Paxton Prints FEATURED NEWS
Paxton Prints Site Update : A Hard Choice
I have completely run out of time! There are just not enough hours in the day to keep up! I have *very reluctantly* decided to take a break from posting daily news on Paxton Prints. It hasn't been an easy decision - scouring the web for interesting and useful photography related news has become a huge part of my daily routine. Hopefully nothing else will change. I plan to continue posting new guides and tutorials as time allows. For your daily dose of photography news I highly recommend Imaging Insider and Photo News Today. Each of the archived news pages (going back to September 2006) will remain online; however I plan to remove the main menu link shortly (so bookmark this page if you think you might want to visit the archives in the future).

I want to thank all the readers who have followed this news page for the last 2-1/2 years. You guys have made it so much fun! -Steve
    » Subscribe to the News Feed «     » Send a News Tip « March 12, 2009
Creative ISO Challenge - Win Noise Ninja 2 Pro! | Permalink
PictureCode has graciously offered to donate a Noise Ninja 2 Pro Bundle to the winner of this challenge. The license is good for all versions of Noise Ninja (standalone, Photoshop plug-in, Aperture, and Bibble) on all platforms (Windows, Mac, and Linux).

The challenge is simple: your photographs must have an 800 ISO or higher. Digital noise is the central theme! You can shoot anything you want: landscapes, portraits, streetscapes, urban decay, your cat - we don't care! Enter images that stand out! Images will be judged by the moderators based on creativity and uniqueness. The moderators will choose three of their favorite images and the community will vote for a winner. It's all about digital noise (or film grain) so make it stand out! [read more...]

March 11, 2009
6 Totally Essential Photoshop Skills Even Your Mom Should Know
"Whether you've just installed Photoshop for the first time or know your away around a the Tools toolbar, we put together a few of the most essential Photoshop skills to get you started on your photo editing endeavors." [read more...]

March 11, 2009
Lightroom Adjustment Brush Tip
"There are a few keystrokes you should know to make using the Adjustment Brush easier."
[read more...]

March 11, 2009
Why and How to Use Lightroom to Manage and Edit RAW Images
"Shooting in RAW mode (if your camera allows it) is so much more advantageous than shooting in JPEG. How many times have we heard or read this line? A thousand times or maybe a million times?" [read more...]

March 11, 2009
The Best Hardware for Photo Editing
"The explosion of digital photography, ranging from cell phone cameras to simple point-and-shoot units, up to high-end digital SLRs and medium format cameras, has created an burst of photographic content. It also means that more and more of us are editing our photos on our PCs."
[read more...] [via]

March 11, 2009
Airbrushing Skin
"In this tutorial we'll look at how you can fix your make up after the pictures are taken. This is called airbrushing in the digital editing world. " [read more...]

March 11, 2009
LRG Complete 4: RC 1 Available
"Well, its finally here! There have been many improvements made to LRG Complete 4 that I know you guys will really enjoy!" [read more...]

March 11, 2009
Tips on How to Take the Best Maternity Photos
"Taking the best maternity photos involves good timing. It is also important for photographers to carefully choose who and what to shoot." [read more...]

March 10, 2009
Now You Can Practice With Studio Lighting!
"The main advantage of the studio is the possibility to set up required illumination with the help of special lighting equipment..." [read more...]

March 10, 2009
Baby Photography 101
"The last how-to article I did was on photographing expectant mothers. It only makes sense that we follow that up with how to photograph babies." [read more...]

March 10, 2009
How Black Are Your Blacks?
"The humble Blacks slider plays an important role in allowing you to optimize the contrast of your photos as you process them in the Develop module." [watch the video...]

March 10, 2009
Urban Decay Photoshop Brushes
"Here's a large collection of grungy, dirty and decayed photoshop brushes 61 in all!" [read more...]

March 10, 2009
Canon Tech Tips - Will the Real Chuck Westfall Please Stand Up!
Chuck Westfall's latest Tech Tips are available. [read more...]

March 9, 2009
Wedding Photography 101
"Every reasonably enthusiastic photographer eventually gets asked if they wouldn't mind photographing a wedding. That, my good friends, should be your cue to run. Run for the hills..." [read more...]

March 9, 2009
Photoshop Tip: Holding On To Your History
"The history log in Photoshop lets you keep a running record of every step or change you make to your image..." [read more...]

March 9, 2009
3 Ways to Open PSD Files Without Adobe Photoshop
"PSD extension file stands for Photoshop Document and is related to the Adobe Photoshop application. The .PSD file works only in the Adobe Photoshop as it stores many imaging options available in Photoshop." [read more...]

March 9, 2009
Ten Ways to Improve your Skills
These tips won't make you a pro - but it's solid advice. [read more...]

March 9, 2009
How to Use The Histogram in Digital Photography
Understanding how to read a historgram is one of the single most important concepts of digital photography. [watch the video...]

March 9, 2009
How To Learn Photoshop In 24 Hours
"Quite a bold statement, Learn Photoshop in 24 hours. It's simple and you can." [read more...]

March 9, 2009
Stripping the Metadata from Your Photos
"...strip the metadata (typically the EXIF data) from the photos that they send to a client or post on to the web. " [watch the video...]

March 6, 2009
Is Fine Art a Scam?
"This is a discussion which I'm sure has long been debated between the pros, amateurs, techno-freaks, artists, and everyone in between. I'm sure we've all seen the paintings that have sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars, which..." [read more...]

March 6, 2009
7 Photography Exercises for Brand-New Photographers
"I bought my very first SLR camera about 15 years ago. I knew nothing about photography at the time, so I enlisted the aid of a professional-photographer-friend to come with me to help me choose my camera, and, since I had his attention, teach me a few pointers about photography..."
[read more...]

March 6, 2009
5 Wedding Photography Composition Tips
"Get the first kiss. The first dance is coming up. How do I pose the couple so they don't look so awkward? What should I set my aperture at for group photos? All of these thoughts and more run through my mind when shooting a wedding. With so many things to think about, it's easy to forget about composition." [read more...]

March 6, 2009
Images by Jill Auville
"Jill Auville calls herself an experimental photographer which, while a little vague in some ways, does seem appropriate." [read more...]

March 6, 2009
20 Stunning Infrared Pictures
"Everybody knows we're suckers for photography. From HDR to Polaroids, all these have been featured at some point, here at Abduzeedo. Recently, I've came across a technique that even though not being new, has become popular with digital photography. I'm talking about Infrared Photography." [read more...]

March 6, 2009
A Review of GIMP 2.6.4
"Ars brings you a massive, in-depth review of one of the most popular cross-platform photo editing programs available. And, somewhat ironically for an application that shares a name with the chained-up guy from Pulp Fiction, it's completely free." [read more...]

March 5, 2009
The Google Way - and How It Devalues Photography
"Google is great for Google, but it's terrible for content providers, because it divides that content quantitatively rather than qualitatively. And if you are going to get people to pay for content, you have to encourage them to make qualitative decisions about that content." [read more...]

March 5, 2009
Window Light Technique
Dave Cross explains how to add a realistic window light in Photoshop. [read more...]

March 5, 2009
20 Beautiful Vintage Photoshop Brush Sets
"In this round-up, you'll find 20 vintage Photoshop brushes you can download for free. There are over 300 individual vintage brushes here, so you will have a broad choice of brushes to apply onto your designs." [read more...]

March 5, 2009
Another World Lightroom Preset
"A slightly HDR-esque set of Lightroom presets to enhance your photos." [read more...]

March 4, 2009
Wedding Photographer Commits Suicide After Depts Pile Up
"The 40-year-old killed himself after his wedding photography business collapsed, leaving him with unmanageable debts." [read more...]

March 4, 2009
Window Side Lighting Photography
"The Studio Coach Jean Francois-O'Kane discusses portrait photography using a window side lighting setup." [read more...]

March 4, 2009
Hi-Res Textures Pack of Four
"I'm 20 and I am from Portugal! I love Art and Design XD. The big reason that inspires me to make textures is that my work is based on them! And every time I create or photograph a new texture, I'm opening a door to infinite results!" [read more...]

March 4, 2009
New Window Opens on Camera Sensor Cleaning
"Its four battery-powered LEDs illuminate the sensor, and unlike rival products such as VisibleDust's Sensor Loupe, a gap in the side allows you to clean off the sensor." [read more...]

March 3, 2009
Sorting, Rating and Labeling Images in Lightroom:
New Column at Paxton Prints | Permalink
I just published the fourth part in my in-depth series on Lightroom. The column covers sorting, rating and labeling your images. I also suggest several ways for backing up your work. This column is packed full of Lightroom goodness! [read more...]

March 3, 2009
Camera Raw 5.3 and Lightroom 2.3 Available
Adobe released an update for Camera Raw 5.3 and Lightroom 2.3. It fixes a number of problems including a memory leak issue. Download the updates directly from Adobe. [read more...]

March 3, 2009
Improved Grayscale Conversions
"In this movie I wanted to show how you can also fine-tune the Grayscale conversion setting by combining these with Camera Calibration panel adjustments." [watch the video...]

March 3, 2009
Cardboard Textures
"This is a free pack of cardboard textures you can use for anything you want. I hate strict licenses you know! Just don't claim it as your own or resell it (but you can use it in commercial projects)." [read more...]

March 3, 2009
10 Ways to Take Stunning Portraits
"I want to look at some ways to break out of the mold and take striking portraits by breaking (or at least bending) the rules and adding a little randomness into your portrait photography."

March 2, 2009
HDR Contest Finalists - Vote For a Winner!
The HDR challenge is officially closed - thanks to everyone who participated! There are so many great images to choose from - making it tough to pick three finalists. I want to emphasize that I was impressed with everyone. High Dynamic Range photography is tricky and you guys posted some great work.

Please take a moment to vote for your favorite image. The winner will receive an unrestricted version of Photomatix! [read more...]

March 2, 2009
The Missing Photoshop Help Manuals
"Way back when, Photoshop came with printed manuals. Once we got to the Creative Suite days, the standalone version of Photoshop still included one, but the suite versions dispensed with printed manuals and..." [read more...]

March 2, 2009
CreativeTechs: Photoshop Ten Week Course
"On February 26, CreativeTechs kicked off the first class of our free 10-week Photoshop Course." The first few topics are available: March 1, 2009
Paxton Prints Image Stolen and Displayed on Flickr!
Tell Him What You Think!
I thought I would leverage the power of my awesome readers (there's tons of you out there!) and ask you to head over to Flickr and tell this guy to remove my image! He simply trashed it! The EXIF data containing my copyright tipped me off via a Google Alert within 4 hours of it being posted. This one has been ripped off multiple times - and it's a favorite of my son! This certainly isn't the first time this has happened. If you have a Flickr account, consider logging in and telling this guy to remove the image! You guys rock! [read more...]

Update: Thanks to everyone who commented! It looks like Flickr removed the page (you can see a copy of it here). This guy's Flickr stream is here. Thanks again!

Paxton Prints