Vintage Polaroid Effect for PSE, CS5 and Others

Before we get to the frame/action I want to thank all of you for your incredibly sweet comments and compliments from my self portrait post! Y'all made me blush and put some extra happy in my weekend! :)
Thank you!

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Yesterday I mentioned that I've been working on a surprise for you.
Well, here it is!

Ya know the super-awesome Instagram app for iPhone?
I love it...problem is I do not have an iPhone.

And I haven't been able to find anything that was compatible with PSE to get that effect, so I made my own.
{Please note that this will work in other editing platforms!!}

If you would like to have it too, you can download it {for free of course} HERE.

All I ask is that you Like my Facebook page or follow my blog if you don't already.
(although GFC has been having issues lately) 

I made up a few sample images to show you what you're getting.
The frame/action is a .psd file and not an action you install, but it's almost as easy as that. There's a how-to file included in the download and if you need any help, please feel free to ask!
Oh, and you're also able to adjust all layers to suit your tastes.




I played around with this for a while and ran some actions on the flattened 'polaroid' image which worked really well! The X-Ray biplane below is one of those examples. I also think any of Kim Klassen's textures would add a lot of depth to the final image!





I'd love to see what you come up with, so be sure to leave a link to your photo (on your blog or flickr) in the comments!

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And now for some it's-probably-only-exciting-to-me news...
My Bowl of Limes print was on the front page of Etsy yesterday morning!!!





It's my second third time being on the front page this year!
Which is a pretty big deal for me.
Eek...my Rainbow of Watercolors print was featured this morning, too!!

Hope you have a very happy Monday!
:)

Bokeh Overlay Tutorial & Downloads

As a thank you for your visits and to celebrate reaching 100 followers, I've made up a tutorial of sorts to show you how to achieve bokeh overlays and I've put together a few fun bokeh downloads for you too!

I hope you like it.
Now on to the show!

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Capturing beautiful backgrounds of bokeh is easy as pie...or maybe as easy as eating pie.
That's a lot easier than making one...

Step 1. Put down your camera.
Now look around. Do you see any light sources? Do you see that light being reflected anywhere?
It could be off of a car or the sidewalk or the buttons on your kid's jacket.

The next three examples will show you that, much like love, bokeh actually is all around.

(anyone else a fan of the movie Love, Actually?!)

Step 2. Throw those photography rules out the window.
Go on, chuck 'em! Some rules are made to be broken.
This is where underexposure will make your background take on mood and overexposure can give you a bright and airy feel.





The main thing I learned in art school is that art is 90% BS and 10% Skill.
And we're makin' art here people!



Step 3. Hello, Mr. M.
Now pick up your camera and turn it to M - for Manual mode.
...I heard some of you gasp. Go on, you can do it!...
Now that we're all on M, I want you to also go into your settings and change the focus mode to manual.
(some of you may need to dust off that boring booklet that came with your camera - aka: your manual - to find this setting.)

You'll probably need to fiddle with your lens and shutter speed to get the desired effect, but don't worry if it's not 100% perfect sooc - that's why God gave us photo editing software!


QUICK TIP: If you're in a hurry or using a point & shoot I've found that it's helpful to stand at least 10 feet from your bokeh subject, focus on something very close to you and keeping that focus locked in, move your camera so the bokeh subject is in your viewfinder. You should be seeing some cool bokeh, but you may need to tweak this technique to make it work best for you.

Here's a shot I took last Christmas with a p&s:



and here's a shot I took with my dslr using this quick method:



And that's it.
Questions?

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Below are the bokeh overlays for you to download, along with an example of what they look like in use.
One's a little wild, one's a little Renaissance, and one's a little sweet.
...kind of like me! ;)


Click HERE to download all three bokeh backgrounds.



Saturday Night Fever




Princess Bride




Sound of Music

Free Texture Download: Concrete Grunge

Grunge is so hot right now!

(I think Nirvana would be proud.)

So, I've decided to jump on the grunge texture bandwagon!

...which probably means it will lose it's cool next week now that I'm on board. ;) 

I saw this great patch of concrete the other day. 

I've passed this same patch hundreds of times, but never took any notice of it's great texture and color until now.

Better late than never, eh?!

Since I'm all about budget friendly ways to edit, I think it's only fitting that I freely share this new texture with you!

I hope you like it!



 You can download it by clicking HERE or on the image.