· Posted by Admin

How to Be A Cover Girl after 40

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1. Make sure time and budget constraints require you to hire yourself.

2. Make sure the author of your latest book is not only a great photographer but also a kickasss Photoshop retouching genius.

3. Cover wrinkly bits with camera.

Voila (new from O’Reilly):

Next entry:Winners (or “For the Love of Deke’s Giant Head”)

Previous entry:Sixties Space Siren

  • Ack! It’s the Borg!

    How did that camera get in your eye?

    Awesome photo Colleen—and congrats! (extra points for holding the camera so straight).

    Mordy Golding


    http://rwillustrator.blogspot.com

  • You’re over 40?!

    Holy carp, I hope I look half as good as you when I reach ...oh, nevermind…too late. :(

    Congrats on the cover - great pic. Beautiful light.

    Is this where you now start commanding big $$$$$‘s, travelling the world, and hooking up with rock gods and film stars? Hope so! :-D

     

  • Assimilate This!

    Be a Canon digital rebel and vote Colleen for new Borg Queen. Resistance is futile! :•)

    Congrats Colleen, although I must admit I am somewhat disappointed you aren’t wearing the new sidekick costume.

    “collectively”,

    Thomas Benner


    The Art Institute of Austin

  • I saw that, Colleen

    *giggles*

    Moar Martinis, k, thx, plz!

    teehee…

  • Fetching as ever

    Don’t sell yourself short, 40 is the new 20.

  • I’ll ask my question here

    ...seeing as it is more related to Photoshop and photography, rather than PS and graphic design.

    Deke, in your series you recommend the colour conversion intent thingy to be set to perceptual. But in ‘The Creative Digital Darkroom’ by Eismann/Duggan, they recommend relative colorimetric. What’s the diff?

    (I appreciate that this topic may be too big for someone as busy as you, Deke, to take the time to answer - so I’ll throw the question out to all gurus.)

    Also, ProPhoto for 16 bit RAW. Is this a space I should be working in? My camera doesn’t have the option (it’s currently set to Adobe RGB), so is it worth me using that colour space in PS?

    :-/


    ps: Also, is there any chance of a Q&A section on dekePod, for all those CS questions we all have that don’t belong to a specific dekePod topic? Pretty please?

  • What, you don’t like this ad hoc style of Q&A?

    Where I miss half the questions?

    Both Perceptual and Relative Colorimetric are rendering intents that are strictly of use when converting an image from one profile to another. (With the exception of printing, you may do very little of that, so it may not really matter.) Both are of the greatest value when going from a big-gamut space, like Adobe RGB, to a smaller gamut, like CMYK of all stripes.

    The easiest way to think of Perceptual is that it takes all the colors used in the big gamut and scales them as a group proportionally to fit inside the smaller gamut. The extreme colors (and even some important mediums like skin tones) might shift, hopefully very slightly. But the relationship between colors remains intact (hence volumetric detail and contouring and depth and all that good stuff).

    Relative Colorimetric seeks to match each color to its closest equivalent in the source gamut. Which would normally be fine. But Adobe’s own advice is very telling: “Recommended for most color conversions, especially when most source colors are already inside the destination gamut.”

    That last part is where things are most likely to go haywire. Here are two extreme scenarios:

    —Many of your source colors are outside the destination gamut. Perceptual shifts all the colors to compensate, creating a body of smooth transitions. Relative Colorimetric clips the out-of-gamut colors. Perceptual wins.

    —Few of your source colors are outside the destination gamut. Relative Colorimetric nails the values. Perceptual shifts the colors so little as to go unnoticed. Virtual tie (with slight edge to RC).

    I generally favor RC for graphic art and Perceptual for photographic. (It’s more nuanced than that, but if you’re looking for general advice, there it is.) That said, I very much admire Katrin (I cowrote her first book), and I imagine she and Sean have practical evidence to suggest their preference for RC, other than Adobe said so.

  • Thanks for the reply, Deke

    I don’t mind the ad hoc style. I’m one o’them laid back go wit da flow types. Hell, I was just thinking of how much easier it would be for you. ;-p

    Actually, it probably would be easier for you, too, because if you did have a Q&A section that was searchable, then it would be easy for all your dekePodophiles to do a quick search to see if a question they may have has already been answered, which means that you would not have to repeat yourself when n00bs ask the same question you’ve answered many times before. It also makes it easier for others here to perhaps answer questions they know the answers to, which means that you would be freer to blow up more than just the one balloon for two gorgeous boys. I’m all about working smarter not harder, y’see. Intelligent laziness is a beautiful thing. :-D

    I’ll stick with perceptual, which is what I’d had things set to ever since I bought your TT CS2 training dvds. Besides I always listen to the cute ones first. I know, I’m so shallow. So bite me. :-D

    Thanks again, Deke.

  • Hardware Advice Needed for CS4

    Help!

    I need to purchase a Mac Desktop and a Mac Laptop (in the next few weeks) to run the CS4 Master Collection. I use Photoshop, Illustrator, Fireworks, Dreamweaver, Flash and Premiere Pro for the classes I teach. I plan to spend a lot of time in After Effects this coming year.

    Yes, I have seen Adobe’s system requirements. I have also read multiple posts in the Adobe forums about how slow CS4 runs if you just meet the minimum requirements… I don’t want that! Also, the Mac geniuses in our two local Apple stores know nothing about this (in case anyone should suggest that). Hopefully, someone can offer something more substantial than “get a Mac Pro rather than an iMac” or “MacBookPro rather than a MacBook”.... that was the best answer I got at the NAPP site.

    I’m hoping someone here has good advice on how to get the most bang for my buck. I really will spend whatever is needed but want to get the best value I can. I have heard rumors (from the Kim Komando Show) of a big “Black Friday” Apple sale coming soon and want to be prepared in case they have something I can effectively use on sale.

    Also, any PC advice would be appreciated as one of the computer labs I use is all PCs and we need to upgrade it. Thanks in Advance!

    my fingers are crossed and I’m hopin’ I get lucky here,

    Thomas

    Thomas Benner


    The Art Institute of Austin

  • Get a graphics card with plenty of RAM

    And plenty of RAM.

    The advanced thing where you can spin the image to paint on it as if it were a piece of paper needs a card with at least 128mb RAM. That’s what I have and it’s enough, just. I’d say go with a card that has at least 512mb.

    And then get the most RAM you can afford.

    That’s about all the advice I’ve got. Hopefully someone will chime in if there’s anything else you need to be aware of. :)

    Good luck, Thomas

    ‘Wiedersehen!

     

     

  • Get a MacBook Pro over a MacBook

    Oh, wait, that’s what the NAPP guys said.

    You need both a laptop and a notebook? Okay, here’s my real advice:

    —For the notebook, shell out the bucks and get a MacBook Pro. My understanding is that both MacBooks and MacBook Pros offer Nvidia cards, which will get you OpenGL. But long-term, you’re going to be happier with the Pro. I mean, are you seriously going to be okay without a FireWire 800 port? See this link.

    —This next bit of advice is going to get me in hot water with some of you, but if I were you, I’d turn around and save all that money you spent on the MacBook Pro and invest in a really solid Win Vista workstation. Completely pull out the stops, you’ll still save $1000 over Apple. And you get the experience of learning Windows if you haven’t already. Call me old-school (I know, Steve Jobs can do no wrong), but I forced myself to come to terms with Windows more than a decade ago, and I’m glad I did. Keeps me flexible. And the PC handles some things better. Not many, but some.

    Black Friday sale, really? Let me know when this happens I need a new Mac Pro tower. (I currently use a G5, for real, and even CS3 gets cranky over that.)

  • You’d choose Windows over a Mac?

    I’m surprised, as most people I know who are into photography or graphics are really very snobby about the whole Mac vs Windows thing, to the point of being Mac evangelicals.


    (edit: nevermind - question already answered.)

  • Well, you must’ve noticed

    I record all my videos for lynda.com on a PC. It’s not a platform preference. I really try to steer clear of that one (even though it’s impossible to deny Apple’s been getting a ton of stuff right lately). It’s that Camtasia is such a great screen recording product.

    But truth be told, I’ll settle into any machine once I make it mine. (Yes, that is an overarching analogy.)

  • Yup, I’d noticed

    I think you even mentioned that you only use a pc because Camtasia demands it.

    I’ve never worked on a Mac so I really have no idea of the difference - except for the fact that it is far, far less prone to viruses and everyone tells me it is far superior for any kind of image work. But they’re so darned expensive, and from what I can gather much harder to get into the case and play with it’s guts. Which is something I quite like to do with my computer from time to time. Screwdrivers and things are too cool for me to leave well enough alone.

    :)

  • Thanks for the good advice

    Thanks for the advice…  I do feel more comfortable with your feedback. Wish I could hear from someone saying “yes, I use XXX and CS4 rocks on it!” Apple sells their factory refurbs at up to 40% off and I don’t want to splurge full price on the “latest and greatest” unless I have to.

    No. You are right. I couldn’t live without my firewire… no way. no how… so that means a MacBook Pro for the laptop…. Cool!

    As to the desktop, I’ve been teaching on both the Mac and Windows platforms for the last few years…. each week some of my classes are PC only and some are Mac only and I understand your point about being multi-platform savvy especially when running a few “Windows-only” applications. But honestly, the Mac runs Windows very well under BootCamp and several other solutions and I can copy and paste between OS’s that way…. we’ve come a long way since “Virtual PC” (and I’ve got instructor PC’s that I use at the schools where I teach) so I don’t see buying a PC for home just to run Windows unless I’m missing something here. I do appreciate where you are coming from about being open to both platforms and feel very comfortable moving back and forth between the two platforms.

    I am not a “Mac Nazi”, Petra.  I just enjoy being able to get my work done without the pesky Windows annoyances and interruptions I run into whenever I teach my PC-based classes…. the Mac has its own annoyances, for some reason, they just really annoy me a whole lot less :-) I say, whatever floats your boat, use it and live and let live. They are only tools after all!

    Whatever I get, I will max out the Ram for sure.

    Thanks for your insights,


    Thomas

    Thomas Benner


    The Art Institute of Austin

    p.s. I heard about the Apple Black Friday stuff on today’s Kim Kommando show and, if I hear more, I will let you know. I always check the Black Friday sales first before I do a tech purchase this time of year.

  • I wouldn’t dare call you a \“Mac Nazi\”, Thomas!

    No, no, no. You seem like far too reasonable and personable a man for me to speak so harshly!

    :)

  • Deke - Black Friday Info You Asked for - Mac Pro Deal

    There are a number of web sites that keep track of Black Friday deals… a Google search should turn up a bunch of them, such as
    www.BlackFridayAds.com
    www.BlackFriday.info

    bfads.net

    MacTech Forums has an area devoted to Mac “deals” at:


    http://forums.mactech.com/ubbthreads.php/forums/28/1/Deals_and_Special_Offers

    MacConnection is running deep discounts on notebooks, desktops, and iPods.

    I think their “Black Friday” Holiday sale actually runs thru 11/30

    They have a MacPro Tower on sale: Mac Pro One 2.8GHz Quad-core Intel Xeon 2GB RAM(2x1GB) 320GB 16x SuperDrive 2600XT for $2149

    MacBooks starting at $799.99 after rebate. 8GB iPod touch for $209.99.

    http://www.macconnection.com/ipa/home

    DealMac Daily update: Best Buy has posted its Black Friday doorbusters online.


    http://dealmac.com/Best-Buy-posts-its-Black-Friday-ad/263294.html?ref=html_dealmacdaily

    Finally, Apple’s official 1-day “Shopping Event” (Steve Jobs seems to love events) can be found at:


    http://store.apple.com/us?Email_OID=390878&Email_PageName=C0008213-135657_Mac_Consumer&cid=CDM-US-Seasonal-C0008213-135657&cp=135657&sr=em

    and now, back to burying my head in the ancient mysteries of Text on a Path vs. the Text Art Brush in your Lynda.com Illustrator class. :-)

    good luck & hope this helps,


    Thomas

    Thomas Benner


    http://www.masteradobe.com

  • Ah ha ha

    Time to set my diabolical Black Friday plans in motion.

    Hardware shall be purchased—ah ha ha ha ha-ha! Ha!

    (If I get around to it, that is. Thx Thomas!)

  • More Black Friday Madness: Get 40% off any of Deke’s Books

    What? Get any of Deke’s books at almost half-price? Yes. This deal should be useful to most here.

    Barnes and Noble is making this deal available thru November 30, either at their stores or thru online shopping.

    You can get 40% off any one book (and they sell just about anything you might need) until November 30.

    The details are at:


    http://www.barnesandnoble.com/email/nav.asp?r=1&PID=26036

    I just used this online to pre-order Deke’s new “Channels and Masks” book for $22.49 ($28.67 after taxes and shipping charges). My credit card is charged the day the order ships.

    Note: you must use a MasterCard card and enter the coupon code at checkout.

    Happy Turkey Day!


    Thomas

    Thomas Benner


    The Art Institute of Austin

    p.s. My CS4 Master Collection arrived today. Yea! (feels like Christmas) and now I’m psyched about buying new hardware to run it.

  • Mac Pro One 2.8GHz Quad-core Intel Xeon Good Choice for CS4?

    Do you think this MacPro Tower on sale seem like a good value for running CS4?

    Mac Pro One 2.8GHz Quad-core Intel Xeon 2GB RAM(2x1GB) 320GB 16x SuperDrive 2600XT for $2149

    Or would a “beefier” version of the Mac Pro make a big difference in terms of performance?

    BTW, I got your G5 wayyyy beat in terms of old crankiness… I’m upgrading from a G4 400Mhz… I try to get the most out of my macs before I upgrade. :-) The G4 still works fine for everything except 10.5 and CS4… I’ll still use it as a backup desktop machine.

    Thanks!


    Thomas

    Thomas Benner


  • Cover Girl again

    It appears that Colleen is gracing another cover:

    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/059680363X/ref=pe_5060_12594310_snp_dp

    Although she’s probably much to shy to mention it ;-)

  • My book, but not my cover, Jeremy!

    We shook things up and used a boy for the T1i book: Flavio Salazar. The interior shots make it more obvious that it’s not me, but a rather (ahem) attractive male dancer:

  • I should have seen…

    the rings were different from the last cover shot you did.

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