Software/Hardware Reviews

Save Those Snapshots!

By: Frank Goad, Frank Communications

We want to know that we're covered in case we don't do things exactly right. We want our robot servant just like in the Jetsons. We'll settle for a little help, and that's what Jade gives you - a little help.

Jade can take a picture that's a bit blurry, under- or over-exposed, that has some contrast problems and perhaps has a bit too much backlight, and likely make it usable. I say "likely" because, like most packages, it has its limits. For instance, it won't repair that group shot in Mammoth Cave when your flash didn't fire.

A good Photoshop effects plug-in must be a real time-saver in a production workflow environment. It must produce eye-catching effects with a few clicks and output them in formats suitable for web, video and print. Alien Skin's Eye Candy 6 provides the workflow speed along with a great deal of variety, flexibility and ease of use.

Class Project - CD front using Bamboo Craft, Corel Painter, and Photoshop

When I saw my first tablet, I thought "What do I need a tablet for? A mouse and keyboard are good enough." After all, the main thing that bugged me about laptops were the touch pad. I was a mouser, but one thing I learned from students, teachers, and group members was that Wacom made the best tablets.

Wacom Bamboo Review

I have used Photoshop for years, but after just a few minutes using Photo Tools 2.5, I was having results that I couldn't achieve with Photoshop alone. In the past, with Photoshop, I have worked to create layers of textures and color to make my images unique. For just one picture, that can translate into an hour, or more, of my time. 

With Photo Tools 2.5,  I have a multitude of special effects options from which to choose that can be adjusted to give me the exact look I want. Instead of spending my time experimenting and tweaking to get the effect I am looking for, I can simply choose an effect and my image is transformed and professional looking. I can also save my favorite effects to simplify my work even more.

EZMask has a very well-branded name. If you currently scratch your head in frustration whenever you try to create a mask around a detailed image (think: grass, fur or hair) you'll appreciate this software. That being said, it doesn't make things quite as "easy" as I'd hoped. Download the free trial and you'll be thrilled to know that it is fully functional - for a certain amount of time. If you plan on evaluating the software, be sure to evaluate it immediately after downloading. Also, be warned: most of the "tutorials" are just before-and-after images with no written instructions.

Photo Tune 3 is a plug-in developed by onOne Software for a variety of digital photo editing software programs like Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, and Apple Aperture.  onOne Software's mission is to develop software that gets you back to shooting.  The purpose of the plugin is to provide you with a useful way to correct or enhance the color of the photos you've taken.  This reviewer is a budding photoshop professional, but a novice in the digital photography world.

FocalPoint by onOne Software is a plug-in for Photoshop that simulates depth-of-field and allows users to apply selective focus to key elements of their photos. If it sounds similar to Photoshop's built-in "Lens Blur" filter it is, but FocalPoint sweetens the deal with some additional tools to help you fine tune your focus.

Model: Intous4 L

I had used Intuos in the past, but never had such a slick tablet with so many great features. It is very thin and cool looking; sleek, black, and large. It is definitely eye catching.

The pad comes with a wireless mouse that can be substituted so that the user doesn't have to have more than one mouse on the desktop. However, the mouse has an odd felt bottom and seems to move rather slowly. I'm used to a nice wireless Logitech moving fast, but the one mouse use negates the slowness somewhat.