Michael's Tutoring Blog

It is funny, in the past the subject of color management has not really come up. However now it seems to be coming up all the time. I do a job for a client and they call or email and tell me that the colors does not match what they expect they should look like. When I ask them what they are viewing it on it is usually a laptop and sometimes a desktop system. When I asked if they have any type of calibration for their screen they simply have not idea what I am talking about. Now in the business of customer service the old adage, "The customer is always right" needs to be completely thrown out...

Within recent versions of Photoshop they have refined smart objects and filters. While it seems awkward to adapt and understand them, I urge you to look a little closer. The real strength of "smart" is you are always able to go back and re-edit your information. Very much like the adjustment layers. Also it creates a masking layer. With the masking layer you can choose just how much of the "effect" you want to use, rather than making a complete global change to the layer.

One of the most important things I try and teach students is the difference between white point and white balance. Most believe if you grab your eye dropper and hit the area you believe should be white and click the mouse you will have established your white balance. What you have really done is establish a white point. While the colors might appear to be more "on target and corrected" you actually just through quite a bit of information away. By clicking on what you believe to be white, you have actually created a "white point" A white point is where there is no information at all in the...

The new Photoshop CS6 has some really incredible new features, as well as a faster processing engine. If you do not have a 64 bit computer it might be worth upgrading to. I am really amazed just how robust and fast the the software is. Not only faster but some great new features and filters that you should be aware of. One of the most important things about working in PS or LR is being able to optimize your workflow. There really is no reason to take forever on projects now. I would be happy to share some of my workflow ideas and tips should you be interested. It might be some of the best...

I find it quite helpful to make videos that review what I teach. If I have not done so, I will make a video if I feel a student will benefit.