Download the Photoshop World DC Brochure!

In March, Photoshop World will bring a new party to our nation’s capital to offer three non-stop days of informative, inspirational and invaluable photography, lighting and Photoshop training from seasoned professionals more than happy to share their tried-and-true tips and techniques.

From new and returning instructors like Greg Heisler, Jack Davis, Calvin Hollywood, Frank Doorhof and Jeremy Cowart to the addition of two new tracks, our first-ever Photoshop World in Washington DC is a can’t miss affair!

Click here to visit the landing page we’ve set up for easy downloading the official Photoshop World brochure, which will be arriving with the January issue of Photoshop User.

The brochure features descriptions of all training sessions and optional pre-conference workshops, a list of participating instructors and much more.

And don’t forget to register before Friday, February 17 to save an extra $100 off the registration rate.

So download the brochure today and start planning now for the ultimate educational experience!

Introducing Your PSW Las Vegas Onsite Bloggers!

In less than two weeks, Photoshop World will bring the world’s best photography, lighting and Photoshop training to the Las Vegas strip.

For three jam-packed days, the Mandalay Bay Convention Center will be all abuzz as photographers, artists and graphic designers from all over the world come together to learn from some of the industry’s best & brightest pro-structors (seasoned pros who can teach like nobody’s business).

Whether you’re attending this year’s conference or tracking the activity from afar, we don’t want you to miss a single moment. So we’ve compiled a great team of bloggers to give you complete round-the-clock coverage of all the goings-on at Photoshop World. Some are seasoned PSW alumni; others are first-timers. They’re photographers, graphic designers and artists from various backgrounds and skill levels… And they’re ready to share their Photoshop World experiences with you!

Meet this year’s all-star bloggers!

David Hodgins

Living in British Columbia, Canada, almost all his life, David Hodgins is an avid amateur with professional aspirations. Picking up his first DLSR in 2009, he wanted more from his images. That’s where Kelby Media came in. There is still a long road ahead, and Photoshop World is another stop on that path. He has a recent addiction to lighting. David is an adult educator and training developer in emergency communications. This will be David’s first PSW.

Kristina Jacob

Kristina Jacob is an avid photographer who loves to blend her geographic background with photography. The Los Angeles-based photographer moves from macro shots of flowers to broad landscape shots as she rebuilds a unique view of the world around her. Since picking up her first SLR years ago, she hasn’t stopped exploring life, nature and architecture through her lens. She builds on her love of photography through learning from great organizations like NAPP. Click here to read blog posts about her photography and experiences. This will be Kristina’s second PSW.

Theresa Jackson

Theresa Jackson is the owner of Orchard View Color, a graphic design business in Escondido, California. With 25 years experience in the print/graphics industry, her major focus is print design, including wide-format printing. Theresa also writes a bi-monthly technical column for Signs Of The Times magazine covering Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator tips for the signs industry. Her real passion though, is for fine art photography and Photoshop. She is an active member of the PhotoArts Group in San Diego and shows new work almost every month in local galleries. This will be Theresa’s second PSW.

Jim Patterson

Jim Patterson is professor of Business/IT at Paradise Valley Community College and an avid photographer in Phoenix. He specializes in travel, outdoors and portraits. Jim administers the NAPP-Arizona Facebook page and has led three NAPP photo walks in the Phoenix area, too. Click here to see more of Jim’s work. This will be Jim’s third PSW.

Melissa Reyes-Abbey

Melissa (Mel) Reyes-Abbey is a super busy mom, wife, coach, photo meetup organizer and photographer from St. Johns, FL (a suburb of Jacksonville). She’s an action photographer who loves portraiture and believes that ESPN will beg for her photos. She strives to learn as much as she can about how to create her vision and shape light. Being a social-media junkie, She’s found a ton of resources through books and the internet to educate herself. That’s how she found NAPP. SnapshotArtistry.com has been her business for almost two years. She loves happy clients and sharing what she’s learned with her fellow photographers. This will be Mel’s second PSW.

Kevin Stohlmeyer

NAPP member Kevin Stohlmeyer is an Adobe Certified Instructor, User Group Manager and Adobe Freelance Professional for Photoshop. The Milwaukee-based graphic designer specializes in digital illustration. Kevin has more than 15 years of experience in the field and has been teaching Adobe’s Creative Suite since 2000. Check out his blog posts at c2gps.com/blog. This will be Kevin’s fifth PSW.

So make sure to check back often from Tuesday, September 6 – Friday, September 9, 2011 to check out their blog posts, photos and videos from this year’s PSW and get a taste of this year’s must-attend photography, lighting and Photoshop training conference!

Expo Alert: [Post]Work It Out!

If you’re looking to liven up your photography or graphic designs, there’s one source to help give your work some extra oomph quickly and easily… Xycod’s innovative image editing software, PostworkShop.

“The program combines over 400 pre-built artistic filters with a novel toolkit for painting, photo-cloning and retouching,” discloses John Stevenson, Xycod‘s director of business development. “A broad range of freehand digital painting and sketching options are presented, within a straightforward, easy to learn workflow.”

Whether you’re a graphic designer, artist or photographer, PostworkShop allows you to creatively reinterpret your images with your own personal touch.

“It’s all about transformation,” asserts Stevenson. “You are the artist. PostworkShop just makes it easy!”

During this year’s Photoshop World Expo, you’ll see firsthand just how easily PostworkShop can enhance your life. For the first time ever, Xycod will be exhibiting its lineup of programs, including PostworkShop 2.1, which now provides direct access to Fotolia‘s premium image marketplace.

“We have been able to use the API toolkit made available by Fotolia to create a supplementary front-end for our flagship product,” announces Bela Biro, Xycod’s CEO. “Specifically to allow the search, browsing, purchase, download and enhancement of any image in Fotolia’s catalog entirely within the application itself.”

So if you’re ready to simply create with maximum impact and without restriction, make sure to stop by Xycod’s booth (#241) at the PSW Expo for a live demonstration of PostworkShop 2.1. It will transform your life… or at least your life’s work!

Click here to check out a video tutorial of PostworkShop 2.1.

Click here to download your FREE Expo Pass. Please note: Registered Photoshop World attendees get instant admission to the PSW Expo with their conference badge.

Movie Making Made Easy at Photoshop World!

In recent years, there’s been a steady increase in the public’s appetite for video. People are clamoring for audiovisual entertainment that will enlighten, inspire or motivate them…or at least make them laugh ’til they cry. And they’re quick to share the standouts with their family, friends and colleagues. In some cases, it takes mere minutes for a video to get one million views on YouTube.

But not all videos are worth sharing. Some lack the pop to make a great impression due to issues like poor storytelling, grainy footage or shaky shooting.

So what does it take to create Hollywood-quality videos with stunning cinematography? Well, now you can find out by participating in a just-announced pre-con workshop at Photoshop World Las Vegas entitled “Intro To HDSLR Movie Making.”

Sponsored by Canon, this comprehensive workshop will be led by Pulitzer Prize winner Vincent Laforet, who has been credited with starting the HDSLR revolution by creating the first DSLR movie, “Reverie.” The poignant narrative short film — shot in less than 72 hours with no pre-production time, a minimal cast and crew and an out-of-pocket budget — was the first 1080p video shot with a still camera. During its release in 2009, “Reverie” was seen more than two million times in the first week alone.

During Laforet’s intensive class, he’ll teach you the tools and techniques employed by the top directors of photography in Hollywood to create primetime television programs and feature films. And, he’ll shine a spotlight on the gear used to make movies including cameras, lenses, tripods, mounts and steadicams, as well as post-production techniques in Adobe Premier.

So if you’re looking to kick start your Photoshop World experience and want to learn more about movie making with a still camera, make sure to sign up today! If you’ve already registered for Photoshop World and would like to take this new pre-con, please call Customer Service at (800) 738-8513 and they’ll sign you up.

NAPP Photo Safari

The location of the NAPP shoot was a closely guarded secret, where would the two-bus group of PSW orange-attired inmates led by Peterson/McNally go? The Safari schedule started with opening remarks and wonderful slide presentation by Moose, then

McNally helping to defray the groups fear of shooting poor images with a quip about his success rate…’If I were a stock or Bond, and you were the investor…you’d be flat broke…”, with photography, failure is an option, … an option to grow and learn from. Peterson added, Mistakes are the path to good pictures…and the mantra as we headed off to the buses was….Go for a fabulously famous failure…..

Well, the location for the photo shoot was soon revealed to revolved around one of Moose Peterson’s current passions; warbirds and aviation, with some McNally models added as an extra spice !!.  We hit the first public airfield, a short drive from the PSW convention center…..”Fantasy of Flight’…Moose gave us some pointers on shooting ‘static birds’…and Joe put on a demo on shooting models…….here he has enlisted a few recruits to assist lighting our model properly…

Moose was nearby with another group of NAPP photog’s showing proper panning techniques as those WWII planes stormed up the grass airfield headed out to the ‘ol wild blue yonder….btw that is Moose’s son Jake in the background, Moose acknowledge his son shooting of  ’statics’ as ‘better than mine…’…both can really shoot warbirds and vintage aircraft  that will really tug on your heartstrings……Moose’s tip on aviation panning ?, Hold the lens with your fingertips, you have better control to adjust zoom, and roll lens to change planes flight angle….

After we exhausted ourselves in the mid-day sun, the bus headed out to a private hanger full of p51 Mustangs at Stallion 51 Corporation in Kissimmee,.  Our airfield hosts were spectacular, especially KT, who later dressed up in a WASP era uniform and posed for the camera.  From the feedback of some of the NAPP shooters, this place was a treat.  The hanger was pristine, the planes were all in immaculate shape and the staff was super.

Joe took over the entire flight hanger and began to work his lighting wonders on three P51′s.  Once you start breaking out the ladders to orchestrated the placement of over 13 lights, you know you are in the land of Joe M.  His creative juices were flowing, and here was a bit of challenge for the NY lighting Guru.

Moose had his sights set on those war-birds outside the hanger as the light headed towards the horizon. He was seen crawling the tar mac, with several of us, giving us pointers on how to give these static planes the feeling of flight.

The journey home seemed really quick, our heads were fairly well exploded with the information, images, instructions and thoughts of how we could remember all this stuff, how we could use in once we leave the PSW bubble and WOW !! How fantastic was this opportunity to work with some of the best Photographers on the planet.   They shared as much as they as could and as fast as we asked questions…..True pro’s……..

Photoshop World: It’s Finally Here!

My first Photoshop World Conference & Expo is finally here! Excitement is in the air in Orlando – actually some of it followed me here from Atlanta – I have been excited about this for months! I have done my homework to get prepared for this huge event. But now I realize, I could never be totally prepared because I don’t even know what to expect as a first-time attendee. What I do know is that I have been so impressed with how organized this event is… the way that even though there are more than 2,000 people here (not including Expo attendees) they still have made me feel like it’s a small gathering of friends.

I decided to take advantage of every minute and participated in pre-con workshop. Deciding which classes to take was a tough decision… the “Real Life” On-location wedding, the NAPP Photo Safari, the Real World Concert Photography (I shoot bands/musicians in Atlanta so this would have been awesome) were just a few of the choices I had. But I decided on the Photoshop For Beginners class. I can’t really say I’m a “beginner” since I have been using photoshop for some time now, but since I have never had a “formal” training class and just upgraded to the CS5 (yesterday) I thought this would be a good way to get this experience started. And boy was it! Lesa Snider (istockphoto.com) was a GREAT instructor! She knows what she’s teaching and it shows. I learned all kinds of tricks and tools to give my Photoshop skills a huge boost! The new Content Aware feature is amazing!

I also took advantage of the First-Time Attendee Orientation. NAPP Executive Director Larry Becker gave some great insight of what we can expect this week. Plus he gave some secrets on how to have a better chance of getting into the very popular Midnight Madness with Scott Kelby – a very coveted event from what I hear.  

Then to top it off, I went to my first “Tweet Up” and got to see Scott Kelby and Rafael “RC” Concepcion doing their D-Town show LIVE…that was a very nice bonus to the day.

I can’t wait for the Opening Ceremony & Keynote Address tomorrow. I hear there will be all kinds of surprises….and I LOVE surprises!

Keri is a photographer in Atlanta that specializes in Lifestyle Photography.

www.snappedimages.com

Cyber Monday Photoshop World Deals & More!

If you’re planning to attend Photoshop World next year, don’t miss your chance to save big this Cyber Monday. Simply register for Photoshop World Orlando 2011 on Monday, November 29 and you’ll be able to take advantage of one of the following deals:

OPTION 1: Save an extra $50 off the Early Bird registration rate and receive a FREE book at the Official PSW Bookstore.
Use Promo Code: PW11-CYBMON1

OPTION 2: Register for Photoshop World & receive a FREE $89 Pre-Conference Workshop on Tuesday, March 29, 2011.
Use Promo Code: PW11-CYBMON2

And the outrageous deals and savings extend well beyond Photoshop World!

The National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP) and Kelby Training have joined forces to create some unbelievable one day only deals, including special discounts and offers on the latest books and DVDs on the market, NAPP memberships/renewals and Kelby Training online classes!

Click here to check out all of our Cyber Monday Deals!

Happy Shopping!

What A Difference A Day Makes!

For the first time ever, you can still get the most complete Photoshop and photography training at Photoshop World, even if you can’t commit to all three days of this year’s can’t-miss conference.

To make sure everyone has the chance to get in-depth training and invaluable inspiration from an A-list team of instructors, we’re now offering one-day passes to Photoshop World!

To register, simply review this year’s stellar schedule of sessions and events and pick the day you’d like to attend.

But that’s not all!

You’ll also be able to sign up for a pre-conference workshop or purchase a PSW After-Hours Party ticket. Plus, you’ll be able to enter the Photoshop World Expo, where you’ll discover the latest and greatest photography and Photoshop-related products and have the chance to attend bonus classes.

So even if you can’t commit to all three days but want to get your Photoshop World fix, make sure to sign up for a one-day pass today!

Concert Pre Con / Keynote

It is all Rock and Roll here in Orlando!

From the amazing concert shoot we did yesterday, to the Live NAPP reunion show we saw this morning, everybody seems ready to learn and play. The concert pre con yesterday was amazing. We shot at the keynote stage, which is set up like any big rock concert. Smoke, lights and rock star posing was the order of the day.

That didn’t stop this morning when the reformed NAPP took the stage for their reunion tour. I have never seen anything like it in my life.

Right after the performance, Scott Diussa and I gave the lucky winner of the concert pre con contest a brand new Nikon D300s and 35mm f/1.8 lens. Congratulations to Tom for wining. I must tell you that all the images that we received were great and I hope to get permission to post them here or if any of the attendees are reading this, please post your images to the flickr group for Photoshop World. It is right HERE

Well, it is time for me to get back to the conference, but I will leave you with one more photo of NAPP getting ready for the big reunion…

Don't Miss Real World Concert Photography

PSW update!  The “Real World Concert Photography” workshop with Alan Hess and Scott Diussa is almost sold out! If you’ve ever wanted to learn the finer points of concert photography, you can’t afford to miss this!

You’ll have the chance to learn how to make your photography stand out, even in the most difficult of settings.  Whether you’re dealing with moving lights and subjects, a dark venue or limited access, Alan and Scott will give you expert advice on hitting the right notes!

If that isn’t motivation enough, here are a few more reasons you should  seriously consider signing up for this awesome session:

• The best photo taken during the live concert shoot, as selected by the entire Keynote crowd, will win the new Nikon D300s camera with Nikon’s new 35mm f/1.8 lens.
• Nikon will also have loaner gear available to participants who may want to try out new equipment (camera bodies and lenses) during the shoot.
• You’ll also be shooting a private mini-concert featuring Scott Kelby and Big Electric Cat!

Last month, Alan blogged about this exciting workshop.  Click here to read more about the workshop from the man himself!

Be sure to act now!  There are only FOUR slots open…

Call Customer Service at 800-738-8513 to add this amazing workshop today!