Bridge Lake Photo Group

Link to PixImperfect video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wi_c-5qwXTQ

Discover a weird and mind-boggling Brush trick in Photoshop that you probably didn’t know! Learn how to use advanced Photoshop Brushes and Gradient Tool with Blend Modes to create unique patterns, effects, and light leaks. In this tutorial, we will use the randomness of the Difference blend mode to generate a unique texture or pattern with every stroke.

Here’s where you can find how to wile away hours and hours of your time.

MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT

Lighting Equipment Available To Borrow

I have acquired, for use by members of the Bridge Lake Photo Group, the contents of a small photo studio.

The equipment is:

• 2 Elinchrom 500 strobe lights
  • 2 light stands
  • 2 Pocket Wizard triggers
  • Sekonic L358 light meter
  • 2 umbrellas (45” and 36”)
• Backdrops
  • 2 backdrop stands plus crossbar
  • 2 backdrops – white and linen coloured (heavy canvas)
• Reflector (portable)
  • silver
  • white
  • gold
• Mamiya 650 Pro TL Film Camera with 70mm lens and filters
  • takes 120 film
  • miscellaneous filters etc.
• Manfroto Wall Mount Boom
• Antique “Standard” Film Editor/Projector

This equipment will be used for BLPG workshops (once we can do face-to-face meetings) on using strobes, portraiture etc.

It is also available to be borrowed by members who would like to try their hand at using strobes for portraits or other photography. For example, one strobe with stand, umbrella and trigger would give you beautifully lit subjects (dogs, cats, guinea pigs or humans).

Those who might be interested in trying medium format film photography may like to borrow the Mamiya 650, provide the film (120 size, available on, for example, Amazon.ca) plus find a place to get it processed (Kerrisdale Camera in Vancouver), and, with the lighting kit, make wonderful photos.

Blake Rudis has just published a short video exposing the power of reflected gradients to create light in your photos where there may be none or to change colours in part of your photo. Included is a set of gradients and actions.

You can follow this link to the video: https://f64academy.com/amazing-reflected-gradient-photoshop/?mc_cid=5a8c74ce12&mc_eid=3eec4934be

It’s time.

It’s unavoidable.

The time has come to trim a lot of the accumulated images, comments, posts and so forth on the Bridge Lake Photo Group website. As a result you are going to see some major changes from the work which is now underway.

First, all images accumulated and displayed from 2017 and before have now been removed. As a consequence, if your Photographers Showcase page had images from 2017 and before, those have now disappeared – only headings remain and those will be removed as time allows.

Deleting the thousands of images has resulted in a significant reduction in the space used by our website, from over 62% of our 13 GB allowance to 17%, a drop of nearly 6 GB.

Second, from now on we will only show, in addition to the current year’s images, comments and posts, those of the previous three full years. So, currently, we will display all images, comments, and posts for 2018, 2019 and 2020 plus 2021. When 2022 rolls around, we will remove all the above material from 2018. This regular maintenance will keep the website current, relevant and faster. If it still seems slow, we’ll reduce one more year’s accumulated material.

The changes to the website will not be completely done for another few weeks, but if you notice anything odd please let me know and I will investigate.

Thanks for your patience.

Here’s a 500Px gallery that might help you find that perfect minimalism example: https://500px.com/p/500px/galleries/minimalism-collection-1

Here’s a simple way, using Photoshop, to make your images pop. And you’ll learn a bit about using the colour mode Lab (L=Lightness, a=Channel a, b=Channel b).

It’s hard to show the difference, in a post, between the two photos above. To properly see the effect, click first on one photo above and then on the other. Both images should open as Tabs in your browser. Simple click back and forth between the two to see the difference.

Let me describe the process.

Open your image in Photoshop. You are going to duplicate the image (not the layer). You do this by selecting Image>Duplicate, checking the box which says Duplicate Merged Layers Only (it will be greyed out if there is only one layer), and accepting the suggested name for the image file (the original name with the word copy appended). This will result in a new image file being created.

Make sure that the new file is selected and then Image>Mode>Lab Color.

Now highlight your original image file/tab. Create a new blank layer (select + at the bottom of the layers panel). Again, go up to Image>Apply Image, but make sure that the Source is the copy image, select b as the Channel, the Layer is Background, the Blend Mode is Multiply at 100%. Select OK.

Finally change the blend mode of the new layer to either Overlay or, if the effect is too much, to Soft Light. To see the effect, toggle the visibility of the new layer off and on. Note that you can also change the Opacity of the new layer.

You can now delete the image you created by duplicating.

If you look in the Members Area – Helpful Information For Members you’ll see that a new document has been added.  It’s by Julianne Kost and, in ten pages(!), it lists all the keyboard shortcuts for ACR 2020.

Book-Print-The-Powell-St.-Line

Follow this link and do what she says: https://hackingphotography.com/fun-with-multiple-exposures/

Note that the multiple exposures are just a series of single shots for each of which you move the camera just a little bit.  Got a barn nearby, or an old shed, or any subject.  You’ll be amazed at what will come out at the end.  Go on, have some fun!

Thanks to Sharon Jensen for discovering this blog post.

Latona and the Lycian Peasants – Jan Brueghel c.1605

Do you use textures or overlays in your photo editing?  If so, you might be interested to know that Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum allows you to download and edit images any of thousands of objects (paintings, sculptures, drawings, furniture, clothing …).

And once you’ve downloaded the image, you can select parts of it to use in your editing.

Detail: Latona and the Lycian Peasants – Jan Brueghel c.1605

If you want a real challenge, how about showing a framed version of a famous work hanging on the wall of a room you’ve photographed.

Or do something like this (recognize the background?).

K23-S6499 – Waiting – Derek Chambers

The file could not be found

How many times have you cursed Lightroom for losing your photos?

Anthony Morganti has the solution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwHKHGY_d-c