PSIG News: October 2004 e-News
October 8, 2004

October Meeting

The October PSIG meeting will be held on Thursday the 14th, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at Voorhees High School in room 245. There will be a question-and-answer session and we will continue to look at some of Scott Kelby’s “Down and Dirty Photoshop Tricks” training movies.

Assignment: October Project

As discussed at the September meeting, the first monthly assignment has been posted on the SIG website. Jane Rapp has shared a scanned photo and would like to clean it up. The challenge to all members is to download the Photoshop file and take a crack at retouching it. While the reconstruction of the legs is the initial focus, the extent and process of retouching is wide open. Members will be asked to share their results at the October meeting. In order to participate, please bring your final image, a layered version (if possible) and be prepared to say a little about what you did. Even less-than-successful attempts should be shared with the group. Participation is encouraged but not mandatory. Materials can be e-mailed to Matt ahead of time.

From Raw to DNG to .psd…

In late September, Adobe introduced a new file format in an attempt to standardize the raw format created by digital cameras. DNG, which represents “digital negative,” will attempt to be “the public, archival format for digital camera raw data.” Adobe has a comprehensive DNG webpage with information, and a freely downloadable DNG converter.

Photo Plus Expo

This is another reminder for those interested in the Photo Plus Expo. This photography and design conference returns to the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York from October 21-23. Geared to photography, this show often has some worthwhile Photoshop-related information, and Adobe is scheduled to have a booth and they will be holding a special DNG information session. In addition to the seminars, there is a free expo for early registrants. Visit the Photo Plus Expo 2004 website for information and registration.

Tips and Tricks

Snapshots with Freedom

To create Snapshots from the History Palette with more options, select the “Create New Snapshot” button and change the “From” option to “Merged Layers” or “Current Layer.” Now you can have a history snapshot with just the layers you want.

Layer Effects Removal

If you want to remove all the Layer Effects applied to a particular layer, don’t drag them all into the trash one by one. The fastest way is to simply drag the word “Effects” right into the Trash icon at the bottom of the Layers palette, and all the effects go right along with it.