Month: June 2009
Sunsets and Silhouettes – a blueprint, tutorial and favorites poll
One of my all time favorite things to photograph are sunsets and silhouettes. There is something almost magical about them. Last year I wrote a 2 part tutorial on photographing and editing silhouettes. Part 1 Here * Part 2 Here. I changed camera my settings quite a bit on the ones I took on vacation…
A New and Improved MCP Site and Blog Coming Soon
NEW MCP NEWS: You can now register your your Facebook name and page here. My FB sites are http://facebook.com/mcpactions (friend me) and http://facebook.com/MCPActions/ (FB page). Go get yours today. Not sure which will be done 1st but my blog and site have been works in progress for some time now. Crossing my figures that you…
Alaskan Adventure – what other gear to pack for trip in the wild
Daniel Hurtubise is doing a series on his upcoming trip to the Alaskan Wild. Hopefully this will help you learn what you need to prepare for a huge expedition. Last week he will be discussed his camera gear. This week he will cover what other equipment he will be bringing. Since I’ve covered the hardcore…
Blueprint – From Snapshot to Portrait in 6 Steps
This boy is just adorable. He is the “kid of the week” for the Fix It Friday edit at I Heart Faces. I loved my edit of this one so I had to share my steps with all of you. I would love to know what you think of the before and after photo edit…
Enhancing Skies Using Smart Objects in Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop
Yesterday I showed you how to add fake skies where the sky is completely blown. Today’s tutorial will teach you what to do if you have a nice sky that is just a little too light and could use some depth. Thank you to our guest blogger Daniel Hurtubise for this fantastic tutorial. One note:…
Newborn Photography: How to Use Light When Shooting Newborns
If you want better newborn images, take our Online Newborn Photography Workshop. “Newborns and Lighting.” I think lighting is the MOST important factor in your photography. I also think it is one of the hardest to learn. It is also something that is hard to teach on the internet. I know for me it is…
Funny T-shirts – in light of my recent computer situation…
Just a quick post to share some funny t-shirts I saw online. I thought many of you would appreciate these:
Heading on a Trip to the Wilderness? What to bring?
Daniel Hurtubise is doing a series on his upcoming trip to the Alaskan Wild. Hopefully this will help you learn what you need to prepare for a huge expedition. This week he will be discussing his gear. Then next time he will discuss what else he is taking with him. Like everybody else, the first…
Blueprint – My Take on Sandi Bradshaw’s Senior Photography
I just had to play. Check out yesterday’s post for detailed step by step of how Sandi Bradshaw edited this photo. Here are my plays. MCP All in the Details: flashlight action – changed opacity to 100% MCP All in the Details: extreme color action – used the extreme color painting on grass and tractor. …
Post Processing Senior Style with Sandi Bradshaw
Sandi Bradshaw is back this week to show you some of her tricks and tips for post processing. Then tomorrow I will use her SOOC shot and show you a few plays of my own in the Friday Blueprint. And next week I will have a tutorial showing how to add fake sky where there…
KISS – and not the mushy kind… A Quick Lesson for Everyone…
I cannot remember where I first hear about KISS. But it was probably somewhere between my 1st kiss and now… As wikipedia explains “KISS stands for ‘Keep it Short and Simple,’ or the more recent and disparaging ‘Keep it Simple, Stupid.’” For our purposes here, it can mean both… My 2 recent experiences… Analysts try and…
Opening & Resaving Jpeg images: Does It Really Degrade Your Images?
Thank you to Robert Watcher of finchandchimps and Robert Watcher Photography for this interesting guest post answering the question, “Does opening and resaving jpeg images over and over really degrade the image quality of your photos?” I have long been fascinated with the claim that resaving your images files will degrade the image. Even with…
What I decided… Mac versus PC?
Last week I did this poll on my blog asking readers if I should get a Mac or stay with PC. No surprise that Mac won in the polls. I still have the poll open if you want to vote. I have not made a firm decision, but if you take the time to read…
Blueprint – 2 different approaches to similar photographs (extreme versus natural)
Today’s blueprints will show you 2 similar photos of the same model taken in the same light. I edited them very differently so you could get an idea of how you can get completely different looks under the same conditions. For the 1st Blueprint of this graduating high school senior, I took a natural enhanced…
Get Ready for Father’s Day and Celebrate with this GREAT FREE DAD Template
If you have been following MCP for years, this DAD template will not be new to you. I have so many new readers each year so certain goodies just have to be repeated. Here is the highly requested “DAD” storyboard template. I wanted to give you a few days to get it ready and to…
MCP’s Camera Bag: Equipment and Pictures from Past to Present
As a follow up to last weeks post on “how expensive equipment alone does not make a great photographer,” most people were in agreement that just because you have expensive gear does not make you a better photographer. Once you learn the fundamentals and build up experience, better equipment can further enrich your photos. Basically…
Meet the “Clickin Mom” and learn about one of the coolest photo forums
I had the privilege to interview Kendra Okolita, owner of Clickinmoms – a great photography forum. You will love getting to know her as both a photographer (LuluBird Photography), owner of a popular photography forum and mom. If you want to try clickin moms forum, there is a special running right now. Just click the…
Should I get a Mac or PC?
What computer should I get next? I would love your help choosing. I posed the question on this Facebook Thread – but it is hard to layout the whole picture in such few words. Currently I use a Dell Precision 17” high resolution laptop (fully loaded – well 2 years ago it was anyway…) Every…
Life Lesson – Be Thankful for What You Have – Appreciate Every Day
I know this is not photography related exactly but I had to share an experience I had this past week. As some of you who read my newsletter may know, I am in the process of having a new website built with a full e-commerce system. It is going to be amazing. I also decided to…
How to plan for a shooting exposition in the wild
I am excited to have Daniel Hurtubise as a guest blogger every few Saturdays this summer leading up to his shooting exposition in the wild. He will talk about his preparation for this trip with a world renown National Geographic Photographer. And then he will share photos of the trip and about his experiences. He…
Blueprint: Trash the Prom Dress Before and After MCP Photoshop Actions
Today’s Blueprint is another sent in by an MCP Actions Fan, Nikki Romero of Everlasting Expressions. She writes: This was an awesome Senior that blessed me with a Trash the Prom Dress Session… So much fun… The day was very overcast, skies were white, day was gray and rainy, water was YUCKY… But my vision came alive through…
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