Photo: Colors in Nature

When you get tired of staring at a computer monitor, try this.

Get out and look at some of the colors nature provides for you.

The past two days, I've been staring at computer screens.

Tomorrow, I'm outta here !

Visit my homepage for today's Feature Photo 

How-to Take Winning Screenshots With No Hassles Whatsoever

This post was inspired by many people asking me how to do a screenshot.

Trust me, I am not the brightest light on the Xmas tree when it comes to computers.

My MACS for DUMMIES book just taught me this the other day.

Push SHIFT, COMMAND and NUMBER 3 all at the same time.

The computer makes a CLICK noise just like a DSLR CAMERA.

And, the Screenshot, which is really a JPEG photo, shows up on your monitor.

Windows PC's are a little different.  You can go to Windows HELP and try what they tell you but, I could never understand all the hi-tek talk they use so, I went to this place.

AND GOT SCREENHUNTER 5.1 FOR FREE !

What you see when you double click the Screenhunter 5.1 installed on your desktop is pictured in the photo above.  I always set mine so it's on STANDBY and single hotkey F6.

So, when I'm ready to snatch a screenshot, I just press CTRL and F6 and the thing snaps a shot CLICK and a little window pops up asking me if it's alright to save it on my desktop.

So, I say "OK".  And that's what it does, after I push the OK button.

Here's a screenshot of SOPHIE'S WORLD

Always give credit (Links are best) to anyplace you take screenshots from, or you could wind up in big trouble.  Some people, such as myself, don't take kindly to thievery.

Another hint: It's best to set your browser window to fullscreen before you take the screenshot.

SPLICE TODAY COMES TO MY OFFICE DAILY

Take fullscreen shots, so you have room to edit them later.

I'm hoping that NEWSMAN OVER THERE DON'T MIND MY EDITING.

.

He could take me to court, but probably, already knows, I ain't got no money.

Jim over at HOLES IN MY SOLES well, he knows how it is these days being a cameraman.

After I took this screenshot, I cropped and sharpened it a bit so I can go back and read it later.

SCOTLAND HERE AND NOW

Once you know how to shoot screenshots it's important to learn about filing them.

They will have real long names like, Screenshot, or ScreenHunter_01, 02 May, 18 13:54 .

Before the month is out your whole dashboard will be cluttered up with screenshots and you won't be able to see clearly anymore.  So, get them off the monitor and stick them in  folders.

GOYA REPUBLIC

It's a lot easier to find stuff when you rename the file something like Goya Republic.

Cut and Paste it into a Goya, Scotland, Holes, Splice or Sophie Folder.  Or, a Nov 2011 Folder.

Then, it's easy to find if you ever need it again.

 Doc, I didn't want to leave him out of this demonstration.  So, here he is adding some color and contrast to my blog post today.

Learn how to take winning screenshots on your computer because I'm looking at how to celebrate the 750,000th view on this blog. A screenshot of the event may determine the winner. 

Standby for more.....

Visit the links to my screenshots above and give them a thumbs up, that's what I do !

Calibrate Your Computer Monitor: Here's How (SPYDER)

This will be a quick post to show you what I use and how I use it when I calibrate my monitor.

DISCLOSURE: I OWN THIS PIECE OF EQUIPMENT AND I LOVE IT MORE THAN MY DOGS BUT, NOT AS MUCH AS MY CAMERAS. MAYBE, AS MUCH AS MY WIFE !

It's called the Spyder2express. You simply install the software they give you, plug the USB wire in, and the gadget does everything else for you.  Only they don't tell you to clean the caffine and nicotine stains and chunks of beard off the monitor first. I figured that out after a few times, all by myself.  See, I'm becoming somewhat of a perfectionist lately, instead of becoming a saint.

The lights are on in this picture. Once everything is set-up I turn all the lights off and go outside for about 10 minutes.  Calibration of the monitor should be done in dim lighting or no lighting at all. When you're doing photo editing you shouldn't be sitting in a room of bright lights, either.

Now, you've already plugged into the USB port and your monitor will tell you exactly where to place the Spyder (Only they call it a SENSOR).  It has a fairly long wire going to the USB and may want to slide out of position. They have suction cups on the Spyder's legs but I don't use them. I used to take a clothespin and clamp the wire to the top of my screen.  Then one day I discovered I could just tilt the screen back far enough to keep the Spyder from sliding.  Well, the spyder was heavy enough to make my laptop fall off the bar.  I caught it just in time.  Now, I know enough to put something heavy on my keyboard so the computer doesn't fall. I refuse to use suction cups on my monitor. It gets enough abuse.

The program runs your computer monitor through all kinds of tests. If you hang around and watch it you'll see it turn your screen all different shades of white, red, yellow, green, black and grey. What it's really doing is adjusting and setting you computer's color profiles.

You don't realize it, when you're staring at a monitor everyday, the colors you see are slowly drifting out of whack.  The Spyder people recommend calibrating your monitor once a month.  I calibrate my monitor every two weeks and weekly if I'm doing lots of editing or printing of photos.

When monitor calibration is complete you'll see something like this on your screen.  This is a picture of what my monitor looked like before calibration.

Here's what it looks like after calibration. If your monitor isn't calibrated it's probably hard to see the difference!  Trust me, the difference is significant. It helps get you award-winning photos.

RELATED POST: CALIBRATE YOUR MONITOR: HERE'S WHY


PURCHASE THE LATEST VERSION OF THIS CALIBRATION TOOL FOR LESS THAN $100.00 AT ADORAMA CAMERA SEE THE SPYDER 3 EXPRESS, HERE

Calibrate Your Computer Monitor: Here's Why

This photo was the one that convinced me is was time to buy a gadget for calibrating my monitors.

If you are a digital photographer, designer, or artist and want to see consistent results in your work, monitor calibration is a necessity. If you've ever printed a photo and it turned out looking nothing like what you saw on your computer screen, you are probably way past overdue for a monitor calibration. I do my monitors every two weeks and see the difference immediately.

The photo above was taken during Cherryblossom Season (Feb 2009) in the northern hills of Okinawa, Japan.  The gal standing was an Art Sensei (Teacher) and she had her class doing some sketches.

I was on an assignment for a print magazine and needed their consent to use their photos for publication. So, in exchange for their signature on a model release, I promise to give them a printed copy of a photo. They agreed. I shot a series of photos. In fact, I think I may have shot this one before even asking them. That's the way I operate, sometimes, to get natural-looking photos.

Well, I got home, downloaded the camera and reviewed my shots for the day. I wasn't too happy with the results. I selected three or four photos out of the series with the art class in them and decided to just print them on regular letter paper. Then, if the Art Sensei liked one better than the others, I'd go back and print her a nice, big glossy on A4 sized paper.

This photo came out of my printer and I couldn't believe my eyes. It didn't look anything at all like what I was seeing on my monitor. If I hadn't promised the Sensei a copy of a picture, I would have deleted the whole lot of them. Something was horribly out-of-whack.

It was my monitor calibration. I got online and ordered a gadget to calibrate my monitors the next day. Now, when I tweak colors or contrast on a photo before printing, what I see is what I get.

DO YOU EVER CALIBRATE YOUR COMPUTER'S MONITOR ?  YOU SHOULD !


RELATED POST: CALIBRATE YOUR MONITOR: HERE'S HOW (SPYDER)

PHOTO EXHIBITION

There's lots more involved in being a cameraman than most people realize. Just loading up a bunch of cameras, lenses and accessories then going out trying to capture the Photo of the Century is only a fraction of the job.

Shooting, as we call it, that's the fun part. Getting your photos recognized, that's work. But, your pictures won't get noticed if you do what I used to do when I had a film camera. I'd get them developed and fill up empty shoeboxes with them. See, I was recycling way before it became fashionable.

Every now and then, a photo would strike my fancy and get stuck in a frame or mailed off to someone. A collection of OK shots might have even got put in albums, something that might be worth passing on to the family, but the majority of my film shots are still in shoeboxes, somewhere, weighing the shelves down. The negatives may or may not be with them. But, what the heck, none of the photos were taken professionally.


Nowadays, I know better. Every shot has to be taken professionally. There's no more snapshooting.  Every click of the shutter is preceded by deliberate calculations. Lighting conditions, compostion, exposure, point of view, simplicity, focus, making the subject look its best; that's my sole purpose. And I love it. Taking the picture isn't work for me. It's a challenge but, it's also a pleasure. I love it.

The work part of the job comes when the camera is downloaded. Instead of dropping off the film at a drug store or kiosk somewhere to get processed, it's me and the computer going round and round. And there are many more hours spent in front of a monitor than there were behind the camera. But, the finished product doesn't get stuffed in a shoebox to be dragged out whenever there's a family get together. The original files are stored on DVDs, external hard drives and other places much safer than a shoebox in a closet.

Tiny, web-versions are sent to online publications, entered in contests or emailed to friends. The creme of the crop, they get special treatment. Printed, framed and hung out to dry, they go on exhibit. They get to hang out at places I'm not even comfortable hanging out at and when arrangements are being made the folks email me and call me an artist!

When I go to hang my pictures I try my best to look presentable. Showered, dressed up in slacks and a shirt with sleeves and even put on real shoes, instead of my flip-flops. Then as soon as the photos are hung and we leave the air-conditioned building I tell Doc (Designated Driver), "Lets get outa here and go someplace comfortable, quick"! Its all part of being a cameraman. And I love it.