So says Bette Davis in the classic “All About Eve”.
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Well, we are having quite the bumpy night, day, weeks and more to come with this economy. Not just in the states but all over.
Can’t wait to see the art that comes from this part of our global history.
And luckily you are dealing in a medium that can be traveled easily and communicated immediately.

But we want to help. Sure, we will keep doing our freebie giveaways. There are some other things though.
Man (or woman) does not live by bread alone. You must continually feed the spirit.
And sometimes that happens by having a look at the art around you.
We figured a start may be to point out some of the free museum days around the world at some of the best collections of art.

At the Tate Modern Gallery in London, it’s always free.
MOMA in NYC – free after 4 on Fridays thanks to Target
LACMA – Los Angeles, second Tuesday of each month is free for general admission to the permanent galleries and non-ticketed exhibitions. Plus Monday, October 13, Columbus Day
Tuesday, November 11, Veterans Day
Thanks again, Target.
MOCA in Los Angeles is free Thursdays from 5-8 PM
Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago . Free Free Free ALL THE TIME!
Free 1st Tuesday: SF MOMA (Museum of Modern Art). Third Street between Mission and Howard.
Not completely free but The Metropolitan Museum in NYC you can give a donation of your choice. Really. It’s cool.

In Paris all national museums are free the first Sunday of each month.
Of course all of the Galleries we list on the RESOURCE Page are free to visit.

You know, the museums we listed could also use your yearly membership fees. They are all pretty reasonable. And have some cool benefits. They all usually have a photography exhibit.

Just remember you don’t have to forego these great visits, even if the current financial situation has limited your funds.
Did I say cheap date? Nah, quality cultural outing.

If you have some cool ideas on helping your fellow photo folks get more bang for no buck, let’s share it here.

It’s not just about the high ISO, or face recognition, or auto focus.
Nope. What it IS about is light. Of course that depends on what your definition of is, is.
Sorry, just a little Clinton humor.

So it’s the addition of light or the subtraction of light that can make a photograph.
Yes, we all can walk around and make our images with the on-board flash, or existing light, or even the combination of existing light and the on-board flash for fill.
Or the framing and lensing, utilizing the light that is there. Henri Cartier-Bresson was a master of light, and he knew the light that was available to him, naturally.

Let’s step you up a bit, in the lighting dept. though. With some very simple tools, including your speedlight flash, you can create some very cool looking shots, by shaping the light.
And by shaping, we mean bouncing, reflecting, focusing, coloring, and your light.
It may be as easy as using a white wall to bounce light, as you position your subject to get that extra boost pointed in their direction.

As a kid, I bought a 12-inch reflector that would take a photo bulb with a high wattage. Then I added a Larson Umbrella that would double as a bounce surface allowing me to start shaping the light. The Larson brollie is still in the kit.

Not until I became an assistant photographer did the real learning kick in. Big lights, strobe packs, stands, booms, scrims, grids and lions and tiger and bears. Oh my.

[photopress:94_product_image_1921245218.jpg,full,alignright] But this week we have an excellent DVD,
Lighting Essentials
with Jack Reznicki, to get you started immediately in your learning of the use of light in your photographs.
Its not the final word, because we are always learning.
Perhaps this will give you the classic tools to help you make the leap into the light. Click on the picture and you’ll be taken to the Software-Cinema site for a preview

Trust me, even if you’ve been doing it awhile, you’ll pick up a thing or two.

The hope is that with this DVD, you will not only learn how to use light to simplyâ€:wellâ€:.illuminate, but add the drama, emotion, and storytelling to your photographs to help you communicate in the medium you’ve chosen.

Perhaps with a little extra knowledge, when you experience an image you will also look at it, and be able to suss out the lighting techniques. Not just checking the catch lights in the eyes to see the lighting set-up, but learning how the photographer shaped and modified light to treat the subject in the appropriate manner.
Check out these diverse lighting setups:

[photopress:fotos_de_annie_leibowitz_2.JPG,full,centered]©Annie Leibowitz

[photopress:sherilynfennbig_1.GIF,full,centered] © George Hurrell
[photopress:ChristopherWalken_2.jpg,full,centered] © Martin Schoeller

The more you know, the easier it will be to discover the lighting techniques.

All of the details on getting this DVD will be in this weeks NEWSLETTER, so make sure you’re signed up. It comes out Weds. @9:00AM PST so you have to be signed up by Tuesday eve.

How did we get to this giveaway? Honestly, just been tuning up the lighting package, so it’s all top of mind.
On the portable side, added a Norman 19” Softbox for a QFlash, and a Beauty Dish to the Dyna Lite set up.
Apparently going soft.

By exploring all of the options and discussing it with colleagues, we realized that the right tool for the right job was never more apparent.

We felt that as we discuss gear, software and photography books, a solid knowledge of light is essential. For execution and appreciation.

And we’ll be offering the Annie Leibowitz book, once released, where she’ll discuss her techniques and approach to lighting

So here we have this weeks DVD. We can continue the education as a group.
The comments section is a place to start.

OK, maybe we buried it at the end, but that wasn’t our intention. We want you to learn.
So does Adobe.
Here are series of videos on their full line of products and of course, we are highlighting the photographic side of the street.
Adobe.TV will give you a fuller preview of the goods BEFORE you spend the coin. Plus there are some great short lessons from a variety of providers.

Now this guy, Russell Brown, is a little over-caffeinated, and “as seen on TV”, but you’ll get the point. Pretty cool stuff here.

CS4 Content Aware Scale: Sure it sounds good, but what the heck is it?

Spectral Panorama: you may have guessed this one. Stitching and spherical mapping.

You get the picture. Take a look, bookmark for when you’re at work tomorrow (and have an…. ummmm…. legitimate break) and go through the rest.
We just wanted to re emphasize this site so you can really evaluate your next purchase, or even get more out the software you have. All for free.

And have a nice day.

Being in NYC last week and taking the subway to most places, this book, Many Are Called by Walker Evans, kept coming back to mind.
The best way to get around Manhattan, and the thickest concentration of the heartbeat of the city, the subway has a unique dynamic.

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Everyone creates their own space and forms an almost invisible, cone of silence around them. It protects and shields them from the rest of the crowd as they wait for the screeching wheels to deliver them to the next stop.
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Mainly furtive glances at others or deep concentration on the written word, which is only broken by the occasional performer or zealot, sharing their skills, asking for a donation.

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This trip brought a new one for me: not a musical performance but a man claiming to have knowledge of Al Queda operations, who was then put in jail, and now released to continue his self proclaimed mission of information. A small donation was all he asked for. Speaking pretty loud, he was approaching everyone as we pretended that he was invisible, avoiding his intense gaze.
The next stop just about emptied the subway car. Actually an unusual reaction since folks asking for donations is pretty standard.

I only share this to illustrate a bit of the dense, diverse humanity that exists on the NYC subway today.
And in the 30’and 40’s, Walker Evans spent 3 years chronicling the riders. The resulting exhibit and book were called “Many Are Called” with an introduction by James Agee, a writer who seemed to collaborate with many photographers of the time.

I have to believe the the images made today would be eerily similar.

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His photographs were made surreptitiously with hidden cameras. Just about the only way to do it.
There is an unspoken privacy on the cars. Your limited physical space and your visual space is respected by the other passengers because they also live in the same world of underground travelers.

This book speaks to a different time but the humanity appears to be the same.

We would like to give this classic book to one of you and hear what your thoughts are on the photographing of individuals in this mass transit life studio. One thing to remember is to turn off the shutter release sound. Trust me, I know.

If you are signed up for the NEWSLETTER, you will get and email tomorrow at 9:00AM PST with all of the details on how to get this book gratis.
Real easy.

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Except instead of a tired franchise long removed from it’s premium original, this new version of Photoshop puts more than lipstick on this software.[photopress:ps_cs4_bxshot_3in.jpg,full,centered]

Today Adobe announced the new line of creative suites for the professional market, although the advanced amateur will be able to use them all. Photoshop CS4 and CS4 Extended were unveiled this morning.

In a year where they have been introducing massive moves forward in digital imaging for every photographer with a range from the free Photoshop.com online, to Photoshop Elements, we get the long awaited upgrade to a mainstay product, CS4.

But is it a huge move forward?

Well, as the world turns, and the separate silos of web, flash, video, and print converge in all of our visual life, with of course mobile becoming a major factor. Adobe has kept step with that, as seen in the last round of Creative Suite products.

So let’s take a look, and see what some of the new features are in this version, specifically CS4 and CS4 Extended. The suite discussion will happen at a later date.

Essentially, there are improvements to your working toolbox that take into consideration the comments of those who use Photoshop daily.

You will be able to resize and scale images with a simple mouse drag. 2 steps less work. And it’ll make your layouts easier to format. We saw this awhile back in Beta and now it’s here for you in a simple tool. Imagine putting your photographs into an appropriate medium like a mobile device, and having the image translate. (Think photobooks, too)
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Canvas Rotation lets you work on an image from any angle. As someone who uses a Wacom tablet, this is a sweet improvement.
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Bridge has become faster in regards to transferring your images to Photoshop and will display your visual work in new ways for them, but common for Apple uses- the Carousel mode. (By the way, did anyone see the Mad Men episode when Don Draper pitches Kodak on the Carousel name? Brilliant)

And there is an Adjustment Panel that is fricking amazing. taking some of the cues from Lightroom 2, this ability to work on the image directly with this uncluttered set of tools is a major workflow help.
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And of course the CS4 Extended version has lots more features that honestly, may only excite the true working pro.

All in all, Adobe once again, proves why they are the industry standard. The dedication to constantly improving your digital imagery life takes another huge step.

We’ll be working out the details with a hands on look on this soon. We’ve found there are always discoveries when the product is put into a real world run through.

The pricing is not that different than the last version- $699 for the CS4 full product, and $999. For the extended.
The upgrade will be $199.00

Remember, you use this product constantly. The upgrade cost is truly short stroke money to make your workflow better. True?

Want to see more and how it relates to what you do?
Check out Adobe TV.