info@3QuartersToday.com

Making Tulips “Pop” With Photoshop

April 6, 2012 by info@3QuartersToday.com

Photoshop is a powerful photography tool when used properly. My goal for most photo editing is to create an image that doesn’t look like it’s been edited. So let’s render an image of a tulip into something that pops just a little, but doesn’t take it over the edge.

See how subtle editing can improve a photograph without going over the top, as I have a tendency to do sometimes, according to my daughter.

This edit first involved adding a levels adjustment layer and darkening the whole image. I selected the pink color in Image/Adjustment/Selective Color and added more magenta, which brightened the color in the petals.

The white portion of the petals seemed washed out so I then used the Burn tool and stroked over the creases in the bottom of the petal, which brought out the fine streaks. I then used the sponge tool and desaturated the background.

120 Easy Tips And Tricks For Photoshop: Learning Adobe Photoshop CS6 Revealed (Adobe CS6)Adobe Photoshop CS6 Classroom in a Book Adobe Photoshop Elements 13 Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5 Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan (Photoshop CC +

Butterflies and Lilacs: Signs of Summer Already

April 5, 2012 by info@3QuartersToday.com

Taken and posted to WordPress on my Android phone. Was curious on how it would look on the computer compared to my phone. Of course I want to work it up in Photoshop, but I’ll think I’ll leave that for another day.

The Lilacs are Blooming (therousedbear.wordpress.com)
The 13 Best Summer-Blooming Shrubs (reallyhome.wordpress.com)

Meatloaf Cupcakes Recipes Your Kids Will Love

April 4, 2012 by info@3QuartersToday.com

You heard right, it’s a Meatloaf cupcake recipe.

According to my daughter two words that should never be put together. But based on the response from uploading a picture to Facebook I think my Meatloaf Cupcakes with mashed potatoes for frosting deserves some blog time.

I didn’t find this idea on Pinterest, it was a Family Magazine recipe while getting my hair cut, although anyone who wants to Pin this is more than welcome.

Meatloaf cupcakes are actually quite easy. In very simplistic terms, use your favorite meatloaf recipe, bake in muffin tins and frost with mashed potatoes. Easy peasy. They actually make meatloaf cupcake tins now!

Now, for a beginning cook who has never made either, here is my recipe below. Remember I’m a “creative cook”, recipes are used as guidelines and measurements are liberally flexible.

Meatloaf Cupcake Recipe

2 lbs of ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup bread crumbs
2 large eggs
1/2 cup ketchup
Salt & Pepper (1/2 tsp each)
Cupcake tins (didn’t have these so I baked them in regular muffin tins, messier, and not as pretty)

Mix raw ground beef with all the remaining items on the list. Scoop into balls and press into muffin tins. Glaze with ketchup and bake at 350F for 45 minutes.

Since I have posted this Meatloaf Muffin recipe it has become VERY popular on Pinterest. Thank you, everyone, by the way. Now there are multiple stuffed meatloaf muffin recipes and even a special muffin pan designed to drain the fat from the tins, genius I say!

Norpro Nonstick Mini Meatloaf, Muffin Pan Muffin Tin Menus: 47 Fun & Delicious Recipes

Mashed Potato Recipe

4-6 potatoes
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup butter
Salt & Pepper
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

Peel and slice potatoes into 1/2″ pieces.
Boil in a large pot of water (make sure water is at least 1/2″ over potatoes) until easily poked with a fork.
Drain water (save potato water as stock for cooking) and add milk, butter, sour cream, salt and pepper.
Mash all ingredients together with a potato masher, or blender.
Add cheese and mix with wooden spoon until cheese is melted. (add more for cheesier frosting)
Insert mashed potatoes into a piping tube, I used my Pampered Chef decorating tube (did I tell you I got a lot for my wedding)
Top with grated salt and pepper

Options

Top with bacon bits, shredded cheese, or chives.

Find More Meatloaf Cupcake Recipes

Get creative with your meatloaf and your cupcakes. Food doesn’t have to be boring. If you have any meatloaf cupcake recipes you would like to share let me know.

Top 50 Most Delicious Meatloaf Recipes (Recipe Top 50’s Book 74)Meatloaf Recipes: 26 Meatloaf Recipes That Will Make Your Kitchen The #1 Favorite (Rory’s Meat Kitchen)Meet The Meatloaf: Easy and Delicious Meatloaf Recipes Meatloaf Recipes: 28 Must-Eat, Super Easy and Yummy Meatloaf Recipes at Every Meal!

#12/52: Flower Porn and More

April 2, 2012 by info@3QuartersToday.com

Oops, did I really say that? Flower porn? Oh, I said it again. I’m really into Flower porn (not human kind so stop there if you are and just leave), which is very close up shots of naked reproductive parts of flowers, the stamen and pistils or macro photography. I just can’t help it, I have to not only look but point my camera at those intimate detailed parts.

Some of my favorite flowers to expose are Irises, check out my shots from last year.

The secret to good macro photography is plenty of light and a fast shutter speed. With flower photography wind is your enemy and some days you may just need to bring the blooms inside. Expose for the petals to get the texture and details. Try different angles, different lighting, back-lit sun streaming through the petals. Get on the ground and shoot up against the sky. Break out of the boring and stereotypical flower photos.

Use an open aperture under 5.0 and focus on the itty bitty flower sexual parts, you know the ones, deep inside the flower that few people look dare peek when no one is looking.

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How to master the art of flower photography

Spring has finally arrived, and with it some of nature’s most stunning artistry: flowers. A favorite of nature photographers around the world, flowers can be a surprisingly finicky photo subject. Simply snapping a photo in passing doesn’t quite do the …

How does your garden grow? – OCL series offers something for all garderners

“The basics of flower photography will teach how simple changes can make a big difference in personal photographs. Equipment needs from the very basic to more sophisticated camera equipment, including lenses, props, etc., will be covered.” Participants …

Put a spin on flower photography

Spring is only a couple weeks away and that means flowers will be springing up all over the place. For the camera buff the splashes of colors break the monotony of gray days and generates an eagerness to venture out and capture their long-awaited blooms.

25 flower photography tips for beginners | Digital Camera …

Improve your spring photography with these 25 flower photography tips that show you everything from how to compose to how to set your camera.

Spring is Here: Beautiful Flower Photography – PictureCorrect

Just step out of your door and turn around. Someone has planted flowers in front of the building? That could be the perfect place to trigger a few photos! For some unusual and interesting flower photography, take a trip to nature, maybe to park …

31 Incredibly Captivating Flower Photos by Wei-San Ooi

Here are 31 of my absolute favorites from her expansive collection — photographs of flowers that somehow kick the crap out of (a scientific term) 90% of the flower photography we’ve seen — broken down by type of flower for …

Still Evaluating Shooting RAW Photography vs. JPG?

March 30, 2012 by info@3QuartersToday.com

My journey of taking all my photographs in JPG format is over. After experimenting with photo editing between the two formats I will always shoot my RAW photography format (RAW +jpeg setting) photos. I have much more creativity range once I get to the editing or photo processing phase.

One thing I love about Spring in Nebraska is the blooming of spring flowers. I sometimes get so excited about the sun and colors I forget to meter my camera to the new lighting caused by the bright sun. I’m either over exposing or under exposing.

So how do we fix what could be a wonderful picture. If you have a RAW option in your camera you can easily adjust the exposure without causing image degradation or artifacts. If not using Photoshop and adjusting the levels might be your only option. But be warned it doesn’t work on all photos as you can see below.

Did you know that every time you open a jpg file you lose a little bit of digital information in the image? After a few times you don’t notice a difference, but work and rework that file and pixel by pixel it loses detail. (I’m learning just a little bit more and more)

Think of a RAW file as an undeveloped photo, much like film. In a RAW photo editing program you can adjust the exposure, without destroying pixels or the detail.

How to Fix an Underexposed Photo in RAW photography — I know, it’s not sharp either, darned Nebraska wind.

Below is an example of how messy adjusting jpg files can become. In most pictures there is enough texture to “hide” the destruction, but in this night sky the gradient colors quickly become degraded. “Banding” occurs in the color gradients detracting from the night image. With RAW photography files the gradients are smooth.

Ideally I would get the right exposure the first time and not have to adjust, but I’m not quite there yet. Many will argue that every digital image needs some post production to perfect it. What do you think? Do you shoot RAW?

Since I took this shot I have started using Adobe Lightroom to process my RAW images. The program is extremely powerful, yet economical in cost and user friendly.

If you want to learn more about why people take pictures in RAW this photography forum thread is worth reading http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=684360