, Wyatt has decided to give football a try.  Saturday morning was his first practice in full pads.

Doc stuck around and watched for a while.  He's definitely one of the smallest on the team, but Doc thinks he's doing pretty well.  Maybe he'll be all heart like Rudy.

After the boys got home from practice, we had some lunch and then headed to the pool.  With it as hot as it is, you either have to stay inside or stay in a pool.  I'm glad we had a pool to go to!

I didn't have my camera out at the pool for very long, so I just got a few pictures.

Wyatt showed off his muscles that he's getting from football practice.  Big, aren't they?

Anna took a break to get a drink, but she only lasted out of the water about 1 minute!

Jett and Bren joined us at the pool.  Jett had some mardi gras beads from somewhere, so that's what we dove for.

Bren likes to jump in over and over again.  She's fearless with her floatie on.

The kids spent a lot of time in the 12-foot end, which means they spent a lot of time hanging on to Doc so that he could tread water for all of them.  At least he got a workout in!

We had a low-key evening at home that night.  I just love how an afternoon swimming can wear everyone out.  I think the lights were out by 9:30...my kind of night!

Sunday morning we went to church.  It was the first time for the kids to get to hear our new preacher and I think they liked him (as much as 5th and 6th graders can like someone they have to sit and listen to for an hour...).  Like most Sundays, we went to my parents for lunch.

Aaaaand we might have melted some crayons.  Again.  I can't help it.  I just think its so cool and there were still more crayons and foamboard left from last time so...

Or maybe I just thought it was something the kids would really enjoy.  Yea, let's go with that.

I was right - they did enjoy it and they thought it was pretty awesome too.  They were limited in their color choices since I had already taken out most of the primary colors.  Anna chose hers first so she got all the pretty colors that were left.  Poor Wyatt was left with all the browns, blacks, greys, and golds.  But those are boy colors anyway, right?

After they had their color order figured out, I helped them glue them down.  Don't worry, I manned the hot glue gun while they placed the crayon down under close supervision.  No burned fingers here!

They got to decide how they laid them down.  Wyatt placed the Crayola logo on top like I did, and Anna alternated hers between the logo and the name of the color.

With the oven set to 250 degrees, we popped them in and waited.  We all placed bets on which color we thought would drip first.  The leading crayon was gold, which no one chose, but my hot pink was second.  Woo hoo!  Would you believe me if I told you that black was the very last color to drip?  I know, crazy, right?  At one point while we were watching them drip, Anna turned and said, "This would be a really cool science project."  I practically shreaked when I said, "I know!  That's what I've been saying this whole time!!"

Just waiting...

Starting to drip!  (And yes, my mom needs to clean her oven glass...)

Even my mom can't resist watching the crayons melt again.

When they got to this point, we decided they had melted enough.  You can also see that some of the crayons melted from the top and dripped down on top of the paper.  That didn't happen with mine, probably because mine flipped over backwards halfway through.

Since we were pleased with the amount of drippage, I turned the oven off and closed the door.  I figured since it wasn't too hot to begin with, it'd cool down pretty quickly, and I really didn't want to handle the foam boards while the wax was still liquid for fear of messing it up.

A few minutes later, my mom looked over and said, "Oh my gosh!  They're pouring out!"  And sure enough, the crayons looked like waterfalls.  Every bit of wax poured out of every paper tube.  I guess maybe the oven didn't cool down as quickly as I had hoped.

So this is how they ended up.  Less drippy than planned, but still pretty cool.  I like how the colors blended together.  You can kinda see some lumps on Wyatt's from where the whole crayons poured out.

Unfortunately, the kids had to leave to go home before the wax had firmed back up, so they'll have to wait to see their finished products.  Maybe I can find some frames by then.

Right as the kids were leaving, this little doll showed up with her Mommy and Daddy and I don't know for sure, but I think she was pretty glad to see me.  At least that's what I tell myself.

Look! Teeth!

My mom and I visited with little Alice's parents for a few minutes before they headed home for a day of unpacking.  I'm so glad to have them in town!  Maybe they'll become regulars on this ol' blog.

While Doc took the kids home and ran some errands, my mom and I spent the afternoon working on the super secret birthday project.  It's starting to come together and I love it!  They birthday party's not til next weekend, though, so I have to hold off from posting pictures.

My dad spent a good portion of the afternoon like this:

My parents are in the middle of having a sprinkler system installed in their yard, and so far the cable has already been cut in about 6 different spots.  The only place the cable still works?  Their master bathroom.  So my dad rigged up this lounging area with a bench and a chair so he could still watch tv.  Anything for some Sunday afternoon golf, I guess.

The rest of the fam came over later in the day.  Mom bribed everyone with dinner: pork chops, baked beans, cheesy potatoes, fruit, rolls, and more!  While dinner was cooking I played on the playground with the munchkins.

Yes, I'm the aunt that lets Bren climb to the top of the ladder and just takes pictures instead of holding on to her. I blame the pigtails.  They're just so darn cute.

I also let Jett practice jumping out of the swing.  Safety doesn't always come first when I'm the babysitter.

And then, as I was taking pictures of Jett swinging...

...I remembered the AutoStitch program that my father-in-law introduced me to, and got an idea.  I took a picture of him on each swing, and then after a few minutes of tinkering on the computer, voila!  He's everywhere!

Sure, he's a little blurry, but I don't think it's that bad for my first attempt.  I see a lot more AutoStitching in my future.

So that's our weekend in a nutshell.  Low-key but fun.  Now if I can just make it through 4 more work days so it can be the weekend again!